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HOW WE'VE CHANGED
!
Its over two decades now since the Community Association
was formed. How we have changed in the last 20 years (and I do not just mean personally,
either). At that time, the Village Hall had not been built, neither had the new school,
and a lot of the 'new' houses in the village had just been built. There was a sense of
newness around. The village was growing and changing.
The
most important job of the Association at that time, was to raise funds to build a Village
Hall. All sorts of money spinning activities were being arranged, social functions held
and many other events taking place, all to generate money to build a Hall. There was an
enormous effort put in to raise this money. A large number of people from the village were
involved in this, all contributing in their own way to building a new Village Hall.
There
was also a sense of 'togetherness' by these people, a sense of working for a common good.
There was a clear target to aim for. There were huge benefits to be gained from it, and
all the work and effort were definitely going to be worthwhile. And they have been. We
have a tremendous asset for the village, for us. Let us look after it and treasure it. We
need as much help as we can to manage, maintain and run the Hall for 'the benefit of the
inhabitants of the village and its neighbourhood', (as it says in our constitution).
We
should not forget those early efforts, and the time and trouble that many, many people put
in to make the Hall possible. Its something we take for granted now. We go down to take
our children to the many activities that go on there. We go down ourselves to play
badminton, or bowls, or whatever. We should also not forget that you just don't build a
Hall and then walk away. You need to manage it. It just doesn't run itself, which a lot of
people think.
It
still needs a lot of volunteers to help. We use volunteers so that we can keep our costs
down. As long as we can get enough voluntary help to keep the Hall running, we will do so.
When the number falls, we will have to employ people to do these jobs and our costs, and
then our hire rates, will soar. So it is in everyone's interests to help out a little and
cut down on costs.
We
can ill afford to lose any of our helpers and I am disappointed that John Turner has
retired as Chairman of one of the main organising committees in the Association, the Hall
Management Committee. John has been one of those stalwarts who has organised and supported
the Association for many, many years. He was one of those raising funds at the early
stages before the Hall was built. He has run the lottery in the village, been editor of
the Marigold, acted as Booking Secretary, spent countless hours at the Hall
fixing things and doing odd jobs, and has chaired the HMC for many years. I would like to
thank John on behalf of the Association for all the time he has given to the Hall. We will
miss him.
But
bear in mind my suggestion of putting some time in to help with the Hall. We don't bite
heads off, and we do need all the support we can get to keep going this wonderful asset we
all have and that we all take for granted.
VILLAGE QUIZ
Don't forget the Village Quiz next year, which will be held on Saturday 9th
March in the Village Hall at 7.45 p.m. Everyone is welcome. You will need a team of 6
people to enter, and tickets are available from Viv Downing on 300678.
There
is an excellent supper included in the ticket price, a raffle during the quiz, and of
course, some excellent prizes for the winners. But more than this, whether you win or
lose, it is a wonderful night out.
For
some, it is a life time's ambition to win the Guilden Sutton Village Quiz.
BOOKING SECRETARY
Ruth Hughes, the Hall Booking
Secretary, can be contacted between Monday and Thursday for bookings, by telephone on
300185. Booking Request Forms are available from the Village Hall, or from Ruth, and
should be dropped in to 47 Oaklands when they have been completed.
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