Capel Goes Green

Since it began, a few short years ago, Capel Goes Green has launched many projects, some of which have been so successful that they now have an independent life of their own.

The first is the Temple Lane Allotments, on land generously made available by the John Dale and his family. These allotments are now fully subscribed and planted up and plans are in progress to install fencing round the perimeter. There are also additional allotments in Ockley near Standen, which are also almost all taken. 4 of our committee members are fully engaged on the allotments projects and are playing a major part in organising and carrying out the work needed.

The success of the allotments projects has raised the possibility of a Capel Smallholders Group which would embrace not only allotments but also raising of chickens and bees. This may be a major new development in the coming year.

Another successful project, which will run again this year through Village Greens Farm Shop, as it did last year, is the Capel apple collection, the fruit professionally juiced and bottled by Ringden Farm, resulting in our own Capel Apple Juice. So pick your apples, take them to Village Greens and have them weighed. Keep your receipt which will entitle you to buy a litre bottle for a £1. Otherwise they will sell for £2.10.

This year we will not be having a Green Fair, but we are hoping to arrange a display at the Capel Big Weekend which sets out the goals and achievements of the Transition Movement. There will be a list you can sign if you want to be kept in touch. There are very active and enthusiastic Transition branches in both Horsham and Dorking and we are currently going to their events and meetings to see whether it would be a good idea for Capel to become a Transition Village and join this nation-wide and indeed world-wide initiative. If we do this, we must have new people stepping forward as our committee is now too small to be effective.

As we are thinking of changing our name and our style, we have decided to discontinue our Capel Goes Green Website. So from mid -August we will be off air.

This is an appropriate moment to express our wholehearted thanks to young James Cole who volunteered to set us up on-line, created a superbly professional web site, and has worked tirelessly to keep it updated, and to respond to the many queries that came his way. James has been one of the most vigorous and active members of the committee, to the extent that we were worried that we were allowing him to do too much, invading time and space that should be reserved for school. He is now as busy as ever with the new allotments. We wish him all good luck with his visit to Peru.

SR

Thank you to all those who helped with the Help Haiti Day we raised in total just over £1500!

Click here to read our magazine article.

Haiti has been in the news again with Michelle Obama’s special visit to see the children in their temporary schools. Her visit and the subsequent newspaper reports were planned to bring our attention back to the plight of hundreds of thousands still struggling in the aftermath of the earthquake. There is an element of anger in the community there – they feel the world has moved on and forgotten them.

Let us here in Capel do our bit by coming together on this day to raise as much money as we can. We have been inviting all our many local organisations to participate and choose how they might to raise money. The Hall will be full of stalls of every kind – plants, books, bric-a-brac, Traidcraft items donated for the event. There will be a raffle, activities – e.g. face-painting – and fun inside and out . Refreshments will be on sale, provided by the marvellous members of the W.I.

Many interesting suggestions have been put forward which different groups might like to adopt:

• an auction with sealed bids ( so we will need some choice items – pieces of furniture or china or jewellery to be donated– and an auctioneer to run it)

• car-washing out in the car park

• a bottle stall

• a treasure map – guess where the buried treasure lies.

Admission by donation at the door, or by a contribution to a stall, Whatever you bring along, we will find a stall to sell it.

We will of course accept a donation from any society that feels they cannot run a stall or activity.

Phone Jane Chilvers, 711 146, or Nuala Seelig, 627 225, or Sally Richardson, 712 415, if you want to join in this major fund-raising event..

Dear “allotmenteers”

Due to weather conditions and to wait from Mole Valley about planning permissions and the Parish Council the meeting shall be on

Wednesday 27^th January, from 7.30 to about 9.00

at Friends Meeting House, The Street, Capel

WOULD YOU LIKE  AN ALLOTMENT?

RING

PHIL:  711 355

DARRIN:713 365

or

ALLOTMENTS  MEETING

WED 9th Dec

7.30pm

FRIENDS  MEETING  HOUSE

NEWSLETTER!

This Month’s Newsletter has just been released click here to view it