Thanks to everyone who has contributed to this Christmas and Anniversary issue.
The theme for the short pieces next quarter will be what your dream career was when you were a child or if you had no clear idea then , retrospectively when you were an adult. Pam for example was unusual in matching her childish dreams to her adult reality: she wanted to be a nurse from the age of four. On the other hand, I wanted to be a marine biologist like ‘Doc’ in ‘Cannery Row’. Doc’s business was also his passion, with time to sit in the sun and gaze at the ocean. I did work in a lab though, checking coal samples and air quality in the local mines: the view from the window was of the pit head winding gear, a long way from Monterey!
It was for the best. I am very fearful of deep water.
So please, tell us of your ambitions whether fulfilled or not. What inspired you book, film, watching an adult, listening to the radio or watching TV ? Or if like me , you were doing routine work as an adult and wishing you were some place else, what was your dream job then? Wild fantasies welcome!
Thanks to my co-editors Mike Ward and Shirley Jones
Send articles for Spring (March) issue to:
audrey.hancock@btinternet.com
Or by hand to Shirley Jones, Mike Ward or myself
Bedford U3A is a self funded organistaion run by members.It is a registered charity. Number 104458. Members photos and contributions welcome
Dates for your diary
January 22nd A new members meeting will take place at the Ath for all new members who have joined in the
last 11 to 12 months. Invitations will be sent out with full details nearer the event. Group
Leaders will also be invited to this event.
March 3rd All Group Leaders are invited to attend an informal lunch after the Open Meeting at the ‘Ath.’
Sheila Bass recently received a badge and a certificate to commemorate her war time service at Bletchley Park.
Sheila had joined the WRENS at the beginning of WW2 and applied to be a Dispatch Rider but there were no vacancies. She was told about a very important job, very secret, for tall girls with School Certificate, specially in Maths. This seemed intriguing ! Sheila found later that girls needed to be tall to work on a machine 8’ x7’ which helped in the decoding of the Germans’ Enigma machine. Sheila was one of 10,000 people working at Bletchley but only 2000 were still alive to receive this recognition of their achievements.
It is thought that the cryptography work at Bletchley shortened the war by 2 years.
Some of the original Bedford U3A committee and volunteers in 1990 are still members today.
Steve O ‘Donoghue was the original Chair; Ken Armstrong was the first Treasurer. He also prepared the first Bedford U3A
constitution which, with minor tweaks, is still in use today. Mary Cannon was first Group Organiser; Marion Armstrong was a general committee member; Mary Hutchinson started the first group which was the Walking Group. Anna Yates was the first Catering/Social member.
Bedford U3A’s first venue was The Lounge at Hastingsbury School, then as numbers grew, the Main Hall at Hastingsbury and finally the Addison Centre.
Apologies to the many other early members not mentioned.
