From the President

 Dear all,

It is from Germany, The Netherlands and France that I am writing to you this month; France where Wal and I will celebrate Christmas with my family, as well as my Mum’s 95th birthday and where we are looking for new stock!!! When I say “stock”, I am talking about ideas for our French Corner topics, films for our movie nights, articles and photos to take you on a stroll and, for the home cooks among us, a couple of classic, or not so classic, French dishes, so if you are planning to dazzle at your next dinner party, hopefully you will give these recipes a try.

On 9 November, 27 of our members attended the screening of The Kitchen Brigade and, judging by the applause at the end of the film, it was a great success. The film certainly has a political point of view, but it's also a funny and moving film and for those of you who couldn't make it to the screening, I highly recommend you borrow the DVD from our library (ask Rhonda if you don't know how).

I thought it would be useful, both for new members and to facilitate our encounters, to get to know our members better. So I would like to suggest that we use our "Coin Français/French Corner" to present biographies from time to time, the first being that of Brigitte Leroy. You all know that Brigitte has been a member of our Alliance for several years and that she has been a French teacher for many of you, but did you know that she was a Business Analyst for a Stockbroker Company and that she was also a white swan at one stage in her life? Find out more starting on page 4 of this month's newsletter.

I would like to invite you all to attend our Welcome Party on the 10th of February 2024, which is always a wonderful evening and the perfect time to help us build some great projects together for the coming year! As usual, Mike will be sending you an e-mail in good time with details of the evening.

Christmas is around the corner, time for feast organising, home decorating and all the bits and pieces that come before Christmas, such a lovely time of the year… I wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year, un très joyeux Noël et une excellente nouvelle année.

Sylvie