No chairman’s piece this month, he and Pat are touring around China, hopefully he can be persuaded to

tell us something about his trip in the next issue.

Christmas meeting on December 11th

Pat Wherton tells me that there are only around 30 tickets left for the event, so if you haven’t secured one yet you’ll need to hurry along to the October GM, or, get someone who will be there to buy one for you.

Group Organisers Meeting

Friday 18th October: 10- 11.30 am: Syston Community Centre.

Please send any agenda items to: sheiladriver@hotmail.com ASAP.

If you are not able to attend , please ask your Deputy or another Group member to come along .

If you are a U3A member and are thinking about setting up a new group, please do let me know and come

along so you can chat to our other Organisers!

2020 Calendar

Many thanks from Pat Wherton to those groups who submitted material for the Syston U3A calendar, which will be available in the mid-October.

U3A Diaries

Norma Grimes our membership secretary has learned that the nationally produced U3A Diaries are

available. She has offered to collate and submit an order for any members who would like one.

Please let her have details ASAP if you would like to be included. Email: sadu3amembers@gmail.com

Vitality! Oct

2019

Syston and District

Official newsletter of the Syston and District University of the Third Age

WE WANT TO LET YOU KNOW

DISCUSSION GROUP

Report on the Discussion Group meeting of Wednesday 18 September 2019.

There was a wide ranging and entertaining discussion, and the subjects included: -

Vaping; Smart Motorways; John Lewis & Partners; The Golden Lavatory; The new French EU Commissioner;

Tesla Cars; BREXIT; The Speaker of the House of Commons; French employment Law; Car Air Conditioning;

and the effect of home wifi on cockroaches..

The Group meets at the Hub, on High Street, Syston at 2pm on the third Wednesday of each month, the

next meeting being on 16th October 2019. If you would like more details, please contact Harold Betts on

0116 260 8671

UKULELE GROUP

On recommendation of some neighbours, I joined the Syston U3A in June 2019 and noticed that you had a

Ukulele Group.

I tried to learn the ukulele a few years ago, but lost interest, as I couldn’t find a group to play with, so this

seemed an ideal opportunity to try it again.

So, I rescued my ukulele from the attic, dusted it down and rang Len Abraham, who is one of the group

leaders, together with Dave Houseman, and asked if I could come along to the Syston Brookside WMC,

where they meet on a Friday afternoon.

Len and Dave were only too happy to welcome me and the whole group were also very friendly and made

me feel very welcome.

As the group had been formed around 18 months ago, I was a little behind in ability, but with friendly

advice from the group and plenty of practice, I feel I can join in with most of the songs they play.

I’m not a great singer (as some members of the group will attest too!), but it’s so much fun and practising

together is much more rewarding than on my own.

I joined in my first public performance with the group at the Syston Fair recently and found it great fun and

look forward to many more.

I believe it’s a well-known fact that learning a new skill and mixing with a good social group can keep you

feeling younger for longer, so thanks to Len and Dave, who give up their time for the group and to all the

other members who are so friendly – I aim to keep feeling young for as long as possible!

Steve Kenney

GROUP NEWS

If you would like to have an enjoyable weekly sing-along and lots of laughs why not pop in on a Friday afternoon.

QUIZ GROUP

I'm pleased to be able to confirm that the U3A Quiz Group will be re-launched Tuesday 22nd October at the Syston Bowling Club on Central Park starting at 7.00 p.m. The Club have agreed to provide full Bar and refreshment facilities. Subject to consultation, it my intention to meet on a monthly basis (4th Tuesday of each month). A charge of £2 per head per session will be made to cover the cost of the venue. Teams of 4 answering 6 rounds of 10 questions each, with a refreshment break in the middle, will enable us to finish by 10 p.m. latest. Anyone who would like to join in but who might be reluctant to be out alone after dark, on winter evenings should contact me (email: colin.grimes2@btinternet.com; Tel: 2608412) so that I can explore the possibility of providing transport or companionship for the walk to and from the venue. Future dates will be 26th November; No meeting in December; 28th January, 25th February and 24th March 2020 after which we will need to find an alternative venue following the start of the bowling season on 1st April. Members are assured that, as always, the aim is to have fun. We are not looking for Mastermind-level intellects. No-one should feel excluded. No-one will be "shamed". You don't have to have a team of 4 already set up. Teams can be set up on the night, depending on attendance numbers. I look forward to welcoming you.

