Club News Archive 2016

26 September 2016: £1200 donated to Julia's House

At our meeting last Monday we were joined by Philip Stevens of Julia’s House Hospice, Pewsey Vale Supporters Club who was presented a cheque for £1200 by President Sally Wolfenden. The funds had been raised from the Metal Detecting Day organised by Rotarians, in conjunction with Leisure Promotions Marlborough, held at Alton Priors on 21 August.  See earlier report for all the details of the day.  

In thanking Rotary for the donations Phil Stevens explained that after retiring he and his wife started fostering children and the joy this brought them lead to them supporting Julia’s House.

He also updated the Club on progress of the building work - the new Hospice will be in the former Kennet Council offices in Devizes and is due to open in the Spring of next year - and how Julia’s House was already supporting this area utilising temporary buildings in Amesbury.

We held our regular August Bank Holiday Boot sale at the new venue of the Rugby Club on Marlborough Common.  It proved a popular move ( necessitated by the Circus being in the usual location) and attracted a good number of sellers and buyers. The final total has yet to be advised by the treasurer but it looks as if it will be in the order of £900; to go to charities supported by Rotary.  

Our youngest Rotarian, Lydia Jackson Fields, was in charge for the day and with the old hands (mostly) following her master plan the day ran smoothly. Both both buyers and sellers seemed to like both the venue and the more “intimate” nature of our Car Boot compared with some others they attended. The fact that the sun shone (also organised by Lydia ?) no doubt encouraged greater numbers to attend and ensured that the tea tent was busy throughout the morning.  

Thank you to all those who attended and made the event a success.

Last Sunday at 07:30 on a dull damp morning two Rotary stalwarts, Jack Torrens and Paul Cowan were leading their small band of willing (?) helpers in erecting the Rotary marquee in preparation for the Metal Detecting Day, in a field at Alton Barnes.  The day had been Jack's idea and having used his local contacts to find and then persuade land owner, Tim Carson, to let his land be used for the event he then contacted Leisure Promotions, a company specialising in metal detecting days to fill the spaces. Our thanks go to Tim Carson for allowing us to use his fields. 

Soon after 08:00 the first of the detectors arrived and by the time an hour had passed the trickle of cars became a regular flow.  The field used for parking was slightly damp and on a slope and the access was muddy so more than one of the drivers was concerned about leaving - but we were able to re-assure them we had a different exit!  Rotary parking expertise came to the fore!  By the  scheduled start time for detecting at 10:00 162 detectors - mainly men - were all kitted up, had met their friends and exchanged gossip and were ready to go. Then after a short briefing the detectors were off, trying to get to their preferred locations before their colleagues.  Many had sampled the Rotary stall’s excellent tea and lardy cake, guaranteed to keep them warm on the damp morning. And judging by the picture Gerry Hooper was trying a couple as well. Thanks to refreshment organisers Martin and Bev and everybody else who helped by bringing cakes and serving throughout the day. 

Five hours later the detectors  returned from the field with their finds, some to be evaluated by the representative from Devizes museum and some to be dumped. The prize find of the day was bronze arrow head in excellent condition, with runners up being several celtic coins and other interesting objects. General consensus was that it had been good location and a good day well organised. By that time it was raining but all vehicles managed to exit the field without any drama. 

That just left the same stalwarts, Jack and Paul (who - it is rumoured - disappeared during the slack mid day period to the pub for a well earned lunch) organising the Rotary "helpers" to take down the marquee, pack away the tables, etc., and load them all on to Paul’s trailer for transport back to Pewsey and Jack’s garage. What a job - and the same again next Monday at the Boot sale on Marlborough Common !!

Jack reported on the event at our meeting on Monday and confirmed that we had made approximately £1500 profit at the event, and following a subsequent discussion with the organiser received an additional contribution that brought the profit up to just under £1900.  

To an assembled group of Marlborough Rotarians, guests and visitors from the Rotary Club of Royal Wootton Basset our travelling Rotarian, Trevor Thorogood, told us what he had been doing for the last four years in the Arabian Gulf. He also gave us some tasters of the life he had enjoyed - particularly in Dubai.

