The Magpie News

THE MAGPIE NEWS The Quarterly Newsletter from The Norfolk & Norwich Association for the Blind

Contact Details: Post: NNAB Magpie Road Norwich NR3 1JH Telephone: (01603) 629558 Email: [email protected] Website: www.nnab.org.uk

Issue 66 January 2011

‘Happy New Year’ to all our members and supporters. We would like to wish you all a healthy and prosperous 2011.

If you would prefer to receive your Magpie News in a different format please let us know. We can supply it in the following: Large Print, CD, E-Mail, Braille or memory stick

1 Contents

1 Congratulations to our Director 21 Fundraising News 2 Exciting news for Breckland 22 Christmas cards 3 Young Eyes Christmas Party 23 Christmas tree Festivals 4 New NNAB Website 24 Christmas Day Swim 5 New Products 25 Fundraising Events 6 Closure for annual stock taking 26 Gossy’s Guests 7 Your comments 27 Annual Prize Draw 8 Looking forward to 2011 28 NNAB Gala Ball 9 March Exhibitions 29 NNAB Golf Day Classic 10 Mobile Equipment Centre 30 Flag Days 11 NNAB Holidays 31 Riddle Time 12 Art Exhibition 32 Resurrecting the Parrot 13 Norwich Macula Group 33 Bowls Tournament 14 Joke of the day 34 Dancing at the Bradbury 15 Sports and Leisure 35 Swaffham Club 16 Horse Riding 36 Riddle Answers 17 Walking Holiday 37 The final Word 18 Sports Programme 19 New Audio Book Club 20 NNAB Theatre Group

Every effort is made to ensure that the content of this newsletter is correct however we cannot be held responsible for errors and omissions. Goods and services featured do not carry any recommendation from The Norfolk and Norwich Association for the Blind. If you should inadvertently receive more than one copy of this newsletter please pass it on to friends, doctors surgeries etc.

The Norfolk and Norwich Association for the Blind, Magpie Road, Norwich NR3 1JH Tel: 01603 629558 Fax: 01603 766682 Email: [email protected] Website: www.nnab.org.uk Also at: King’s Lynn Tel: 01553 660808 and Great Yarmouth Tel: 01493 745973 Charity Number 207060

2 1. Congratulations to our Director We would like to take this opportunity to congratulate our Director Mr John Child on being awarded an MBE for services to blind and partially sighted people in Norfolk. Mr Child has worked at the Association for the past 18 years and is an incredible ambassador for the Association and for everybody involved at whatever level.

2. Exciting news for everyone in the Breckland area We are delighted to announce the opening of our new equipment and information centre in Watton on February 14th in Wayland House on the High Street in Watton. Your Community Workers Dianne and Janette will be there from 10am till12.30pm to assist you with any problems or queries you might have. Parking and Disabled access is available. The centre will be opened every second and fourth Monday of the month. Please feel free to drop in for a coffee and chat to welcome Dianne and Janette to the new Centre.

3. Our First Young Eyes Christmas Party This was a great success and we were very grateful for all the support we received from local businesses with fruit and biscuits, from The Sheriff of Norwich Derek James, the Deputy Mayor of Great Yarmouth Councillor Tony Smith, Toni Arthur-Hay our wonderful story teller and of course Father Christmas and his Elf who arrived in style on a tandem trike! No doubt this will be the first of many.

4. New NNAB Website The website was officially launched on Friday 14th January by our President The Lord Bishop of Norwich, The RT Revd Graham James. Please take a look.

3 News from the Equipment and Information Centres For information about equipment, events and general enquiries please contact Dorothy or Chris on 01603 629558

5. New Products in the Norwich Centre The Optelec Talking Scanner ClearReader+. This has fast text recognition and is easy to use, compact and portable and can be used on mains or battery use. Price: £1995. The Optima Mezzo. This is a compact full colour electronic magnifier with high-definition camera. It can be folded down and at only 5.5 kg it can easily be moved from place to place. It has a 13.3" monitor which is height adjustable and also the angle can be adjusted. Price; £1699.50. Digital recorders. We have two machines on display; One which allows for 90 second recordings price: £10.85 and one which has 12 minutes of recording time allowing ample time to record up to 99 spoken messages price; £19.95. Giant Print Puzzle Book, price: £2.50. The Penfriend Audio Labeller, which can be used to label food items, including freezer items, film and music collections as well as record shopping lists or leave audio messages. It also has the ability to download MP3 files including music and books. Price: £59.95.

