Alex McLeish and Yogi Hughes to support world record bid at Spartans

A game of two halves? Try a game of FIVE DAYS!

football

Imagine running the equivalent of nine marathons back-to-back; imagine burning over 18,000 calories per day while only getting one or two hour intervals for a ‘quick nap’; imagine playing a full season of 90 minute fixtures within four days – that’s the Herculean task facing 36 hopeful World Record Breakers in North Edinburgh this weekend!

Friends, family and teammates of the late Falkirk defender Craig Gowans have been embarking on a gruelling training regime in preparation for their challenge to break the Guinness World Record for the longest 11-a-side football match.

The record was broken just weeks ago at St Mary’s – the 30,000 all-seater stadium and  home of Southampton FC, but from the 4 – 8 July, Ainslie Park, home of The Spartans FC, will play host to one of the most ambitious of Guinness World Record attempts as the team aim to smash the current record.

The Craig Gowans Guinness World Record Match has support from a number of high-profile football associations and charities such as the Scottish Football Association, Football Aid, The Sick Kids Friends Foundation and the Hibernian Football Community.

football

A number of celebrities will also take part in the event, including ex-Rangers, Hibernian and Scotland boss, Alex McLeish. McLeish himself will be acting as a guest manager for the record attempt, while the current Scottish Cup holding manager, John Hughes, will also be there, showing his support.

Former teammates of Craig and current professional footballers, Scott Arfield and Thomas Scobbie have also lent their support to the World Record attempt.

The event has attracted much attention since the plan was formulated by the Craig Gowans Memorial Fund, a fund set up by Craig’s family and friends following his tragic death to ensure that his memory is used as a driving force for good.

Craig, a former Daniel Stewarts and Melville College pupil, died during training aged just 17, when a 20ft long pole used for transportable nets he was instructed to carry came into contact with power lines.  He had signed his professional contract with the club just two weeks prior to the accident.

football

Since the charity was formed in April 2007, the fund has raised more than £80,000, supporting charities such as the Children’s Hospice Association Scotland (CHAS), the Sick Kids Friends Foundation (SKFF) and the Chesney Trust.  The fund has also contributed towards building state-of-the-art educational facilities for children and young adults in places such as Malawi.

The two 18-man squads have already smashed their £37,000 fundraising target, inspired by Craig’s professional number at Falkirk, number 37, and the total continues to rise.

The money raised will be used to fund enhancements to the new Sick Kids hospital at the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh at Little France, specifically a state-of-the-art Snoezelen room in Craig’s name. The space will be a calming room with multi-sensory equipment providing a relaxing and stimulating space for children with sensory impairments.

The Craig Gowans Guinness World Record Committee, made up of Craig’s school friends Jonny Wallace, Dario Alonzi, Eoghan Molloy and Chris O’Shea, are working hard to ensure the event is as successful as possible and raises as much awareness as possible.

Members of the public are invited to the kick-off of the world record attempt at 1pm tomorrow (Saturday 4 July) and to support the players throughout the match until the full time whistle on Wednesday (8 July).

Anyone who would like to check the progress of the World Record attempt can get in touch through the website – www.tcggwrm.org,

on Twitter – ♯CG37www.twitter.com/TCGGWRM37

and on Facebook –www.facebook.com/TCGGWRM

Donations can be made via JustGiving: www.justgiving.com/teams/worldrecord.

For further info contact Jonny Wallace at TCGGWRM37@gmail.com

 

ELREC appeal: Pedal for Nepal

PLEASE DONATE FOR NEPAL: ELREC CYCLES FOR NEPAL

Dear Friends / Colleagues,

Help us to raise funds for Nepal Earthquake victims. Please donate via gofundme http://www.gofundme.com/ELREC4NEPAL or at ELREC. No donation is too small.

On the 25th of April 2015 a powerful earthquake killed more than 8500 people and destroyed many homes, roads and historical monuments. Nepal has declared a state of emergency. The earthquake has left hundreds of thousands of families homeless and without access to drinking water, and reliable and safe food supply.

