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FEBRUARY 2022
Introduction from the Chair
February brings us not only an exhibition in the St Neots Museum to enjoy (see below for more details) but a change in Venue for the Monthly Meeting; which prompted the following notice to all members --
Monthly Meeting (MM)  - Venue Change
Due to the unavailability of the Great Hall in the Priory Centre
the FEBRUARY 15th AND MARCH 15th MM  will be held at the CONSERVATIVE CLUB, 

12 New St, St Neots PE19 1AE
All the usual details remain the same:
Doors open at 1.30pm for 2pm start. Membership card and £1 entry fee required.
Mask wearing is voluntary but Lateral Flow testing is still strongly recommended
2 hours before attending and only attend if negative and with no symptoms.
Outings, Theatre Trips, Membership and Group Enquiry Tables will be in place.
Seating will be for a max of 150 members which is expected to be sufficient.
Refreshments will be available following our Guest speaker, Len Little, who is back for February to talk about Sniffer Dogs and his experience, plus stories from his involvement in their training.
Parking is available at Tebbutts Road car park and the entrance to the Conservative Club is in New Street, opposite the Weeping Ash Pub.    
Your EC committee look forward to seeing you there.

Covid - u3a Topics.
The most recent Government announcements indicate that all remaining Covid restrictions are to end on March 24th and if the current encouraging trends in the data continue, this may occur earlier. (Boris is due to speak again on February 21st.)  In the meantime, please follow the requirement's in place from your Group Leader or u3a Activity Venue.
As always, keep in touch and stay safe.
Ian
Group News - from Group Co-ordinator Dot Morfett
We are pleased to confirm that the exercise undertaken with Group Leaders, to review Group Activity fees going into 2022, has been concluded. Some Group fees are unchanged, in that their fees should cover Activity costs, whilst other Groups have opted to either increase their fees slightly or amend their meeting duration or chosen venue. If you haven’t already received information from your Group Leader, please speak to them at your earliest convenience. We will continue to maintain records each month with an up-to-date balance for each Group to be available and provide options should any surplus occur for any Group.
 
Upcoming Outings 
This has been a busy time for the Outing Group Organiser's. See below for upcoming trips that were announced to the Group Members. A few places are still available which are now on  offer to the rest of our Membership. Contact details and booking routines' are also shown below.

Gardeners World Live and the BBC Good Food Show         Thurs. 16th June    
Organiser:  Pat Hills.       Depart by coach from the Riverside Park at 9.30am.
This trip takes in two great shows where you can experience the stunning Show Gardens and sample delicious food and drink, plus pick up seasonal inspiration from a host of gardening and food experts.
Take home a show-load of ideas for your garden. Shop from hundreds of quality plant nurseries.  As you shop, browse and taste, enjoy live music from the Bandstand.
The cost per person is £32 and includes return coach travel from Riverside Park.
The outing is limited to 50 people.
At the time of going to press there are approximately 15 place remaining.
If you would like to go, please email Pat, pm.hills@ntlworld.com
 
or see Pat on the Outings Table at the Monthly Meetings.    

To secure your place, a £10 cash deposit is required.   
Full payment would be required by the end of April 2022.

International Military Tattoo Sunday 11th Sept. 2022  Resorts World Arena, NEC  
Organiser:  Jill Richardson      
Depart by coach from the Riverside Park at 9.00am.
The Birmingham International Military Tattoo is Britain’s biggest indoor Tattoo featuring marching bands, pipes and drums, field gun racing, dog racing and much more, culminating in a spectacular Grand Finale with over 1,000 performers.   
The performance starts at 2pm and is expected to finish at 5.15pm.
There will be time beforehand to explore the Shopping Village and restaurants adjacent to the Arena.
The cost is £53 per person (based on a minimum of 30 tickets sales) and includes return coach travel from Riverside Park and Platinum seats, which are the best seats in the Arena. The outing is limited to 50 people. (Actual price will be advised when final numbers are firm)   At the time of going to press there are approximately 10 place remaining.       (Note, Seat Access involves a flight of 30 steps.)
If you would like to go, please email jillrichardson0210@yahoo.com
or see Jill on the Outings Table at the Monthly Meetings.       

A £10 deposit required by end March to secure booking and full payment by end July.

Windsor and Runnymede  Luxury Tea Cruise            Wed. 20th July 2022       
Organiser:  Iris Parr.     This trip is already full.
If you wish to be added to a waiting list please email irisparr2005@yahoo.co.uk
or see Iris at the Outings Table at the Monthly Meetings.

Board the boat at the Runnymede Boathouse and cruise upstream for this intimate cruise through the grounds of Windsor Castle, taking in views of Her Majesty’s favourite home from across the Crown Estate. While onboard a sumptuous afternoon tea will be served.
Easy access to the boat makes this outing suitable for people with restricted mobility.   
The cost per person is £47.50 and includes return coach travel from Riverside Park.
The outing is limited to 40 people.   The coach leaves Riverside Park at 9.30am and will drop off at Windsor at 11.30am to allow a look around Windsor. At 1.45pm the coach will leave Windsor for the short journey to Runnymede where the boat leaves at 2.45pm. and will return at the boathouse 4.45pm.
Booking; £10 deposit and balance due by end of May.   

