CHARITIES BOOSTED BY WORDS OF WISDOM
THEY sit around a table in a
quiet corner of the library. And they spread out their work – a slick computer
printout, a screed of immaculate handwriting, an exercise book, a story
scribbled on a notepad.
Cleveley's Writers For Charity have many different ways
of expressing themselves but they all have two things in common – a love of
words and a delight in sharing the many varied styles and ideas that flow from
their fertile – and very different – imaginations. Here’s a vivid picture of
life in a cotton town as a group of people travel to work on the early morning
bus. There’s a poem about the way a relationship between a man and a woman can
move from love to violence and despair. A father tells his daughter all the
things she must remember in life – from brushing her teeth to staying safe on
the street – even though she’s only three days old. Two old pals recall school
days over a pint or three - a world of
violence, practical jokes, and savage physical punishment with a bit of humour
thrown in. And what seems to be a fantasy
tale of magic birds and Venetian scenes turns out to be a real-life peep inside
the Bowes Museum.
Cleveley's Writers For Charity
does not exist in splendid isolation – it’s part of the community. Apart from
providing a brilliant leisure time activity for like-minded people, the group
raises money for chosen charities Salvation Army and the Multiple Sclerocis
Society and goes out to work with groups as diverse as the Blackpool,
Fylde and Wyre Society for the Blind and veterans of the National Service
Association.
Chairman Malcolm Brocklehurst
says: “ We are a group of Free Thinkers and we like to express ourselves in
writing prose and poetry. We also like to put something back into the community
through our charity work.
” Cleveley's Writers - Writers For Charity was formed in 1999
and sprang from a project called Litfest which was linked to Lancaster University
and aimed to encourage people to express themselves through the written word.
The
Cleveleys Group meet on the last Tuesday of each month at Cleveleys Library. They also have an
offshoot named 'Verse at the Vic' that meets 7-30 at the Victoria Hotel
in Cleveleys on the last Monday in every month.