Category: News

SIR Archibald McIndoe’s tribute statue has been in place on the McIndoe Lawn for less than a week but he is already proving himself at home and making friends.

Cllr John O’Brien caught this group taking in our new neighbour, but they were just some of the many visitors who popped along on Saturday to say hello and welcome…

McIndoe Statue in #EastGrinstead is proving a real magnet for visitors this morning. @McIndoeMemorial pic.twitter.com/RL9hujymNl

— John O'Brien (@objohnny) June 14, 2014

WHEN four-year-old, four-inch-long tortoise Galaxy was rounded up by immigration staff at Heathrow he faced a bleak future, until he was adopted by the staff at East Grinstead library and offered a new home.

He’s been named Galaxy – because like the library computer of the same name he can be a bit slow – and according to Town Promotions Officer Simon Kerr, who photographed him, he is the perfect library pet.

“He’s quiet and he doesn’t rush around,” laughed Simon, describing his new library colleague.

FOLLOWING the unveiling of the McIndoe statue on Monday, Jacquie Russell – one of the organsiers of the town’s first-ever food swap – asked if she could switch venues for the event from outside The Market Square to the site of the statue.

And she was delighted when the Town Council gave its wholehearted consent.

‘We are the licensees, and we do have to give permission for events to take place on the McIndoe Lawn,’ said Town Clerk Julie Holden. ‘But provided the event is appropriate, and people clean up properly afterwards, it will be lovely to see the area become a new hub for community activities.’

And Jacquie wasn’t alone in being quick off the mark. The Lions have also asked if they can use the Lawn for next year’s May Fair.

But Julie did have one word of warning.

‘We have had complaints in the past about the quality of the grass in the area. The problem is that there are two huge trees which take up all the water and so the grass has always been poor.

‘We will be reseeding shortly it but the long term difficulty will always be getting anything to grow.

‘As the on-going custodians of the area, the Town Council certainly doesn’t want to discourage people from using the area with permission. But we would just say that if it is over-used the grass will suffer. You can’t have it both ways and that is something we would like people to be aware of.’

But Julie fully expects – and welcomes – the idea that the new focal point at the far end of the High Street will become a place where people will gather to chat – and to remember.

* The Food Swap will take place on 21 June from 10.45am for an 11am start.

A must for foodies, it offers the chance to exchange goods and ideas with people who share a love of cooking.

Find out more about the Food Swap go to: https://www.facebook.com/groups/507391619371696/?fref=ts

TOWN Clerk Julie Holden has asked visitors to the McIndoe statue to donate money to the Appeal fund rather than spending it on flowers which will be removed at the end of each day.

Just 24 hours after the unveiling, two floral tributes had been left at the statue by visitors from Basingstoke and Brighton.

But while she was touched by their stories, Julie said the money would have been better spent paying off the more than £50,000 which still needs to be raised to pay for the statue.

‘The statue is a public memorial, not a private one,’ said Julie, ‘and no-one wants it to look like one of those roadside shrines full of dead flowers.

‘I fully understand why people feel they have a very strong connection to the statue, and I was touched to speak to the Brighton visitor who came in memory of her father. But we will be clearing flowers away at the end of each day. So I would urge anyone who comes not to spend a fiver on flowers, but to donate it to the Appeal fund instead – that way they will be part of the statue forever.’

THIS was the moment when Princess Anne was handed a posy of flowers which had been picked and arranged earlier by Town Council gardener Jenny Watson.

Jenny selected seasonal flowers including roses, lavender and ivy from the East Court gardens for an informal arrangement tied with raffia.

JENNY Watson, the Town Council’s gardener, is having a good week.

On McIndoe Monday it was Jenny who provided a posy fit for a Princess from the flower borders at East Court.

And she has also received wide-ranging praise for her imaginative and touching planting scheme in the High Street flower beds which are war-themed to commemorate the outbreak of WWI a century ago.

Jenny – the town salutes you!

AN estimated 2,000 people filled the High Street and the lawn outside Sackville College to see Princess Anne pull the silk from Martin Jennings’ statue of Sir Archibald McIndoe.

It was a perfect day. The sun shone, the East Grinstead Concert band played wartime favourites, and every time a Guinea Pig appeared the crowd cheered.

Above all there was an almost palpable sense of pride in McIndoe, in his achievements and in being part of the town ‘that didn’t stare…’

Actress Amanda Redman was determined to attend, despite a broken foot, and smiled gamely as she balanced on crutches.

A Patron of the Guinea Pigs who was herself treated for burns at the Queen Victoria Hospital, Amanda said she was thrilled to be in East Grinstead on such an historic occasion and that she was looking forward to meeting the Guinea Pigs again.‘They will have me in tears and they will make me laugh,’ she said.

For Jacquie Pinney of the Blond McIndoe Foundation, who – with the Town Council and the EGBA (East Grinstead Business Association) – had worked for three years to make the memorial a reality, the day had dawned in a mixture of joy and relief.

‘This is a very proud day,” she said. ‘It’s been a lot of work over the past three years, but today it is finally a reality.’

Town Clerk Julie Holden agreed. ‘Today is the culmination of two years’ hard work in the planning and a full year of fundraising.  But it is largely thanks to the people of East Grinstead and their generosity, that today is happening.’

While Peter Scaramanga, who is responsible for the Blond McIndoe Research Foundation’s PR simply called McIndoe Monday ‘fantastic’.

‘It is an amazing achievement, and thanks to businessman Dave Brown who underwrote the project we have made it when a lot of people thought it might not happen.

For McIndoe’s daughter, Adonia, it was a day of mixed emotions – she recalled her ‘dear old dad’ with pride and not a little disbelief that 54 years after his death, he was being honoured. But regretted he had not lived to see the statue himself.

“He was a great man, but he believed greatness lay in hard, hard work…and I am sure he is somewhere enjoying all this.”

WITH a Princess due any minute, the Town Council’s outdoor staff spared no effort to make sure the town was at its sparkling best. So when a stray leaf was spotted on the new concrete path to the McIndoe statue the broom was immediately brought into play to make sure East Grinstead was at its pristine best for royalty.