World Manx Association
Founded in 1911 by Richard Cain O.B.E
April 18th - At Home Lunch
The well attended annual At Home Lunch took place at the Masonic Hall, Douglas. We were treated to a superb buffet lunch and the catering staff couldn't have been more welcoming or attentive. Our guest speaker was Adrian Cain. A teacher by profession, Adrian took over the role of Manx Language Development Officer for the Manx Heritage Foundation in January 2004. It was a joy to listen to him speaking our native tongue and his talk about the language was not only very interesting but amusing as well, he certainly put us through our paces - never before has the raffle been drawn in Gaelic! For anyone keen to further their knowledge of Manx Gaelic, there are a number of classes provided by the Manx Heritage Foundation and for further information Adrian can be contacted at greinneryder@mhf.org.im
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May5th - Garlanding Ceremony
The garlanding of the T E Brown memorial plaque in Glen Falcon Gardens to mark his birthday, was well attended despite the weather being dull and overcast. Readings from the works of T E Brown were given by Peter kelly, Ian Quayle and Wynn Kneale.
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May 16th - Train Trip to Port Erin
What a day! The heavens opened and the rain was horrendous but despite this a small but happy band of souls braved the weather to take the train to Purt Chiarn. As usual the scenery along the way was well worth the effort, with the blue-bells still gloriously carpeting Port Soderick and when the sun did manage to break through, the coastal views were spectacular.
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June 18th - Evening at St Johns
Many thanks to Margaret Kennaugh and her family for once again providing a wonderful meal at St Johns Methodist Hall. If this wasn't enough we were then entertained by Caarjyn Cooidjagh (Friends Together) This local choir, whose voices blend to produce a beautiful sound, was formed over twenty years ago by friends who just enjoyed singing together. Under the guidance of Annie Kissack they sang a number of songs in Gaelic, both old and new and we were even treated to some poetry from both Phil Gawne (Bobby Bob) and Annie Kissack (poetry from the Cushag collection).
Our thanks to everyone for making this a very enjoyable event.
If you would like further information about Caarjyn Cooidjagh please contact Annie at annie@mooinjerveggey.org.im
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Tynwald Celebrations
July 4th Annual Gathering and Dinner
Our Annual Gathering and Dinner took place at the Hydro Hotel, Douglas. Our president and chairman welcomed many firends from overseas and other associations, notably Sally Dalquist, President of NAMA; Stuart Christian, President of the London Manx Society and Henry Kelly, President of the Luxembourg Manx Society. Other guests included the Mayor and Mayoress of Douglas; Lawrence Skelly and the 2009 Cleveland Medal Winner, Mandy Griffin. We were privelaged to hear Mandy sing some of the more well known Manx follk songs and she delighted a captured audience with Griagh my Chree and Oie - Vie sung in Gaelic. It was a lovely evening, very well attended and wonderful to meet all those who had travelled so far to be with us.
July 5th Homecomers Service Crosby
With John Kennaugh taking the Service and wonderful singing by the Glenfaba Chorale and solist kenneth Bawden this proved to be a very Manx occasion and was enjoyed by all who packed Crosby Methodist Church. The Glenfaba Chorale is directed by Murial Corkish, who not only comes from a very well known musical family in the Island (Curphy) but is married to former Cleveland medalist , Geoff Corkish MHK. The lessons were read by our President, Doreen Bell ,and our Chairman, Wynn Kneale. Supper was served in the Chapel Hall with an abundance of sandwiches and home made cakes. Once again, we were delighted to see many friends from overseas and special thanks go to Lawrence Skelly and Lesley Hanson for arranging transport for them.
July 6th Tynwald Day - Homecomers Tent
An early start to what turned out to be a very successful day! Many thanks to Jack Kaighin and all those who helped to set up our area of the tent. Again we were privelaged to meet many old friends and new, who were interested in joining the WMA. The childrens competition proved to be very popular, with many schools participating and the entries submitted were of a very high standard - this, as you can imagine, made judging very difficult! A list of winners can be found in our news section (Skeet)
We would like to thank all those who made this Tynwald a very successful weekend for us all, Gura mie ayd!
August 15th - Visit to Cregneash Village and Afternoon Tea
This was a lovely afternoon followed by tea at the Breagle Glen in Port Erin.
September 10th - Visit to Lhea Kerrow Farm, Kirk Andreas
This proved to be a very popular event and was very well attended. The milking parlour was fascinating, even to those who weren't from a farming background. Many thanks to John Caley and his mother,Jean, for making us so welcome. We ended the evening with a very enjoyable supper at the Grosvenor in Andreas.
Thanks also to David Karran and Brian Glover for their help with transport.
October 1st - Talk and View Coffee Evening
Many thanks to all those who contributed and made the evening so interesting, especially Roy Baker from the Leece museum in Peel.
October 24th - T E Brown Lunch
The T E Brown Lunch took place at the Hydro Hotel. This was well attended and many thanks to the staff of the Hydro who provided a superb lunch. We were fortunate to have John Kennaugh as our main speaker. As always, John's knowledge and narration of the works of T E Brown was a joy to listen to.