BLUE HOUSE FARM

This decision was made due to the recent outbreak of Foot and Mouth in Surrey, leading to various restrictions in that area.

I have been told by the warden at Blue House that something will be arranged at the farm for a date later in the year.

For any further details, please ring Tim on 01621 740687 or Nick on 07930 505293.

WHAT A HUGE SUCCESS!

The weather could not have been better for Saturday night's charity garden cocktail party in aid of Holy Trinity church, hosted by Neil and Karen McClellan and held in their garden in Franklin Road.

Everyone entered the spirit of the evening by wearing various assortments of cocktail, beach and Hawaiian clothing and because of the blistering heat, it was inevitable that people would end up in the pool!

The evening was a great success with Katherine and Hayley running the "Kazbar", H doing his disco which got everyone dancing and a North Fambridge version of "Play Your Cards Right" which was great fun. The eventual winner was Julie Ricks who correctly guessed "higher or lower" right to the end.

All this, together with a raffle for silly prizes, resulted in an absolutely fantastic evening.

Neil and Karen would like to give an enormous thanks to all those who helped in the run-up to the party and all those who turned up on the night and gave generously. Special thanks also go to Hilary at Essex Hogroasts for supplying the delicious hog that went down a treat.

The final sum raised on the night was £700 and, when presented with a cheque on behalf of the church, Pat Wade was amazed and said: "We're absolutely over the moon and a big thank-you. We are currently saving up to have the church decorated once the damp has dried out, so this will help a great deal."

Thank you to Neil and Karen for organising such a super evening and we only hope you enjoyed it as much as we all did - your hard work certainly paid off ! It was a real fun evening.

LADIES' AFTERNOON CLUB

At our August meeting we welcomed Mrs Ann McLaren, who gave us an informative talk entitled "Footprints in Print".

She and her late husband, Norman, had as a team devised, written and published several books on walks in Essex. Titles include Village Walks, Waterside Walks, Teashop Walks and Pub Strolls. Many of us will have read and enjoyed these books by Ann and Norman Skinner.

Ann described the various processes involved - from initial agreement with the publisher to the joy of seeing your own book in the shop or library.

She had personally taken the black and white, and rather nostalgic, photos and made the detailed maps found in each publication.

Each walk had to be researched meticulously. Thus far, over 20,000 copies have been sold, but that is not the end of the story. Ann is currently revising Pub Walks. So watch out for more in the coming years.

Our next meeting will be held on Tuesday September 4, when we shall be holding our Annual Garden Luncheon at the home of Margery and Bernard Hobbs, River Haven, Franklin Road. Members are reminded to arrive at 12.30pm for 1pm.

To assist the committee with catering requirements and seating, anyone who was missing from our August meeting who wishes to be included in the September Luncheon should contact one of the committee to confirm their attendance.