u3a Kettering
15th March 2022 Spring Newsletter Today, 15th March
Zoe Gibson
“The good the bad and the ugly" A light hearted look at some Presidents of the USA From the Chairman —
Hi Everyone Welcome to our Spring Edition of the Newsletter. It is good that we have reached the time for springing into action with hopefully better weather and longer days. Let's hope that now we are returning to some type of normality we can look forward to fresh activities and attracting new members. We have relaunched the Lunch Club and Travel Group, so please look inside the Newsletter for more details. If you are able to help organise a lunch or have a favourite venue just let me know. This year's AGM will be in August, so Nomination forms for Chairman and Committee members will be found in the Summer Newsletter. This is your chance to find fame and fortune!!! We have welcomed a few new members but it would be lovely to see more. If you know of anyone who has recently retired or is looking for something to do to fill their time, encourage them to come along. I will end with my usual appeal for help. It will be really appreciated. Take care and much love
Di
April 19th 2022 David Templeman “ The Queen That Never Was”
Registered Charity No. 1108614
May 17th 2022 Helen Frost "Women’s Land Army in WW1" June 21st 2022 Derek Blunt "Saints, Sinners, Stars and Scandals"
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Group Leaders Information
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Check that all members of your group are fully paid-up members of the U3A. Ensure that you have:Checked their current membership card. (Ask the membership secretary to check if you are unsure) The name and telephone of each member’s In Case of Emergency contact. (ICE) The post code of your venue will be required by the emergency services if you need to call them. Send articles, reports and photographs about your group to the Newsletter Editor. Copy deadline for the newsletter is 2 Saturdays before the monthly meeting. Advise the Group Coordinator and Newsletter Editor of any changes to your group arrangements, e.g. venue, timing, etc. Welcome to New Members Members Information Advise the Membership Secretary, in writing, of any changes to your address, post code, telephone number or email address. If you are unable to attend your Group’s meeting, please advise your Group Leader in advance. If you know one of our members has a special occasion ahead, e.g. important birthday, anniversary or if they are ill and you feel a card from the U3A would be appreciated, please contact the secretary. Bring your membership card with you to the meeting and have it available for checking in. If you cannot get to the monthly meeting for any reasons, you can get a copy of the Newsletter from either Kettering Library or the Tourist Information desk, Manor House Museum, Kettering or online at www.u3akettering.co.uk Or via our postal service direct to your home (£10 per annum) Contact the Membership Secretary to do so. View & Download the newsletter (in glorious colour) from web site, www.U3AKettering.co.uk & click on the links. Select DOWNLOAD LATEST link or to look back for older issues, click newsletter image or any other newsletter links. Meeting Dates & Speakers 2022
April 19th 2022 David Templeman “ The Queen That Never Was” May 17th 2022 Helen Frost "Women’s Land Army in WW1" June 21st 2022 Derek Blunt "Saints, Sinners, Stars and Scandals" Your Kettering U3A Committee 2021-2022 Chairman Vice Chairman & PR Secretary Membership Secretary Speaker Seeker Treasurer Groups Co-ordinator Newsletter/Web Master/DPO Committee Member
Diane Tebbutt Anne Smith Jane Slack Pat Stokes Tony Loft Ruth Gunn Sue Perkins Richard Boyles VACANCY
01536 392 556 07786 252 366 01536 516 116 07845 737 697 01536 685 166 01536 482 581 01536 519 438 01536 744 753
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di_tebbutt@hotmail.com a.smith5353@hotmail.com janeslack121@hotmail.com mrs.stokes156@sky.com tonyloft@me.com ruthgunn@hotmail.com lazygirl_tresham@yahoo.co.uk richard@boyles.co.uk
u3a Kettering
News — Interest Groups — Visits and Reports Our meetings at the Eden Centre, 21, Montagu Street, Kettering Format of the meeting:1.30 – Doors open - Sign in FREE Refreshments Buy raffle tickets Browse the group notices Have a chat with friends Sign up to groups and trips 2.15— Chairman’s notices followed by this month’s Speaker 3.45 (approximately) Meeting ends
COVID PRECAUTIONS
Although Government laws have changed, COVID is still around so take care. We suggest you…
Wheelchair disabled access is available at the rear of the building by phoning 01536 484 800
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Newsletter DEADLINE
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is 2 Saturdays before the monthly meeting.
