There is a crowdfunding exercise for an orphan called Frenk Mansor
(https://crowdfunding.justgiving.com/ChristmasforFrenk).
Frenk is, a ten-year-old Christian boy who lost his parents last month (November) when the boat he was travelling in capsized in the waters between Turkey and Greece. Frenk fled from northern Iraq with his mother, father and little sister and brother when their hometown Qaraqosh (also known as Bakhdida) was overrun by IS fighters in August last year.
After a dangerous journey from Iraq, Frenk’s family arrived on the coast of Turkey where they boarded a boat on the night of 16 November to make the perilous crossing to the Greek island of Kos, in search of protection in Europe. Overloaded and amid high waves and strong winds the boat capsized. Frenk’s family drowned but somehow Frenk survived.
Frenk’s uncle Mark who lives in London, immediately flew to Greece when he learned of the tragedy and is working with the British Embassy in Athens to try to bring his nephew to the UK. Needless to say Frenk’s life has been shattered by the death of his parents and siblings. His uncle is doing everything he can but he could do with some help.
The crowdfunding is being sponsored by Nichola Elvy and she aims to:
Provide funds to meet Frenk’s basic needs – food, accommodation, transport – in Athens, Greece.
Assist Frenk with the difficult legal process that will enable his uncle to bring him to London.
Give presents, food and money so that Frenk can enjoy the best possible Christmas he can amid these terrible circumstances.
All the money will go to Frenk.
Nichola works during her holidays with a Dutch charity in Kos and will go to Lesbos on Boxing Day. Nichola meets her own travel, accommodation and jeep-hire expenses. The same goes for all the volunteers with the Boat Refugee Foundation (Stichting Bootvluchteling).
As well as much-needed immediate financial help, plans are being made for a long term support group for Frenk. When you see his photo you will see a rosary around his neck but Nichola makes it clear that she would be equally concerned for the child of a Moslem or an Atheist.
We have known Nichola and her family for over thirty years. On the basis that you direct your charitable monies towards people and organisations you trust, then the Elvy’s (and Frenk’s needs) come near the top of the list.
To help please go to https://crowdfunding.justgiving.com/ChristmasforFrenk
Nice Things
Good News – St. Mary’s Primary School, Hadleigh
The Ofsted Report on St Mary’s C.E.V.A. Primary School has now been published. I’m pleased to report that the school has improved its rating from Requires Improvement to Good.
So many congratulations to the Governors, the Headmaster and his staff, the pupils and their parents.
Improvements of this nature are a result of hard work and leadership by everyone directly involved in the school and our congratulations are well deserved.
Small Successes – Christmas Lights
I have been very pleased to assist Kieron Ruddy & Mark Snowling in persuading Suffolk County Council to turn a street light off so that they can mount a Christmas Lighting Display in Long Bessels, Hadleigh as a fund raiser for the Brendan Oakes Trust. Kieron and Mark’s community initiative should be applauded and fully supported – better still visit the display and support the Trust
What is French for Walkies?
I am indebted to today’s Sunday Times for the linked article Allez Archie 151107 on Archie an Irish canine waif and stray who (only) responds to commands in French.
But, whilst the French have a specific word for dog doo (la crotte) the Collins’ Dictionary does not show an equivalent for “Walkies”.
The article poses more questions than it answers.
Are the staff polishing their Franglais skills by watching ‘Allo ‘Allo?
Is the dog calmed down by watching the antics of René Artois and other inhabitants of Nouvion in Northern France?
We, who have nothing better to do on a Sunday afternoon, demand answers!
With the onset of Winter, little stories like this brighten the day.
À bientôt!
Hadleigh Year of the Sheep
Readers of my blog, will be aware that as a County Councillor I have a Locality Budget of ₤12,000 a year to disburse as I see fit on worthy projects and activities in my area. So far just under ₤36,000 has been disbursed ranging from helping Scouts and Guides to attend their world jamboree in Japan to funding Hadleigh’s Loyalty Cards. So my interest was tweaked when I was asked to see what I could do for Hadleigh’s Year of the Sheep (since Hadleigh was a wool/woolen town). I was happy to allocate ₤1,500 to assist in the costs involved in establishing, promoting and underwriting the activities of the Year of the Sheep, which aimed to put Hadleigh on the map as a busy, historic and vibrant wool town. The programme of activities and events aimed to~
attract visitors
promote business
engage the community.
This was a community engagement opportunity to get Hadleigh people to celebrate the town and its heritage, enable local charities and town groups to raise funds/awareness for their work and help businesses develop and attract different customers. The year concluded at the end of September and by all accounts was judged as a very successful community event.
There are a number of legacies from the year, but one I particularly like is the provision of new equipment for one of the public playgrounds in Hadleigh. (My budget also funded some the new equipment). But I just love the sheep which will serve as reminder for a good number of years that Hadleigh was and can be leader in economic adjustment and development.
Atlanta Joys
I’ve just com
e back from four days in Atlanta visiting my younger daughter Kate who is currently with CNN. As a special treat we did the CNN tour ( a sort of take your dad to work day!) and had the obligatory father daughter photo taken.
Atlanta is bustling – although there are still areas which need regeneration.
