The Rotary Club of Corringham Thameside

For the very first time, the Rotary Club of Corringham Thameside played hosts to Gateway 97.8′s “Battle of the Bands” which was sponsored by the Yellow Advertiser. The final was held at the Springhouse Club Corringham on Friday 20th April and was in aid of the Karis May Darling  Foundation.

With the Rotary Club shield to compete for and the chance of playing live at Basildon council’s Olympic event at the Sporting Village “Sparks will Fly” the competition was fierce.

Several of the finalists have only played together for less than a year, with one playing for the first time in front of a live audience of nearly 250.

Each band played three numbers before facing an interview with comperes Hayley Mac and Harry Carnaby who then invited the judges to pass comment on the performances, X Factor style! Some of the judges comments were met with howls of derision from the same audience, which added to the atmosphere.

The judges marked each band on five separate categories, stage presence, musical performance, audience reation, star quality and originality. Up to 10 marks were awarded in each category and the aggregate score decided the winner.

John Darling, from the Karis May Darling Foundation announced the winner “THE ENDS” and Club President David Fenn presented the shield to the winning band.

The event raised £1356 for the Karis May Darling Foundation.

Over 100 people attended the joint event organised by the Club and Inner Wheel. The quiz was organised to support the “Help Reece Walk” campaign and was held at Orsett Village Hall on Saturday 14th April.

The questions were set by David and Magda Norris who tested the teams on a wide range of subjects. The winning team all received a bottle of wine for their efforts, and a good time was had by all.

Three year old local boy Reece Walker is currently in the USA recovering from the operation that will enable him to walk unaided for the first time. The operation appears to have been a success, with the medical teamat the St Louis Children’s Hospital forecasting that Reece will not only be able to walk but will be able to take part in sports.

To enable Reece to be able to have the surgery, his family had to raise £45,000 in just 6 months, and we are proud to have been part of this fund raising effort. We would like to place on record our thanks to all those who have helped us raise funds for this appeal. The quiz raised a further £800  for the cause.

Laughter is at the heart of our Club meetings, none so much as our annual “Joke and Bad Taste Tie Night ” where we remember past Club members who died in service.

This year we held it on Thursday 12th April. After a short period of silent reflection, the members traded joke for joke in an attempt to win the coveted “Jesters” hat. The winner was chosen by last year’s winner Frank Price who chose Clive Yallop to inherit the hat. Over 50 funny stories were told and the room rocked with laughter as we all enjoyed the evening and remembered our friends and colleagues who are no longer with us.

                                                                                                                                           The Rotary Club of Corringham Thameside staged the pantomime “Jack and the Beanstalk” at the Bowers United Sports and Social Club on Friday 6th January 2012, to raise funds in support of the “Help Reece Walk Campaign”.
Three year old Reece Walker, who requires surgery in the United States to enable him to walk unaided for the first time, was amongst the audience of 190 at the panto which was produced, free of charge, by Chaplin’s Gold Panto’s.
The pantomime raised a magnificent £670 towards the £45,000 Reece’s family need to raise for his surgery.
We would like to express our sincere thanks to Chaplin’s Gold Panto’s, the Bowers United Social Club, who allowed us to use their facilities free of charge for the event, and Gateway 97.8 who publicised it for us.
As the parents and children left the hall, they expressed their enjoyment of the evenings entertainment and several of the children expressed their wish that Reece has a successful operation.
The campaign to raise the £45,000 has now passed the halfway stage and Corringham Thameside have so far contributed over £1,000 to the cause. We will be holding a collection at the Eastgate Centre on Saturday 25th February and hope to organise a quiz night in March to add to this total.