Most of his work seemed to involve getting rid of large amounts of sewage and other waste from the burgeoning populations by collecting it in vast quantities though large underground ducts and tunnels.  As we were told by Trevor - unless it hits the fan s**t is affected by gravity so these long sewers can fall to many metres below ground level. Then very large pumps are then required to bring it up to the surface treatment plant to convert it into something acceptable. Trevor started practicing this work in Kuwait and having sorted their waste problems transferred to bigger jobs in Dubai and Abu Dhabi.  Not content with that he also was involved with a major drinking water supply project to Amman in Jordan - a case of supply rather than removal.

Trevor then moved on to his pet subject - exotic cars - and showed us many examples found on the roads in Dubai, some of them owned by the Dubai Police - a Bugatti Veyron being the most expensive example.  He concluded his talk with some slides of his own collection of exotic cars and some of the audience were very jealous - the writer of this article for one!

The Vote of Thanks was given by Howard Small

9 August 2016:  A Sunny Day Out in Lacock

On a lovely summers day some 20 Rotarians, wives, partners, and dogs, were joined by recent Rotarians Terry Tovey, Mary and David Frampton, all of whom took part in the Lacock walk and lunch at the Pear Tree Inn, which was well organised by Honorary Rotarian Terry Krill.

Despite the 2.5 miles hilly walk being challenging at times for some, the friendship in everybody helping each other made the walk that much more satisfying.  On completion of the walk we collected three ladies, Valerie, Doris and Mary, who had decided to take refuge at the Lacock cafe, allegedly to put the world to right, and made our way to a delightful Inn for lunch of locally produced products, were the conversations continued and glasses of the local brews downed to slake the thirsts built up on the walk.

Edward thanked Terry for a memorable day and particularly for arranging the sun to be present , which along with those attending “had its hat on.“

On Monday night Rotarians learned that the term “underwriting” as applied to insurance derives from the Lloyds of London market where our guest speaker Oliver Clauson,  who was introduced by President Sally, commenced his illustrious career.  Oliver explained that originally the bankers who would accept some of the risk on a given venture (historically a sea voyage with associated risks of shipwreck) in exchange for a premium, would literally write their names under the risk information that was written on a Lloyd's slip created for this purpose.

As an underwriter Oliver, who specialised in accidents and holidays, told the assembled group of  some of the interesting cases that came his way.  One included the lady who lost her bikini in the wind whilst another another was the gentleman who took to performing handstands on the hotel balcony and fell from three floors up.  He told of a couple and their family of three who upon arrival at their hotel in America discovered he had left the case keys at Heathrow. But the most bizarre case he encountered was of a young man claiming for breaking his toe on the sheets  whilst enjoying amorous activities in bed.

Oliver concluded his excellent talk by detailing a number of frauds perpetrated by individuals who thought that they could get away with it, but more often that not they failed because of greed and endeavouring to commit the same fraud under a different name over a period of time.

29 July 2016: Rotarians Bowled Over at Pewsey

On a pleasant evening, unlike last year, 24 Rotarians, Wives and Partners met at Pewsey Vale Bowls Club for an evening of bowls and social intercourse. Following some interesting matches,we retired to the clubhouse for refreshments and a most enjoyable supper. Afterwards we attempted the "Quiz" provided by Keith Bew of the bowls club which certainly exercised our minds. Try as the quizzers could it was decided at the final count that President Sally's table had the most answers correct. Suffice to say the table included last years winners of the quiz Barbara and Mike Reeder ably assisted by Lyn and Don Ross.

Our thanks to Di Atchison and June Eales for providing an excellent supper. Also our special thanks to Keith Bew for arranging this event.

Last evening saw the Rotary Club of Marlborough and District play the Rotary Club of Royal Wootton Bassett Town at The Check Inn at Wroughton.  The teams were Marlborough: Sally, Gerry, Cedric, Jeremy, Tony and Ray and Royal Wootton Bassett were Steve, Chris, Neil and Alan.

The game was great fun, as have been all the games we have played this season, which contributed greatly to a successful evening. Our six players were against their four who claimed ‘not’ to have done any training although some of their players were very, very good!!!!  At the end of the evening the scores were totalled up and Marlborough had scored six points, BUT Royal Wootton Bassett had scored seven, thus winning the match!  

In addition, Alison and Rita came along to watch and not to be beaten by the men held their own ‘private’ match against each other - which they both really enjoyed.

