THE ROTHESIAN

Sept 2010 Sponsored by McKerron & Milne Ltd Issue No 51

McKerron & Milne Ltd is a plumbing, heating and roofing contractor who have served the needs of do- HEATING ENGINEERS mestic and commercial customers in the local commu- * Gas Central Heating nities, towns, villages in Speyside, , Banff, the * Oil Central Heating far North of to the Borders and Islands since * Boiler Servicing and Repairs the company formed well over 30 years ago. * Hot and Cold Works * Cylinder Replacements

UTILITY / COMMERCIAL WORKS * Road Crossings * Sewage and Rainwater Connections * Pipelines * Commercial - Food, Chemical and Waste * Hotels / Distillery / Factory Maintenance * Dam Works, Soakaways, Springs and Flood Works * Camera Work and Drain Jetting

We offer free quotations for works and a 24 hour emergency call out service.

Finally we would like to thank our loyal and new cus- tomers for there custom and support over the years and look forward to helping the community with there plumbing and roofing needs in the future. A big thank The current owner is Brian Yeats from Longmorn who you also goes to our helpful and understanding neigh- bought over the ownership of the company in June bours who sometimes have to put up with some dis- 1996 from previous owners Arthur McKerron and the ruptions during the day to day running of our business late Sandy Milne. We previously worked out of prem- from our yard. ises in both High Street and Fisherton in be- fore moving to our more central current location in New Street in February 2004 where we work out of with our 21 employees. Scott Cameron We are registered with the Scottish & Northern Ireland Plumbing Employers Federation (SNIPEF), Gas Safe - Gas Heating and OFTEC - Oil Heating bodies.

Detailed below is some of the services we can provide to homes, factories and commercial properties :-

PLUMBING WORKS * Bathrooms / Kitchens * Repairs / Renewals * Drains and Septic Tanks * Water Connections

ROOFING WORKS * Slating Repairs / Renewals * Gutter Cleaning / Repairs McKerron & Milne Limited * Lead works / Felt Roofs * Ridge Tiles / Skews

You may contact The Rothesian by e-mail, using the following address: [email protected] LINNBURN STORY TIME AT ROTHES LIBRARY

We are planning our project to run from September We are having considerable difficulty in resolving the 16th until 3rd December 2010. This will be a problems of access and security issues for the resump- 'Resource' where people can pick and choose which tion of Story Time this session. With holidays pending events they come to. If successful, we would like it to and these problems which we thought we had solved, further develop in the future. it seems unlikely that we can start until after the Every Thursday morning we will have an activity schools’ October break. Jean and Sandra apologise for ( either Tai Chi, Traditional Butter making, Vitalyz ( a this delay which we hope we can sort and look for- type of chair exercise) and making bee boxes). ward to meeting our friends age 3 to Pr 3 shortly. On Thursday afternoons we will have a different A notice will be placed in the Northern Scot to keep speaker. you posted on the situation. Friday mornings we will have a coffee morning and on Friday afternoons it will either be Indian Head mas- sage or Reiki. I feel the programme offers a wide range of activities ROTHES ART GROUP and interests and will appeal to many people. It does not seem like almost a year since it was decid- Mike Heron ed to start an Art Group in Rothes. Time has flown Day Centre Officer by. We are six in number and have enjoyed our Thursday evenings spent in the Grant Hall doing our painting and learning something new every week. ROTHES FLOWER SHOW There is Pastels, line drawing, oils, acrylics and water . colour, also Encaustic painting. We have just been The Flower Show was again well supported by local joined by a young ten year old, who has an interest in people and competitors from Aberlour, and art, so it is not for the old or young but for everyone. Elgin. Although vegetable entries were well down, the If you would like to try us out we meet from 7.30 to judge felt the standard had been kept up. Baking en- 9pm and the cost is just £2.00 which won’t break the tries were much increased from last year, and judges bank but you might enjoy the challenge. thought the standard was excellent. Industrial and Children's sections demonstrated much hard work and For more information ring Jean on 831808 or Irene on ingenuity in making the items, and Brownies, Rain- 832350 bows and Rothes Primary school all contributed to making these sections colourful and enjoyable. Despite poor weather for much of the season, cut flowers and pot plants were very good. The commit- ROTHES LADIES’ GROUP tee is grateful to everyone who entered, and especially wishes to thank the volunteers who assisted in setting st up staging on Thursday, stewarding and counting Our new session begins on Tuesday 21 September which is a musical evening with INDIGO. points on Saturday. Although the committee is fortu- In the coming months we hope to have jewellery mak- nate in working harmoniously, they would not have been able to run the event without these people. A new ers, Xmas decorations demonstration and more. system of points counting was trialled this year as the If there are any readers who have slides of a special journey or event, or can display crafts and would like Society entered the 20th century with computerised to share them with us please come along to our meet- calculations. Any minor glitches experienced were attributable to human error as opposed to the comput- ing. Please call 831487 and let me know. er, but this will be a very valuable system for future We meet on the third Tuesday of the month at 7.30 pm in the Church Hall and new members will be made years. Entries were only 2 down from last year over most welcome. all, this shows that our support is consistent; however, we hope even more entrants will wish to take part next Margaret Matthews year. President