Colin Grimes

British History Group

Well, we had a lively meeting in September. What did we learn?

Memories of childhood and carbolic soap, all thanks to Joseph Lister and his life saving research into antiseptics in 1867.

We shared information about the establishment of the Trades Union Congress in 1868, and all the reasons why workers needed to have the support of Trades Unions in our increasingly wealthy nation.

We now know how Britain came to own 44% of the shares in the Suez Canal, and how that further opened up the trade routes to India.

Married women at last had some rights to their own property after 1870, and we’re now in the know as we had the earliest version of a prenup illustrated!

We even managed to get Antidisestablishmentarianism a mention. Any the wiser?

For October, we’ll move on to look at some of the other issues and developments of Victorian Britain and we’ll have presentations on;

Victoria as Empress of India

Gilbert and Sullivan first production of HMS Pinafore

The introduction of compulsory education up to the age of 10

Meet William Smith as he brings us the Boy’s Brigade in 1883

If you’d like to join please contact Pat Wherton email: pat27wherton@gmail.com

Local History Group

A September visit to Beaumanor Hall

Work began on building Beaumanor Hall in 1842. William Herrick the owner inherited the estate from his

uncle, however the style of the existing house didn’t please him and inheriting large sums of money from

his Mother’s family he built himself a house ’commensurate with the ample means which the providence

of God had placed at his disposal ‘. The original estimate was £9723 the final cost £37000 – nothing was

spared.

In 1848 the household moved in. William Herrick was a bachelor and lived with his unmarried sister Mary

Ann accompanied by eleven indoor servants. game keepers, estate workers and grooms. He did marry

eventually but had no heirs

Beaumanor remained in the Herrick families’ possession until it was sold in 1915. It was requisitioned for

military purposes during the second world war and was used as a ‘listening station’ It was bought by

Leicestershire county council in 1974 and has been used since then as a Conference and Educational

centre.

Some 18 of the Local History group visited the house in September and were escorted round the building,

seeing the attics but unfortunately not the cellars since there were school groups taking place. To make up

for this we were treated to coffee and extremely delectable cakes and invited back for a free visit on one of

the bookable Sunday tours, (dates on the website).

This was the last of our summer visits. Now we have a programme of speakers starting on October16th

with Maladies and Medicine. This should follow on nicely to our previous visit to Donnington le Heath

where we spent some time visiting the herb garden.

Jennifer Sandys

Painting Group

MACMILLAN COFFEE MORNING On the 7th September members from the painting group held an art and craft exhibition, with the help of

staff at the Community centre, in aid of Macmillan Cancer Support. The day was dry and sunny which

helped to bring people in, and we had many tasty cakes and treats on sale. The day went really well, and

we raised almost £400 which we were very pleased with. Thank you to all those who supported us.

Some of the work of the painting group on display at the MacMillan Coffee Morning

Charnwood U3A Days of Interest Group

Saturday 16th November – York Christmas Festival

Spaces now available to other U3A members

All the attractions of York, including its historic centre

and the Minster, plus a Christmas market. Soak up the

city’s medieval charm and scents of spiced mulled wine

this season, as fairs, family fun and festival flavours

transform York into a festive fairy-tale. Take a leisurely

stroll along St Nicholas Fair and soak up the festive

atmosphere, as you discover fine Yorkshire produce from crafters and makers showcased at the Made in

Yorkshire Yuletide Village. If you’re looking for more traditional Christmas gifts, don’t forget to wander

amongst the many alpine chalets on Parliament Street. Head down to Kings Square and experience all the

fun of the fair. Sample festive food and drink at the St Sampson's Square rustic Yorkshire Barn with

delicious treats including hot chestnuts and glasses of warming mulled wine. The Judge's Lodging will host

the Small Business Christmas Market, where you can buy unique, locally crafted gifts.