We then adjourned to the restaurant where we were served hot food and had further drinks – some people even ate desserts!! The evening was really good not just because we had a good game (even if we only just lost) – but because of the great fellowship we had with the members of the Royal Wootton Bassett Town players who were great fun. 

Following the talk from Pentaque expert Andrew Lloyd the previous evening the Boules Team from Marlborough Rotary travelled to play the Rotary Club of Swindon at the Check Inn, North Wroughton.  Marlborough’s team comprised Captain Ray plus Jeremy, Gerry, Tony and Edward. Giving support to the team were Doris Ferguson and Rita Edwards

The team must have learned something from Andrew as contrary to expectations they WON. It might have been a narrow victory of 65 points to 63 but as they say “a Win is a Win” . Captain Ray reports that the game was great fun - but then the winners always say that!

The speaker at our meeting on 18 July was fellow Rotarian from South Cotswold club, Andrew Lloyd, who explained the origins of Petanque (or boules). Andrew was well qualified to give the talk being Vice President of the British Petanque Association and National Petanque Adviser to the U3A.  He was also responsible for introducing the district to petanque in 1998, which has evolved into a district sport that is highly competitive, with some clubs being more successful than others. 

Andrew showed examples of earlier boules and explained the difference between the (cheap) leisure boules, which most of us play with and which apparently due to their unknown manufacturing origin could explode any minute, and the proper competition boules with marked weights.  He also delighted in telling us the origin in France of the technical term “Kiss my Fanny”, used when whitewashing an opposing team. He assured us that he wasn’t particularly referring to the standard of the Marlborough team at the time.  

A short discourse on the technique of throwing the boule followed although it was noticed he was not giving away any useful information to assist our improvement.  This was evident when Sport Captain Ray Edwards was invited to pick two teams to play a short game of indoor boule, which was won by our new Rotarian Stewart Dailly, with very little assistance from partner Edward Ferguson, shown launching his boule watched by the astounded opposition.

12 July 2016: Rotarians go to see the Birds

The social committee arranged their first visit of the new Rotary year last Tuesday, 12th July 2016. Accompanied by President Sally Wolfenden, members and their families had an interesting visit to Slimbridge Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust, Gloucestershire, created by Sir Peter  Scott, British Ornithologist, circa 1946. One of Trust's first successes was to save the Hawaiian goose from extinction in the 1950s, through a captive breeding programme.  

Although, on leaving Marlborough it was more like April showers than July sunshine the weather improved and was kind throughout the visit enabling the visitors to enjoy a good look at the large variety of birds in residence. Judging by the photographs one or tep strange birds were also in residence

After the visit we enjoyed a late lunch in the marvellous restaurant overlooking the Chilean Flamingos enclosure, before boarding the coach and departing for home.

The committee’s next venture is at the Bowling Green, Pewsey on 29th July to take part in bowls, followed by supper in the clubhouse.

Rotarians and wives, resplendent in their finery assembled at Coles restaurant for the Presidents Night Dinner, hosted by President Rex Sandbach and his wife Ruth. Master of Ceremonies David Hunter started this most enjoyable evening and then it was the turn of good food, good wine and good conversation to take over. 

During the break between courses we were all entertained to table magic from a charming young magician, who had been found busking in Bristol by Jeremy and Alison Zabell.  How did he do those tricks, it is so infuriating when he shows them right in front of your eyes and you still cannot see how it was done! 

 Following presentations to deserving Rotarians for their contributions to the Rotary year plus one to Nesta Waine (wife of a Very Important person) for her guidance for our successful Spring Fayre it was time for that last drink and then carriages to home.

Thanks to the Social Committee for organising the excellent evening and to President Rex for an excellent year, which is sadly coming to a close.

Bank Holiday Monday dawned cool and dull while intrepid Rotarians departed their beds to head to Marlborough Common to set up for their regular Boot Sale.  By 06:30 the first of the sellers were arriving soon followed by the early professional buyers looking for bargains.   All the sellers had arrived and set up their stalls by 08:00 and the bacon sandwich and coffee stall was doing good business. The weather continued to be poor but this did not seem to deter the buyers who arrived in a steady stream.   By midday it was all over and sellers and buyers had departed to spend the rest of their holiday counting their takings or admiring their new purchase.    

