Christmas Fun!

We enjoyed festive fun at Memus village hall on 8th December, following the ravages of Storm Arwen which postponed our annual Christmas party for a week to allow roads to be cleared and electricity to be restored.

Undaunted, a good number turned out the following week and a jolly time was had by all. Cortachy's very own Countdown team were on hand to test our word skills and pencils were sharpened for a Christmas quiz. Secret Santa delivered some super gifts and a delicious supper was enjoyed together following the games

There was keen competition in the Industrial, Horticultural and Flower of the Month entries

Spiced Virginia Punch 1, Patsy Paton, 2, Margaret Mackie, 3,Tiffaine Speirs 

Christmas Decoration 1, Diane Kercher, 2, Caroline Smith, 3, Lesley Smart. 

Flower of the Month 1, Vicky Houston, 2, Margaret Mackie, 3, Kim Wellington 

Sandra Boath won the Christmas Jumper parade with her own, one off, hand constructed creation, rumoured to be wired up to the National Grid and leaving her living room denuded of Christmas decs!

We meet again in the new year on Wednesday 12th January, when we shall be entertained and educated by a talk on the Mountain Rescue service.

Under New Management

Our new President, Caroline Smith, chaired her first meeting, welcomed a number of new members and introduced our new committee, an inspiring mix of fresh faces and experienced heads, which characterises our institute so well.

 Caroline introduced Katy Groenewald, who spoke on ‘Decluttering your Home’ making the distinction between a clutter and a hoard, the latter of which may benefit from professional analysis to resolve the hoarding habit.  

Katy focused on the need for a change in mind set to understand how to reject clutter and streamline our homes. She summarised a number of current approaches to decluttering and organising from Mari Kondo to Tommy Knowles and explained how to justify whether goods should be kept or removed from the home. An additional process sends ‘uncertain’ items into a sealed box, from which they should not emerge if they cannot make their case, unseen.

 Gloria Mitchell thanked Katy for her empowering advice, recounted her own decluttering of glamorous gowns and thanked tea hostesses, Hazel Hood, Ruth Simpson and Tiffaine Speirs for a very tempting supper.

Competitions

Pumpkin Soup – 1, Michaela Rodgers; 2, Sandra Boath; 3, Susan McLaren;

Most Useless Kitchen Gadget - 1, Hazel Hood; 2, Sarah Mather; 3, Caroline Smith;

Flower of the Month – 1, Diane Karcher; 2, Hazel Hood; 3, Lyndsay Burnett;

December Christmas party – please bring a plate of food and a Secret Santa gift.

Competitions – Christmas decoration; Spiced Virginia Punch (non alcoholic), Flower of the Month.

Rare and Momentous

President Susan McLaren welcomed members and guests to our October meeting for the last time of her current Presidency.

We held our AGM and voted in our new committee with the assistance of the Tannadice ladies who counted the votes for us.

Important as the AGM undoubtedly is, the evening saw a very rare and momentous event take place. Five members, all with over 50 years membership and service to Cortachy Rural were presented with certificates of loyalty to our institute.  Each recipient spoke briefly of what the Rural has meant to her and while the friendship and fun were prominent themes – reluctance to join, the learning of new skills and the rare and the welcome opportunity to make a short get away from the house and family duties also featured.  

(l to r) Caroline Lang, Ella Mackay, May Kidd, Sandra Boath, Margaret Mackie, Patsy Paton.

Our guest for the evening was the daughter of one of our founding members, May Kidd, who has probably served every senior office in the SWRI and many outwith that. One of her grandest sounding titles, which still gives her great pleasure is World President of the Association of Country Women of the World. Many of those who know May feel that ’World President’ is a thoroughly appropriate designation for her.

May told us tales of her mother’s early life attending Cortachy School and her experience as a steward at Edinburgh HQ in the early days of the SWRI. May then recounted the origins of her involvement with ACWW and her rise to being voted World President.

Top points winners for institute competitions - (l to r) Sandra Boath and runner up Hazel Hood. 

Prizegiving for the 2019 -20 session, abruptly curtailed by covid, followed, with May presenting the prizes and expressing her delight at the enthusiasm and support of our membership for the ACWW, and our participation in a fund raising walk for ACWW with babes in push chairs and children on foot.

