News from around the clubs - November 27

Bexhill Club of Past Rotarians

At the November meeting members stood in memory of Len Rashbrook. Len was club president in 1981 and one of four ex-mayor members of our club.

He is fondly remembered by a wide circle of friends as an excellent bowler and a champion consumer of biscuits.

The club visit was to the Royal Hospital Chelsea, home of the famous Chelsea Pensioners: this is surely unique in this age of superficiality.

It was founded in 1682 by King Charles II for the 'succour and relief of veterans broken by age and war' and it still performs that function. However, this is no group of 'almshouses' or Victorian- style accommodation for the poor.

This is a splendid set of buildings, including a chapel, designed by Sir Christopher Wren. Its elegant design is complemented by the peaceful atmosphere of the site, even though it is just a few minutes' walk away from commercial Chelsea '“ Kings Road, Sloane Square and so on.

About 300 old soldiers live there and enjoy a quality of life, including comradeship, that is a rare and precious commodity in this modern age.

On our visit, we were conducted around the buildings by an old soldier '“ Ken '“ whose enthusiasm and skill as a guide could not have been surpassed.

The institution may date from the 17th century but Ken wore the insignia of wings and a parachute on his splendid scarlet coat '“ you could not get much more up to date than that!

Even that was matched by the recent introduction of ladies into the hospital, keeping up with the practice in today's armed forces.

Chelsea's Royal Hospital absorbs the relaxed customs and practice of modern society while retaining the dignity, order and discipline of its traditions.

Things past and famous continued to be the subject at our club meeting.

The Cutty Sark has also become established as a British institution. Our speaker, Mr R McKenna, described this famous tea (and later wool) clipper from its beginning to the present restoration after the fire of 2007, which was caused by an electrical fault.

She was built at Dumbarton-on-the-Clyde and launched in 1869. Her name '“ meaning 'short shirt' '“ comes from Burns' poem Tam-o-Shanter.

After the building of the Suez Canal, sailing ships lost out to steam because they could not pass through the canal.

Mr McKenna gave some graphic details of the life, food, hardships and risks associated with serving aboard her and of conditions for the crew, who slept on bunks of 2ft by 6ft and lived largely on salt pork. When they could get some pot-bellied Vietnamese pigs, they had fresh meat. The officers kept live chickens in coops on deck.

The ship remained in service of various forms until she was moved to the special dry dock at Greenwich in 1954. She will be open again for visitors from spring 2011.

Cooden Millennium Afternoon Guild

OUR chairman, Kay Murphy, welcomed 50 members to our November meeting.

We also had two visitors and the pleasure of the company of Angela Sheppard and Linda Burton from the federation.

With another year almost upon us, the chairman asked members for suggestions for speakers on subjects of interest and ideas for the monthly competition for inclusion in our 2010 programme.

With the darker days approaching, Kay reminded members that we would begin meetings promptly at 2pm.

The luncheon club has been very successful, and our visit to the White Hart at Netherfield was greatly enjoyed.

With the many Christmas activities the luncheon club will not meet until possibly February.

We have an outing to Lancing College Chapel on December 8, leaving at 5pm.

The coffee morning given by Mrs B Lindsay raised 75 for our charity '“ St Michael's Hospice '“ which, when added to money already collected, makes a total so far of 406.

We also have about 80 in the charity jar.

The Little Common Morning Guild has invited two of our members to its meeting on the November 26 at 10.30am, when the drama group will be performing.

Coffee and mince pies will be served.

The Meads Guild in Eastbourne has also invited two members to its Christmas meeting on December 4.

The 2010 annual meeting of the guild will be held in Birmingham in June. Members are invited to attend. A four-day visit has been arranged from June 12 to 15, which will include a visit to the Severn Valley Railway, a concert by the Birmingham Symphony Orchestra and other events.

This break will cost 309, to cover travel, dinner, bed and breakfast, and some other fees.

After tea we had a bingo session, which raised many laughs with some members not acquainted with the mysteries of the game. The raffle was the final event, with some lovely pot plants as prizes.

Our next meeting will be on Wednesday, December 2 at 2pm, when we welcome members new and old.

