Civic Ball Sucess

IN his speach at this year’s Civic Ball, the Mayor of Thame, Cllr David Laver, paid tribute to the many people of the town who give up their time voluntarily to work for the community.
Th Mayor’s guests at the Spread Eagle Hotel, included Mayors from neighbouring town, the Leader of South Oxfordshire District Council, Cllr Patrick Green, and the Lord Lieutenant of Oxfordshire, The Honorable Hugo Brunner and their partners.
Cllr Laver praised the staff at the town hall who had supported him in the organisation of the Ball, and especially thanked his wife, Norma for her support and for, as he put it, “being there in the small, wee hours when the worries sometimes kick in.”
The Deputy Mayor, Cllr David Dodds, praised groups like the Oxfordshire School of Aerobatic Gymnasts in Thame, who, after only two years, had reached international level.
“Their dedication and hard work is an inspiration to the young people of Thame,” he said.
Hugo Brunner spoke about the Queen’s impending visit to Oxford on April 21, as part of her birthday celebrations. He went on to say that Thame faced all sorts of challenges for the future and referred to the town’s hopes in connection with the football team, the future of the hospital, a new libray, the new museum opening later this year and the future of the cattle market.
Claire Davies gave an inspiring speach about both the history and the future of Thame Youth Theatre, one of the Mayor’s chosen charities for his year in office.
After thanking local businesses and the Thame Town Council for their financial aid, she said:”We aim to make the Youth Theatre both affordable and accessible to all children,” and described some of the activities the group has been involved in including street dance as well as scripted work.

For the first time, an official photographer, Rob Wheal, was on hand to take photographs of the guests and, using state-of-the art technology, was able to produce a mounted picture in seconds as a momento of the evening. Rob had committed to giving 10% of the money he took on the night to the Mayor’s charities fund.

Cllr Don Butler was MC for the night, keeping the running order on target and organising the raffle draw, with his usual good humour.