“Have been to previous ones and this is the best”. This comment, from a member of the 1,500 strong audience at the Jazz Picnic on July 2nd, reflects both the popularity of the event with the people of Wymondham, and the great community spirit in evidence throughout the evening.
Despite thinning hair and their evident maturity, DixieMix, our regular band for many years, did not disappoint. By the end of the evening the grass in front of the band turned into an impromptu dance floor. As people left Becketswell field many commented how great it was to see whole families having a great time. And they showed their generosity by voluntarily contributing more than £2,000.
All costs of the event were met by generous sponsorship, so everything that was donated will go to local charities chosen by the organisers, Wymondham Rotary Club. Other charities will benefit too. BREAK charity brought their coffee van, which did a roaring trade all evening. Wymondham Lions sold out of hot dogs and raised more than £300 for the charities they support.
The Wymondham Town Team, who had to cancel their celebrations for the Queen’s Jubilee because of bad weather, brought the tombola they had planned for that event, while visitors from Reepham Rotary Club brought locally produced cards for sale to support Ukrainian refugees who have found a place to stay in Norfolk.
Whilst the Rotary club organised the event it was greatly assisted by members of the Rotary Satellite group (who were responsible for the highly successful Food and Drinks Festival in the town during the previous week), by members of the Town Team and by individuals organised by Ian Hireson for their expertise in setting up the amplification system. The Town Council allowed Becketswell Meadow to be used free of charge for the event and also provided many of the gazebos for stallholders.
About the Rotary Club
Wymondham Rotary Club was started in 1959. Rotary which began in the USA in 1905 is a worldwide movement whose international charity, the Rotary Foundation, is the largest charity of its kind in the world. It has been involved, for instance, in efforts to eradicate Polio from the earth alongside governments and private donors such as the Gates Foundation. It promotes greater international understanding through a variety of initiatives such as Foundation scholarships for young people and grant aiding individual Rotary clubs to promote their own projects across the world and within their own countries. Despite being part of this broader movement, each individual club is autonomous and can decide independently who it wishes to support and how. But raising money for charity or working within the community for the common good is only part of what Rotary is about. It seeks to bring together men and women from diverse professions and ways of life to meet together and become friends.
Many of the clubs in the UK have lost members in the last few years as lifestyles and working patterns have changed. Wymondham is no exception, and many of its current membership are now retired from business. This prompted the club to start a Satellite club of younger members who cannot afford the time to meet every week, but who share the same aims as the main club, of which they are a part, although with their own programme of fund raising and social events. Over the last three years when Covid has both reduced social contact and increased the demand for the resources of many charities the two Wymondham clubs have together raised more than £50,000 - most of it to help with local needs.
Both clubs are actively seeking to increase their membership. Anyone interested in learning more should contact the Secretary Philip Richardson by e-mail on prichardson@downhammanor.co.uk
