andovertowntwinningassociation - atta.org.uk newsletter june 2016.pdf · time to catch up on atta...
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AndoverTownTwinningAssociation
NEWSLETTER
June 2016
The Year so Far
Time to catch up on ATTA activities so far in 2016!
The Committee frequently discusses the suggestions
and comments you have made about ATTA events and
we try to incorporate them when we’re organising the
programme.
27th February - Quiz
Many members had said that they would prefer not to
attend a meeting in January or early February as the
weather was unpredictable so our first event of 2016
was the quiz held on the last weekend of February,
Although we were fewer in number than last year, the
quiz was well attended with our President, Jack, as our
quiz master providing the questions and the occasional
controversial answer. Tables of six (and one of four)
competed for nothing more than the honour of
winning and it proved that you do not need six brains
as the foursome won handsomely! Mick Dean was well
enough to join us and it was a very happy evening for
him among family and friends.
In the past we have run our own bar at events but
some of you have told us that you prefer to be able to
bring your own. Obviously it is not possible for us to
have a wide range of drinks—alcoholic or not—and we
now have to pay an additional charge for using the
licence available to the venue. We therefore decided
that for the first two events of the year, we would ask
you to bring your own beverages. So far, this seems to
have worked quite well.
2nd April - Speaker
Speakers are popular and Chris Walker’s talk about
Glenn Miller on 2nd April was no exception. The blend
of music and the ‘Glenn Miller Story’ was enjoyed by
those who attended. We took on board comments
about the timing of food and the evening commenced
at 7pm with a light supper prepared by Marilyn and
other Committee members. This change to the usual
start time gave time for everyone to eat in a relaxed
manner and enabled the helpers to listen to the talk
rather than be stuck in the kitchen preparing the meal.
We were also able to use Burghclere Down Community
Centre and this proved to be a success.
21st May - Outing
Another suggestion has been to have five or six weeks
between events rather than try to meet at a regular
time each month. We set the date for the May event to
give a 6-week gap. Also, some people suggested an
organised outing instead of a meeting in a hall. The
Committee researched and visited a few local places of
interest to see what we could offer you.
For most of us, the popular local attractions have
probably been visited many times but to go farther
afield would either involve members driving some
distance or make it expensive if ATTA hired a coach.
There was one good possibility but unfortunately the
visit would have to be made on a weekday and was
reliant on the weather (we may put this idea to you at
a later date).
Mick Dean
It was with great sadness that we said a final farewell to Mick at his funeral service
in March. The church was full and it was good to see so many ATTA members in
attendance. Mick & Maureen have been stalwarts of ATTA since the early days;
always willing to help with catering, hosting, working as committee members and,
of course, organising our raffles. We have lost a good friend.
The May date programmed also coincided with a lack
of available Committee members so we reluctantly
cancelled. However, Peggy Ellis organised a visit to
Compton Acres near Poole on behalf of the Goodworth
Clatford WI and offered spaces to ATTA members .
Details were circulated to you all in May.
2nd-5th/6th June - Visit to Redon
Sadly, for reasons of personal
commitments, circumstance and
health many regular travellers could
not make the journey this year so a smaller party of
ATTA members than usual visited Redon.
Redon also had one or two hosting issues which were
resolved before our arrival. Despite the best efforts of
the striking French workers, the visit went really well.
As usual, our hosts made us very welcome and had
arranged a slightly different programme for us. The
Friday outing was by car to the Forest of Brocéliande,
another legendary area associated with King Arthur,
Morgan le Fay and Merlin. ‘Merlin’s Tomb’ is
supposedly the wizard’s last resting place.
Our first stop was the Abbey in Paimpont founded in
the 6th century with parts of the current building
dating from the 13th century.
After a group lunch in a local brasserie, we went into
the Porte des Secrets where we experienced a magical
‘virtual’ walk through the Brocéliande forest. The
children - Grace & Poppy together with their French
hosts, Inès and Lena - were enthralled and the adults
thoroughly enjoyed it too!
A short drive from Paimpont took us to an oak over
1000 years old —Chêne a Guillotin— where a local
pastor, Pierre-Paul Guillotin, hid in it’s hollow trunk
during the French Revolution. Guillotin was related to
the inventor of the guillotine and was fortunate to
escape being one of it’s victims.
We left the tree to drive to the church in Tréhorenteuc
which was restored in the 1940s. In Brocéliande,
Christianity &
Paganism have
lived side by side
for centuries.
The Abbot
incorporated
many pagan
symbols into the
church and in
particular within
the stained glass
windows which
look completely
traditional. The
symbols, mainly
relating to the Holy Grail, are impossible to spot in a
photo but you can see the vibrancy of the colours.
From here, the younger members of the group walked
to the Arbre d’Or - the rest of us went a little closer by
car before a shorter walk!
