Waterlooville Classic Car Show – 5 July 2014

Today it threatened rain all the time but in fact it stayed dry.
My first event ofo the day was the Waterlooville Classic Car Show.
What an amazing number of classic cars both English and foreign as well as motorbikes, including Harley Davidson’s. I had the onerous task of choosing the winners of the 4 classes namely:- Best British Car, Best Foreign Car, the Best Motorbike and the Best Harley Davidson. It was extremely difficult to make a choice so I decided in the end to go by what not only looked the best but also and above all, had the least renovation over the years.

Duke of Edinburgh Gold Award Holder’s Reception – 4 July

On a very warm evening I attended this prestigious reception in Winchester – there were 5 recipients from the Borough of Havant! Whilst they had already received their awards from Her Majesty the Lord Lieutenant of Hampshire presented them with a certificate. I felt very proud that we had five young people from within the Borough in receipt of these.

Due to the crowds on the night I was only able to meet and speak with three of our recipients and say a quick hello to the fourth. I did not manage to speak to the fifth person at all which was a shame. I felt enormous pride none the less. When we left the Great Hall it was such a surprise to find the pavements soaking wet and the rain pouring down.

Havant Light Opera’s production of Iolanthe – 3 July

On the 3rd July I was invited to attend Havant Light Opera’s production of ‘Iolanthe’ at The Spring Arts and Heritage Centre., This was the first time I have seen this Gilbert and Sullivan Opera and the actors/singers performed extremely well. It was strange to see the Immediate Past Mayor in a new light as he was one of the chorus members!

After the performance it was good to be able to mingle with some of the cast – they really do some very strong performances and certainly I look forward to seeing more of this group. A real credit to Havant!

2nd July – Mayor’s Coffee Morning

I hosted my first Coffee Morning as Mayor at the Public Service Plaza on 2nd July it was an opportunity to network and socialise with residents, Councillors and friends who attended and at the same time raised funds for my chosen charities. My next Coffee Morning will be held on 22nd October at the Sacred Heart Church, Waterlooville 10.30 am – 12 noon. All Welcome. I will be hosting an Afternoon Tea with a guest speaker at the Public Service Plaza on Wednesday 3rd September between 2.00 pm and 4.00 pm. This should be a fun event as Councillor Mike Cheshire MBE will be the speaker – I believe on the topic of Nelson! Both dates to remember – please book them in your diaries now.

1st July – Visit to Langstone Technology Park for Havant Sixth Form Art Exhibition

What fantastic abilities these students have. Unfortunately due to the Brownies visit over running slightly we were a little late in arriving but we still saw the whole exhibition. The winner of the overall prize had made a magnificent sculpture of a horse. Well done to all exhibitors!

1st and 2nd July – 100 Years of the Brownies and Visits by 2nd Denvilles and 3rd West Leigh Brownies

It was my pleasure to host visits to the Parlour and Council Chamber by two groups of Brownies as part of their 100 year celebrations.

We started the visit with a talk and presentation by our Environmental Health team who showed how bad it is to wash chicken before cooking! The team made it very interesting and fun for the children. This was followed by an in depth insight into the Office of the Mayor, and the history of the robes given by Tom McInally, the Mayor’s Attendant. Tom explained all about the robes and how the pockets were used to collect taxes and the role of the Mace in protecting the Mayor in days gone by. Today, of course this is just used at ceremonial occasions.

We finished with soft drinks and cakes and giving the children copies of the Coat of Arms.

The Brownies have been working on their Brownie Birthday Challenge Badge since January – and have chosen many of the challenges they wanted to complete, such as climbing/a sleepover at Southbourne Village Hall/a trip on the Watercress Line/swimming and lots of crafts and games taking the Brownies from 1914 to 2014. I was also able to present them with these well earned badges.

We ended the evening by presenting each Brownie with a Mayor Bear Badge!

June 30th 2014 – Golden Jubilee Mass for St Peter’s Catholic Primary School

On the 30 June we were welcomed warmly to the lovely Cathedral and it was wonderful to see so many parents and pupils attending this special service celebrating the Golden Jubilee of St Peter’s Catholic Primary School.

Opening of the new Gym at Horizon Leisure Centre – 30th June 2014

I was delighted to be able to attend the opening of the new Gym at Havant Leisure Centre. This offers some very impressive facilities and state of the art equipment and is an excellent facility to encourage the local community to take up and participate in wholesome exercise and promote a healthy lifestyle.