Price £17.00 per person

Depart Nanpantan sports ground car park, Watermead Lane, Loughborough LE11 3TN at 8:30 a.m. (There

is lots of parking.) Leave York at 4:00 p.m.

If you would like to join us please contact Jill Strachan on 07919 001444 or email: jill-intro@talk21.com

Everyone on each trip must be a U3A member. It is essential that members from other U3As (i.e. not

Charnwood) provide proof of U3A membership, either in advance of the trip by emailing a copy of your

up to date membership card or by bringing your card along on the day of the trip.

The following trips are likely to be full, but if you would like to go on a reserve list, you might be able to

step in if someone else drops out –

NEC - A trip to the Christmas crafts fair on Friday 1 November Entrance is £5 Transport cost approx. £14 depends on numbers.

WHAT’S ON NEXT?

Phantom of the Opera –

Seats have been booked at Curve for 12 March 2020

Matinee performance £36.

30 Tickets reserved

Contact Elaine Yarwood elaineyarwood@outlook.com

NEXT MONTH’S GENERAL MEETING –

WEDNESDAY SEPTEMBER 9TH

My Suffragette Great Grandmother. Learn about Alice Hawkins, a Leicestershire woman who was an

important part of the Votes for Women movement: speaker Peter Barratt.

Doors open 10.00am meeting starts 10.30. Syston Conservative Club – loop systems are available to

borrow should anyone benefit from using one.

FUTURE ISSUES OF VITALITY! Hopefully all members that have provided an email address will receive this issue of the newsletter. I believe the distribution list I now have is complete and any issues with “bouncing” email addresses to have been resolved. However, if you know differently, please do let me know. A reminder that I am looking for newsletter items from any Syston & District U3A member, not just group organisers, sadu3aed@gmail.com is the address to use.

IF YOU MISSED THE SEPTEMBER GM ……..

COMMUNITY FIRST RESPONDERS

Derek Wind is a community first responder and told us about his work. He and a band of volunteers work

as a valuable supplement to the East Midlands Ambulance Service (EMAS). The latter organisation has a

target of 8 minutes from receipt of call to reach category 1 cases, which include heart attacks and strokes.

In rural locations that target is problematical. First responders live in the community and can therefore get

to a patient more quickly. They can stabilise them until paramedics arrive.

In cases of cardiac arrest, reaching a patient quickly is vital to their chances of survival. Without prompt

attention only 2 out of 10 patients will survive, with the use of a defibrillator within the 8-minute window,

the chances are 9 out of 10. Every minute of delay beyond 8 minutes reduces the odds by 10%. These

factors mean that first responders are crucial. It is perhaps surprising then, that these volunteers receive

no NHS funding, they rely on donations.

The concept of first responders started in the USA with the idea of training staff in shopping malls in the

use of CPR and defibrillators. The survival rate of cases where people suffered cardiac arrests whilst in

these malls rose from 20% to 95% as a result.

Responders in this country are trained by the ambulance service. They are re-examined annually. The

number of callouts for responders in Derek’s West Leicestershire area have climbed to just over 1,800 in

2018/9 from only 5 in their first year. The number of volunteers has expanded from 3 to 40. The

organisation does now have a few vehicles of its’ own, but most responders use their own. The kit they

carry must be replenished constantly as most is single use only.

In addition to applying first aid, CPR and using defibrillators, first responders can check the blood sugar of

diabetics, blood pressure and temperature. They can give oxygen and help administer your own

medication, but don’t carry drugs themselves.

More volunteers are sought, the basic requirements are to have a clean driving license and be over 18

(preferably over 21). More information is available on the EMAS website.

Derek went on to give a variety of hints and tips, I am not going to repeat all of them here, just the easily

applied principles –

Don’t ignore stroke symptoms, even mini-strokes - there is an important 3-hour window for treatment of

these.

For bleeding, apply pressure for 10 minutes. For nosebleeds, sit forward and pinch the soft part of the nose

for 10 minutes, breathe through the mouth during this time. If that doesn’t stem the flow call for help.

For burns, tepid water for 10 minutes. For facial burns apply moist cloths. Don’t burst burn related blisters.

Cover more severe burns with cling film. If a burn doesn’t hurt, it’s serious.

In cases of choking, give slaps on the back.

