This year's poppy parade shows respect
WAR veterans will march through Riverside during this year's Remembrance Day parade and avoid last year's degrading change of route that took them through a covered car park.
Royal British Legion's Major Bob Fisher said last year's events had been ‘very disappointing and degrading' but he was happy with the new route following meetings with authorities.
On Saturday, November 11 at 10.45am there will be an Act of Remembrance when the Hemel Hempstead branch of The Royal British Legion holds a commemorative parade by the bandstand in Marlowes, with the Mayor of Dacorum, Cllr Catherine Appleby expected to attend.
On Sunday, November 12 at 9.50am local dignitaries will assemble in front of the Civic Centre to join the Remembrance Day parade along Marlowes.
It will go past the bandstand and into Riverside and across the bridge, turning immediately left to rejoin the private service road to the main roundabout and then on to the service at St John's Church, Boxmoor, from 11.15am.
“I think the route will give the parade a much higher profile,” said Major Fisher.
A planned parade in Berkhamsted will meet in the Lower Kings Road car park and march to St Peter's Church for wreath laying and a service at 3pm.
On Sunday morning Remembrance Day services followed by wreath-laying will also be held at Holy Trinity Church, Potten End and at St Mary's Church, Northchurch.
At 11am in Tring on Saturday, a Service of Remembrance will be held in Tring Cemetery, with the sounding of the Last Post.
On Sunday, November 12, the muster will be outside Tring Church at 2.30pm where wreaths will be laid on the square prior to the service in the Church of St Peter and St Paul.
Standards will be carried into church and the service will be attended by representatives of the Tring Town Council and ATC - also with standards.
In Little Gaddesden the Royal British Legion will meet at the village hall to march to the war memorial on the green for a Service of Remembrance at 10.45am.
Youth groups and school children will be joined by representatives from the Women's Institute and Little Gaddesden Parish Council, who will lay their own wreaths.
The ceremony will be followed by a march to Little Gaddesden Parish Church where the service begins at 11.15am
At Kings Langley, the Royal British Legion are holding a Remembrance Service at St Paul's Church at 3pm, followed by wreath-laying at the war memorial. There will also be a Remembrance Service at Langleybury in the morning.
Christmas Festival to be bigger
and better
ONE of the most popular nights on Tring's social calendar is to be even bigger and better this year.
The town's Traditional Christmas Festival, formally the Victorian Fiesta, will be held on Friday, November 24 from 6.30pm to 9.30pm.
This year Tring Together is organising the event for the first time and there will be more to see, buy and enjoy.
There will be more stalls selling homemade Christmas gifts, decorations and cards, a farmers' market selling local produce and a Champney's stall to name just a few.
Late night shopping, with shops staying open until 9.30pm, will also be on offer.
An exciting variety of entertainment will be keeping guests happy with everything from Father Christmas to Morris Men.
For the first time there will be a stage in Church Square, sponsored by Nash Partnership, featuring a programme of performances from local schools including Tring Arts Educational School and Tring School, as well as local artists in association with Tring Arts Trust.
Plenty will be on offer for all the family including children's entertainer, Colonel Custard, performing in the Victoria Hall, stilt walkers and fairground rides as well as the old favourite steam powered Merry Go Round.
Melanie Matthews from Tring Together said: “The festival has always been a highlight of Tring life, we get a huge turnout every year and it's always a must attend event.”
Piano night at church
A CONCERT of piano music will be held at St Martha's Methodist Church in Tring this weekend.
The concert on Saturday at 7.30pm features David Berdinner and pupils from his piano class.
Admission is free, but during the performance there will be a collection for Christian Aid.
St Martha's Methodist Church is at the junction of Park Road and Chapel Street in Tring.
Wall street crash ‘one of those things'
A TRING salesman got a nasty surprise when he discovered his brand new Peugeot 407 had been crushed by a collapsed wall.
