Oh What Fun We Had……!!
Well, we have fun every Thursday, but I just had Madness’s “Baggy Trousers” on my mind all day!
On Thursday 26th September, we were graced with the presence of 20 temporary volunteers from United Way UK, on a corporate day out. The members of this multi-national organisation choose a worthwhile cause, once a year and, the UK element, being based nearby, chose us!…well, not literally we volunteers, you understand, but the tasking covered by our hardworking team of Yateley Rangers.
In anticipation of their arrival, we had erected a marquee, complete with real chairs…a couple of us tried out these luxury items, being accustomed to sitting on 3 legged stools, which, in boggy conditions, tend to become unstable….some might argue that this characteristic instability extends to some users of these seats!
Anyway, one of the reasons for our prominence of choice, was that they had heard that we did a good line in Custard Creams and Bourbons! Regrettably, Bourbons were off the menu today, as our resident Bourbon expert was not in attendance, so it was thought inappropriate to provide them.
It is to the great credit of our honoured guests that they showed great stoicism on hearing such sad news. This fine quality continued to be displayed by this impressive group, when arriving at the site to be worked on, and turning not a hair, when confronted with the rather extensive area of scrub.
Staff and volunteers from United Way getting stuck in
This scrub, consisting mainly of birch and gorse, has to be reduced, in order that long-dormant items like heather would, on being subjected to light, be re invigorated enough to grow, thus providing a colourful carpet, to be enjoyed by all Yateley Common users. Another benefit of maintaining such an area is that it’s the environment favoured by a threatened species, the woodlark.
Following our exemplary lead, they commenced the task in earnest…we were really appreciative of their efforts, and indeed, their presence, as it meant that their inroads into the scrub probably saved us 3 Thursday’s work at that site.
Area cleared of invasive birch scrub
So, a most productive day all round, enjoyed by vols and visitors alike. Indeed, one of the attendees, on leaving, kindly stated that she was in awe of us, so impressed was she by our work ethic, especially as it is repeated every Thursday. I accepted this kind comment…but, on further reflection, I wondered if she had meant that we are an awful group!
Answers on a postcard, please.
