http://www.rotary-ribi.org/clubs/homepage.php?ClubID=1317

Market Rasen Rotary, New Life Church, Serpentine Street, Market Rasen (2026)

20/10/2026

Market Rasen Rotary have collected, and then delivered, a horsebox full of goods to be sent to Ukraine.
Rotarian Bill and Phillipa Emms delivered the much sort after load of support to Convoy4Ukraine collection point near Cambridge, and from there it will be transported by vehicles being delivered to Ukraine, to hospitals and distribution centres in the war battered country.
The load contained goods collected not only by Rotarians in our District of Market Rasen and Caistor, but also from Lynn Atkinson, another supporter, who collects goods in Blyton, near Gainsborough.
Convoy4Ukraine can be found on your search engine, (Google etc.) and well worth a read, outlining the fact that they utilise over 600 volunteers, have delivered 344 vehicles to Ukraine, in 26 separate convoys. Vehicles are filled with aid. Certain items are always in demand, including tourniquets, sterile dressings, generators, and power banks—as well as sanitary products, medical supplies, tacmed – tourniquets*, bandages, chest seals and so on. And yes, dry cat and dog food are welcome too also energy bars, and of course 4x4s, and ambulances and donations!
The horsebox of supplies sent by Market Rasen Rotary included walking frames, crutches, commodes, catheters, incontinence pads and pants, saline flushes, syringes, bandages, polyester slide sheets, medical wipes, and protein feeds. If a use by date is indicated then it should be within date + 6months, to ensure easy passage through country borders. Generic pain killers are accepted too, but medications other than those can cause problems at border crossings. On arrival at the Cambridge collection centre, goods are bar coded and boxed to allow easy passage through Border customs, en route to Ukraine.
The stories of delivery of the convoys by normal people who choose to volunteer, can be read in the article you can find (Convoy4Ukraine), and are as exciting as the best novel you have read.
Market Rasen Rotary started its work 3 years ago supporting Ukraine, with an appeal for funds to buy generators following the production of a film, made using Ukrainian families living here in the villages around Market Rasen. The film can still be seen at https://youtu.be/7NouY-oWFO8
Market Rasen Rotarians continue to collect items as listed above as does Lynn Atkinsin of Blyton. Contact details: David on 07889 558 779; Malcolm on 07551 759 116, and Lynn on 07866 201 144.
Please contact us.
*tacmed – tourniquets: A durable, everyday-use pouch with tourniquet for quick access. These can be purchased from websites.

Rotary District 1220 - News Around 1220

13/10/2026

Market Rasen Rotary celebrated its’ 50th birthday by bringing together as many friends as it could muster at the Festival Hall, Market Rasen, on Sunday 11th October.

104 guests enjoyed a 4 course meal, very capably provided by Eve Bennett and team interspersed with competitions, prizes to be won, and delightful singing from Emma Kelsey.

We were honoured to have 24 Former Rasen Rotary Presidents and many current members attending the lunch and also family members attending on behalf of former members of the Club: Anne Lewis, Penny Lyle, Joyce Williams, Rtn. Gill Smith Rotary Club of Colonia (on behalf of her Father Les Thorne). Also a special mention should be made of other attendees, Bess Scott Gunn, (widow of our Founder President, Paul) and Mary Kerr, widow of Founder Member Archie.

Their presence was particularly special because, as every Rotarian knows, being a Rotarian is never an entirely a solo occupation and family support, patience and understanding is vital.

Current President, Rtn. Malcolm Stimpson addressed the gathering.
“A Charter is always a milestone for a club. It is a time to look back with pride on what we have achieved and look forward with enthusiasm to what lies ahead. But no Rotary club exists in a vacuum. Everything we accomplish—whether supporting local causes here in Market Rasen or contributing to international projects—is made possible through collaboration, friendship, and certainly community support. Thank you to Market Rasen, Caistor and all villages roundabout, communities who give us support throughout the year.

Fifty years is quite an achievement. Half a century of fellowship, friendship and service to the community.