6. Closure for annual stock taking The Norwich Centre will be closed on Friday March 25th.

7. Your comments are always welcome If you have any comments about our service or would like to suggest a special interest day that you would like us to arrange, please do contact me and let me know. [email protected] 01603 629558

4 8. Looking forward to 2011 There will be Coffee/Chat Morning for Pre-School Mums of vision-impaired children in The Bradbury Centre on February 14th, 10.30am-12 noon. Anna Hiscox from LOOK will be here and we look forward to your company. Come and see what we have to offer.

We shall be holding events for our Young Eyes friends and their families during this year, one of which will be an ‘Adventure Day in Words, Story, Drama and Music’. Further details will follow; it will be a fun event not to be missed!

Daily Living Days are being organised, when we shall be able to show not only equipment but also simple cooking skills and handy hints for independent living. Dates will be issued later.

9. March Exhibitions Optelec and Dolphin with NNAB will be holding exhibitions throughout the County at the end of February/beginning of March. Optelec will have on show various items of equipment from their range, and Dolphin will be demonstrating the popular Guide speech and magnification computer software.

Norwich Bradbury Activity Centre Monday 28th March from 10am – 3pm Cromer Equipment Centre Tuesday 1st March from 10.00am-2pm King’s Lynn Equipment Centre Wednesday 2nd March from 10.00am-3pm Great Yarmouth Equipment Centre Thursday 3rd March from 10.00am-2pm Diss Equipment Centre Friday 4th March from 10.00am-2pm

5 10. Mobile Equipment & Information Centre Spring Programme 2011

March 8th 9th & 10th Wymondham Waitrose Car Park 15th 16th & 17th Gorleston Morrisons Car Park 29th 30th & 31st Fakenham Queens Road Car Park April 5th Burnham Market Health Centre Church Walk 6th& 7th Wells Freeman Street Car Park 12th 13th & 14th North Walsham Sainsburys Car Park 19th Eaton Waitrose Car Park May 4th Aylsham Bure Valley Railway 5th Reepham Station Road Car Park 10th 11th & 12th Attleborough Sainsbury's Car Park 24th & 25th Downham Market Town hall Car Park 26th Mundford Community Hall Car Park

11. NNAB Holidays This year’s holidays are as follows:

6th – 10th May - Holland (Bulbfields) Ypres 2nd – 9th July - Great Yarmouth 4th – 10th September - Bognor Regis - back again this year by popular demand! 14th -18th November - Great Yarmouth - Turkey and Tinsel

For full details and prices please contact Donna for a holiday pack (these will be ready for distributing by the end Jan 2011).

6 12. Art Exhibition Victor Rowe is holding an art Exhibition in April at Dereham. It is being held at Church House, Church Street, Dereham. There will be oils, water colours, pen and ink drawings and acrylic flowers. Proceeds from the event will be shared between NNAB and Music and Special Needs Norfolk. Opening times are as follows: Wed 13th April 4pm to 8pm. Thurs 14th April 10am to 6pm. Fri 15th April 2pm to 8pm. Sat 16th April 10am to 4pm. Refreshments will be available with proceeds going to church funds.

13. Norwich Macula Group Like Topsy, the number of participants at the monthly meetings continues to grow. There were 28 at the November gathering where Dennis Lewis from the National Macula Disease Society gave a talk, he highlighted the counselling service they provide. The group discussed their feelings and fears when they were first diagnosed. They all agreed how valuable it was to be a member of the Macular society. Information on the Society is available from its headquarters PO BOX 1870, Andover SP10 9AD. Telephone 01264 350551.

Meetings take place every second Friday of each month between 12 noon and 2pm at the NNAB Bradbury Activity Centre. Sandwiches, cakes, coffee and tea are available, still at a reasonable cost to each member. New members continue to be welcomed and full details can be obtained from Alan Strachan at 01362 850968.

14. Joke of the day Man goes to the Doctor, with a strawberry growing out of his head. Doctor says, “I’ll give you some cream to put on it”.

7 15. Sports and Leisure Don’t forget that you can find out all the latest information on NNAB activities at our Website: www.nnab.org.uk Contact: Rebecca Shubrook on 01603 629558 or [email protected]

Our sports activities continue to be very popular; however we would love to see more people joining us. So, if there is anything listed in this edition that you think you might like to try, or an activity that you would be interested in that we do not currently offer, please do not hesitate to contact Rebecca.

16. Horse Riding A Riding for the Disabled Group based at Beeston (on the outskirts of Norwich) has some spaces available for anybody who would like to go horse riding. The sessions take place on alternate Wednesday mornings between 10am and 12pm at a cost of £7 each. Prior to riding, a medical questionnaire must be filled out and signed by your GP. If you are interested in trying horse riding or for further details please contact Rebecca.

