October is here and it is definitely moving towards Winter and dare I say it Christmas.
A poor way to say that plans are well underway for our first Christmas event. I hope that it will go well and that it will put us all in the mood to celebrate Christmas the right way, not how companies and shops would like us to.
Now the worries. I have something called FND – functional neurological disorder. I have had it since 2018 and I know that being chair would be a risk for me. I have been having excellent treatment in London but after discussions with my consultant it has been underlined to me that I must lighten my load. So sadly this will be my last year as chair of Horsham U3a. I will still be involved but more at a RUG level.
Also, two other members on the committee are not going to stand again. Our wonderful secretary and our great treasurer.
What does this mean you are going to ask? Well all three of us are officers and this means that Horsham U3a will not be able to continue after this financial year.
So, this is the time for people to step up for these roles. It’s not hard, but requires commitment.
For example, I would say for each unit of energy I put in I get 10 units back in shear enjoyment.
When I joined the committee we could not get anyone to put their hand up. I know that we have a great body of people in our U3a and I am confident that now we will fill these places easily.
I guess you might be saying, "I can’t do this" but you don’t know until you try. If you fall, we will pick you up so that you can try again.
A depressing subject that makes me sad, so lets move on.
Have you looked at our facebook page recently? Shiela has maintained it for the last two years steadily building it up over that time.
Have a look and maybe contribute?
https://www.facebook.com/groups/1224972878790173
Wool ‘n’ Threads is a great group run by Margaret Wickens. It is full and has a waiting list.
I don’t normally do this but is there anyone who would like to set up a second group? It is sad when we have waiting lists and Margarets group feel they are just too old to do this.
So this is a good time to talk about group leading. We have some wonderful groups but they are full with a waiting list.
I know that you are saying its too much to run a group and so I have invited a couple of group leaders to share their experiences.
Pam Hill – (possibly related)!
Becoming a group leader was not my plan when I joined U3A. I wanted to join a recorder group and found that Horsham didn’t have one, so with limited knowledge but a lot of enthusiasm I started Recorder Rebels. My aim was to meet with like minded people, willing to ‘have a go’ for our own enjoyment and pleasure. Initially we were a small but eager group, stumbling their way to the ‘promised land’ of being able to play a tune we all recognised.
As leader, I made use of the U3A recorder advisor who has been invaluable in empowering me and the group. I admit that there have been occasions when I have asked myself why I started the group, but I have always returned to the same conclusion – it’s enjoyable.
Being a leader is as hard or easy as you make it. Yes, it requires a certain amount of organisation (particularly when it comes to sheet music) and a little amount of flexibility dealing with others, but it is rewarding beyond all my expectations. Through all the wrong notes, missed notes and hesitations, there has been friendship and laughter and support. Looking back at my nervous start of the group, I now realise that being a leader is nothing to fear but something to embrace as the next step on the journey to ‘Live, Laugh and Learn’.
Jill and Adrian Lovett
In our late 50s, we both took early retirement from extremely demanding careers.
We began travelling the world for half of each year and also moved house - several times.
As we sought to make friends and follow interests in new localities, we found the u3a totally invaluable.
If there is a prize for belonging to the most local u3a’s - we may be in with a chance!
We have been members of groups in:
Devizes
Emsworth
Emsvalley
Cranleigh
Midhurst and
Arun Valley
More than 4 years ago, we came to Horsham!
(2 of our 3 children live here and all 5 of our grandchildren).
It goes without saying that we would join Horsham u3a!
When we arrived, we wanted to join the same interest groups we’d enjoyed in other u3a’s.
We’d loved belonging to an excellent Photography Group in Emsworth, and Local History Groups in several places.
We had also been members of a Travel Group - again in Emsworth.
However, NONE of these existed in Horsham u3a at the time!
We wanted to join one of the Lunch Groups here - but all were full.
So we had a choice - we could just feel sorry about our situation - or we could do something about it!
We decided to start a “Coffee and Chat Group” where we could get to know others.
The success that this proved, spurred us on to start the groups that we were missing.
Over the next few months, we started “Photography for Fun”, “Travellers’ Tales” and “Local History”.
Some while later, a French Conversation Group was created but looked as though it would close almost immediately.
