Walk and Talk

As the Meldon bluebells suddenly burst into splendour we had a last minute change to our programme to go and admire them. They did not disappoint as can be seen from our photo. On the return to the car park we stopped for a few moments at David Arney’s memorial bench which has an uninterrupted view of the weir. David founded Holsworthy Walking for Health, as it was then known, in 2002 with just six walkers, two of whom are still walking with us as walk leaders.

Those two walk leaders, Marion and Clive, are the lynchpins of the Monday Walk in the Park which celebrated its 10th anniversary last month. Marion celebrated her 90th birthday last year and still keeps up the pace around The Park. She is looking forward to celebrating another ten years of walking!

We are hoping that June will bring some warmer, drier weather to allow us to venture onto some footpaths and bridleways which have been too muddy and waterlogged to attempt for many months.

Our website has lots of up to date information, together with our current programme of walks: holsworthywalkandtalk.co.uk

Granville Lodge

The members of Granville Lodge No.3405 assembled at Bude Masonic Hall on Tuesday, May 21, for their regular monthly meeting.

The lodge was opened by the Master Jeff Green according to ancient custom. There were no ceremonies to perform but two interesting lectures were delivered by Senior members Jeff Green and Graham Shepherd-Jones. Jeff spoke of the Past Master's Jewel and it's historic origins in freemasonry.

Graham gave a very interesting talk about the ancient initiation ceremony and pointed out the reasons and traditions behind this unique form of joining the Masonic order undertaken by all members. Continuing with the agenda Jeff Green proposed that the sum of £150, the proceeds of a recent raffle, be sent to St Petroc's Charity for the Homeless. This was unanimously agreed. Reports were then presented by the secretary Andy Bain who, who as well as his own report, also gave the Almoners report on the health and welfare of members and their families.

The Charity Steward Peter Reeve had good news. He had recently received information from the 2024 Festival Director that Granville Lodge had been awarded the honour of Grand Patron of the Festival Appeal, the first out of 80 lodges in the Province of Cornwall. He also reported that the final amount raised for his sponsored Charity Swim was £3,426.25 and the proceeds of the recent Musical Event amounted to £675. Both sums of money went to support the Masonic Charitable Foundation. The lodge was formally closed by the Master Jeff Green and the members dined together. A raffle raised funds for Masonic purposes. The next meeting of the lodge will be held in Bude on Tuesday, June 18.

On Sunday, May 19, Freemasons from throughout Cornwall assembled at King Arthur's Hall in Tintagel for their annual Charity Presentation event. They were accompanied by friends and families and received representatives of of forty Cornish charities and larger charities which operate within the county.

The Provincial Grand Master of Cornwall, David Maskell, welcomed everybody and thanked them for attending. The Provincial Charity Steward, Alan Powell, introduced the representatives of the individual charities before presentations were carried out by lodge representatives and the Provincial Grand Master.

Over £40,000 was donated to the various charities which included the RNLI, Little Harbour Children's Hospice, Cornwall Air Ambulance, Cornwall Alzheimer's Society, Tintagel Surf Lifesaving Club and many more important and deserving local charities.

Granville Lodge was represented by Past Master John Weller.

The Cornwall Masonic Charitable Foundation is a registered charity No. 1178008. The management committee meets annually at the end of January to consider applications for grants. Applicants wishing to be considered should write, before December 31 giving full details to The Secretary. Provincial Grand Lodge of Cornwall, 7 New Bridge Street, Truro TR1 2AA.

Bude and District U3A

Bude and District U3A May Open Monthly Meeting was held at the Parkhouse Centre, Bude recently.

The Chairman, Tina Hyndman, welcomed everyone and made a few general announcements. She then introduced the visiting speaker for the afternoon, Trish Beamish, whose talk was entitled “Kenya Orphanage Visit and How to Build a Mud Hut”.

Trish began her talk with a brief description of the area in Kenya where the Gideon’s Orphanage is based in Kisumu, near Ramba Village close to Lake Victoria.

Trish then talked about how she had become involved in the Charity and had met Newton, who was an orphan himself.

He joined Gideon’s at a young age and with the help of the Orphanage studied hard and eventually went to University. Subsequently he met Sophie who offered to help with the Orphanage and is now the Director of the Charity. Gordon, whose mother died and was treated him really badly by his stepmother, ran away to Nairobi, eating from dustbins and sleeping wherever he could. He eventually returned to Kisumu and is now the Manager at Gideon’s.

