Category: Miscellaneous

Various items that do not fit any particular category

The London Marathon For Marie Curie

 

RUNNING THE LONDON MARATHON FOR MARIE CURIE

Hello everyone!

I am incredibly lucky to be running the 2021 London Marathon for Marie Curie, a charity extremely close to my family’s heart. We lost my dad, Alun, to bowel cancer in 2008. At the time, I was only eight years old. Dad spent his final days at Marie Curie Holme Tower Hospice, Penarth, and Marie Curie were unbelievably supportive to dad and us during his illness. This support has remained ever-present in our family’s life in the twelve years since he passed.

Dad completed the 1985 London Marathon in an impressive 3 hours and 20 minutes, undoubtedly one of the best moments of his life. I feel so proud to be able to follow in his footsteps this year (although nowhere near as quickly), and to do it for Marie Curie.

The community of Wenvoe has been vital to our family. From Saturday morning football matches, meals at the Wenvoe Arms with Dad, the village shop giving me my first ever job, the school, the park, the community centre…. The past year has been very difficult for all charities, with normal fundraising efforts being halted due to the pandemic. Any donations to the fundraising page from the people of Wenvoe would be hugely, hugely appreciated, and will help frontline nurses provide care to cancer patients and their loved ones.

Donations can be made at the following website:- https://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/fundraiser-display/showROFundraiserPage? userUrl=HenryWaddon1&pageUrl=1

Alternatively, if donating to this website is difficult, you can contact me directly via the following contacts, and we can arrange to donate on your behalf:

henrywaddon@gmail.com 07860248977

Thank you so much for your support.

Henry Waddon

 

 

When is it time to say STOP?

 

Vale Communities Unite

Vale Communities Unite is a community group set up by local people in the Vale of Glamorgan during 2020. Its aim is to give residents a voice and to protect the local environment from unwanted development.

Wenvoe is fortunate to be protected as a conservation area. It is a beautiful village surrounded by green fields and wildlife.

As a Wenvoe resident you are safe in the knowledge the village around where you live will remain unchanged and most importantly largely undeveloped.

I moved back to my hometown of Barry in 2019. My parents followed shortly after and settled in Wenvoe. They love the Vale as I do, but I am saddened by the seemingly constant destruction of our green spaces. Planning applications approved without a thought for future generations.

Look back and remember the changes you have seen in the Vale in just the last 10 years or 5 years for that matter. How many more green wedge spaces must be lost before it’s time to say STOP?

On July 14th, 2021, VOG Council voted by 9 votes to 8 to approve the building of a Business Park on MODEL FARM a one-hundred-acre tenanted farm in Rhoose, the farm backs down onto Porthkerry Park. The owner of the land L & G has yet to disclose the name of the potential developer of this land. Leaving local communities speculating as to what type of development may soon be on their doorstep.

As a Wenvoe resident you are surrounded by farmland and maybe you would not be wrong in thinking it’s just one farm. What makes this one so special? But does one farm become two and then three? When will we be ready to say STOP and fight for our environment, to give our children and grandchildren the same opportunities as us? To grow up in an environment with fresh air and wildlife. Not the concrete jungles we are getting so familiar with.

This mixed farm has been cared for by four generations of the same family. They are set to lose their home and livelihoods and the destruction of our local area will be irreversible. Imagine your idyllic Porthkerri walk, and then look beyond to the fields in the distance, remember them now as they are soon to be demolished.

There was considerable local opposition to this planning application with over 1000 objections that covered a wide range of issues including:

Alternative local brown sites were not considered including the St Athan’s airfield owned by Welsh Government and currently unused.

The additional problems caused by traffic congestion and resulting pollution on a road system already struggling.

Without the M4 link through Pendoylan traffic will be routed through our villages instead. More damaged roads and unfilled potholes.

The flooding impact from rainwater which already causes problems in the winter at Porthkerri park. Concrete will not replace the natural drainage system of our farmlands and fields, and it must go somewhere.

The wealth of the natural wildlife on this mixed farm included bees, butterflies and other pollinators attracted by acres of wildflowers grown here for seed.

The threat to ancient woodland.

The presence of several endangered species on the farmland.

The importance of the need to produce food locally and to reduce food miles.

For more information and further details of the planned development please refer to our Facebook page – Vale Communities Unite Against the Planned Development at Model Farm.

