u3a march 2020 newsletter...second meeting uses spotify, some piano accompaniment and the remainder...

March 2020 Issue 19

1 Registered Charity No. 1180564

Dear Members

Welcome to all new members, we are very glad that you have joined Droitwich Spa U3A.

I would like to thank all group leaders and others who contributed to the newsletter in January, it made an interesting read. Please do keep the contributions coming if only a corny joke or two, we could all do with a laugh or a groan as the case may be. I have submitted another book review but it's not my decision if it gets included but rather our new newsletter editor, Dot Colman, to whom I wish a warm welcome and many thanks for volunteering.

Good news; the committee has set the subscription for 2020-2021 at £10 for the full year, £8 for the half year and £6 for three months. This includes a £3.50 per person membership fee for The Third Age Trust and £1 per member fee for the use of Beacon, software that allows us to maintain a membership database, email members easily and many other things. Renewal forms will be available for collection at the March monthly meeting at The Norbury Theatre although some larger groups may receive them in advance of this date. If you are unable to attend the monthly meeting then your membership renewal form will be sent to you through the post. There is also the opportunity to subscribe to Third Age Matters, for and about the U3A, at £3 if you would like to do so. Cheques only please, to ease the burden on the Treasurer and Membership Secretary.

What a treat to start the year listening to Max Keen talking about the English Civil War in Worcestershire. To say he was immersed in his subject would be an understatement! Who knew that King Charles stayed in Bewdley twice. To me history brought to life in this way starts to make much more sense. Why should Edward Winslow, born in Droitwich, sail on the Mayflower? When you hear how Kidderminster was staunchly Parliamentarian and anti Royalist and combine this with the preachings of Richard Baxter then I begin to understand why a man from Droitwich with similar beliefs should want to undertake such a hazardous journey. It's all these little snippets of information that tie seemingly separate acts together.

In February we had Auriol Ainley, our U3A West Midlands Trustee, come to talk to us about 'The U3A in the UK and Beyond'. It was interesting to hear that U3As on the continent are very different to our own. There they are based in universities which are paid to teach seniors. Not at all like our social and much more inclusive model although that's not to say there aren't more academic U3As in this country, there are, but in general most are run in a similar manner to Droitwich.

The committee are still looking for a way of promoting the U3A within Droitwich on Wednesday, 3rd June, National U3A Day. To this end I am asking if there are any members who would like to design a banner or poster to showcase what our U3A has to offer. I have in mind a graphic or cartoon to represent each of the various groups that could spread the message. However, I'm sure one of our 500 plus members can come up with a better design idea. Please think about this as I may be coming to a group near you to find out how you might like to be represented if you don't put any ideas forward. Please don't let there be a deafening silence again – surely there are some artistic members who would relish the challenge. A full list of groups is available on the website.

March 2020 Issue 19


Many thanks to the member who suggested a way of promoting our U3A through providing estate agents with leaflets to include in sales packs. We are looking into this.

One small mention is that we still have vacancies for volunteers, group leaders and committee members. Thank you to the member who has suggested that I include a description of what's involved when making these appeals. I'm working on it in time for the next newsletter.

Should you wish to contact me on any matter I am available through our website: https://u3asites.org.uk/droitwich/contact

or by phone on 01905 778743

Gay Enoch Chair

Can you help in becoming one of our Welcome Guides?

The idea is that when we have a new member join us, one of our Welcome Guides is asked to contact them to help them get settled in and familiarise themselves with how to contact people, what groups interest them etc. – a friendly face to make them feel at home! This might be by a one-to-one meeting at the Norbury, or over a coffee, or even by phone or email if this is more convenient.

It is not a difficult task, but is one that is much appreciated by new members. If you are not sure, I can put you in touch with one of our existing Welcome Guides so that you can find out more before making a commitment, but in the first instance please drop me an email (can be done simply from our web site) if this is something you would like to help us with. The more Guides we have, the less often you will be called on to do the task!

I hope to hear from you shortly.

Thanks,

Steve Hawley (membership secretary)

A warm welcome to new members Mike Brownjohn, Richard Vining, Lorraine Spilsbury,

Mick Jubb, Sheila Coleman, Edward and Susan Helps.

March 2020 Issue 19


Droitwich U3A Membership Renewal Process - 2020/21 Your Droitwich U3A membership is due for renewal at the end of March 2020. As last year, we will be issuing membership renewal forms already pre-printed with your contact details. Please check the contact details on the form and write on any corrections. The process for receiving your membership renewal form and returning it with payment is described in the diagram below.

