Thornbury U3a Bulletin November 2014

Another bumper edition!!

Special notice!!
We are now selling tickets for the next open meeting, called
Glorious Mud. Details and a form are at the end of this bulletin.
There will be further opportunities to buy tickets for those who
dont receive this bulletin.

AGM November 5th 2014

At a packed Armstrong Hall our new committee was elected, lets
introduce them
Chairman Bob Dale
Vice Chair Alison
Makepeace
Secretary Lesley Hellen
Treasurer Quentin Killey
Membership Secretary Tony
Turnbull
Rosemary Bailey Publicity
Officer
Pat Purssord Group
Coordinator
Terry Pashley Equipment Coordinator
Alan Heath Web Site Co-ordinator
David Austin Visits Organiser
Helen Roberts Bulletin Editor, Liaison Officer
Barbara Day Newsletter Editor
More details of their roles and how to contact them will be in the
January Newsletter and Handbook

Message from our new Chair

It's great to be in the chair of
such a thriving organisation.
Over the coming months I'll
share with you some of my
ideas on how we can make it
even better; I say "we"
because you have a vital role
to play throughout. At this
stage I need to know your
thoughts: niggles, frustrations,
wishes, hopes. E-mail me at
thethornburydales@
blueyonder.co.uk - Ill treat
everything in confidence and
promise that I will carefully
consider all points raised. I
look forward to meeting as
many as possible of you over
the coming months.
Bob Dale

Bus Pass Travel Peter Randall is unable to plan

trips for this group at the present. However he
does not want the group to disband and is keen
for either existing members or someone new to
come forward to organise some trips. He would
be willing to have a meeting with anyone willing
to take this on.
Please contact Pat
Purssord 501438 for more information.

Message from u3a member Helen Briggs I would like to

hear if any members of Thornbury U3A would be
interested in joining an informal golfing society. What I
propose is having a fun golfing day out at a club in the
area (best value) followed by a light meal & social get
together, possibly two or three times a year.
If you think this is of interest to you, please email her at
tigerbriggs@yahoo.co.uk or phone her at 01454 202181

Monday Drawing Group Monday Drawing Group, formerly

known as Johns group.
How sad we were to hear the news of the death of John Toller, the group leader.
We wish his family well at this difficult time.
Would you like to refresh your drawing skills? The Monday drawing group meets
at St Helen's Church Hall on Mondays (except Monday in the month) from 10 am
to 12 noon. It is mainly a self help group but following the programme of work
set out previously. Where possible there will be people willing to help and
speakers arranged. The group is open to everyone from beginners to
improvers. As we currently have only 12 members, we need more people to
continue to make the group viable. Contact the new group leader, Dave Betty
at davebetty@gmail.com
Our programme so far includes:
10th November: Drawing in Indian
ink, led by experienced group
member.
17th and 24th November: Pencil and
ink drawings of Stourhead
8th December Watercolour picture
led by local artist
14th December Pastel picture: led
by experienced group member.

The Traditional Folk Music has now closed downunless someone out
there would like to start it up again.....?

Our next Open Meeting!!!

Flanders and Swan
No we cant bring
them back to life, but
we can do the next
best thing.
'Glorious Mud' is our
next open meeting on
Wednesday, 4th
February, 2.30 p.m. at
the Armstrong Hall.
Come and
experience a live,
musical dip into some of the songs of Flanders and
Swann and enjoy an entertaining talk with music. Please
complete the form below, and send to Lesley Hellen, 32
Durham Road, Charfield, Wotton under Edge, GL12 8TH
Please reserve . tickets for the Glorious Mud talk. I
enclose a cheque for ..(2 each)
Names (block capitals)..
Phone number
Email address.
Important! Please enclose a stamped addressed
envelope. Cheques should be payable to Thornbury U3A

On Tuesday 9th December the Discussion

group will consider "Holidays - Sublime or
stressful?" A light-hearted sharing of the
ups and downs of solo, family and group
ventures at home or abroad. We are a
"Just turn up" group, so come along to the
Chantry at 2pm for a warm welcome.

Beckford out takes??

Helen Roberts writes.A number of people asked me questions after the William
Beckford talk.
What happened to Louisa and the Courtney boy?
What happened to Beckfords 2 daughters?
Are there any Beckford descendents now?
Where are Beckfords treasures and his books now?
What did Beckfords opera sound like?
What were the other 20 books he wrote like?
Were there other big scandals in Beckfords life?
Is it possible to get into the Fonthill estate now?
Where can I buy a copy of Vathek?
I didnt have time to deal with one tenth of the things I know about Beckford. For
example what his life was like in Portugal and Spain, and what happened when
Lord Nelson and Emma Hamilton came to stay at the Abbey.
If anyone out there is crazy enough to want to know more, I
would be happy to organise a short meeting maybe in
someones house or the Chantry for the Beckford addicted! If
you do want to know more, please contact me at
Helenroberts9704@tiscali.co.uk

GARDEN VISITS GROUP

Joining/renewing your membership for
2015 - If you are a new U3A member and
are interested in joining the Garden Visits
Group or have not yet renewed your
membership for 2015, please contact
David Austin, 13 Davids Close, Alveston,
Bristol BS35 3LR enclosing all your contact
details plus two second class stamps to
cover the 1 per person joining fee.
If you were a member for the 2014 season and do not wish to join again for next
year, it would be helpful if you could let David know so he can amend the
membership lists.
Please note that from January, Mary Ackland will be taking over the duties of
Membership Secretary from David and we would like to take this opportunity of
thanking David for all his hard work. Thanks also to Jean Rendell who is retiring
from the committee after many years and lots of lovely garden trips.
The Programme for 2015 visits will be issued in March and we hope to offer many
interesting gardens to explore from April to September. If you have any
suggestions for suitable gardens to see, please let Sue James know. We should
really love to hear from you if you would like to organise a trip yourself and will
give you full support. Phone Sue for a chat.
Contact : Sue James (Group Leader)
885452 or
sue@jamescompany.co.uk
Contact : David Austin (Membership Sec)
411069 or
daja1923@btinternet.com
Contact : Mary Ackland (Membership from Jan)
418963 or
john.ackland@blueyonder.co.uk