Pickets Post Newsletter December 2020

WITH GREETINGS OF THE FESTIVE SEASON TO ALL our D.A. MEMBERS AND A HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Your new Pickets Post Editor is John Burst, Contact me on 07740621551 or email [email protected] Articles for the January issue to be with me by 21st December please Next Committee Meeting 18th of January 2021 (by Zoom)

Weekend stewards mobile number www.newforestda.com is now 07514 555790 Chairman’s Welcome

Welcome to December’s Pickets post. I would like to start by thanking John for taking on the task of producing Pickets post. Thank you for the work that Dean has done in the past. In the past, pickets post has been sent to mem- bers by email. If you wish this to happen in the future, please email our new editor John (address on front page). You will see that we are still in need for volun- teers to join the committee in March at the AGM. Do not be shy, come and help keep the DA going. Nomination form is in this edition. We have a proposed sites list for 2021, which is still being worked on, but we will be requiring stewards. Ian our sites officer will produce a list when dates & sites fully confirmed. Janet is ad- vertising for stewards for the THS next year, so if you can help, please contact her. It has been a difficult year, but we still managed to run 4 rallies. Thank you to the stewards and to the people working behind the scenes to make them possible for the members to enjoy. I would like to thank the committee for their support this year, especially those who have carried on another year due to the pandemic and not having an AGM. We have managed to have committee meetings by zoom. A few hiccups at the beginning, but we all have to adjust to “the new norm”. It seems strange not to be having a Christmas social. However, Colin & I would like to wish all our members a Happy Christmas and hope that you manage to celebrate it in some way with your family whether in person, skype, zoom or telephone. We also want to wish you a Happy & Safe New Year.

Heather Brown. Chairman DA

NFDA NEEDS YOU – Officer Vacancies NO COMMITTEE = NO DA

Treasurer – Committee and Executive position – **NEEDED BY 1st JANUARY 2021** Secretary – Committee and executive position THS Officer– Non committee or committee position Auditor x 2 – Non committee position. Must not be related to a committee member. Social Organiser – Non committee or committee position

Other Committee positions PRO Appointed region councillor Committee members– various job roles

Welcome from your new Pickets Post editor

For those who don’t already know me, my name is John and I am married to the lovely Brenda. We have been club members for 27 years, alt- hough we have not always camped with NFDA over those years. You will always recognise us out on the field, due to our 3 dogs and us using mobility scooters. Please come and say hello if you see us, we don’t bite (honestly) and we are al- ways keen to catch-up.

I would like to thank and pay tribute to our previous editor Dean Mueller- Davies and wish him a speedy recovery. Over the years Dean has kept Pickets Post up to date and the members informed and we thank him for all his hard work for the D.A.

I have no great plans to change what has been a very successful format and in- tend to continue publishing Picket’s Post on our D.A. website www.newforestda.com, where you also have access to a collection of past is- sues. This newsletter is for you the members and as such I very much welcome any articles that you, the members, want to share. I would very much like to see any rally notes, site reviews, recipes, photographs along with anything our members wil find helpful and interesting.

You can contact me using the email address [email protected]

Until next month, keep safe everybody and look after each other. Camping season will soon be back with us.

Your Temporary Holiday Sites NFDA THS sites for 2021

Swanage & Wareham Rugby Club, Wareham 4th August to 1st September 2021 12.00 Opening and Closing

Follow A351 Wareham to Weymouth road. At roundabout, junction with A352 (Sign posted Weymouth) turn left towards Wareham. Go straight across traffic lights in Wareham into Bestwalls Road and turn left after last house in road.

Stewards contact:

VOLUNTEERS REQUIRED!!!!! Janet Email [email protected] Price: £12.50 per unit night, No Extra Adults fee

CASH ONLY ACCEPTED

Ballard School 16th July to 13th August 2021 12.00 opening and closing

Located in New Milton this private school is just a short walk to the town and is easily accessible from B3058. With tarmac roads around the school (a one-way system operates) the field has short grass, bounded by trees and is level. It is ideally situated for exploring the delights of the New Forest, from which we take our D.A. name. The lovely coastal area, shops and cinema and theatre trips are also within easy reach. Shops, beaches, forest and local attractions are all close to hand.

Stewards contact:

VOLUNTEERS PLEASE!!!

