Litter Pick by River Thames in Abingdon

1 Reply

Abingdon Poppy Appeal
Volunteers carried out a litter pick along the River Thames in Abingdon today.
Abingdon Poppy Appeal
It was organised by the AbiBinit! the Abingdon Litter Picking Initiative and supported by Abingdon Cuts Plastic and the Kingfisher Canoe Club in conjunction with Surfers Against Sewage.

The event saw 60 people, including children, turning up to tackle the issue of litter along the River Thames.
Abingdon Poppy Appeal
Megan is seen here with her bags of rubbish picked from Culham to Abingdon.
Abingdon Poppy Appeal
Rubbish collected included seven traffic cones, three bicycles, a shopping trolley, a street lamp, 96 glass bottles, 13 bags of plastic waste, 75 bags of general waste, and fly tipping – lots of it!.

Events like this raise awareness about how much plastic and other harmful rubbish end up in the River Thames and along it’s banks. Bin it!

There is a McDonald’s Litter Pick for young people tomorrow.

Abingdon Poppy Appeal smashes £50,000

Leave a reply

Thankyou to Clare for this press release from a few days ago. I have reused pictures from the blog post on 27th October 2018 . There was a chance to take more pictures on Thursday when volunteers got together which I did not make.
Abingdon Poppy Appeal
Big-hearted Abingdon folk raised more than £50,000 for the Poppy Appeal last year — a 16 per cent increase and equivalent to more than £1 for every person in the town.

Official figures show that the town has donated £52,545, an increase of £7,196 on the previous year.

The generosity of people was astounding with more than £15,000 in notes alone being dropped into one of the 364 collection tins. They also tapped their way to a further £1,000 on a contactless machine.
Abingdon Poppy Appeal
Highlights of the two-week collection saw the the Army Cadets smash through the £10,000 donation barrier, while a single collector raised almost £4,000.

But the really big story was the fundraising at Tesco Extra Abingdon where the team of collectors with their “poppy shop” in the store foyer raised £17,368 – more than £4,000 up on the previous year. A further £500 came in from collection tins at the end of tills.
Abingdon Poppy Appeal
The Appeal was given its own Abingdon launch with MG owners in poppy red cars parked on the Market Place, while Abingdon Lions took on the task of distributing boxes in the town centre.

Clare Oldfield, Poppy Appeal Organiser, says: ‘Ten years ago Abingdon raised £20,793 for the Poppy. Over the past two years the poppy collectors have raised almost £100,000.

Abingdon may not be the biggest town on the Thames but it must surely have the biggest heart. The amount raised is truly amazing and something the town and its poppy collectors should be rightly proud of.’

A New Bar

2 Replies

Thankyou to Peter for this piece.
A New Bar
A new bar, Tipsy Mercer, has just opened in Ock Street.
A New Bar
It is run by Henrietta and James, ably assisted by Brittany. James has fitted out the bar himself.
A New Bar
The wooden table tops came from Blenheim and he made the supports and wine glass racks from copper central heating tubes! Both floors have been restored in the very fashionable shabby chic style, like the remarkable Wilton Music Hall in London.
A New Bar
It was once Beesley, outfitters and mercers, which is where the name came from. Before cars were popular, they made deliveries in their 1908 De Dion van.
A New Bar
A smart, fashionable addition to Abingdon.

(Apologies to the Tipsy Mercer I did not report this sooner as they have been open for a couple of weeks. The Herald has done a couple of good reports. For more about Beesley’s see The town portal historical people section. )

Pilgrimage for the Planet comes through Abingdon

4 Replies

Abingdon Events
Marchers began a five day walk from Oxford to London to raise awareness of the Climate Emergency. They arrived in Abingdon at lunchtime and had a meal at St Ethelwold’s House before leaving for Wallingford where they stay overnight.

Ginnie Herbert is one of a group of determined grandmothers who was part of the march. Others of all ages had joined her.

71 year old Ginnie said, ‘As a grandmother I am doing whatever I can to demand that the government acts now to cut the greenhouse gases which threaten the future of life on earth. I will not be quiet!’
Abingdon Events
The marchers have an urgent plea to those in positions of power ‘to listen to the voice of the People. We are marching for the future of the land beneath our feet, our winding rivers, our shorelines, the oceans and the very air we breathe.

We march for our children and grandchildren who, unless we are heard, might not know the Natural World, the richness and diversity of this Blue Planet, as we have been privileged to know it. ‘

They call it a pilgrimage for the planet. It will end in extinction rebellion in London.