Sheldon Day was one of the best ever! Brilliant weather, very large crowds, records being broken for attendance numbers; more dogs in the show than ever before; twice as many runners in the Thursday evening fell Race; a most successful day for everyone. The cream teas sold like, um, cream cakes; all the stalls did roaring trade, and the fun was enjoyed by everyone. Our profit was £3117.54 which works out at over one thousand pounds an hour. Not many villages could clock up that kind of sum. Andrew Joly and the team did a magnificent job. The senior fell race on the Thursday night, organised by Philip Gregory made £563. Absolutely brilliant! We discussed Sheldon Day and the distribution of money, as we do every year at the August Parish Meeting; that discussion is ongoing.
Margaret and I weren’t here for Sheldon Day; we were with our daughter Liz and Dan for the birth of their second daughter, Sophie who arrived on the evening of Sheldon Day! Elizabeth and Sophie are both doing very well; thanks to everyone for their best wishes.
Very sad news about the death of one of Sheldon’s real gentlemen, Peter Bott. He died at midnight on July 28th in hospital where he’d been for about a week or so beforehand. The funeral was held at All Saints Church Youlgreave on Tuesday afternoon August 3rd. We were all very sad at this news and we all send condolences to the family, especially to sister and brother-in-law Rosemary and Sam and their family, and also to Harold who was also related. He will be much missed by the whole village; may he rest in peace
We look forward to celebrating the wedding at Sheldon Church of Rosemary and Sam’s daughter Heather to Brian on September 25th We wish them and their families all the very best, and I will report on the joyous day next month. They will be living in Derby, where Brian has lived since he was about three. He is Scots by birth and while writing this Jottings I heard he and Heather were in Glasgow celebrating the one hundredth birthday of his grandmother.
Ethel, who was with us on Sheldon Day from her Scottish home, and helped with the cream teas, announced to us all that she had bought a bungalow in Taddington and would be here to help next year as well; what goes round comes round!
We’ve had some good news from Central Networks during the month about Church Lane. They have now given us a generous sum of money to help us restore the lane, as it should be done. The amount they’ve given should just about do it.