What an easy month, only 31 events, still busy but with time in between to catch up with various domestic issues.
Where to start? In the Parlour; we have invited a number of groups to the Mayor’s Parlour during February. These included the Bournemouth 38th Cubs together with their leaders. The young people always come up with curious comments and the Cubs were no exception. The Mayor was asked if Sir Merton Russell-Cotes, whose portrait is in the Parlour, was his father. There is a resemblance but a slight issue with the time-scale and lineage! The Cubs enjoyed the visit, the drinks and biscuits and the gift of a document bag. Others who came were some of the past Mayors and Aldermen; the members of the Chamber of Trade & Commerce; a group of visiting VIP’s from Germany, each from a different German town. They seemed to appreciate the visit and were quite complimentary about Bournemouth. A link with a German town was suggested, so hopefully this will materialise.
There was a reception for Young Carers which I had initiated in August last year. Whilst a Councillor I became aware of how many young people there are in our town taking care of parents or siblings. Any one of us who has taken care of a parent or relative will be aware of the effort and responsibility this entails. Even as an adult this is a heavy burden and for the children is a handicap for their educational achievement. So I was very interested when at the Lions Club AGM the president spoke of an initiative for an accreditation system for young carers. This would provide the young people, as they move into the world of work, with solid evidence of their extra effort, their fortitude and their additional capabilities. We spoke to the young people about the accreditation scheme but also we had a fun afternoon with an excellent entertainer.
We have attended a number of functions at St Peter’s Church; a one woman show about Hild of Witney a Celtic Christian; a lecture by the Curzon Institute on the Commonwealth contribution to World War I. I found the lecture very interesting and enlightening as I had not previously been aware of the extent of the war. The Mayor commented on the hospitalization of Indian soldiers in Bournemouth which the lecturer did not know about but will now be researching. On a very wet and windy day we visited St Peter’s again, this time it was to the grave of Capt Louise Tregonwell to place a wreath thereon. Prior to visiting the grave, the Mayor had raised (with great difficulty in the wind and rain) the Cornish flag at the BIC.
There have been two enterprise challenge events for young people, one at the Premier Inn, where the challenge had been to set up a small business from scratch – the idea, the production, the marketing, the sales. These are ‘real’ exercises and the products have to finally be available for purchase. There were many excellent ideas and products. Awards were given for all aspects of the work.
The second event was held at the Highcliff Marriott where there were the four finalists of the young chefs challenge. The challenge here is to produce a full 3-course meal from start to finish. The young chefs are judged on skill, kitchen management, method, and presentation of both food and menu. There were four finalists who had produced the meals for about 40 invited guests. We were able to freely choose our lunch from each menu and then taste all of the others. The food was excellent and the finalist will now move to another level of the competition.
There was a similar project organized by Rotary Club which was held at Bournemouth & Poole College in the Escoffier Restaurant. The challenge was similar but all we saw was the final presentation and the menus which were very impressive; those who judged had tasted the food as well as overseeing its preparation. The judges, who were senior chefs in the local hotels, commented on the high standard of the young chefs as did the newly appointed Lord Lieutenant, Angus Campbell, who presented the awards.
We were invited to a mini-Burns Night by the Caledonian Society held at the Scottish Hall. This was quite informal but we had an excellent meal of the traditional haggis and tatties, the haggis having been piped-in and well stabbed. After the meal and a few remembrances of Burns we joined the members in lots of Scottish Reels. A most energetic and enjoyable evening.
We attended two events at the Pavilion for Bournemouth’s Looked After Children and their foster carers. These are held annually to celebrate the children’s achievements and to thank the carers. The Friday evening event was for the older children and was a ‘glitzy’ Black and White Theme. Saturday afternoon was for the younger children with a ‘Sparkly’ Theme. The ballroom was beautifully decorated by the Council staff members and both events were excellent.
We have attended two productions at the Pavilion. The first was a performance of ‘Oliver’ by the Small Theatre Company which is an amateur company with young budding actors. The production was excellent and we were surprised when we met the cast how young they were. The other was an evening with the BSO. We have also visited the Little Theatre in Winton, which neither the Mayor nor I were aware of. We attended a performance of ‘Natural Causes’ which was very funny.
There was a concert given by the Bournemouth Youth Marching Band held at St Clement’s Church in Parkstone. They have some difficulty in finding places where they can perform and were very interested in the possibility of holding a concert in RHSA – perhaps someone can follow this up!
We opened the new Karaoke Lounges at the Wonderful Kitchen restaurant in Charminster. Neither the Mayor nor I thought we would find the Karaoke aspect to our taste but it really is great fun. The rooms are very well appointed and not too large – about ten or twelve to a room – and the food at Wonderful Kitchen is always wonderful. So, for a night out with your friends it’s worth a visit.
In the middle of the month there was a Fancy Dress Fun Run in aid of the Mayor’s Charity, which the Mayor was required to start. The event was very well supported and we were so lucky that the weather on the day was dry and sunny after many days of rain.
One of the events we are working on at present is a Founder’s Day. Captain Tregonwell moved into his new home (now part of the Exeter Hotel) on 24th April 1812. With the co-operation of The Exeter and others, special events are being organized for the day and hopefully it will become an annual event. One of the events this year will be an Ice Walk held in the evening. Attending the reception in the evening at The 1812 will be free but sponsorship for the Ice Walk will be appreciated.
That’s all for now.
Good bless
Elaine Cooper
P.S. My editor (that’s the Mayor) is in China at present so I hope the script reads well and there are no spelling mistakes!!
Mayor of Bournemouth 