Trish then described many of the projects that have been undertaken to improve the facilities through fundraising: improving toilet facilities, dormitories etc. Trish talked about her involvement with the Charity, connection with Norman and her experiences during her visits. She explained that the team at Gideon’s go to the surrounding villages to check on the children and will take orphaned children from the age of four years old.

It doesn’t matter what age the child is when they join, the intention is to get them to reach up to University level, no matter how long it takes. There is a clinic on site and they deal with many prevalent illnesses such as Malaria (which is rife), Cholera, Typhoid and HIV. The accommodation and facilities are very basic. The charity recently raised funds for a new Dormitory which houses 40 boys.

Their diet consists mainly of Maize in various forms and beans. Trish described a visit to the shops in Ramba, which are very limited, there is a market once a week where most of the items for sale are second hand, however everyone does have a mobile phone! Trish shared several photographs of the different traders: a knife grinder, butchers, sewing machinist, a bicycle repair shop and a taxi rank consisting of various types of old motorbikes and scooters. The roads are mostly dirt track and those that are tarmac are riddled with potholes. The nearest place to get water is five miles away, carrying it back in large plastic containers.

There was another fundraising project launched to raise money for a water pump in the village. Trish explained that many of the residents live in Mud Huts with very basic facilities. There are 350 resident orphans and 250 village children who can’t afford an education. Trish concluded her talk by asking if anyone had any questions or would like any more information to speak to her afterwards.

In between monthly meetings Bude U3A members enjoy pursuing a wide variety of interests. If anyone would like to find out more they will be very welcome to drop in on a coffee mornings held on the first Friday of the month at The Weir, or the third Friday of the month at the Kerenza Hotel from 10.30am, or visit our website at www.budeu3a.co.uk.

St Andrew’s Church

The title of St Andrews Church Flower Festival this year was “These are a Few of Our Favourite Things”. Visitors entering through the South door were greeted by a vibrant colour arrangement of flowers by Stratton Primary School, joyfully expressing the enthusiastic involvement of young people in all kinds of activities, from the infants cherishing their cuddly toy, to the older children’s love for football, tennis, music and many other past times.

The arrangements then went on to celebrate so many varied activities which bring such pleasure, happiness and the chance to be creative. Sarah Taylor demonstrated the pleasure of gardening, crafting an intricate, thoughtfully planned miniature exhibit, which even contained the tiniest of watering cans. Pat Boundy on behalf of the Friends of Stratton Hospital, gave us a display showing the deep satisfaction of walking in the woods. It contrasted planned garden spaces with the wildness of nature, using one of the church pillars to give a sense of height in the woods with trees leaning over us, as if to reassure us of their wisdom, derived from their capacity over thousands of years to recover, revive and renew themselves. At the high altar Lyzette Bevan expressed her personal passionate belief that flowers are gifts that lead us to an ecstatic experience of heavenly grace through their stunning beauty.

Enjoyment of a particular kind inspired ‘Hiking in the Cairngorms’ by Val Barker. She gave the visitor sight of a cascading waterfall falling to a pool below surrounded by rocks and plants. The steepness of the Highlands was presented in towering green displays with even a glimpse of a stag’s antlers peeking out to set the scene. All of this stirred the imagination to enter into the heart of the experience of walking surrounded by such natural majestic beauty. Family walking boots, a hip flask, maps and other items showed the very human side of what the display was expressing.

Judy Dunne showed her passion for ballet with a delightful ballerina created in flowers with a tutu of gypsophila showing the strength but lightness of the dancer’s art. Becca Barker gave us Wimbledon with yellow chrysanthemums like flying tennis balls and reminders of traditional cream teas. Val Hopper celebrated the pleasure of travelling along the UK’s canals. A miniature long boat floated along a shimmering cloth which gave the impression of sunlight on the water which was surrounded by banks of green plants. In the Lady Chapel Sheila Waring created a loving appreciation to Ducks of every kind. A delightful floral duck sitting on a nest was the centre piece of this appreciation of these much-loved birds. There were ducks in rivers, ducks in flight, ducks of every kind and colour demonstrating their own pleasure in the very gift of being alive.

