Fairlight village voice

In church this Sunday May 27… there’s a service of Morning Praise at St Andrew’s Church at 10.30 am. This will be led by Penny Button with preacher Rev Paul Deeming. Later on, at 6 pm, Rev Kay Burnett will lead a service of Evening Prayer at St Peter’s Church.
By The Newsroom
Published 25th May 2012, 06:00 BST

Sorry you missed it… David Flood’s recent recital was enthusiastically received and once again we were honoured to have such a distinguished recitalist at St. Andrews church. His engaging personality and presentation adds to his virtuosity as an international performer. If you missed this event one that you certainly will not want to miss is on Saturday, October 6 when the boys of Canterbury Cathedral Choir will be presenting a concert with their director of music, Dr. Flood. This really is a rare opportunity and one of a small number given in parish churches throughout the year. Contact Alex Brodie on 01424 813515 or Patrick Cox Smith on 01424 812560 to reserve tickets, which are £8 in advance or £10 on the night to include wine and light refreshment. Do it now, and savour the anticipation.

The Art Club… would like to thank all those who supported, once again, their annual exhibition, for which a little bird tells me 157 tickets were sold. The raffle at the event raised £136, and the group’s Chairman, Julie Marshall, says they have decided to top this up to £200 so that their chosen charities – St Michael’s Hospice and the Pett Level Rescue Boat – will each receive a £100 donation.

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Don’t forget… it’s the Pett Level Rescue Boat auction tonight at the village hall (here, not in Pett) starting at 7.30 pm. They are likely to have some 130 lots to get through, and no doubt thank all the generous donors. All that remains now is for equally generous bidders to get down there and blink, nod or cough until they’ve bought the lot. Or lots!

There’s £5,000 on offer… in the form of a Lloyds Banking Group Community Grant. Our popular and highly regarded Activate Youth Club has registered for this grant, and it is vital that as many people as possible vote for them so that they may stand a chance. An initial announcement included a web address and link that simply did not work. But what follows is the correct one – and it works, because my vote is on there! The Profile Link for Activate Youth Club is to be found at

https://www.lloydsbankinggroupcommunities.com/communityfund/CF_Org_Vote_Profile.asp?CFOIDS=10001248 If you’re going to vote (and please do!) be a bit patient and observe the capitals, forward slashes and underlining correctly as you enter this fairly complicated address.

The item above is about what you could do to help Activate. This one is about what Activate is organising to help and entertain the young of the village. They’re holding a Circus Party Night on Wednesday, June 6, from 6.30 to 8.30 pm (or thereabouts!) All who attend will be able to enjoy

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a circus workshop, magicians, a bouncy castle, balloon modelling and more! And all for just £1 per person. There will also be a barbeque with hot dogs and burgers (at a low price) and a tuck shop. All children & families welcome!

The Residents’ Association AGM… has come and gone, and very well attended it was, too. There was not much change in the Officers and Committee, although Penny Pollard was thanked for her Treasurer and Membership Secretarial roles as she was stepping down. The Treasurer’s duties are to be undertaken by Peter Norris. In the open session following the meeting, tributes were paid in appreciation of Richard Pollard, for his work in developing the Fairlight News into a highly regarded quarterly magazine. Many of those present wanted the Association to be aware of their thoughts and strongly held feelings on the future of the Fairlight Gardens site, which is seldom far from the collective village consciousness at present. Valuable contributions to the discussion came from District Councillor Robin Patten and Parish Council Chairman Andrew Mier. The group has a healthy bank balance, and locals will be watching with interest to see where and when some of these riches are used to enhance the village, and in what way.

On the run-up to the Jubilee celebrations… eight days away, on the afternoon of Saturday, June 2, two fire appliances will be visiting the village hall at 2.30 pm. In attendance will be the latest addition to the fleet of aerial fire fighting appliances in the form of an A bang-up-to-date Aerial Ladder Platform will be coming along, as well as a Pump Ladder from the Ridge Fire Station. If either, or both, appliances are missing, it means there’s somewhere more pressing that they have to deal with.

Just over a week to go… Jubilee celebrations in the village commence on the Sunday, June 3 at 10.30 am, when St. Andrews Church will be having a special ‘All Age Family Service,’ featuring a celebration of 60 glorious years in music and song.

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Monday the Fourth’s the busiest Jubilee day… starring, on Broadway, no less, the Fairlight Street Tea Party from 4 until 7 pm. It’s only 50p a ticket. Walk or get a lift if you can. With 100 yards of the village’s second artery closed off, parking could be somewhat restricted. If wet, the bring and share ‘do’ will be in the village hall, so when it finishes you could always rinse your cutlery and hang about for half an hour until the Barn Dance commences at 7.30 pm. This function will cost you £7.50, which gets you an energetic dance evening, if you wish, plus a ploughman’s supper – the same as a ploughman’s lunch, but you could need an extra sweater on

Before the dance comes to an end, you may care to take a breather and go to the viewpoint up Battery Hill where, at 10.15 pm, Parish Council Chairman Andrew Mier and immediate past Chairman George Hensher will be lighting the Jubilee beacon. If wet, this event will not be transferred to the village hall.

The organisers, Fairfest, urge you to get your 50p street party tickets early. Not because they may run out, but they really need to identify whether they need a couple of card tables in the VH car park, or trestles from Waites Lane to Lower Waites Lane. It doesn’t matter if you are going along with just another couple or with a coach load of friends; the important thing is to be there and to share the experience. After all, if you see a great show in a theatre, you enjoy it as an entity, without actually knowing personally all the other thousand people you’re sharing it with!

You must get in early… for one of Christine Jones’ Fairlight Outings. The forthcoming trip to see Billy Elliot is already fully booked. Now there’s news of a very reasonable special deal to see the Classical Spectacular at the Royal Albert Hall on November 25 at 3 pm. The cost of travel and ticket for this truly memorable occasion is £53. Contact Christine on 813538 before it’s too late!

Keith Pollard, Brookfield, Broadway