Collect your membership form at monthly meeting on 16 March 2020

Your form will

be sent to

you by post Return your form + payment

either ........

Collect your leaflet + membership card at monthly meeting on 20 April 2020 Your leaflet + membership card

will be sent to you by post

....... at monthly meeting on

20 April 2020

Yes

No

No

........ by post after monthly meeting on

20 April 2020

........ by post before monthly meeting on

20 April 2020

U3A to take loose printed forms to be collected at the meeting

U3A to put uncollected printed forms into stamped envelopes and post

U3A to take leaflets + membership cards in envelopes with address labels to be collected at meeting

U3A to put leaflets + membership cards in envelopes with address labels and post

Uncollected

envelopes to have stamp added and post

March 2020 Issue 19


News from the groups Singing for Pleasure Group has been in operation for over 2 years now, meeting twice a month to sing songs from various genres. Suggestions for new songs come from group members and cover pop, jazz, folk and traditional items. At the first meeting of the month we are joined by Pete Penny and his guitar and it's good to sing to live accompaniment. The

second meeting uses Spotify, some piano accompaniment and the remainder of songs are sung without any accompaniment, which we are surprisingly good at considering that most members haven't sung since junior school. We are now a healthy 32 in number, but new members are always welcome. There is no need to audition and you don't even have to sing particularly well - most of us don't! You just have to enjoy singing and have a good sense of fun. This is one of the friendliest groups and everyone is very welcoming to newcomers. Many members have said how uplifting they find the singing sessions and how they look forward to them each month. We are not an organised choir and we don't give performances, except for leading the singing at the U3A Christmas Lunch. Male singers are especially welcome and if anyone plays a musical instrument which they would like to try out with us, please do. If you enjoy singing, even if it's only in the shower - then think about coming to join us. Your 2nd and 4th Wednesday may never be the same! Carole

The group has a guitar player for the meetings on 2nd Wednesdays but would like a keyboard player for the meetings on 4th Wednesdays of the month. There is a keyboard already in the church hall which we are allowed to use. The dates concerned are: March 25th, April 22nd, May 27th, June 24th, July 22nd, September 23rd, October 28th and November 25th. If you are interested in joining us for any of those sessions, please get in touch with Carole via the website.

The Walking Group On 9th January 2020 31 walkers pitched up for the Battle of Worcester Walk. This was an all time record number of walkers wishing to escape 4 walls for a 5 mile walk. When Charles Stuart was defeated at the final Battle of Worcester in 1651 he embarked on a 600 mile epic walk now known as “The Monarch’s Way”, before he fled to France. Most of the 31 walkers had never before visited Fort Royal Hill with its magnificent views towards the Malvern Hills. We hope it set the scene for our forthcoming monthly talk. I do have to say Max Keen was an amazingly interesting speaker on The Battle of Worcester & luckily we had passed most of the spots he mentioned in Worcester. Fort Royal in particular had lots of information boards about the last Battle of Worcester in 1651. Max Keen was visibly upset that other landmarks in Kidderminster & Bewdley had no Blue Plaques. We hope he is invited back to regale us with more interesting history.

The Vegetable Group have held their first meeting of the year and although it was just too wet to go out and see what was growing we stayed indoors and chatted about what we had and hadn’t done with our fruit and vegetables. We don’t have huge gardens but try and make good use of what we do have, including containers – radishes are happily growing well in a piece of gutter at the moment while hardy broad beans and peas have been transplanted to

an outside bed. Onion sets are doing nicely and the rhubarb patch, after having a good dose of homemade compost over winter, is ready for some picking - even though it hasn’t been covered.

March 2020 Issue 19


This year we are hoping to visit a local commercial tomato grower where tomatoes are grown in vast glasshouses without soil - should be fascinating!

On a smaller scale we are hoping to visit a garden designed along Permaculture principles where the garden grows 30 types of fruit and 20 odd types of vegetables and contains a collection of 30 varieties of apples, 2 greenhouses, chickens, guinea pigs and 2 ponds all in an 80ft x 40ft rectangle – should be amazing! Sounds interesting? Do join our friendly group who meet on the third Thursday afternoon of the month 2.15 – 4pm. Next meeting 19th March.

