THE NEWSLETTER OF THE

ROTARY CLUB OF SANDBACH MAY/JUNE 2016

CROSSTALK

WHAT’S INSIDE?

Only here for the beer p.2

Demise of special agent p.3

Secret from a certified location p.5

Hovey family “By Appointment” p.6

Spotlight on young people p.9

Life amidst the daffodils p.9

Caffeine raises awareness p.11

CLUB CONTACTS

President: Richard Hovey

01270 762302 Secretary: Tim Bramwell

01270 766638 Membership: Phil Niddrie

Communications/Public Relations/

Crosstalk editor: John Higgins 01270 763037

CHECK OUT OUR WEBSITE

www.sandbach-rotary.org.uk

for more stories, reports, pictures and information about our club

Webmaster: Bal Unnithan

Rotary Club of Sandbach Chartered 1945

District 1285 RI 6140

RIBI 5546

Next edition 13th July

Items for inclusion to johnhiggins40@outlook.com

Grace receives Citizen of the Year award.

Comment …

from President Richard Hovey

Rotary relies on the printed word to

publicise its activities and gain support for

projects and fundraising. Seventy years

ago when our club started up the local

newspapers would have been printed using

physical type, with photographs a

rarity. As our President Elect told us in one

of his job talks, the world of typesetting has

moved on. The local press can accept

electronic press releases from local

organisations together with colour

photographs without a word being changed,

though reporters and subeditors usually

feel the need to rework most reports.

Ten years ago a Club website would be a

novelty, now it is an established part of the

club, with the regular emails from Bal with

links to the various new pages, reporting

club trips, cheque presentations, events

and activities. This all promotes openness

about our organisation and activities.

Information published on the internet is

accessible around the world and can be

read in multiple languages at the click of a

mouse. It can also be enlarged or

converted to speech to assist those with

poor eyesight.

2

Calendar

Wednesday meetings

May

4th May: Speaker (John Middleton)

11th May: Speaker (Phil Niddrie)

18th May: Business meeting

25th May: Club Assembly

June is Rotary Fellowship month

1st June: Speaker (Max Leese)

8th June: Fellowship

15th June: Speaker (Bill Whittaker)

22nd June: Speaker (Rosemary Twidale)

29th June: Business meeting

Looking ahead

7th May: District Assembly

13/14th May: Swimathon

26th June: District Brunch

6th July: Club President Handover

Birthdays

Stuart Blackwell (3rd May)

Keith Ludlam (7th May)

Dave Lewis (14th May)

Cyril Martlew (18th May)

Bill Coupe (23rd May)

Andy Wilkie (29th May)

Keith Merry (30th May)

Paddy Paddock (16th June)

Wedding anniversaries

Gaurang and Ila Dave (6th May)

Dave and Ginny Lewis (29th May)

Bill and Marie Whittaker (23rd May)

John and Margaret Middleton (12th June –

Diamond Wedding Anniversary)

Photographs in this edition were supplied

by Bal Unnithan, Grace Milner,

Nicola Bramwell, Lynn Treadway

and John Higgins

Where will the newspaper industry be in

another 10 years’ time? Will we be able to

afford news printed on paper or will it all be

delivered to our screens? Who will control

the archive of the news? At present anyone

can keep news cuttings on paper - will that

still be possible in an electronic world?

Whatever happens I suspect they will still

have the power to change my surname

from Hovey to Povey!

Can I thank our communications and

publicity team for their work over the

years, and everyone who is able to submit

reports towards the production of Crosstalk.

Richard

Call yourselves a business?

Steve Davies, owner of the Beer Emporium

in Sandbach, was our speaker in March.

Steve said that in 2007 he decided that he

had had enough of working in social

housing and planned to take on a pub or to

open a bottle shop.

He settled on the latter and after looking

for a suitable location – there were no

empty shops in Sandbach in 2007 – opened

a shop in Burslem. He said that the location

was wrong and later moved to the former

butcher’s shop in Welles Street.

He said that Cheshire has 26 breweries,

including Haslington and Arclid, and there

are about 1600 breweries in the country.