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You can read and download the newsletter in FULL COLOUR from our internet page at
EDITORIAL As we gradually get used to living with COVID, we still need to take precautions, which is why our interest groups have taken a long time to resume their normal activities. Some groups and the committee have continued throughout the lockdowns meeting online via Zoom, but others have been unable to meet at all. Also about 100 (one third) of our members have not re-joined so our budget is reduced and therefore a full newsletter will be quarterly until further notice. For those of you with internet access I have continued to regularly e-mail you with updates as well as keeping the web site up to date, including the rebranding with the new u3a colours and fonts etc. So keep reading the e-mails and updates on the web site and please pass on any news to anyone you know who does not have internet access. Richard
www.u3aKettering.co.uk ARE YOU A GROUP LEADER? Group leaders are required to... 1.
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Sanitise your hands when arriving Ensure you are ticked in on arrival Wear a mask unless seated Keep socially distanced
Have a copy of your members “In Case Of Emergency” (ICE) details with you so you can contact family or friend Have the postcode location of your meeting so you can direct the 999 emergency services Check that all members of your group are fully paid-up members of the U3A so they are covered by the U3A insurance
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OBITUARY Gwyneth Holland It is with great regret that I have to report that Gwyneth passed away just before Christmas. She had struggled with ill health for a long time, specifically with a number of falls, poor hearing and lately a loss of eyesight. Joining KU3A in its second month she was an enthusiastic member who threw herself into it wholeheartedly. As soon as we established a Play Reading group she volunteered to be the group leader and offered her house as a regular venue and we enjoyed many happy hours of fun there. When I started the Music Group she was one of the first to join as she loved music, particularly opera. Luckily we were still able to meet at her house for our last meeting this year enabling us to share both the music and friendship with her. Some years ago I organized a Murder Mystery evening for KU3A. Again Gwyneth, along with myself and two other members (now also deceased) prepared 60 Ploughman's suppers in my kitchen. It was a great success. Personally I feel that I have lost a really good friend and I am sure that many of you will miss her too. Our thoughts are with her family. May she rest in peace. Carole Bradbury
Bookworms
We have met and discussed "Where the Crawdads Sing" by Delia Owens. This was in the chart toppers throughout 2021 and tells the story of Kya, a "Marsh Girl" living in the backwaters of North Carolina. It is partly a murder mystery, a coming of age narrative, and a celebration of nature. Thoroughly recommended to anyone who loves reading. Next on our list was "West with Giraffes" by Lynda Rutledge. Set in 1938 it follows a journey across America of two giraffes who have survived a hurricane. The book is inspired by true events told through the eyes of Woodrow Wilson Nickel, a fictional 105 year old who helped to transport the giraffes to San Diego Zoo. An interesting read.
Bake It or Fake It
"The Beekeeper of Aleppo" was our February book, following the flight from Syria of Nuri, a beekeeper, and his wife Afra, throughout Turkey and Greece, finally to the UK. The writer, Christy Lefteri, has volunteered in a refugee centre so has first hand knowledge of the horrific circumstances facing refugees fleeing their homelands. A heart rending book.
Bake it or Fake it is up and running well. The group has met as often as possible during the last 18 months and is now back to normal on the 3rd Friday of each month. We have had some very lovely cakes and lots of cups of tea. It is amazing how many topics we talk about in 2 hours. We take turns to host the group and the hostess usually provides the cake but often other members arrive with tasty contributions too. Always a good afternoon.