17. Walking Holiday to the Peak District Plans are currently being finalised for a walking holiday to the Peak District taking place from Monday 5th to Friday 9th September this year. Accommodation will be at the Hartington Hall Youth Hostel on a B&B basis with evening meals being organised in local pubs, or ‘volunteer’ catered at the hostel. Walks are scheduled for each day and are aimed at the longer distance walker. For further details please contact Rebecca.

8 18. Sports Programme for the Coming Quarter February Mon 7th Swimming - North Walsham 11am -12pm. Leave NNAB at 10.10am. Tuition available. Mon 14th West Norfolk Walk – subject to confirmation Tue 15th Gt Yarmouth Group Motor Cruiser Trip Wed 16th Norwich Group Long Walk. Venue and time TBC Thu 17th Motor Cruiser Trip - Leave NNAB at 12.30pm Fri 18th North Walsham Tenpin Bowling 1.30pm. ‘Strikers’ at Rossis Mon 21st Swimming - North Walsham 11am -12pm. Leave NNAB at 10.10am. Tuition available. Tue 22nd Great Yarmouth Group Walk. Venue and time TBC Wed 23rd Norwich Group Short Walk. Venue and time TBC March Tue 1st Gt. Yarmouth Tenpin Bowling 1.45pm. Regent Bowl Wed 2nd Norwich Tenpin Bowling 1.30pm. Number Ten, Bowthorpe Fri 4th South Norfolk Group Walk. Venue and time TBC Mon 7th Swimming-North Walsham 11am - 12pm. Leave NNAB at 10.10am. Tuition available. Tue 8th North Walsham Tenpin Bowling 1.30pm. ‘Strikers’ at Rossis Wed 9th Breckland Group Walk. Venue and time TBC Mon 14th West Norfolk Walk. Venue and time TBC Tue 15th Gt Yarmouth Group Motor Cruiser Trip Wed 16th Norwich Group Long and Short Walk. Venue and time TBC Thu 17th Motor Cruiser Trip - Leave NNAB at 12.30pm Mon 21st Swimming-North Walsham 11am -12pm. Leave NNAB at 10.10am. Tuition available. Tue 22nd Gt. Yarmouth Group Walk. Venue and time TBC Wed 23rd Norwich Group Short Walk. Venue and time TBC

9 April Fri 1st North Norfolk Group Walk. Venue and time TBC Mon 4th Swimming-North Walsham 11am-12pm. Leave NNAB at 10.10am. Tuition available. Tue 5th Gt. Yarmouth Tenpin Bowling 1.45pm. Regent Bowl Wed 6th Norwich Tenpin Bowling 1.30pm. Number Ten, Bowthorpe Mon 11th West Norfolk Group Walk. Venue and time TBC Tue 12th North Walsham Tenpin Bowling 1.30pm. ‘Strikers’ at Rossis Wed 13th Breckland Group Walk. Venue and time TBC Mon 18th Swimming-North Walsham 11am -12pm. Leave NNAB at 10.10am. Tuition available. Tue 19th Gt Yarmouth Group Motor Cruiser Trip Wed 20th Norwich Group Long Walk. Venue and time TBC Thu 21st Motor Cruiser Trip - Leave NNAB at 12.30pm TBC Tue 26th Gt. Yarmouth Group Walk. Venue and time TBC Wed 27th Norwich Group Short Walk. Venue and time TBC

May Tue 3rd Gt. Yarmouth Tenpin Bowling 1.45pm. Regent Bowl Wed 4th Norwich Tenpin Bowling 1.30pm. Number Ten, Bowthorpe Thu 5th Sailing - Nancy Oldfield Trust, Barton Broad. Leave NNAB at 12.30pm Fri 6th South Norfolk Group Walk. Venue and time TBC

Please be aware that for certain activities, numbers are limited. Due to weather conditions, some events may have to be cancelled/rearranged.

10 19. New Audio Book Club for Dereham We are very pleased to announce that the Association will be launching our 7th audio book club at the Dereham Library on Wednesday 16 March at 2pm.

In conjunction with the Norfolk County Council Library service and the Calibre Audio Library, this new free book club will provide an opportunity for people in the Dereham area to gain access to a wide range of audio literature.

Books are issued on an MP3 CD for you to hear in the comfort of your own home and then a discussion is held on the book at the Library the following month.

