Retford Men’s Probus Club has been running since 1971. Meetings take place at the Westhill Community Centre, Ordsall at 10.00am every other Friday. If you want to get involved, please see www.retfordmensprobusclub.org.uk.
Those of us who like our gardens, have already got our seed potatoes chitting up and seeds have been sown, but on St David’s Day not a daffodil in sight, only snow. The only thing was, we knew it was coming, ‘The beast from the East’. What a title for a talk, Dennis will now have to match a speaker to the title.
The club’s second meeting in February really kicked off with a bang, when Steven Flinders reminded members once again of the Zeppelin Raids which took place in the Great War, over Retford and the Midlands. I wonder how many people living in the East of Retford near Grove Street and Spital Hill realise just how big the L3 Zeppelin was that bombed Retford Gas Works. It was 518 feet long, nearly 175 yards long, and it bombed Retford from between 5,000 and 8,000 feet, so it would have filled the sky.
In March, the club’s two meetings covered the cruise industry and an entertainer’s life on the ocean waves, and the events of the Great Plague and the work of the plague doctors. Fascinating if not gruesome stuff.
The club tries to make its meeting speakers as diverse as possible, discussing many things over their 16 meetings each year. Members like to feel that Retford Men’s Probus Club is one of those organisations where good fellowship is of prime importance. The speakers are important of course, but not as important as the fellowship members show to each other, and the cup of coffee and a yarn before the meeting starts. Come and try the club. If you are interested in joining, please email secretary Dennis Beevers at dennis@denboy.plus.com and he will give you more details.