Price: £11.50 per unit night, No Extra Adults fee

CASH ONLY ACCEPTED

Birchwood Tourist Park 2nd September to 30th September 2021 12.00 opening and closing Booking required

Centrally located in an ideal position for exploring Dorset and the Jurassic Coast.

Full facility site & direct access into the forest for dog walks and general exploring!

Site is not on a bus route.

Contact Janet: 07513409978

Price: Awaits per unit night includes EHU, No Extra Adults fee (Early booking advised as limited hook ups)

Booking Essential

CASH ONLY ACCEPTED NFDA THS sites for 2021

Parley Glade 25th August to 8th September 2021 12.00 Opening

Ideal for coastal resorts of Bournemouth, and Christchurch, and within easy reach of New Forest and Purbeck Hills. Own san advisable, but toilets available.

NO ADVANCE BOOKINGS. JUST TURN UP.

Stewards Require Please

£12.00 p.u.n. or £18.00 p.u.n with EHU

No Extra Adult charge.

CASH ONLY ACCEPTED

Breamore House, 1st September to 27th September 2021 12.00 Opening

Breamore House, Fordingbridge SP6 2DF. MR 184/154191. Take A338 Ring- wood to Fordingbridge road, just north of Fordingbridge at village of Breamore turn left to Breamore House and follow the signs. Lovely walks, Manor House & countryside Museum and Tea room. New Forest, Salisbury & markets close by. Bus 1m. Own san is essential. Booking is neither available nor necessary

Price: £9.00 per unit night, No Extra Adults fee

STEWARDS

Chris & Lynda Sawkins

Extra Stewards REQUIRED PLEASE

CASH ONLY ACCEPTED This month saw the NFDA appear in the Our Club section on the club magazine. For those that don’t know Dee & I have been sup- Out and porting a small charity the Ugandan Conservation Foundation. We do this by training the Wildlife Rangers in Powerboating and First Aid. This helps them with their work in protecting the wild- About Africa life and preventing poaching. The DA at raised some money at the dinner dance which has been donated to them to use for first aid kits.

This year has been a challenge for the rangers with the collapse of the tourism industry. This has seen the local park community’s left with no income. Sadly, this allows the poachers to increase with many out of work and unable to feed their families.

So, the Wildlife Authority has increased its rangers and needs more training to help protect the magnificent animals in these areas.

I am planning to go out if possible, in February 2021 with a small group of instructors who will give up their time and skills for free. So, I am once again asking those that can to support the charity at this crucial time.

If you can spare £1 or more, please donate on the below website. £1 is not too little!! Thank you, Tony,

The Ugandan Wildlife Authority Wildlife Sites officer notes

At this precise time I am arranging some sites for 2021, but it will be a waste of time if we don’t have stewards.

The beginning of the year 2021 all sites will be pre-booked by me or some others. This will be in the same format as the last three rallies, Bamptons, Norden and Birchwood. The booking form will be put on the Website and possible on Facebook. All rallies will be paid by BACs and will have a cut off date where no bookings or refunds will be taken or paid. We have to do it this way to comply with covid guidelines. If you feel you would like to steward send your details to [email protected] telling me which site you would like to do. If there are more than two stewards who wish to do the same site (yeh right dream on) a ballot will take place.

I will put a sites list in the next pickets post which I hope will be up to date, unless there is a lock down then I will spend my time cancelling rallies.

If you have any queries contact me on the [email protected] email and I will try and give you an answer, if I can’t get the answer you want I will try and find out for you. If all else fails I will give a load of waffle lol, no not really.

We had for the last three rallies some experienced stewards and some newbys who had never done it before and did an excellent job.

Waffle over see you soon Ian Sites officer New forest DA Emergency Ward 10 — December 2020

Hello everyone! Well, what can one say about 2020 that hasn’t been said already!? I thought that 2020 would be the year that I got everything I wanted … now I know that

2020 is the year that I appreciate everything I have!!! AMEN TO THAT!!!

Since my last Emergency Ward 10 offering on the NFDA website, I have sent out 6 Get Well cards to several of our members, namely:- Ruth Mueller-Davies Sue Tye Dennis Legg Dean Mueller-Davies Tony Dearlove Denis Fry Anita Fry We wish them all well and hope that they will be able to enjoy Christmas and

New Year with their families.