The Gallivanting Group The November Gallivant developed into an interesting day out on public transport. A series of

unfortunate incidents conspired against us and we did not reach our destination of Birmingham Back to Backs. We all filled our time in Birmingham in a variety of ways. Some shopped, some indulged in a german Sausage. Seven of us headed to Birmingham Museum & Art Gallery where after an enjoyable sociable meal we explored the museum at break-neck speed finishing in the Staffordshire Hoard Exhibition. We all reunited on the 2.50 train at New Street arriving back in dear old Droitwich at 3.22. Mike and I wish to thank all The Gallivanters who remained cheerful 😀 throughout the day. Twenty of us started our 2nd year of Gallivanting with a jaunt to The Barber Institute of Fine Arts using 2 modes of transport both of which were successful and we all came together like a jig-saw puzzle in the foyer. The art gallery holds one of the most outstanding & internationally significant collections assembled during the 20th century housed in a listed Art Deco Building. After an interesting hour viewing the collections we marched back to University Centre where we beat staff and students being first in the queue for a cafeteria style lunch. Then it was back to The Barber for the piano recital by the outstanding virtuoso, Kenneth Hamilton, of some Chopin Preludes, Waltzes, Nocturnes & Ballades on a brand new Steinway which apparently cost £40,000. He gave an excellent performance and gave us some entertaining & interesting insights on Chopin. Kenneth Hamilton was a very charismatic personality and just by chance he was on BBC3 that evening so we fell asleep to him. We are endeavouring to have great variety in our Gallivanting but I am pretty sure that a repeat visit to the Barber will be on the cards. The February Gallivant found us revisiting our interest in “Rubbish” & visiting Gloucester Energy from Waste Centre. Just for information that is what incinerators are called these days. We had been to Severnwaste in Worcester in October and seen some of the processes involved in dealing with our recycling waste. What is impossible to recycle needs to be incinerated because we no longer have the capacity in ‘Land fill’. Our modern world is so so complex. So we learnt a lot of useful facts & information far too much to relate here but I will give you one snippet. The energy produced by the Centre is equivalent to 17 wind turbines & provides electricity for 25,000 homes. Jan

In March we are hoping to finally visit the Back to Backs. In April the Drakelow Tunnels, former Top Secret underground military complex beneath Kingsford Country Park just north of Kidderminster will be our destination. The “curious” are looking forward to it. The “claustrophobics” are giving it a miss. In June we have a day out at the Cider Museum in Hereford. In September we will be visiting the BBC in The Mailbox in Birmingham Contact us via the pigeon icon on the Gallivanting page for more information or to book a place.

March 2020 Issue 19


The U3A Droitwich Wind Instrument Group (DWIG) continues to thrive, now with 11 members. We have applied to play public at the forthcoming Mayflower 400 celebrations in Droitwich on 4th July. Although yet to hear if have been accepted, we have started to rehearse topical 17th century music and sea shanties for the occasion.

The Wine Appreciation Group. The Group met on 26th February, at Rotary House in Droitwich, for a tasting of Eastern European wines organised by ourselves. We purchased the wines from a local supermarket and a local wine-merchant who also supplied some tasting

notes. Some members of the group did a little research on the wines for which we did not have tasting notes. The members of the group brought some snacks to accompany the wines which came from Moldova, Bulgaria, Slovenia, Macedonia, Romania and Hungary. The general opinion seemed to be that, apart from a Slovenian Cabernet Sauvignon and a Bulgarian Shiraz, the wines were not very exciting, although all enjoyed a very pleasant couple of hours.

The next meeting is scheduled for May and the theme will be Italian wine. The group has now reached its maximum and so is closed to new members.

Petanque Group 1 are looking forward to kicking off their summer season on April 3rd. This will be the Group’s eighth season having started in 2013. The Group currently has some 32 playing members but has a small number of vacancies for any members interested in wanting to take up or play Petanque on a Friday morning. We play at a prepared terrain at Gaudet Luce golf club from 11 a.m. every Friday and then enjoy a sociable lunch in the Club House. A perfect start to the weekend!

If you are interested in becoming a member of this Group please make contact with the Group Leaders John Hargreaves or Janis Stark or email via the Droitwich U3A Group’s web page.

Some light refreshment Close

Droitwich Duplicate Bridge Club. On 22 January our normal Wednesday afternoon Duplicate Bridge Club became more than a normal challenge when we were joined by 14

members from the "Bridge for All" group from Churchdown U3A. Churchdown is situated about half-way between Cheltenham and Gloucester. Its U3A, had the distinction of becoming the 1000th U3A in the UK when it was formed in 2016, and since then it has grown to over 200 members with about 24 interest groups.