It is heart-breaking to think what these people are going through after losing their loved ones, their homes and their villages. These are very difficult times for Nepal. Nepal is one of the least developed countries in the world with a very high level of poverty. The people of Nepal need all the help they can get to overcome this terrible disaster.

To support Nepali victims, come join us on Sunday 9 August to raise funds for Nepal. We will cycle along the Water of Leith from the city centre to Balerno and cycle back to the centre.

Please let us know if you will be joining the cycle ride or whether you will be at the meeting and starting point to give your support. Many people have already indicated their intention to cycle the route.

Please wear appropriate clothing, bring your own bicycle, water and snacks. If you don’t have a bike, let us know: we might be able to help.

When: Sunday 9 August from 2pm to 5pm

Where: Meet and startat the junction of Saunders Street and Deanhaugh Street, Stockbridge: EH3 6TU. See route Map (below).

Our goal is to raise £5,000

We welcome all donations whether you are able to cycle with us or not.

ALL FUNDS RAISED WILL BE DONATED to Nepal Scotland Association (http://www.nepalscotlandassociation.org/).

ELREC will provide you with feedback on the use of the funds in Nepal. The funds will help to re-build homes for the victims in villages such of Nuwakot and Gorkha where there is acute poverty.

Thank you in advance for all of your generous donations to help the people of Nepal.

For further information, please contact ELREC by email: admin@elrec.org.uk  or by phone on 0131 556 0441.

Foysol Choudhury MBE
Chair, Edinburgh and Lothians Regional Equality Council
http://www.elrec.org.uk/

cycle route map

More Childcare Academy info sessions

NEClogo

We now have more dates in place for our Childcare Academy Information Sessions:

Friday 24 July @ 10am
Wednesday 5 August @1pm
Wednesday 19 August @11am
Thursday 27 August @ 10am

If you would like to book a place to come along and hear more about the Academy, ask any questions and take away an application pack, please do not hesitate to contact me on 311 6931 or Barbara Webster on 311 6926.

2015 CA Publicity Poster 16+

Audrey O’Neill (Training Administrator)
North Edinburgh Childcare

Normandy remembered

To remember and to celebrate is not to glorify militarism but to show the united will of the people for a peaceful world’ – Tony Delahoy

tony

Local man Tony Delahoy returned to Normandy last month. Below he recalls his personal experience as a young soldier at the key turning point of the Second World War: D Day and it’s aftermath when allied forces at last turned the Nazi tide …

I was a dispatch rider for the 219th battery of the regiment – my motor cycle was a BSA 500cc, a really good machine. My personal armament was a pistol and a sten machine gun.

On the night of 4/5 June 1944 my Unit, the 55th Anti-Tank Regiment Royal Artillery, moved from Great Yarmouth to London docks to embark for France. After sailing down the Thames we joined other ships in the Channel and moved towards France.

After a couple of hours there was a submarine alert but nothing developed; however during the night the ship was later by enemy planes. Their bombs missed the ship but a second attack was made and the ship was hit by a huge electrically-guided bomb. Fortunately this failed to explode – a fantastic escape for everyone! I like to think it was the resistance workers who sabotaged the bomb! The ship stopped for a time, of course, and destroyers stood by to help if necessary.

When we finally reached the coast of France the ship was attacked again, but not hit. I wondered if it was possible the enemy knew our ship was carrying important anti-tank guns?

On scrambling down the nets into the landing craft I found that the pilot of the landing craft was my next door neighbour from home – what a place to meet!

As a dispatch rider my job from day one – and throughout the campaign – was to keep contact with the guns. Finding them in different locations meant many hours of lone travelling on the bike, making a reconnaissance of areas to make sure we knew where the enemy were and at the same time making a mental note of the route taken.

The front line is not a straight line, so it is easy to get into enemy-held areas and coming under fire for doing so! When we were just to the south of Caen I had to reach a gun position – to do this I had to cross a large field, but on leaving the site I was usually targeted by enemy mortar shells. Fortunately these always fell behind me: on subsequent visits to Normandy the gun crew told me they used to bet on which shell would hit the target!

