Netherfield

RON WHITE: One of the pillars of the Netherfield community, Ron White, died on Wednesday 14 October 2015, following an operation.

Ron came to Netherfield in January 1966. He became involved in the Youth Club and running a monthly Disco where he was known as ‘Rocket Ron’. He also arranged outings and helped with coaching both football and cricket.

Over the years he was involved with the Recreation Ground Committee and the new Village Hall Committee. In 1999 he was a founding member of Darvel Down Residents Association, organising outings and other events as well as liaising with Councils and Housing Associations to improve facilities for the Darvel Down area.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

He was also on several Housing Association Committees where he raised the needs of the rural community. Latterly he was involved with ROAR (Residents of All Rother) providing activities for over 55’s in Rother. Ron made a huge impact wherever he went and the community benefited greatly from his achievements.

Ron’s life and commitment was to his family and community; he was an example to us all.

Funeral arrangements to be confirmed. David Stone.

AUTUMN FAIR: St John The Baptist Church Autumn Fair. Thank you to everyone who came along to the Autumn Fair on Saturday October 17. The Church was buzzing with chatter and it was especially lovely to see so many children. A special thank you to all the stall holders who came along, Maureen with her beautiful painted furniture, Gillian and her crafts, Ipek and her ever popular jewellery and the school PTFA with their delicious cakes and gift stall. A huge thank you to all those who helped in any way, especially setting up and clearing up, baking and stall holding. The good news is that we raised £436.90 for Church funds and had a very enjoyable time in the process.

Please make a note in your diaries of our St Nicholas Fair and Brunch with Santa, Saturday December 5, 10am to noon, a lovely family event to come along to. Thanks, Emma Kersey, PCC Treasurer.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

CELEBRITIES OF NETHERFIELD: We all know one or more of those unsung heroes or heroines that service the needs of our village village but rarely get a mention. One such person is in the form of our Postie, or Postwoman, known to us all as Wendy. Out in all weathers, always wearing a smile and more often than not, a cheery word, she battles the elements throughout the year, to bring us all, our mail, and a helping hand if the need arises. However, there is more to Wendy Jenner than meets the eye.

Whilst she may not be a native of Netherfield and lives in the leafy suburbs of St Leonards, she has served our village well for the last 7 ½ years, building that essential trust between us and the person who delivers everything from the Royal Mail to our doorstep. Her round begins at the house after the golf club and finishes at Tower Hill in North Trade Road.

When asked, she will tell you that she sees the role of the Royal Mail changing from one that is essentially a letter and small parcel postal delivery service to one that concentrates to a greater degree on small parcels and packages up to 25kg. The falling necessity to manage large volumes of letters, especially during the summer months, has been caused in the main by the rise of the internet, emails and mobile phones. However, there will always be a place for our Postie.

So who is this pillar of the community? She is a lady of many talents. She has three wonderful children and has found her Mr Right amongst the letters and parcels at the depot from which she starts the journey to our doors. She joined the Royal Mail nine years ago, a week last Thursday, after serving time as a temp, beginning over the Christmas period.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Wendy started her life on a farm on which her father was the tenant farmer. When she was old enough, it seemed a natural progression to follow in his footsteps and join the family business. However, she decided early on that she would make her fortune following a different path. Brief encounters driving buses, for which she still maintains an up-to-date licence, part-time care work at the Conquest Hospital and working for firms providing care in the community bring her to where she is today. What it did awaken in her was an understanding that she enjoys caring for others.

To make sure she does the best for her family Wendy is studying for her Nursing Diploma. As if all this is not enough she also manages to provide auxiliary care in the community through Springcare when required. Her leisure activities mainly centre around family, gardening, swimming and concerts.

As you can see, there is more to this lady than the cheeky smile and the ready wit and deservedly ranks as a Netherfield celebrity.