Andy Frechter found his car buried under the rubble in Park Road, Tring when he left his home for work at around 7.15am last Wednesday morning.
But the 37-year-old is taking a surprisingly calm attitude towards the wreckage.
He said: “It's one of those things, a wall had fallen over onto my car. It was a bit weird, but it's just one of those things.”
Mr Frechter, of Henry Street, has always parked his car in Park Road since moving into the area five years ago because there is no space to park outside his home.
He thinks that the first snap of cold weather on Tuesday night could well have been the cause of the wall crumbling.
Mr Frechter explained: “The lady living in the road said she heard a big rumble and then my car alarm going off.”
The silver Peugeot vehicle is Mr Frechter's company car so at the moment he is using a rental car to get around.
School pupils with Down's syndrome star in nationwide film
Trio star in virtual guide to showcase school life
by Victoria West
victoria.west@ccnltd.com
THREE Tring School pupils with Down's syndrome are helping other youngsters get to grips with life at secondary school through a virtual guide.
Alistair, 16, Stephen 15 and Olivia, 13, were filmed giving a tour of their secondary school and showing what a typical day is like.
The guide is to help pupils make the move from primary schools into secondary schools, which can be overwhelming for many children.
It has proved such a hit that the Down's Syndrome Association has ordered 1,000 copies to use nationwide.
The Secondary Transfer Guidance gives tips to youngsters, parents and teachers on how to prepare for moving up to secondary school.
Top tips include having a map of the school, using an illustrated timetable and allocating a buddy to show a new pupil around.
Alistair, who is now in Year 11, was Tring School's first Down's syndrome pupil and is a success story.
Many of the strategies used by the school to make life easier are featured on the CD Rom.
Carol Oxley, head of learning support at Tring School, also took part in the film.
She said that although the guide focuses on children with Down's syndrome, it is useful for all children moving from primary to secondary school.
David Lloyd, executive member for education, said: “It's a big step moving from the small world of primary school to the much wider horizons of life at secondary school.
“These pupils are doing tremendously well, which shows that with careful planning, young people with Down's syndrome can be positively included in mainstream secondary education.
“We led the way in introducing the guide and I'm delighted that children all over the country will be able to benefit from this valuable resource.”
Tring School's learning support department is called on by other schools and parents to give advice based on their own experiences.
Mrs Oxley said: “The learning curve that we have been on has benefited other schools.
“We get lots of visitors now to talk to and tell them what we do.”
The guide was written by Herts County Council's Special Educational Needs (SEN) advisory team.
Operations director for the Down's Syndrome Association Julian Hallett said: “This wonderful practical guide gives schools and families a strategy to ensure that this important time is as positive and stress-free as possible.”
First step marked for canal restoration
A SPECIAL ceremony has been held to mark a milestone in the restoration of the Wendover Arm of the Grand Union Canal.
Two footbridges over the stretch of canal have now been completed by volunteers.
Chairman of the Chilterns Conservation Board, Sir John Johnson unveiled a bridge naming plaque dedicated to the board - the main sponsor of the footbridges.
One of the bridges has been named The Chiltern Bridge in recognition of the board's support, which gave £10,000 to the charity- enough to pay for the structure of one bridge.
Volunteers from the Wendover Arm Trust are dedicated to restoring the section of the historic canal which has not flowed since 1904.
The second phase of restoration that volunteers are working on is for the section between Little Tring and Drayton Beauchamp.
Publicity officer for the Wendover Arm Trust John Savage said: “It is an important milestone. As before we can re-line the canal and get the water back into this section. We had to have these bridges put up. It is an essential first step.”
The bridges, which are made from sustainable timber, cost £30,000 to buy and install.
They were erected by volunteers from the canal charity, despite them having no previous experience of such a job.
This section of the restoration project is expected to be completed in around four years time.
Hundred up for Council
TRING Youth Town Council is celebrating its centenary meeting this afternoon (Wednesday).
