INSIDE THIS ISSUE:

FRENCH FAMILY VISIT

MAY 2009

1

SOAR BOAT TRIP APRIL

KEGWORTH IMPS

EXCHANGE

2

SUTTON BONINGTON

VETS VIST FRANCE

MAY 2009

3

EVENTS DIARY

2008/2009

4

SEPTEMBER 2009

At the end of May, the Soar Valley

Twinning Association hosted visitors

from the Plateau Nord de Rouen. They

arrived on the Friday evening at around

6.00 pm at Kegworth Village Hall and

were quickly taken home by hosts for

food, drink and rest following a lengthy

days travelling.

On Saturday, it was a free day with

hosts taking their guests to a variety of

locations attractions and shops. Some

with children involved went to

Twycross Zoo, others went to

Chatsworth, and some shopping in

Nottingham.

SOAR VALLEY TWINNING ASSOCIATION Twinned with

Plateau Nord de Rouen

Far East Prisoners of War Building, which we

found particularly interesting.

After a couple of hours of wandering in the

sunshine, looking at the various groups of

veterans and enjoying the gardens we

reunited at the coach for our journey onto

Trentham. It will certainly be worth visiting

Alrewas again, as the Arboretum is only four

years old, and once the vegetation has

matured, I’m sure that it will be even more

impressive.

At Trentham Gardens there is a large

selection of things to do.

There are a huge selection of shops and cafes

outside the actual gardens, Trentham Monkey

Forest, where you can walk through free

living monkeys, and the Gardens themselves.

Most decided to pay to go into the gardens

and then find a suitable location for a picnic,

by the side of the youthful river Trent.

Following the meal, we looked around the

Italian gardens, which have been faithfully

restored to the original design of Charles

Barry, who designed them for the Duke of

Sutherland. Many opted to take the lakeside

walk, which was a good hours worth of

steady ambling through the surrounding

woods. On returning to the coach, we had

managed to exercise enough for some to sleep

on our journey home, despite the puzzles and

jokes that were entertaining many of us.

In the evening there was an organised

event at the new Village Hall in

Normaton on Soar. The meal for the

evening was cooked by volunteers,

notably Deirdre and Sheila, and was

particularly excellent, with wine and

drinks aiding and abetting it. The

entertainment was provided by a group of

Scottish Country Dancers from Leicester,

who managed to get virtually everyone

onto the floor at least once. Great fun was

had by all, with us novices missing cues

and going the wrong way!

Other entertainment was provided earlier

in the evening, prior to the event starting.

Some cheese for the meal was place on a

table outside the hall, while the tables

inside were being sorted. Upon returning

for the cheese, a dog was seen running

away with a large piece of cheddar, never

to be seen again!

Sunday was the organised trip to the

National Memorial Arboretum at Alrewas

and Trentham Gardens, near Stoke on

Trent. First we visited the Arboretum,

which comprises 150 acres of trees and

memorials dedicated to the concept

remembrance, with a special emphasis on

those who have died in action since the

Second World War. It is a hugely

impressive sight with a chapel, visitors

centre and specialist sections such as the

Soar valley welcomed French families for the

End of may bank holiday week-end

PAGE 2

Soup Kitchen A Soup Kitchen is held on the second Wednesday of every month in Kegworth Community Centre between 12 noon and 1pm to raise funds for relief work in Khasodobir, an area of Bangladesh. The lunch of soup, bread, dessert ,tea or coffee is excellent value for money costing only £2.30. Everyone is welcome so please come along and join us.

Newsletter produced by SVTA.

TEL/FAX: 01509 674434

The group of 58 people from U.S.Houppeville arrived on Saturday 25th April at the Church Hall Kegworth where there was a drinks reception and introductions to their host familes. The evening was spent with the families. On Sunday there was a day long tournament at the Jubilee Field, Normanton on Soar,with three age groups consisting of 6 teams in each group. As well as the teams from Kegworth and Houppeville there were teams from Gotham, East Leake and Loughborough taking part. During the day there was a barbecue, filled rolls, drinks and sweets on sale. On Sunday evening a party was held in Kegworth Village Hall for all the hosts and their guests. A buffet supper was provided and there were speeches from Patrick Le Bosse and Martin Hawksworth. Patrick was presented with a Kegworth Imps sweatshirt and polo shirt. Martin received a basket of traditional Normandy produce. On Monday the group were taken for a day out to Cadbury World which was hugely popular with everyone especially when the chocolate bars were given out. After Cadbury World they went onto the Merryhill shopping centre and seemed to buy the whole of Sportsworlds stock arriving back with endless amounts of carier bags filled with all manner of sportswear especially Premier League team shirts. The group and host families all met up afterwards for a barbecue at the pitch at Normanton. The French visitors left early on Tuesday morning all feeling very weary. We have since received news and thanks from Houppeville and all said they had a great weekend. As always it took a lot of organising but was well worth it. Thanks must go to all the host families and especially those who are not connected with the club for helping us out at the last minute and thanks also to all who helped out on the day with the catering and the football arrangements. We have been arranging these visits for 22 years and as always everything went without a hitch and the boys were a credit to both clubs.