Contrasted with that is the fact that 15

pubs are closed every week. He said that

the beer shops, now increasing in number,

are filling the gap.

He explained how tastes are changing.

The traditional bitters don’t sell but hoppy

pale ales are very popular and hops can

now be grown with fruity flavours. Steve

said that he stocks 585 different beers.

He made the decision not to sell cans in

the shop and when a young man came in

and complained saying, “Call yourselves an

off-licence? You’ll never stay in business”,

he almost printed the comment and put it

in the window, so far was it from the truth.

He said his success had been to create a

niche business: somewhere between the

pubs and the supermarkets.

Sandbach was an ideal place for the

business, he said. There is free parking,

many small shops and it has so much going

for it.

Steve ended by saying that two months

ago he and his wife decided to retire and

the business has been sold – to someone

who they think will carry on and develop

their ideas.

3

A Life in Books In March, John Higgins spoke about how

some books featured at different times of

his life.

He said that the family home in which he

grew up only had a Bible - no other books -

but he now lives with over 1,500 books in

his 'library'!

One book he remembers being purchased

was 'Enquire Within' - a book of general

information – and he read the entry from

the medical section on rheumatic fever.

John contracted this disease at the age of 8

and was confined to 9 months of bed rest –

to lessen the chance of damage to the

heart - and a year off school without

education.

During this time he was an avid listener to

the radio and said he heard the first

broadcast of 'The Archers' in 1950 but was

annoyed that it replaced Dick Barton

(Special Agent).

When he returned to school, he helped

himself to the 'book box' - a kind of

lending library - and soon became addicted

to reading.

Later, a homework assignment on

'Treasure Island' taught him a life-long

lesson about not wasting resources. With

an interest in electronics 'The Boy

Electrician' was a book on constant loan

from the local library.

He studied Anthony Trollope's 'The

Warden' as the set text for “O” level English

Literature at Wolstanton Grammar School

but only came to appreciate that book

many years later - he firmly believes that

there is a right time in one's life for a

certain book as one undergoes experience

of life. At that time he was also not ready

for what else he had to study - Keats'

poems and Shakespeare’s The Tempest!

St Mark and St John College Chapel, 1841

John attended the College of St Mark and

St John, University of London, to train as a

teacher and enjoyed living in Chelsea. He

found some of the lectures uninspiring and

showed a Psychology text book which had

been written in the 1920s. In the first term

he substituted several visits to the Classic

Cinema on the Kings Road for lectures.

Although studying Physical Sciences his

extra-mural interests were in music and he

sang in the College Chapel choir and

enjoyed the opportunity to sing in a

number of interesting venues including St

Paul's Cathedral and the Royal Albert Hall.

In 1962 he applied to Alsager School for a

Science-teaching post but found himself, in

his first year, teaching maths and some

music. Piano players were much in demand

in schools! Later he became Head of

Science and had a book entitled 'Handbook

of Suggestions for Teachers', from that

time, which looked to me remarkably thin

for such a momentous subject!

A year at the University of Keele, studying

counselling was followed by eight years as

a School Counsellor at Holden Lane High

School in Stoke. After this he became

Deputy Head for three years at Henbury

High School, Macclesfield. Next, he joined

the brand-new Holmes Chapel

Comprehensive in its inaugural year as a

Deputy Head, and followed the first intake

of pupils all the way through school.

His last post was as Head of Sir Thomas

Boteler High School, Warrington, housed in

a listed Art Deco building. It was while

working here, in 1993, that the Warrington

IRA bombs exploded, killing two young

boys. Together with the Head of Great

Sankey School, John formed links with Irish

schools, worked with the Institute of Irish

Studies at Liverpool University and became

involved in the setting up of the Warrington

Peace Centre with Colin Parry.

33 down, 6 to go!

During the later years of his career John

had to read many reports relating to the

National Curriculum and he said that in any

spare time he had he tended to read

vintage crime and espionage. He revealed

that he collects copies of Buchan’s 'The 39

Steps' and now has 33 different editions.