Rotarians packed up the tents and equipment tidied the field of any litter and were soon off for well earned lunch and to count the takings.  £1280 was collected for the Charities supported by Rotary from the entry fees parking donations and the coffee and bacon sandwiches, making the event one of the more successful Boot Sales of recent years.   

The next Rotary Boot Sale will be on Marlborough Common on August Bank Holiday

Marlborough Rotary played their second boules game of the season, this time against South Cotswolds. A thoroughly good evening was had by all but Marlborough suffered a convincing defeat - again.  Some semblance of pride was maintained as in the Round Doubles Game the Marlborough pair beat the top South Cotswold pair led by star player Andrew Lloyd. 

As usual the boules was followed by beer, sandwiches and chips at The Red Bull at Malmesbury and much fellowship was exchanged.

Last Wednesday evening our top Boules team of President Rex Sandbach, Tony Green, Martin Luxford, Gerry Hooper and Team captain Ray Edwards travelled to the Red Bull at Sheraton to play Yartay B in the Rotary District Boules Summer League (Your reporter has since learned that the rest of the team found it a mystery as to Captain Ray got the job since as the evening developed it became evident he did not even know how to score) 

In typical British fashion the weather forecast had ranged from heavy rain to none at all and in the event only 5 minutes of drizzle appeared.  The match then commenced with Yartay team, led by Duncan Goodland,  showing confidence and some skill.  But after the first round of Triples the teams were neck and neck each winning 13 points to 9 in the two games.  However at that stage Marlborough seemed to capitulate in the doubles match, wining only one of the four games. A final score tally of 71 points to 47 told the story of an unsuccessful evening, resulting in instructions to the team from Team Captain Ray that training sessions will become mandatory.

Then on to the best part of the evening, the beer, chips and sandwiches,  an activity in which Marlborough more than held their own. 

After a new style (and tasty) meal at the Golf Club Rotarians settled down to the quiz prepared and presented by fellow rotarian Lydia Jackson Fields. As Quizmistress and our youngest Rotarian it was left to the older generation of Rotarians to distinguish photographs of world tourist sights, not too hard for those well travelled oldies, but they also had to identify pictures of actresses. Now it was OK to pick Dames Maggie Smith and Judi Dench, even possibly Pauline Collins, but some of those newer young ones certainly caused some scratching of heads and putting on of glasses. The odd whispered comment of “who an earth is she” and “it could have been worse, they could have been pop stars” were heard to come from several of the teams.  We all perked up on the round of “Anagrams of previous UK Prime Ministers” and got most correct - again current affairs for many Rotarians - but the “Science” question of unusual breeds of animals stumped us all - even Jack Torrens.  

After marking it was found that the team lead by John Robins, aptly named Cock Robin (the team, that is), won by half point from the team led by President Rex.  

Many thanks to Lydia for putting on such an excellent and fun evening.  

5 May 2016:  Rotarians Return from German Expedition

Thursday evening saw three carloads of Rotarians heading down the motorway from Heathrow to a well earned rest after a most enjoyable but hectic six days in Germany.  The main reason for the journey had been to attend the “Riverboat Shuffle” the annual fundraising event of the Rotary Club of Minden, with whose members Marlborough Rotary has shared several visits to each others events. This time it was Minden’s turn to host Marlborough and they did so in royal fashion from the moment we arrived until the time we left for a few days in southern Germany.

On arrival on Friday 29 April the hospitality was immediate with the hosting of us all by Ulli and Renate Kehlmann for coffee and cakes - three delicious varieties - at their home.  ABrewery visit followed that evening including a 25th anniversary dinner with Minden’s French Rotary partners, the Rotary Club of Boubourg, together with giant celebratory cake that lasted the weekend!  The following day a bus collected us all for an interesting guided tour of an old iron ore mine at Kleinenbremen. It had been closed some years now but had had an interesting history including use as factory during World War II to avoid the bombing. 

Promptly at 17:30 the assembled Rotarians walked down to find the Riverboat for the evening “Shuffle”. Suffice to say that with three hundred people in party mode, a excellent jazz band and copious amounts of food and drink a good time was had by all followed by a meandering walk back to the hotel bar to conclude the evening. Some editing of pictures taken during the evening has been necessary to protect certain Rotarians. 