Dena Cruickshank

2 This issue sponsored by McKerron & Milne ROTHES SOCIAL CLUB

The Club lost one of its long serving committee mem- bers with the death of Mary Rollo in July. Teas after the funeral were held in the Club, which received a dona- We welcome all the Rainbows back for a new term tion from Mary’s family. as well as our new girls Rebecca, Anna and Rebec- Coffee Mornings and Tombolas are going well, but un- ca. To kick off the term we will be colouring pic- fortunately, the Monthly Dances have been a disaster, tures for the Flower Show. This term we will also because patrons are unwilling to pay the £5 entry. be starting a new roundabout badge challenge. We Congratulations to the ten walkers who took part in the are looking forward to attending a centenary cele- Sponsored Walk from the Club, via the Golf Course, bration at House in September and Burn of Rothes, Elchies, Dandaleith and old railway line the Closing Ceremony at in October back to the club, and to all people who sponsored them. so lots to do! A total of £625 was collected for club funds. If you have a daughter aged between 5 and 7 who is The hall is still available for functions (seats 100) some interested in being a Rainbow please feel free to Saturdays and Thursdays. contact Bev (831137) or Claire (831147). Contact R. Ness on 01340 831513, or the Club on 01340 831348 during opening hours. R. Ness President

Wel- ROTHES CINEMA come back to the brownies and also to our new girls Penny and Kaitlyn. In a recent Northern Scot, in the Echoes from the Past We start the new term by making a Centenary card section, there was an old article on the closure of the for the Flower Show. The girls will also be choos- Rothes Cinema, 50 years ago. ing a new badge to work on as well as being set a The “pictures” were held in the Church Hall on Tues- new Sixes Challenge. We look forward to attending days, Thursdays and Fridays, and had been well attend- the Centenary Celebrations at Ballindalloch House ed for many years. Unfortunately, the attendances had in September as well as the Closing Ceremony at been dropping steadily, although there was a core of Lossiemouth in October. regular attenders. The company, Spey Vale Cinemas, If you have a daughter aged from 7 to 10 who is found it was no longer financially viable to run the cine- interested in being a Brownie please feel free to ma, and the curtains finally fell on 16th May, 1960. contact Bev (831137) or Claire (831147).

Lastly we would like to let you all know about Moray Krafty Kidz, 11a Commerce Street, Elgin . ROTHES WALKS They have said that if customers tell them they sup- port 1st Rothes Rainbow/Brownies when making a The Thursday morning group are continuing to meet at purchase, they will donate a percentage of the sale 10 in the Square. Some Thursdays the weather has been to us so please remember us if you visit their shop! none too kind but we have got more adventurous. We So we are at the start of a very busy (and fun) term went up to Glen Grant Gardens one day where we am- and will give you all updates in the next Rothesian bled around the gardens and on a better day took a pic- so watch this space! nic cuppa and went to visit the Biblical Gardens in El- gin. The leisurely stroll round suited us beautifully on a Bev , Claire and Natasha lovely day. The next official set of walks start on 2nd September. If you would like to join us we meet at 10am outside the Post Office in the Square.

This issue sponsored by McKerron & Milne 3 ROTHES BALL (BE ACTIVE LIFE LONG) ROTHES LIBRARY GROUP Hi everyone, we've just had our first few months in The group concluded its first full year of life with a our new home within the Rothes Primary School and trip out at the end of June, when we visited Ballindal- hope you have enjoyed your new, bright and spacious loch Castle. While some explored the gardens, others library. We have some new an exciting authors and explored the Castle after a refreshing cuppa in the tea- titles in all areas and it will constantly grow! room. We continued on to Grantown-on-Spey where The children have been actively taking part in the most of us enjoyed a leisurely lunch at the Grant Arms Summer Book Challenge with Space being the theme. before having a wander around the town. From Gran- The story was that Jess, Nabil, Safia and others from town, the hill road was taken to and another around the world were taking a rocket into space filled stop before a scenic run back to Aberlour and Rothes. with all their favourite books to build a new library. On another day out we went for a walk – all of us The children had to read books on any subject to ad- managed something. We went up to Glen Grant Gar- vance the stage for the rocket and earn points for their dens, where the less active got a ‘hurly’ up the brae. teams! Watch this space to hear of the winners. They Some adventurous souls went up to the waterfall with coloured for the colouring competition and played Jean Kingham, while others wandered slowly around quizzes and games. Most of all they enjoyed building the top part of the garden and a good many managed our very own rocket ship called SS ROT 1 and it's on to walk back down to the coffee stop. Grateful thanks it's launch pad for everyone to see. are due to Denis Malcolm and the Glen Grant staff for Two rather clever girls Debbie Baillie and Georgia their hospitality and to Jean from the Walking Group Masson created who was a leader with us that day. a Space Hop Before the session finished some of the group were Dance to music lucky enough to enjoy the Summer BALL at Elgin and wore very pretty dresses to enhance their performance to me and other library visitors one afternoon after school! We are looking forward to a Computer course and other special new get togethers during autumn and winter with guest speaker and demonstra- tions. Town Hall where members of other Moray BALL Summer is fad- groups had a day long session with various workshops ing fast so if you haven't curled up with a book in the and activities. We greatly enjoyed meeting up with last few weeks there will be plenty of good titles just other Moray members. waiting for you here for the autumn! Look forward to The group starts its new session on 7th September seeing you soon. when there is a varied and we hope interesting pro- gramme made up until Christmas Regards Lyn Luck Rothes Librarian

4 This issue sponsored by McKerron & Milne ROTHES BOWLING CLUB ROTHES FIRE STATION

The Open Annual Pairs Competition for The McKen- Rothes fire station are reaching out to the community zie Cup had 41 entries. Mr. Graeme Christie of Spey- and local businesses in the bid to recruit more retained side Car Sales presented the winners Isobel Kelman fire fighters following a drop in their crew numbers. and Finlay McPherson from with the trophy. Becoming a retained fire fighter would mean the op- The runners up were Willie Munro and Jimmy Donald portunity to earn additional money, learn new skills from Grant Park, . The losing semi finalists and serve the local community. were Bertie Farquhar and Richard Steele from Aber- Applicants must be 18 or over and live with in a maxi- lour and John Walker and David Petrie from Lhan- mum of 7 minutes from the station. bryde. Those wishing to apply to become a retained fire fight- The bowling club appreciates the support given by the er can do so through Grampian Fire and Rescue Ser- sponsors Speyside Car Sales, Bells and Edrington. vice, 19 North Anderson Drive, Aberdeen, AB156TP, Sandy and Scott Cameron won the Aberlour Open on the service website www.grampianfrs.org.uk, by phone on 01224696666 during office hours, or ask at the Rothes Fire Station on a Thursday between 1900- 2130 for more information.

CAR WASH

Local Fire Fighters are holding a Car Wash in aid of The Fire Fighters Charity and local charities at Rothes Fire Station on Saturday 18th of September from 1000 till 1600.

THE COTTAGE

The Cottage is once again open to the public. The opening hours are 10am to 4pm on Tuesday, Thursday and Friday. The 2011 calendars (3 kinds) and the Christmas Cards are now on sale along with other goods. Pairs which had an entry of 46 pairs. New for this year are mounted prints of well known The last Rothes pair to win this competition was 31 attractions. These can be done on request if you have years ago. a favourite spot or view.

ROTHES INDOOR BOWLING CLUB.

The indoor bowling will commence on Monday 20th. September, with the hat nights commencing at 6.15pm and 7.30pm. Bowling will be on Monday and Tuesday at the Rothes F.C Social Club where members and everyone interested in bowling will be welcome. The club plays in the Banffshire Indoor Bowling Associa- tion league and competitions.

Innes Shaw

This issue sponsored by McKerron & Milne 5 BIG CYCLE CHALLENGE COME AWA’ THE TEAM

I would like to thank everyone who sponsored me I’m a Rothes team supporter and gang tae ilka game; for my cycle in Rajasthan in India in March. I was I follow them for miles an’ miles fan they’re awa’ fae fundraising for four cancer charities; The Lymphoma hame; Association, Marie Curie Cancer Care, Children with I cheer them on when times are bad, nae only when Leukaemia and Ovarian Cancer Action. I found the they’re good, fundraising to be a challenge in itself, but was over- And tho’ I gi’e some good advice, it’s clean and never whelmed with the support from friends, neighbours rude. and residents in Rothes, who have all been extremely generous. I would also like to thank Forsyths, McKer- Chorus:- ron & Milne, Walkers and the local Rotary Club who So Cheers! Tae the Rothes boys, we’re glad they’ve also donated very generously, as well as Tawse the waukened up; Butcher in Rothes who kindly collected sponsorship We’re glad they played sae weel and won the North o’ for me. Scotland Cup: The challenge itself was one of the hardest things I And they’ll show the boys frae Lossiemouth, frae Elgin and Huntly, That if they’ve hopes o’ beatin’ them, they’ll ha’e a lot tae dae.

If ye’ve never seen the Rothes Team, ye’ve never lived ava, There’s nae a team tae beat them at manouverin’ a ba! And noo MacKessack’s floodlit, ye’ll see them day and nicht, And in their black and orange strip, they mak’ a bonny sicht.

Chorus:- So cheers etc.

So here’s tae the Rothes Team, we follow ye wi’ pride, Nae only fae yer ‘Hame Toon’ but places far and have completed in my life, but completely worth wide; it. We were faced with extremely high temperatures, Jist think on yer supporters, and the cheers that ye will tough terrain, and some exotic wildlife, but the sense get of achievement, again made it worth it. Fin we see the ba’ fae heid or fit gang sizzlin’ in the I recently had a reunion with everyone I met on the net. trip, and although our final total has not yet been an- nounced, my personal total stands at £3250, and as a Chorus:- So cheers etc. group it looks like we have made somewhere in the region of £70,000. Thank you again to everyone who (To the tune ‘Castles in the Air’.) donated, it really is very much appreciated.

Lorna MacInnes

JIMMY AND CHRISTINE LOGAN

The Rothesian Group wish to pass on their regards to Jimmy and Christine Logan. We are delighted that Christine is now home from hospital, and we look for- ward to having an article again soon.

6 This issue sponsored by McKerron & Milne Rothes Diary 13th November Coffee Morning in the Kirk Hall (Rothes Primary School) 14th November Remembrance Sunday Please note that the diary displayed in the Rothes th th Library window, is updated every two weeks and 12 to 16 November Schools closed In-service inclusive takes in changes which occur during the time be- th tween the Rothesian quarterly editions, especially 20 November Coffee Morning in Kirk Hall (Senior in the run up to the Festive Season and holiday Citizens) 20th November Tombola in Rothes FC Social Club breaks. Please keep Sandra informed of events th and meetings as fundraising works best with no 27 November Coffee Morning in the Kirk Hall competition! (Rothes Parish Church) 30th November St Andrews Day Please note the special email address for the diary: th [email protected] 4 December Coffee morning in Rothes FC Social Club If you would like the diary emailed to you, please th contact this address. 11 December Coffee Morning in the Kirk Hall (Toddlers Group) th 2010 18 December Tombola in Rothes FC Social Club 22nd December Schools close for Christmas Break September th 8th September 1st Digital Changeover Day for 25 December Dance in Rothes FC Social Club st 2011 Rothes Area - 1 retune th 14th September Coffee Morning in Kirk Hall (Ladies 6 January Schools reopen after Christmas Break Golf) 18th September Coffee Morning in Rothes Kirk Hall (Rothes Bowling Club) 18th September Rothes FC Social Club Birthday SENIOR CITIZENS

Party (private) th 20th September LOCAL HOLIDAY Our new sessions start on Wednesday October 6 , at 22nd 2nd Digital Changeover Date – Make sure 2.30 in the Church Hall. you re-tune to get all channels available Old and new members are welcome – please bring 24th to 27th September Autumn Speyside Whisky your own cup. Festival Coffee Morning is on Saturday November 20th, 10-12 th 25 September Coffee Morning in Rothes Kirk Hall noon. (Sunday School) th th See you all on 6 October. 25 September Tombola in Rothes FC Social Club Jean Allan 7.45 th Sec’y 30 September Spey Fishing season closes

October 2nd October Coffee Morning in Rothes FC Social Club 8th October Schools close for Autumn Break 9th October Coffee Morning in Kirk Hall (Air Ca- dets) 10th October A941 Bridge 7.5T weight limit ends 16th October Coffee Morning in Kirk Hall (Rothes Council) 16th October Tombola in Rothes FC Social Club 18th October Traffic lights removed (maybe!) 23rd October Coffee Morning in Kirk Hall (Friendship Group) 25th October Schools reopen after Autumn Break 28th October Pension Service at Rothes Medical Centre 1.30 to 3.30pm. For private appointment ring 0131 555 8162 30th October Coffee Morning in Kirk Hall (Knockando Playgroup) 31st October Halloween and British Summer Time Ends –Clocks Back 1 hour November onwards 6th November Coffee Morning in Rothes FC Social Club 8th November Remembrance Planters in position beside the War Memorial 11th November Armistice Day – At the 11th Hour on the 11th Day of the 11th Month the guns fell silent at the end of WW1. Please observe the Silence

7 This issue sponsored by McKerron & Milne MEXICO 2010 as buying bins and painting the Scotland and Mexican flags onto the wall for the villagers community room. We both returned from our very successful trip to The people there took us for a walk up to caves before Mexico intact and full of ideas to go travelling again, we left to go back to Oaxaca to catch an overnight bus since a lot of the town helped us along the way, we to San Cristobal where we got the bus to Chiquila. thought we would fill you in on what we got up to This was so we could get the boat to Isla Holbox for while we were out there… our rest and relaxation stage. We had an early start, leaving the school at 5am to The next day we got up early for breakfast before we take a minibus to Edinburgh airport where we met our expedition leader Tom. We sent off our bags and got onto our plane, arriving at Newark airport about 7 hours later to then get on another plane to Mexico City. By this time we had been travelling for about 20 hours and the first thing we needed to do was get checked into our hostel and get some sleep. Our first few days in Mexico City were spent explor- ing the culture, visiting the parliamentary palace, the Templo Mayor ruins and the Cathedral Metropoliana. We also visited “the lost pyramids” in Teotihuacan. We then left Mexico City and made our way to Cuet- zalan by bus and met up with our trek guide who took us for a hike into the jungle where we set up our tents to spent the night. The next day we carried on our trek, on which we got a chance to swim in a waterfall and sleep in a football pitch. We took a two and a half hour walk back to Cuetzalan the next morning where we went to swim with the whale sharks, we were kitted up spent the night in a hostel. After that we headed by bus with goggles, snorkels, lifejackets and flippers. Whale to Puebla and spent the rest of the day and night there, sharks can grow to be as long as 20 metres, the sharks before heading off on another bus to Apizaco so we we were swimming with were considered small, but to could start our five day trek up volcano La Malinche. us they were massive! The whole day was a great ex- In order to get used to altitude up the volcano, we only perience and we all had a fantastic time, even getting walked two hours up before coming down to sleep in the chance to swim with manta-rays, and see dolphins, the base camp. The next day we walked up to the sec- giant turtles and flamingos. ond camp, which we climbed to again with full ruck- For our last full day in Mexico, we got our boat back sacks a day later. After a sleep there we got up at 3am to Chiquila, then our bus back to Cancun where we the next morning in order to finish our climb to the checked in to our hotel then went for our last meal as a top. It was hard work but it was a great relief at the top team…to pizza hut! with a fantastic view. The rest of the day was spent at We had to get up early and have our bags packed and the campsite before leaving the next day to return to ready to get the bus to the airport the next morning, we Puebla. had a 5 hour flight to Newark then a 6 hour flight back We then travelled 6 hours by bus to Oaxaca where we to Edinburgh, arriving in Scotland at 7:45 on Monday met our guide Carlos and spent the night before travel- the 19th of July. ling to Llano Grande to start our “Sierre Norte trek” . The whole month seemed to pass really quickly for us We spent our first day walking for 5 hours, coming although it was jam-packed full of new experiences across a lake, underground caves and a lot of nature that were definitely worth the £3,525 each that we before we spent the night camping in a school play- paid to go! ground. Our next day’s hike was about 4 hours and we walked across a huge suspension bridge, the next day Rebekah Simpson and Gillian Lambie was mainly down hill and it lead us to a trout farm where we caught our own trout and got it cooked it for us by the Mexican family living there. Our last day of walking lead us to a town where we pitched our tent outside a church, we spent the night playing football with the local kids.

