PARISH of COBHAM & LUDDESDOWNE with DODE Rev Angela Walker Church Office (01474) 813495 The Vicarage, Battle Street, Cobham, DAl2 3DB (01474) 814332 Pastoral Assistant Janet Weaver, 36 Highview, Vigo Village, DA13 ORR (01732) 823936 SUBMISSIONS Cobham and Luddesdowne News is a community magazine that is produced by and for the residents of Cobham, Sole Street and Luddesdown. We welcome all contributions of local interest. Please send material for inclusion by the 15th of the month preceding publication to [email protected] Happy June everyone. As I write this item the rain is hitting the window and the wind is blowing a gale! For those of us looking at a staycation this year it is not looking very promising, let’s hope things improve soon. Adrian has, once again, produced a brilliant photograph for the front cover. I don’t know about you, but I can see the face of an old man and an owl in the gnarly old tree trunk, apparently this is quite a common phenomena and I understand it is called pareidolia, and explains how some people can see the face of Elvis in a piece of toast! You will see in this month’s magazine that I have included the dates for some of the local historical walks and tours that are starting up again. Many of the local clubs and societies are also looking forward to meeting up in person. Thankfully life is gradually and safely starting to open up. Hope you enjoy the June magazine. Tina Services during June Sunday 6th June 10:30am Family service with Baptism, Cobham Sunday 13th June 10:30am Holy Communion, Luddesdowne Sunday 20th June 10:30am Holy Communion, Cobham Sunday 27th June 10:30am Holy Communion, Luddesdowne Cobham church open for private prayer Wednesdays 10am to 12 noon Need a Plumber? Your local plumber is Graham Hickson Reliable, prompt and reasonable prices 20% discount on labour with this magazine Graham Hickson 07968 551 562 [email protected] VAT Sole Free Trader What do you think will happen after Covid? You can take your choice: a recent survey has found that a third of us think that society may never go back to the old ways, a third of us think we will go back to exactly as we were before, and a third of us think that we will be keener than ever to stay together. The Together Coalition, chaired by the Archbishop of Canterbury, has been working for the past year on a piece of research to track just what has hap- pened to communities during lockdown. The new research has found that “people feel a stronger sense of connec- tion to their neighbours and community. …We found a clear public appe- tite for a society in which we are more connected to each other, and the community spirit of 2020 is kept alive.” It also found that around 12.4million people have volunteered during the pandemic, 4.6million of them for the first time. And 75 per cent of those volunteers would be happy to do so again. It is like driving on the moon (As a former parish clerk– the men- tion of potholes brings me out in a cold sweat!) Some of our British roads are beginning to resemble “the surface of the moon”, according to the RAC. It has recently reported that an average of 52 drivers a day are breaking their cars on potholes and needing to be res- cued. More than 4,000 drivers have needed assistance since January, despite the fact that lockdown has meant many fewer cars on the road. After years of underfunding and patch-up repair jobs, and despite the fact that councils are currently filling a pothole every 19 seconds, the RAC says that the Government and local councils face an ‘enormous task’ to get our roads “anything like reasonable” again. Potholes are nasty to cars. They can break your suspension springs, distort your wheels, and damage your shock absorbers, among other woes. SOLE STREE T WI Sole Street WI’s 37th Year was celebrat- ed by members at a Grand Reunion Lunch on 25th May in President Yvonne’s lovely spa- cious garden. This pretty home-produced invitation heralded the long awaited occasion. Asparagus salad, strawberry pavlova & prosecco were the lunch order of the day. Weekly Tuesday walks at Jeskyns have happily moved back from one-on- one to groups of six. We are planning to re-open our Book Clubs and new Craft Group meetings are anticipated in the summer in line with re- strictions. The home made glass jewellery necklets were a very popular choice last year. My favourite photo on our Sole Street WI 2020 calendar shows some of our ladies’ creations. There is also a dazzlingly colourful pic- ture of knitted children’s jumpers which members in isolation created for ACWW (Associated Country Women of the World) to send to orphanag- es in Africa. Impatient to re-connect with our village