The role of my regiment, which was part of the 49th Infantry Division, was to protect the infantry and to destroy the enemy Panzer tank divisions, preventing them breaking through to the landing beaches and so splitting the front in half. This they tried very hard to do: in the area roughly halfway between the cities of Caen and Bayeux bitter fighting took place around Tilly sur Suelles, Cristot, Fontenay le Pesnel, Rauray and Villers Bocage. Our Division suffered great casualties: a monument to the 49th Division, whose insignia is the polar bear, is to be seen just outside the town of Fontenay le Pesnel (below).

monument

Many escapades on my motor cycle took place in those areas. The enemy left snipers behind to do as much damage as possible and to act as observers; observation of movements brought down concentrated mortar shelling.

Two things cannot be described in writing: the sheer volume of noise of a battle and the terrible stench of dead cattle all around. 

The city of Caen, with it’s road network south of the city, was vitally important for both sides. Many Panzer divisions were concentrated in the area, so after the battles mentioned above our anti-tank regiment moved to the Caen area by way of Pegasus Bridge.

The weather, which had been wet for a few days, turning the ground into deep mud, turned hot, drying the ground out quickly. This meant that any movement raised a cloud of dust, resultng in heavy shelling from the enemy.

My job continued, finding the location of guns; a lonely and sometimes frightening hours-long experience. Night time journeys were more so, but mental notes of a route made during daylight were of great benefit in keeping out of trouble.

The Demouville, Cagny, Freemental Mesnil and Frenouville areas were heavily fought over. During one night time reconnaissance I came upon a chateau near Frenouville which I hoped was deserted. After carefully looking and listening, I decided to stop there in the kitchen and get some sleep. During the night I heard voices – I couldn’t tell whether ours or theirs – but thankfully they went on their way. It was a patrol, but whose I will never know – and thankfully they didn’t spot my motorbike hidden in the hedge!

Caen

Throughout July and August we fought our way south of Caen (above) and with the Americans moving from west to east the enemy was practically trapped. My division then attacked east to reach the River Seine to attack and capture the port of Le Havre: it was vital for supplies and the enemy knew it …

These experiences, mine and hundreds of others – from Normandy and Belgium and Holland too – have led to many of us old comrades returning year after year. Most veterans have returned to Normandy to take part in official ceremonies, particularly at the 50th, 55th, 60th, 65th and now 70th anniversaries of D Day 1944, remembering those who died fighting fascism. Also to visit graves of comrades in beautifully kept cemeteries throughout Normandy. And to see and feel how much the restoration of freedom has meant and means to each succeeding generation; to get an understanding of the sacrifice and courage of the peoples of France, Belgium and Holland during their four years of occupation – and their elation on being liberated.

The most important result of the veterans returning for 71 years, I feel, has been the bringing together of hundreds of thousands of people from countries everywhere, not to glorify war but to celebrate the necessity of peace.

As a focal point the ability of veterans to continue visiting Europe is diminishing, so each generation must be that focal point and guard their future by understanding the events and mistakes that led to World War.

veterans

I was invited to write the foreward to Rene Vos’ ‘Sporen uit het Verleden 1940 1945’, a book about the occupation of Holland as I was involved in the liberation of that area too. I’ve reproduced it below: 

Citizens of Cranendonck Community,

To remember and to celebrate is not to glorify militarism but to show the united will of the people for a peaceful world.

It is important that events of the 1930s and 1940s are told to each generation so they can avoid the ‘mistakes; made during that period: the ‘mistake’ of tolerating racism, the ‘mistake’ of ignoring the fascist states’ determination to expand their control over others, all of which led to world war.

It was the ordinary people of all lands who finally defeated that evil; it is the ordinary people of all lands, armed with the knowledge of the past, that will safeguard the future.