I knew I would regret it if I didn’t 'rescue’ it!
If we can run 5 groups between us - and benefit so much from doing so - then perhaps YOU could consider starting just ONE?
The Committee are lovely people who will give you all the support you need.
We can thoroughly recommend being a u3a Group Leader.
It will bring you friendship, fulfilment and fun!
Thanks to Pam and Jill for taking the time to write about their experiences as group leaders.
If they can do it, then possibly you can too. The committee always helps groups get going.
What I loved about both of the descriptions was that they kept mentioning fun!
Back to what’s been happening.
We had a stand at Horsham Winter warm up. Thanks to everyone involved.
We met many people at the event and were able to network with other Horsham organisations.
Several people have come to our groups for taster sessions as a result of the day and we hope that they will stay and become members.
Our Christmas event had its first planning meeting chaired by Jane Broomer. I think she was surprised by the number of volunteers that turned up to help plan the event.
I know that it will be a success and for a little while we might get to think about the true meaning of Christmas.
I am looking forward to our November General Meeting on 17th
We have a real live Cockney Pearly King with us.
My step father was a cockney and when my two boys used to stay with their grandparents, we could never understand them when they came back. That’s cockney for you.
See you there!
Simon
September 2026
We are nearly through September and still the weather is very warm.
I was away on holiday until the middle of the month. It rained rather a lot, but at least there
was an awful lot of green.
It was a pleasure to introduce King Henry the 8 th at our last general meeting. He was looking
very well for his age!
A fascinating talk about his 6 wives and I am glad that you all enjoyed it. Many people have
asked that we have him back in the future under a different guise. Margaret Thatcher was
suggested but I personally feel that he might be slightly too big for the part. Possibly
Churchill might be a better suggestion.
Our open event is coming up fast. The committee has been working very hard to make it a
success. I hope that we see many new people coming to find out more about us.
We had a stall at the Park surgery open morning. A few people came to talk to us and
maybe one or two will join us.
Horsham U3a is taking part in Horsham Winter warm up in October. We will have a stall on
Wednesday 14 October 2026 at The Bridge Leisure Centre, Broadbridge Heath. Further
details on the council web site. In addition we will be part of the fringe event, welcoming new
people to our groups (if possible) for a taster session during the month. It is another way for
us to attract new members.
Finally this month we had our open event. It was very well attended and kindly opened for
us by the chair of Horsham council Joanne Knowles. I hope that everyone who attended
enjoyed the event. A special thank you to all the people involved. Especially Jane Boomer
and of course Sheila Cambell.
Simon
August 2026
I never thought I would hear people saying that they wish it would rain.
I am one of them. This is just too hot and I can only watch as a lot of the plants in my garden slowly wither and die.
It is vital to keep hydrated and I am the worst offender. Thankfully my wife Pam is there to remind me to drink.
I hope that you all are staying safe and well.
We had the August committee meeting last week and, as always it was full of lively discussion.
We plan for events quite a long time in advance so at the moment we are working on our first Christmas event. More details in the next few weeks.
I think that it is better than wishing everyone a happy Christmas at the November general meeting. Its too early, a bit like Woolworths selling Easter eggs in January. As always the committee are helping me achieve my sometimes bright ideas!
Now it is the 20th August and the temperature has come back down. Life is a lot more comfortable now.
Today I received the resignation of one of our committee members. This always makes me sad but I would prefer that someone volunteers, then finds that it is not for them than not volunteering at all. I am always a butter side up person. That is, if you drop toast it always lands butter side up more than butter side down. I suppose that means I am optimistic so see the up rather than the down.
I never had a slice of bread,
Particularly large and wide,
That did not fall upon the floor,
And always on the buttered side!
James Payn 1884
Now it is the start of the bank holiday weekend and as if on cue, it is raining. I know that we need it but could it not wait until Tuesday?
I look forward to seeing as many of you as possible at our next general meeting.
Simon
July 2026
Well, July is almost halfway through and I hope that you are all surviving the current heat wave.
