Meeting reports and what’s on’s for Thetford’s clubs and groups this August.
Lions Clubs International serving Thetford and Attleborough
Members of the Lions Club attended the Royal Norfolk Show last month, where they handed out Stay Safe wristbands to children in case they became separated from their families.
The Lions also have a collection box in Specsavers in Thetford where used spectacles and cases can be donated. The club is very grateful to Specsavers for hosting the collection point.
Thanks to support from other collection points and neighbouring Lions clubs, members collected 90 boxes containing around 30,000 pairs of used spectacles. These were transported from Thetford to Lions headquarters in Birmingham, where they are sorted before being sent overseas to help people in need.
Anyone requiring a Lions Message in a Bottle is encouraged to get in touch. The free scheme enables people to store their medical information and emergency contact details in a bottle kept in the fridge. Stickers are provided for the fridge and front door so that emergency services know to look for it if they are called to the property.
The club is always looking for volunteers to support the local community. Whether it’s knitting at home, helping on a fundraising stall or becoming a full member, every contribution makes a difference.
Funds raised by the Lions support local charities, and the club welcomes enquiries from anyone who may benefit from assistance.
The club meets at The Bell Hotel on the third Tuesday of each month at 7.30pm. Anyone interested in finding out more or becoming a member is welcome to attend.
For further information, email Club Secretary Lion Lesley Clarke at theclarkes44@btinternet.com or visit the club’s Facebook page.
Ann Kirton
Thetford Flower Club
Thetford Flower Club held its July meeting on 14th July at the Church on the Way, welcoming members and visitors.
Well-known area demonstrator Crystal Dyball entertained the audience with a series of beautiful floral arrangements entitled A Hat Occasion, wearing a different hat to accompany each arrangement while sharing the story behind it. The afternoon concluded with refreshments and plenty of conversation.
There will be no meeting in August.
The club resumes in September with an interactive workshop, A Simple Wreath, where members and visitors are invited to take part with support and discussion from fellow participants. Refreshments will follow.
Thetford Flower Club meets on the second Tuesday of every month at 2pm at Church on the Way, Churchill Road, Thetford, IP24 2JW.
Meetings include workshops, information about flowers and foliage, visits to other clubs and the opportunity to make new friends.
For further information, contact Lynda on 01842 762919.
Lynda Moore
Thetford Inner Wheel
To celebrate the beginning of a new Inner Wheel year, the club, together with guests, enjoyed afternoon tea in a teepee at Letton Hall near Shipdham.
Although the weather was rather warm, everyone enjoyed the delicious afternoon tea and the surrounding gardens.
The club now breaks for the summer but looks forward to a busy year ahead with Annalee Clarke as President.
For further information about Inner Wheel please go to www.innerwheel.co.uk.
Marian de Bass
Club Correspondent
Probus Club of Thetford
Members held their July meeting at the usual venue of The Church on the Way, where they welcomed the return of speaker Richard Gibbons.
Richard’s talk was entitled D-Day and the Normandy Aftermath. Planning had started in 1943, with many deceptions aimed at misleading the enemy as to the date and location of the landings. The D-Day invasion started on 6th June 1944, having been delayed for 24 hours because of severe weather and very rough seas in the Channel. The previous target date of May had not been met because of the necessity to acquire additional landing craft. Richard’s talk was graphically and movingly illustrated by films and voice recordings made at the time, and his commentary brought home to members the bravery and the horrors of the campaign.
The next meeting will be held on 4th August, when Neil Dickinson will talk about Shogun and Emperors.
The club meets on the first Tuesday of every month at 10.30am at The Church on the Way, IP24 2JW, and monthly lunches are held at local venues.
New members are always welcome. More details can be found at:
https://probusclub.net/thetford
Ann Kew
Thetford u3a
At June’s monthly meeting, local resident Elaine Brown gave members a stimulating insight into the history and ongoing work of the Commonwealth War Graves Commission. An ex-service person herself, Elaine became interested in the social impact of war and its effects on those at home. She now volunteers for the Commission and explained that it maintains not only the large war cemeteries in the UK and overseas, but also smaller local sites within churchyards and cemeteries where individual casualties are honoured. The Commission’s immaculate work serves as a fitting act of remembrance.
At the next monthly meeting on Thursday 27th August, Jane Hoggar will share stories from her Life as a Bluebell Girl. With her trademark sense of humour, Jane will recount the ooh la las and the dear oh dears from her colourful career.
U3A Thetford’s monthly meetings take place on the fourth Thursday of each month at the Church on the Way, Churchill Road, Thetford, IP24 2JZ. Doors open at 1.30pm for the 2pm meeting.
New members are always welcome. Contact membership@thetfordu3a.org for details.
David Thompson
Thetford Parkinson’s Group
Thetford Parkinson’s Café will meet on Tuesday 11th August at 11am at the Methodist Church.
The group will be catching up on some exercise, with two members demonstrating the skills they have been learning through walking football. There will also be the opportunity to try some gentler seated exercises. Everyone is welcome.
For more information please contact Rachel at rwaid2@gmail.com
Rachel Woods
West Norfolk Aviation Society (WNAS)
This week’s guest speaker was Keith Thomas, an experienced helicopter pilot, who spoke about his experiences as a Search and Rescue (SAR) helicopter pilot during the 1970s.
At the start of his career, Keith flew the Westland Whirlwind HAR10, a single-engined helicopter. Although he was very fond of the aircraft, it had a particularly short winch cable, making rescues alongside larger drops challenging if the cable was shorter than the distance to the casualty. Fortunately, crews carried an extension strop that could be attached to the winch cable when required.
Keith later progressed to the twin-engined Wessex, which offered greater lifting capability, longer range, higher speed and improved safety. Ironically, it was in this aircraft that he experienced his only accident, when he was forced to ditch into Hong Kong Harbour. Thankfully, the entire crew escaped unharmed.
The accident occurred when the navigator, who also served as the winch operator, moved between the cabin and cockpit and accidentally knocked the fuel supply switches to the ‘off’ position while manoeuvring into place.
Keith maintained that the bravest person on board was the winchman, who dangled beneath the helicopter on the end of a cable, colloquially known as the “dope on a rope”. More seriously, he explained that, historically, winchmen have most often lost their lives during rescue operations when cables have snagged or snapped, and suggested they are among the most highly decorated aircrew in peacetime operations.
Keith’s talk provided a fascinating personal insight into Search and Rescue operations, and members look forward to welcoming him back in the future.
Next month, club member Steve will present a talk on non-conventional weapons from a non-military perspective, including topics such as the Salisbury poisoning.
Visitors are welcome on Tuesday 4th August at 7.15pm. Further details are available at www.westnorfolkaviationsociety.com. Non-members’ admission is £2 per person, including a light buffet.
Mark Burch