Competitions

Jar of Autumn Leaves

1, Patsy Paton; 2, Hazel Hood; 3, Sandra Boath;

Jar of Chutney

1, Caroline Lang; 2, Hazel Hood; 3, Sandra Boath;

Flower of the Month 

1, Patsy Paton, 2, Caroline Lang; 3, Margaret Mackie

Caroline Lang thanked the enumerators from Tannadice for helping us find a committee for the new session, despite the closure of their own institute; she thanked May and her sister Jean for maintaining their long family connection with Cortachy and thanked tea hostesses Michaela, Ruth and Sine for a tasty supper.

November meeting – “Decluttering your Home”                 

October meeting

A quick reminder that our October meeting is on Wednesday, October 6th and will be our AGM. Please remember to bring your completed voting form along with you. 

The competitions are Flower of the month, Bunch of Autumn Leaves and Jar of Apple Chutney.

Since we do not currently have a syllabus for the session ahead, I am happy to put information here where it can be accessed at leisure. 

Welcome Back!

Cortachy opened our new session with an informal gathering. 

President, Susan McLaren, welcomed our Honorary President and members back for a very happy reunion after our prolonged break. 

The assembled company enjoyed a tempting supper provided by hostesses, Caroline Lang, Michaela Rogers and Kim Wellington.

We enjoyed our success as institute with the greatest growth in younger membership and to admire our name on the Barbara Brookshire award. Susan previously accepted the award from National President Anne Kerr, with Angus Federation Chair, Alison Stewart looking on.

Indian Head Massage

Susan discussed arrangements for the forthcoming Angus Federation SWI show of Homeskills and Handcrafts in Forfar on March 20-21. She announced that walking netball is to be introduced to Angus federation in the autumn session, and instructional sessions and matches will be held for members wishing to participate.

 

Caroline Smith introduced Jenny Inglis of Pure Beauty salon in Dundee to a large and enthusiastic audience. Jenny demonstrated an Indian Head Massage on a volunteer. After the initial massage, Jenny distributed written instructions and guided us through the process twice more, while members worked in pairs to both give and receive a massage.

 

Sine thanked Jenny for giving us her time and suggested that Jenny might have sewn the seeds of future competition, if members go on to build on their experience of the evening. 

Jenny kindly judged our competitions:

 

Mother’s Day Poem - 1, Rachel Crabb; 2, Sandra Boath; 3, Moira Ronan;

 Hyacinth in water - 1, Patsy Paton; 2, Susan McLaren; 3, Hazel Hood;

 

Flower of the month - 1, Susan McLaren; 2, Hazel Hood; 3, Margaret Mackie;

 

We all enjoyed an excellent supper produced by June Rae, Michala Rogers and Rhiannon MacIntyre.

Burns' Night

Susan welcomed local poet and raconteur, Cmdr Jim Smith and his wife Muriel, from Kirriemuir.

After expressing his surprise at, and appreciation of, the impressive extent and wide age range of the audience, Jim gave us a lively and very informative talk on the life and background of Robert Burns. He illustrated the quality of the Bard’s touching love poetry, quoting lines and verses, before turning to his forte – the dramatic performance of poetry, for which he is renowned in the district.

Jim’s rendition of Tam o’ Shanter was wondrous.

 

With the aid of a few props, his grey mare Meg and the assistance of his lovely wife Muriel who did an excellent act of “nursing her wrath to keep it warm”, Jim took us from the pub to the kirkyard and emerged with a handful of ghostly horse hair.

 

Caroline Smith thanked Jim and Muriel for an entertaining and enlightening evening and the couple judged our competitions. 

Tartan Corsage- 1, Sandra Boath; 2, Caroline Smith; 3, Ruth Simpson;

Whisky Truffles - 1, Jessie Duncan; 2, Tiffaine Speirs; 3, Irene Park;

Flower of the month - 1, Hazel Hood; 2, Sandra Boath; 3, Caroline Lang;

Mary Friedrich, Moyra Ronan and Tiffaine Speirs set out a mouth watering supper and we all appreciated it greatly.

 

A Good New Year to Ain and Aa

Cortachy started the New Year and the new decade on a powerful track with Susan welcoming Amanda Kopell to telling us of her life with her late husband footballer, Frank, and their battle with his Dementia. She told us of their meeting, first date at a football match, first kiss in a game of postman’s knock and their final one, when Frank died in Amanda’s embrace.

As many know, the couple’s work to establish free personal care for under 65s led to the passing of Frank’s Law. Under the terms of the law, in Scotland, personal care should now be available, free of charge at the point of delivery, to anyone who needs it, regardless of their age or the nature of their disability.