VOLUNTEER CAR SERVICE: If you need transport for a Hospital appointment or to your Doctor’s Surgery and you are unable to travel by any other means, subject to availability, Ken Richardson has volunteered to take residents to and from appointments.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

The service is subject to reimbursing Ken with any parking costs and a mileage charge of 45 pence per mile, payable to cover fuel and motor expenses. The charges are necessary, as unlike the previous scheme run by the Darvel Down and Area Residents Association, no financial support is available from outside organisations. Ken’s dedicated contact number is 0754 252 3141. Please note this is a trial service and in fairness to Ken, as much notice as possible for bookings is necessary.

CHAPER 4: Now for something completely different: The doors to the Gothic building seemed uninviting and dark. The wind had not abated and cast an air of foreboding over my ministrations. Yet, this could solve the mystery, could it not? I removed my hand from my coat pocket and lifted my head to clasp the tarnished handle on the battered oak door. It opened as though someone was coming out. It missed my outstretched fingers by a fraction of an inch. The heavy brass could have damaged my hand severely. How could that be? All I could see was an empty vestibule. A coconut mat with the word welcome in black at its centre, and magnolia coloured walls which had seen better days.

I shook my head, dismissed the magical interpretation and presented myself at reception. The librarian peered at me over half-lenses that had loops of thin cord attached half way along the arms. A darkened pink was the colour that pervaded both the frames and the security apparatus. ‘Can you point me in the direction of the reference section’ I said with a lump in my throat. The bleary eyes seemed to take an age to rise to a point where they were in direct line of fire to my own. A smile appeared. ‘Turn to your right. Third section on the left.’ Immediately the eyes dropped to the level they were at, prior to my unwanted interruption.

As I passed my hands over these well thumbed books of knowledge I felt the power of the written word. From A to U for unknown. The search needed an off point and in my present state that seemed the obvious answer. A table was sited in a square of bookcases to my right. I guessed it allowed the searcher to ponder comfortably. The books in some instances were heavy and fragile so this seemed the perfect panacea.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

The tome that I wrested from the shelf had little under unknown for what I had seen. The same was the case for spiritual, the occult and supernatural. This was the twenty-first century after all so there was generally an explanation. Yet my entrance today was unexplained. My sighting was out-of-this-world! Should I ignore it and pretend it hadn’t happened?

On my way out I said thank you to the librarian. As she looked at me I could see a strange light in her eyes. As I reached the door enabling my exit from this repository of information, it started snowing…To be continued.

BUDDING AUTHORS: Remember any budding authors in the village or surrounding areas, you can still write a chapter in serial form leading up to Christmas. You can add to the storyline for next week, with the editor of this column (Maurice Holmes) selecting one from all the entries sent to the email address that follows. [email protected]. The number of words can range between 150 to 200 or more. Remember it is an on-going story and should last about six to eight weeks and to do that each week must have a cliff-hanger of an ending. Just a bit of fun leading up to Christmas. So get your grey cells working and think of the next chapter. The Battle Observer comes out on Friday so entries must be received by the Monday morning to be sure of being printed the following week. Age is not a barrier as is open to all.

BATTLE NEIGHBOURHOOD PLAN: The fourth meeting of the Battle Neighbourhood Plan Steering Committee was held in Netherfield on October 16. Further details are available on the Battle Council website.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

CONTACT: If you have any stories or articles of interest that will give our readership a reason to buy the paper please contact me on 07957588172 or via email at [email protected]

Don’t miss out on all the latest breaking news where you live.

Here are four ways you can be sure you’ll be amongst the first to know what’s going on.

1) Make our website your homepage at www.ryeandbattleobserver.co.uk/

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

2) Like our Facebook page at www.facebook.com/RyeandBattleObserver

3) Follow us on Twitter @BattleObs

4) Register with us by clicking on ‘sign in’ (top right corner). You can then receive our daily newsletter AND add your point of view to stories that you read here.

And do share with your family and friends - so they don’t miss out!

The Rye and Battle Observer - always the first with your local news.

Be part of it.

Related topics: