Fairlight

The Rev Richard’s Forty Years of Ordination: Thanks have been circulated to all those who supported the events celebrating the fortieth anniversary of Richard Barron being ordained. Included in the events was the Art Exhibition with accompanying refreshments at St Andrew’s which, following the law of serendipitous unintended consequences, contributed a couple of pounds short of £300. And it wasn’t even supposed to be profit-making!

That special Concert at St Andrew’s: There’s only two days to go before the concert by the Three Valleys Male Voice Choir, who will be at St Andrew’s this Sunday, October 14 at 2.30 pm. The tickets are £8 each, and they’re still available from the Post Office, or from the Rectory.

MOPPs last week, today and next Friday: Last week was a happy occasion at MOPPs in celebration of the group’s tenth birthday. Our MP, Amber Rudd, graced the proceedings with her presence, and we are indeed lucky that she is quite regularly to be seen supporting various events at our village hall. Today, Friday, October 12, the members will have a very full day, with Bon Marché visiting, and not only Sandra Stunt with her greetings cards, but also Nicola with her Age UK toenail clipping service. Lunch today is fish and chips, with melon to follow. Next Friday, October 19, the entertainment will be Celia King with her chair-based exercises, and then lunch is scheduled to be chicken and bacon pie, with trifle for afters.

Wetting our whistles: Stephen Atkinson and Hélène Maerschalck, the personable proprietors of Stonelynk Organics in the village, gave the residents a pleasurable treat last Saturday with their apple pressing in the village hall. With organic vegetables available as well, plus several other supporting stalls, they supplied over 100 litres of health-giving and delicious juice. Without being jam-packed, the hall was nevertheless comfortably busy, busy practically throughout the whole opening span of the day. While they have two organic food outlets in Hastings and one in Rye, they also have one in Fairlight, which received its due publicity at the time of inauguration.

The Royal British Legion’s Poppy Appeal: An annual appeal, this one, which deserves to be satisfied by some helpful volunteers. It comes from John Pulfer, Chairman of the local branch of the British Legion and Appeals Organiser for the area, and it seems each year that some of his trusty street collectors from the previous campaign need to take a break. Doing the job is a commitment, but a rewarding one, undertaken in pairs, and if you would like to have a healthy go at it, please contact John on 814866. All the training and support you need to do the job will be provided.

The Panto auditions are this evening: 7 pm today is the start time for the auditions for next January’s Rumplestiltskin. It’s all happening in the village hall, and director Wendy Hatch is determined that contenders should not have to worry about being nervous – just turn up and show everybody what you can do.

The FRA Annual Quiz: Tomorrow night, Saturday, October 13, it’s the FRA’s Annual Quiz, prepared and presented by Bob and Dec, a couple with an enviable track record for their previous quiz offerings, several of which were at the Cove in the good old days. If you have your tickets, you’re lucky, for they’ve been in short supply for quite a while. Good luck – get all those little grey cells working! Take a fiver, and you could also end up with a FRA 2019 calendar. Result!

Tomorrow at the Post Office: The Players are hard at work rehearsing for their forthcoming production of The Vicar of Dibley, which is not a repeat of their earlier stonking success, but a brand new episode. The performers who brought you the first edition are assembled once again. Tickets for the November production, which include the Wednesday in anticipation of the extra demand, will be on sale from tomorrow, Saturday, October 13. Don’t miss out!

Next Monday – Walkies: As it is the third Monday of the month, it sees another in the series of healthy walks starting from the village hall at 10.30 am and returning in a little over an hour to St Peter’s, where you can partake of the cup that cheers. Cas Barlow will be leading the walk, as is her custom and practice.

Next Tuesday – the Tuesday Ladies Club: And for their October meeting they will be welcoming the accomplished Delia Taylor telling of the Roaring Twenties. Her talk starts at 2.15 pm in the village hall, and visitors, be they ladies or gentlemen, are welcome for £2.

Next Wednesday – Speakers Corner: Their meeting next week is in the village hall at 2.30 pm. The talk will be Dispatches from the Home Front – the wartime diary and experiences of Joan Strange, all delivered with humour and pathos by Chris McCooey, Kent’s answer to Peter Ustinov. Guests are welcome for £2.

Fighting the Flu: A reminder for residents who are patients registered with the Harold Road Surgery, as next Thursday from 10 till 11 am is the second and final drop-in flu jab session at the village hall. Miss it and you’ll have to go down to the surgery itself on an October Saturday morning, and there aren’t many of them left either. Harold Road Saturday hours are 8.30 to 11 am.

Rye and District Dementia Action Alliance: A reminder of the Alliance’s forthcoming music and supper evening, which will be taking place on Friday, October 19 at Rye’s Tilling Green Community Centre. Music will be supplied by the great local skiffle band The Fieldstone Boys, and there’s to be bacon butties with beans followed by home-made apple pie and custard. It’s all yours for a mere £7.50 a head – a great and very reasonable night out! You’ll have to book if you’d like to be there, and you can do this by calling Daliea on 0773 735 0896.

A Police Warning: Many will have read the note on page 16 of last week’s Rye Observer, concerning door knockers in Fairlight. The warning comes from the Rother Police Facebook page, where it is stated that they have had a number of reports of two males and a female knocking and begging for money, and advising us all to be mindful when answering the door and if in doubt keep them out. While my reaction is hardly science based, I would estimate that, such is the local interest in this trio, quite a high proportion of residents already know of them, and have an idea where they live. The same residents will also know that, for a number of reasons, the police are fully aware of the three persons. It cannot be right that people can behave repeatedly in a manner that makes others uncomfortable or very unsettled. In a community where there are several elderly people, living alone and possibly frail, begging door-knockers could have a very unpleasant and tragic outcome.