Budding politicians will meet at the Council Chamber in Market House, Tring at 3.45pm.
The youth council has put aside time on their agenda to celebrate the one hundredth meeting.
Website guide puts pubs and hotels on the map
A NEW website that tells you all you need to know about what to do and where to stay in the Chilterns has been launched by a man from Tring.
Sim Bowman, of Chiltern Way, has set up the website www.chilterns-stay.co.uk that gives a full list of accommodation, restaurants and activities across the region.
He said: “It's an accommodation website mainly, but offers a lot more. It offers tourists and users all the information they need to organise a stay in the area.
“The advantage it offers to people who advertise is, it shows up very strongly on all the search engines.”
The website is a portal to hundreds of different hotels and restaurants, including The Greyhound in Aldbury, which is featured on the site.
Mr Bowman added: “If you've got a website it might look great but if no one can look at it because it doesn't show up on the search engines then it is not that much good.
“With my website it is already at the top of the search engines for searches on the Chilterns so I've done the hard work for you and you just put a link there.”
Mr Bowman, whose background is in sales, discovered the opportunity to develop the site while surfing the net.
He said: “I came across a site which was offering the chance to run websites on different parts of the country. I was provided with the software and name and I had to develop the site which took about six months and now I've managed to get it to number one on Google.”
Friends rally round to make glamorous dream come true
Fairytale evening at ball for brave Lauren
by Victoria West
victoria.west@ccnltd.com
TERMINALLY ill Lauren Chambers was treated like a princess for a night during a special ball in Aldbury.
Residents in the village pulled together to organise the weekend bash for 16-year-old Lauren to help make her life extra-special.
Lin Ranson, one of the organisers and a close family friend, said:
“We do not know how long we have got to give her treats, which she so desperately deserves, but we are doing everything we can to make her time with us as special as possible.”
Lauren, of Stocks Road, was chauffeured to the glamourous party on Saturday night (November 4) in a horse-drawn carriage.
Mrs Ranson said: “She looked absolutely lovely, everyone clapped. There were so many people there, her aunt had come all the way from New York and people had come from all over the country.”
The teenager, a Tring School pupil, was first diagnosed with a brain tumour when she was just five-years-old.
She underwent radiotherapy, which was a new type of treatment at that time and courageously beat the cancer.
Lauren was the first child in the UK to have survived her particular type of cancer at that time and doctors put this down to her being such a fighter.
Since then she has had to have regular tests and medication and because of the intense treatment her body has not grown in the same way as other children and she has had to take growth hormones and drugs.
Tragically in June Lauren was diagnosed with cancer again and this time doctors say the tumour in her intestine is terminal.
She was told the devastating news, that the cancer cannot be beaten, just two-and-a-half weeks ago.
Friends of the family in Aldbury have rallied around to organise trips and special days out for the teenager including going to the XFactor show and Blue Peter.
But what Lauren really wanted was a ball. Mrs Ranson, also of Stocks Road, said: “The day Lauren was diagnosed she said it was the one thing she really wanted to do. So we decided we had to do it in style.”
Her wish came true on Saturday night with a ball held on the recreational ground under a massive marquee. It was such a hit that the party went on until 4am the following morning.
Caroline Neill, who also helped with the party, said: “This is something Lauren wanted to do as one of her final wishes.
“She loves dressing up and she loves glitz and glamour.”
Lauren was accompanied by her parents Annie and Colin, 12-year-old sister Stephanie and eight-year-old brother Christopher, along with around 300 friends and family. Melodic duo
in Klass show GMTV presenter Myleene Klass was in Marsworth this week to film and interview leading new age musicians, Llewellyn and Juliana for the Lorraine Kelly show.
The duo, who live in the village, did a live performance of their song "Believe in Angels" from the forthcoming Llewellyn album ‘An Audience of Angels', which is expected to be shown on ITV on the November 14.
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