The enclosed photo’s give a flavour of my visit. The preponderance of Irish pubs is because one of my golden rules is that when in doubt you can always get a good meal in an Irish pub. Fado’s is also a good place to meet and hold meetings (half of Atlanta seems to be at business meetings in pubs, restaurants and cafés).
Atlanta’s Metro is efficient, regular and clean. The city is easy to get around in.
On the list for next time is the Australian Pie Shop!
Memorial Day 2015
Today is Memorial Day and it is marked by ceremonies throughout the land. Due to the need to supervise our painters our involvement was restricted to flying the flag. Celebrating the contribution of those who have fallen in war for the freedoms which we enjoy is taken very seriously. The Raleigh News & Observer in an editorial wrote:
Memorial Day began as Decoration Day, recognizing the family tradition of placing flowers on graves to honor the soldiers, sailors and Marines of the Civil War. John A. Logan, commander of the Grand Army of the Republic, an organization of Union soldiers, made these celebrations official in 1868, establishing May 30 as the day for veterans to honor their dead comrades.
Many in the South regarded the holiday as a Northern commemoration and chose dates other than May 30 to remember their Civil War dead. After World War I, there was further debate over whether the country should honor its war dead with a single holiday or whether World War I dead would have their own holiday on Armistice Day in November.
The debate continued until after World War II, when the current purpose of the holidays became established: Memorial Day for honoring the dead, and Armistice Day, renamed Veterans Day, for honoring and thanking the living.
It wasn’t until 1971 that Congress declared Memorial Day a national holiday, to be celebrated the last Monday in May.
In Raleigh there was a wreath-laying ceremony at the War Memorial on the north lawn of the State Capitol with music by the St. Francis Brass Quintet followed by bagpiper Robert White. The invocation, advancement of colours and the “Star-Spangled Banner” took place at 11:30 a.m. The speaker was retired Marine Maj. Gen. Cornell A. Wilson Jr. Sponsored by The Tar Heel Detachment No. 733 of the Marine Corps League.
Taken from: http://digital.olivesoftware.com/Olive/ODN/NewsAndObserver/default.aspx
Hadleigh Town Council
My very 
good friend Richard Whiting has been elected Mayor of Hadleigh for the next year. He is a very experienced Councillor and will bring an appropriate level of gravitas to the job. One of his tasks will be to represent the town at social functions. Judging by the experience of his predecessors he will be invited to over fifty such occasions and will thus become an expert on canapés and outside caterers!
Richard ran on a Lib-Dem ticket and I suspect that he will be the last Lib-Dem Mayor for a considerable time.
Hadleigh Town Council meets monthly and one of my functions is to give a report on my activities and matters affecting the town. As I am no longer a District Councillor I expect my reports to be shorter than heretofore and my report for May is attached. Please see HTC Report 150517
Paint Recycling
Some time ago I enquired of my Facebook friends if anyone knew of a paint recycling facility whereby partly filled (or partly emptied) paint tins were recycled back into the community either directly to a charity or through a third party who would accept and distribute the paint according to availability and needs.
So it was with some joy that I discovered that paint received at the Witchford, March, Milton, St Neots, Thriplow and Wisbech (all in Cambridgeshire) Recycling Centres is collected for use by local charities, community groups, housing associations and individuals in social need.
This is so much more socially responsible that in Suffolk where only water based paint that has been dried out using dry sand/ soil/ cat litter will be accepted on site in the landfill bin. This drying method is only recommended for paint tins no more than quarter full. No oil based paint can be accepted on Suffolk’s sites.
For larger quantities of paint or paint that cannot be accepted on Suffolk sites, residents should contact their local borough/ district council who will collect these for a charge.
As for me, I’ll take advantage of my journeys up North to use the Cambridgeshire recycling facilities for my unused paint.
Relic of the True Cross
Earlier this month I was in New York and one of my delights was to stroll along to the JP Morgan Library on 36th Street. You can pay for the tour of the galleries and the library (very worthwhile) or you can take a gentle lunch or coffee in the cafeteria. One of the more interesting items on display in the general area is the Stavelot Triptych, It is a Reliquary of the True Cross, comprising three triptychs. The main triptych dates from 1156-1158. Inside the triptych are two smaller ones which are Byzantine and date from the late 11th or early 12th century . The central panel – contains two Byzantine triptychs. The upper triptych depicts the Annunciation and the Crucifixion. The lower triptych depicts the four Evangelists, four Byzantine military saints, and Constantine and Helena flanking the relics of the True Cross. Wings – contain six enamel medallions (three in each wing) telling the legend of the True Cross. The upper Byzantine triptych depicts the Annunciation (outer wings) and Mary and John beside the Crucifixion (centre panel). The lower Byzantine triptych depicts the four Evangelists (outer wings), four Byzantine military saints (inner wings): George and Procopius on the left, Theodore and Demetrius on the right. In the centre, beneath busts of the Archangels Gabriel and Michael, and flanking the True Cross composed of the relic itself, are Emperor Constantine and his mother, Empress Helena. The triptychs were possibly made for Abbot Wibald, who headed the Benedictine Abbey of Stavelot (in present-day Belgium) from 1130 to 1158. The triptych was in the possession of the abbey’s last prince-abbot when he fled during the French Revolution in 1792. It was purchased by J. Pierpont Morgan in 1910 and bequeathed to the Library. Altogether a quite uplifting experience.
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