I have had the privilege to travel to Alaska since the beginning of the month and have seen amazing sights, wildlife and vegetation. I know that I am lucky to be able to do this. The people that I met on holiday were older than me (70) but still having an adventure. I suppose this reminded me that our generation are very special. We are the last of the ‘can do’ generation. We still look after our children although they may have left the nest. We are unpaid child carers even though we love our grandchildren, and sadly in a lot of instances unpaid carers for our own very elderly parents. How do we do it? We are super people and it is a joy to be on the committee making Horsham U3a run and become better and better for you super people.
Your vice chair and I now meet at least once a month and I am beginning to realise what having a deputy means. It is a sounding board for ideas, an extra pair of hands, and a chance to unload (this bit works both ways).
I am getting over jet lag, I forgot how this is so disabling.
I have spent a lovely morning with the walking group. Time off for me and a chance to just enjoy good company and wonderful local scenary.
Tomorrow, I will be representing us on the Horsham District Older Peoples Forum. This is where all organisations involved with older people come together to discuss what they are doing and learn from each other.
Mike and I are continuing to develop being able to access our general meetings online. There is still a little way to go but we hope to start this service from September. You will be able to sign in from home if you have a laptop or tablet. I know that some people cannot make the meeting in person but at least you can join with us from home. Don’t expect a professional broadcast. We are after all amateurs but we hope it will be as good as we can get it. A note in case I forget, this will work on windows and ipads, although it using Microsoft teams. More detail later.
A busy week or so to come and L really look forward to seeing as many of you as possible at the general meeting.
Just in passing, I want to say that if you are a new member, you can still come onto the committee of be a group leader in an existing group or you can set up a new group if you want to.
We will always support you.
23rd July. Almost the end of another week and school is out for the summer. We had a wonderful meeting on Tuesday. Kathryn gave a great talk and stepped in at the last moment when our original speaker had to go into hospital. Thanks to Ann and to Kathryn for saving the day.
The best plans sometimes go wrong and I arrived early to set up our new mics. Sadly although Mike and I had tested previously nothing worked. It happens sometimes and Mike and I will find out why it didn’t work. We are going to broadcast our meetings to our members who cannot get to the hall. We will make it work.
Now the end of July is here. No sign of rain yet so please take care in the heat.
The end of one month and the start of another. If you are looking after Grandchildren, then I hope that the time you have together with them will be wonderful. For me, my two Grandchildren will back with us tomorrow. The youngest is 20 months old and is like a sponge. What a privilege to spend time with them.
Simon
June 2026
June is well and truly here. No sign of flaming June yet and it feels distinctly chilly. As always the committee month starts with our meeting together. This time we welcomed Jane who has been appointed to take minutes for us. We also interviewed Dave Grainger who despite all my efforts has agreed to be our vice chair. It is such a relief to have an additional person to share my role.
The month has moved on and I have been filling in the forms so that the chair of Horsham council can come to our open event in September. It is now all arranged and I am delighted that she is coming.
All my groups are at the start of the month. Science and technology to start. This is always stimulating, everyone sharing their experiences and bringing them to our discussion. I always learn something new but come away feeling so tired. My brain gets a real workout and to be honest it needs it.
Then on to the first group walk of the month. So I have exercised my mind and now my body.
At least it leaves me in a good place to take on grand parent duties each week.
Finally photography for fun. I am amazed to be with such talented photographers. I continually have to up my game!
I have been working with Mike Harrod this month to bring forward two big problems that we have at our general meetings. The sound, and that the venue can only hold 180 – 200 people.
We are working with using our own mikes that are wireless and have a clearer sound. Mike and I tested them at the venue and all seemed to work well. Next thing will be to broadcast the meetings to members only.
This means that if you cannot get to the meeting but have access to a tablet, smart phone or laptop/pc, you will be able to watch and hear all that goes on.
It is early days for all this so please bear with us as we learn how to do this properly.
I have started a monthly get together with our vice chair. I hope that with his help the committee will be able to do more in the future.
So down to today, I am fortunate enough to be going on holiday tomorrow. It takes a lot of saving and of course I am going with my wonderful wife. I know that a lot of you are not in this position and so I was deeply saddened when the U3a annual holiday was cancelled due to lack of numbers. BC (before Covid) I know that our U3a had an annual holiday and also many bimonthly outings. To enable this all to happen it needs dedicated people to come forward onto the committee to organise this. If you feel like I do that we should not let holidays and outings stop, then please get in touch with me. Chair@horshamu3a.org.uk
Ideally we need two people in the role.
