Sunday Tea with the Leetones

Sunday Tea with the Leetones

After Christmas it was back to normal for the Good Neighbour's Sunday Teas which take place the first Sunday of each month. At this tea, members were entertained by the Tony and Lisa of the Lee Tones  who sang such songs as Mary Wells's  "My Guy", Connie Francis's  "Who's Sorry Now", Carole Kings's  "Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow" and Chuck Berry's "Johnny B Goode" which still sounds as fresh today as when it came out 55 years ago

Helen also talks to Charlene a new volunteer who gives her impression of a first visit to our Sunday Tea event

Gardening Club on Ice

At a time when most animals are hibernating and most plants lying dormant we have had an unusually productive time at the Gardening Club.

In our first week back after Christmas we received a large consignment of manure - a very rich if odorous present! This is a good time to feed the soil for the growing season to come and this mix of chicken and horse manure will help do the job. As usual we had to use our combined strength and smarts to get the massive bag of manure through the narrow gate way!

The next week, snow and ice fell on the garden like a white sparkling cloak and outdoor work was put on ice.

However these quiet times are perfect for taking time to reflect and plan so we had a meeting to discuss what we would like to grow on the plot this year and fuelled ourselves with plenty of tea and cake. A fan of colours and visuals I brought a large piece of paper to roughly draw out our plot and write down our ideas, concerns and favoured fruit, flowers and veggies. As ever I was impressed by the wealth of knowledge and the enthusiasm that we have in this group of ours.

The next week the ground was still rock solid and the temperatures bitter cold so we got on with some indoor preparations; chitting potatoes, making plant labels out of old milk cartons and making seed pots from newspaper (see video below for Paul's tutorial). Again we discussed our plans for the garden, especially what type of greenhouse we want to install and where.

Our Gardening Sessions are 10-12.30 every Friday. If you would like to find out more contact us on 0161-881-2925 or come along to one of our sessions at St Ninian's Church, Egerton Road South and have a look for yourself. 

Carolyn O'Hanlon

Older Men Development Worker

2012 Garden Produce for Sale

Even at our first attempt the Chorlton Good Neighbours garden was productive.
Here Carolyn is arranging potatoes and collecting Kale and other goods for sale at one of the Thursday Coffee Mornings.

Art Exhibition at Chorlton Library

Chorlton Good Neighbours has an exhibition of the art work produced by its members who attend the art class on Thursday mornings. Here are Pauline and Margaret in front of the exhibition at Chorlton Library which runs until the end of February



The art work in place on the noticeboard in the foyer of Chorlton Library


Margaret Banks who runs the Art Class is here discussing with Pauline Robinson the best way of exhibiting the art work




On the other noticeboard in the foyer of the library we have also got information about the older men's group, tincluding the gardening club and the snooker and social afternoons. Also posters about our History Group which meets at 1.30pm on the first Thursday of each month

Bob Cowan & WW2 Arctic Convoys

Bob Cowan and the World War Two Arctic Convoys

Bob Cowan, 93, and his wife Joyce are regulars at Chorlton Good Neighbours coffee mornings. One day last year he came in with a letter from the Russian Embassy in London, telling him they wanted to award him and other veterans the medal of Ushakov in recognition of their role in supporting Russian through their participation in the WW2 Arctic Convoys.

I followed this up and eventually found out from the Russian embassy that they were being prevented from giving the medal by the UK government because it was against the rules. We then mounted a campaign to get the government to change its mind and allow the awarding of the medal. This resulted in a front page article in the Manchester Evening News, articles in the Daily Mail and an interview on Granada Reports



The wider campaign to have an Arctic Convoy medal issued by the UK government gathered momentum because of this story and eventually the Prime Minister, David Cameron, announced in PM Questions just before Christmas 2012, that such a medal would be awarded. However, the medal of Ushakov can still not be awarded and the fight to allow the Russian Government to award this still goes on

[youtube=http://youtu.be/23s0BywHGzg]

The  video above includes descriptions by Bob of what it was like to be in the Arctic Convoys and to have been rescued from the water after being on a ship (HMS Mashona) that was sunk. He also describes his experiences on the Malta convoys. Bob went on to serve in the Pacific campaign, to have been present at the surrender of Japan and to have walked through Hiroshima shortly after the Atomic Bomb.

The campaign to have the Arctic Convoy veterans contribution to the defence of this country in WWs is described in a clip from his interview with Granada TV in October 2013. This campaign which was supported and promoted by Bob's friends at Chorlton Good Neighbours, was successful when the Prime Minister in PM Questions Time in December 2013, announced the awarding of an Arctic Convoy medal for the remaining veterans

Bob Cowan, 4^th from right, with shipmates onboard the HMS Ashanti off Iceland, 1942

Alan Wood - WW2 Fighter pilot

Alan Wood: World War Two Fighter Pilot

Alan Wood, 90, is a regular at Chorlton Good Neighbours but not many are aware of what a remarkable WW2 record that Alan has. Alan was at Manchester University in 1939 and whilst there joined the University Air Squadron. He was called up in July 1942 and went into training for the RAF. During this period he flew Mosquitos and Spitfires but when he was assigned to the Coastal command  Banff Strike wing in Scotland he flew beaufighters and mosquitos



It was during this time that he was shot down in the North Sea and spent four days adrift in a one-man dinghy until being spotted quite by chance by and Air Sea rescue member whilst they were out looking for someone else

                 

Alan Wood - WW2 Fighter pilotBanff strike wing main role was to attack German shipping off Norway and in the Fjords. Alan didn't talk at all about his war experiences to his wife Joan until 50 years later and with great sadness of the many young airmen who died. In one raid 23 planes went out and only 3 returned

This video starts with Joan Wood talking about her husband Alan and his experiences in WW2 when he was a young fighter pilot. There is then an excerpt from an RAF film about Banff Strike Wing where Alan was based

Mosquito aircraft in at low level attacking two  armed merchantmen In Norwegian Fjord with cannon and rocket fire, 4th April 1945

Mickie Mitchell in WW2

Mickie Mitchell in WW2

Mickie Mitchell from Chorlton , now aged 95, and a regular at Chorlton Good Neighbours served in the army and then the Fire Service in Manchester during the second world war. Here she talks about her growing up in Manchester and the Moravian settlement in Fulneck, Leeds (where a fellow pupil was Leonard Hutton, the cricketer).

She then goes on to recount her time in the fire service in Manchester during the air raids over the city and at Salford docks

Mickie driving a lorry during the war

Mickie in uniform at sea