16/05/12....The ex flying officer and the Thame publican -
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THESE two proudly took their places at the head of Thame Town Council last night, when they were selected by fellow Councillors to the post of Mayor and Deputy Mayor for the coming year.
The new Mayor, ex RAF man Nigel Champken Woods, has been Mayor before but his new deputy, Landlord of the Cross Keys pub in Thame, Peter Lambert, has been on the council for less than two years, but has obviously been quick to make an impression on fellow councillors.
Nigel told the council what his aspirations for his mayoral year were:
The Thame Neighbourhood Plan
"My number one priority is to drive the Neighbourhood Plan to fruition and to ensure that we get a yes vote at the referendum. This will involve a lot of hard work for the Thame Town Council Staff and yourselves. We will have to get out there and explain what this is all about and ensure that the people of Thame understand that if we don’t get the plan accepted then all planning decisions will be made by SODC. We have to realise we are the biggest town in the front runners and will be subject to a lot of scrutiny on this one."
The Thame Youth Memorial
"I hope to be able to be present at the Unveiling of the Youth Memorial. This will be the culmination of a lot of hard work by a dedicated team in order to bring the fund raising, design and planning of the project to a successful conclusion."
Music In The Park
"This year, again, exceeded all expectations with about 3,000 attending, and raised in excess of £15,000 on the gate. We hope that we will be able to repeat the success again in May next year - again all this is down to a small but dedicated band of volunteers who I am sure, like me, were absolutely shattered on Monday. As with David (Bretherton, out-going Mayor) this year, this event is the Mayor’s 'Swan Song', but I will not be singing I promise.
"The amount raised to reinvest in the Park over the two years hopefully will now enable us to try to obtain match funding for any shortfall required to install the lighting through the park this year. You may gather I am under pressure from the Chairman of Friends of Elms Park to achieve this aspiration."(The Chair is his wife!)
Nigel continued: "Thame is probably one of the most vibrant market towns in the south of England and my aim is to keep it that way by supporting any of the events which help the town keep this vibrancy.
The Mayor's chosen charities
"My two charities this year are Share Life Trust and SERV. The Share Life Trust was started in 2003 and is based here in Thame it is a network of volunteers providing short term practical help to those in need. This takes the form of the Food Banks in Thame, lifts for patients to local GP Services, Young Families Network for sharing resources such as children’s toys, etc. Please check their website: www.sharinglifetrust.org
"SERV (Service by Emergency Riders & Volunteers)
Some of you may know this as ‘Bloodrunners’. They transport Blood, Blood Products, Pathology Test Materials outside normal office hours. SERV Oxon, Bucks, Northants & Berks went into active service in 2007 and has more than 100 volunteers (including myself) providing a free service to more than 10 hospitals in the local area. They provide the service seven days a week, 365 days per year from 7pm - 6am. We also provide 24 hour cover weekends and bank holidays (Including Christmas and New Year).
"The website is http://www.serv.org.uk/oxon-bucks-northants/home.html
"Thank You for the confidence in accepting me as Mayor of Thame for the next 12 months and I look forward to working with you all and the Staff of Thame Town Council."
PHOTO: The new Mayor, Nigel Champken Woods, is the one with the biggest chain!
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