2016/17 was a
successful and busy year for the Alliance Francaise de la Cote de Saphir.
First and last on the
Alliance Francaise calendar each year is the activity patronised most regularly
by members and guests and which allows members to share each others’ company
and stories about recent overseas visits.
I speak, of course, of the bi-monthly Petanque games at Mandeni Park
ably organised by Clive Roberts. We owe
a debt of gratitude to Clive for his tireless work in organising this important
activity.
Each year ends with Petanque
Grand Final, a battle better known to us all as the annual Coupe d’Antibes. It takes place in late November and provides
us with the opportunity to hold our annual Christmas Party and BBQ. It’s always
amazing how the combination of a few glasses of French bubbly, the hot
Australian sun, the shimmering sandy piste and a set of heavy steel balls
brings out the competitive spirit in even the mildest souls.
Our other social
activities in 2016 began as always with food.
On 23 October we had our first dinner celebrating French food and the
food of former French colonies with a Cajun Lunch at the Wharf Restaurant. This function was well attended and Secretary
Mike Warren prepared a Cajun trivia quiz to entertain us whenever we were not
actually eating.
In late February Mike
and Lilias Warren generously hosted the 2017 Alliance Francaise Welcome Party
at their home at Tura Beach. Weather
forecasts for the evening were all doom and gloom and we were prepared for the
worst. However, the evening of Saturday,
18 February, provided us with wonderful weather to enjoy the huge feast made
possible by all of those who brought an amazing array of entrees, mains and
desserts.
We had our first film
night for the year in March and viewed ‘La Famille Belier’, a touching story
about a young girl growing up in a family in which both parents had a hearing
disability. Over 30 people attended and
enjoyed the film immensely. 26 of those
attending went on to the Top Pub for dinner afterwards. A second French film. ‘Rosalie Blum’ was offered in August and was
enjoyed by an even greater number of our members. Our French film nights have become a
significant event in our annual calendar of events.
Thursday, 22 June, saw
members of the Alliance trooping yet again into the Warrens’ residence; this
time to take part in the tasting of 6 French wines presented by Brent Mackay of
Amazing Grapes. The event was well
patronised by 18 members and 10 non-members who showed their appreciation by
making a good number of orders for the wines offered.
The annual Bastille Day
dinner which is our flagship event for the year was held at the Tura Golf Club
on Saturday, 15 July. This event was a
resounding success with over 90 members and guests attending. A trivia quiz was presented by Greg Hunting
who awarded bottles of French wine to the winners, and Mareta Collins led us
all in a hearty rendition of La Marseillaise.
The evening finished with a good number of our group getting up and
dancing to a selection of French music provided by Hilaire Alba.
But our Alliance is not
only about eating good food and tasting good wines; we are also serious about
learning and maintaining our French language. A French conversation group is in its infancy
and meets every Friday morning at 11.00am at the Tura Marang Library. The purpose of the group is to provide an
opportunity for fluent speakers to catch up and to keep those rusty wheels
turning. The group is open to all who
are able to participate in fluent French conversation. For those who are not fluent but wish to
improve their French, or begin to learn, we provide resources through our
collection at the Tura Marang Library.
Former committee person, Julie Welsh, organised the removal of our
library from the Pambula Pool premises to the newly established Tura
Marang. This not only saved our collection
of books, CDs and magasines from a mouldy lingering death on the pool premises
but made them much more accessible to members, especially those living in the
Merimbula/Tura area. I would like to
recognise Julie’s considerable efforts in dealing with Bega Shire staff and
bringing this move to a successful completion.
We also seek to
stimulate interest in learning French by awarding prizes to students in French
at the South Coast Anglican College.
May I conclude by
noting that membership of our Alliance is on the increase and that attendance
by both members and non-members at our events is growing. I believe that we are in this rather happy
position because we are keen to learn what the members want and find the best
way to provide that to them. More
importantly however, is that we have a committee of skilled and active people
who do what they do well and freely.
May I take this opportunity to thank Secretary, Michael Warren,
Treasurer, Kerry Hunting, Editor-in-Chief of La Mouette and maestro of
Petanque, Clive Roberts, and committee members Mike Quinlan and Hilaire Alba
for all of their work over the last 12 months.
