Lunch club off the menu
It was the end of an era on Friday as pensioners tucked into a tasty home cooked meal at St Leonards Lunch Club for the last time.
After 46 great years the weekly club, which served as a lifeline for generations of elderly residents of the area, has shut up shop.
Club stalwarts Graeme and Jean Macklin made the difficult decision to hang up their aprons due to a fall in numbers each week.
Ill-health among the volunteers and concerns over rental charges for use of Blacklaw Community Hall were also contributing factors.
Graeme told the News:“It is with great sadness we have had to finally close our Lunch Club on Friday.
“Unfortunately we were forced to close down due to low numbers each week, ill-health making staffing a problem and the latest concern was the charging of rent by SLC.
“This decision was not made lightly and we looked long and hard as to how we could keep it going as it was the lifeblood for many of our ageing pensioners here in St Leonards.”
Good food and good company were always on the menu at St Leonards Lunch Club.
Every Friday, from September to May, Jean provided an extensive menu consisting of her famous homemade soup followed by a choice of two hot meals with a cup of tea or coffee and biscuits.
The club also put on a free bus to and from the hall from St Leonards Square to assist elderly members.
Another important aspect of the club was that it served as a meeting point and let volunteers know if absent members were in good health.
And every year, before summer recess at the end of June, the club set off on a group outing to places including Oban, Ayr, St Andrew’s and Callander where they would stop off for tea and coffee then enjoy an evening meal in a hotel.
Another highlight of the year was the Burns Lunch with the Lunch Club’s vice-chair Ken MacIntosh addressing‘The Haggis’.
And members were honoured to be invited as guests of the Queen’s representative Lord Lieutenant Mushtaq Ahmad to the Royal Garden Party.
Graeme added:“The fact that these pensioners had this club to go to over the last 46 years meant that they had a safe and warm place to meet and communicate their joys and sad moments in life.
“Joys talking about their grandchildren and families, showing photographs and sharing these special moments which are fundamental to keeping the community spirit alive and well.
“While Jean and her volunteers were busy in the kitchen and serving the tables, I had the pleasant job of greeting each and every one by name, some with a smile, others with a kiss on the back of their hand or a hug that would nearly kill me!
“I knew just what this club meant to them and when I would get up and thank them for attending I would say we were just like a big family and we needed each other to which they would all cheer and applaud my sentiments. Thank you to all the ‘punters’that have supported the club over the years and, most of all, our wonderful volunteers who turned up each week.”
Club members plan to dine out together in a few weeks time to reminisce about the years gone by and remember old friends.