Helen Barnes from St Swithin’s Church offered in flowers all the energy and driving pulse of Rock and Roll Music. A bright red floral guitar and other arrangements captured the spirit of the pleasure that the music gives her, summed up in her own description: “I know ‘tis only Rock ’n’Roll. But I like it!” Jennie Siddalls from St. James’ Church, Kilkhampton showed her delight in Scottish Country Dancing with flowers, dancing shoes and tartans, hinting at the irresistible energy and rhythm of the music and the dancer’s movements. The love of ‘Birds and Bees’ and other insects and small creatures burst out of the display from one of the North Aisle window ledges in a display by Vera Roper and Susan Wilkinson. It was thoughtful and detailed in its presentation. Rosalie Wilkinson created tiny cupcakes made from flowers and other items to show her passion for baking. Jeanette Norman and Lynne Cross, both from St James Kilkhampton, presented music as their favourite pleasure, honouring singers and skilled orchestral players and conductors.

Cornwall itself had a central place in the festival with beautiful display stands by Anne Day, placed all the way down the main aisle featuring Cornish colours, flags and traditional Cornish ribbon. Audrey Aylmer and Alan McIntosh, on behalf of the Old Cornwall Society, presented the pleasure to be had in seeing and appreciating all the varieties of shell and fossil types that nature delivers freely to us, along with photographs showing the history of St Andrews.

A feature called ‘Resting in What Is’ was used to introduce particular ‘Contemplative Spaces’ which are being made available both inside St Andrew’s and also in the churchyard where a ‘contemplation seat’ has been placed under the trees with a ‘Compassion Rose’ planted to climb beside it. Here selected inspirational writings will be offered to encourage us all to release contemplative hearts and minds which allow us to rest in the present moment whatever it may contain, so needed with all the turbulence in our world today.

Many volunteers worked very hard to deliver a choice of lunches and teas over the three days of the festival. Other volunteers greeted the visitors or undertook many unseen but important jobs to make the occasion such a success. Once again Sheila Waring, who organised the whole event, must be congratulated on such an inspirational Flower Festival which will live long in the memory.

Sandie Cheshire created a beautiful tribute to the work of the Mother’s Union. In it she included the favourite prayer of Mary Sumner who founded the organisation. This lovely prayer fits perfectly the intention, inspiration and execution of this joyful festival: “All this day, O Lord, let me touch as many lives as possible for thee, and every life I touch, do thou by the spirit quicken, whether through the words I speak, the prayers I breathe, or the life I live. Amen.”

Parish Council

The monthly meeting of St Thomas Parish Council was held recently in the Community Centre.

The chairman, James North was re-elected into office for a further twelve months. David Mounce was also re-elected as vice-chairman. Cllr Mark Jones was elected to be responsible for the footpaths for the council.

A traffic report from Cornwall Council was received re the traffic speed control between Trekestle mini-roundabout and the Eliot Arms. It was always thought, wrongly, by councillors, that it was impossible to get to 30mph after leaving the roundabout, before getting to the speed monitor. One councillor even admitted trying to do so, and failed. The truth is, the monitor is focussed on the road previous to getting to the roundabout. The County Council’s report was extremely encouraging, as all, except one driver had kept within the limit.

There was very little for planning consideration. Various cheques were approved to be signed.

A discussion was held re the D-Day Commemoration. After much discussion it was felt that a church service would be more appropriate than a bonfire, and a barbecue. A collection will be taken to go to a Service Charity.

A long discussion on the future of the service provided for the Post Office took place. The overall problem is the lack of support by the local people. It is extremely likely that, at sometime in the autumn, that it will be reduced to one visit a week. That visit would be for just one and a half hours. The other problem is that they will not pay for any room hire. This will mean it will have to be subsidised from somewhere, or offered ‘free of charge’ by the Community Centre. Apparently some places it gets funding from the local council. There is no certainty that this will happen here.

Methodist Church

The members of Callington Methodist Church were pleased to support Callington Mayfest again this year.  Our Giant Aslan proudly took part in the parade and we would like to thank Mark Gregory and Biddy Daniel for leading our workshops and guiding us through the creation process.  We were also able to provide light refreshments in the Church Field, thanks to everyone involved.

During Half Term we held a session of our Creation Stations which included food, clay modelling, animal crafts, Father's Day gift boxes and cards and story corner.  A large number of people of all ages attended.  Thanks to those who helped with the refreshments and headed up the craft tables.