St Patrick's Day social event fun for members of Whitby Whaler
Members of Whitby Whaler put on their dancing shoes and enjoyed an evening of St Patrick’s Day fun.
Whitby Whaler is the Whitby branch of the u3a.
It provides activities and social meeting covering a whole range of things from walking, philosophy, lectures, crafts etc.
Most of the u3a activities take place in small groups, each led by a group leader.
An exception is the Spring Social events, organised by the committee and open to all members.
These have taken place every year except for a couple of years during the pandemic.
There is usually a theme, and after previous years featuring the 40s and 60s, last year’s Social was held on St George’s Day, April 23, which is also Shakespeare’s birthday.
The u3a drama group, the 3rd Age Stagers, entertained everyone with an amusing sketch based on Shakespearean characters.
This year’s social event was held on St Patrick’s Day, with an Irish theme for the fancy dress competition.
There were a lot of green costumes, and after a lot of consideration by the committee, the prizes went to two “leprechauns”; Alan Holmes, a tall gentleman with a tall green hat, and Cindy Kolter, a shorter leprechaun, complete with beard!
The evening opened with a Ceilidh, with a live band led by Gaynor and Ian Wilkin.
With a caller giving helpful instructions, members were put through their paces and worked up an appetite for an excellent two-course meal, supplied by Sanders Yard Bistro.
Brains were exercised with an intriguing quiz devised by secretary Sandra Goodship, with prizes for members of the winning table.
After dinner and the drawing of the raffle, musical entertainment was provided by folk singing duo Lynda Hardcastle and Alan Rose.
The evening was rounded off with a disco, presented by Derek Robinson, which featured mainly hits from the 60s and 70s.
Next year will be the 40th anniversary of the founding of Whitby Whaler.
The committee is thinking of marking this milestone with a different kind of event, possibly an afternoon tea party.
To find out more about Whitby Whalers, visit www.u3asites.org.uk/whitby and go along to try some of the activities or join one of the coffee mornings in Whitby Rifle Club on the third Saturday in the month.
The next one will be on Saturday May 16, at 10am.