The Peet Family in Liberia

For the last five years our elder son, Olly, his wife, Sally, and their three children, Noah, Anna and Libby have been volunteers with the international Christian charity, Mercy Ships. Currently they live, work and go to school on the Mercy Ship, Africa Mercy, in the Port of Monrovia, Liberia, West Africa. If you want to know more about their unusual lives and the work they do log on to their blogspot, www.peetfamilyinliberia.blogspot.com. The photo shows them standing outside their home on the Africa Mercy, the biggest non-government hospital ship in the world.

Anyone for tennis?

This was another visit from Ben, Claire, Sophie and Thomas when we all went playing tennis at the local sports club.

The Bedfordshire Peet family

This is our younger son Ben with his wife Claire and children Thomas and Sophie earlier in the year when they called in for lunch at Pippin Cottage on their way to Devon for a holiday with Claire's parents. As you can see Sophie is a determined little girl!

When Jenny retired as Chairman of Wincanton Choral Society David suggested that instead of buying her a gift they should sponsor her on a Ladies' Driving Day to raise funds for Marie Curie Cancer Care. Here is a photo of her driving a Royal Mail articulated lorry which she had to reverse between bollards. She also drove a digger, a 40 ton truck, a tractor, a double decker bus, a Dalek, a Land Rover 101, and a 1905 car without steering wheel - just a stick to steer with, a break and an accelerator. 240 women took part and between us we raised £30,000 for the charity.

Parish Notice Board

Our small village of about 500 souls actually has its own Parish Council, with five unpaid Parish Councillors (the smallest number allowed under the Local Government Act) and a part time clerk. Its total budget is about £6,000 a year. At its last meeting not a little time was spent discussing the Parish Council notice board which until recently was fixed to the wall of a barn in the centre of the village but which has had to be removed to allow building work. Should it be fixed to a wall 50 yards to the west of the barn, making it easier for people on the west of the village to see, or 50 yards to the east, with the opposite effect. In the end a compromise was reached - the new notice board will be a free standing one on the village green, just 10 yards from its old position. Long live local democracy!

Jenny's books

One of Jenny's interests is writing biographies of local people and publishing them in book form under the name "Tomorrow's History". Her first book, "Village Voices - Charlton Horethorne, records the memories of 19 people who have lived all or most of their lives in this charming village - it is a fascinating insight into how people lived in the countryside before, during and just after the Second World War.

 

"Town Tales - Wincanton" is a similar book recording the memories of 20 people in the nearby small town of Wincanton. Both "Village Voices" and "Town Tales" can be bought from Jenny for £5 each, all of which goes to local charities.

 

Jenny's third and latest book is a bit different - it is the story of Heather Moorse who established an animal sanctuary in the nearby village of Stowell and ran it for many years until she retired in 2006. Entitled "For the Love of Animals" it is moves quickly from pathos to high comedy and back again. The price is £6.95 from which Heather Mooorse makes a donation to the local RSPCA.

Happy Birthday Dad!

Happy Birthday Dad! Here is your birthday present, so you can write about whatever you fancy and publish it for the whole world to see, and share some photos. I'll tell you how over the phone and by email. Have a lovely day, with all our love Olly, Sally, Noah, Anna & Libby

PS Here's the photo you emailed to us recently.