Our visitors from Churchdown, like our own group, comprised both experienced players and improvers and an afternoon of fun and friendly rivalry took place amongst the 38 players (12 pairs from Droitwich and 7 pairs from Churchdown).

March 2020 Issue 19


We played a 10-round Mitchell movement which produces winning North-South and East-West pairs. The East-West winners were from Churchdown, and in the North-South competition it was a tie between Churchdown and Droitwich.

Full details of the results can be found at: https://droitwichu3abridge.wordpress.com/2020/01/22/competition-22-01-20

The members from Churchdown obviously enjoyed themselves as they have asked if they can visit us again, and they have also offered to host a group of our Bridge players. So I will shortly be contacting all of our Droitwich U3A Bridge groups to see who would interested in an opportunity to play Bridge on a Thursday afternoon visit to Churchdown sometime in the Spring.

Les Hazlewood - Duplicate Bridge Club Group Leader

Congratulations to Droitwich U3A members, Neil Enoch and his partner, on winning the Try Duplicate Cup for 2019 at Worcester Bridge Club.

Potential New Groups

As advised in the February interim Groups’ Update, the Table Tennis Group will have had its’ inaugural session at the Leisure Centre and the Conversational Psychology Group is now re-formed and following a couple of planning meetings, had their first “live” meeting on Monday March 2nd at St Andrew’s Hotel.

Both Groups would welcome a few additional members, so if you are interested, please contact the two Group Leaders via the web-site email facility.

Outdoor Bowls: A group meeting will be called during the latter part of March to discuss and agree on all the various arrangements going forward. This will be at the Bowling Green Pub in Stoke Prior which is where the Group is hoping to play (Crown Green). If any members, not already on the “waiting list”, would like to join in that initial meeting, please let me know so that you can be included in all the details going forward.

The list of Potential New Groups is as follows:-

• Italian for Beginners • Meditation • Outdoor Bowls (Spring start) • Poker • There is no Planet B (Environmental Issues) • Art (Painting – various mediums)** • Sunday Brunch Club** • Flower Arranging **

**Note – 3 additional potential new groups have now been added to this list which we know are popular at several of our local U3A branches.

Please let me know if you would like to be included in any of these lists of interested members. If anyone has ideas for additional interest activities which they would like to be made available, please let me know. Peter Bassano (Potential New Group Co-ordinator) 07776 39399

March 2020 Issue 19


Gay's Journey Around Our U3A

Maths, Science & Technology. I'm not quite sure what I expected from this talk by Professor Mervyn Mitchford, 'My microbiome and shampoo'. Yes I knew about our microbiome and foolishly thought that it would be about the microbiome of the scalp as shampoo was mentioned. How wrong can you be! The microbiome referred to in the title was in the gut and Sham Poo was FMT – Faecal Microbial transplants. Not quite what I was expecting on a Monday afternoon but it turned out to be a fascinating subject. Did you know that there are 100 trillion microbes in your body and that is 70 trillion more than the number of cells that you have. More and more it is becoming understood that many diseases and ailments are the result of an imperfect microbiome in the gut and that FMT is an increasingly important method of treatment.

On a less than happy note it looks like this group may be disbanded after the April meeting. Surely among the 60 or so members on the group list some will come forward to cover the activities needed to keep the group going. If I wasn't already committed to another activity at this time I would choose to be a member of this group.

Genealogy 1. Difficult to know what to say about my visit to this group as they were all so quiet working away on their family trees. Obviously the members are very experienced in searching for genealogical data on the web. If you are interested in your family history this may be the group to get you started. In an iteration of this group I started to search for my family history and found a passenger list showing the voyages my grandfather, father and mother made out to Burma before the war. As I say a fascinating topic, you never know what you will find.

German Beginners. 'Guten morgen', as I'm sure you all know this means 'Good Morning' in German. Now this is one group I would like to join, indeed I am toying with the idea. It's just the thought of giving up my one free morning of the week. From my experience of listening to Michel Thomas' CDs I had no idea the language would turn out to be so complicated. I know that we have some 2000 plus words in common but the German habit of accreting small words into longer ones plus the fact that there are three genders for nouns and pronouns to cope with makes it much more difficult. Thank goodness we didn't copy our continental neighbours in that respect, just borrowed their words such as 'kindergarten'. If you fancy learning German you will not find a more patient tutor or supportive atmosphere than in this group.

