Our President Marianne lay a wreath at the War Memorial and participated with other club members at the City of Bangor Remembrance Service held at the Cathedral on 12.11.23.

          Emma Quaeck joined members outlining the invaluable service provided by this group in the county of Gwynedd. Every one also joined in for armchair exercises to music, at their pace,  which stretched our bodies as well as our minds. Emma signposted members to the website which provided a plethora of links to resource materials and contacts for anyone wising to know more about support to carers and help with diagnoses. Dementia Actif Gwynedd

Commander Dai Seaborn Davies is a specialist in security and investigation, former Head of Scotland Yard’s Royal Protection Command and Divisional Commander in the Metropolitan Police.  He had a long and distinguished career with the Police Service culminated with his appointment as Operational Unit Commander in charge of Royal Protection for HM The Queen and the Royal Family – he was responsible for Palace and Personal Protection throughout the UK and worldwide. We were delighted to welcome him to our meeting in which he delighted us with a fascinating presentation on the events leading to the untimely death of Princess Diana, at a time when he was in royal protection. His personal perspective was interesting and thought provoking. Members present were grateful that he found time to also speak… given that he had delivered a similar presentation onboard the Queen Mary only days before!

President Marianne took great pleasure in presenting the wonderful news of our new Honorary Life Member – Mrs Mair Jones OBE. Mair became Regional President in 2006-2007 and remains only one of two members from SI Bangor who have undertaken this very demanding role.   Mair readily acknowledges the unwavering support she received from Club, family and of course her very tolerant husband, Bob. In addition to her unswerving loyalty and service to the Club as President and Secretary she has also offered wise counsel and guidance to all past and current Presidents without exception and we’ve all been heard to say at some point – ‘ask Mair – Mair will know’ President Marianne was very honoured to have been able to present Mair with her certificate on behalf of the Club and wanted to thank all Club Members for their unanimous support. President Marianne

What a delightful evening we all had on 12 September held at Jenny’s lovely home as we were entertained by Ferdy, a very knowledgeable wine expert from Italy.  Ferdy, through his expertise advised us on pairing wines with specific foods and was on hand to help and answer all our questions. We all very much enjoyed the delicious Bruschetta and Pinsa amd homemade desserts by Vicki too! (Pinsa dough is made from a combination of soy, rice and wheat flour which makes Roman Pinsa a much healthier alternative to traditional pizza).  We had some very generous raffle prizes  and all the monies raised from the evening is being donated to President Marianne’s charity this year. A very, very big thank you to Jenny for hosting the event, our brilliant Fund Raising group led by Sue and very ably supported by Vicki and Diane. Thanks to

At our meeting on 5 September we were joined by Ellen Davies, Project Director of Cysylltu/Connecting.  A project using the creative arts to explore, express and reconnect with others.  Kar Rowson (Artist) and Wendy Davies (Secretary) provided interesting art play with paints which our members really enjoyed. This Project is especially relevant now post Covid, where increased problems of poor mental health (and fewer resources to support those suffering from it), the cost of living crisis and ongoing social change affects many.  Ellen’s shared personal lived experience of poor mental health, addiction, the recovery process and the importance of creativity especially using music and composition as a form of expression and way to be heard is key to this project. There will be an interactive ‘public share’ and month long Exhibition in PONTIO January 2024.  The culmination of this unique creative co-inquiry (workshops!) between creative professionals, residents of North