May 31st 2002

Maybole and Crosne Celebrate their 20th Year of Town Twinning

Happy Birthday – we love you! That was the message to Maybole town twinners who travelled to France to mark their 20 year connection. more

A united Jubilee and Blessing of Town Gala service will be held at Crossraguel Abbey on Sunday June 9 at 3pm.  There will be a Family Picnic on Friday June 21 at the Swan Pond, Culzean or Old Church hall if raining. more

Help Needed

May 24th 2002

May 17th 2002

THERE are four vacancies currently on Maybole Community Council - one for the west side of the town, and three for the east. more

The complete text of the headlines above follows.

May 31st 2002

Saturday, June 1, St Cuthbert's Parents Association is holding a Jubilee Garden Party and Family Picnic in the school grounds. From 1 - 5 pm there will be live music, and playground games with each family asked to provide its own picnic. During the afternoon there will be the official opening of the new garden at 1.15 pm followed by a fancy dress competition for children and adults. At 2pm there will be a sponsored bounce with all the profit going to the Childline charity and at 3pm there will be a Treasure Hunt.

News from Maybole Council of Churches.

A united Jubilee and Blessing of Town Gala service will be held at Crossraguel Abbey on Sunday June 9 at 3pm.  There will be a Family Picnic on Friday June 21 at the Swan Pond, Culzean or Old Church hall if raining. Bring your own picnic and children must be accompanied by an adult. The Holiday Club will take place in the West Church hall from August 12 - 16 from 10am to 12.30pm each day for children aged 7 - 12 years. The cost is only 50p per day or £2 for the whole week.

Our Lady & St Cuthbert's Church, Maybole is organising a trip to Iona in September and it has proved very popular with parishioners and friends with only a couple of places left on the bus.  The tiny island of Iona (1 mile wide, 3.5 miles long), is thought to be the first Christian site in Scotland and is now in the care of the National Trust for Scotland. The island was St Columba's choice for his spiritual base in 563 and is very popular with pilgrims and the thousands of tourists who visit the restored Abbey, originally a medieval Benedictine foundation, in the summer months.

The Musical Showcase to celebrate the Queen's Golden Jubilee and the 25th anniversary of Maybole Community Council looks set to be a sell out. Two concerts will be held this weekend, Friday May 31 and Saturday June 1, at 7 pm in Maybole Town Hall. On Friday there will be around 200 performers on stage and the following night there will be about 150. Tickets, £2, have been going fast and if you hurry there might be a few left at the Town Hall or MCDG office in the High Street. Taking part on both nights will be Maybole Concert Party, local uniformed organisations, Aileen Robertson Highland dancers, local churches, and the Pipe Band. On Friday there will also be all local schools and majorettes, while on the Saturday there will be the Trefoil Guild, Fiona Galbraith, Fusion, line dancers, Dave Whiteman and the Ayrshire Fiddle Orchestra.

May 24th 2002

PARENTS joined tots for `fun-cercise' sessions at Gardenrose Primary School's nursery class. And even grannies joined in the physical jerks aimed at improving fitness - as well as raising cash. Adults and children were sponsored to take part, and more than £500 has been raised so far. But this figure could still rise as cash has still to come in. "It was our first fundraiser for a couple of years," said senior nursery teacher Deirdre Cuthbertson. "And it exceeded our expectations - both for fun and funds," she added. The cash will be used for outings and extra resources at the nursery class. The Post carried several pictures with this report.

CLUB captain Davie Brown is Maybole Amateurs' Player of the Year. And the skipper also picked up the Thomas Shaw Memorial Shield at the Town Hall on Saturday. In addition, the ace defender shared the Players' Player of the Year title with Jason Wallace. Andrew Conkie was named Young Player of the Year at the annual prize night and dance. And Michael McCann collected the trophy for Clubman of the Year. There was a special presentation to mark 15 years' sterling service by committee man John Cuthbert. Guests at the function included Hugh Carswell, manager of the Scottish amateur team, and sponsors Maxie and Margo Miller of the town's Cassillis Hotel. As ever, Matt Davey carried off the role of MC with his inimitable brand of humour and panache. The Post carried two pictures with this report.

TICKETS are on sale for musical showcases of Maybole talent at the town hall. And Carrick Academy school captain Scott Crawford will be MC for the shows, on Friday, May 31, and Saturday, June 1. The shows mark the Queen's Golden Jubilee and Maybole Community Council's Silver Jubilee. The Friday show features Maybole Concert Party, uniformed organisations, Carrick Academy guitar ensemble, all three Maybole primary schools, majorettes, the Old and West churches and Maybole Pipe Band. Saturday's line-up is the concert party, uniformed organisations, Trefoil Guild, Carrick Academy disco dancers, trom­bone soloist Fiona Galbraith, Fusion, the Old Church, youth action group, line dancers, Isobel Seymour, Ayrshire Fiddle Orchestra and Maybole Pipe Band. The shows will be different, and tickets (£2) are available from the town hall and Maybole Community Development Group office.

