A Message below to all Members of Plympton u3a from our newly appointed chair - photo above

Hello,

In the words of Mick Jagger and Keith Richard’s music  …….

please allow me to introduce myself ( Sympathy for the Devil, Beggars banquet 1968)  …….   and I am still a fan of the Stones now .

I believe that is a privilege to be chair of Plympton u3a and I know that following Lesley as Chair, I have very big boots to fill.  My thanks to her and to the committee for all they have done to keep our branch lively and interesting. I will do my best to continue the already great work done .

I am quite new to u3a having recently retired from a nursing career which spanned some 55 years, mainly in operating theatres and clinical research.  For the last few years , my roles included supporting fellow nurses as Chair of Derriford’s Faiths and Beliefs staff network and as a very active steward with the Royal College of Nursing and working at national level. I remain Vice Chair (acting Chair) of the RCN’s southwest regional board until the end of this year . I am a trustee with The Druid Network, a charity whose mission is to inform, inspire and facilitate Druidry as a religion and I represent the pagan community on the Standing Advisory Council for Religious Education in Schools here in Plymouth.

I am supported by my husband David. Many of you will, by now have met him in his role as Groups Coordinator . We have lived in Chaddlewood for more than 30 years and our two cats graciously permit us to reside with them and cater to their needs.

I’m a  mum, a gran and a great grannie, but because we live in Devon , we don’t see as much of the family as we might like to . They all live many miles away, and it is always good when we do see them.

My interests are wide ranging, and I am equally at home screaming like a banshee at Murrayfield supporting Scotland or with tears falling as I watch the final act of Swan Lake. Music is a big part of my life,  and I really enjoy all genres except jazz .

I love the big wide open spaces and being able to go stravaiging across Dartmoor and I especially love walking in the the Cairngorms.

My conservation passion is supporting “Saving Wildcats” which works to prevent  the extinction of and the re-introduction of the Scottish Wildcat  to the Highlands . These beautiful cats are commonly known as the Highland Tiger . There is a very successful programme on-going within the Cairngorm region and in fact, Devon Wildlife are taking advice from the team in Scotland with a view to re-introducing the wildcats to Dartmoor and Exmoor.

Since listening to the talk given recently at a u3a meeting by Dr. Rupert Jones outlining the work of Nightingales UK , who give medical aid to the frontline in Ukraine as well as supporting a charity there which helps traumatised children and also a second charity which homes the  elderly and their pets when their own homes have been bombed, I was so moved by their work, that I have elected to personally support this local charity during my time as Chair .

I really believe in the benefits of belonging to u3a and I hope that we can work together to keep our Plympton branch the welcoming place that it is . It would be good to see further groups coming into being, but I appreciate that this does take time and effort . However the more diverse the group subjects are , the more opportunities we have to learn, laugh and live .

Please feel free to get in touch with me and I am really looking forward to meeting you all as time goes on . If any of the groups would like me to attend one of your meetings, please just contact me so that we can get to know each other . Otherwise, I hope to get to know you when we are at the monthly general meetings .

I will end by giving thanks in advance to the committee and to Lesley as she takes on the role of committee secretary, for their support as I find my way around.

Leonore Newson