Visit To Thury 2016 - A fres start for the blog
This blog site has not been updated for some time, but with the arrival of Vivian Rodger as our Press and Publicity Officer, this is changing

Her Report Follows

Seaton’s Town Crier was heard in France

Seaton’s Town Crier, David Craner does have a voice which travels! On this occasion so too did David, when he joined Seaton Twinning Group on their visit to our twinned Town of Thury-Harcourt in Normandy. Both groups were treated to an amazing cry on Friday in French and English, when they assembled at the welcome meeting in the Town Hall of Thury-Harcourt. Pictured is David in full regalia along with Phillippe Lagalle, Mayor of Homs and the chairs of French and English Twinners Nathalie Casas-Pasquel and Sharon Bruce. The French hosts made Seaton’s Twinning party feel so welcome providing a mouth-watering array of authentic home cooked food.

After a good night’s sleep at the hosts’ homes, our members were invited to a visit La Michaudiere, a typically Normandy Bocage farm at Juvigny with a large collection of horses including Bretons, Normands and Percherons. The animals were magnificent and the courage of their young riders was something to be marvelled at. The ground shook as these massive horses galloped past .The show was followed by a superb meal where everyone was able to sample some of the local speciality beverages. Not to be upstaged by the French cuisine, the humble Brussel Sprout was the subject of a spontaneous and very witty cry from our Town Crier during the meal.

The following day our host families treated their guests to experiences in the town of Thurly Harcourt and surrounding areas. A number of the group tried their hand at the fishing competition which was being run at the Lake Traspy, which recently staged on an International Kayaking Polo Competition

where 70,000 people visited during the week of the competition. First time twinner Vivien Rodger was delighted to land a sizeable Rainbow Trout, which she donated to the bbq.

The inward journey had allowed time for the group to visit Sainte-Mere-Eglise. Everyone had the opportunity to look around the beautiful church and discover the Airborne Museum and learn more about the paratroopers’ experience of 1944. Whilst there, the town had a real celebratory atmosphere as it hosted numerous US Military personnel.

The journey home provided the opportunity to visit Bayeux where the group were free to look around the Cathedral, shops or view the famous Bayeux Tapestry. The journey would not be complete without a stop at a hypermarket where Twinners were able to purchase some gifts for home or stock up on supplies of the best French food and wine.

Seaton Twinning Association is always happy to welcome new members of all ages. The group usually visits France on alternate years and receives a return visit from our French partners in the intervening year. There is no requirement to be able to speak French, just a genuine desire to be part of a community group here and in France.

For more information please contact the Secretary, Glyn Roberts by email pglynroberts@live.co.uk or by mobile on 07800903866.

Accommodation Needed in July

We are gearing up to welcome our French Visitors for July 4th, but are still looking for hosts. If you can and are willing to accommodate some guests, please let Sharon, Graham, Glyn or Avis know as soon as possible

Spring Newsletter

The Spring newsletter contains a lot of detail. Two parts worth repeating


MAY 9TH – COFFEE & CAKE MORNING
At Seaton Town Hall – in the Enterprise Room upstairs – starts 10am until 12Midday.  Please come along and enjoy a cup of coffee and some cake and a chat!                                                                 Please let us have your donations of cake either on the morning or on the day before, please bring them into my shop, Osbornes Menswear, in Fore Street, Seaton. 
JULY 4TH – 6TH – THE THURY-HARCOURT VISIT
Great excitement and lots to plan, for this spectacular weekend. We will be welcoming and hosting about 40 or so visitors. Please can you help with :                                                                                  * Hosting our visitors – please can you care for 1 or 2 or more. They will be arriving on Saturday at 9.30am and staying until the morning of Monday the 6th of July.       On Saturday, please look after them and show them our beautiful area, with our pretty towns of Seaton, Sidmouth, Exmouth, Lyme Regis and further afield there are Abbotsbury and Weymouth.                                                                                        On Sunday, we are arranging for a coach trip to Exeter with a Guided Walk and time for shopping and sightseeing and lunch, and then a trip to Bicton Park to visit the Gardens and enjoy a delightful Devon Cream Tea. In the evening, we have booked Colyton Town Hall for Dinner and Barn Dance, starting at 7pm. Free parking is available at the Town Car Park opposite after 6pm.                                                       * Offering any sports or leisure activities on the Saturday – if you have any ideas or connections, please let Sharon or Graham know.