For further details on this and other audio book clubs please contact Mark or Simon at the association 01603 629558 [email protected]

20. NNAB Theatre Group Guys and Dolls A musical Fable of Broadway. Come along with Sky Masterson, Nathan Detroit and Sarah Brown as they sing and dance their way through some of the greatest show tunes ever written. The New Wolsey Theatre, Ipswich, presents an audio described matinee performance Saturday 16th April 2011 at 2.30pm Tickets £25.00 The NNAB will be running a minibus from Magpie Road, leaving at 10.30 a.m. to arrive in time for lunch which will be available at the Theatre or in the town.

Contact Mark or Simon 01603 629558 email: [email protected]

11 21. FUNDRAISING NEWS (Written by Donna Minto) Hello from the fundraising department. I would like to introduce Jeremy Goss and myself, Donna Minto, as the new fundraisers for the NNAB. We took over our new roles at the end of last year and we hit the floor running. It has been a very busy couple of months for both of us: Jeremy with organising some great Fundraising events and I, with trying to get flag days and collection dates in the diary, as well as recycling the bits and pieces that have been building up in the fundraising office.

We are overwhelmed at the support that the charity receives from local people and the fantastic volunteers that give up their time and efforts in order to raise money for the NNAB. So far, we have met some lovely people and managed to see first hand, how the charity helps those with visual impairment. We do feel very lucky to be part of this team and are very excited about how our new roles as the fundraisers will develop and hopefully bring in lots of money for such a worthwhile charity.

So what has happened since we joined? As a former professional footballer for Norwich Jeremy Goss has organised lots of sporting events to help raise awareness and funding for the NNAB. He has already held two events under the name of ‘Gossy’s Guests’. These are Q&A sessions with other Professional footballers (old & new). The first one was held at the Odeon Cinema in Norwich and they kindly donated their venue for the public to come along and meet Dean Ashton and ask him questions about his footballing career, get his autograph and have a photograph with him. The other was held at King’s Lynn Football Club with Bryan Gunn as the guest. Others are planned for this year and the dates will be released soon.

12 As for me, I have been very busy with Christmas Fundraising and learning all about my new role. This would have been almost impossible if it wasn’t for the three volunteers that have being running the fundraiser office for the five months before I started. So a huge thank you to Shirley Hunt, Alison Womack and Diana Bates. Without these ladies, my job would have been a lot harder when I first started, so I’m very grateful for their time, dedication and direction in my first couple of months.

22. The Charity Christmas cards These sold very well over the Christmas period and were a massive success while on sale at the Forum and the Assembly House. We have still yet to total up the profit made, but the support and comments that we received about the cards were very positive.

23. Christmas tree Festivals The NNAB were allowed to put decorated trees up at Churches in Fakenham, Sheringham and Southrepps. The donations given by members of public were very generous and we managed to raise over £140 from Fakenham and Southrepps in just a few days. The proceeds from Sheringham are yet to be received, but it was a fun and positive way to raise awareness for the NNAB and bring in extra money at this busy time of year.

24. George Waters Christmas Day Swim Once again George Waters braved the Norfolk seas and did his annual swim on Christmas day. Last year proved to be a fantastic success for George and his fundraising efforts and he kindly donated over £1,000 to the NNAB. So we would like to sincerely thank George for his support again this year and we hope that it proved to be just as successful. Well done George!

13 25. Fundraising Events Fundraising at the Forum On the 22nd, 23rd and 24th of February, Gossy and the fundraising team will be present in the Forum telling the public what the NNAB will be doing over the next year to bring in money for the Charity. ‘Bike Back to Bayern’ is Gossy’s main event for this year, so he will be there with his bike and promotion stands advertising this. Please bring your friends and family down to meet the team and support us.

26. Gossy’s Guests In February, Jeremy intends to do a Question & Answer forum with four Norwich City Football Club legends. The Venue and date is still to be confirmed, so if you have any football fans in your family or friends who may be interested, tell them to get in touch or to visit our website; www.nnab.org.uk/events

27. Annual Prize Draw As you are probably aware there was no Annual Prize Draw on the 1st December 2010. This was postponed due to my late start in the year, so it will now be held on Friday 1st April. The raffle tickets are here in the office ready to sell and although we are no longer allowed to send them out with the Magpie Newsletter, we do ask for your continued support. If you wish to buy some tickets, please see the back page with details on how to do this. We have been given some fantastic prizes this year, so please don’t miss out on the chance to win something fantastic for the price of 50p a ticket or £2 a book. If you would like to support us in other ways; we are always happy to receive donations or prizes to enter into the draw. For more information, please contact me on 01603 629558 and ask for Donna Minto. Thank you!