In cases of high temperature remove clothing, even if the patient starts shivering don’t put it back on, the

objective is to reduce the body’s core temperature. A raised temperature is the body fighting infection.

In cases of breathing difficulty, sit up rather than lying down.

If you live alone consider getting a key safe and lifeline facilities and using “message in a bottle” to store

details of your medical conditions and medication – more on these below.

MESSAGE IN A BOTTLE

"Message in a Bottle" is a voluntary scheme sponsored by our local Lions' Club, Rothley and Soar Valley Lions, through Lions Clubs International, for anyone living at home, who might be reassured to know that essential information would be readily available to the Emergency Services should they suffer an accident or sudden illness. The system ensures that vital information is available, not only to identify you, but to advise of relevant illnesses, allergies, current medication and contact addresses. Syston Health Centre retains a supply of "Message in Bottle" for collection, free of charge. Full instructions about the system are to be found inside the small plastic bottle together with a form to be completed in ballpoint pen using BLOCK CAPITALS. Date and sign the form before placing it in the bottle. A separate form must be completed for each person in the household who suffers an illness or allergy.

Place the bottle in your fridge, in the door compartment, where it will be safe and can be quickly found. Stick one of the labels provided on the outside of the fridge door. Stick the other label on the inside of your front door at eye level. Ensure a copy of your current repeat prescription is kept with your medication. When emergency services personnel see this information, they can render safer and speedier First Aid by cutting down on time-consuming enquiries about you or the patient in your care. Many thanks to Norma Grimes for providing this additional information

Key Safes & Lifeline Facilities

Derek Wind also mentioned the benefits of key safes and lifeline facilities. Have you thought about how

the emergency services could gain access to your home if you were incapacitated enough to be unable to

get to the door? A key safe, or key keeper, as they are sometimes called, provides the solution. It is a small

sturdy box fitted to an outside wall, in which a key or keys to your external doors are kept. The box opens

by use of a code, which you can give to an emergency call handler on making contact. There are a couple of

these that are deemed by the police to be secure enough for them to recommend.

Lifeline systems often work in conjunction with the above. They allow you to summon help if you are

unable to reach a phone, if say you have had a fall. They usually have both a device that sits near your

phone, with a button that can be pressed, and a pendant or bracelet that is worn on the person. The latter

works if you are out in the garden, as well as in the house. The system is supported by call centres who

have your details, and those of any relatives, friends or neighbours that can be contacted. If you have no

one close by with a spare key to allow access to your house, or you would prefer not to disturb anyone,

especially at night, the key safe provides the ideal solution. Some “lifeline” providers will insist on a key

safe if you have no one close by who could come to your aid.

Many local councils provide this type of service, as do several independent companies. Age UK have a link

to a provider of both key safe and lifeline facilities, as does Charnwood Council. In addition, key safes can

be purchased from several outlets. If you have a drill powerful enough to cope with an external wall, or

know someone who has, it is quite easy to fit.

DECLUTTER DEN I am happy to declare Declutter Den open! Do you have anything sitting in a cupboard, or on a shelf, that you no longer want? Might one of our groups be able to use it? Might one of your fellow members be able to use it?

If you have something that you are prepared to give away – strictly no items for sale! Let me know and I’ll put it in declutter den and hopefully we can help each other free up some space, whilst giving others something they have a use for, even if we don’t.

SEE THE NEXT PAGE FOR OUR FIRST ITEMS

OF INTEREST TO CRAFTERS I have an electric Gemini die-cutting machine to give away. Unfortunately, the buttons do not work anymore, but it works fine if it is turned on at the socket. All the plates needed are included if slightly worn through use. May be the Craft Group might be interested? I can arrange delivery if necessary, or it can be collected from me. I hope this might be of some use to someone, Elke (Chambers) email – edelmist@outlook.com UNWANTED LAWN MOWER I have a self-propelled petrol lawn mower sitting in my garden shed, the last time it was used it was in working order, but it has been laying idle for a little over 3 years. It will therefore need things like a complete oil change, and replacement of any remaining fuel in the tank. I would be ideal for anyone who has enough knowhow to give it an overhaul or knows a man or woman who can. I stopped using it in favour of a rechargeable battery model, which better suits my needs. As I am not a car user sourcing petrol was a pain. In light of this, it would have to be collected from me. Anyone interested can email me: juliedjohnson@yahoo.com or give me a call on 0116 2609012 for more information. Now that Elke and I have kicked the corner off, I hope others will be persuaded to keep it going. Let me have details at sadu3aed@gmail.com As a follow on from Declutter Den, how about the mirror of this …