As usual, John told his story with humour

and as well as it being of interest to fellow

members, we all thoroughly enjoyed his

talk.

Rosemary Twidale

4

Citizen Grace

The award of Citizen of the Year 2016 was

given to Grace Milner, President of the

Sandbach Interact Club.

In giving the citation Rtn Rosemary

Twidale said that in the past, the Citizen of

the Year award had been given to people

with a long history of community service.

Grace had, of course, not got this long

history, but what she had done in a short

space of time had been remarkable.

She was the prime mover-and-shaker

behind the setting up of the Interact Club

based at Sandbach High School and was

voted in as President by the other

members.

Grace receives the award watched by her

mum with Mayor Gill Merry and Rosemary.

The club, under her leadership, had taken

part in our Rotary Swimathon to raise

money for WaterAid and St Luke's Hospice.

Members worked hard for this, and all

improved their swimming! They also helped

entertain visitors to the Rotary

International Summer Camp at Petty Pool

Outdoor Centre. Grace has given

presentations about the Interact Club to

District Council meetings and also at the

annual 1285 District Conference in

Southport last October - which can't have

been easy, said Rosemary.

She attended a Rotary Youth Exchange

Summer camp in Austria where the aims

were to learn some German language, gain

an idea of Austrian culture and enjoy a

range of outdoor activities. This was a trip

which she really enjoyed and she

appreciated meeting and befriending young

people from other countries.

The Interact Club has taken part in many

community activities in Sandbach, working

with the Tidy Town Group litter-picking,

weeding, planting bulbs, painting railings,

and also redecorating Sandbach Station.

Grace, together with Ramina, attended the

Community Pride Awards last year,

representing Interact.

In September the group took part in

Sandbach Today to promote the work of

Interact to the public. They helped at the

Halloween Fun event in Elworth Park by

leading the procession around the park and

by judging pumpkins which had been

carved by the children. They also helped

clear up afterwards.

They have raised money for other

charities in different ways. A car wash

raised £75 for Cancer Research UK and

they are also fundraising for Mary's Meals

and Sandbach Animal Rescue. Members

visit St Stephen's Care Home and plan to

provide company and entertainment for the

residents.

Rosemary concluded by saying that Grace,

as President of Sandbach Interact, had

represented her club (and in so-doing, our

Rotary Club), her school, her town and her

country and had proved to be a brilliant

ambassador for young people. She said, “I

think she's enjoyed herself too and we wish

her well for the future. With her positive

mental attitude she should do well in

whatever she plans and hopefully other

young people will learn from her excellent

example.”

In receiving the award from President

Richard, Grace thanked the Rotary Club

members for the support they had given to

her and to the foundation of the Interact

Club. She also paid tribute to the members

of Sandbach Interact Club – now 30-strong

– who were always enthusiastic and keen to

be involved.

Not yet begun to fight

John Paul Jones 1747 – 1792

Our caravanning activities these days are

limited but, when we do venture out, we

look for small sites – the Caravan Club’s

Certified Locations that are not allowed to

take more than five caravans.

Our handbook details such a site at

Kirkbean on the Solway coast, about 15

miles south of Dumfries. It is described as

being at the John Paul Jones Museum. We

found this to be a typical crofter’s cottage

with an adjoining rose garden, donated and

maintained by an American Rotary Club.

On the wall of the cottage is a bronze

plaque inscribed “To our hero John Paul

Jones from the daughters of the American

Revolution” – a national ladies social

5

organisation – and a small film unit arrived

there one morning.

The museum was closed for the period of

our stay there but our enquiries revealed

that Jones was a Scotsman who went to

sea at the age of 12 and at 21 became the

ship’s master with the newly-formed

American navy.

In 1776 (2 years after the beginning of

the American Revolution) he sailed his ship,

the Providence, along the Atlantic coast

capturing British ships and sinking eight

more. He then made a spectacular cruise

through the Irish Sea where he captured

several more. Having been assigned to a

large American vessel, he intercepted a

merchant fleet and, although out-gunned

by an escort vessel, he forced its surrender

after a fierce battle, answering its challenge

to surrender with, “I have not yet begun to

fight.” His ship sank soon after and he

sailed two British prizes to the Netherlands.

