Friday night saw Great Aycliffe in the spotlight as Mayors, Mayoresses, friends and guests from across the region gathered at Redworth Hall to raise money for my supported charities Together 21 and the Wishing Well club.
What a great turnout, gentlemen in dinner suits and ladies looking fabulous in their evening attire, I don’t think I have ever seen such an array of gold chains glittering under the lights. A drinks reception was provided with sparkling wine and juice to choose from. Brian Nichol provided photography for the evening and photos can be downloaded from his Facebook page. Thank you, Brian, for coming along.
We were soon called to take our seats and Mayoress Elaine and I were ushered in last to a burst of applause which left me almost in tears and not a little embarrassed. Many of our honoured guests are, of course, now great friends and it was great to hear the chatter of conversation.
Town Clerk Dan Austin then called us to order to say grace.
DJ Steve, recognising that people like to chatter over dinner, played background noise and so it began with waiting staff appearing with starters which were delicious, on to dinner which many reported later was beautifully presented and delicious followed by dessert which was equally anticipated. Meanwhile, as a surprise for guests, I had engaged a balloon modeller to attend tables making a variety of hats and wrist flowers mine, of course, had to be a crown.
After dinner Dan Austin gave the loyal toast and guests responded with gusto, I was then asked to make a short speech thanking everyone for coming and encourage them to dig deep to support my chosen charities. Catering staff did a fantastic job of cooking, serving and clearing away.
I have to say at this point that I could not have managed to do the job of Mayor without the support of my family, Elaine and Alison, who have been at my side throughout, Council staff for help and guidance, all those businesses, great and small, who have been generous with donations for our raffles and tombola but my greatest praise must go to the long suffering readers of the Newton News who must be thoroughly fed up of me rambling on about what a wonderful place it is we live in.
Not wishing to bore people to death with my ramblings I then introduced my friend Carol Gaskarth to give a short explanation of the work Together 21 do for families of Down Syndrome children.
Surprisingly Councillor Dorothy Bowman then got up and presented me with a poem written about the history of our town which was gratefully received and is to be stored in a display cabinet at the Council Offices.
Finally, but not least, it was the turn of Rotarian David Hogg, President of the Rotary Club, Newton Aycliffe, who gave a reply to the Mayor’s speech.
Onward to the fun part, the calling of numbers for the wonderful raffle and tombola prizes, many of which I had won whilst visiting other events. Not only were prizes won by every table, but some won multiple prizes. I look forward to winning many back again at subsequent events before my time as Mayor is over.
Most importantly, this event raised £1084.05 for my chosen charities. On to the dancing and I must apologise to a number of ladies who may be nursing bruised toes as a result of dancing with me. Overall, a wonderful evening which I will treasure as memories for the rest of my life. Thank you Newton Aycliffe for the opportunity to be your Mayor
Ken & Elaine Robson,
Mayor & Mayoress of Newton Aycliffe.