SOAR VALLEY RIVER CRUISE—April 2009

On Sunday 19th April 20 people boarded one of the boats run by the Peter le Marchant Trust for a trip down the Soar river towards Sileby. The weather was absolutely perfect with brilliant sunshine all day and warm for the time of year. After making our way down the river for a while we moored up and a fabulous 3 course meal was served with wine. As usual Deirdre and Sheila did a splendid job with the food, which went down a treat. After the meal the boat was untethered and we set off again down the Soar going through a few locks on the way. The rest of the afternoon-was spent in pleasant conversation and idly just watching nature and other boats go by. Heron’s and ducklings and other wildlife was spotted. It was most interesting seeing familiar territory but from a completely different viewpoint. Later in the afternoon tea and cakes/biscuits were served and we finally arrived back in Loughborough around 7pm. All in all it was a very pleasant and relaxing way to spend a Sunday afternoon!

KEGWORTH IMPS EXCHANGE VISIT

PAGE 3

To book, to find out more information or to submit an item

for inclusion in the newsletter please call the Secretary Tel / Fax: 01509 568793 E.mail:sheila.hawksworth@ntlworld.com

Sutton Bonnington and Normaton Veterans FC Trip To Houppeville

At the beginning of May this year, it was the turn of the English Vets to visit Houppeville for the annual exchange. It turned

out to be yet another excellent visit, with some memorable moments over the long Bank Holiday weekend.

We left England on Friday the 1st May, with a long, tuneful and fairly uneventful trip down to Dover. With no delays and no

late returns to the coach at stops, we reached Houppeville at around 8.00 pm. Unusually the weary travellers were not given

the traditional French reception of drinks, nibbles, but were quickly whisked away to hosts residences for a meal, drinks and

an early night, in preparation for the big match, the following morning.

We arrived at the playing fields ready for a 10.00 am kick-off fit and ready to run ourselves into the ground. The pitch was in

good condition this year, and, with plenty of new blood in the team, the English visitors managed to control the game and

gain a relatively comfortable 3-0 victory, in the serious hour of the game. The last half hour was the usual mixture of teams

and other visitors, joining in for a brief bit of exercise, before the victory drinks.

An afternoon was spent with the host families, before a reception was held at the Salon on the Saturday night. This was a

more intimate evening than we have seen in some years, with the usual excellent buffet, speeches and presentations of cups

for all the English players. As is now traditional, the English had prepared a song which was performed with great gusto: this

years effort was “Let your Love Flow” with enhanced lyrics, proving that Rob E’s sense of humour has not improved over the

years. The night climaxed with a disco, with much dancing and frivolity (and not a little loud singing!) going on well into the

early hours of the morning.

Sunday, as usual, was a bit more relaxed but for many, there was still an early start. A number of us drove northwards through

the drizzle, towards the channel port of Dieppe. About 5 kilometres west of Dieppe is the Parc Floral des Moutiers, which is a

country house designed by Edwin Lutyens with a garden designed by Gertrude Jeckyll. The gardens were beautiful, spread

over 9 hectares in a valley leading down to the sea, with particularly spectacular Rhododendrons, Japanese Maple trees and

Magnolias. The house itself was not open to the public, but was superb to look at, especially enhanced by the gardens and

surroundings. The weather was a little damp, but as we came to the end of our walk, the clouds were thinning, and we could

see a little blue.

We had come prepared for a picnic, and as a place was selected near the car park, the clouds rolled back, and the sky became

completely blue. The picnic lasted for another hour and a half, and was probably better than many restaurant meals I have

had. After lunch, we had a brief stroll down towards a church, perched on the edged of the coastal cliffs. To the east was a

striking view of the town of Dieppe, and the channel. After a wander around the church, graveyard and cliffs it was back to

the cars and off for a rest at our hosts.

Sunday evening was another “do” back at the salon, for the English visitors and their hosts, which was more of a low key

event, probably due to the early start the next morning. More of the eating and drinking was followed by singing, involving a

duo of both French and English guitar accompaniment. This included a repeat performance of the English songs form

Saturday night and some other well known songs which most attempted to join in with.

At 7.45 am the following morning, our weary travellers arrived at the coach ready for the long journey homewards. We

stopped near Calais to purchase the obligatory supplies of food and wine and managed to arrive at the port in time for the

ferry.

Fortunately, this year the journey went relatively smoothly (no rough seas), and with one short break, the first passengers got

off the coach at Kegworth by 8.00 pm. Another excellent and enjoyable visit to France by the Veterans: next year, they’re

over here!

Parc Floral des Moutiers—Dieppe

HAVE SOME FUN! MEET NEW PEOPLE!

DATES FOR YOUR DIARY

October

Meal at Loughborough College

Catering Students Restaurant

Date TBC

Christmas Wine Tasting Event

Kegworth Community Centre

Friday December 4th.

Book Early to avoid disappointment

Valentines Dinner

February 13th 2010

Kegworth Community Centre

Walk and Picnic

Rutland Water

April 18th 2010

For all event bookings please telephone Clark Jennings on

01509 674234

Or Sheila Hawksworth on 01509 568793

SUBSCRIPTIONS FOR MEMBERSHIP

Deirdre Thompson, 13, Lansdowne Drive, Loughborough, Leics, LE11 2BX Current rates are: Family £14 Individual £8 Group £20

MEMBERSHIP MEMBERS NEWS

If any members have news that would be of interest we would be happy to include it in the newsletter. Publication dates are March, May, July, September and November To book an event, to find out more information or to submit an item for inclusion in the newsletter please call: The Secretary Tel / Fax: 01509 568793 E.mail:sheila.hawksworth@ntlworld.com