In 1790 he retired, in ill health, to France

and died there at the tender age of 45

having been awarded the Croix de Guerre

by the French who were delighted at his

exploits against their sworn enemies. He

was also decorated by Catherine of Russia

for his assistance in Russia’s struggle

against Turkey. He received no such

decoration from the British!

As a British subject, Scotland having been

united with England by the Act of Union

1707, he would have been tried for treason

(if they had been able to catch him) and

suffered a very nasty death.

The TV programme “Coast” recently

featured a small US detachment coming

ashore at Whitehaven – an annual event to

commemorate Jones’s efforts to burn the

British fleet, the ships being tied together in

the harbour. On this occasion, however,

Jones failed in his attempt as heavy rain

prevented him from getting a fire going!

No doubt you will agree that his whole

career is stranger than fiction!

Incidentally, my daughter and her

husband are now taking bookings for their

holiday let in Jones’s home area – a

recently acquired former church hall,

beautifully converted and extended,

sleeping 6 in luxurious accommodation. You

can view Old Church Hall, New Abbey at

www.cottages4you.co.uk

Cyril Martlew

Water ways

Mark Barker, representing WaterAid, made

a return visit to the club in April to receive

a cheque for £600 from Past President

Gaurang. WaterAid was one of Gaurang’s

nominated charities last year and the

money was raised at the Swimathon.

Mark said that Rotary had supported

WaterAid for 30 years and had contributed

about £100,000 per year. For 20 years

projects had been carried out in Tanzania

and for the last 3 years in Zambia.

Gaurang hands over the cheque to Mark.

He explained that in September 2015 the

UN General Assembly agreed 17 Global

Goals to replace the Millennium Goals set

by world leaders in 2000. They cover issues

including hunger, health, education and

gender equality. Access to clean water and

safe toilets can improve every aspect of a

person’s life, said Mark, from their health

and wellbeing to their education,

employment opportunities and family life.

Mark said that monitoring bodies have

been set up so that governments and

leaders can be held to account. The

commitment is for everyone to have access

to clean water and sanitation by 2030.

6

70 years of service

The Club’s 70th Charter Celebration Dinner

was held at the Masonic Hall, Sandbach on

1st April. The Toastmaster was Rtn. Tim

Bramwell.

President Richard introduced Assistant DG

Patrick Tyrell and welcomed Rotarians from

other clubs, members of 2 Inner Wheel

Clubs and other guests.

After the meal the loyal toast was made

followed by a surprise item: a rendition of

the national anthem with Stuart (Liberace)

Blackwell tinkling the ivories. The Club

Charter – 11th December 1945 – was read

by Rtn John Middleton.

Assistant Governor Patrick Tyrrel and

President Richard enjoy the puddings

Rtn Ray Stafford, President of our “mother

club”, Crewe, spoke about the work being

done by our club and proposed the toast to

Rotary International. AG Patrick Tyrell

responded and began by presenting a

special pin to our newest member, Dennis

Bell. Patrick went on to talk about the

amazing commitment made by Rotarians

towards overcoming polio in the world

which started with the idea of one Rotarian

in 1979. He also congratulated the Club on

70 years of service to the community: local,

national and international.

In proposing the toast to guests, President

Richard looked back to 1945 when his

grandfather, R Baldwin Hovey, became the

founder President of the Club. Early

meetings were held in the Market Tavern

and the charter was presented in the

Masonic Hall. Richard’s father, Graham was

elected President in 1979. Richard said that

he was proud to be the third generation of

the family to hold the office and how much

he enjoyed Rotary.

The response was given by Rtn. John

Clewlow, a member of the RC Biddulph and

a retired veterinary surgeon. John

entertained the audience with amusing

tales and jokes prompted by his many

years working as a vet on Biddulph Moor.

He said that when someone erected a sign

at the entrance to the village with the word

“Potatoes” some wit had written below:

“Twinned with Pommes de Terre”.

