Mayor's News Archive

November Mayoral Musings

The Plume of Feathers hosted a buffet and concert of folk music on Saturday 2nd November in aid of the Mayor's chosen charity OkePADS.  The performers very generously gave their time for free and people came from far and wide to enjoy an evening's entertainment for a good cause.  Many thanks to the local businesses who donated raffle prizes and to all those who worked so hard to make it a roaring success.  The grand sum of £490.71 was raised, all of which will go to OkePADS to enable them to continue to provide free training to the community in CPR and the use of defibrillators.

On Sunday 3rd November, I went along to the Launceston Town Council Civic Service by kind invitation of their Mayor.  Whilst there, I had opportunity to chat to the MP for North Cornwall who continues to support the re-instatement of a passenger rail service between Okehampton and Exeter.   All the MP's in our area have been very engaged in working together with OkeRAIL behind the scenes to get this line re-established.

On Sunday 10th November, I joined with everyone else as we remembered the fallen by taking part in the Remembrance Day Parade and Service at All Saints.  This is organised by the Royal British Legion every year and is a key date in the calendar where the town comes together in an act of remembrance.  I was privileged to be invited to read the names on the Roll of Honour at the Memorial from the two Great Wars and Afghanistan and to light a candle.  'For your sacrifice we will be eternally grateful - Lest we Forget'.

Monday 11th November, I attended the funeral of Mr Michael Morse who was a previous Mayor of the Town.  I had the opportunity to sit and listen to the lovely memories that his family, friends and neighbours have as they chatted about things they had done together.  My thoughts and prayers are very much with his wife and family at this difficult time.

Towards the end of the month, I was invited along to a 'Music Centre' Concert being put on by Community Links SW in the Octagon Theatre.  This was to showcase all that their students have learnt over the term and was of a very high standard.  Young people from Okehampton Primary and the College took part playing a multitude of different instruments.  Lots of justifiably proud parents and teachers - a thoroughly enjoyable evening.

During November, I presented two cheques on behalf of Okehampton Town Council.  One was in support of our local Community Transport Group which does such sterling work in the town and wider community.  The second cheque was for the Armed Forces Veterans Breakfast Club which is a social group that meets monthly in the town and is open to all members of the armed forces - whether they are still serving or not.

December Mayoral Musings

As expected, December was a very busy month.  It all started off with the Edwardian Evening in the Town on the 5th December.  An event not to be missed.  For the first time, the event was run by "Everything Okehampton" and they did a fabulous job getting the lights and trees put up and arranging all the entertainment.  We had a great time singing Carols outside St James' Chapel with our Silver Band playing their hearts out.  This was swiftly followed by an invitation to attend a fabulous concert by the Exeter Youth Orchestra in Fairplace Church entitled "Christmas by Candlelight".  The standard of playing was incredibly high and included young people from Okehampton - some of whom had started out playing with the Music Centre which is run by Community Links CIC in Okehampton.

A couple of evenings later I was at the Okehampton Excelsior Silver Band Christmas Concert in the Charter Hall which was great fun.  On Monday 9th December I presented a couple of cheques.  One to the Okehampton United Ecclesiastical Charity towards the maintenance of the clock at St James' Church and the second to the Okehampton Air Cadets which will be used to purchase essential IT equipment.

On Wednesday 11th December, I went along to the Okehampton United Charities Celebration Evening. As Mayor, I am a Trustee of the Charity and so had the privilege of presenting some certificates to the young people from Room 13 who had either achieved or were working towards their Duke of Edinburgh Bronze Award.  The following day, I popped into the Library to listen to children from Bridestowe and Exbourne Primary Schools singing carols as part of their Christmas Coffee Morning.  It was lovely to share coffee and mince pies with some of those who volunteer at the Library and work so hard to provide this vital service to Okehampton and the wider community.  On Friday 13th December, I was invited along to "A Night of Music" presented by the Friends of Okehampton Library.  This was a lovely evening of entertainment which was very well supported.

On Sunday 15th December my first event of the day was to a Christmas Service being held by Inspiration Church.  This service is run by the members of the church and they all turned up dressed as people from the Nativity.  The Nativity Play itself had been written and was narrated by a couple of the young people and the church members were all very involved in the performance.  In the evening I was invited to a Christmas Civic Service in Holsworthy.  This was entitled "A Festival of Nine Lessons with Carols to Celebrate the Nativity of our Lord".  Again, lots of young people took centre stage throughout.

On Tuesday 17th December I was invited to the Christmas Lunch of the Okehampton Friendly Circle which was a time of good food, good fun and good company.  In the evening I went along to the Major Awards Evening held by Okehampton College in the Octagon Theatre.  This event celebrated the successes of the many students from the College who had excelled in their field at either GCSE or A Level plus those who have faced considerable personal challenges and come through them.

My final event of the year was going along to the Okehampton Wellbeing Singers Christmas Concert.  There was plenty of audience participation and great fun.  The singers are very enthusiastic and all are welcome to go along to their weekly meetings on Fridays in the Ockment Centre.  No previous singing experience necessary!

By the time you read this, we will be in early January.  I should like to take this opportunity to wish you all a very Happy, Healthy and Prosperous New Year and to thank each and every one for all that you do for the community of Okehampton.

