Newsletter – April – May 2019

Dear SHTA Friends,

When your mother reaches the grand old age of 96 you feel obliged to go up to Harrogate to join in the birthday celebrations, and, since you’ve gone all that way, you may as well continue on up to the west coast of Scotland to catch up with more family. If you take a circuitous route back you can take in Edinburgh, the Lake District and the Cotswolds and, before you know it, April has turned into May. That’s been the recent itinerary for Sandra and myself, so many apologies for the lack of a newsletter at the end of last month.

I’m very pleased to be in touch with you all again to let you know of forthcoming SHTA events as the season reaches its pulsating climax, as they say in football parlance.

Our April film, ‘Quand J’étais Chanteur’ starring Gérard Depardieu, drew a full house and was well received. Our final film of 2018-2019 will be screened at the Empire Cinema on Wednesday 15th May; the film, entitled ‘Monsieur Lazhar’, will start, as usual, at 7.30 pm following the customary buffet at 7.00 pm.

This is how Patrick Peters of Empire Magazine views it:

“When a teacher commits suicide at a Montreal middle school, 55 year-old Algerian refugee Bachir Lazhar (Mohamed Saïd Fellag) offers his services as a stand-in. Despite his in-experience, he’s soon helping his new charges deal with the loss and coming to terms with it.

Tactfully opened out from a stage play by Évelyne de la Chenelière, Philippe Falardeau’s Oscar nominee is a potent mix of coming-of-age saga, bereavement melodrama and political parable. Hired to teach elementary kids, Lazhar harbours his own pain, this allowing him to heal himself while coaxing his pupils through their crisis. This could have been mawkish and Falardeau doesn’t eschew platitudes altogether. But, such is the sensitivity of the writing and direction, as well as the performances, that this remains a touching story whose insights into issues such as ethnicity, duty, communication and integration are shrewd and provocative.

An Oscar nominee at 2012’s Academy Awards and for good reason, Falardeau’s film is moving, smart and sensitive. Terrific stuff, in short.” The film lasts 94 minutes and has a classification of PG-13.

If you’d like to see the film please email Jan Cooper on jannicooper@icloud.com. As usual, the cost per person is £7.50 which you can put in an envelope marked with your name and post through Jan’s door at 56 High Street Sandwich. Cheques can be made out either to Sandwich Honfleur Twinning Association or SHTA.

Have you managed to look at our website sandwichhonfleurtwinning.org.uk lately? If not, here are some of the remaining events of the SHTA year:

• ‘Une Heure de Conversation’; these sessions continue weekly on Thursday afternoons, 2.00 – 3.00 pm at Sandwich Library.
• In case you were wondering, the ‘Boules & Bangers’ evening at The Anchor in Wingham on Thursday 23rd May is now full.
• As far as ‘Chez Nous’ dates are concerned, (i) Sandra and I will be holding a drinks afternoon on Saturday 1st June at 122 St George’s Road Sandwich from 1.30 – 5.30 pm. Currently we have 16 but still space for a few more, so, if you’d like to join us, let me know. There’s no charge but please bring a bottle; (ii) Lynne and David Hammond’s walk in Woodnesborough, afternoon tea and ‘Crémant fizz’ for £8.00 on Sunday 14th July is now full.
• SHTA will be hosting a stand again this year at ‘Le Weekend’ on Saturday 8th and Sunday 9th June. We already have a lot of members who have volunteered their time to be on the stand for an hour to explain to visitors what SHTA is all about and what we do – many thanks in advance to those people. There is still one vacant slot on Sunday the 9th from 3.00 – 4.00 pm; if you are free and would like to be involved please contact Sandra whose details are at the end of this newsletter. We already have some of our newer members signed up but would welcome new, fairly new or more longstanding members.
• Our Visit to Honfleur is from Thursday 20th – Sunday 23rd June. There are 39 people who have signed up for the 4-day trip so far and, therefore, a further 9 seats remaining. The cost per person is £90 which is amazing value for money since this year’s visit is particularly special, being the 60th anniversary of the exchange, and the Honfleur committee have put together an impressive itinerary. If you’d like to be involved or would like further details please do not hesitate to get in touch with me at the address below.

Many of the more longstanding SHTA members amongst you will remember Joe Trussler, deceased former mayor of Sandwich, who, along with the mayor of Honfleur, reignited the exchange between the two towns in 2008. Last November the Honfleur president, Pierre Jan, presented a plaque to mark Joe Trussler’s contribution to Veronica Lioté, current mayor of Sandwich, and Sandra Trussler, Joe’s wife. The two ladies were at the Guildhall again on Tuesday 7th May to unveil the mounted plaque and were joined by three members of the SHTA committee, Joe’s sister Lynn and Mary Laslett, former mayor of Sandwich. From left to right: Stuart Jones; Sandra Jones; Lynn (Trussler); Mary Laslett; Sandra Trussler; Steve Laslett; Veronica Lioté

That’s all the news for now folks. Hoping to see you soon.

Best wishes, Stuart and the Committee