The entertainment continued on the Sunday with champagne followed by a guided tour of Bad Oeynhausen, which had been used after the war as Montgomery’s headquarters town, the residents having been moved out.  The afternoon was spent watching a spectacular acrobatic show, along the lines of Circe de Soleil.  On our return to the hotel it was time to say goodbye to our generous German hosts, have quick shower and then out for a White Asparagus “all you can eat” supper. Fantastic.

It was time to head south and enjoy the German Autobahns for a 550km trip to Ulm and three nights at Hotel Stern.  After a good night’s sleep a guided tour of Ulm revealed it to be charming, the cathedral to be magnificent and the food to be excellent.  A champagne tea to celebrate Hilary Hollingsworth’s birthday was followed without a pause by dinner in a local restaurant on typical food of the area plus a trial of the local beers and wine completed the day.  Not wishing the party to relax too long President Rex had organised a tour of Augsburg for the following day which was accomplished without any of the cars getting lost, although one of them did take the scenic route home and only just arrived in time for dinner.

The final day, typically the warmest and brightest of the trip, was again programmed tightly by Rex, with lunch in Esslingen and then on to a really excellent guided tour of the Mercedes Museum, which even the ladies found interesting. The two hour trip flew by but then there was no time to linger as it was time to head to the airport, British Airways and home for recuperation!

Members can access full report and photographs through this link:  Riverboat Shuffle

Ably supported by Drs Nick Maurice and Trevor Tiplady  marlborough Rotarians ran their annual “Know Your Blood Pressure” day at the Jubilee Centre in Marlborough last Saturday 23 April.  The day is organised by the Stroke Association and is carried out all over the country. Our day started off slightly chaotically when it was discovered that the batteries on the pressure reading instruments were flat, but a quick trip to the shops by Peter Mansfield solved that and soon training was under way. After testing each other and finding everybody to be fit to continue the doors were opened to the public. 

A steady stream of people came for testing often encouraged in by our morning street walkers, Dave Frampton and Rex Sandbach.  Whilst most found their pressures to be perfectly OK, in the case of two people their pressures were so high that they were advised to see their doctors as soon as possible with the expectation of needing treatment.  It was these latter cases that make the day so worthwhile and a success, even if the overall numbers being tested were down on previous years. 

David Sawyer gave talk on the importance of maintaining healthy eyes and having them checked regularly, especially at the age of most of the Rotarians present. David explained that he had been a Dispensing Optician with Haine and Smith since joining them 1984, a career he said found most satisfying and rewarding - a statement that he assured us had nothing to do with the fact his boss Rotarian Barry Smith was in the audience.  As well as testing for sight and pressure, which Haine and Smith undertake for 40,000 patients per year, David was equally adamant that protection is of vital importance when doing activities that could result in eye damage.   

David also touched on the work he does for an eye charity in Uganda from where he had recently returned and which Haine and Smith actively support.

VIPR peter Waine gave the Vote of Thanks prior to the annual distribution of H&S ball point pens.   

M&DRC skittles team headed north to the Bell at Purton Stoke to do battle with the team from the Rotary Club of North Cotswold. Having won their last two matches the Marlborough team was full of hope to continue this form, however they made tactical error of bringing new blood into the team and as the evening unfolded it was evident that some of them were not up to the task.  (It should be made clear that the very important player shown below was not the lowest scorer in the team.) 

It all started well with M&DRC winning the first two rounds, but they then started to cruise while North Cotswold got into their stride, improved and started winning the rounds. Team captain Martin Luxford tried exhorting his team to greater efforts, leading by example by finishing as our highest scorer. Lydia Jackson played a strong role in the team following Martin’s lead but unfortunately it was not enough and North Cotswold won all of the last five rounds; with an overall points score of 321 to Marlborough’s 309.  The picture below tells the story; this is one of M&DRC results after all three balls - not much skittling going on!

It was an excellent evening played with a good degree of competitive spirit plus a couple of beers and sandwiches to finish. 

On Monday 11th April we had the pleasure of a visit from Rachel Turnbull, fundraiser for Naomi House Children’s hospice. Rachel joined us for dinner in order to receive a cheque for £1500 which was raised during the Club’s Christmas events. After the meal Rachel gave a brief update on Naomi House and Jack’s Place and the amazing work which they do.