After spending so long in the tents we got a bus back to Oaxaca and stayed the night in a hostel before get- ting a bus the next day to Union Zapata for our pro- ject. Spending 4 days there we painted a room as well

8 This issue sponsored by McKerron & Milne BIG HEARTED CAFÉ OWNERS ROTHES ROVERS

Rothes Nursery morning group visited Simpsons Café With the season now over, the Primary 3 & Under for a treat at the end of term. The children enjoyed squad had a brilliant season. Having lost only one freshly baked shortbread and juice provided free of match all season, and having already won the Speyfest charge by the owners of Simpsons. Tournament, next was the Walkers one - the team A huge thank scored 30 goals and let in only 3. Cole and Cameron you from the scoring most of the goals, also Ian Reid with his usual children, who celebration. Next up was the Speymouth Tournament have now moved in August. After a slow start with a 0-0 draw against to Primary I, and runners-up , they won all the other games. also from the They were top scorers with 21 for and only staff, Lesley 1 against. Cameron 10, Cole 5, Shaun 3, Nicholas 2 Innes, Gwen In- and Thomas with 1. gram, helpers The P5 & Unders never won a league game all season, Helen and Edith, but at the Walkers Tournament they won two and and Mrs Mutter drew one. Euan Simpson was voted Goalkeeper of the who joined them Tournament by the other coaches. This in the third for her ‘fly’. year running that we have won this award, with Jack A great morning Reid winning it the last two years. The team still have out was had by a Speymouth Tournament to look forward to. all and shows The P7 & Unders had a great season. Having already that even when won the Speymouth Tournament, they went on to win there’s so much the Forsyth League Cup for the first time since 1995, disruption in the the Rothes Rovers Cup, and the Walkers Tournament town they still Cup for the first time since 1989. This went to a have huge hearts. playoff against Dufftown which we won 4-3 on penal- ties. Dufftown got revenge in the final league match in which they beat us 4-2 to win the League and leave us runners up. Four winners medals and a runners up out of six is a great season. We are still training outdoors at the park. If any primary school child is keen to ROTHES GALA COMMITTEE come along they will be made most welcome. Willie Younie 01340 831732. The above group recently held their final meeting of 2010. We do not as yet have a complete figure of what we made but all the groups who participated have received £75 for their funds. Thank you to all the businesses and to the various THE ROTHES COUNCIL groups who helped with generous donations and time and a big thank you to the gala Committee. Rothes Council had a welcome break during the sum- The next meeting of the Committee will be in the New mer. We are back in business on Monday the 6th Sep- Year on January 19th 2011. I look forward to as many tember and the first Monday of each ensuing month. people at the meeting to help plan the Gala next year We meet at the Cottage at 7.30pm with everyone wel- which will be on the 29th of May 2011. come to come along, the more the merrier as we are in desperate need of New Blood so please make an effort Jean Grimshaw (Convener) to join us.