Sad News of Dede Jeandenand

We have some very sad news from Thury-Harcourt. Dede Jeandenand who has played a major role in the Twinning over many years died on 26^th March following an accident while cycling on the voie verte cycleway north of Thury. The email received from Nathalie, the president of the Thury Twinning Association on 26th March stated

Today (26th) a very old friend from the twinning died : Our dear Dédé Jeandenand. On Tuesday, March 17th, he made a bike ride on the greenway (a secure channel), We don't know why he fell. Some people rang for rescue and he was taken to hospital in a coma. The news were not good and he left us today. We will miss him very much. I relied a lot on him. He was a man of great generosity.
Those of us in Seaton will remember him as the man with ceaseless energy who marshalled all our outings in France and still found time to take the cyclists among us on rides during our visits. The photo shows Dede during the expedition along the greenway he organized for us on our last visit in 2014 together with twinners Rob Watson and Roger Mawson.

The funeral was held in Thury on 30^th March. Rob Watson who shared his passion for cycling and  who he stayed with in 2013, and who stayed with him last year attended the funeral, as did Clare and Graham Jones on behalf of the twinning association. A floral tribute on behalf of the association was given as were cards and condolences of individual members.

All of us in Seaton send our heartfelt condolences to Dede's wife and family and to all our friends in Thury-Harcourt who will miss him..

Next Committee Meeting

The next committee meeting is on Wednesday the 25th of March, at 7.30pm, at The Eyre Court Hotel Function Room. Could committee members please let Sharon or Glyn know if they will not be available.

A message from the outgoing Chairman - Clare Jones

Clare stood down after three very successful years in order to spend more time with her family and friends.Her final letter to the Association reads

 

Dear All

I just want to thank all members for the grand turnout for the AGM and the Auction of Promises. Thank you for all the generous bids and purchases. I think it was a lot more fun than we all expected, thanks to Kevin's expertise and his entertaining style. The evening raised between £400 and £500, an excellent result.

Thank you for your friendship and support during my term as chair. It has been a rewarding and enriching experience.

Heartfelt thanks also to the brave souls who marshalled the Grizzly on behalf of the Twinning, up in the fields above Branscombe and under rain and hail.

 

Best wishes

Clare

We are back!
Technical problems have meant that it has been a long time since the site has been updated. Hopefully we are now back on track, and over the next few weeks we will be able to begin make the necessary updates. Not least of these are the changes to the Committee  that some people may have already read about in the press. The changes are:-

Chairman - Sharon Bruce (above)
Treasurer - Ken Beer
Secretary - Glyn Roberts
Vice Cairman - Graham Jones
Press Officer - Post Vacant

The Coffee Morning proves a great success.

The Coffee Morning proved to be a great success raising over £97 for our funds. More importantly perhaps it proved to be a splendid opportunity for members and indeed non-members to meet and chat. Whereas previously the coffee mornings have proved to involve mainly members, on this one we managed to attract more members of the public (including Seaton's mayor). Perhaps this was through better publicity, but more probably through a truly sumptuous display of cakes. Several people have suggested we do more similar events. A special thanks to everyone who helped whether through baking or serving or simply turning out in support. 

Coffee Morning 4th May

Just a note to  remind everyone of the coffee morning at the upstairs cafe of the Town Hall this Saturday between 10 and 12 when there will be the usual delicious selection of coffee, tea and cakes available as well as an opportunity to meet friends.

Reworked Logo

One of the unexpected benefits of the work done on the sign for Thury-Harcourt Place was that EDDC reworked our logo for us, and have given us copies for our own use. The reworked logo is shown above.

Thury-Harcourt Place Name Board Erected

The interpretation board at Thury-Harcourt Place was erected on Tuesday 19th March, and has already generated a lot of interest.

Facebook Developments

A lot of news. The report of the AGM will appear in the next week or so, but meanwhile news of Facebook. After a vote at the AGM it was decided to attempt to start up a Facebook page for the Twinning Association. It will not replace this one, however the Committee is looking at how our web presence can be improved for our members and friends. The first posting on facebook was made today and consists of a small photo album of the stalwarts who braved the snow, sleet, mud and cold to marshal the Grizzly on behalf of our Association. Their  efforts earn us substantial financial boost so Thank You everyone! The photograph shows our Chairman Clare, and Beeca Mawson.after the finish. The other equally photogenic marshals photographed before the start can be found on Facebook.

AGM Changes

AGM Friday

A reminder that the AGM is this Friday at 7.30pm at the Crossroad Christian Centre. Hope to see everyone there. Members, friends, and anyone interested in the Association

Marshalling the Grizzly Run 10th March - Help Needed

The Twinning Association has contributed a team of six marshals for the Grizzly over the last few years, and since the organizers pay us, our involvement has provided a dependable and much needed source of funding for the Association. This year a number of regulars have had to drop out and we desperately need to find at least 3 replacements. Can anyone offer their services. It means standing for 150 minutes or so (with breaks) by the side of the route directing runners. If you can help please contact our chairman Clare Jones or speak to any committee member as soon as possible. This may be the last Grizzly, so it may also be your last opportunity to play a part in what has become one of the foremost running events in the country. You will also  get your free T shirt to prove it..