Contact:
Contact: Mary Earl 01536 522 456 or Bridget Ling 07931 979 596 4
Pauline Parkin 01536 799 197
u3a Kettering
Card Playing
Busy Needles and Banter
We meet at the Bridge Club in Field Street usually on the 2nd and 4th Thursday of every month at 2pm. The cost is only £1.50 and that includes tea, coffee and biscuits. We play different card games as well as Scrabble. We do need more members so come along and join us. No prior knowledge is needed as tuition can be given. Our next meetings are on March 24th, April 21st and 28th and it would be lovely to see you there. If there are other Board games you would like to play, let me know and we could add them if there is enough interest. Contact: Di Tebbutt 01536 392 556 di_tebbutt@hotmail.com
A box of Fay's gorgeous trauma teds all smiles at the restarting of Busy Needles October 2021. Great to have Di, Denise (welcome back!), Marian and Sue reunited round Mary's dining table. Contact:
Mary Wildman 01536 741 222 marywildman365@gmail.com
Remember to look at our web site for news updates between newsletter publications.
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u3a Kettering
Creative Cards
Family History When we were in lockdown up to a dozen of us met online via Zoom every week rather than the normal meetings which were once a month. I sourced a family history video tutorial which we watched during the week and discussed it on our weekly Zoom chats. To date, we have watched 120 videos and they are still available on the Family History page of www.u3aKettering.co.uk if you want to watch them.
The Creative Cards group have been meeting on a monthly basis for several months now. Prior to that, when able to do so outside of lockdown, we kept going by preparing the materials and then delivering them to the members of the group to put together at home. This wasn’t always easy to share ideas and methods, I photocopied a card I had made so that the others could see what I had done and they could then put their cards together to suit their ideas.
We have now resumed our Monthly Meetings plus are continuing our 45 minute Zoom chats the other 3 weeks. At our February monthly meeting, member Rob gave us a very interesting talk called “Breach of Promise”
I am afraid that we do not have any vacancies at the moment. We are limited to the numbers we can comfortably accommodate around the table at Eileens. Should this change we will let you know via the Newsletter. In January we will start afresh with cards for birthdays, anniversaries, get well soon and sympathy cards. Contact: Eileen Mason 01536 725 925 eileenm1935@gmail.com or Maggi McGuire 01536 392 716 maggi.mcguire@outlook.com
We have plenty of room for new members thanks to the superb free facilities offered by the LDS church. New members can also join our Zoom chats too. Meetings are held on the second Monday, 2-4pm at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (LDS), Rothwell Road, Kettering located between the crematorium & Brewers Fayre/Premier Inn. www.U3AKettering.co.uk Contact: Richard Boyles
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01536 744 753 richard@boyles.co.uk
u3a Kettering
Friday Pop-In
Have Your Say
This group is now meeting regularly at the Kino Lounge on Friday mornings. The official meeting is the first Friday of every month but some members meet every week. Please come along and join them.
The group will now meet in the Saint Andrews Church rooms in Kettering town centre the first meeting on Tuesday 8th. March at 2pm. There is parking at the rear accessed from Crown street at the end on the right. There is no subject for discussion at the moment except "What will be the subjects for the next few months" We have space for new members so anybody who would like to join us will be most welcome. If you are interested please contact me.
Contact: Di Tebbutt 01536 392 556 di_tebbutt@hotmail.com
Gardening
Contact: Richard Ling
01536 521250 b_r_ling@hotmail.com
Jewellery Making Using Beads
As the season for open gardens has come to an end the group is waiting till the Spring of 2022 before restarting its activities. Suggestions very welcome and if anyone fancies taking over as group leader then contact me. Contact: Sherry Calvert 07722 407636 sherry_calvert@msn.com
Contact: Ray Bradbury 01536 516 587 prbrad@live.co.uk 7
u3a Kettering
Knit and Natter -
Lunch Club
Contact: Annette Chidwick 01536 523 867 annette.chidwick@tiscali.co.uk
We have organised the first Lunch Club to take place on Tuesday 22nd March at the Sondes Arms at 12.30. You can sign up for this at the meeting or
Looking At Churches
contact me if you would like to come. We are hoping to start a rota so that other members can sort out different venues for us to visit. I am happy to take responsibility for sorting out the menu choices and the payment. Contact: Di Tebbutt 01536 392 556 di_tebbutt@hotmail.com
Painting & Drawing
New members are always very welcome. Contact: Janet Flower 01536 764541 janet@jf7678.co.uk Musical Circles
Contact: Jo Beaver 01933 224 474 beaver.jean@yahoo.co.uk
Contact: Eileen Mason 01536 725925 eileenm1935@gmail.com 8
u3a Kettering
Stitchin' Time
Sing (and Laugh) Out Loud
We continue to meet and create beautiful knitted items, cross stitched pictures, trauma teddies for the emergency services. We have space for one or two new members, so get in touch if you would like to join in. Tea, coffee and cakes are part of our afternoon!
