Thursday 16 May
Dawn Ayers, Christine Baker, Pam Barlow, Angela Bowen, Janice Castledine, Anne Davies, Jeanette Evans, Carole Footitt, Linda Hall, Dawn Harmston, Deborah Harrison, Pauline Joyce, Trisha Kerr, Joyce Middleton, Lynn Moody, Diana Mounsey, Carol Norton, Judith Peck, Alison Rickells, Wendy Roberts, Sally Shaw, Susan Smith, Heather Sowden, Denise Spencer, Rosemary Williamson
The meal was originally set up by Carol as an opportunity for everyone to catch up with Chris who was over to visit her mum and family from her home in Australia.
After the events of the last couple of months the emphasis had shifted a little and we decided to make the most of the evening whilst we were all together to incorporate a little fund raising for Siobhan's chosen charity - Action for Pulmonary Fibrosis.
The Facebook post on our group page...
The meal on Thursday 16 May was originally set up (thanks Carol) as a chance for all the schoolies to get together with Oz Chris as she spent time in the UK. Obviously we have been overtaken by events and we would now like to include Siobhan in the celebrations by holding a raffle to raise funds for her chosen charity Action for Pulmonary Fibrosis. I hope that this is ok with everyone.
Chris has kindly set up a Just Giving page for us so all monies will go through that – and we are hoping to raise at least £1,000 over the next year. If you have any ideas for fundraisers we are happy to take them on as a group if appropriate – if you wish to do something yourself or just make a donation that’s also fine we have no rules. Really it’s just an excuse for more get togethers to celebrate Siobhan and her charity!
We are hoping that everyone will be happy to bring one or more (as many as you wish!) raffle gifts with them on Thursday 16 May so that we have lots of prizes for everyone to choose from. Tickets will cost £5 each and all names will be put into a hat to be drawn randomly – when your name comes out you pick something that you want – simple as that. If there are more things left then we will go round again until we have an empty table!
You won’t pay until we have finished as you won’t know until then how much you will owe. Hope that makes sense. PLEASE BRING CASH so that we can collect it in easily.
Ideas for raffle prizes: plant/flower arrangements, candles, beauty products, pictures, baking, jigsaws, hand crafted bags and baskets – we had these at our Kielder Forest raffle. Other ideas: wine, chocolates, fancy soaps, hand crafted things, unwanted gifts, maybe little plants/gardening stuff? – we all have our strengths and it absolutely does not have to be hand made. I’m sure you will all have loads of ideas..
Quite a few people had decided to stay over so the advance party met up for lunch.
Then we went for a little walk into Retford - to remininsce and lament over all the shops, pubs and clubs that were no longer there.
We set up some tables and Siobhan kept her eye on the raffle prizes from her perch on the window sill.
Everyone had been so creative with their donations.
We had so many prizes that we had to ask for another table!
Little table favours with a small scrap of fabric (for Siobhan and her sewing) and some stars (for our own star ⭐) - and the link for the Just Giving page on the back in case people wanted to donate more.. 😁
Meal time.
Then it was time to draw the raffle. We had over 60 donations - people had been so generous and so inventive - some wonderful prizes we were spoilt for choice!
Then a game of stand up bingo - no dobbers required! Simple rules: everyone has six bingo games which they play all at once. Everyone stands up and if the number called is on one of their game sheets then they throw that one away. It continues until there is only one person standing with a sheet on which no numbers have been called - and they are the winner!
Improvised number calling.. 6 0 - the age we should have received our pensions!..
All the sixes 6 6 - the date we finally received our pensions!
Very funny to watch everyone study their numbers so intently..
Such concentration.. 👀
Pam was the winner.
We thought it would be nice to have a 'class' photo. Easier said than done with 25 women who wanted to keep chatting.
First of all we had to move all the tables back to give us enough room.
Then it was time to organise..
After much pointing, waving and shuffling people began to take their places...
.. a bit more rearranging and seat swapping..
.. and ushering in the stragglers..
.. then a quick word on those on the floor to check a) that they didn't have cramp and b) that they would be able to get up again afterwards!..
.. After a last look round we were ready.. with just a final instruction to the photographer.. 🤣
In the blink of an eye we went from quite sensible to very silly.. 🙄😁
Everyone hauled themselves up from the floor, squeezed out from behind the chairs and wandered off to start chatting again. It was then we realised that we hadn't put Siobhan in the group pic so we gathered round the tables with her photo.
Then Angela read us a piece that she had found about Librans - Siobhan's birth sign.
So many of the traits described her - social, clever, natural leader, caring, extrovert - we were all ticking boxes in our heads as we remembered our dear friend and all the thoughtful things she had done for us over the years.
As there were a few raffle prizes left over Jeanette and Linda drew out names and handed over prizes - you got what you were given.. 😁
It had been a fabulous evening with some of us chatting to schoolies that we hadn't seen since we left school - about 50 years ago!!
Of course we were missing our very special friend Siobhan who has played such an integral part in our schoolie group. A huge loss to us all but she won't be forgotten 💕
Many thanks to all who donated such wonderful raffle prizes - and then paid to win them back again! 😁 Thanks to your generosity we have raised the magnificent sum of £450.. 🎉🙌🥳
Such a great result and when added to the monies raised at Kielder Forest we are already over halfway to our target!
Roll on the next schoolie get together - let's do it all again soon.. 🥰
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