The Arbre d’Or is all that remains of a tree that had
been burnt in a devastating forest fire in 1990. It has
been covered in gold leaf to represent the rebirth of
the forest.
Unfortunately, we didn’t have enough time to visit
Merlin’s Tomb and, very sadly for us all, neither did we
get to drink from the Fountain of Youth!
After spending the day on Saturday with our respective
hosts we were entertained at the Jumelage dinner in
Bains sur Oust. The venue was a converted barn which
provided a lovely atmosphere for the evening.
As we were all travelling independently, some of us
enjoyed a further day in Redon on Sunday while others
began their journey home. Fortunately, threats of
more fuel shortages and air traffic control strikes came
to nought. The sunset on the way home was glorious.
It was another good visit and those of you who were
unable to travel were missed by friends in both
organisations. Everyone sends their best wishes for
better health and fortune in the coming months.
ATTA has invited Redon to visit us next year but no
dates have yet been decided.
Forthcoming Events & Visits
16th July—Bastille Day Celebration
We are going back to Chilbolton
Village Hall for our summer event as
it offers a lovely space outdoors
(fingers crossed for the weather).
The Bastille Day celebration will start at 4.30pm and, as
the title suggests, the theme will be all things French
including a glass of wine.
Tickets will be £8 per person.
7th-14th September - Visit from Andover, MA
We are expecting 16 visitors from
Andover, Massachusetts. Your
Committee is in the process of
finalising the plans for their visit which will include a
visit to ‘Downton Abbey’ (Highclere), Bath and
Buckingham Palace.
ASTA (Andover Sister Town Association) operates in a
different manner to ATTA and they wanted to insist
that they self-fund their trips. Having received such
generous hospitality whenever we have visited them,
we agreed that they will pay for their own entry fees
(Highclere & Buckingham Palace had to be pre-booked
from the USA) and ATTA will provide the transport. We
have therefore hired coaches to take our visitors to
Bath and London. We will transport to Highclere in our
own cars.
There will be free spaces on the coaches which will be
offered to ATTA members at a cost of £13pp for
London and £10pp for Bath. Unfortunately, we do not
have spare tickets for Buckingham Palace so you may
simply like to spend time London. Our guests (and
members) will be free to do as they wish in Bath.
On Sunday 11th September, there will be an ATTA
lunch at Esseborne Manor commencing at noon.
Although numbers are limited, non-hosting members
are welcome to attend. More details will be available
shortly.
The Committee is appreciative of the many and varied
personal issues currently affecting ATTA members but,
nevertheless, we were a little disappointed in the
response to the hosting request for our American
friends. Thank you to those who are hosting or have
offered help in other ways.
13th-17th October - Visit from Goch
We have invited our friends from
Goch to join us in Andover for this
weekend. Because of the short
gap between the American visit
and these dates, we have specifically asked the
Partnershafte to limit the number of visitors. They
were happy to agree to this arrangement.
At the moment, there is no further information
regarding possible guests but there will be a dinner at
the White Hart Hotel on Saturday 16th October which
will be open to all ATTA members. Details will be
circulated at a later date.
26th November - AGM
And then the year is over! Perhaps you may consider
joining the Committee.
The AGM will be held at the White Hart Hotel with a
dinner. Details much nearer the time.
Publicity & New Members
The Committee continues to try to attract new
members but with no success.
Speaking to our twin organisations, it is obvious that
we are all having the same problems. With up-to-date
communication and the general pressures of life it is
becoming increasingly obvious that association such as
ours have little place in our modern society.
However, we will not give up just yet!
11th-16th April - Library Exhibition
We were fortunate to be offered a small exhibition
space in the library to promote ATTA. We displayed
photos of our twin towns and left information leaflets
with contact details.
Unfortunately, we have not had any response to date.
Website
Noel is maintaining the website on a regular basis and
would be pleased to receive any photos of twinning
events for the gallery.
The web address is www.atta.org.uk
Members Feedback
The Committee is always pleased to hear from you with
any comments or suggestions for our events or ATTA in
general.
Last year, attendance at many of our events was lower
than it has been for some time and we would like to
make sure we give you what you want. The Committee
contact details are listed below.
Meanwhile, enjoy the summer to come and we look
forward to seeing you soon.
Sue Parker
Chair
COMMITTEE CONTACT DETAILS
PRESIDENT
Jack Taylor 352966
VICE PRESIDENT
Ena Deacon 773958
CHAIR
Sue Parker 366189
VICE CHAIR
Margaret Henstock 352182
SECRETARY
Alison Erskine 354807
TREASURER
Noel Erskine 354807
COMMITTEE
Peggy Ellis (co-opted) 710481
John Parker 366189
Marilyn Price 324332
Ray Stockings (co-opted) 359455