ATS/WRAC Association

PC 'Bunny' Warren walked in on our November 5 meeting and brought with him a number of leaflets put out by the Safer Rother Partnership and East Sussex Trading Standards, showing us how we can buy with confidence from selected traders, etc.

These leaflets were distributed among members and make interesting reading, with information and advice about cold callers. We were very pleased to see him. The first time he called was to give us a talk about his work and he has dropped in a couple of times since, always with something to give to us or with words of advice.

Once, he brought with him a special constable called Caroline, and this month he brought with him a friendly young lady called Jackie Streeter, who gave us a completely unrehearsed short talk about her work as a community support officer, when we learned that, among other things, she goes to schools and clubs, attends neighbourhood disputes and keeps an eye on vulnerable adults.

It seems as though, at long last, we are going back to what we have for so long missed: good, old-fashioned, community policing, with the bobby a visible presence on the beat '“ wonderful!

By the way, I am not giving away any secrets when I say that the Beavers (the most junior members of the Scout movement) on Bunny's patrol area have made a hero of him.

We took to the meeting photographs of ourselves in uniform from the dark ages '“ well, 1939 onwards. Some of us were recognisable and some were not, but the pictures were interesting and caused a lot of comment.

Our next meeting will be on December 3, when we will be holding our Christmas tea party, with cakes, mince pies and sausage rolls brought by members for us all to eat there.

The competition will be for the prettiest or most attractive Christmas cracker and the prizes will be provided out of club funds.

See you then.

Little Common Ladies' Club

Our meeting on Wednesday, October 28 was our annual harvest festival supper.

It was a members-only occasion and 65 members were greeted by the committee to a spectacular setting of sparkling candles, elegant table decorations and a variety of mouth-watering food.

The committee is responsible for this evening each year and seems to manage to make the occasion even better than the previous year, and this year was no exception.

We had a number of thank-you letters, which indicated that everyone enjoyed themselves.

Our next meeting is on November 25. The speaker will be Joy Hughes talking about her experiences as lady mayor.

We meet at the Little Common Community Centre at 7.45pm. New members will be given a warm welcome.

Bexhill Senior Club For The Over-55s

Members delved into their wardrobes to support this month's country and western-themed social evening, resulting in a good display of stylish cowboytype hats, jeans and even some tooled boots.

The foot-tapping dance music was enthusiastically appreciated, as was the traditional cowboy supper of pork and beans. A very-much- enjoyed occasion.

The club's diary is, as usual, very busy, with the November Bournemouth holiday, the forthcoming choir's Christmas concert on December 3 (tickets need to be obtained early for this popular and always very-well-attended event) and a Christmas lunch.

In addition, there is an Isle of Wight spring holiday to look forward to in March.

In the meantime, all the various activity groups continue to thrive.

The club's extensive refurbishment programme is nearing completion: the hall is looking very smart with its new attractive curtaining to the stage and windows, together with newly-built comfortable storage bench seats cushioned in matching material.

In addition, the coffee lounge has been redecorated, the ladies' cloakroom retiled, the kitchen completely refitted and new carpet laid almost throughout the premises.

The club's exterior has also benefited, with the front area laid to paving blocks to form an attractive and useful area.

This is a large, lively, friendly club offering a very wide range of activities and events to suit most people.

For more details please telephone 01424 212911 or call into the office at 45 Eversley Road, Bexhill, any weekday between 10am and midday.

Society of Bexhill Museums

On Tuesday November 17 a party of 46 museum members and their guests travelled by coach from Bexhill to the White Hart Inn at Netherfield for luncheon.

The journey there was spectacular with the sun shining brightly, enhancing the leaves on the trees, turning them to autumn gold.

Awaiting us at the inn, the tables were invitingly laid out for our forthcoming meal.

The choice of menu was very good, and the food was excellent and efficiently served. Everyone appeared to be in good spirits with plenty of animated conversation.

After a couple of hours, our coach driver was ready to return us to Bexhill, dropping us off at our various stops along the way.

If you would like to know more about our activities, or to make new friends, please come along to the church hall in Parkhurst Road at 10am on Thursday, December 3, for our Christmas coffee morning.

