From the Editor

The Summer that never was seems to have come to an end and now we’re into Autumn. I  never like to think about Christmas until well into December - perhaps because I have  birthday in December-  but, with a Christmas Dinner planned in the Village Hall on 15 December, plans must be made. Please look at the back page of the Link for information about the dinner and hurry to get your tickets.  This will be a popular event and numbers are limited!  

December is also an appropriate time to look back at the year in Needham.  It has been a busy year with a variety of social events.  The Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Tea Party stands out as a very special occasion when, despite the unseasonably cold weather, people turned out in force and the celebrations went on well into the evening. The beautiful oak Jubilee bench is now in position in the grounds of the Village Hall.  Apart from the Jubilee celebrations there was the annual Cake Bake , Open Gardens, the Auction of Promises, which raised a fantastic sum of money and the late summer BBQ. All these events served to bring the people of Needham together.  

Congratulations to Caroline Dear (secretary of the Village Hall Committee & chair of the Jubilee Celebrations Committee) who was nominated for a South Norfolk Queen’s Diamond Jubilee 2012 Community Award.  It is just reward for her hard work on the organising committee for the Jubilee celebrations earlier this year and for other village events.  The photograph on the front cover shows Caroline with Stewart White (BBC Look East) who hosted the awards at the John Innes Centre in Norwich on 19 November.  Well done Caroline!

Once again, thank you to our regular contributors and also to a new contributor, Sue Simmonds who has written an interesting piece about her house, The Old Fishmongers.  There will be more in the next edition.  If you would like to contribute an article or have any news about Needham please contact Helen at Mill Farm Cottage or at needhamlink@gmail.com

The deadline for the next edition is 14 December. 

Although it’s only November, may I wish you all a very Happy Christmas!

Helen