Caroline Lang thanked Amanda for telling us of their relentless battle with officialdom to establish this right and pointed out that the whole of Scotland owes the couple a huge debt of gratitude for their strength in pushing on their campaign.

Susan encouraged members to consider entering the inter institute competition, Variations on a Theme. This year’s theme is ‘Journeys’ and the format is that team members read four passages comprising prose and or poetry on the subject. (No props, drama or histrionics required!) 

 

Many members took a final opportunity to complete Angus Federation show applications.

Amanda judged the competitions.

Pot plant 1, Sandra Boath, 2, Patsy Paton, 3, Claire Richardson;

Flower of the Month 1, Linda Cruikshank, 2, Sandra Boath, 3, Gloria Mitchell;

First Footing gift 1, Tiffaine Spears, 2, Patsy Paton, 3, Kim Wellington;

We enjoyed a lovely supper, catered by Hazel Hood, Nicola Macbeth and Su Spink, before setting off for home

Thanks to Hazels Hood and Smart for pix.

Murder Mystery!

December was given over to our Christmas murder mystery party, very successfully organised with great input of time and effort by Caroline Smith and Michala Roger.

Elegantly dressed ladies of the 1920s mingled with a surprising number of gentle - and not so gentle – men at the auction of jewellery and ancient artefacts belonging to the murdered Baroness.

A splendid buffet and light refreshments oiled the wheels of social interaction and curious enquiry as participants attempted to outwit Inspector Clue Do in his efforts to solve the murder mystery.

In some cases this involved concealing the truth, in others laying a false trail and in most, the hope of solving the mystery before the professional detective. 

The evening ended with ‘Secret Santa’ present giving, but in traditional style, not before our elegant guest judge, Davina Farquharson, had judged the seasonal competitions.

Competitions
Christmas Stocking - 1, Sandra Boath; 2, Hazel Smart; 3, Ellen Carleton;

2 Mincemeat Pies - 1, Sandra Boath; 2, Patsy Paton; 3, Sheina Smith;

Flower of the month - 1, Patsy Paton; 2, Margaret Mackie; 3, Sandra Boath;

President Susan thanked all for the very many efforts which made the memorable evening a resounding success and wished everyone a Merry Christmas and safe home.

Cortachy Rural is the Greatest!

Cortachy Rural showed its power and versatility on a dark night of torrential rain, but excellent spirits!

President Susan welcomed a crowded hall to a members’ corners night and introduced some streamlining measures to the housekeeping, following a committee meeting last week.

Hazel Hood taught us how to make a woollen sheep decoration by felting a ball of wool with a barbed needle, and encouraged us to think of entering the needle felting class in 2020 Federation show. 

Some of us discovered just how sharp and barbed the needles are!

June Rae and her daughter Pauline demonstrated Pergemano paper craft and offered to share some donated craft items to anyone interested in pursuing the craft further.

 

Margaret Mackie demonstrated her scone making secrets and produced fresh scones in the hall kitchen.

Susan McLaren’s green fingers turned black as she demonstrated her successful bulb planting techniques and advised prospective planters on materials, equipment, timing and methodology and distributed pre-ordered bulbs and growing medium.

 

Gloria’s jewellery stall featured new stock donations and our streamlined raffle gave us more time to talk, includng wishing June many happy returns of the day!  Michala and Caroline Smith who have been working hard on the Christmas crime front, issued us with our characters for our Christmas “Murder at the Auction” mystery . . .

A lovely tea followed, provided by hostesses Irene Park, Patsy Paton, Sandra Boath and Moira Ronin.

Elsie Nicoll kindly judged our competitions, with the following results.

 Flower of the month – 1, Patsy Paton; 2, Ella Mackay; 3, Caroline Lang;

Apricot & chilli chutney – 1, Margaret Mackie, 2, Sandra Boath, 3, Hazel Hood;

Cheese scones – 1, Sheina Smith, 2, Margaret Mackie, 3, Ruth Simpson;

 

The great spirit of Cortachy Rural came to the fore in a dark and wet car park when I discovered I had a flat tyre and I will be eternally grateful for the practical help and support of Louise nee Myles, Caroline S, Michala, Susan and extra-honorary rural member, Alec Boath who all proved invaluable in getting me back on the road. (Not forgetting those who checked that the job was in good hands before they left.)

I told Angus Federation extraordinary meeting last year and our Federation Press Secretaries meeting last month, how much I value Cortachy Rural and I cannot say it enough. "Thank you all, from the bottom of my heart."

 💖