Page 16 - Phonebox Magazine October 2016

Lavendon Annual Village Show
TDodging the downpours
he weather did its best to rain and the exhibitors could be easily spotted, on our parade and even the walking nonchalantly, but decisively towards scarecrows, which had been on their entries, to see if they bore a coveted show around the village were prize sticker. Others wandered round, eager
slow to make an appearance in the School to see what was on display, buying raf e
eld, hoping that the weather would improve. However, it didn’t, and they reluctantly made an appearance, demonstrating the creative ingenuity of the villagers, young and old. Across the road, exhibitors started arriving
early with their treasured offerings – all with high expectations of carrying away one, or several, of the many cups and shields. Once the entries were all in, the judges started their dif cult task of selecting the winners. Over lunch, they compared their experiences and all commented on the high standard of the entries.
At 2.30 the doors were opened to the public
tickets, picking up tombola prizes, choosing their lucky numbers to try to win the luxury bag on offer, or just having a cuppa, a piece of cake and a natter.
It was also an opportunity to admire the extensive refurbishment that had been carried out as part of £110,000 Project Diamond: an attractive entry with semi-circular canopy, a state of the art kitchen, newly-styled toilets, which included a disabled toilet with nappy- changing facilities, a widened corridor and double-glazed windows.
There were 15 trophies to be won. John Shann again excelled in the vegetable and dahlia classes, winning 3 shields, although he was narrowly beaten for the chrysanthemum cup by Bryan Calder. Another multiple winner was Simon Lambert for cookery and men’s baking. Ruth Welsh won the handicraft cup and Brian Gilks won the trophy for the visual arts.
In the children’s sections: Rory James won the pre-school Julia Mann Cup; Elizabeth Raymond won the LNGR Shield for the 5-7 year olds; Pip Thompson won the Collins Charities Shield for the 8-11’s and Lauren Zorkoczy won the Collins Charities Trophy for those aged12-15.
The 15 or so scarecrows, meanwhile, were doing their best to impress the judge, despite
the frequent downpours, and Isaac and Hazel Martynski won the children’s class with their “pilot – chocks away” and in the adult’s class, Andy and Nicola Thomson were the winners with their “mole catcher”.
The Children’s Fancy Dress then took centre stage. The winner of the Janet Mabbutt Memorial Trophy was Caitlin Presbury in her Mary Poppins out t, with Isaac Martynski coming second in his Yoga out t and Elizabeth Raymond third dressed as Tinkerbell.
The judges were Janet Howe, former head teacher at the School and Graham Mabbutt, husband of late wife Janet, who presented the children with their medals.
A choir from the School entertained the audience with a medley of three songs and were enthusiastically applauded by an appreciative audience, which included some proud parents, relatives and friends.
The unclaimed exhibits were then sold off and an MOT voucher, donated by Burrows’ Garage, was auctioned. The Tustings bag was won by a delighted Fay Hipkin and there were other lucky winners, when the raf e was drawn.
Finally, the Cups, Trophies and medallions were presented by Kath Collins, Chair of the Show Committee. The money raised for the Village Hall Charity was in the region of £900, but the Show was about much more than raising money. It was also an opportunity for people in and around Lavendon to demonstrate their talents in their hobbies and pastimes, as well as enabling the local community to enjoy an afternoon of varied, simple, inexpensive pleasure with family and friends.
At the end of the Show thanks were given to those who had contributed to the event. The weather didn’t succeed in putting a dampner on the event.
16 Phonebox Magazine | October 2016