Book Corner

“A Season for the Dead” by David Hewson. 'Whilst Sara Farnese pours over ancient texts in the silent Vatican reading room, a brutal murder is taking place in a nearby church. Then suddenly a crazed man enters the Vatican carrying a bloodied bag. He walks up to Sara's desk. He has something he would like her to see … Soon Sara is inextricably linked to a series of horrific and cunning murders, each one representative of the death of a Christian martyr. ''Into this climate enter Detectives Nic Costa and Luca Rossi, enlisted to track down the killer, and to protect Sara from the horrors she is doomed to confront ..’

If you relish thrillers with lots of dead bodies this might be an introduction to detective Nic Costa you would enjoy. Blood, and lots of it right from the beginning, unfold in an intricate plot involving all the characters you would expect in a thriller set in Rome from a corrupt cardinal, the Mafia, the Vatican and a serial killer who's murdering Sara's former lovers in ways that mimic famous paintings depicting the martyrdom of selected saints. A complex story with an abundance of historical detail make this engrossing book more than just another run of the mill thriller. Gay

March 2020 Issue 19


‘Lady in Waiting’ by Anne Glenconner – I received this as a Christmas present and what an entertaining read! Lady Glenconner was lady in waiting to Princess Margaret for 30 years and also maid of honour at the Queen’s coronation. This book charts her life story in an endearing combination of both personal and royal tales, some very humorous and others quite tragic. Dot

Monday 16th March 2020 English Wine: not just the patriotic choice! As more and more wine lovers are discovering, the quality of English wine has never been higher. Join Tom Boddy, retail manager of Majestic Wine, as we explore the reasons behind this success and look forward to a bright future for English viticulture. Monday 20th April 2020 Demolition and Rescue. The Story of Avoncroft Building Museum. Chris Gibbons Monday 18th May 2020 The Pilgrim Fathers. To mark the 400th anniversary of the sailing of The Mayflower to the New World, Keith Cheetham will talk to us about the Pilgrim Fathers, including Edward Winslow who was born in Droitwich Spa. Monday 15th June 2020 Barrow to Baghdad and Back Again. The renowned author Philip Caine talks to us about the various places he has worked with plenty of humour and inspiration. He tells us about his adventure/thriller novels, all inspired by his ten years in the Middle East. Monday 21st September 2020 Myth to Moon. A talk by the astronomer and broadcaster Peter Williamson, from the formation of the moon to a personal account of the landing from astronauts. Monday 19th October 2020 Awareness of Bees and their Importance in the Environment. Alison Wakeman talks about different types of bees, assembles a real (empty!) beehive and explains about life in the hive. Monday 16th November 2020 The National Memorial Arboretum. A brief history of the N.M.A., a tour around notable memorials, the philosophy of the Arboretum and symbolism. Keith Forster

Forthcoming Event: Swing Division Spring Concert - Swing Division is a Big Band in Balsall Common and they are putting on a free showcase concert on Tuesday April 14th, at St Peters Church in Balsall Common (CV7 7FX) and we would like to invite members of your U3A to attend particularly members of Jazz Appreciation Groups. The concert will start at 14:00, have two 45minute sets with a 30-minute break with refreshments provided by the Balsall Common U3A. Nick Carter, (Convenor), can be contacted by email at [email protected] to add names to our list of attendees.

N.B. there may be a couple of members of Droitwich U3A playing in this concert.

Further Dates for your diary: 25th May - Group Leaders & Volunteers Spring Meeting; place, time etc. tbc 3rd June - National U3A Day 10th August - Strawberry tea, Methodist Church Hall, 2.00pm

………oo0oo………

Calendar of monthly meeting talks

March 2020 Issue 19


And finally…………thought for the day:

‘There are no short cuts to anywhere worth going to ‘

From the (new) newsletter editor Welcome to my first newsletter as editor and thank you for all the contributions. As you can appreciate, I have quite a challenge on my hands in following Jan’s years of expertise. My thanks to her for her patience in showing me the ropes – hopefully now Jan will have a bit more free time!

The next edition will be published in May so please email contributions to:

Newsletter Editor on the contact page of the website by Monday 4th May

All contributions should be e-mailed, preferably as a word document approximately 200-250 words maximum and less if you include a photo which should be sent separately as a jpeg file.

Thank you

From the Web site editor

My usual plea to all Group leaders:

Please let the website editor know of changes to leaders or venues in your group.

Check your Group Page today to make sure all details are correct.

Please send your text to me to insert on your Web Page as you would wish to read it.

www.U3Asites.org.uk/droitwich

u3a march 2020 newsletter...second meeting uses spotify, some piano accompaniment and the remainder...

Documents