LOCAL NEWS <strong>Lichfield</strong> Chef Supports Local Liam Dillon & Simon Price <strong>Lichfield</strong> chef, Liam Dillon, has chosen community fund We Love <strong>Lichfield</strong> as his charity of choice, with the restaurateur plann<strong>in</strong>g a series of fundrais<strong>in</strong>g events. Liam, of The Boat Inn, was born <strong>in</strong> <strong>Lichfield</strong>, went to school <strong>in</strong> <strong>Lichfield</strong> and now runs his f<strong>in</strong>e-d<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g bus<strong>in</strong>ess from <strong>Lichfield</strong> too. Therefore, Liam recently chose to give someth<strong>in</strong>g back to the local community by support<strong>in</strong>g We Love <strong>Lichfield</strong>. We Love <strong>Lichfield</strong> provides small grants to a wide range of projects based <strong>in</strong> <strong>Lichfield</strong> District. The fund will consider all applications from local groups <strong>in</strong> need twice a year. Companies and <strong>in</strong>dividuals are welcome to donate or fundraise and all money is <strong>in</strong>vested through a permanent endowment fund by registered charity, The Community Foundation For Staffordshire, <strong>in</strong> l<strong>in</strong>e with charity commission guidel<strong>in</strong>es. The <strong>in</strong>terest and dividends earned on the <strong>in</strong>vested money is then distributed by the We Love <strong>Lichfield</strong> Fund as small grants across the district. Visit www.welovelichfield.com for further details. ....................................................................................... 20 Years for Local Gym <strong>Lichfield</strong>'s award-w<strong>in</strong>n<strong>in</strong>g ladies’ fitness centre, Gymophobics celebrates its 20th anniversary <strong>in</strong> <strong>September</strong>. Gymophobics <strong>Lichfield</strong> was proud to be the very first centre, opened by Donna Hubbard <strong>in</strong> <strong>September</strong> 2003, and now has centres spann<strong>in</strong>g across the UK with more than 250,000 women hav<strong>in</strong>g benefited from the revolution <strong>in</strong> women's health and fitness. 8 With a focus on body positivity and VIP attention for every woman, Gymophobics has even received praise from doctors and GPs for the health benefits the unique circuit provides. To celebrate Gymophobics anniversary, pop along to the big open week and enjoy the fun from 4th-10th <strong>September</strong>, where <strong>Lichfield</strong> ladies are <strong>in</strong>vited to jo<strong>in</strong> by the 10th of <strong>September</strong> for just £20. ....................................................................................... Burntwood Mum W<strong>in</strong>s Leisure Prize A Burntwood mum who ‘always th<strong>in</strong>ks of others before herself’ has won a year’s free family membership to the district’s leisure centres after w<strong>in</strong>n<strong>in</strong>g a competition run by Active Leisure at <strong>Lichfield</strong> District Council. Last month, residents were asked to nom<strong>in</strong>ate someone they considered worthy of w<strong>in</strong>n<strong>in</strong>g the prize, such as community heroes who go above and beyond and deserve to be recognised. Mum-of-two Claire Mee, 43, (who is mum to Daisy, 12, and Teddy, 7) was nom<strong>in</strong>ated by her friend Abbie Fisher, also from Burntwood, and selected by Active Leisure staff to receive the prize from the anonymised submissions. ....................................................................................... Cathedral School’s Excellent Results <strong>Lichfield</strong> Cathedral School students celebrated excellent A Level results on 17th August, highlight<strong>in</strong>g yet another year of exceptional academic and personal achievements. There were some outstand<strong>in</strong>g results achieved by <strong>in</strong>dividuals. Benjam<strong>in</strong> White A*A*A*A (Physics, Maths, Further Maths, Chemistry) will now study Theoretical Physics at Birm<strong>in</strong>gham University. Harry Stephens A*A*A* (Philosophy & Ethics, Law, Crim<strong>in</strong>ology) will also be go<strong>in</strong>g to Birm<strong>in</strong>gham University to study Law. Evie Karagkevrekis achieved A*A*A (Biology, History, English Lit) plus A* <strong>in</strong> the Extended Project Qualification (EPQ) is head<strong>in</strong>g to Durham University to study Law. Henry Smith A*A A (History, Politics, English Lit) will study Politics at Exeter University and Andrew Loveland who achieved A A A (Comput<strong>in</strong>g, Maths, Physics) is mov<strong>in</strong>g on to a degree apprenticeship with Amazon <strong>in</strong> cybersecurity. ....................................................................................... Memorial Garden is 20 Almost 20 years ago two RNLI branches, <strong>Lichfield</strong> and Tamworth, created a memorial at the National Memorial Arboretum, Alrewas, honour<strong>in</strong>g the brave lifeboat crews who had given their lives to save others. A massive nationwide fundrais<strong>in</strong>g effort saw generous donations form the public and RNLI branches nationwide and the memorial garden was created <strong>in</strong> <strong>September</strong> 2003, surround<strong>in</strong>g an impressive statue, sculpted by stonemason Andrew Fitchett, with plants represent<strong>in</strong>g a seaside theme. Sadly, the garden was devastated <strong>in</strong> 2009 when the river Anker flooded; only the sculpture survived as testament to the steadfastness of the RNLI lifeboat crews. The site renovation was completed <strong>in</strong> 2011, with plant<strong>in</strong>g design by Chelsea w<strong>in</strong>ner, Chris Beardshaw, and rema<strong>in</strong>s today as a quiet, tranquil area. Tamworth & <strong>Lichfield</strong> RNLI branch will <strong>in</strong>formally celebrate the dedication of the site on its 20th Anniversary <strong>in</strong> <strong>September</strong>. Contact tamworthrnli@gmail.com or 07816 915191 for more <strong>in</strong>formation. ....................................................................................... Vote for <strong>Lichfield</strong> Tree! The <strong>Lichfield</strong> foxglove (or Ch<strong>in</strong>ese Empress) tree is one of the entries <strong>in</strong> the Wooodland Trust Tree of the Year <strong>2023</strong> competition. The tree, with its dist<strong>in</strong>ctive foxglove-style flowers, sits by M<strong>in</strong>ster Pool <strong>in</strong> the <strong>Lichfield</strong> Garden of Remembrance and is one of the largest trees of its k<strong>in</strong>d <strong>in</strong> the country. It’s number three on the list on the Trust’s vot<strong>in</strong>g website so visit https://shorturl.at/BJVW8 to vote!
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