Over those fifty years, the club has been involved in countless projects and activities, raising money, supporting local organisations and helping people in our community and beyond. In the last 2 years, £18,283.00 has been raised and distributed to local, national and international good causes. In addition physical donations have been given to Ukraine, many burgers have been bar-b-qued, and publicity given to many organisations to advise of support available from them. Whilst times have changed enormously, since the club was chartered, one thing certainly hasn’t changed: the willingness of Rotarians to stand up and get motivated and involved.

Malcolm continued, that it is a particular pleasure today to recognise three of our founder members, – Rotarians Eric Bell, Hugh Nott and Peter Rhodes, all of whom are with us at the celebration. Peter Rhodes, together with Lisa, has made a bit more of an effort today than most, by travelling from Saskatoon in Saskatchewan, Canada. The vision and commitment and enthusiasm of these founder members, together with the other founder members who have passed away, including Archie Kerr and Paul Scott-Gunn helped lay the foundations of our club. President Malcolm then presented each surviving Founder member with a small remembrance framed certificate, of our appreciation for what they started and have contributed to over the years.

President Malcolm then thanked our guests, partners, and friends for continued support, generosity, and for giving time to celebrate this occasion with us.

Our District Governor Rtn. Rob Morrison, from Rotary District 1220, congratulated Market Rasen Rotary on achieving their 50 year Charter anniversary, and presented the club with a certificate from Rotary HQ in Evanston USA. Rob posted on District 1220’s Face Book page: “Jenny and I have had a very enjoyable day at Market Rasen Rotary Club’s 50th Charter Luncheon. A very focused club delivering many service projects in the community. Rob continued, I even won a raffle prize, a trout fishing experience which I will catch up on later”.

So -he will be back to see us!

Thanks to all those present, also many sponsors and prize donators, a sum approaching £1,500.00 will be presented to Alzheimer’s Research UK, in due course, when the accounts are finalised.

Market Rasen Rotary is indebted to the following who supported our Charter celebrations:

SPONSORS Just Audi VW Lincoln, Cherry Valley Farms Ltd, Barry Howell, Simon Herring Farms Ltd, Fitstart Ginny Askam, Vibrant Flow Acupuncture, Derek Hewitson, Sarah Thomas Biomechanics Trainer.

PRIZE DONATIONS Market Rasen Tesco, Cooplands Bakers, Market Rasen Coop Travel, The Chocolate Drop, V T Lancaster Butchers, Oxford St. Fisheries, Peter Rhodes Electrical, Market Rasen Racecourse, Market Rasen Hardware, Caistor Post Office, Caistor Boots, Caistor Coop, Market Rasen Gardening Club and The Gate of India.

SUPPORT GIVEN BY: Market Rasen Town Council, Eve Bennet catering and table flowers supplied by Winter’s Equitation.

Rotary District 1220 - News Around 1220

21/08/2026

Bob’s Brainwaves
Rtn. Ron Myland introduced Christine Such and Patrick King to Rasen Rotarians at a recent lunch meeting. Christine and Pat visited us two years ago and were now ready to update Rotarians on their very worthwhile charity, Bob’s Brainwaves. Chris recently lost her husband from complications arising from his dementia which he suffered from for many years. Pat King was briefly a member of Rasen Rotary until his bank employer moved him to Skegness where he joined Rotary there.

Christine gave an update to the Bob’s Brainwave Charity which produces a kit, i.e. a folder containing a mass of information sheets which will support carers of people with memory loss and Dementia. Christine and Bob developed the information packs based on their own experience, over 15 years. They quickly realised that there was no helpful information generally available to help people starting out on their dementia journey. No information on what is available and how to obtain it, what travel schemes are around and where to contact them, what special benefits are available and how to claim for them. Christine and Bob had to find out for themselves and the realisation that everyone else in their situation would be faced with the same issues led to the introduction of the information pack – a simple central place with all the relevant information that could be needed. The information pack has grown significantly as requests from users and carers have continued to come in. For instance the pack now contains a simple booklet on how to avoid scams. Another leaflet describes how to get a dental appointment in a care home. This resulted from the difficulty Chris had in arranging a dental appointment for husband Bob. She then needed to get an urgent prescription from the GP for antibiotics for Bob – she was able to expediate this by mentioning that if she didn’t get the antibiotics that day, she would be contacting Peter Levy (local BBC Newsreader) who was a friend of Bob’s, through their interest in football. The antibiotics were duly provided! As a result, the information pack now has a Community Dentist Referral form that works and there is a similar form for Bowel and Urinary referrals. The list of Memory Cafes has expanded and that has been updated. Useful for those dementia sufferers who are mobile and able to get about, but the story is different immobile sufferers and are often left isolated. Chris got together a list of volunteers and organisations providing travel, local busses and community busses etc. She added a list from Public Health with all the voluntary car schemes and all contact details etc and all the local Lincolnshire bus services. So now the pack contains an A4 double sided sheet with all the transport options available for this region – it has proved to be very popular with users. Similarly, the pack contains a list and map of Public Toilet locations. Since talking to us two years ago the charity has expanded to provide packs all over Lincolnshire. Each council district has different requirements and contact addresses, so it is important to get the right pack for your area.