Bexhill and District Branch Aircrew Association

Warm tributes have been paid to Barbara Rogers, a loyal supporter of the branch, who passed away in October.

Having set up home with her husband John throughout his RAF career in many locations at home and abroad including the Far East, Western Europe, and behind the Iron Curtain before retiring to Bexhill, she was renowned for her kindness, creativity and artistic talent. We extend our warmest sympathy to John and his family.

At our monthly meeting on Monday, November 16, the Rev Daniel Smith drew upon a remarkably diverse and eventful career to give an amusingly absorbing account of his progression from boyhood in Michigan to his current vocation as curate at St Peter's church. Having inherited a fascination with aviation from a family which was actively involved in private flying, Daniel joined the United States Air Force and qualified as a paramedic.

After undergoing on-the-job training at Travis Air force Base in California he was posted to Upwood in Cambridgeshire where his duties were diversified to include airfield defence and rapid runway repair.

Like many of his American colleagues he became well integrated into the local community and it was there that he met his future wife, Zoe.

They kept in touch for two years when he was posted to Lajes Airbase in the Azores and were married after he returned to England on completion of his USAF engagement.

After working for the NHS in Reading he read Theology at Oxford and subsequently was ordained into the Church of England.

Having completed four years at St Peter's Church, during which time he was appointed Honorary Chaplain to Bexhill RAFA, Daniel will be moving on in the spring to become a Chaplain in the Royal Air Force. We wish him and his family every success in the future.

Our next monthly meeting is at 11am on Monday, December 14. The branch Christmas lunch will take place at Cooden Beach Golf club at 12.30pm for 1pm on Monday December 21.

Bexhill and District Gardens and Allotments Society

WELL, Dick Lancaster has done it again! For the annual long weekend to Maidenhead we set off in sunshine and it continued throughout the weekend.

Our first stop was at Guildford Cathedral for coffee and refreshments. We journeyed on to Ascot races where the gamblers could win or lose either way. During the afternoon we were served with a delightful tea. From Ascot we journeyed to our hotel in Maidenhead.

On Saturday we visited the picturesque Frogmore House and Saville Gardens, both really splendid in the sunshine. Sunday started with a cruise up the River Thames which included a ploughman's lunch and then was followed by an afternoon visit to Eton College. Monday we paid a visit to Windsor Castle followed by free time in Windsor and then on to the Mercedes museum on the way home. All in all a splendid weekend enjoyed by all.

Rotary Club of Senlac

THE Rotary Club of Senlac welcomed county councillor Trevor Webb, who opened proceedings, with a brief outline of his involvement with the Migrants Project (Links Project), followed by Mark Tizanski, chairman, Migrants Project.

Local churches were instrumental in leading the way towards formation of the Migrants Project. Asylum seekers enter the UK with the clothes worn and little finance and limited skills, therefore requiring assistance entering sea ports.

It is approaching 40 years since the 1971 Immigration Act, which has received 10 revisions for purpose of maintaining control.

Being vulnerable people, language is a barrier.

Since 1999 there have been disposal areas for asylum seekers within the south east, mainly Kent and Sussex (ports of entry) '“ areas affected being Hastings, Brighton, Portsmouth and Southampton. Responsibility rests with local government.

The ethnic population has increased, although numbers are relatively low in Hastings and St Leonards as a disposal area.

Many interpreters are needed to strengthen borders (Dover and France).

A churches group operated to assist asylum seekers to provide a kind and generous 'drop-in'.

A good network of worker agencies are available to be used. A care trust with a structure and formal constitution directed by a chairman was legitimate.

Non-judgmental nature of support was to show 18 to 35-year-olds ways to learn rules, learn language and to eat well within budget to prevent ill-health (Primary Care Trust), through support, having somewhere to live. Survival was assessed to be 30 per cent below state benefits! Migrants to area required informality and wished to distance themselves and not be 'labelled'. Concerning European migration '“ European Union, 2004 '“ it was for persons to live and work where they chose. New challenges presented themselves; migrants presented a bigger difficulty than asylum seekers! Working with disadvantaged persons was a rewarding experience.

Drop-ins administered by a part-time manager required support by volunteers.

