The Village Hall was full of model railways
Cranleigh Rotary’s 50th anniversary year is being celebrated by a number of major public events and fundraising activities. The most recent event was the Festival of Model Railways, which took place on Saturday, 21 September. Some 20 exhibits, provided by Surrey, Sussex and Hampshire Model Railway Clubs, were on display along Village Way and inside the Village Hall, Guide HQ and the Band Room.
One of the most interesting layouts was the old Cranleigh station and outbuildings perhaps the last opportunity to see the actual layout of the station grounds before it closed in June 1965. Outside there were stalls to browse and several steam engines in operation.
To add to the excitement, there were several layouts for young people to actually ‘drive’. Another complete layout, with a value of at least £250, was raffled at the end of the festival and the proud winners were Peter Phillips and his son.
Some 400 adults and children attended and the profits from the event, expected to be in the region of £2,000 (including a top-up donation by the Club), will be donated to Shooting Star Chase Children’s Hospice near Guildford.
“It was a wonderful occasion, and I am delighted that we were able to raise a substantial sum to support Shooting Star Chase,” said Rotarian Tom Cornwell, the organiser of the festival.
The old Cranleigh Station layout which was made and run by three generations of the same family.
50 Mile Anniversary Walk Cancelled
Between 4th and 6th October, Cranleigh Rotarian Gill Leslie was intending to walk 50 miles across the Surrey Hills in order to raise funds to support two Rotary-backed development projects in Zambia. Unfortunately, Gill suffered an injury during training, which meant that the walk had to be cancelled.
Jill said: “I am devastated. I initiated this event and have extensively trained to do this at times hilly walk. I am extremely sorry to cancel it and would like to thank everyone who supported the planning of this event. I hope Cranleigh Rotary will find other ways of supporting the two Zambian charities.”
