Hand in Hand for Syria is a UK registered charity (No. 1145862) whose aim is to provide medical and humanitarian assistance to civilians affected by the uprising in Syria, this includes people still inside Syria as well as those who have fled to neighbouring countries.

Please consider helping this appeal by buying some of the following and leaving it with me.  Any of the following products below would be greatly appreciated and will be included in the next consignment to Hand in Hand for Syria.

Our Hall celebrated its 90th birthday on Saturday June 29th with a BBQ and live music.  Many folk worked tirelessly behind the scenes to guarantee its success.  During the evening Pat Campbell-Fraser formally thanked Madge Anderson for her sterling work over the years as Hall Secretary. Following a champagne toast Madge was presented with a beautiful piece of art glass, flowers and vouchers from the committee and friends.  Following the BBQ there was live music and many thanks go to Stuart Anderson, Miwa Apthorp, Patrick Friell and Donald Knox.

The ever popular cream teas took place during the Sunday afternoons of July 28th and August 4th and raised £469 towards Hall funds.  These teas have been fully organised ably and efficiently by Cathie Campbell for many years.  Sadly Cathie had decided that this would be her last year in this role.  We all recognise the huge commitment she has made over the years and say thank you.  I am sure that the Cream Teas will remain securely on our Community calendar.

A quick heads up for committee members – the next planned meeting is Monday 23rd September in the small hall at 7:00pm.  Please bring along your ideas for any fund-raising.

A team of four girls from the Duke of Buccleuch pony club including local team member Jessica Friell and her pony Harry won the National Novice Team Show Jumping trophy at last weekend’s Pony Club Novice Championships in Cheshire.

Jessica and Harry arrived home late last Sunday tired but delighted to have won the prestigious trophy, a first for Scotland.

Preliminary rounds have been held this summer across the UK, with over 500 teams competing for 45 team places at the Championships. The girls were delighted to have earned their place at the Championships, but to have come away with the National Novice title was an amazing experience, they all agreed.

Have you heard of mindfulness and wondered what it is?

Mindfulness means paying attention to our moment by moment experience – being fully present and aware, without judgment or preference. It helps us to accept and understand who we are, so we can live our lives more fully. Based on both Buddhist teachings, and recent research in neuroscience, Modern Mindfulness is a secular movement, which uses language without religious or spiritual reference. It can bring wisdom and insight to many fields including healthcare and stress reduction.

Dear Jennifer & Judith,

We have just spent an enjoyable few days with various members of my family staying at Easter House. In common with the rest of us they were considerably inconvenienced by the local road works and diversions, but they raised a question that I could not answer.

Why is it called Martins Bridge?  Or should it be Martin’s Bridge? Who was Martin? Has he fame beyond the Borthwick Water? Perhaps a well-known Border Reiver?

If any of your readers could enlighten me, I, and my extended family, would be most grateful. In case there are other mystified residents, perhaps any replies could be published in a future edition.

Yours in expectation

Colin Plumbe

Latest from Donald Scott (Team Leader, Roads & Bridges)

Work to strengthen and refurbish Martin’s Bridge in the Borthwick Valley is now substantially complete. This is being carried out as part of Scottish Borders Council’s (SBC) bridge maintenance programme to maintain the bridge’s structural integrity for future years and it will also allow the bridge to accommodate the vehicles carrying heavy loads to the new Langhope Rig wind farm.

The main road closure required to allow the bridge works to be carried out, ended on 22nd July with further works continuing using temporary traffic lights to control the passage of vehicles over the bridge.

Scottish Borders Council have released the following statement in relation to the works currently being undertaken on Martins Bridge.  For further information on the Martins Bridge road improvement works please visit the Martins Bridge page on the Scottish Borders Council website: http://www.scotborders.gov.uk/info/900076/current_projects/1243/martins_bridge