Also, it was very sad to hear of the very sudden passing of Pete Whitfield and we have fond memories of lovely friendly chats with Pete on site and we send

Marion and all her family our deepest sympathy.

It only leaves me, Ray and Stu to wish you all a very happy AND HEALTHY! Christmas and let us all look forward to 2021 and happier times together, “out

in the field”. God bless.

Margaret (Miller) 01202 241605 – [email protected] RECIPE FOR MINCEMEAT MERINGUE TARTS

Something to tempt you for Christmas!

Ingredients Flour for dusting 300g Shortcrust pastry 300g Mincemeat 100 g Caster Sugar 2 Free Range Egg Whites 1 Small tub of good quality vanilla ice cream

Preheat the oven to 180c / 350f / Gas 4. Dust a clean work surface and rolling pin with flour, and roll out the pastry until it is a little thicker than a £1 coin. Carefully cut out 10 circles of pastry large enough to line 7-8 cms individual fluted tart tins. (Alternatively, cut out smaller circles and line a 12 hole bun tray). Spoon the mincemeat into the pastries and bake for 20 minutes, until cooked through and golden, and the mincemeat is bubbling hot. Set aside on a wire rack to cool completely.

In a clean bowl, whisk the egg whites with 1 tablespoon of caster sugar until it thickens and you have stiff peaks. Gradually whisk in the rest of the sugar and keep whisking for a few more minutes until the meringue turns thick and glossy.

Cover each mince pie with a shallow scoop of ice cream and then top with a dollop of me- ringue. Fork the meringue up a bit so it forms little peaks all over it, then briefly brown un- der a hot grill before serving.

(These are fantastic: a real improvement on basic mince pies and the ice cream works well with hot mulled wine! It's best to make the meringue and to brown it as close to the time when you want to serve the pies as possible). … Enjoy!! Joke corner from Ray (Miller)

A Little Known Christmas Fact…

Santa was getting ready for his annual trip...but there were problems everywhere. Four of his elves were sick, and the trainee elves did not produce the toys as fast as the regular ones so Santa was beginning to feel the pressure of being behind schedule.

Then Mrs. Claus told Santa that her Mum was coming to visit. This stressed Santa even more. When he went to harness the reindeer, he found that three of them were about to give birth and two had jumped the fence and were out, heaven knows where. More Stress. Then when he began to load the sleigh, one of the boards cracked and the toy bag fell to the ground and scattered the toys. So, frustrated, Santa went into the house for a cup of coffee and a shot of whiskey. When he went to the cupboard, he found the elves had hidden the whiskey and there was nothing to drink. In his frustration, he dropped the coffee pot and it broke into hundreds of little pieces all over the kitchen floor.

Just then the doorbell rang and Santa cussed on his way to the door. He opened the door and there was a little angel with a great big Christmas tree. The angel said: "Where would you like to put this tree Santa?" …… And that my friends, is how the little angel came to be on top of the Christmas tree.

Merry Christmas!! … Ray

Just a thought ……. Don’t bother walking a mile in my shoes That would be boring .. instead Try spending 30 seconds in my head That’ll freak you out!!!!! Marg x

HAPPY COLOURING CHILDREN … HERE’S WISHING YOU ALL A VERY HAPPY CHRISTMAS!! MARG & RAY THESE ARE THE LATEST OFFERINGS FOR CHARITY FROM THE NEW FOREST D.A. KNATTY KNITTERS!

IF YOU THINK THE NEW FOREST D.A. KNATTY KNITTERS HAVE BEEN IDLE DURING COVID…. THINK AGAIN!!! AS YOU CAN IMAGINE THE GOSPEL HALL WERE THRILLED WITH OUR LATEST OFFERING AND SEND US THEIR HEARTFELT THANKS HOPEFULLY IT WILL ALL BE ON ITS WAY TO NAMIBIA SHORTLY DIDN’T WE DO WELL!! ANY QUERIES?? MARGARET (MILLER) 01202 241605 – [email protected] Paws for thought

With Christmas soon to be upon us, now is a great time to remind us all that many common foods and plants can be very dan- gerous if eaten by dogs & cats. Please take care of your furry family members and help them enjoy the festive season safely