Jean Grimshaw (Rothes Council Chairman)

This issue sponsored by McKerron & Milne 9 FLOOD SCHEME VISIT and supportive throughout.”

Moray Council has been involved in a number of flood “I was delighted to see the progress that has been schemes over the last ten years. and Forres made with the Rothes Flood Scheme. A Scheme of this are complete, Rothes is a scheme in progress and El- nature will bring some disruption during the construc- gin will hopefully start in April with to fol- tion period but hopefully, it will be short term pain for low. long term gain! The construction team and Council Local Councillor Pearl Paul recently organised a pro- staff are to be congratulated for working with the local gress viewing visit to the Rothes flood scheme. Our community to deliver this important project on time. guests on the day were Angus Robertson MP, Richard We are all looking forward to the completion of the Lochhead MSP, Cllr George McIntyre Moray Council Flood Scheme which will undoubtedly bring much re- Convener and Cllr John Russell chair of the Flood Al- lief to the residents of Rothes.” leviation Committee. Councillor George McIntyre, Convener Rothes provided us with an extremely wet day which was quite helpful as it gave a true picture of working Cllr. John Russell, who was also present said “I think conditions but also showed the value of the work that everyone was impressed with what they saw. It really had been done. brought home to all of us just how much detail has Our visitors, accompanied by Dave Gowans, project been involved in all parts of the Rothes scheme. I be- manager and Colin Whyte of Moray Council along lieve it showed Angus and Richard that the Council with Stuart Higgins and Bob Strachan of Morrison and its partners know what they are doing and this is Construction went on an extensive tour of the works. an important message at a time when we wait for good Everyone was impressed by the progress and also by news on funding for the Elgin and River Findhorn the environmental works which have been done to fin- schemes.” ish off the various areas. Grateful thanks go to the site office team for the refreshments and Dennis Malcolm for his hospitality at the Glen Grant Coffee Shop. Commenting on the Rothes Flood Scheme Angus Robertson MP said: “The flood scheme is of huge im- ROTHES WIND FARM FUND

Applications from community groups in Rothes are now being sought for the next round of grants from the Wind Farm Fund. The closing date for applications will be 6th October and they should be handed in to the Cottage by that date. Blank application forms will be available in the Cottage which is open Tuesday, Thursday and Friday from 10am to 4pm. Anyone who needs assistance in completing the application should contact Jim Anderson, the Fund Secretary, on 831328

HAPPY 40th DAD! portance to the Rothes community and it was good to Love from Hannah and Rachael Kelman. see the most recent developments first hand. Flooding causes a great deal of distress and cost to both resi- dents and businesses and I know from speaking to peo- ple in Rothes how much they want to see this scheme completed. Much of the work is now complete with the remainder progressing well.”

Richard Lochhead MSP said: “The power of the flood water that affects Rothes has been evident for all to see and the investment in the flood scheme is vital to protect the people of Rothes and their property. The disruption caused by the construction has been signifi- cant but the community have been very understanding

10 This issue sponsored by McKerron & Milne ROTHES FLOOD ALLEVIATION SCHEME Provost Christie Drive has also had the defences rein- UPDATE AUGUST 2010: forced with large scour rock and Scottish Water out- falls extended to alleviate back up in the drainage sys- As you are all aware the A941 Bridge is making good tem during periods of large spates. progress – with key utilities currently being placed in Construction will continue at the current rate for the ducts within the new deck structure. This is a major next few months, with some areas being revisited to milestone with the bridge replacement, which has also install fish passes and other environmental enhance- provided some minor upgrades to Utilities. ments. Currently two major embankments are being We are currently using the new bridge for through constructed, south of the pond at Land Street and around Rothes FC football club. During the period the Flood Scheme was visited by Richard Lochhead MSP for Moray, Angus Robertson MP for Moray, The Convenor for The Moray Council and councillors. Both Richard Lochhead and Angus Robertson were extremely impressed with scale of the scheme and work that had been undertaken to date. They both complemented the residents of Rothes who have been patient and provided well needed assistance

