Lancashire Weekend (October 2021)
From the 8th to 10th of October twenty-one Ladies and Brothers, accompanied by friends of NW Circle Fr Bernard McDermott, Ian and Liz Salmon of Birmingham 64 and Christopher and Rosalie Wilding of Ampleforth, enjoyed a weekend together in Lancashire.
The group stayed at the Wrightington Hotel just outside Parbold, where we were very well looked after and enjoyed two excellent dinners on Friday and Saturday evening.
The weekend included trips to the World of Glass in St Helens, Helmshore Mill near Blackburn and the Christian Heritage Centre (CHC) at Stonyhurst. Whilst at Stonyhurst, CHC Director Stefan Kaminski gave an excellent talk on the history of Stonyhurst, The Stonyhurst Collections, and the recent establishment of the Christian Heritage Centre.
Of particular interest to us as Catenians, Stefan outlined the new Christian Leadership Formation Programme for sixth form students which is in its first year. This programme is designed for students who are motivated by their faith to help shape and create a society founded on Christian values and are seriously considering some form of public life or leadership role. After the talk the group toured round the Centre, the outside of the college and St Peter’s church and followed up with a delightful lunch in their restaurant.
The weekend was rounded off on Sunday morning with Fr Bernard celebrating a lovely Mass in the hotel before gathering for the last time (yes, even more food) by enjoying lunch at the Owd Barn in Bispham.
The weather was kind, and it was wonderful to be able to be together and, once again, enjoy each other’s company
The World of Glass is dedicated to the local history of the town and borough primarily through the lens of the glass industry but also looking at other local industries
World of Glass Tour in St Helens
Helmshore Mill Tour in Blackburn, a place where Lancashire’s industrial past is brought to life through a multi-sensory
North Warwickshire Irish Night (March 2021)
North Warwickshire Circle celebrated its annual Irish Night after their Zoom Circle meeting on 8th March. Brothers Jim Tomlinson and Vice President Vince Jordan put together a programme of entertainment which included renditions of Irish songs from Jim himself, Mike Feery and John O’Brien, who also accompanied himself on the guitar, as well as a video of Irish dancing which had been performed outside in San Fransisco.
To cap the evening off in superb style, Ellie Ajao provided sparkling violin recitals of a number of Irish songs and jigs, mostly solo but in some she was supported by a violinist friend. And the finale was ‘Danny Boy’ – what else! Ellie is the exceptionally talented granddaughter of Jo Morton and our late Brother Kit Morton, so the emphasis was definitely on ‘home grown’ talent. All eyes, whether Irish or not, were certainly smiling by the end of the evening!
MALVERN CIRCLE SUPPORTS THE RNLI
Pictured is this year’s President of Malvern Circle, Major Peter Armstrong, handing over a cheque for £500 raised by the Circle to the Secretary of the Malvern branch of the Royal National Lifeboat Institute, Helena Goddard. This was the chosen charity of last year’s President Jeremy Kearns who is a keen yachtsman. The handover was delayed because of the lockdown and subsequent Covid – related issues. The event took place at the Circle’s annual Christmas lunch at Worcestershire Golf Club in the presence of 40 Brothers and guests including five members of the clergy from Malvern and Worcester.
Malvern Circle Donation to RNLI
Pictured are last year’s President of Malvern Circle, Jeremy Kearns receiving a contributory cheque from Di Walsh on behalf of the Circle Ladies towards his chosen charity, the RNLI. A grand total of £500 was raised during the year. Jeremy is a keen sailor and values the services provided to sailors around the coast of Great Britain.
Stories Of Survival, Reinvention and Success
Sutton Coldfield Catenians had the pleasure of 2 speakers for the November meeting held on Monday 15th November – Dave Price and Mo Berry. Their stories were riveting and very relatable to the audience. Despite life changing episodes, both speakers met people who invited them to completely alien events which were to prove the starting points for completely new careers. Dave from running a successful digital marketing company to becoming a television and film extra and Mo from being formally married to Tony Martin of Black Sabbath and travelling all over the world for concerts suffering a mental breakdown to starting her own training company. For further details of both Dave and Mo’s stories visit www.suttoncoldfieldcatenianscircle232.com and go to the history corner.
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