The Alice Adventure ran from May to December and featured a wide programme of activities based on Lewis Carroll’s well loved tales of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass.
Former Lyndhurst resident Alice Hargreaves was told the stories as a child in Oxford and, fortunately for us, she asked for them to be written down for her.
Looking back over the many and varied events of the Alice Adventure 2009 it seems impossible that we did so much.
Our aims were to promote community well being and to support local youth projects.
Our Alice, eight year old Sophie Goulding, whose grandparents run The Mad Hatter Tearooms, presented cheques at a Presentation Evening at The Vernon Theatre.
The local Brownie Guides, Guides, Kidzone Drama, Lyndhurst Community Centre’s new Saturday Children’s Club, Lyndhurst Pre-school, Rainbow Guides, the Scout Movement, St Michael and All Angels Young Church, Swan Green Young Cricketers and the new Youth Club have all benefited from a share in the Alice proceeds.
Some money has already been spent on items from new tents for camping, drama equipment, books and toys to a new cooker and fridge for the almost complete Scout Hut.
Organising each event required a tremendous amount of time, energy and commitment from many dedicated supporters too numerous to name individually.
The many organisers, friends and committee members were thanked at the Presentation Evening but we would also like, in Forest Link, to express our appreciation for the churches who have offered so much support.
The Baptists provided meeting rooms, a band concert and, together with the other churches, a sunny Alice picnic in the beautiful grounds of Appletree Court.
St Michael’s hosted the breathtaking Alice Flower Festival, organiser Pat Wyeth, the wondrous display of local talent in the Art Festival ably organised by Margaret Wood, a delightful Song for Alice Concert by the Woodside Singers under their conductor Robert Osborne, climbs up the belfry with Paul Trend, and the premier of Nick Mellersh’s new play Alice in Lyndhurst. Nick’s play aptly complemented Jenny Green’s dramatic production of Alice at Queen’s House which won a costume award.
Nick is taking his play to the Alice Festival in Oxford this July – a real compliment to his talent.
Thank you to everyone who helped make the Alice Adventure such a success.
Comments have included ‘I’ve met such nice people’, ‘There was a real community buzz,’, ‘I’ve found out so much about my local area and been to new places’, ‘It was good to be part of something local and worthwhile’, ‘It’s really made a difference’, ‘Why wasn’t it done before?’
In the book Alice wakes up and finds it was all a dream. Tim Burton’s Alice in his new film, which picks up the story with an older Alice, has half forgotten memories. What will you, your family and the village remember?
Angela Trend
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