community, we are planning a “Pop -Up” WI Produce Stall in June. (The “Pop-Up” element arises out of the necessity for dry weather as it will be held outside St Mary’s Church Room). Look out for the announcement locally on Parish notice boards etc .....! For information on this and other Sole Street WI activities, please contact our President, Yvonne tel 01474 813455. Molly Isaacs I am unable to bring you a report from the Cobham and Luddesdown WI this month, but I hope they will be back next month. We have all heard the saying- ’If you can’t say something nice don’t say anything at all’ Well it isn’t always that easy, but the article below does make a point….. Give a compliment By Colin Hammacott We all like to receive a compliment from time to time. As Robert Orben, former script writer for President Gerald R. Ford once said, “A compli- ment is verbal sunshine.” Another American, Leo Buscaglia once observed: “Too often we underes- timate the power of a touch, a smile, a kind word, a listening ear, an honest compliment, or the smallest act of caring, all of which have the potential to turn someone’s life around.” At a funeral service, nice things are usually said of the deceased. While these comments are comforting for the relatives, did the same folks ever bother to say these kind things to the person themselves, when they were alive, to show them how much they were appreciated? Sadly, not everyone seems able to compliment others. Perhaps they never received compliments when they were young, or perhaps they feel that to compliment someone else is to somehow put themselves down. For what- ever reason, such people miss out on a whole lot of pleasure in life. Whenever we see something that is worthy of a compliment, why not give it, and bring ‘a little verbal sunshine’ into someone else’s life! LUDDESDOWN PARISH COUNCIL Proposed Meeting Dates for 2021-2022 Monday 19th July 2021 Monday 20th September 2021 Monday 18th October 2021 – Budget Meeting Monday 15th November 2021 Monday 17th January 2022 Monday 21st March 2022 - APM COBHAM PARISH COUNCIL MEETING DATES 2021 All starting at 7.30pm [email protected] Monday 7th June 2021 Monday 5th July 2021 Monday 6th September 2021 Monday 4th October 2021 Monday 8th November 2021 Monday 6th December 2021 Currently held on Zoom. If you wish to attend a meeting please contact the clerk for joining instructions. Future meetings will depend on Covid 19 restrictions and the availability of venues. BRITAIN IN BLOOM COBHAM PARISH COUNCIL FRONT OF HOUSE GARDEN COMPETITION 2021 Dear Parishioners, We hope that the Covid restrictions have kept you well and you are now ready to exert extra energies into your gardens. Gardening has certainly been an even more popular hobby during the lockdown. The theme this year is Ride and Stride with the colour theme of mauve (purple) and yellow, so let’s see how you can incorporate a bicycle or boot into your display! We hope you have admired the mauve and yellow pansies that are looking magnificent at the moment in the village troughs. There are two periods for judging this year, Britain in Bloom - that involves you all – is 28th June to 16th July. Front of House to judge your front garden, flower troughs, baskets and if you have included them -boot and bicycle- will be in the week beginning 19th July. Please contact Rosemary Dymond if you intend to enter the Front of House competition; phone 01474 814143 or email [email protected] or complete and deliver the application form below to 25 The Street, Cobham. DA12 3BX Name………………………………….. Tel no……………………………………. Address………………………………………………………………………..… Email……………………………………………………………………………. Remember we won Silver Gilt last year so let’s go for Gold this year! Oakwood Garden Care Your reliable gardening service Does your garden need some TLC? Would you like to sit back and enjoy your garden without having to do all the hard work? Your garden is precisely that “yours” - we listen to our customers and tailor each project to their individual needs and requirements. We are a small, family run business who pride ourselves on offering a high quality garden service - whether you need us for a one - off job, or would like to book us for a regular maintenance program, the choice is yours. Competitive rates with prices starting from as little as £20 per hour All work undertaken including: And much more - no job is considered too small For a free quote, please call 07709 328 979 We are available week days, weekends and even Bank Holidays Email: [email protected] www.oakwoodgardencare.co.uk Smile Lines Neighbourhood Watch In one small rural village the local vet also led the local Neighbourhood Watch group.