So that’s it for June. I see that there is a heat wave coming for next week so please take care.
Very best wishes,
Simon
May 2026
The month has started with both some lovely warm sunshine and some very cold days. As chair my first duty of the month is to attend our monthly committee meeting. I am constantly amazed by dedication of the volunteers that work so hard to keep our Horsham U3a running. It is a tough 2 hours but we always come away with fresh ideas to push our U3a forward.
Then there is the science and technology group. Always a wonderfully stimulating session.
Then the photography for fun group. A time to switch off and enjoy nature.
Very diverse groups that constantly remind me of how wide our choice of subjects is in our groups.
I have had the honour to address a group at AgeUk. I love to talk about our U3a and, with questions my 15 minute talk ended after 45 minutes. It is so good to talk to people and to of course listen. My dear old dad was a builder and he instilled in his sons measure twice, cut once. You can use the same for listen twice talk once! I find listening difficult so have to try very hard.
Many people I have found can hear but not always listen.
A morning walk with the short walks group along the canal at Loxwood. Another time to enjoy nature and chat with members.
So then to last night with a zoom meeting linking up all the chairs in England. There were 62 chairs online last night. It is sad sometimes to hear the problems that other U3as have and of course write down successes for us to reuse.
Our May general meeting was yesterday. It was a great success and Ian gave a really good talk about sailing across the Atlantic. Rather him than me! I have been in the type of weather he described but on a modern ship rather than a small sailing boat!
Times were so different in the 1960’s. Thanks to everyone who helped with the meeting. Work starts at 1 for the 2.15 meeting and we don’t finish until 4.30. It is worth it so see and hear so many people having a good time.
Its now Sunday 24th and very very hot. My thoughts go out to those who suffer in extreme heat. I prefer the cold so I have not been enjoying this week.
Our Web manager and I have been pursuing use of alternate microphones for our general meetings at the Holbrook. We hope that we have a solution. Thanks to the manager at Holbrook for allowing us both to fiddle and make a lot of noise to test our solution in situ.
The last days of May are over. I am planning the next photograph for fun visit and preparing for our committee monthly meeting. There is always a lot to discuss but we are dedicated to making our U3a the best that it can be.
Simon
April 2026
Well, this is my first blog and like any journey, it has just required me to start (grandchildren and U3a permitting)
The annual general meeting is always a big event for the committee. We have to get everything right. I am so proud of the committee, and all of the hard work that they do. It was a great relief when everything went smoothly this year.
We are looking forward to serving you all for a further year. We would like to do more but to be frank, we are overstretched and need more people.
I am always asking for a vice chair, and sometimes I seem like a record on repeat. That person can stand in for me. This was brought home to me when I had operations in October and November last year. This year I will face 2 further operations and it would be good to know that there was someone around to hold the fort whilst I recover.
The role would not be the same as mine, apart from standing in for me occasionally.
These are couple of the things that I would like the vice chair to do.
Visit as many groups as possible each year just to see what you are doing. Not to interfere.
Get involved with local companies to recruit more members shortly before or after retiring. We are all getting older and need new blood to come in to keep things going.
It has been very interesting to have a look through the results of the survey that was sent out to you all recently. You will be able to see the summary by going to our web site.
The survey will happen once a year from now on. The argument is that we only find out what people are feeling and thinking by asking! Criticism is as useful to us as praise although, I have to admit that we prefer praise!
I led the photography for fun group when we went to Chichester last month.
The group take it in turns to organize these outings and it was my turn to lead. It takes a lot of effort and it reminded me that our group leaders are one of our most valuable resources.
A big thank you to all of them.
If you think that you could lead a group, then please don’t sit on your hands. A lot of our groups are full and this means that members have to wait when they could be enjoying themselves like you do. No one starts without support and I know that being a group leader is very rewarding.
Reach out to Pam if you are interested.
Finally we hosted a really good new members afternoon tea last week. It was well attended and it was so good to meet so many new or potentially new members.
A big thanks to all who helped make it a success. A special thanks to Jane Broomer for organizing and making it a great success.
That’s all for now.
Simon