Your Letters: August 2014
Lance Corporal O’Connor
Charity bags scam alert
Thanks for the trim
House needed
Don’t cycle around Amble
My name is Raimondo Bogaars from Holland, and I am currently writing a book about the soldiers who died during the battles in my vicinity from the 11th until the 18th of September 1944. To get more information of these soldiers I am always looking for relatives of these men.
Yesterday I saw a writing in the guestbook of Leopoldsburg War Cemetery, that was written by a Mrs. Wilkinson from Amble, Northumberland. She stated to be the daughter in law of Eddy O´Connor.
The soldier which I am investigating is: O’CONNOR, EDWARD PATRICK
Rank: Lance Corporal
Service No:2722947
Date of Death: 11/09/1944
Age:23
Regiment/Service: Irish Guards 2nd Bn.
Grave Reference I. D. 13.
Cemetery LEOPOLDSBURG WAR CEMETERY
I was hoping you were able to help me find this Mrs. Wilkinson.
Raimondo Bogaars
r.bogaars@planet.nl
I think that it would be a service to the local community if we could warn all residents of Amble about the fake charity bags we get pushed through our letterboxes every week. The fake ones are quite easy to spot and the Charity Commission provides a guide so that citizens can avoid them: Action Fraud.
The recent bags for ‘Fallen Heroes’ are a prime example of this type of fraud. They are not a registered charity despite having a charity registration number on the bags. It is particularly cynical and disgusting as people will willingly give for a worthy cause but in the fraudulent charity bag case, not one penny goes to a charity. All the clothes are shipped abroad – mostly to eastern Europe and sold for profit.
If in doubt, call the Charity Commission or go to their website and ask if the particular charity is registered. The safest way to ensure that your charity bag donation goes to a genuine charity is to only give to those ones that you know and trust. There is a very good chance that every other ‘newer’ charity bag is a complete fraud.
Kevin McCann
Ladbroke Street, Amble
I see that the Mayor’s Field has now been mowed (at long last!). But I am very grateful, and offer my thanks to whichever body did the mowing. We are very grateful. I am also pleased to note that you have left a strip along the hedge-row on the Caravan Park side of the field unmowed, hopefully for the benefit of local wild life.
Thank you again.
Sylvia & Peter Savage
Via email
We need to rent a house in the Amble area for six months starting in late September while we look to buy. We have two small house trained dogs. It would be good if the house was furnished, but as long as it has an oven, fridge and washing machine we could purchase the bedroom and lounge furniture.
A contained yard would also be desirable. We might also want to continue on a month by month scenario, depending on how our
house search goes. One bedroom is all that is needed, but more is OK.
If necessary we would pay the six months up front.
Michael and Jenny Sullivan
bigoroy@gmail.com
PS: we currently live and own our own house in the Tuscan hills in Italy, so if someone wants to buy our house they can see it at: Housaes in Tuscany.
Amble is on the main bike road between London and Edinburgh, you will see signs for N1 as you go North past Druridge Bay then you come to the outer area of Amble, Hauxley and the cycle path turns into a dirt path for about 500m.
When you come into the car park in the centre of Amble you can find cyclists looking at their maps trying to figure out where the cycle path is! I explain in my best Dutch, they have hid it and you have to go to what looks like a back gate of the boat yard at the end of the car park and then N1 turns into …….. (you tell me) for the next 300m.
If you go to the web page for Amble it tells you what there is for young people in Amble; it does not mention going for a cycle!
When I first arrived in the area of Amble from living in The Netherlands, I took my children on bikes from Broomhill around 8:30am to Amble Middle school and I asked the headmaster where the bike shed was and he went white. He explained that they did not encourage the children to come to school on cycles because of the danger from car users. It was another four days before I understood that it was sensible advice not to ride a bike on roads around Amble with young children; in fact I would
not advise the Tour de France, with its 150 French bike Police to ride around Amble.
I now pass that advice to all the Dutch people not to ride bikes in Northumberland, I haven’t rode a bike outside Northumberland so I can’t say what the rest of the UK is like.
I am impressed with the Warkworth to Alnmouth cycle path with the tarmac top layer on it. I would like to pass on my thanks to the people who are opening up this beautiful part of the world to runners, walkers and cyclists.
If you see groups of cyclists in the main car park, they are looking for the secret pass around the boat yard; see if you
can find it. And we live here so keep safe and stay off cycles; it’s better to be fat than dead.
All the best
Alan Simpson
A2B cyclist (father of Vincent, Mariska, Elske and Catherine).
simpsonvanduijn@gmail.com