Before drawing the raffle (which raised

£230 for Rotary Foundation) and proposing

the final toast President Richard thanked

everyone for attending and making the 70th

Charter Celebration a memorable evening.

A plumber’s life

Dennis Bell, who joined the Club in 2015,

gave his job talk in April.

He had attended Sandbach Council School

where, he said modestly, “they made a

good job without the best material”. He left

at the age of 14 and took up a 7-year

apprenticeship in plumbing with Johnson

and Johnson.

In 1953 he was called up for National

Service and joined the RAF. He did his basic

training at Wilmslow and was selected as a

wireless telegraphist spending eighteen

weeks at Compton Basset and achieving 18

words per minute in morse code. He was

then transferred to RAF Withnall near

Birmingham where he worked as an

interceptor and had to sign the Official

Secrets Act.

When he was demobilised he returned to

plumbing but felt that he was being put

upon and left to work at Benger’s in Holmes

Chapel. Whilst there, a friend suggested

becoming a fireman and in 1956 he became

a part-time fire officer at the Sandbach

Station.

After other plumbing jobs he decided to

work for himself. He placed an

advertisement in the Chronicle and received

just one reply – from Stan Furber, a local

farmer. Dennis had no transport at the time

– his car had a broken spring – and Mr

Furber offered him the use of his Morris

van: a real act of kindness, said Dennis.

He continued to work as a fireman,

becoming leading fireman in 1962 and

station commander in 1965. He retired

from that position in 1987 after serving 31

years.

Dennis has never really retired from

plumbing and said that he is still employed

at Sandbach School, a contract he obtained

in 1962.

7

Stairway to heaven

On one Friday morning at the beginning of

April Community Chairman, Bill Whittaker,

enlisted the help of Keith Merry and Keith

Ludlam to paint the hand rails leading up to

St Mary’s Church entrance.

The rails were in a poor state and a long-

standing member of the church said that

they were last painted, quite some time

ago, by a working party from Styal

Women’s Prison.

The team return for a bit of touching-up.

Two members of the Interact Club,

Jonathan Vu and Steffen Iruthayanathan,

gave valuable assistance by rubbing down

and preparing the railings to be painted.

The Vicar, Rev Thomas Shepherd,

expressed his delight with the finished

result.

Scarborough fair

Bal Unnithan, in giving a slide presentation

to the club in March, said that he had

visited Australia on seven occasions since

1996.

Bal showed a map which demonstrated

how the state of Western Australia occupies

one third of the whole country. Most of the

population of 2.6 million inhabitants live in

the south west of the state. Perth is the

capital city and is set on the Swan River

and Bal showed a view of the city taken

from Kings Park.

On their last visit, Bal and Lalita took a

trip to Margaret River, south of Perth. The

area is renowned for its wine production

and a visit to a winery was part of the

itinerary.

There are many caves near Margaret

River, some of them open to the public, and

Bal showed the interior of one with gigantic

stalactites.

The modernistic clock tower at

Scarborough was sponsored by the RC of

Scarborough to mark the 150th anniversary

of the state of Western Australia and the

75th anniversary of RI.

The RC of Scarborough meets every

Thursday morning at 6.45 am at Lake

Karrinyup Country Club. Bal said that they

stress the importance of the Four-Way

Test: Is it the truth?/ Is it fair to all

concerned?/ Will it build goodwill and better

friendships?/ Will it be beneficial to all

concerned?

The club organisation is very casual, said

Bal. They have 50 members and currently

have four presidents – each serving for 3

months.

Their major fundraising activity is

“Swapmart” – a kind of car boot sale which

they organise weekly. In 2014/15 they

raised the equivalent of £87,000

Their major service project is

“Wheelchairs for Kids” – making

wheelchairs for impoverished, disabled

children in developing countries. The

project began in 1998 and to date 27,000

wheelchairs have been given to children in

66 different countries. A pack – put

together by Inner Wheel and Friends of

Rotary – goes with each chair and contains

rugs, toys, etc.