We meet at Christ the King Church in Deeble Road once a fortnight from 10.15 until 12.00. Our next meetings are on Friday March 18th and April 1st. You don't need to bring any music with you as I have had booklets produced containing a collection of old and new favourites for us to sing. Despite the lack of a pianist and my inability to conduct we still have great fun and there is plenty of laughter and chat, so come along and join us as we have vacancies and you will be made very welcome. We now sing a few songs accompanied by a few of our members playing the ukulele. Remember that singing is incredibly good for both your mental and physical wellbeing. If transport is a problem, please let me know and I will see if I can organise something.
Contact: Pauline Parkin 01536 799 197 Spanish Conversation
Contact: Di Tebbutt 01536 392 556 di_tebbutt@hotmail.com Contact: Bob Thorogood 01933 650 551 bob@rltservices.co.uk Travel Group We have decided to liaise with Ise u3a to organise some trips. May I remind you of two trips available at the moment: Singing in the Rain at Milton Keynes on 11th April, cost £55. The Garden Show at the NEC in Birmingham in June. Please let me know if you're interested in either of these. I have provisionally booked tickets for Spider's Web by Agatha Christie on Saturday 9th July at Tolethorpe Hall. Depending on numbers the cost will be approximately £40. Obviously it will be cheaper if more people decide to come. Friends and family are welcome. Other suggested trips are to Denby Pottery and to Downtown and Belton House. If any of you have suggestions of where to visit or any other useful information, please let me know. Contact: Di Tebbutt 01536 392 556
di_tebbutt@hotmail.com
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u3a Kettering
Walking Group
Walking group outing – Thursday 10th Feb 2022 Fourteen intrepid walkers gathered at the Thornhill Arms car park in Rushton for our sojourn into the surrounding countryside led by Jacky. After booking our lunches we set off up Station Road into Chapel Lane and very soon into open fields. The weather was fair to us and despite some heavy rain a few days earlier, there was only a short stretch of footpath which was quite boggy. It wasn’t too long before we passed by the ‘Homeland’ weight loss centre (giving it a wide berth) and on towards the small bridge crossing the river Ise.
The walking group stopped for a photo shoot outside Newton Church on their December walk. As you can see from the photos they were joined by a seasonal guest. The five mile walk in the Geddington/ Newton area finished with a meal at Cafe Oak in
We turned before the A43 and basically returned to Rushton the same way only deviating to avoid the boggy path. We covered 5.2 mils in all and enjoyed a splendid lunch and chat back at the Thornhill Arms.
Geddington.
Heading towards the A43, we moved into Barford Wood Meadows where the exciting vista of the warehouses appeared on the horizon. They loomed larger and larger as we moved slowly closer towards Slade Brook.
Our next outings will be March 10th and April 14th. Contact : u3akettwalk@outlook.com
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u3a Kettering
CLOSED GROUPS
Meetings with Ise Valley U3A www.isevalleyu3akettering.org.uk
Thank you to the group leaders who ran the following groups but have now closed them. They have all done an excellent job.
Recorder Group—Ise Valley U3A I organize (with Sue Hartley) the Ise Valley U3A recorder group. The group is open to anyone who plays, or would like to learn to play the recorder. We meet on the 2nd and 4th Mondays at 2.30 to 3.30 in Central Methodist Church in School Lane. We would love to have some more players.
As usual we need more volunteers to run groups, either new ones or to restart these closed groups.