LADIES of Kirkoswald Parish Church had a successful week in Maybole Charity Shop, raising more than £2,000. And a guessing competition held during the week saw top prizes going to Maidens - part of the historic parish. Folk were asked to assess the cost of goods in a hamper, with the closest guess taking the lot. Hamper winner was Sadie Marshall from Ardlochan Road, whose £72.20 estimate was just 9p more than the actual cost of £72.11p. Bunty McCrindle of Baineshill Drive received a box of groceries as consolation for being second closest with £72.70. The ladies of Kirkoswald Church thanked everyone who supported their fundraising in the charity shop - £2,108 at the last count. And they are still collecting bric-a-brac - this time for a summer fete at Maidens on Saturday, July 6.

FAIRY Tales is the theme chosen for Straiton Fun Day, to be held on Saturday, August 24. And everyone who attends is asked to dress up in the guise of a character from a fairy tale! Past themes have included Wild West, Caribbean, Circus, Disney and the 1960s/70s. Prizes will be given for the best costumes at the village park, where there will be a range of fun activities. These will include: pony rides, target golf, five-a-side football, and splat the rat. Events more suitable for adults include a `hurl the sheaf' competition. And there will be a beer tent to quench the thirsts of competitors and others. Once more, the Fun Day starts with the three-mile hill race to the summit of Craigengower (700ft) and back. It is open to runners of all ages, and entries can be made on the day (adults £5, juniors £3). The hill race starts at 1.30pm, and entries must be lodged by 1pm. There are generous cash prizes. A family ceilidh is planned for the night before the Fun Day, with no charge for admission.

May 17th 2002

MAYBOLE STEPS BACK IN TIME. MAYBOLE took a step back to play a full part in national History Week 2002. And events brought out a wealth of new material and facts to enhance the town's rich heritage. Attendances could have been better, organisers have conceded, as there was competition from other events, along with glorious weather! But the history week has resulted in the long-term benefit of equipment purchased to enable the organisers to log and research history. A lottery grant of £2,320 enabled Maybole Historical Society to purchase the gear. And space has been offered by Maybole Community Development Group to house the lap-top computer, printer, microfiche/film reader and display stands purchased for events. Maybole Historical Society gratefully accepted both the grant and the offer to share premises. The Local and Family History Centre in Maybole will be Ayrshire's first community-based facility of this type, with resources available free of charge to anyone who wishes to use them. Cathy Jamieson MSP has agreed to officially open the centre in the near future.

Bill steps back in time Bill Cuthbert back in the Maybole Provost's robes! Pity we can't turn prices back to 1975 when Bill was the the last man to officially wear these robes and this chain of office. Bill got back into the garb, unofficially, as Maybole celebrated national History Week 2002. The robes, chain, and Maybole Burgh memorabilia are normally kept at Rozelle House in Ayr. But they were back in Carrick's capital for history week, and Bill - who will be 80 later this year - was asked to don them once more.

WHERE on earth is Vanuatu? And what is its connection with Maybole? That was the puzzle for Maybole website compilers Rich Pettit and David Kiltie as they viewed the latest site statistics. April was another very good month for www.maybole.org with 309,312 `hits'. And one of them came from Vanuatu - known as the New Hebrides before independence from Britain and France in 1980. It is made up of an 83-island chain, including Espiritu Santo, where James Michener wrote Tales of the South Pacific while stationed there during World War II.

Champion Cathie! A WOMAN from Maybole has been named a `champion learner' by learndirect Scotland, Scotland's national learning helpline. Cathie Barr received the award in recognition of her ambition and determination to learn new skills. She had spent more than 20 years working in both the retail industry and in a factory. But the 46-year-old decided to pursue learning opportunities in a bid to land a job she really wanted. During a spell of unemployment, Cathie discovered local training company May-Tag was running an introductory computer course. She signed up for a five-week course, and enjoyed it so much that she followed it up with an administrative course. Cathie also took a more advanced computer course, the European Computer Driving Licence (ECDL), which covers word-processing, spreadsheets and databases. Her new skills have paid off handsomely, as Cathie is now a part-time administrative assistant - at May-Tag, the very learning centre which trained her! She said: "Going to the learning centre really boosted my confidence no end. "Without the helpful staff at May-Tag, I wouldn't be where I am today. "When I heard there was a job opportunity at the centre, I immediately applied, and I was thrilled to bits when I found out I got it!" Cathie added: "It's amazing to think that, not too long ago, I was actually frightened of computers, and had no idea how to operate one. "Now I can't get enough of them, and I definitely have the learning bug and can't wait to take more courses." May-Tag was last year branded a learndirect Scotland learning centre, as the company conforms to guidelines for learning and learner support, set down by the new Scottish University for Industry. For more information about the May-Tag learning centre call Maybole (01655) 883765.

Council vacancies THERE are four vacancies currently on Maybole Community Council - one for the west side of the town, and three for the east. Anyone interested in becoming a community councillor can call secretary Anne Walker on (01655) 882796. And everyone is welcome to attend the council's AGM, in Maybole Town Hall on Wednesday, May 22 at 7.30pm.