Message from Max

Club Secretary, Tim Bramwell, recently

received this message for Club members

from Rtn Max Leese.

I just wanted to let you know that I was

discharged from the Macmillan Cancer

Centre at Leighton Hospital yesterday. My

scan proved the treatment I have been

having has done its job and I am now clear.

Long may it last.

Thank you all for the support and

kindness you have continued to show, it

has really helped me to overcome a most

daunting experience.

My very kind regards and thanks,

Max

We are all very pleased to hear this news

and wish Max well for the future. - Ed

8

Just checking

St Mary’s Church Hall had been tastefully

decorated with flags, tablecloths and

pictures when Bill Whittaker and team

turned up to organise the Stroke Awareness

Day. It turned out that the decorations

were not there as a tribute to Rotary but to

Her Majesty the Queen on her 90th

birthday.

Members of the public queued to enter the

inner sanctum, offering their outstretched

arms to retired local GP Dr Mike Olver and

retired nursing officer Rtn Val Atkinson, and

emerged later with a small piece of paper.

Two coffees? That will be £2.20

With 45 people availing themselves of the

offer of a free blood pressure test –

including our own President Richard – the

event was judged to be a success. As a

result of the check Richard was advised by

Dr Olver to book an appointment with his

GP. This he did, by which time his blood

pressure had returned to an acceptable

level.

Was it the excitement of the decorations,

Richard?

Incidentally, in a year when we remember

the third generation of the Hovey family,

Richard says that Dr Olver has been his GP

since birth and that he also looked after his

father and grandfather – three generations

of Rotary presidents. - Ed.

Stick Man

Geoff Williams came to a meeting of the

club in April armed with a large collection of

staffs and walking sticks. This was not

because he thought we all need one but

because stick-making had been his hobby

for many years.

He said that in earlier times a good, stout

staff, was vital and many references can be

found in history. Psalm 23 says, “Thy rod

and Thy staff, they comfort me.” Not so

many are in evidence today but Black Rod

is a familiar office in parliament and bishops

are always seen in church with a crozier.

Geoff then proceeded to show a whole

range of spectacular sticks. They included

an architect’s stick (one side was a straight

edge); one that houses a sword blade;

another which converted to a fishing rod

and a “Sabbath stick” which adapted to a

golf club and allowed the owner to practice

a bit of putting whilst out for a walk on the

holy day of the week.

Geoff said that hazel was the most

popular wood for stick-making. He obtains

his supplied from the National Trust at

Wenlock Edge. Hazel grows with different

colours in different parts of the country:

dark brown in the Midlands and

golden/silver in the Lake District. On the

west coast lichen attach themselves to the

shoots which can be retained as a

decorative feature.

He said that he doesn’t varnish his sticks

but treats them with linseed oil to which a

synthetic hardener has been added –

obtained from the US.

Sticks don’t grow straight, said Geoff, and

he demonstrated how he heats and bends

them, using a pulley wheel, into a straight

form.

He said that besides hazel, blackthorn,

holly, rowan and honeysuckle can be used.

Geoff concluded his talk by demonstrating

how he made all the wide range of handles

– some from rams horn.

Sandbach Primary Academy RotaKids Club

Sandbach Primary Academy continues to

offer children in key stage 2 the opportunity

to choose to join our RotaKids after school

club each term. Our group meets each

Monday to work together to make a

difference to our school and local

communities.

Over the last term our team have been

busy carrying out tasks relating to its

chosen projects for this year. Following a

group discussion on wanting to raise money

to help a charity, RotaKids set about

researching charities they would like to

raise funds for. One of our members

highlighted the locally based charity

Railway Children as a possible worthy

9

cause. At the end of February, the charity’s

founder, David Maidment OBE, gave a

thought-provoking talk to the group.

Everyone agreed they wanted to regularly

hold fundraising events presenting funds to

Railway Children at the end of the school

year.

Daffodil- spotting.

