All About Calvia

WHAT an amazing week it has been. As you know tomorrow, Sunday we have the European elections here.

This is the first time that myself and my team have been so involved, in the E.U. voting day, so for us it has been an experience, and a learning curve. I have to tell you how proud I was of the international community, last Friday night.

We had arranged for our Euro M.P. Rosa Estarás to come to Calvia, and I invited some people along. We had a great turnout and lots of support.

All week I have been at several different meetings and the main thing that I have been hearing is the importance of the international community and how much we bring to these islands.

That makes me proud, to be a part of the "mini europe" that we have created here. It is so good to see people joining in, taking ownership, showing interest and offering support.

As Rosa has said "Europe is about clean beaches, our tourism, flights, agriculture, the air that we breathe, it is about being part of the bigger picture, bouncing back, and much more. I urge you to go out and vote tomorrow. It is our future!"

MARTA and Sally in my department are a dream team. Every week I quote their phone numbers and e mail addresses, and I encourage you to take your questions and queries to them.

So many people compliment the girls on excellent service, and quite rightly so, I would be lost without them. They are a great team, and they do a brilliant job.

Sally is British, married to a Spaniard and speaks Spanish. In previous times she has lived in several different countries, as, like me she was an employee of Thomson holidays.

She spent four years in China, and speaks Mandarin, not that we have much call for that in our department. Sally is a stickler for detail, has the patience of a saint, and is extremely hardworking. Marta is a mixture, a true European, of half Italian, half Spanish nationality, yet she was brought up in Germany.

Marta managed the teatime chat conversation projects, and has done a great job of encouraging the German community to join in many of our international activities. Marta speaks fluent Spanish, German, English and Italian. Her husband is from Serbia, and they speak German at home. Why am I telling you this ? I believe that it is nice to give credit to a job well done, and nice to value the hard work that people do. So for the record, Sally and Marta, you are just the best THANKYOU!

( p.s. their e mail address is internacional@calvia.com 971 130184/5).

DAVID and and Elizabeth McCaw Aldworth from the Salvation Army, are moving on to pastures new after spending several years here. They have sent out a letter which is explaining the reasons, and their plans.

"We will be leaving Majorca, at our own request on 4 July after nearly four years working here. We love everything that is Majorca, but need to return to the UK for the continuation of our children’s education especially our son Nathanael. We thank everyone for their support over the last four years and wish them every success for the future we have enjoyed your friendship and journeying together for the last four years. Our final Sunday here will be Sunday 29 June, when we will bid a farewell to our two churches in a combined service at 11.15am. We are being followed by two couples, Majors Aycon who will arrive in the beginning of July and another couple who will head up the work within the English community, no doubt you will meet these people in the near future.

May God bless you all

Warmest regards."

David and Elizabeth.

MORE news from our Associations meeting this month, is that the Calanova Cancer Care shop has donated an huge 21.000€, this year, to various charities. They were a little peeved with me recently, when I forgot to put something that they were doing in my column. So here, as a goodwill gesture, and to make up for it, I am printing their newsletter. Well done on a great job!

Dear Angie

Just to keep in contact with you and to send you some details of the Calanova Cancer Care Charity Shop here in San Agustin and and what we have achieved so far.

We would very much like to repeat the fabulous Christmas luncheon that we held last last year at the Lindner and hope that we can reserve 12 December for the event, it was , thanks to you and your staff an extremely enjoyable afternoon and we are sure that this year we will be more attending.

Now ...to remind you a little about us.

The idea is to accept donations of unwanted clothes, bric-a brac and furniture in good condition sell it in the shop and give the money to the Cancer Charities.

The shop is open from 10am to 6pm in the week and 10am to 2pm on Sat. We are a group of around twenty seven ladies, all of a certain age, of all nationalities and all either retired or not working, who wish to help people with cancer. The shop has been open since November 2011 and so far has donated over 84,000 euros to help people with cancer.

After paying for the rent on the shop and expenses 100% of all money taken on donations made to the shop is given to the AECC ( Spanish Association of Cancer Care) and ASPANOB (which is the Association for children with Cancer and their parents) Both charities give tremendous help to those with cancer and both are in the Balearics. The Cancer Support Group also receive our help for their work with helping people come to terms with cancer.

In August 2012 we gave a Fashion Show in Mood Beach which was a resounding success and in response to popular request, the Fashion Show was held again last year in September this time at The Country Club and Spa in Santa Ponsa and was amazing and greatly enjoyed by all who attended.

This year it will be held at the end of August and we will let you have all the information later. Both the venues who are collaborating with us gave half of the entrance tickets to the charity and champagne and canapés.

In October last year we gave a Coffee Morning at Wellies, in Puerto Portals as our part for the MacMillan World Wide Coffee Morning and were able to send them 500€ takings.

Then before Christmas last year we gave a Christmas Market and Luncheon at the Lindner Hotel which was exceptional, there was a great turn out and with the B.I.S. College choir it really made everyone’s Christmas start in a most enjoyable way, and this will be repeated this year at the beginning of December.

At the end of March this year we presented a James Bond Casino Royal night at Mood Beach which included a mock/fun Casino run by real ex-croupiers and was a great success and raised 3000 euros for the Cancer Charities.

We have always been given many very generous prizes for the raffle and auction which are held at the events and if anyone wishes to give something for the Fashion Show please get in touch. Always needed are more hands and if there is anyone out there who would like to help us for a few hours a week or a month do please contact us and of course please do donate all your unwanted stuff that is in good condition and do, pop in and see what you can find to buy.

Also last year we gave to the Palliative Care Associations in Son Espases DIME and ANGELES SIN ALAS (for children) and this year have already given 3000€ towards the purchase of wheelchairs and bathing chairs for use at the Palliative Hospital of Juan March and the Hospital General in Palma, I have just sent to you all about what we have done since the beginning of this year. Our web site is calanovacancer.com where you may see where we are.

It is all for a very good cause and we are absolutely delighted and very grateful that you should consider helping by giving us some publicity and we really want everyone to know that it’s a big thank you to everyone who in any way has helped whether by hands on help, giving us advice and expertise, anyone who has given their time some by singing/ modelling/ driving/ cooking and then those who have donated and those who have bought and all the volunteers helping in the shop and a lot of the husbands and men who help with the fixing of things and painting…it really is a big joint effort ……..and what we are all doing is a very good thing.

Thank you very much.

The Calanova Cancer Care Charity

THIS week we had an important visitor to our municipality, the Director of Tourism for Helsinki city. Although she is here on holiday at the Hotel Son Caliu, she kindly took some time out to join myself and Deputy Mayors Dani and Enrique for an early morning meeting.

We had a really interesting chat about how diverse Majorca is, and of course she told us about some of the island hotspots that she had visited, including a trip to Soller.

An avid fan of the Paddle surf, down on Son Caliu beach, our guest explained that the people of Finland love the sunshine, but are not prone to lying on the beach all day. They are very active and enjoy sports, gastronomy, markets and culture. It sounds like Majorca is just the right place ! We shall be working with her on a project in the future, in the meantime, enjoy our island !

See you at the polling stations

Have a fab week

Angie x