FROME & District Day Centre threw a party to celebrate the retirement of one its longest-serving members.
On behalf of the day centre, Maggi Morris said, “A big party was held for Gerald Franks and his wife Eve, to celebrate his retirement and to show our thanks for all he and his wife have done over the last 17-plus years. He has retired from active involvement as our ‘head of the helm’, however they remain as members, so they will still be attending regularly.
“Chris took to the floor giving thanks and also spoke about the history of the club, mentioning Gerald’s loyalty and unending perseverance raising many, many thousands of pounds and keeping things running smooth and also all his hard unseen work.
“Chris presented Gerald with a cheque for £350 (collected from our regular and new diners) to put towards an iPad that he wants. He and his wife were presented with a lovely bouquet by Dilys Griffin who herself was presented with an equally beautiful bouquet, as she is our longest supporting member (longer even than Gerald). She was in at the start, the very beginning of the club when it was first held in the actual day centre in Gentle Street. Both the bouquets were made by Rachel, one of our talented waitressing staff.
“After the presentation and in response, Gerald gave a very full and interesting retirement speech; there was the occasional burst of applause and some laughter along the way. He thanked numerous people and organisations for their support over the years. He expressed thanks for receiving so much charitable assistance coming from requests he tendered for grants etc. He also thanked the present committee and the previous ones for their loyal support and hard work.
“Chris then took to the floor to give additional thanks to the staff of Catherine House, Cork Street, for asking their chef to make a special cake for the occasion, which they kindly donated. Also thanks were given to Mason of Bluebird Care for supplying carers on Mondays, which have been invaluable and given free of charge.
“Pete Dayman-Johns was our M.C. for the afternoon. He supplied some super entertainment, much enjoyed by everyone the whole afternoon. Competitions, plenty of prizes, sing- alongs and a couple of ‘take offs’ one of which was Elvis Presley. Everyone really got into the swing of the day. Without a doubt there was a wonderful atmosphere throughout.
“I believe the Deputy Mayor, Nick White, correctly summed things up by saying “Gerald is the stitches of the fabric of this community, holding it all together”.” We had many visitors during the afternoon including Rotary, Deputy Mayor, and many others, also the Mayor put in an appearance too. Our thanks to them all.
“Thank you Gerald and of course Eve in her valuable supporting role.”