 

 

Tuckers Christmas Reindeer Sale

TUCKERS CHRISTMAS REINDEER SALE

This year’s Tuckers Christmas Reindeer Sale will be taking place on Saturday 20th November from 10am – 5pm at our home (in the garden) 29 Vennwood Close. Mike’s Christmas Garden Reindeers will be on sale along with some hand-crafted Christmas themed items from Wenvoe.

 

 

A Wenvoe Forum

A WENVOE FORUM – CONSIDERING TODAY AND TOMORROW

We had a very interesting and encouraging meeting with Vale of Glamorgan attended by our Senedd Member, Jane Hutt, Councillor Jonathan Bird, Tom Bowring, VoG Head of Policy and Business Transformation and Nicola Sumner Smith from the Creative Rural Communities Team.

Tom gave an overview of the Vale Council’s approach to reducing the carbon emissions they generate as part of their commitment to combat the climate crisis. For those of you who missed the meeting here are links to very short videos that were issued as part of VoG’s consultation on their plan Project Zero.

These along with other links will be on our Facebook group. To join it please ‘friend up’ with Gwen Fo on Facebook:@

https://www.facebook.com/gwen.fo.1/

You’ll then be invited by ‘Gwen’ to join the Forum group directly:

https://www.facebook.com/groups/6353692678644 02

Look forward to welcoming you there.

You will see that there is a lot of emphasis on working together and we certainly got the impression that Vale of Glamorgan and Welsh Government acknowledge that communities must be involved if we are to succeed in addressing climate change. We seem to be ahead of the game in involving them so let’s capitalise on that, get our ideas together promptly and ask for their help. Send any ideas to gwenfo.forum@gmail.com or share them via the Facebook page.

Currently we are quite a small group and will need help from all of you if we are to really make a difference. We will be deciding on the next priority at the next forum meeting. Look out for details in the September What’s On.

Ideas on climate change that were discussed on 1st July and under consideration are:

 

Whilst climate change is high on everyone’s agenda you may have ideas for strengthening the Wenvoe community and economy or just making it a nicer place to live. We are keen to hear them and will work with you to make things happen.

Keep a look out for activity, join us and send messages on:

Facebook: Gwen Fo @ https://www.facebook.com/gwen.fo.1/ and Wenvoe Forum @ https://www.facebook.com/groups/635369267864402

twitter @ForumGwenfo

e-mail – gwenfo.forum@gmail.com

 

 

 

Barbecue Season Is In Full Swing!

HERE COMES THE SUN

AND THE BARBECUE SEASON IS IN FULL SWING!

Unless you’re one of those die-hards who grill all year ‘round the chances are you’ve been firing up the barbecue and looking forward to a whole summer of savoury burgers, succulent steaks, and perfectly grilled veggies. About 273 million are expected to be fired up in the UK this summer. Grilling has brought families and communities together since the first humans cooked food over a fire about 1.8 million years ago. In 2009, researchers even found mammoth ribs in a 4-ft. cooking pit that appeared to date back to 29,000 B.C. The area was also covered with conch shells, which made archaeologists wonder whether the barbecue had been a “surf-and-turf” meal.

The word “barbecue” came into English via 16th century Spanish explorers, who adopted the term from the Arawak Indians of the Caribbean, to whom the barbacoa was a grating of green wood upon which strips of meat were placed to cook or to dry over a slow fire.

USEFUL TIPS

Lighting your grill: a great little trick is to simply scrunch up a piece of paper towel, cover in vegetable oil and then light in the middle of your coals. It burns hotter and longer this way and will kick start your coals.

Cooking meats: remember each cut needs to be cooked differently. Generally, the higher the fat content the higher the initial heat to cook it.

Cleaning the grill: Spray with vinegar, leave for about five minutes and then scrub clean with some scrunched-up foil. Easiest of all, soak a grill in a basin for around an hour. Rinse off and it will be good as new.

BBQ BLUNDERS

A study of more than 2,000 adults by Aldi discovered the country’s three most common BBQ blunders.

  • Although we haven’t heard them arrive in Wenvoe…yet, being forced to call the fire brigade
  • Serving burned or undercooked food
  • Dishing up meat products to vegetarians

 

BARBEQUES AND THE GUINNESS BOOK OF RECORDS.

Barbecues also feature in the Guinness Book of Records.

The largest attendance at a barbecue is 45,252 people at an event organised by Estado de Nuevo Leon (Mexico) on 18 August 2013.

The longest barbecue measured 8,000 metres, created by the people of Bayambang (Philippines), on 4 April 2014. The barbecue was made up of 8,000 grills connected to each other, each measuring 1 m in length, 58 cm in height and 21 cm in width.

 

 

 

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