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 ...
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- 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.
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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!
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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.
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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
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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
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Featured Sites (Links to previous items of interest)
Feel free to click on these links for a wealth of interest and fun.
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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.
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Bite Size Newsletter
For email buddies who wish to print a bite size version of this Newsletter,
please click here.
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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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