SPA UK Sandesh 2013 | Page 70

S PA L u t o n Keech Hospice Bhajan Bhojan Race For Life A Great Year Luton! - “Thank you Luton members for your support,”! Namaste, his year has been a good year for Luton Branch. Things have started to pick up for the Samaj after a few quiet years. In October last year we held our annual Bhajan Bhojan and Shree Jalaram Mandal from Northholt delighted us with joyous bhajans which were greatly enjoyed by everyone that attended. A donation of £151 was presented to Keech Hospice in Luton in memory of our beloved departed.. T In November our annual Dinner Dance event was held with a Mehfil theme. The live group was Rangin Kala and we had over 100 attending of all ages. The music on the night varied from older songs to some more fast paced Bhangra beats. Around Christmas, we took some of our younger members to see Aladdin performed by the Griffin Players at the Library Theatre in Luton. There was lots of laughing and shouting by all and some people even got soaked with water guns! 68 In Luton there is a float which goes round in the leading months to Christmas collecting funds for Keech Hospice. Some members of our branch (namely, Arunbhai, Ashockbhai, Yogeshbhai, Dineshbhai, Ushaben, Kirtiben, Devinaben and Anilbhai) took part in collecting funds from the Bramingham residential area. These volunteers gave their time and were knocking on doors on a freezing evening whilst smiling and singing Christmas songs. We held our annual Summer BBQ on the last Sunday in June which coincided with the HQ Family Fun Day. We had an excellent turn out for our branch with upwards of 8 families attending. The day was excellent with HQ organising a few different activities including Tug of War and Bingo. Just prior to this, some of the Mahila from our branch took part in Race for Life 2013 in Stockwood Park, Luton. At the beginning of August we had a Beach Trip to Margate. We were lucky enough to have the weather hold out. The temperature was upwards of 25°C and there were barely any clouds in the sky. It was good to see a few regular faces and even better to see new ones. Over the spring and summer period in the evenings, whenever the weather was good, some of our members and their families took to the hills surrounding Luton to take some country walks. It was a great way for community members to mingle and catch-up for a few hours. This year has been good so far and we hope the next one is just as prosperous. Wishing everyone a Happy Diwali and a Prosperous New Year. Jai Shree Krishna, SPA (UK) - Luton Branch