Rehoming Request Spot Are you looking to give something in particular a home? Is there something you are looking for that another member might have sitting doing nothing, when it could be doing something for you? Why not let me know and I will put it in the newsletter as a “Rehoming Request”. The same email address as Declutter Den applies.

Decluttering Group Carrying on the theme, a member has asked if there is any interest in being part of such a group. The idea is that group members would help anyone with difficulties in decluttering. If there is any interest please let me know and I will pass the messages on. If there is sufficient interest, we may be able to discuss this further at the forthcoming group organisers meeting.

I still haven’t been mown down in the rush of reminisces, so here’s another one of my own. Please don’t be

shy. As I said before, we all have memories, interesting stories, so let’s share some of them. A few people

at the September GM indicated that they had something, but I haven’t received anything yet, I live in

hopes. Come on, let me have some items, aside from my own, to make this section a regular feature!

“Gardening” Granddad and “Thin” Granny

I wrote about staying with my maternal grandparents last month. As no one

else has yet provided a memory lane item, I thought I’d tell you about my

paternal grandparents this month. I mentioned them briefly last time. They

lived in the same village as my parents, so I saw them far more often. Indeed,

during the school holidays I spent a great deal of time at their home, and

during the school term I went to them for my lunch. No school dinners were

available until the last year or so of my junior school days, and my parents

lived a mile and a half away in an isolated farmhouse.

My grandfather was a gardener cum

handyman for one of the largest

farmers. As well as tending the flower gardens, vegetable plot and

greenhouse, he was responsible for milking the cow, kept to

provide dairy produce for the farmer’s family. That included

preparing cream, butter and buttermilk. He also tended the

poultry, again kept for household consumption. That

encompassed dispatching and preparing them for cooking. He also

kept bees; his hives sat in the orchard that was part of the

farmhouse grounds. The honey they produced provided valuable

additional income.

Luckily for me the farmer, or more particularly his wife, was quite happy for me to tag along with granddad

sometimes during the school holidays. The outbuildings included a dairy. I loved to “help”. The separation

of cream from the milk, the churning of butter, were almost magical to an 8 or 9-year-old. I was delighted

to be allowed to turn the handle on the separator, to see the liquid pouring out of the spout. At that age

the concept of centrifugal force was beyond my comprehension. Later, science lessons dispelled that

mystery, but the memory of those feelings was never lost. I wasn’t so keen about pitching in plucking

poultry for the Christmas table, or preparing game birds and the like after a shoot on the farm, and

certainly ran a mile at being involved with the rest of the process after de-feathering. My grandfather was

kindly enough not to push the matter.

My memory of my grandmother is of two different people. That

was because she lost a lot of weight at one point, so I have a

picture of “chubby” granny and “thin” granny. She was quite a

strong character; she beat breast cancer at a time when survival

rates were poor. She lived for over twenty years after the initial

treatment. After years of abstinence from cigarettes, she

suddenly started smoking again and succumbed to lung cancer

just after I turned 12. She was a kindly and amusing, she had this

habit of making up her own words. She knew full well they were

made up. In the days before automatic washing machines,

washing would be left to “cookerate”, and when she needed to

visit the loo, she would announce that she was going for a

“tiddy”. The cottage they occupied had a Rayburn. For those not

familiar, the Rayburn is the little brother of the Aga. The oven

was erratic to say the least. It could not be relied upon to

maintain the required temperature, no matter how carefully it

was tended. She was delighted when it was supplemented by a

“modern” cooker. I was given the hard-back cookbook that came

with it, a keepsake I still treasure and use.