It was a shame that we were unable to stay and try out any of the equipment but we had a further diary commitment to attend a Golden Jubilee Mass at 6.30 pm!

It was a wonderful surprise to be presented with the cheque from Horizon for £1,000 for my charity appeal fund. This money had been collected over time from members, staff and other users of the Leisure Centre.

Grateful thanks for this magnificent boast to my appeal fund, raising funds for Raynaud’s and Scleroderma, Footprints and the Rowans Hospice.

Thank you, Thank you, Thank you!

30th June Unveiling of Tree Marker at Bidbury Mead to mark the Time Capsule buried during the Golden Jubilee Year

On the 30th June, I was invited to attend Bidbury Mead to unveil a tree marker to mark a Time Capsule buried during the Golden Jubilee Year.

After 18 months, the Oak tree is doing well and I was pleased to be able to unveil the plaque marking the spot where the Time Capsule is buried. A very elegant stone marker provided by Edwards Funeral Directors.

It was a very cold summer’s day and therefore it was marvellous to be able to go into the clubhouse afterwards to enjoy a hot drink with those that had attended.

Sunday 29th June – Civic Sunday at St Wilfrid’s Church, Cowplain

My Civic Sunday Service was held at St Wilfrid’s Church on Sunday 29th June. It was lovely to have the support of the local congregation and my Mayor’s Cadets as well as other cadets from T S Active MTC who formed a Guard of Honour on my arrival and piped me into the church!

The Reverend Canon Dr Paul Moore officiated as my Chaplain, sadly this will be his last official duty as my Chaplain as he is moving on to pastures new shortly. After the service we were able to join the congregation for refreshments and I enjoyed the opportunity of meeting and talking to the congregation and church officials. We were made very welcome.

Saturday 28 June – Strawberry Fayre at Fairfield Infant School

What a lovely event this was, the weather held and judging the fancy dress was an extremely difficult task as the standard of entries was very high with entries from all ages.

Brenda France entertained us with a delicious strawberry tea afterwards where we were able to see some of the children’s work on display in the dining room. Took me back to my teaching days!

HIADS – Alice in Wonderland

The performance staged by the youth theatre was very good and thoroughly enjoyable. Very clever use of special effects to increase and decrease the size of Alice!.

It was a pleasure to be able to go backstage to meet the cast after the show. Thank you Hayling Youth Theatre for a superb evening.

Unveiling of the bust of the late Alexander McKee OBE

It was absolutely lovely to be able to attend this event recognising the work of Alexander Mckee and his incredible work and that of the team of divers who found the Mary Rose.

When “McKee’s Ghost Ship” was raised in 1992 Mac was not invited to join the VIP’s on the salvage ship to watch. Among the guests was Prince Charles who asked where he was. On being told that Mac was with his family on a launch outside the exclusion zone he insisted that they be brought aboard.

The amazing Mary Rose Museum in Portsmouth Dockyard is the direct result of the refusal of this remarkable man to give up what most believed was a lost cause.

I was delighted to be able to meet his wife , daughter and son at the unveiling. The bronze bust on display in Hayling library depicts this man with such character in his face.

I would also like to acknowledge the efforts of Henry Yelf in acknowledging the work of Alexander Mckee and his team.

Annual Prize Giving at The Hayling College – 26th June

It was a pleasure to attend the Annual Prize Giving ceremony at the Hayling College on the evening of the 26th June and to witness the students receiving recognition for all their achievements. Well done!

South Downs College Skills Summit – 25 June 2014

On Wednesday 25th June, Councillor Gerald Shimbart joined with me to attend the South Downs College Skills Summit – The Visitor Economy. We enjoyed an excellent presentation by Jeremy Pardey who gave us an account of the journey that Butlins had undertaken over the last 8 years. He explained how they had managed to turn round the attitude of residents by bringing them into the site to enjoy and experience first hand the facilities available to visitors at Butlins. They now appear to be quite proud to have this leisure facility in their town. The occasion was also an opportunity for South Downs to showcase their incredible award winning dining facility which can be used by anyone wishing to sample a fine dining experience put on by the students. We have plans in place to hold a Charity Dinner in aid of my chosen charities on
31 March 2015.

Havant is Open for Business!