Tony Delahoy

Have your say on youth manifesto

Youth Parliament launches biggest ever manifesto consultation
leadtheway
The Scottish Youth Parliament has launched its youth manifesto consultation to gather the views of thousands of young people across Scotland.
Former Chairs of the organisation, current and former members, and partner organisations gathered at an event in Edinburgh last week to mark SYP’s 16th Birthday, and celebrate the achievements of Members of the Scottish Youth Parliament throughout the years.
The manifesto consultation, called Lead the Way, offers Scotland’s young people an opportunity to be the driving force and shape the years ahead. Members of the Scottish Youth Parliament will be consulting with young people all over the country, about a wide range of policy issues, to establish the biggest youth manifesto ever produced in Scotland.
In 2011, the Scottish Youth Parliament published its 2011-2016 youth manifesto, Change the Picture, which saw around 43,000 young people share their views on a range of issues of importance to young people.
Jordan Linden MSYP, Chair of the Scottish Youth Parliament, said: “As a youth-led organisation, our consultation work is at the very heart of everything we do and forms an invaluable part of our vision and values.
“Young people must be at the heart of discussions about their future, leading conversations in their communities, schools, colleges, universities, and workplaces. Young people are not only the future of our country, they are the present. The purpose of today is very simple, we are asking the young people of Scotland to lead the way.
“Our previous manifestos have given us the mandate to make significant changes in local and national policy, including ensuring 16 and 17 year olds could vote in the referendum and in the Scottish Parliament elections next year. I think it’s fitting that we celebrate these achievements today, but that we also look forward and ask ourselves: what more we can do to empower young people to make significant change?
“Through our manifesto consultation, we will ensure young people’s voices are heard. The views of Scotland’s young people underpin everything we do as an organisation, and our 2016-2021 youth manifesto will allow young people to truly lead the way in championing the issues that young people care about.”
Edinburgh Northern  & Leith MSYP Terri Smith added: “This is our fifth manifesto since we were established in 1999 and back in 2010 we received 42,804 responses to the consultation making it the largest youth consultation in Scotland.
“We have high hopes of doubling the figures from 2010 whilst making sure as many young people aged 12-25 in Edinburgh have their say.
“I’m now the Scottish Youth Parliament current longest serving member so have high hopes for what’ll be my last term as a MSYP. Over the past six years I’ve developed a real passion for ensuring Scotland’s most vulnerable and disenfranchised young people have their say – particularly the young people of Edinburgh Northern and Leith (the constituency I represent).
“Our manifesto is called ‘Lead the Way’ and you can view the online version here https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/LeadtheWayConsultation
the official hashtag is #thewayto2021

UK to observe day of mourning for Tunisia victims

UK flags to be flown at half-mast for Tunisia victims

JUN tunisia

A minutes’s silence will be held across the UK at midday today to remember the 38 people who died on a Tunisian beach last week. Flags will be flown at half-mast across the county and HM The Queen, Prime Minister David Cameron and First Minister Nicola Sturgeon will observe the silence. 

Many public bodies will be marking the day, including:

  • The Scottish government, Scottish Parliament and 2 Scottish local authorities – where four of the victims lived – have opened books of condolence.
  • Foreign & Commonwealth Office staff in the crisis centre in King Charles Street will be marking the minute’s silence – this was the nerve centre for the government’s response to the attack.
  • Police stations across the country will be flying their flags at half-mast and their collesgues in while officers and staff will observe the silence in police stations and at community events
  • Local authorities and schools are being encouraged to mark the minute’s silence
  • Transport for London and National Rail will be placing posters in all stations and will announce over PA systems to remind staff and passengers of the minute’s silence.

A number of sporting events will respect the day of mourning, including Wimbledon, Henley Regatta, the British Grand Prix and the British Horseracing Authority.

The government has also contacted faith leaders of all denominations to encourage them to join the country in remembering those lost in the Tunisian attacks.

The Queen and Duke of Edinburgh will join staff at the University of Strathclyde to mark the silence.

flags

In Edinburgh, all seven flags flying from the City Chambers will remain at half-mast today as we observe a minute’s silence to mourn the British tourists and all others killed in the Tunisian terrorist attack.

Lord Provost Donald Wilson is urging residents to stop and pause at midday as a mark of respect for those killed. He said: “On behalf of everyone in Edinburgh, I would like to express my deepest condolences to those affected by the horrific and tragic events in Tunisia. All seven flags at the City Chambers have been lowered to half-mast as a mark of respect as our thoughts and prayers go out to the families and loved ones of the victims involved. We wish them comfort at this difficult time.”