Another particularly successful addition to the pack is the Signage Widgets. Christine found with Bob, as his dementia progressed, his short-term memory dropped considerably – simple things like opening the front door but then forgetting to close it but by creating and applying simple ‘post it’ notes these would remind him to do things. Developing this thought, she found a manufacturer that would make all sorts of small signs – the Signage Widgets, each with a specific short message and a simple picture. These signs can then be placed wherever the person needs reminding what to do. These now available and are free to download from the website and then print off and use – these would be in addition to the manufactured versions which are also available.

As previously said, the packs are produced specifically for the local authority area that the user resides in – so for West Lindsey the pack will be available from the Memory Clinic in North Hykeham or they can be obtained from a local Memory Café. It is also possible to request one through the website. It is also necessary that the user has a diagnosis of dementia because many of the forms in the pack only work if the user has been diagnosed. Many of the forms result in benefits being made to the user, and these are only available to diagnosed individuals. The subsequent success of these packs is a testament to the foresight of Christine in realising and identifying this missing part of the NHS/Dementia pathway. The success of the project can be seen by the way other regions have requested access and the packs for their local communities. The packs, however, contain information specific to the local community, the West Lindsey pack will be of little use to someone in a completely different area – the council contacts will be different, forms etc will be different, local traffic volunteer schemes will be different etc. There is a limit to how much time Christine and her team can devote to these increasing demands so now they have developed a ‘Tool Kit’ which can be given to areas wishing to introduce something similar. These Tool Kits give the information that is required for the area together with the items such as the Signage Widgets which are of a more general nature and will be relevant for most local areas.

Christine finished her presentation and asked if there were any questions: Rtn. David Mason confirmed that he had firsthand experience of the value of the Bob’s Brainwave packs and the valuable information they contain. He used much of the guidance therein. The information in the packs will have to be updated to reflect the forthcoming Council Boundary changes but this should not cause too much difficulty as the packs are regularly updated anyway to keep them up to date. Christine had noticed as she had expanded her work into Northeast Lincolnshire was that in NE Lincs there was funding for specialist Admiral Dementia nurses and there were 6 of these. In West Lindsey there are none.

Pat, in his treasurer role, answered that most of their funding comes from donations and Rotary is a very good source for them. As the work has expanded and Bob’s Brainwaves Charity has become better known then donation income has increased. They have also had a couple of Government grants – one from Boston Borough Council and another more recently from East Lindsey Council. Christine has been asked to visit Parliament and is hoping to get to talk to Ministers responsible for Health and Alzheimer’s and try and get some central government funding. Therefore, their hope is that they can convince central government of the value of the project and how it should really be available to the whole country.

Market Rasen Rotary then presented Bob’s Brainwaves charity with £500, resulting from their recent Quiz night; – an information pack currently costs £8.65 including VAT to produce.
Rotary District 1220 - News Around 1220

07/08/2026

Following the talk on the garden refurbishment and the history of Bardney Manor to Rotarians and partners at Tealby Village Hall, members thought they should go and see for themselves what has happened this year.

Consequently, some 23 Rotarians, wives, partners and friends descended on Bardney on the 30 July and spent an enjoyable and instructive time seeing the kitchen and other garden areas.

Samantha Cook and husband Martyn own the property, and Samantha being a very knowledgeable horticulturalist welcomed us and showed us around, explaining how she was combating the drought, selecting species and plants that had drought tolerance which was evident in the show the gardens provided. Samantha proudly told us the garden was due to become listed as a Partner Garden with the Royal Horticultural Society, because of its’ historical links within the County. Samantha has contacts with well-known names in the horticultural world, and has research arrangements with several well known seed houses.

Always ready for a lunch, Samantha and Martyn had organised a splendid lunch for us visitors in the shade of ancient trees and with the backdrop of historic garden buildings.

History could be reviewed in a small but well-presented museum in one of the outhouses.

Avery enjoyable and worthwhile visit, and one which others can follow.
For more details, see: www.bardneymanorwalledgarden.com/home
Rotary District 1220 - News Around 1220

29/07/2026

Rasen Rotary has a huge range of speakers to interest and challenge the Rotarians. Last week David Cohen, Ornithologist who works with the Wildlife Trust was introduced by Rtn. John Moore. This was David’s second visit to Rasen Rotary, the first time, a Zoom visit during Covid when David was talking about the re-introduction of Common Cranes to wetlands in the south of Lincolnshire. (The Common Crane is quite a large but shy bird, about four feet tall with a wing span of up to six feet and weighing some 5.5Kg. These birds were quite common up until the 16th Century after which they were hunted for food to almost extinction. The population is now growing).

David is now retired and has spent many years travelling the World, drinking the w**e and observing birds. He has recently been to China and is going to talk today about his ornithological experiences in that country. He has recently returned home from a trip to Sichuan and he had also been to Yunnan in 2020. China, he said was an interesting place with a population of 1.4 billion people with a reputation of not being too wildlife friendly. They tend to eat a great deal of wildlife and together with Vietnam are the biggest market for trade in endangered species. Items like tiger parts and pangolins (the most traded creatures on earth) often end up in China where pangolins are viewed as a delicacy. Pangolins are also viewed as a status symbol because if you can afford to eat them you must be very wealthy and of high status. The scales, covering the surface of most of the pangolin are made of keratin (same as our fingernails) and are used in all sorts of herbal remedies and even as an aphrodisiac.

David had a collection of photographs of the areas he had been visiting and had photographs of the birds that he had been able to see. His latest trip to Sichuan began in the capital city of Chengdu, with a population of 22 million people is the fourth largest city in China. It has a GDP of US$350 billion and is one of the most important economic, financial, commercial and communication centres in China. Its surrounding area is known as the country of heaven and the land of abundance.

David’s visit was part of an organised ornithological trip to view the many and varied bird life in this part of China. The area around Chengdu was at quite a high altitude and the scenery was spectacular. Rotarians were shown a range of pictures of the area and the birds that he had managed to photograph.

Although, as he had already mentioned, the Chinese are well known for eating most things, in particular endangered species, David was interested to note that the younger population had developed an interest in bird photography. On one day they had encountered a local ‘birding’ photography competition where there were probably 2 or 300 young Chinese, all equipped with the latest, expensive, camera gear, all looking to capture a rare or exotic bird picture. Because of this growing interest in bird photography, it had led to the introduction of bird watching hides and attempts to attract these rare birds to them. This has really transformed bird watching in China and other parts of Southeast Asia because many birds are very difficult to find in the dense forests but will now come out in front of the hides where food has been provided to attract them out.

One of the top birds to see in China are the pheasants, many of which are spectacular, particularly in colour. Because of their size they have been easy to hunt and consequently now remain hidden in the deep shadows of the forests. The introduction of the bird hides has now tempted these reluctant birds out. The males are the ones with the bright colours which they use to attract a mate, the females tend to be much more subdued as they will tend the eggs and wish to remain inconspicuous.
One of the hides that David visited had a fresh water pool constructed in front of it with numerous perches of twigs arranged all around. This attracted the birds down to drink and bathe and so gave wonderful photo opportunities.

They also visited Wawushan, on a plateau high up at an elevation of nearly 3000m. Here they saw a red panda up in a tree. These are smaller than the Giant Panda, which is very rare and only to be seen in special reserves. The red panda is slightly more active than the Giant version, it feeds down on the ground on bamboo and then climbs up into the treetops and finds a perch to go to sleep. David spoke of birds unique to China? Some birds that are endemic to China and that part of the Far East and they were lucky to see some of these rare endemic birds. The people that organise these ‘birding trips’ are very much conscious of the attraction of endemic species and try to ensure that these the main focus on the trip itinerary.
Despite its high population numbers there are vast areas of China which are uninhabited and remain unspoilt and unexplored habitats. David was able to show pictures looking across the mountain ranges with large areas of untouched forest.
David then visited part of the large Tibetan plateau and showed pictures of several birds that they encountered up there, before showing pictures he took in Yunnan in 2020. There were no security issues with customs or security going into or travelling around China.

An interesting talk, covering a topic not familiar to many Rotarians in Market Rasen.

27/07/2026

Bomber County, a dangerous place in WW 2
Lincolnshire is well known as Bomber County from the activities of the RAF and other nation’s Airforces, based in Lincolnshire during WW 2. Local historian and Rotarian Dr. Hugh Nott researched accidents that occurred during the War, in and around his home village of Tealby, Lincolnshire. Hugh spoke about a second Bomber accident he researched and was now reporting to fellow Rotarians at one of their lunch time meetings.
During the war, there were many aircraft crashes, so many, that most were never documented. The crash Hugh was going to discuss was unusual because records were kept of both the crash and the subsequent investigations.
Lancaster ME641, of 166 Squadron, lifted off into the night of 24 February 1944 from RAF Kirmington, heavy with fuel and bombs, climbing on it’s route towards Reading then on to bomb a ball-bearing factory at Schweinfurt in southern Germany. Five minutes later, Lancaster JB457, from Binbrook (460 Squadron RAAF), which was returning after a 3-hour training flight, collided with ME641 over Owersby.
Both aircraft were badly damaged in the collision. JB457 was spun through 180 degrees and crash landed at Willoughton. All the crew baled out and survived. ME641 was spun through 90 degrees and two of the crew baled out and they landed in a farm-yard in Claxby. The aircraft then struck the ground about 100 yards from Bully Hill Farm in Tealby before coming to rest beside the Caistor High Street. The aircraft was still fully laden with fuel and am******on, including an 8000lb blockbuster bomb.
The family living at the farm were awoken and thought the haystacks must be on fire. One of the family went out and helped to rescue one of the crew, amid am******on exploding. All the remaining crew were killed. The blockbuster bomb became detached and rolled down the hill! Another elderly occupant of the farmhouse reported in 2006 that when he was a very small boy he remembered seeing the aftermath of the crash and the lorries removing the wrecked aircraft.
Later investigations concluded that neither aircraft had seen the “aircraft recognition lights” of the other aircraft. These lights were a combination of white, red, green and amber on the fuselage and wings used over friendly territory for identification.
Hugh showed copies of various flight records and Inquiry reports relating to this crash and the planes and crews. He also had maps showing the location of the two airfields and the likely flight paths that the two plane would have taken. Hugh said his father-in-law was responsible for local crash reporting during the war and had a team that would go out to the crash sites and record as much information as possible.
Hugh said he had been in contact with relatives of the then occupants of the farmhouse near where the plane crashed at Bully Hill Farm and went with them to where they thought that the crash had occurred; Hugh came across a piece of aluminium and thought it could have been from the plane. The piece was identified by the Heritage Group at East Kirkby who immediately recognised it as part of the engine cowling from a Lancaster.
Hugh continues to research all manner of items regarding local history around Tealby and is the source of many fascinating stories he is willing to share with others.
Rotary District 1220 - News Around 1220

05/07/2026

Market Rasen Rotary held their annual Quiz on 26th June 2026

The Rotary Club of Market Rasen held its annual quiz at Tealby village hall on the hottest day of the year so far and had a wonderful turnout of 12 teams braving the heat. Fortunately for them there was plenty of chilled drinks to be had! The aim of the evening, in line with Rotary ethos, was to have a good time whilst raising money for worthy causes. The quiz had a variety of rounds with a few novelty rounds giving every team a chance to shine. In the end it was a very close race with several teams scoring over 90 out of a possible 115 points. The eventual winners were Richard Goodhand’s team from Tealby who have supported this event every year and were worthy winners. A raffle was held and the first prize was a well stocked hamper donated by Tesco who are great supporters of Rotary, so thanks is due to them. A super Ploughman’s Supper was enjoyed during the interval and was prepared by Eve Bennett and past Rotary president Dianne Tuckett.

