In Welsh culture, an Eisteddfod is an institution and festival with several ranked competitions, including in poetry and music. Hywel Teifi Edwards defined the earliest form of the Eisteddfod as a competitive meeting between bards and minstrels, in which the winner was chosen by a noble or royal patron.
We won’t be going quite that far today, but there will be free Welsh cakes on offer with every hot drink, and a game of “guess the castle” on the big screen.
The BBT have agreed that, given the events unfolding in Turkey and Syria, we would step up our support for the DEC with a full Charity Awareness Day on Saturday 18th February. We will be giving half of our takings on the day to the DEC, in addition to any personal donations you make using our new “Tap n’Go” payment service. Please make sure you visit.
In support of this, our “Tap n’Go” machine will be by the till for the forseable future.
It is Valentines Day, so come in with your partner, husband, wife, tennis coach, or significant other on Tuesday and we’ll give them a free coffee! One of our fabulous cake bakers has created some heart-shaped shortbread for everyone to enjoy as well.
Love is in the air? We think so!
A series of devastating earthquakes have hit southern Turkey and north-west Syria killing over 20,000 people. The first deadly earthquake struck while people were inside their homes, asleep in their beds, with no warning signs. Thousands of buildings, including hospitals and schools, have collapsed and infrastructure has been badly damaged. Local responders are desperately searching through the rubble for survivors.
By donating to the Turkey-Syria Earthquake Appeal, you’ll help DEC charities provide vital medical care, emergency shelter, food and clean water. You can donate in Barnaby’s, or at donation.dec.org.uk.
In the fourth of our MEET THE VOLUNTEER series, we caught up with the man who lives closet to Barnaby’s – Ted Quincey. We asked Ted what volunteering means to him:
So what drew you volunteering at Barnaby’s Ted?
Well, as I live right across the road from Barnaby’s, I had originally thought I’d be popping in at a moments notice if help was required. In actual fact, I have taken to planning a little bit further ahead by picking the shifts I’d like to do in advance, in preference to waiting until the last minute, It’s worked out much better that way, allowing me to plan my week around grandchildren and the like.
What do you enjoy the most?
I enjoy looking back at the end of a shift and being pleased with a job well done! I particularly like the “volunteer” role, as it allows me to do a number of different jobs whilst saying hello to our customers. That said, during the quieter moments, Berty has invested some time in teaching me how to make coffee, and I have enjoyed that very much.
Where do you think the money goes?
It was my assumption that it all goes to charity, after the costs have been taken care of. More recently, I’ve seen images on the big screen showing cheques being handed out to some of the local causes that I am familiar with, and I rather like seeing those as they pop up. I read the Swanmore Link every month, and there are very often articles in there that talk about charities who have benefitted from a donation.
What else could Barnaby’s do to help the community?
Yes. I play in a ukulele band called the Swanmore Strummers. We meet weekly in the village and have, in the past, raised a little bit of money at gigs. How about playing at Barnaby’s on occasion?
(We think that is a great idea, so please watch out for the Swanmore Strummers appearing here in the summer months!)
In the third of our MEET THE VOLUNTEER series, we caught up with someone well known to the village – Mike Clay. We asked what volunteering means to him:
Q. You volunteered here only quite recently. What prompted that?
A: I retired from a full career in the construction industry a few years ago, so started popping in here to meet friends from the village. My daughters had done a few shifts as work experience, so I thought I’d give it a go too.
Q. Had you done this sort of thing before?
A: I started my working life serving teas and coffees well over 40 years ago, so it seems rather nice to be ending it in the same way! In fact, while I was a student, I took on a part-time job at Bournemouth Pavilion and became a silver-service waiter. I ended up running the coffee shop there, which allowed me to meet a large number of stars and famous faces. That led to a love-affair with the stage, which explains the photo…
Q. What do you like about volunteering Mike?
A: I like to think of myself as a very community-spirited person. I have been a bell-ringer in the village since 2000, I’m often out litter-picking, and some will have seen me on stage with the Swanmore Amateur Dramatics Society, which I have been doing for 38 years! What I’ve learned is that you meet some great people volunteering, so I started doing an hour a week in Barnaby’s and it has grown from there at a pace I can fit in with everything else.
Q. How have you got on with making your own coffee?
A: Barnaby’s is a popular place, so I found some time with Berty on quieter days to learn the ropes. It’s actually not as daunting as it looks, so I’m looking forward to making coffee for my daughters when they return as customers.
Q. What else does Barnaby’s mean to you?
A: I have a 50 year old MG which I plan to bring to your Classic Car events that restart in April. Other than that, the fact that you donate so much to local charities definitely has an appeal. Keep going!
(Well, we could not do it without volunteers like you Mike, so thank you)
Barnaby’s is now closed for the holidays. That’s it! 2022 done. We wish all our wonderful volunteers and customers a very and peaceful festive season.
We’ll be back on 3rd January 2023, and we look forward to seeing you all then. For those wishing to pick shifts for the New Year, they will be available in ShiftController on 23rd December.
As part of our ongoing support for charities with a connection to the village, we will be supporting the work of Trinity Winchester between now and Christmas. Our “Tap n’Go” payment option will be available to you if you wish to make a personal donation, and we’ll be adding half of Saturdays takings to that.
Trinity Winchester addresses the effects of homelessness and vulnerability through specialist practical and emotional support. Theses effects can include addiction, physical and mental ill health, poverty, social isolation and domestic abuse. Head to trinitywinchester.org.uk to find out more.
In the second of our MEET THE VOLUNTEER series, we caught up with someone relatively new to Barnaby’s – Julie Smith – so we asked what volunteering means to her:
Q. Why do you volunteer at Barnaby’s Julie?
A: Well I believe a strong community runs on its volunteers, and I like supporting the community in which I live. In the case of Swanmore, that’s been over 30 years, all be it with a bit of a recent break while we lived abroad! I brought my boys up here, so I rather like the fact that, with Barnaby’s being opposite the Primary School, I’m helping mums who are now on the same journey that I have been on.
Q. What have been the side benefits of this?
A: It’s a lovely way of meeting people that I might not normally have been able to meet. Some of those are new faces, and some are not so new!
Q. How are you getting on with making your own coffee?
A: Well, you’ll have to ask our customers that! I’ve learned not to be frightened of the machine, but on occasion, it can be a little hard to tell my lattés from my cappuccinos! It’s been fun to learn a new skill though, and all us volunteers receive lots of friendly training to help us improve.
Q. Where do you think the money goes?
A: I had originally thought that it went to the church, but I now know that it does not. In fact, I’ve seen Barnaby’s handing out some big cheques recently because there are some images here on the big screen, Perhaps more could be made of that – may be with a page in the Parish magazine?
(Thanks Julie – we’ll look in to that idea)
Q. Can you explain the photo Julie?
A: No. Not really! But Christmas isn’t far away!
Thank you Julie!
This Saturday, we will be championing the work of the Royal British Legion. As always with our Charity Awareness Days, half of Saturday takings will be given to the RBL.
Please head to barnabys.coffee/charityawarenessscheme to find out more about our Charity Awareness Days and to put forward a charity of your choice that we could support as part of the scheme.