I can still almost taste the elderberry cordial she used to make. As the wife of a poorly paid gardener,

preserving, bottling and the like were crucial to the household. I, and a couple of slightly younger cousins,

who lived in the next-door hamlet, were drafted in on trips gathering elderberries for the cordial, later

blackberries and crab apples, and sometimes hips and sloes, were picked for jams and jellies. The fallen

apples from the farm orchard were not wasted, nor were the end of season tomatoes that refused to turn

red. They were incorporated into chutneys. I loved the smell that lingered in the cottage after a batch of

preserves had been made. She had a bean slicer that made the task of preparing runner beans for salting

down in large sweet jars so much easier. It clamped to the table, beans were fed into the top, whilst a

handle was turned that fed them down a funnel for rotating discs to slice them. Much easier than using a

knife. The jars came from the one and only village shop cum post office. Then there were the Kilner jars

with bottled produce, I remember her frustration if, when testing the jars for a proper seal, she came

across one that hadn’t done so. The contents had to be used up quickly but were never wasted. By the

time autumn was over, the pantry shelves were groaning with stocks to see them through until the next

seasons produce was available.

My grandfather obviously enjoyed gardening, there were not just vegetables in his own garden, but

flowers and shrubs as well. The front garden was unusual in that it was quite large. The photo above gives

some indication of the distance to their front gate. I clearly remember the row of flowering currant bushes

that ran parallel with the house side wall, along the boundary with their next-door neighbours. My own

father regarded them with distaste, in my hearing as a child he called them “the TCP bushes”, a reference

to the odour from their flowers, and no he didn’t mean the antiseptic lotion, but the aroma the local tom

cats might leave behind. The flowers I remember best are the tall spires of lupins that grew at the back of

the border, whenever I see them in gardens, they remind me of “thin” granny and “gardening” granddad.

And Finally ……

An item I literally stumbled across during a “google” search for something else ……

When an old lady died in the geriatric ward of a small hospital near Dundee, Scotland, it was felt that she

had nothing left of any value. Later, when the nurses were going through her meagre possessions, they

found this poem. Its quality and content so impressed the staff that copies were made and distributed to

every nurse in the hospital. One nurse took her copy to Ireland. The old lady's sole bequest to posterity has

since appeared in the Christmas edition of the News Magazine of the North Ireland Association for Mental

Health.

This little old Scottish lady, with nothing left to give to the world, is believed to be the author of this simple, yet eloquent, poem traveling the world by Internet. Goes to show that we all leave "SOME footprints in time".....

An Old Lady's Poem What do you see, nurses, what do you see? What are you thinking when you're looking at me? A crabby old woman, not very wise, Uncertain of habit, with faraway eyes? Who dribbles her food and makes no reply When you say in a loud voice, "I do wish you'd try!" Who seems not to notice the things that you do, And forever is losing a stocking or shoe..... Who, resisting or not, lets you do as you will, With bathing and feeding, the long day to fill.... Is that what you're thinking? Is that what you see? Then open your eyes, nurse; you're not looking at me. I'll tell you who I am as I sit here so still, As I do at your bidding, as I eat at your will. I'm a small child of ten ...with a father and mother, Brothers and sisters, who love one another. A young girl of sixteen, with wings on her feet, Dreaming that soon now a lover she'll meet. A bride soon at twenty -- my heart gives a leap, Remembering the vows that I promised to keep. At twenty-five now, I have young of my own, Who need me to guide and a secure happy home.

A woman of thirty, my young now grown fast, Bound to each other with ties that should last. At forty, my young sons have grown and are gone, But my man's beside me to see I don't mourn. At fifty once more, babies play round my knee, Again we know children, my loved one and me. Dark days are upon me, my husband is dead; I look at the future, I shudder with dread. For my young are all rearing young of their own, And I think of the years and the love that I've known. I'm now an old woman ...and nature is cruel; 'Tis jest to make old age look like a fool. The body, it crumbles, grace and vigour depart, There is now a stone where I once had a heart. But inside this old carcass a young girl still dwells, And now and again my battered heart swells. I remember the joys, I remember the pain, And I'm loving and living life over again. I think of the years ....all too few, gone too fast, And accept the stark fact that nothing can last. So open your eyes, nurses, open and see, ...Not a crabby old woman; look closer ...see ME!!