Annual General Meeting 22nd February

 

The AGM will be held at the Crossroad Christian Centre at 7.30 pm on Friday 22nd February. It is hoped that as many members as possible will be present for this important event. Agenda items include election of all the committee including officers, changes to the constitution and membership subscriptions, a review of a the last year, an outline of the next and also your chance to let your views and ideas be known. There will be suggestion box for those who prefer to put their ideas on paper, (this itself a result of a suggestion by one of our newer members). It will not be all business however, there will also be the usual refreshments, a raffle, and a quiz based on popular films and TV programs. Please try and be there!

Thury-Harcourt Place

Good news about the Public Consultation on the naming of the public realm that took place before Christmas. Many members have worked very hard on this topic, not only those on the committee, but also many others who turned out to lobby and to man the stalls, and although it is not over yet, things are looking good for a naming ceremony when our visitors come in July. In the end, some 80% of responses approved of either the french "Place Thury-Harcourt" or the anglicized "Thury-Harcourt Place" with a small majority for the English form. Accordingly on Monday 14th January, Seaton Town Council voted unanimously to go ahead with the name Thury-Harcourt Place. It has to be approved by the District Council, but this should be a formality. Many thanks for everyone who worked so hard to achieve this. We had to go through a lot of bureaucracy to get the result, so well done everybody. A special thanks also to the previous Secretary Glyn Roberts who did a lot of the legwork in the early days.

Christmas Dinner 19 January 2013

Thirty members attended the Association's Christmas Dinner at the King's Arms in Seaton on a Saturday 19 January. It was an opportunity to socialize, plan and generally get together. As usual we had a well supported raffle which produced a welcome contribution to our funds. (photo) Thanks for everyone who worked to make it such a memorable evening.

MP supports place naming

Seaton's MP, Neil Parish, has endorsed our efforts to naming an open space in Seaton in honour of Thury-Harcourt. In an email to Graham Jones, he writes :-

Dear Mr Jones,

Thank you for your recent email regarding the open space commonly known as “The Public Realm”.

I would be very happy to support Seaton and District Twinning Association in their desire to name the area, either “Place Thury-Harcourt” after French usage, or the anglicised equivalent form of “Thury-Harcourt Place”.

I would be very happy for you to make public my support for the naming of “The Public Realm”. I am a big supporter of Seaton twinning with Thury-Harcourt in Normandy. I believe that the way to create greater understanding between ourselves and the continent is for exchanges to take place between individuals, rather than politicians pontificating on the matter!

I wish you a very Happy Christmas and hope that all goes well with the public consultation.

Yours sincerely,

Neil Parish

 

 

Place Thury Harcourt - A very important message

During the next week the people of Seaton are going to vote on a proposal to name on open space in honour of Thury-Harcourt. Notices should appear in next weeks "View From" and "Midweek Herald" with details. This is an Association initiative, and we want it to happen. To ensure it, it is vitally important that our supporters get out and vote. Please vote yourselves, and get all your friends to the same. A press release form our Chairman is copied below.

Press Release

THIRTY YEARS A TWIN AND STILL NO NAME!

The town of Seaton has been twinned with the town of Thury-Harcourt in the beautiful Suisse-Normande in France since 1982.
The town council and people of Thury-Harcourt have shown their affection and respect for Seaton and our country by naming streets after us: rue de Seaton; after the twinning: chemin des Jumelages; and other locations after British regiments, some local, involved in the Liberation.
In this the 30^th anniversary year of the twinning, Seaton Town Council and the Seaton and District Twinning Association want to reciprocate this kindly feeling and respect by naming the area known as the Public Realm ‘Thury-Harcourt Place’ or ‘Place Thury-Harcourt’.
WHY THE PUBLIC REALM
The Public Realm is the place many visitors see on their arrival in Seaton, perhaps increasingly foreign visitors to the area. This naming would express our welcome to all visitors to the town and our openness to the world beyond our borders.
Still thriving after 30 years, the twinning is a part of Seaton’s evolving story, as well as a civic commitment. It is a name that expresses something that is part of Seaton’s identity. This is important in an area where visitors arrive.
We get few opportunities to name new areas in Seaton. We have a debt of honour to our friends in Thury-Harcourt. This is the right time to carry out this naming. The public realm is we believe the right place.
We hope that the people of Seaton will support us. There will be voting slips at the Town Hall. If you do support us but can’t get to the Town Hall or the consultation on the Public Realm itself, please write to the Town Council.