traffic, but the 7.5 weight limit is still in place. Once the utilities are in place traffic will again utilise the temporary bridge for another 4 weeks with the same weight limit imposed. We have to complete the bridge parapets, waterproof the deck form pavements and resurface the road through September. If the weather is kind to us the bridge will be opened to all traffic at the beginning of October – the HGV's will then return to the community. Everyone will then have to be aware of a dramatic in- crease in traffic volumes. Staff from the team will dis- to the construction team. cuss this issue with school primary school pupils, as From a contractors point of view we have been ex- part of our safety in the community liaison. tremely impressed by the young children and youths understanding of our safety systems and interest in the The overall scheme has progressed very well through scheme during the summer holidays. We thank them the summer with many areas of central Rothes now all and the adults for the support you continually pro- vide to the delivery team, which has made construct- ing a very complex scheme that we bit easier.

Bob Strachan Scheme Manager

having completed flood defences.

This issue sponsored by McKerron & Milne 11 JOHN ROBERT SHERRET (JOCK) GRADUATION 23.8.1927 – 26.8.2010 Leigh Fenton, eldest daughter of Frank and Marion Fenton, a former pupil of Jock died suddenly but peacefully in the garden of his Rothes Primary and Spey- home near Doncaster three days after his 83rd birthday. side High School, graduat- He was the last surviving son of Andy and Mary Sher- ed this summer from Uni- ret of 10 New Street (now the police station) and 68 versity of Abertay, Dundee New Street, Rothes. He was pre-deceased by his five with Bachelor of Science brothers George, Andy, Jimmy, Ernie and Neil but is with Honours in Forensic survived by his sister Betty Tilley. Sciences. Jock received all his education at Rothes School and Leigh continues her stud- spent over half his working life in the grocery business ies in pursuing a Masters first as a message boy with George Rhynas in New Degree in Forensic Ballis- Street (now McKerron & Milne) with a break of two tics at Cranfield University and a half years for National Service in the RAF near Swindon. She starts in where he spent a lot of his time in the Canal Zone early September. (Egypt). On his return to Rothes he worked for the Co Leigh is the granddaughter -op which had taken over Rhynas’s business, then for of Colin and the late Mar- a time, with Gordon & McPhail in Elgin before return- garet Munro. ing to manage Greens (now McColls). When Greens changed hands he went to the Rothes FC Social Club as Bar Steward, before becoming storekeeper with the Forestry Commission at Balnacoul, until his retirement MORAY CHILDREN’S PANEL in 1992. By this time he had married Anne and moved to Hunt- The Moray Children's Panel Advisory Committee are ly where, after he retired, he worked part-time in the about to start recruiting Panel members. The Chil- Club Shop at Huntly Golf Course. A couple of years dren's Panel is a group of people from the community ago he and Anne moved to sheltered housing outside who come from a wide range of backgrounds. Panel Doncaster where she still had family, but he always members are unpaid and give their services voluntarily, considered Rothes his home town and looked forward but are carefully selected and highly trained. They to getting ‘The Rothesian’ must be at least 18 years old but there is no upper age Jock was a keen sportsman and played for Rothes ‘A’ limit. FC in his younger days but his later passion was golf As a Panel member you would sit on a Children's and he was a founder member of Rothes Golf Club in Hearing which would decide whether compulsory the days before the Club had its own course at Black- measures of supervision are needed for a child and if hall. He was a keen gardener and loved being in the so, what they should be. as a Panel member you are open air. carefully prepared for the task during initial training programmes where you will develop your knowledge Jock had many and skills during your period of service through experi- friends in Rothes ence and attending in-service training. Before sitting and will be fondly on hearings as a Panel member you would undergo 45 remembered and hours of training spread over several months and this sadly missed. mainly takes place in the evening or weekends, howev- er some of the training can take place during the day. Children's Hearings are normally held on Tuesdays and Thursdays and a Panel member would be expected to site on 1 or 2 full hearing sessions a month. As a Panel member you are also required to read reports before attending hearings which are often of a complex na- ture. If you are interested please contact Cynthia Carswell on 01343 563014 and she will send you out further information.

12 This issue sponsored by McKerron & Milne