14 28. NNAB Gala Ball at Dunston Hall This will be a great fundraising evening. The event is to take place on Friday 15th April and we have already sold 9 out of 15 tables for the night. Tickets are £45 each or £400 for a table of 10. This price includes a wine reception, a 3 course meal, raffle, auction and all night entertainment from 'Gary Winter and the Pavilion Big Band'.

29. NNAB Golf Day Classic At Bawburgh Golf Club on Monday 13th June, Shotgun starts at 12pm. The cost is £250 per team of four and this includes Brunch and refreshments on arrival, 18 holes of Golf followed by a two course meal and presentation of prizes / gifts. Hole sponsorship is available for £50.

Lastly; as my late mum used to say ‘One mans rubbish is another mans treasure’ I am a big fan of recycling, so I was really pleased to see that the NNAB are very much into raising money from unwanted items. Here in the fundraising office, we recycle mobile phones, ink cartridges, used British & foreign stamps, old British coins, foreign coins & notes and turn them into cash. So if you are having a spring clearout in the next couple of months, please bear this in mind. Any other unwanted items could always go to our Charity Shop on Magdalen Street.

If you would like tickets/table for the Gala Ball, to enter a team into the Golf Day Classic or would like to sponsor any of the events mentioned above, then please contact Jeremy or Donna on 01603 629558.

15 30. Flag Days booked in February, March & April (Other dates still to be confirmed)

Thursday 3rd February Morrisons in Cromer Friday 4th Morrisons in Cromer Saturday 12th Roys Anglia Square Norwich Thursday 17th Morrisons at Diss Friday 18th Morrisons at Diss Thursday 24th Coop in Kings Lynn Friday 25th Coop in Kings Lynn

Thursday 3rd March Morrisons in Norwich Friday 4th Morrisons in Norwich Saturday 5th Sainsbury’s at Longwater Wednesday 9th Castle Mall in Norwich Thursday 10th Castle Mall in Norwich

Saturday 16th April Highways Nursery Sunday 17th Highways Nursery

We are always looking for volunteers to help us out with collecting days. It is a great way to meet new people, get out and about and help a very worthy cause.

Please get in touch if you would like more information on how you can help us.

31. Riddle Time (Answers in paragraph 36) i), What is once in a minute, twice in a moment, and never in a thousand years? ii), What can be swallowed, but can also swallow you? iii), What two things can you never eat for breakfast?

16 32. Resurrecting the Parrot The Parrot was a popular personal organiser for blind and partially sighted people. It could be used as an address book, a phone book, a calendar and a diary. You could record your entries in your own voice, and if you needed to find a phone number, you only had to speak the person's name into the Parrot.

The Parrot has not been made for a few years now, so the owners of dead Parrot's cannot get them brought back to life, and it is hard to find replacements.

One of our clients, who owns a poorly Parrot, is very keen to have the Parrot produced again. He has talked to a company, who have told him that they would approach a manufacturer if they had an interest from at least fifty people. So, he is appealing to all of you who would like to see the Parrot resurrected, to get in touch. Please contact Chris in the Norwich Equipment Centre.

33. The Roundwood Invitational B2 Bowls Tournament for Blind Bowlers The Roundwood Indoor Bowls Centre at Taverham are delighted to announce their first Blind Bowls Tournament to be held on 18th 19th and 20th March 2011. Everybody is welcome to come along and support this event at the centre all weekend, Refreshments and lunches are available each day between 9am-6pm. Those taking part include the Current UK Blind bowls champion as well as ex-commonwealth, Paralympics and world Champions will be participating. This is a prestige event for the Club and they would appreciate any support. For further details please contact the Roundwood Club directly on: 01603 260830 Or visit their website: www.roundwood-norwich.co.uk

17 34. Dancing at the Bradbury Activity Centre We propose to start Ballroom and Sequence dancing early this summer. This Tea dance style activity will be open to anyone who is interested and will run once a month on an afternoon. If you would like further information, please complete the reply slip and return to us

35. Cash boost for Swaffham Club for the Visually Impaired At the end of last year the Club was presented with a cheque for £229 by the ‘Sing for Wellbeing Choir’, the money had come from the proceeds of a concert at the local parish church.

The club is currently quite a small group and the money will be used to develop a programme to attract more members and to arrange more outings.

There are many local clubs around the county which come under the umbrella of the NNAB if you would like some information about one in your area please complete the reply slip.

36. Riddle Answers i) The Letter M ii) Pride iii) Lunch and dinner

37. The final Word We hope you have enjoyed this issue of the magpie News. If you have any suggestions for content, or any feedback about the newsletter please do not hesitate to contact us. Thank you.

18 Return Slip January 2011

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