DEBRA is the national charity that supports individuals and families affected by Epidermolysis Bullosa (EB), a painful and genetic skin blistering condition, which in the worst cases can be fatal.  Rotary learned about the condition last Monday in an interesting and thought provoking talk given by Sue Davison, DEBRA’s regional fund raising manager. The name DEBRA is not, as first thought, an acronym based upon EB but the name of a girl who suffered from it and whose mother set up the charity. 

Sue showed a short film on the subject based upon the life of Maisy a little girl suffering from the condition. The touching and inspirational film describing day to day life faced by sufferers and their parents and carers. We learned that these children, of which their are five thousand in UK, are sometimes known as “butterfly children” in reference to the fragility of their skin  and that life expectancy in many of the more severe cases can be limited.   There is currently no cure for the EB and much of the money raised for the charity goes into research. Other uses of the £2 million raised annually helps support parents and carers with respite, training, running of DEBRA centres in London and Birmingham and provision of holiday homes.  

Howard Small concluded the evening with the Vote of Thanks

The Spring Fayre at the Bouverie Hall, Pewsey, held to raise funds for the new Radiotherapy Unit at Great Western Hospital, was the first time in recent history that Marlborough and District Rotary Club had attempted such an event and it proved to be a success.  Not that this had been much in doubt as the project team, ably led by President Nominee, Cedric Hollingsworth, had planned the event for months, leaving nothing to chance (they hoped). Pewsey and its surrounding villages had been flooded with posters and leaflets for two weeks before the event following up on messages in local magazines and websites. The stalls had been booked in February and a detailed plan of their locations, accurate to the nearest inch, had been drawn by Tony Green and transferred to the hall floor the previous evening. At the same time retired solicitor turned senior electrician Peter Waine performed a very important role in laying out the electrical cables to most of the stalls, while the remainder of the volunteers did menial jobs of putting out tables, chairs, banners and generally preparing for the next day.  

Saturday, the day of the event, started early for Rotarians with more posters being put out around town. Erection of the Rotary gazebo was completed quickly and soon the stall holders arrived to set out their wares.  Everybody was drawn to the smell of Jack Torrens “bacon butties” which together with cup of tea or coffee served by the Rotary ladies made an ideal start to their day.  

Soon opening time arrived by which time the whole hall looked most attractive and ready for business.  A steady flow of customers entered, some making a beeline for the Rotary cake stall to see what was on offer while others went straight to the Tombola stall run by Rotarians Lydia and Ray, ably assisted by Ray’s wife Rita.  Quickly the hall was buzzing with people looking at the goods and produce offered by the 25 stalls, ranging from baby clothes through to silk flowers via liquorice and jewellery.  The weather also played its part remaining fine all day, with even the sun coming out in the afternoon. 

By 4pm the last of the 400+ visitors had left and it was time to count the takings (ijust in excess of £3000 towards the appeal), pack up, sweep the hall and lock up, reflecting on a successful day and how we could do even better next year.

Wiltshire County Councillor and landlord of the Moonrakers pub in Pewsey, Jerry Klunker, joined us for our meeting on Monday night. to speak about his life as a parish, district and county councillor. .  Jerry explained that he started life in the family grocery business, consequently coming to admire Margaret Thatcher as she came from a similar background. Demonstrating an early desire for political life he became a parish councillor and then in 1995 was elected as a District Councillor in Kennet. On disbanding of Kennet District Council following Wiltshire becoming a unitary authority he became a councillor in the newly formed Wiltshire Council.  He described the new authority, some of cost savings measures introduced by the new council and their impact on the community, the workings off the Area Boards and he then touched on issues such as new housing, youth inactivity and leisure centres.  

The talk initiated many questions in a lively session and the evening concluded with Geoff Oades giving the Vote of Thanks

Chris Musgrave, the guest speaker on Monday 7th March, presented an excellent talk entitled ‘Estate Management on a Landscape Scale’ that centred on the Marlborough Downs which covers 25,000 acres.  Although a predominately farming area, very few realise that there are many wildlife sites on the Downs. Chris demonstrated the work carried out by the farming community which provides diversity in land management and ihe highlighted the construction of dewponds, which has attracted wildlife to various sites. Chris also described the varying life stock to be found in the area together with the cultivation of crops that include one particular plant used in medicine. 

