The President’s Weekend – a Report by Richard Mills

This year’s President’s Weekend took place from the 7th- 9th of September at Hastings.  Altogether there were 40 brothers, their wives and circle ladies.

The hotel was a real surprise, in very fine original condition full of ornate Victorian touches and very large bedrooms with some even having spiral staircases leading down to the wardrobes.

The weekend started informally on Friday evening with some eating in the hotel and others dining in the town, with an assault on the amusement arcades and a competitive game of air hockey between two of the brothers.

The main event during the day on Saturday was a trip to Battle Abbey and the Battlefield, history, culture and a cream tea!  We all joined together for dinner in the hotel in the evening and there was still enough energy left in some to go intoHastings in search of more entertainment and even some dancing was rumoured to have taken place.

Sunday morning Mass was at St Thomas of Canterbury and Holy Redeemer Church in Hastings, a beautiful church and a vibrant parish, well worth a visit for anyone staying in Hastings.  We were invited to join Hastings Circle at their Ladies’ Lunch at the Azur Restaurant on St Leonards Seafront and the two circles enjoyed an excellent and leisurely lunch with Croydon winning more than their fair share of the prizes in the raffle held to raise funds for their President’s Charity.

The weather during the weekend was better than we dared hope, sunshine all day every day. Altogether it was a very enjoyable weekend, Mary and I would like to thank everyone who came and supported us and thanks again for the gifts presented to us both on Saturday night.