WIs all over the country are campaigning for local library services to be value for money, but also meet local needs. 10th February had been designated National Library Day, but as our wonderful mobile library only visits Bulphan once a week, we had to demonstrate our support on the 7th February. It was a bitterly cold and icy evening, but our members gathered to link arms and hug their library van to show their appreciation and support for the continuation of a mobile library service to Bulphan.
Jo Olsson, Director of the council department overseeing libraries (amongst others things) and Cllr. John Kent, leader of the council, will be coming to Bulphan Village Hall at 8pm on Thursday, March 8th to hold a Library Conversation. This will be part of the consultation on what library services residents would like and is open to everyone in Bulphan, Orsett and Horndon-on-the-Hill to come along and take part in the conversation.
If you had been travelling along Fen Lane on the evening of our February meeting, you would have been amazed and delighted (we hope!) to hear 40 ladies voices singing in harmony in the school hall. The effervescent Doreen Potter was leading and accompanying us as we sang for our supper. Between songs, Doreen amused us with poems and anecdotes and then we were all rewarded with French bread, cheese and salad, with wine, served by Pierre, Thierry, Jean-Paul and Henri. (No, we don’t often have men at WI, but our 4 tea hostesses had decided to liven the evening up by dressing up as French onion sellers, to serve the French bread).
We are very grateful to the Cubs for swapping venues so we could use the excellent school piano, and next month we will be back at the village hall, to hear Richard Furnivale-Jones, who will tell us all about Harrods.
Janet McCheyne
Soprano and president
