Lenham Valley
Active Retirement Association

			Emails @lenara.org.uk
CHAIRMAN	Roger Newman	07889 287417	rog.newman
VICE-CHAIRMAN	Julia Elliot		julia.elliott
SECRETARY	Teresa Thompson		teresa.thompson
WEBSITE	Mike Compson	01622 851763	mike.compson
EMAILS			info

CHAIRMAN'S MESSAGE

Hi everyone. 

This is an important month for LenARA in which we hold our AGM where we will have the opportunity to strengthen our committee and therefore our club.  Please do consider putting yourself forward and joining the excellent committee members we already have.  Our problem at the moment is there are just not enough of us.

48 of our members have recently returned from a five-day holiday in Torquay. This was a great trip with lots of laughs. Thank you John, for making this trip possible and thank you to everyone who went. The company of each and every one of you is what made this trip the superb five days that it was. Below is a report from Phil giving details of all the goings on -

South Devon Delights

On a bright sunny Saturday morning, under the banner of Alfa Holidays, a group of LenARA members set off on a tour entitled "South Devon Delights". The journey to Torquay and the Metropole Hotel was uneventful and we made good time arriving at approximately 4 pm. We soon discovered that our hotel was a warren of passages and stairways, but luckily our cases were delivered to our rooms. The rooms were very good, looked as though they had been recently refurbished and the bathrooms spotless. The food was ok, better than other Alfa hotels we have visited, although I would say the chef had used a little poetic licence with some of his menus. There was of course the obligatory Bingo each evening with I believe good cash prizes and also a variety of vocalists and an organist for the dancers in our group to strut their stuff.

On the first day of our trip we visited Brixham and Totnes.  We stopped for two and a half hours in each of these small towns, which was too long or not long enough, depending on what you wanted to explore. Brixham is one of England's most historic fishing ports and still has a thriving fishing industry today. It was originally a Saxon settlement and was the landing place of William of Orange. Walking along the quay side you were able to see the fishing trawlers that went to sea for trips of 7-10 days and it was easy to imagine what a hard life it must be. Looking across the harbour it was amazing to see the houses.  There were rows and rows appearing to be built one on top of the other, so many different colours pink, blue, red, yellow and white.

In the harbour you will also see an exact replica of the Golden Hinde, the ship that Sir Francis Drake sailed around the world.

Our next stop was Totnes; this is a small market town that has consistently been named in the world's "Funkiest Towns" list and is set on the banks of the River Dart with its own Steamer quay. The main street in the town rises steeply from the river to Totnes Castle and there are a variety of shops and cafes housed in historic 16th and 17th Century buildings. Our group split up and took off in different directions having been guided by the large town map at our coach stop some heading for the high street others for the riverbank.

Day Two of our trip was a day of leisure and was spent exploring Torquay or using our bus passes to visit other local Devon Delights including Paignton, a typical seaside town where a couple of groups of our members headed to the sea front to play crazy golf.  Some of us caught the bus to Cockington Village which was beautiful. 

The next day our trip took us to Plymouth and Buckfast Abbey. In the morning we were dropped off by the harbour close to the Barbican where once again everyone disappeared in different directions to do their own thing.

The afternoon was spent with a trip to Buckfast Abbey, definitely a place worth visiting. You do not have to be religious to appreciate the tranquil beauty of the Abbey building, its gardens and surrounding areas. 

Inside the Abbey the stonework and masonry is bright and spotlessly clean with many architectural features that needed incredible skill from the stone masons that constructed such a fine building. One of the standout features is the stained-glass window of Christ set in the wall at the end of the Abbey it is spectacular.

This being the last night a small group of us took the opportunity to go to a local variety show at Babbacombe theatre. The show was called "Celebration" and was to mark 40 years to the day that the theatre was bought by its present owner. It was always going to be a chancy venture, but it turned out to be a BRILLANT evening of entertainment.

Wednesday 29th April. Departure day has arrived sooner than expected, time to pack our bags say our goodbyes and be homeward bound. Also, time to look back on days spent with friends and in good company. Thank you, John for all your hard work in making this short break possible and worthwhile. Here's to the next one?

FUTURE EVENTS

13th May. We are off to Ten Pin Bowling at Whitstable and then for those that want to lunch, the fish and chip restaurant

27th May. This is our AGM.  As the AGM does not normally take very long we have arranged for a singer, Chrissie Kent, to entertain us probably for about half an hour once the business side is done.

17th June.  At the AGM Julia will be taking requests and payment for the June lunch being held at Ledian Gardens, Leeds village on 17th June.  

You can still book for this and as you know it is a good venue and the lunches we have had there before have been very good.  You can book either by emailing Julia (julia.elliott @ lenara.org.uk) and pay by transferring the money direct to the LenARA bank account or to Julia at the May meeting.

LUNCHES 

Wednesday, 17^th June  - Our Pub Lunch is at Ledian Gardens [See more details...]

Wednesday July 15^th - 1-30pm - Lunch with a Difference [See more details...]

BUFFET Picnic at Charing Pavilion

Bring a chair to sit in the sunshine afterwards or sit on the veranda overlooking the playing field.  There will be Games for the energetic. £15 per head.  Please put your names down if interested to ensure that it is a viable event.

Wednesday December 2nd 12 - 16:30 - Christmas Lunch [See more details...]

There are still places available for our end of year Christmas lunch at the Orida hotel. £10 non-refundable deposit is required.

If you prefer to email Julia with regard to any of these events please do. 

24^th June. We have a speaker from KCC Highways.

22^nd July. We are holding a Horse Race Meeting at the Community Centre.  Start saving your 50ps for your bets on the tote.  I am sure you will enjoy it and once again more details will follow.

For those who have put their names down for the trip to Lingfield Racecourse on the 18^th August and have not paid their £10 deposit please let us have it at the May meeting.

We will also be taking names of those interested in a trip to Amberley Museum near Arundel in West Sussex.

OUR WEEKLY EVENTS:

Short Mat Bowls	Tuesday	2.00pm to 4.00pm	£4 per session	Phil Gooda 01622 851217
Zumba	Wednesday	9.30am to 10.30am	£7 per session	Barbara Kyprianou 01622 850468
Line Dancing	Wednesday	7.30pm to 9.00pm	£5 members per session £6 for non-members per session	Ann Rolfe 01622 859725
Petanque  (weather permitting)	Thursday Saturday	10.00am to 12.00pm	£3 per session	Peter 07831 147656 Jackie 07734 566896

OUR MONTHLY MEETINGS: