Evington Village Fete and Show

Have you bought your raffle tickets yet?

If you haven’t then you can still do so on the day. Tickets are only 50p each or £2.50 for book of 5. The odds on winning are 100,000 times better than the lottery so please buy as many as you can – we will fill your name and contact details in for you. The excellent prizes are listed below. We look forward to your support

1^st Prize Leicestershire Aero Club Trial Flight

2^nd Prize Cash £40

3^rd Prize Boden Clothing £50 gift voucher

4^th Prize Vintage 186 – Cream Tea for Two

5^th Prize Cow & Plough -2 x £20 vouchers Bank of Billy

6^th Prize Wilson B Ragg – Butchers in Oadby £25 voucher

7^th Prize The Dove £25 food voucher

8^th Prize Nazar Barbecue Restaurant – meal for two

9^th Prize Evington Dry Cleaners – £20 voucher

10^th Prize Decanter

11^th Prize Ted Baker “Majestic Marvels” toiletries

12^th Prize The Barber Shop – a free haircut

13^th Prize Fruit Basket – Attfield’s Farm Shop

14^th Prize Decorative Garden Line

Appeal for Tombola Prizes

We are urgently seeking prizes for the Tombola stand at the upcoming fete and would be grateful for the donation of small unneeded but unused items. Anything such as a “not quite sure why they gave me this” gift seeking a new home will be very useful.

When convenient, please drop off at the Post Office counter in J&A Pharmacy on Main Street Evington or call 2735085 for collection.

Welcome to the Fete & Show 10th August 2019

Despite an extraordinary year of rain and drought last year, the number and standard of entries was excellent.

The challenge for everyone this year is to do even better. Within the show schedule there are many categories just asking for your entries, so what’s stopping you?

This year St Denys Church is celebrating 800 years since its founding, which will be reflected in some of the events at the fete, as will the re-enactment group of the parachute regiment who were stationed at the end of Shady Lane 75 years ago. Many of your favourite acts from last year will be with us again including the Morris Dancers, who were superb.

I look forward to meeting you again this year at the fete and seeing what wonderful exhibits you enter into the show.

Chris Hossack

Chairman of Evington Village Fete and Show.

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Thank you to John and Pauline for all they have done

A long time ago in the deep mid-winter in a quiet street in Evington there was a meeting. The founding members of the Fete were moving far away and needed to find new people to run the Fete and Show. They had heard of a rather special couple called John and Pauline Sloan who might help. They knew it would be a challenge but hoped they could be persuaded and asked them to come to the meeting.

That was in 2005, and John and Pauline have been Chairman and Secretary for the last 13 years. We don’t know how they found the time, but are so glad they did. When all is said and done they only meant to stop for 20 minutes. They have done a brilliant job.

Sadly, it is time to say thank you and reluctantly let them retire from the Fete and ease up a little. Having said that, John is still heavily involved with Scouting and many other charities, and the Leicester Tigers and his garden and Pauline is still teaching the white art of sugar craft and involved in her card group, whilst still being our champion raffle ticket seller, and both of them help with their growing tribe of grandchildren.

They have weathered the storms, sometimes literally, over the years and brought together a great team of volunteers who have built the Fete and Show into what it is today. The marquee has grown to 5,000 square feet of space filled with most interesting displays of home produce, jams, vegetables, artwork, pictures, sewing and flowers; in fact, there are 109 classes to go for!

Pauline and John have encouraged, wheedled, bribed and strong-armed and threatened and even remunerated a whole host of people who have provided entertainment, played instruments, Punched & Judied, turned wood, spun wool, made honey, provided first aid, put up bunting, made and served epic amounts of tea and cake, marshalled, managed the site, danced and sung, and written beautifully, staged exhibitions and run raffles and tombola, lucky dipped and kept us healthy and safe.

The Sloans will be a hard act to follow, and we shall miss their cheerful, diplomatic and thoughtful input. But the Fete will go on and we know they will be there. And we hope to see you too – it’s on the 11^th August – it will be fun.

NO BEATING ABOUT THE BUSH – WE NEED YOUR HELP AND WE NEED IT SOON

The first Evington Village Fete & Show was intended as a one-off celebration of the Queen’s Golden Jubilee in 2002. That was 16 years ago and we now need new people with fresh ideas to safeguard its future. The Fete needs a working party, or committee, of 14 people to make it happen and there are seven vacancies which need to be filled.

If you’ve got a couple of hours to spare a month and would love to learn new skills for your CV (project management, catering, marketing, health & safety, fundraising, book keeping etc.), or if you’re interested in helping to keep Evington the vibrant, active village we all love – then please get in touch. Without your help, there is a real possibility that the fete will not take place in 2018; as a new committee needs to be formed by the next AGM on 22^nd November 2017 (7.30 p.m. at the Parish Centre, behind St Denys Church)

For further details or to volunteer, please contact John or Pauline Sloan on 0116 2412 210 or evingtonvillagefete@gmail.com. They would be happy to talk things through and explain what is needed. For a flavour of the fete, and the community spirit it brings, visit www.evingtonvillagefete.org.uk – we really do need you, now!

Prize Winners from the Evington Village Fete Grand Prize Draw 2017

PRIZE WINNER

1^st Prize Leicestershire Aero Club Trial Flight Mrs Eatough

2^nd Prize Bespoke Hand Made Quilt Mrs J Bentley

3^rd Prize Cash £40 Mr A Brooks

4^th Prize “1573” restaurant voucher meal for 2 Mr Pawluczyk

5^th Prize Cut Glass Decanter Jeanette Roberts

6^th Prize Waitrose Basket of Bottles Doreen Morton

7^th Prize Foot Spa Mrs Bates

8^th Prize LCFC guided tour of stadium for 4 Mr Jagger

9^th Prize Limousine Ride (Ginns & Gutteridge) Mary Denton

10^th Prize Dine at The Dove voucher Abbi & Pete

11^th Prize Beauty Products Marjorie Coleman

12^th Prize Box of Tumblers Bill Swinford

13^th Prize Profile Beauty Spa voucher Nicola Davis

14^th Prize Jewellery Box Mrs Yates

15^th Prize Cow & Plough food voucher Mr Morris

16^th Prize Silver Broach Mrs Shilliam

The Day Dawns

Evington Village Fete & Show 2017

Phew! What a week! Monday was damp and iffy, Tuesday torrential rain and Wednesday wet again. Can we hold the fete if this weather continues? Organisers fingernails chewed to the knuckle. Poor old Parks trying to cut the village green without drowning and succeeding through sheer willpower. Thursday dawned brighter and we were back thinking it might be dry on Saturday and Yes, we can hold the fete.

Friday and suddenly all that planning turns into action. Anna and her crew start to set out the Village Hall and do the basic preparations for the sandwich making, cake cutting, scone bashing, jam spooning, price marking and table laying that precedes the mayhem that turns into fresh food on Saturday. The doors open at twelve and they must be ready.

The marquee arrives and their team begins building 5000 square feet of canvas. It houses the Show and the Information point (where are those signs?) and the undercover stalls. Fifty tables and hundred chairs arrive – should we have ordered more chairs says Chairman John under his breath? Can you tell talk from mutter says someone else?

How many stalls, where are they going, who need double plots, First Aid (in the shade?) Ice Cream definitely in the shade, Blood Bikes, Tennis, Birds, Drums, how do we fit them all in? Michael is the man with a plan and 6 cans of marker paint. The grid takes shapes and the plots are numbered. The Port-a-Loos arrive and are strategically placed. The area for the Band to play in is marked and the posts are driven in. The Scarecrows need posts too. Ben and the gang start to festoon the hedgerows with bunting and the Green is beginning to look alive with expectation.

Katherine sets out the Show tent and Nick, our local Man & Van, gathers all the display boards and signposts and all the other things that have been squirreled away until next year. Security arrive (we don’t seriously think anyone will pinch the tent but our insurers are less confident)

The day dawns. The man from traffic management has already set up his signs to close the road and the no waiting cones are out. It is DRY and a hint breezy but holds lots of promise for a fine day. All of the brilliant people who have managed to find an hour or two or even the whole day turn up and begin to direct traffic, fetch, carry, erect the gazebo for the bookstall and set out the books Chris has hoarded over the past year (giving Fiona her front room back), set up the Tombola for Hannah & Steph. Exhibits arrive and logged and positioned – 330 and counting with over 100 classes and something for everyone.

Bouncy Castle and slides arrive and the stalls begin to set up. The Green becomes a melting pot of cars and gazebos and plants and things for sale in all shapes and sizes. The cars are removed, order is restored and a fully-fledged village fete and show emerges just in time for the official opening at 12 noon.

The children have lots to do and see. Blood Bikes to sit on, Have-a-Go circus to try, plates to spin and stilts to walk, tennis to play, owls to see and stroke, and drums to beat, slides to climb and whizz down, and Punch & Judy to enjoy. And ice cream!

Monica Winfield and Ady Dayman from Radio Leicester come and join in. Ady answers gardening questions and Monica swaps stories. The Show tent opens after the Judges have deliberated and made their awards.

The Band plays in the sunshine and The Corn Dolly man sings folk songs and demonstrates his talent in making dolls from straw. The Village Hall has a constant stream of thirsty hungry customers; those needing a quieter place seek out The Parish Centre for tea and cake. The Church is open with an organ recital, singing and guitar playing and a “pop-up” monastery outside. The Chapel enjoys many visitors for its display of old Evington.

Raffle tickets are drawn at 4.30. Cups, awards and prizes from the Show are declared and photographs of the winners taken. Lots of new faces!

And then it is all over. It has been a glorious day and we do hope you came and that you enjoyed it. There will be pictures on the website shortly. If you couldn’t make it we are sorry. If you would like to be involved then please contact John Sloan on (0116) 2412210 – we need a strong committee and it will be fun.

Class 77 – definition does include “home-made cordial”

Class 77 in the Show Schedule says “Best brewed beverage (alcohol or non-alcohol) instead of a simple home-made cordial.

The Oxford Dictionary says “brew” means make (beer) by infusion, boiling or fermentation; make (tea etc.) by infusion or mixture (- up, make tea); undergo these processes, concoct, bring about, set in train, etc., etc., we’ve decided therefore that Class 77 does include cordial 😊

We hope that has cleared that up for everyone and wish you “happy brewing”

The Glorious Twelfth

Where has the time gone? The Fete is nearly upon us there are many things left to do which can only be done at the last minute. Like mark out and number the plots, plan where the ice cream, bouncy castle, first aid, notices, signposts, scout tents, book stall, and port-a-loos all go. Then put out the bunting, erect the marquee, set out the tables and chairs, create the arena, find rubbish bins. Tombola need a gazebo, and tables and 2 chairs and the ticket drum.

The Village Hall needs setting out, and all the preparation for the food, cakes and drinks needs to be done. The Parish Centre needs laying up and St Denys’ chairs arranging and the Heritage & History Group are preparing for the display in the Chapel. Road closure signs will not arrive until late the night before but have to out first thing in the morning. It all go! But as you can see almost none of it can happen until just before the event.

On the bright side so many other things have already been done. Health and Safety assessments have been made and action plans written up. Applications for licences for the raffle, the road closure, and rival market licence have been made, granted and fees paid. The traffic management company has been booked and the toilets ordered. The chairs and tables are hired in and paid for. The marquee is booked and will arrive on the Friday afternoon. The bunting has been checked and the repairs made. Volunteers have been canvassed and lists made. Can you help on the day? Let Pauline on 0116 2412210 know if you can.

The dark art of managing a Show as large as this – there are over 100 classes to be arranged in 3000 square feet of space – depends heavily on our Show Secretary and her dedicated team. They work non-stop once the tent is up to put the tables, drapes and display boards in place – grab some sleep and then do it all over again as the exhibits arrive. Tickets have been printed and cups returned for this year’s winners to receive.

It will be glorious once it is all set up. Please come and enjoy the day. It won’t be the same without you.

The Fete will be open form 12 Noon and will have many attractions as shown on other pages on this website.

“Stop Press” – did you know that Monica Winfield and Ady Dayman, who are presenters on BBC Radio Leicester, will here on the day and will be happy to answer questions about “Clueless” and gardening amongst others.

FETE ATTRACTIONS FOR 2018

IN THE MARQUEE

Horticultural, Art & Craft Show
The Marquee will be open once judging is complete from approximately 1pm until 5pm

BY THE MARQUEE

Official Opening by Assistant City Mayor Manjula Sood

Display of Scarecrows – to be judged by public vote until 3pm

Presentation of Awards & Prizes including Evington in Bloom winners from 4.30 pm

IN THE ARENA

Lutterworth Town Band
The Bakanalia Border Morris Dancers
Lisa Lolly Have a Go Circus

VILLAGE HALL

Light Lunches and Refreshments served all afternoon

ST DENYS CHURCH

Launch of the 800th anniversary celebrations with a painting by numbers workshop

Variety of Displays including Calligraphy

David Letts Singer with Guitar at 2pm

plus: Afternoon Teas in the Parish Rooms

EVINGTON CHAPEL

The Chapel’s display of photographs of old Evington and the Evington History & Heritage Group

ON THE VILLAGE GREEN ALL AFTERNOON

Bouncy Castle & Slide / Mini Fairground Rides / Punch & Judy / Face Painting / Book Stall / Raffle / Tombola / First Aid / Willow Weaving / Children’s Games / Beekeeper / Ice Cream / Leicestershire Constabulary / Leicestershire Fire & Rescue / Blood Bikes/ Craft Stalls /Bric a Brac / Kinder Falconry

More fete attractions are being booked. A full programme will be displayed on the day. All events and attractions are correct at the time of going to press, but subject to change according to availability or at the discretion of the Events Manager.