The proceeds of the event came to a magnificent £1000 which will be split between the Market Rasen Baby Bank and Bob’s Brainwaves which is a local charity supporting families living with dementia. The organisers of the event were Derek and Janet Anderson and despite nearly melting on the night are planning to do it all again next year on 25th June.
Rotary District 1220 - News Around 1220

03/07/2026

Recently Market Rasen Rotary had the pleasure of presenting Andrew Coward, volunteer for the Lincs Notts Air Ambulance Service, with a cheque for £2000, profit from the Rotary Bar-B-Que at the recent Open Farm BBQ event at Stainton le Vale.
President Malcolm Stimpson, organiser John Moore and longtime supporter and fund raiser for the Air Ambulance, John Smith presented the cheque.

Andrew thanked Market Rasen Rotary for our donation of £2000 but he asked whether we knew that over the years we have donated over £40k – actually £40,310 to the Air Ambulance. An amazing amount of money to be generated from such a small group and we should be very proud.

The money is needed: Every mission costs on average £4000: other example costs; uniforms for the pilots and paramedics are £1000 each; a blood transfusion costs £600. The helicopter flies from 7am to 2am in the morning, flying in the dark for half of the shift, and to do that, the crew (of 4) all need night vision goggles at a cost of around £20k each pair.

Starting this month there will be a Critical Care car 24/7 based in Nottingham –There is also a similar car based in Lincoln and these have been replaced recently with new Volvo XC90’s provided by another charity – HELP (Helicopter Emergency Landing Pads). HELP also provided a state of the art all weather landing pad at Waddington.

There is an additional helicopter coming in 2027 – an Agusta Westland 109, currently on a production line in Italy, this one costing around £7million. The current Yellow helicopter is an Agusta Westland 169 but is currently in Germany having its 4 year major service. To maintain uninterrupted service LNAA will temporarily operate an AW109 relief helicopter. It will enable the charity to continue delivering critical care to patients across Lincolnshire and Nottinghamshire. (The relief AW109 is black so don’t be surprised when a black one turns up instead of the usual yellow!).

The need for a second helicopter can be seen from the data that shows that every day there are 1.4 missions that the crews are not able to respond to. The availability of a second helicopter and crew will mean that they are able to attend more emergencies, more quickly, and provide critical care to more patients that might not otherwise have access in time. This second helicopter project has been initiated with some considerable donations resulting in currently £4m raised. The LNAA initiated another scheme to raise £500,000 recently and within a few weeks have already managed to raise £150,000. The annual budget for LNAA is – around £13 million.

The new Helicopter will have exactly the same kit on board, and the new one will be based during the day at a landing pad at Edwalton in Nottinghamshire, but both will be housed in the big hangar at their base at Waddington over nonflying hours. Consideration of who gets the help of a helicopter, an emergency fast response car or an ambulance will normally be carried out by the ambulance dispatchers who will prioritise cases and ensure that the patient is attended by the most appropriate crew. Andy then explained why the air ambulance service is not supported by Central Government or the NHS or Ambulance Service. If government funding was to be used it would come with rules, regulations and restrictions as to what could be done. For example, Andy said that they had attended a Road Traffic Accident recently where one of the patients received open heart surgery by the side of the road – this would not have been permitted under official control. A week later this patient was able to walk out of hospital. By maintaining their charitable status and continuing to receive donations allows for much greater flexibility and the opportunity for much better care and attention for patients needing critical care. Andy then finished by thanking us again for all that we and the local population do – it is very necessary and much appreciated’
Link for further info: https://www.ambucopter.org.uk/news-and-stories/

Rotary District 1220 - News Around 1220

Market Rasen Rotary

20/10/2026

13/10/2026

21/08/2026

07/08/2026

29/07/2026

27/07/2026

05/07/2026

03/07/2026

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