At our Meeting held on 24^th September, we were pleased to hear our Chairman Madge introducing two new members.  They were given a warm welcome - we hope to see more new members in the future. There was disappointment, though, as the five Firemen who had agreed to give us a talk had unfortunately had to cancel, but promised to come to a Meeting quite soon. Necessity being the mother of invention, however, meant that Madge and members gave us a meeting that times even proved quite jolly. First, we listened to two poems - one entitled 'Buried Treasure' and the other 'Forgetfulness' (most of us can identify with that at times). Madge then treated us to a Quiz that meant identifying phrases and words' meaning This resulted in some hilarity, especially when posing some rather funny alternatives. For instance the word Blackbird meant either a rook or crow or burnt Chicken or ground-dwelling monkey a Gibbon or a naughty child!.

Our Chairman then told us St. James' School had invited us as a Group to have Harvest Supper with them on Thursday 1^st October and quite a few members gave their names to attend. What a kind thought from Teachers and pupils and very much appreciated.

We ended our Meeting with tea, followed by our usual good Raffle both of which were enjoyed by all (26)  members who all agreed, despite a disappointment that it was a Jolly Good Afternoon.

Our next Meeting will be on Thursday 22^nd October at 2.30 p.m.

The October Meeting had as it's speaker Peter Hartley who gave a talk on his holiday in Uganda, in 2008. He told how he and 16 fellow travellers following various mishaps with the transport arrived at the National Park, where the group, after a well needed rest, split up into three parties , each visiting banana and tea plantations, villages and a settlement of Pygmies who have been removed from their forest homes in order to protect the Mountain Gorillas from the danger of human diseases.

The highlight of the trip, was of course the visit to the Mountain Gorillas themselves, whose life span is approximately 15 to 20 years and who share 97% of human genes, They live in groups comprising females, young males and the dominant male, the silver back. The females can have in their lifetime, eight to ten young and these stay with their mother for around three years.

The photographs, which accompanied the talk showed some very photogenic 'ladies' and the rather 'shyer' males hiding amongst the ferns. There were also pictures of Hippos, Elephants, Buffalo and some very picturesque sunset.

The banana plantations of which there are many, comprise three different varieties, the sweet banana, one that is cooked as a vegetable and the last which is made into Gin. The process for the Gin is in three stages, the first, producing a fruity drink, through to the last fermentation which is very strong indeed.

Names are still being taken for the trip, arranged by the Conservative Party, to the Poppy Factory at Richmond, on 9^th November, leaving Hookley Lane at 12 noon. The charge is £16 and includes a light lunch, numbers are limited to 42, so please contact Sandra on 702050 if you are interested.

Next month's Meeting on 12^th November is the AGM.

Friday 4^th December 8.00 pm till Late - Tickets from Bernard 01252 702 588 or Martyn 01252 702 738.