The first event involved spending a

RotaKids meeting making chocolate crispy

cakes which were then sold to the rest of

the school. £22 was raised. A team has

also committed to taking part in Rotary’s

2016 Swimathon and a proportion of our

sponsorship money will be given to the

charity. Other events are in the planning.

Earlier in the year Rotakids planted

daffodils in our grounds as part of a

Sandbach-wide project. Rotakids can

report that the bulbs have flowered and

made the school’s outdoor classroom a

great place to be.

Grab that litter!

Rotakids have proudly taken part in the

Keep Britain Tidy Clean for the Queen

initiative. The initiative aimed to improve

the local environment as part of the

Queen’s 90th birthday celebrations. The

group conducted local litter picks during our

normal Monday meetings. We targeted

Newall Avenue Park and Union Street as we

felt our work would be appreciated by a

range of local residents both old and young.

Helping to make music

The Club was pleased to hand over a

cheque for £425 at a meeting in April as a

sponsor for the Young Musician of the Year

award. A donation from the Club had been

matched by a Rotary District Simplified

Grant.

Sandbach Concert Series began in 2010

and organises 8 concerts per year in St

Mary’s Church Hall, featuring nationally-

and internationally-known musicians. Each

concert is preceded by a 30-minute

Spotlight Concert celebrating the talent of

young musicians from the local community.

In April, individuals aged 19 and under

who have performed at one of the Spotlight

Concerts over the year have the

opportunity to compete for the Young

Musician of the Year award.

In presenting the cheque, President

Richard said that members valued the work

of the Concert Series in bringing acclaimed

musicians to Sandbach and the Club was

delighted to be able to support the work

done in working with talented young

musicians from the local community.

Richard hands over the cheque to Lauren.

In accepting the cheque Lauren Scott,

chair of the Concert Series, thanked the

Rotarians and said that sponsorship was

vital in organising the Young Musician of

the Year competition. Andy Scott, artistic

director, spoke about the importance of

providing music tuition and opportunities at

a time of financial cutbacks.

The concerts are held on the last

Wednesday of the month. The Young

Musician of the Year competition was held

on Saturday 16th April as part of the Transport Festival. The winners were: 1st - Laura Edwards (Voice)

2nd - Meredydd McGuiness (Harp)

3rd - Nathanial Baker (Saxophone)

Bramwell Tovey Prize:

Francesca Fairhurst (Saxophone)

10

The editor has received the following

message from Lauren and Any Scott.

Hi John,

We just wanted to drop you a line to say a

huge thank you to you and The Rotary Club

of Sandbach for your support and generous

sponsorship of the Young Musician

Competition at the weekend. Please pass

on our thanks to your Club President,

Richard and all your members.

The standard of musicianship was superb

which made the Judges' job a very difficult

one. We are very lucky to have such

talented and confident young performers in

Sandbach as the 'Spotlight' feature of the

monthly concerts continues to prove.

Again, many thanks and we look forward

to doing it all again next year!

Best wishes,

Lauren and Andy

For Concert Series information please see

www.sandbach-concert-series.co.ukAGM

Another year, another meeting

The AGM took place at the lunchtime

meeting on 27th April with committee

chairmen reporting on activities over the

last year.

Phil Niddrie (Membership) said he was

pleased that two new members had joined

the club but saddened by the passing of

Dianne Wilson.

Whittling is obviously a core requirement

for the chairman of Community Services.

He said he had managed to reduce 32

projects to 16 for the purpose of reporting

and included Stroke Awareness Day; bench,

rails and fence painting; marshalling;

planting daffodils and no fewer than 32

visits to the community garden. Bill also

thanked Stuart Blackwell for the

organisation of the Citizen of the Year

award.

Eric Cowcill (Youth) said that RotaKids at

Sandbach Primary Academy goes from

strength to strength, as does Interact –

now up to 30 members. Work with St

John’s and Wheelock primary schools will

continue in the next Rotary year.

Under International, Keith Merry reported

that a cheque for £348 had been given to

the Guildford Eye Project and members had

helped with fundraising at the bag-packing

event and the LYB concert. Keith Ludlam

(Foundation) reported that both district

grant applications had been successful,

sponsoring Young Musician of the Year and

St John’s School visit to Petty Pool.