Numerous questions followed. It was believed migrants viewed the United Kingdom as a place to be protected, was cosmopolitan, a destination for opportunity and a wish that local citizens know they are grateful. Thanks were offered by Rotarian Peter Stiles who acknowledged the work the Migrants Project was contributing to life within the community and attempts to offer support where needed.

To conclude the evening a cheque presentation (300), was made by the president, John Relfe to John Hassell, headteacher at Glyne Gap School, as part proceeds from a jazz concert, held in the open earlier during the summer.

Mention was made of the various disabilities associated with more than 100 pupils serviced by 84 staff who were extremely talented and committed to purpose. As a beacon school there was a need for support within community working alongside parents and grandparents.

To join Rotary, call Peter Stiles on 01424 733692

Bexhill Artists' Workspace

As the outdoor art workshops come to a close this year our autumn and winter programme of events begins.

Our autumn exhibition and Christmas sale takes place on Saturday from 10-4pm in Parkhurst Hall, Bexhill. Local artists will be displaying original art, designs and crafts in an exhibition, with stalls alongside selling gifts for Christmas. There will also be seasonalrefreshments. Entrance is free.

As a group we continue to display work in the Lemon Tree cafe in Western Road, Bexhill, and would like to both thank Vanessa and wish her well for all her support at this time.

Autumn/winter workshops have begun with sessions covering Batik, monoprinting, calligraphy and willow sculpture are on offer. They are held on two Tuesdays each month at St Peter's Community Centre, Old Town, Bexhill '“ 2 a session (non members can join BAW for only 7.50 a year) '“ for more information contact the secretary on tel 730619.

BAW now has its own website - for more informattion visit www.bexhillartistsworkspace.web.com

New members are always welcome to join an expanding local art group that will be developing and expanding further over the next year - hopefully with news of a link to a permanent exhibition/art area.

Bexhill and Hastings United Nations Association

Nine lively students from Pestalozzi International Village, Sedlescombe, performed enthusiastic dances and dramas for Bexhill and Hastings UN Association on November 21. Outstanding were an Indian girl's classical dancing from her country; another girl from Nepal doing a speedy, mobile routine from her nation; and three African lads in hard hats doing a dance aimed at stressing the need for unity between races. The next branch meeting is at Parkhurst Hall, Bexhill, on Saturday, February 20, at 10.30am. Christian peace activist John Lynes will speak on Peacemaking in the Middle East.

Bexhill Conservative Club

AN "amazing" 535 was raised during a charity race night at Bexhill Conservative club. The event, arranged by John Tollett, was in aid of CRY '“ cardiac risk in the young. It was held in support of Jackie and Russell Haggerty from Cooden Drive who lost their teenage son James to an undiagnosed cardiac condition and who are raising money for this charity which funds research and the supply of diagnostic equipment to hospitals.

Society of Bexhill Museums

A wild windy day on November 18, but that did not deter a large audience who were keen to hear the lecture given by architect Peter Bareham on Landscape 1834 to 2009. This was to complement the current architectural exhibition at the De La Warr Pavilion.

Mr Bareham, an entertaining speaker, had many excellent slides. As a landscape architect he feels strongly that not enough credit was given to how prestigious projects, particularly modem buildings, are set in their landscape, be they small or large. Before the Institute of Landscape Architects came into existence in 1929, garden design passed through many styles. The design of New York's Central Park was heavily influenced by Joseph Paxton's Birkenhead Park of 1843.

Many garden styles were covered including the work of William Robinson (1880s), the team of Lutyens and Jekyll in the early 20th century and the 1930s designs of Christopher Tunnard, whose landscape work for Chermayeff at Halland is a fine example. The interesting idea of major roof gardens, like those of Derry and Toms (still in place since 1938), and Harveys of Guildford (1956), still continues with designers today. We were shown town landscapes of the 1950s and 1960s such as the Barbican and those of the New Towns, based on ideas from Stockholm, through to the interior planting of the mid-1970s commercial blocks. The Thames Barrier Park was shown to tempt us to visit this very fine example of the landscape designer's art.

The next St Augustine's lecture is on December 2 at 2.30pm, by Cliff Deane on the natural history of Rye Harbour. Visitors welcome, 3, to include refreshments.