When all our pensioners were lads
And lasses, they would play
Right up the village, past the school
Where a field abandoned lay.
Cricket and such, in spite of ruts
And bumps among the hay.
Arthur Bloomfield
Then sixty years ago this year
An army hut was found
Which Arthur Bloomfield had put up
On that same piece of ground –
You’ll see his picture on that wall
Approving, I’ll be bound
Ten Pound Note
Three other chaps who saw the need
That things should go as planned,
Purchased the field for ten whole pounds
And gave the hall the land-
There for a village Institute-
Or things a bit less grand.
Old Hall
Mrs A Stollery opened it
And things went with a will
With whist drives, music, WI
-These are with us still….
And village meetings various
Helped the hall to fill.
Jam Poem
And then there came the second war
The school had dinners here
And mums made lots and lots of jam
The rationing to cheer
And soldiers danced with local girls
To make their lot less drear.
With Peace time people once again
Acted or sang or spoke
In fifty-three the Queen was crowned
And all the village folk
Planted, to mark the royal day
A coronation oak.
In fifty-nine as a Charity
The hall was free of dues.
In sixty-one, much needed work
Provided us with loos.
Then some folk that with the land
Some other sport they’d choose.
Bowling
Bowlers evolved a working scheme
To make the prospect live-
And so, a lease was offered them
In nineteen sixty-five.
The land behind they then laid out
And a Bowls Club had arrived.
Crowd in hall
And then in nineteen eighty-two
A group began to feel
A facelift for the hall was due-
And launched a big appeal Village and holiday people too
Made plans and schemings real.
Then like a transformation scene
Improvements soon took shape
The rot was gone and things made sound
With rule and measuring tape.
Foundations sure and roof renewed-
No corner could escape.
Heaters
Then heaters brought most welcome warmth,
New colours were approved
The toilets were as good as new
Soakaways cleared and moved
New curtains up, the kitchen neat
Old fittings all removed
Old Hall Gathering
The following year the work went on,
A porch and door appeared.
The outside paint was all brand new
And a ramp where steps were feared,
Only the floor remained a snag
But for this we were not geared.
Leila
And that’s the last of Leila’s Rhyme,
Which seemed to end before it’s time.
And so concludes our talk on Leisure,
We hope its given you some pleasure.
So sadly now it’s time for go
And for me to hand you back to Joe.
