You could save a life ...


Even in 1994 the clubhouse was in a poor condition and needed extensive renovation, although demolition and a new building was always the preferred option. For a number of years both the committee and the council worked hard on plans to improve the situation. Whilst those early years were frustrating and little progress was made, the time and effort has been worthwhile for all those involved. The club and the council are now working closely together to finalise funding plans for a new clubhouse, incorporating new showers and changing rooms to secure the club’s long term future. Sport England are also closely involved. The grounds at the club have always been maintained to the highest standards. The three football pitches are reckoned to be some of the best, if not the best, in the area. The cricket square is equally praised and hosts Minor Counties cricket tournaments. The bowls green is also to county standard and is the envy of many clubs in the area. Regrettably, there was little interest in tennis so the two courts have been turned into amenity areas. We all know that groundsmen are resourceful people and can turn their hand to just about anything, and often have to. Anybody doubting that needs only to visit RSSC to see what Ray and his part time assistant, Bob Hart, have managed to achieve during the tough times since 1994. Not only do they maintain the grounds at the club, RSSC has arrangements with two nearby schools and the groundsmen maintain additional football pitches on those school grounds for the benefit of RSSC members.


The club has always struggled to make ends meet, especially since 1994. The sports played at the club are not self financing and have to be subsidised by income from the bar and hire of the hall. Ray has had to maintain the grounds on a next to nothing budget. Spending time on trying to keep obsolete machinery running


for ‘just one more season’ or having to cut down on essential materials for the grounds has been the order of the day for many years. Despite that, the standards do not seem to have reduced although Ray, being the perfectionist that he is, would argue otherwise. At least the efforts of the groundsmen are appreciated by most of the members and they are held in very high esteem at the club.


The support of the council over the years has been invaluable. The council fully understood the club couldn’t survive without income from the clubhouse and knew its poor condition was affecting the income. In late 2006 they made a substantial amount of money available to carry out urgent repairs to the building. Ransomes Jacobsen have also been supportive with an agreement which is shortly to be put in place regarding the loan of equipment and a grant for the supply of spare parts. The days of Ray and Bob crossing their fingers and hoping that the ancient machinery they currently use will last another day will soon be a thing of the past!


The story of RSSC shows that when people are committed to a cause then just about anything can be achieved. It was easy for the Job’s Comforters to say only a few years ago that the club was destined for closure, but they were proved wrong. A great deal of hard work has still to be done but the prize at the end will be worth the effort.


Ransomes Sports and Social Club will enter a new era and will provide sport and relaxation for members for many years to come; just as it has done for the last 103 years. Nobody can argue though that, without the skill, dedication and downright hard work from Ray Forsdike and Bob Hart in maintaining superb surfaces against all the odds, the future of the club could have been totally different. They can look back on a job well done.


STROKE: Remember The first three letters ... S.T.R.


If everyone can remember something this simple, you could save someone’s life.


STROKE IDENTIFICATION:


During a BBQ, a friend stumbled and took a little fall. She assured everyone that she was fine and just tripped over a brick because of her new shoes.


They got her cleaned up and got her a new plate of food - while she appeared a bit shaken up, she went about enjoying herself the rest of the day. Her husband called later telling everyone that his wife had been taken to the hospital - (at 6:00pm she passed away.)


She had suffered a stroke at the BBQ. Had her friends known how to identify the signs of a stroke her death could have been avoided.


Some don't die. They end up in a helpless, hopeless condition instead.


STROKE IDENTIFICATION:


A neurologist says that if he can get to a stroke victim within three hours he can reverse the effects of a stroke... totally. He said the trick was getting a stroke recognised, diagnosed, and then getting the patient medically cared for within three hours.


RECOGNISING A STROKE Remember the “3” steps, STR.


Sometimes symptoms of a stroke are difficult to identify. Unfortunately, the lack of awareness can spell disaster.


The stroke victim may suffer severe brain damage when people nearby fail to recognise the symptoms of a stroke.


Now doctors say a bystander can recognise a stroke by asking three simple questions:


S -A T -T


Ask the individual to SMILE . TALK. Ask the person to speak a simple


sentence coherently e.g. “It is sunny out today”.


R -A Ask him or her to RAISE BOTH ARMS .


If he or she has trouble with any one of these tasks, call 999 immediately and describe the symptoms to the dispatcher.


Another way of identifying a stroke is to ask the person to ‘stick’ out their tongue. If the tongue is ‘crooked’, if it goes to one side or the other that is also an indication of a stroke.


It is likely that one in ten people who read this could save a life by recognising the symptoms ... and it could be your own!


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