Drop in Sunday By Geoff Hodgkinson, Co-Editor

February 8, 2010: You can tell spring is nearly here because snowdrops have been emerging for more than 3 weeks now, even while there was snow on the ground. Those curious creatures known as galanthophiles have also begun emerging, to open their estates to the general public. In fact Snowdrop Sundays are becoming more and more popular countrywide. Our 'Sunday' had a two-page spread of them yesterday. This one at Andrews Corner, Belstone, is the nearest to Hatherleigh that we know of (if you know of others closer, email us and we'll mention them here). Andrews Corner has a vast array of specialised coloured snowdrops, showing how far things have come since the 1850s when soldiers returning from the Crimea brought back 'milk flowers' for their gardens. One galanthophile told us that, today, bulbs for the more specialisied versions can cost up to £100!

ShelterBox Thanks By Geoff Hodgkinson, Co-Editor

February 2, 2010: Bruce Luff, President of Hatherleigh Rotary Club, wrote as follows: "The Rotary Club of Hatherleigh would like to say 'Thank You' to all the residents of Hatherleigh who have supported us over the years. We would especially like to say 'Thank You' for your extreme generosity during our 'Aid for Haiti' appeal. Thanks to you we have been able to send FIVE Shelterboxes to Haiti via Shelterbox HQ in Helston. The people of Haiti will be needing support for many months if not years to come. If you wish to donate further or you have not donated yet, please drop into Phil Pyle’s auction rooms or Richard Tidball Insurance where donations can be left. Once again on behalf of the club: THANK YOU"

Twinning call By Geoff Hodgkinson, Co-Editor

February 2, 2010: Okehampton and District Twinning Association is looking for new members. We understand that Hatherleigh once had its own twinning association and today some former members still take part in Okehampton's efforts, so we were asked to mention it here to see if anyone else would like to join in. Okehampton was twinned with Craon in the Mayenne region of France in 1977 and the shared vision of international understanding between the two towns and their surrounding areas is as strong today as it was then. People of all ages from this area – singles, couples and families – take part in the alternate August Bank Holiday visit or hosting, as well as fund-raising and social events through the year. There is no better way of getting to know the real culture of a nation than by staying in people's homes and lifelong friends are often made. It's also an ideal opportunity for both primary and secondary ... Read the full story

War Horse trip By Geoff Hodgkinson, Co-Editor

February 1, 2010: Dennis Bater tells us that he's organising a trip to see the 'War Horse' play in London. The play, written by Michael Morpurgo, is based in and around Iddesleigh and Hatherleigh, and the WW1 western front. The trip is on Saturday 6th of March, returning on the 7th. The cost is £185 pounds with two sharing a room at the Hilton London Metro. There's an optional sight-seeing trip on Sunday morning (suggest Olympic Village progress?). Contact Dennis by email or 01409 231573.

Rapidly out of Jacobstowe By Geoff Hodgkinson, Co-Editor

January 29, 2010: The earthquake in Haiti reminds us that Jacobstowe is the home of Graham Payne, founder of a fantastic organisation called Rapid UK. Graham and volunteer colleagues from across the UK respond to calls for help from governments in deep trouble after a massive disaster like the one just seen in Haiti. Rapid UK teams go to the disaster area to help locate and extract survivors. They also help train local teams to do the same job, thereby spreading their skills worldwide. These guys seem to be naturally modest and certainly hereabouts in Devon Rapid UK has a low profile. But the work they do is fantastic. They get no Government help and rely entirely on sponsors and donations. The WI is one sponsor; BA is another, and we know there is a Royal connection.Find out more here including what they've been doing in Haiti. Graham will give a talk on Wednesday 3rd March in Hatherleigh ... Read the full story

February Parish Pump now online By Neil Price, Co-Editor

January 27, 2010: The February here.

Play Area on track By Neil Price, Co-Editor

January 27, 2010: The Play Area Committee has now signed a contract with Playdale Playgrounds, who will install the rest of the equipment in the play park. If you would like to see the plan and pictures of the type of equipment being installed click here Nick Laing-Taylor (Chairman)

Green Cycling from Hatherleigh By Neil Price, Co-Editor

January 22, 2010: Graeme Willgress, a Hatherleigh resident is in the process of organising a 4000 mile cycle ride around the Uk mainland next year to support the charity Sustrans. There are two reasons for doing this. Firstly, Sustrans are Britains leading charity regarding Sustainable Transport issues and give us choices about how we travel. With 12,000 miles of National Cycle Network inplace so far (one third traffic free) we can all enjoy the countrside whether walking or cycling, regardless of age. The Tarka Trail, Granite Way and National cycle Network route 27 (which passes through Hatherleigh) are good examples. The second reason is personal. Five years ago, he suffered a major breakdown and since then my mental health has been poor, preventing me from working. I want to put something back and raise awarenes of the role exercise can play in managing conditions like mine. I have lots of equipement sponsors already from local shops to International concerns as ... Read the full story

Board Meeting By Geoff Hodgkinson, Co-Editor

January 22, 2010: For no other reason than to get that snow story off the top, here's a quick update of the h.net board meeting held Wednesday. We've had a lot of requests for a George update and that is now in hand. The slow news start to the year had something to do with the snow, but that's now gone, so 'no excuses'. Nevertheless, there's been a drop off in the number of story ideas being fed to us by local people and that makes life more difficult: if you have something to say, there's never been a better time to say it than now. email us. Just tell us the facts - we'll do the rest. Nick at the Paper Shop tells us that the logjam blocking progress at the Play Area at Island Park is now clearing and that work will start soon (if not already). Drawings etc. will be online here as soon ... Read the full story

Still snowing! By Geoff Hodgkinson, Co-Editor

January 12, 2010: Apropos nothing except we thought you'd like another snow picture, here's a Dartmoor tor or two, shot last week. There's still a lot of snow up there, and some more being dumped lower down today but the blocking high seems to be losing out to the Atlantic lows so warmer, wetter air is pushing in as the stuff from Siberia is being forced away. That means slushy, messy, conditions and back to our more typical winter rain. Ah well ... it was fun while it lasted.