The evening concluded with a question and answer session that included the topical issue of how farming might be affected by the United Kingdom leaving the EU.

On Tuesday 1st March President Rex Sandbach accompanied by Sally Wolfenden, Cedric Hollinsworth and Tony Spranger visited the new Prospect Hospice unit at Savernake Hospital in Marlborough.  The hospice has signed an agreement with great Western Hospital Trust to have day services, physiotherapy and occupational therapy at the centre.  The team were shown the well appointed rooms, which was officially opened on February 9th this year, and learned of the work carried out by the devoted team and the many volunteers so important to the effective running of the unit.  President Rex then presented the a cheque to the value of £891 to the Hospice. 

On a cold evening, Marlborough played a keenly fought skittles match against Swindon at The Bruce Arms, Easton Royal. The games were played in a good spirit, so typical of these inter-club meetings. Our opponents started strongly, but with a “Strike” by our President in the first leg,saved us from going too far behind. The second leg saw Marlborough come back to give a 2-shot lead which, in the third leg, increased by a further 2 shots. The next 2 legs saw a fluctuation of the score line, possible influenced by the introduction of the beer round!. The penultimate round, another beer leg, saw Marlborough down by 6 shots, therefore “No Pressure” on the team, who then rose magnificently, to win by 2 shots. A most enjoyable and convivial evening was had by all. 

Pictures of the jubilant winning Marlborough team (above) and the rather despondent losing Swindon team (right) are shown.

The Shell Shock epidemic during the 1914 – 1918 war was the subject of an excellent talk by Richard Dorney on Monday evening 15^th February. Mark explained how millions of men suffered psychological trauma as a result of their war experiences and how difficult it was to understand what caused the palpitations and extreme trauma on the battlefield known then as “Shell Shock”. Although doctors were present on the front line there were no psychiatrists capable of dealing with these incidents.  Mark, who had spent many years in the army,  detailed the problems of  trauma  experienced by front line troops in battle from the First World War through to the current day. He added that  the mental health conditions of troops participating in more recent conflicts such as the Falkland’s, Iraq and Afghanistan was better understood and how charities deal with the aftermath of traumatic stress suffered by soldiers returning home from these areas. 

On the 8^th February 2016 the Club was delighted to welcome a new member, Ray Edwards.  Ray has been coming to the Club as a guest for approximately two months and was introduced by his Proposer Cedric Hollinsworth.  Following the Induction ceremony carried out by President Rex Sandbach, Ray was warmly welcomed into the Marlborough & District Club by other Club members.  Ray will initially be joining the Publicity Committee having had experience in this area when he was a member of the Aylsham Club a few years ago.  Ray has moved into the area fairly recently and lives at Milton Lilbourne with his wife Rita.

After having knocked over a total of 632 skittles between the two teams, we had a tie!  Unheard of in the annals of Rotary skittles competitions.  In the ensuing penalty shoot-out we lost by a short head.  But it was an evening where the taking part was what mattered.  Plenty of laughter and banter and our new venue, The Bruce Arms, looked after us well.  

Our next match is Tuesday 16 February also at The Bruce Arms, Easton Royal.

At our meeting last  Monday Rotarians and their guests were treated to an exceptional talk by Ann King. Her entertaining light hearted but informative talk covered the history of Avebury Manor up to the present day. She explained the changes in ownership and fortunes over the years of this Tudor Manor House, now owned by the National Trust. It was originally built in the 16th century on the site of a monastic building and had since seen many alterations by its owners including William Dunch, a wealthy courtier and Auditor for the Royal Mint, who rebuilt the property as it is seen today, Sir James and Mrs Debora Mervyn and finally by Lt-Colonel Leopold and Mrs Nora Jenner who added a library and laid out the wonderful gardens in the early 20th century.  

Ann went on to describe how the manor was featured in the BBC television series 'The Manor Reborn', where a team of experts helped to return the house to its Tudor splendour. Nine rooms were restored, reflecting Tudor, Georgian, Queen Anne, Edwardian, and early 20th century periods. 

The house will be open to the public from 9th February until 22nd December 2016