Anchor Lunch Cruise  -  May 25th 2022

This trip is full. Final ticket price is £25.50 and final balance for those who have paid the £10 deposit is due by the end of March. Iris will be at the Monthly Meeting to take payments by cash or Cheque.
As always, full details of our Groups can be found on the Website / Groups page
Many thanks and stay safe in the meantime
Dot.
U3A GROUP INTEREST SHEET - Click here to join any u3a Group
St Neots Museum Exhibition
One of the members of our Photography Group and previous Group Leader, Peter Hagger is pleased to be exhibiting at the Museum in New Street
from 2nd February to the 12th March.
They are also providing “Meet the Photographer” sessions on ….
Saturday 5th Feb 11am -1pm,
Saturday 19th Feb 2 - 4pm &
Saturday 12th March 11am – 3pm.
Even if you are not a photographer this event is well worth a visit!
Publicity & Communications Team (PCT)
The PCT have started planning which events we could attend during the summer months, which will provide a number of opportunities to showcase the wide range of Activities that our u3a offer to the residents of St Neots and surrounding District. 
  Provisional plans include ...
  • Farmers Market in April?
  • Eaton Socon May-Day event.
  • Jubilee Celebrations in June
  • Paxfest in July
  • Dragon Boat Racing in August
  • u3a 40th Anniversary in Sept.
As details of these events are confirmed they will be released on our  Website, Facebook and Newsletter publications. Wider events may be released in the National TAM (Third Age Matters) magazine which is available on subscription. £3.50/annun for 5 editions.
email secretary@stneotsu3a.org.uk to register your interest in receiving this Magazine.
Another milestone occurring this year is the 40th Anniversary of the Falklands Conflict. Commemorative events are happening across the UK over a number of months.
For our part, we are pleased to confirm that at our April Monthly Meeting (MM) the Speaker will be our very own Martin Howell who will be presenting his own very personal and emotional memories of that time.

The MM will have returned to the Great Hall in Priory Centre by that time and this will be one meeting not to miss!
YOUR PUBLICITY and COMMUNICATIONS TEAM (PCT)
Sarahjane Williams.   sarahjane.williams@ntlworld.com
Trevor Parmenter.    trevor.parmenter@ntlworld.com
Chris Tibbenham     christibb@live.co.uk
Book Share - Feature Author  John S Cosford.
I was recently talking to Ian (the chair St Neots u3a) about how I had been Geocaching recently and how that experience had reminded me of someone I had met many years ago.
That someone was John Cosford, who had been a prisoner of war in Singapore during World War II. The cache that we had found was called “Bridge over the River Ouse”. This was part of a series we were seeking, that were named after famous films, this being a representation of “The Bridge Over The River Kwai”.
We met Mr Cosford at a “Craft and Antique Fair” at Woodgreen Animal Shelter in Godmanchester in 1999. I spotted Mr Cosford straightaway, as he looked a little incongruent dressed so smartly, sporting a chest full of medals, in this somewhat casual environment. As I moved closer, I could see that he had a magnificent wooden bridge handmade, representing the “Bridge over the River Kwai”. The model was very impressive but was very quickly overshadowed by the magnificence and humility of Mr Cosford himself. We spoke to him for a very long time whilst he told us of his experiences in the Far East.
He is very much a local man; born in Royston he joined the 1st Battalion of the Cambridgeshire Regiment and was sent to the Far East where he served the entire war. His book “Line of Lost Lives” is a heart wrenching account of just what happened to these prisoners and draws a vivid picture of what the conditions were like in these POW camps. Such was his humility, he did not once during our conversation, try to sell this book to us, his mission as far as he was concerned, was to tell us of the experiences of his fellow prisoners. He succeeded and we bought his book which he kindly agreed to sign for me.
The book is a very good read. I have always had an interest in WWII POW camps and have read many such books. What makes this book special is the fact that Mr Cosford was a local man and the back cover of the book lists all the men of his regiment who lost their lives. It also speaks of his life after his return. A very good read I highly commend it to you. We have one copy in the Book Share Collection. Check the Book Share Group webpage for details how to go about borrowing any of the many books listed on the site.
Sarahjane Williams
Group Leaders have been invited to attend sessions in February, providing introduction and refresher sessions on the Beacon system.
Beacon is the recommended u3a Membership Database, used for communication and member status recording, within the u3a movement. 
If there are any members who have past experience in database usage who would be interested in the  follow-up phase, with a view to assisting in future sessions, please email chair@stneotsu3a.org.uk
Featured Sites  (Links to previous items of interest)
Feel free to click on these links for a wealth of interest and fun.
u3a National information / PODCASTS / Articles and much more.
ST NEOTS u3a NEWSLETTER ARCHIVE
NATIONAL u3a NEWSLETTER ARCHIVE
MEMBER LINK --- This leaflet has advice, links, tips and resources to help keep us all connected, active and learning together.
Black Cat Radio
Black Cat Radio our local Radio station has moved to 102.5 FM 
We receive almost daily shout-outs promoting St Neots u3a and every month we get a session with Ernie Almond, on his morning programme, to talk about our activities.
Bite Size Newsletter
For email buddies who wish to print a bite size version of this Newsletter,
please click here.
If you are a non-member reading this Newsletter
and you want to
LEARN, LAUGH and LIVE
visit our website www.u3asites.org.uk/st-neots
or contact the Membership Secretary,
Tony Summerlin 01480 210416
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