January Mayoral Musings

In terms of attending official events, January has been a quieter month as everyone gets back in the swing after the Christmas break.  We have a team of volunteer Mace Bearers, three of whom are new, so I took the opportunity to arrange a bit of a get together where we all met up and the two long standing Mace Bearers shared their experiences and passed some of their extensive knowledge on to the newer ones.  On Saturday 18th January, the Town Council held a Climate Change Coffee Morning for members of the public to meet and talk with organisations who are responding first hand to the challenges we face as a community.  A very generous member of the public had donated some raffle prizes for the Mayor's Charity so we held a raffle and raised £69.50 for OkePADS.  On Monday 20th January I presented a grant cheque to Everything Okehampton on behalf of Okehampton Town Council which will go towards the installing and ongoing maintenance of the Christmas lights.  I am sure you will agree that the display in Okehampton always looks absolutely amazing.

I had the opportunity to attend a meeting with a representative from NHS Property Services who own the hospital building on Friday 24th January.  The purpose was to look at how the spare space within Okehampton Hospital can be utilised by the community.  There are already a lot of clinics that run out of the hospital, so if you are referred to one by your GP do ask if you can be seen locally.  I also met the new Community Responder on Monday 27th January, Will Britten, whose role is to provide more local policing within the community and also to offer more fire cover.  He is able to offer free fire Home Safety checks for people to see if any fire prevention needs to be put in place.

One of the responsibilities of the Mayor's role is that of being a Trustee of Okehampton United Charities and Simmons Homes Charity - both of which do a tremendous amount for the community within Okehampton and the surrounding Hamlets.  It is very encouraging to see the positive impact that both of these charities have - so many services that are provided through the voluntary sector would simply not happen or have far greater limitations on how much they can do if it weren't for the support of these two local charities.

February Mayoral Musings

On Friday 7th February, I was invited along to an Awards Ceremony for a competition run by Dogberry & Finch Books for children who attend schools within the Dartmoor Multi Academy Trust.  The children were asked to design a piece of Art/Text that would sit on the official bookmark for the bookshop on the theme of 'how does your favourite book make you feel'?  Warmest congratulations to the winners and runners up for their incredible design.

The following week I presented a cheque to 'Westbank' who are doing a lot of work supporting Young Carers in Okehampton.  A couple of days later I was honoured to be able to present the prize to North Tawton Primary School who were the runners up at the annual Primary School Quiz Final which is organised by the Rotary Club of Okehampton with the winning team being from Okehampton Primary School.  Huge congratulations to all the children who came from lots of different primary schools in the area and took part in the Quiz.  The questions certainly weren't easy, yet they all looked like they were having great fun.  Lots of very proud family members in the audience.

At the end of the month, I was invited to the 2443 (Okehampton) Squadron Air Cadets' Coffee Morning in the Charter Hall.  This was very well supported with lots of delicious cake!  As always, the Cadets were impeccably turned out and a real credit to their Squadron.

May Mayoral Musings

VE day 75 on the 8th May. There were great plans afoot to celebrate this event, both locally and nationally, which had to be scaled down with it being down to individuals to decide how best they could celebrate in line with government guidelines.  However you spent it, it was a wonderful opportunity to think of those who laid down their lives for our freedom and to rejoice and give thanks for the liberties we have enjoyed as a result.  It was made all the more poignant by the current situation we find ourselves in where it is our turn to protect the generation that made the ultimate sacrifice for us.

I stood on my doorstep at 11 am, wearing the Mayor's day chain, to observe the two minute silence.  In that time my thoughts travelled to my grandfathers - both of whom were involved in the war.  One was at El Alamein in North Africa and the other was a locksmith which was a reserved occupation.  He lived in the Midlands and was responsible for securing banks and other buildings that were bombed during the Blitz.  I thought about their wives and young children and tried to imagine what had been going through their minds when the announcement was made on the 8th May 1945.  As a nation, we owe a huge debt of gratitude to those who have gone before which can never be repaid and each one lives on in our memories.

Now, as then, neighbour is helping neighbour, key workers and volunteers are putting themselves on the front line to keep vital services running and families are learning how to keep in touch with one another through the wonders of modern technology.

Councillors made the decision not to hold an Annual Meeting this year, so there will be no changes to the committee membership.  I will continue as Mayor with Cllr Dr Ireland as Deputy Mayor.  The Chairmen of the Committees will remain as Cllr Leech (Planning); Cllr Marsh (Parks); Cllr Tolley (Policy & Resources) and Cllr Goffey (Property).

As Mayor, I continue to chair the Council meetings with our meetings being conducted digitally - a new experience for everyone!  These meetings are open to the public and the Clerk includes details of how to join when the agendas are published which are available from the Town Council website.  The Town Council has been working hard behind the scenes to offer support to the voluntary organisations who are helping those who are self-isolating.  We have offered funding, equipment and staff time and have set aside a £3,000 discretionary Hardship Fund to which individuals in need can apply.  Details are on the Town Council website.

On a final note, I should like to express my sincere condolences to those who have lost loved ones over these last few weeks - whether to COVID 19 or for other reasons.  Coping with bereavement is hard enough when we can surround ourselves with friends and family.  Going through it without that physical support network makes it even harder and my heart goes out to you.