Under Communications John Higgins said

that 10 reports had appeared in the

Chronicle and Crosstalk had been produced

bi-monthly with between 8 and 12 pages,

including reports by Inner Wheel, Interact

and RotaKids. He thanked Bal and Richard

for the website and Facebook as well as all

those who submitted photos and reports for

the newsletter.

Bill Coupe stressed the importance of

fellowship and thanked everyone for being

involved in activities. He mentioned the

visits to Media City and the Churnet Valley

Railway and the mystery trips organised by

Stuart. The two snooker matches with RC

Holmes Chapel had been particularly

enjoyable, he said. Visits to Port Sunlight

and Styal prison are yet to come.

Rosemary Twidale said that frequent

contact had been made with Friends of

Rotary and there had been a number of

activities, including the barbecue, the

Christmas lunch and various outings, where

Friends had joined in. There had been

frequent visits by honorary members to

lunchtime meetings.

Officers for 2016/17 were confirmed:

Dave Lewis (President); Alan Dodd

(President-elect); Andy Wilkie (President-

nominee). Club Secretary and Treasurer

remained the same as did committee

chairmen except for membership which will

pass to Andy Wilkie.

It was agreed to elect current honorary

members for a further year but the offer to

the next Sandbach Mayor will be left in

abeyance due to the uncertainty

surrounding the post-holder.

Wheels within Wheels

News from the Inner Wheel Club

of Sandbach

Our Spring Coffee Morning was a great

success and raised a substantial sum for

our charities.

In March, following a brief business

meeting, Dennis Fricker from the

Parkinson’s Support Group, who had first-

11

hand knowledge of the condition, told us

about the onset of Parkinson’s - symptoms

such as tremor, stiffness, loss of saliva -

and said it gets worse as one gets older.

Medications have to be consumed in large

quantities: as many as 17 tablets a day! It

is not infectious, it is not hereditary and

there is no cure. There are currently 9

million people with Parkinson’s condition in

England. The Parkinson’s Society wishes to

raise awareness amongst people about its

work.

Coffee or a raffle ticket, ladies?

Inner Wheel member Joan Thornhill, who

had family members with Parkinson’s, held

a coffee morning in aid of the charity on 6th

April at her house. It was a lovely morning

for friends and family with a raffle, a lucky

dip and cake stalls and lots of spring plants

on sale and children of the family playing

their part. The money raised will be

donated to the charity. It was a great way

of raising awareness.

Who’s for tea?

At the April meeting, President Ginny

welcomed husbands and Rotarians for a

joint meeting. The guest speaker was Revd.

Michael Leyden, Vicar of All Saints Church,

Weston with St. Marks Church, Shavington.

A graduate of theology and philosophy, he

lectures at the University of Liverpool to

doctors and Lawyers on Ethics. A pleasant

young vicar, he gave us a glimpse of his

native Liverpool and family. His family did

not have a tradition of church-going and his

calling for the ministry came after

witnessing the many services provided by

the church to the needy and vulnerable in

the community. Serving others, he said,

was the real meaning to life. A light-

hearted and humorous talk was enjoyed by

all.

Birthdays

Margaret Leech (10th June)

Anniversaries

Congratulations to Margaret and John

Middleton on their Diamond wedding

anniversary (12th June)

Lalita Unnithan, Club Correspondent

Interaction

News from the Interact Club

of Sandbach

Since our last report, the Interact Club of

Sandbach has partnered with the local

Cancer Research UK Committee to raise

funds for the charity through a collection in

Aldi; this was very successful and resulted

in over £1133 being collected!

Our club has also been busy recently with

organising our most recent project: the

Backpack Project, created by Mary’s Meals.

All donations gratefully received.

The project has grown from a small idea

supported by the members in our club to a

whole-school project, with staff and

students alike donating items to be added

to the backpacks. In addition, we are

looking forward to once again taking part in

the annual Swimathon to raise money for

worthy causes.

Grace Milner, Interact President