Contact: Mary Cooper (Ise Valley) cooperm1@btinternet.com Singing For Pleasure — Ise Valley U3A We are meeting at St. John’s Church Hall, our new venue, alternative Fridays at 10 a.m. It was good to be able to sing again with our friends, old and new. Contact: Linda Harris 01536 628 940 (Ise Valley)
Short Walks—Ise Valley U3A 3rd Thursday Venue and Time Varies
Contact: Wanda Moffatt
01536 659 236 (Ise Valley)
Ukulele Group—Ise Valley U3A The Ise Valley U3A Ukulele Group meet fortnightly on Tuesday mornings 10-12. We are all beginners and are sort of following a course from the internet. Training videos and song sheets and are available and with practice you will quickly get to our standard ! There is even a spare Uke if you want to ‘try before you buy’. If you don’t fancy learning the Ukulele (which is a lot of fun) but would just like to sing or play percussion (or any other instrument) with us, the more the merrier.
Sadly writer’s group leader, Tom Piercy, passed away in 2020.
Contact: Alan Bailey 01933 350 147
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a3a Kettering Interest Group Timetable Please contact group co-ordinator for more information before joining a group Day No fixed day
Co-ordinator
Tel.no
Venue
Frequency
Time
Gardening
Ray Bradbury
01536 516 587
varies
varies
varies
Travel
Di Tebbutt
01536 392 556
varies
varies
varies
Annette Chidwick Richard Boyles
01536 523 867 01536 744 753
Home LDS Church, Rothwell Road Online via Zoom
1st & 3rd Mondays 2nd Monday + 1, 3, 4th Mondays
10.00 – 12 noon 2.00 – 4.00pm 3.00 — 3.45 pm
Maggi McGuire & Eileen Mason Richard Ling Looking for new leader
01536 392 716 01536 725 925 01536 521 250
Home
2nd Wednesday
1.30-3.30pm
St. Andrews Church Rooms varies
2nd Tuesday TBD
2.00 – 4.00pm varies
Jewellery Making Wednesday
Sherry Calvert
07722 407636
Home
2nd Tuesday
10.00 -
Spanish Conversation Bookworms Looking at Churches Musical Circles Walking Stitchin’ Time Thursday
Bob Thorogood Pauline Parkin Janet Flower Eileen Mason Jackie Rowson Pauline Parkin
01933 650 551 01536 799 197 01536 625 750 01536 725 925 01536 515 959 01536 799 197
Counties Community Centre varies varies varies varies Home—Salisbury Street
2nd & 4th Wednesday 4th Wednesday 3rd Wednesday 3rd Wednesday 1st Wednesday 1st Wednesday
2.00 – 4.00pm 2.00 – 4.00pm 2.00pm 2.00pm 10.00 start 2.00 - 4.00pm
Card Playing Busy Needles Painting and Drawing Friday
Di Tebbutt Mary Wildman Jo Beaver
01536 392 556 01536 741 222 01933 224 474
Bridge Club, Field Street Home—Geddington North Park Pavilion
2nd & 4th Thursday Fortnightly 2nd & 4th Thursdays
1.45—3.45 pm 10.00-12.00 2.00 – 4.00 pm
Sing (& Laugh) Out Loud Friday Pop In Bake It or Fake It
Di Tebbutt Di Tebbutt Mary Earl & Bridget Ling
01536 392 556 01536 392 556 01536 522 456 07931 979 596
Christ The King, Deeble Road Alternate Fridays Kino Lounge, Market Place 1st, 2nd & 4th Friday Home 3rd Friday
10.15-12.00 10.00 – 11.30am 2.00—4.00pm
Monday Knit and Natter Family History Tuesday Creative Cards Have Your Say Lunch Club
Meetings below with Ise Valley u3a The following groups are in conjunction with Ise Valley u3a. Please contact group co-ordinator before joining a group Day
Co-ordinator
Tel.no
Venue
Frequency
Time
Recorder Group
Mary Cooper
01536 420 336
Central Methodist Church
2nd & 4th Mondays
2.30—3.30 pm
Canasta
Margaret Hall
01536 512 215
Kettering Bridge Club
Weekly
2.00-4.30pm
Alan Bailey
01933 350 147
Home
Fortnighly Tuesday
10.00-12.00
Wanda Moffatt
01536 659 236
Varies
3rd Thursday
varies
Linda Harris
01536 628 940
St. John’s Church Hall
Alternate Fridays
10.00-11.45
Monday
Tuesday Ukulele Thursday Short Walks Friday Singing For Pleasure
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