Parish celebrates the Queens Golden Jubilee

Lunch for Pensioners

Early in June the Parish Council organised a lunch for 75 pensioners in The Keene Hall. For a modest £3.50 they were treated to Chicken, Potatoes, Sausages and Vegetables followed by a cold sweet course, all prepared under the supervision of Councillor Janette Potter. The Hall was awash with Red, White and Blue decoration and the festivities ended with a fancy hat competition which was won by Bonnie Andrews.

Exhibition

This event was followed a week later by the Exhibition of Royal Memorabilia when visitors to The Keene Hall were greeted by an impressive Red, White and Blue floral display in the entrance lobby created by Julia Bellamy who also displayed her cut-out models of the Queen on horseback on the green behind ‘The Eagle’. The enduring interest in things ‘Royal’ brought a flood of exhibits. An impressive display of mugs, tea trays, biscuit tins, cups and saucers, medals, scrapbooks and newspaper cuttings filled the hall. There was an original front page of the News Chronicle with the story of the abdication in 1936 and a copy of the London Illustrated News dated 1911 with King George and Queen Mary in full colour. Ted Hawkins brought along a selection of books from his extensive library. The Horticultural Society filled two tables with bric a brac with Royal motifs and their centrepiece was a Union Jack constructed in flowers. The Historical Society displayed news cuttings of their chairman, David Stacy, as a King’s Scout attending the wedding of the Queen and Prince Philip in Westminster Abbey. The centrepiece of their stand featured a display of lifelike models of various members of the Royal Family and prominent public figures. These were part of a collection of several hundred made by Brenda Bond Other displays were presented by the Brownies, Joan and Charles Comport, Jane Head, St. Michael’s Church and Chelmsford Museum. Jubilee Mugs which had been purchased by the Parish Council for presentation to all the children in the three local schools were also on sale at the exhibition.

Jubilee flowers

The Horticultural Society made their contribution to the celebrations by constructing a new flower bed on the lawn outside Cottey House. The elderly residents will now be able to look out on a mass of yellow roses throughout the summer. The bed was planned as a low maintenance area using a horticultural membrane and a layer of bark chippings to reduce watering requirements and suppress weeds.