Who are the “Thursday Gang”? Well why don’t you pop in to Cross House front room one Thursday morning between 10 a.m. and 11.15 a.m. or so and find out?

Morag Taylor of the Parent/Toddler Group, who organises a weekly treat for them, with the help of volunteers, tells us more...

“Over 30 years ago, the former Young Woman’s Group of the Guild started a coffee group to provide a meeting place for folks collecting their pensions at the Post Office in the High Street opposite where the then church hall, the Baird Hall, was. This service is still going strong today although numbers have dwindled and we now have only fourteen regulars, all ladies - so far!!

Many of our helpers have given years of service and will shortly be eligible to receive coffee as well as making it! Their recipes for the baking they serve with the coffee are delicious and the fare is so varied that the customers don’t know from week to week what “goodies” they are going to get.

Each week a monetary collection is taken and this year the proceeds have been given to Chogoria Hospital, Kenya and a donation has also been made to the Organ Fund. Previously the donations were used to buy gifts at Easter and Christmas. However the ladies decided that they would rather support a good cause.

Do you live alone and would like to get out for a bit of cheery company? We would be delighted if more of our Senior Citizens, both men and women, could join us on a Thursday morning between 10 and 11 am. To ease the work-load more volunteers are required to help on the rota of waiters and waitresses. Around 9.30 am. volunteers set out cups and saucers, then boil the kettle, serve the baking they bring and finally wash up. At the moment they work in pairs and usually cover three or four Thursday mornings between September and June. Expenses for the baking can be claimed so that no-one need be out of pocket for their ingredients.

If you could volunteer to help occasionally please give the office a ring or contact them by e-mail. We would love to have some offers of help so as to “spread the load” and brighten Thursdays for the “Gang”!!