Events (2007) pt 3

Silverdale - Leeds Children's Home Sept  07

Silverdale in September is a beautiful place. The sun setting over Morecambe Bay is a striking sight. Add to this the vehicles of our area group and it is close to perfection. A larger event than April had been planned with entertainment being put on in the Home's hall rather than the Woodlands Hotel which is too small to hold the numbers now attending this event. We had to be on our best behaviour as the trustees of the home were all attending, having heard what a great weekend we usually have. Their exposure to us really started on Saturday when a 20 mile road run was arranged, with the dignitaries riding in the back of Richard's Mack. Lunch at a pub was most welcome, then we set off back to the Home. Saturday evening entertainment comprised Tomcat Le Tache as DJ, Rupert, Matt and Dave as the Foggy Bottom Boys (a skit on the Soggy Bottom Boys from O Brother Where Art Thou), and Elaine and John Ward giving us quite a full repertoire of songs. At the end of the evening, Bob presented a cheque to the Leeds Children's Home for £300, donations from supporting companies. (By the time all the site fees had been collected, the amount added up to £1,160, a tidy sum compared to the £32 collected the first time we stayed there.) I spoke to one of the trustees late on into the evening and he told me it was the best day out he had had in many years. We must have done something right that weekend.

Of course how could I neglect to mention Bob and Sandra Lindsay without whom this event would not have happened. Many phone calls were made to convince people to become involved and persuade them to have a go at DJing, re-create bands of old, and come out of retirement (you know who you are). Others were persuaded to provide decoration and help create the environment (Martin, Kevin and Helen to name three I can remember) Well done Bob and Sandra and well done on the amount raised.

A few of the photos taken during the weekend are shown below, including Keith Broom's Harley, and an example of how many men it takes to hand crank a Dodge (answer 3, one to turn the handle and the other two to hold the Dodge down and stop it spinning)

Howick Hall - RNIB gathering

Dave Salisbury, Dave Forshaw,  Dave McCoull and Graham & Christine White met at Howick House to raise funds for the Royal National Institute for the Blind on 25th September. I don't have many details but I was sent a few pictures of the vehicles that attended.

Rawcliffe Hall Wind Down meeting

A poor turn out of vehicles marked the end of our planned event for 2007. About 4 vehicles stayed overnight with another 3 visiting for some time over the weekend. The presence of the North West Military Collectors Association helped swell the numbers of people there. Although nothing was officially planned for the weekend, the Karaoke evening in the clubhouse went down well with a couple of our group managing to get to sing a song. Saturday saw many rising late from the evening before. A run into Knott End for some broke up the day, and a trip around the Illuminations in Blackpool completed the day for some. The major highlight on the vehicle front was the unveiling of the gun ring on Bob's GMC. It created quite a bit of interest for the day visitors. Dave Salisbury's Naval Jeep seems to be seeing more use than his Army version. Not surprising really when you look at the rebuild that was required (see elsewhere on this site). Boys and their toys is the phrase that comes to mind.

Poppy Day Appeal

Our group supported a number of Poppy Day appeals run by the Royal British Legion. Kendal was the venue for some of the group in the north of our are, while Preston got the support of our southern contingent. £560 was raised by the Preston group, but figures are no in for Kendal. Here are some pictures from Preston courtesy of Barry Marshall.