Carnival Association.
TO THE
Cheriton and Morehall
Carnival Association
OFFICIAL WEBSITE
In loving memory of Elsie and Henry (Mick) Ryan, and Joyce Jeffrey - carnival people through and through; Bob Gay - generous sponsor, supporter, and friend; and Bob Coltart - musician and friend.
Mick and Elsie Ryan: Even though the Cheriton and Morehall Carnival Association was disbanded in 2004, the memory of what was built by Mick and Elsie, and what was continued by their daughter Karol Steele, lives on, on the carnival circuits of Kent, Essex, London, Sussex and Hertfordshire. Mick and Elsie decided to resurrect the Cheriton Carnival Association in 1987, after a hiatus of 15 years; they had spent two years helping the Folkestone Carnival Association, and had made so many friends that they did not wish to leave them behind. Elsie died in 1989, but Mick decided to continue donating a trophy to the Association in her memory. Mick himself died in 2001, but he won't be forgotten as both the Court of Kent and Folkestone Carnival Association award Mick Ryan Memorial trophies at their contests.
At this point I would like to include an essay Ben wrote for RE at school:
"The person I admire is my late granddad, Mick Ryan.
He was a very brave man, because, despite being all alone for a long time after Nan died, and despite being very ill himself, he worked hard to raise money for all sorts of charities, to provide entertainment for the people of his community, and to help youngsters be the very best at playing cricket.
Granddad Mick was the youngest child in his family, and grew up with three sisters and two brothers. When he was 10 years old, he was evacuated to
During the war his oldest brother, Ted was taken prisoner by the Japanese, and though Ted survived, Granddad Mick was very upset when his brother died of kidney failure two years after the war ended – a result of his long stay in a Japanese prisoner of war camp. When he was 19, Granddad did his National Service with the RAF, giving up a builder’s apprenticeship to do it. It was while he was doing his National Service that his own father died. When Granddad returned home, he and his other brother, Sid, started building houses together.
Granddad enjoyed sport, was a star player in two Folkestone football teams (scoring one of the fastest goals in the local league – just 12 seconds after kick-off) during the winter months, and was a top player in two local cricket teams during the summer. During his time with the Printers Cricket Club, Granddad was the top bowler in the district three years in a row – taking over 100 wickets in a season (and in one weekend, he took 13 wickets for only 23 runs). He was even offered a trial with
Granddad was married twice, and it was by his second wife, Elsie, he had my Mum, Karol. When my mum grew up she won the Miss Folkestone title in 1986, and Nan and Granddad travelled all over
Sadly, two years later, Nan died of cancer, but Granddad decided to carry on in
When he wasn’t travelling to carnivals all over the south-east, he helped Etchinghill Cricket Club, the Air Ambulance, the
Even though Granddad kept himself busy, he still found time for all his children and grandchildren, and eventually great-grand children. He would always visit us, and not just at Christmas or on birthdays. Granddad was always willing to help our family and he even helped with the building and repairs on our house. He read a lot of books and always had an answer to any question I asked him. He was a brilliant granddad. Granddad’s enthusiasm for carnivals and fund-raising resulted in me taking part in carnivals, either collecting money in fancy dress, or taking part in parades on the carnival float.
Granddad himself became very ill with cancer, but despite the pain and tiredness he continued his work of fund-raising, to coach the cricket youth team, and to travel to carnivals all over
I think Granddad Mick was the bravest person I knew, and that’s why I admire him."
Joyce Jeffrey was a permanent fixture in our fancy dress contests (and was even a runner-up in our Glam Gran contest in 1991) and her enthusiasm for the Cheriton Carnival led 6 of her granddaughters (Natalie, Natasha, Donna, Amanda, Heidi and Chevrice) and 2 of her grandsons (Jamie and Nicholas) to becoming members of our court. Her husband, Maurice became one of the mainstays of our committee in the 90s and into the New Millennium - helping to build and tow the float, and taking us all over England in his minibus, Emily. I bet he doesn't miss all the singing (ahem, Siobhan), the non-stop chattering (Tasha, Ben, Rhiannon, Megan, Vivien ... the list is endless), the dirty laughter of Viv, the friendly squabbling of Ben and Tasha, the constant demands for 'fooooooooood!' (everyone's guilty), or the empty crisp packets, clothes and make-up all over the minibus (yep, everyone again). We miss him, though.
Vice-President and sponsor, Bob Gay, became involved with the carnival association after meeting Mick at the RAF Association. Bob was the person who encouraged Mick to become involved with a cricket club again, and introduced him to the Etchinghill Cricket Club. Their joint love of county cricket proved an unbreakable bond, and the two became fast friends, spending many a relaxing day at the St Lawrence Ground (so relaxing sometimes that they would both fall asleep and miss the entire match!) His friendship with Mick helped him overcome much of the loneliness he felt after Elsie's death.
Bob's natural generosity and willingness to help his community led him to offer his services to Cheriton Carnival Association - and was often a judge at our selection contests and carnival parades. He was also more than happy to help the carnival association financially, and was the sponsor of the carnival association's towing vehicle, and donated many a prize to the raffles. He was also a generous patron of the Kent Carnival Court.
Those who met Bob found him to be an intelligent and gentlemanly person, with a knack of making friends easily. News of his recent passing has brought sorrow to his friends in carnival and at the cricket club, and Cheriton Carnival Association would like to offer Bob's children our deepest and heartfelt sympathies.
LISTEN TO BOB AND THE MAROONDOGS
Bob Coltart was the lead singer of one of Folkestone's most popular and successful bands, the Maroondogs. Bob's daughter Vicky was a successful member of the Cheriton Carnival Court for two years, first as a Junior Princess then as our Junior Queen. Both he and his wife Angela were good friends and supporters of Cheriton carnival in general, and of Karol Steele in particular. Bob died in 2001, 6 months before Mick, and is sorely missed by everyone across Kent.
This website is dedicated to their memory.
The final ever Cheriton Carnival Court - Siobhan Hustler, Rhiannon McConnell, Ben Steele, Danielle Willmore, Natalie White, Yasmin Yeomans, Kerri MacRae, Aimee MacRae, Natasha Durham, Jenna-Marie Crellin and Jade Revill - were not only the most successful Cheriton Court ever, but the most successful carnival court on the Kent circuit. During their 12 month reign they won a staggering 68 prizes - a record yet to be broken; and this success is even more amazing when you consider that for much of the year they were just a Junior Court and a Senior Queen competing against associations who had full Junior and Senior Courts. They also travelled to over 88 events and featured in over 275 news stories - another measure of how successful and popular they were. Their court photo (above), along with a letter telling the world how much they loved their town and it's emblem on White Horse Hill, has been buried in a time capsule under the eye of the White Horse.
The first ever Cheriton and Morehall Carnival Court
Over the next few months I will be building a complete record of the Cheriton and Morehall Carnival Association, so that in years to come there will be a record of one of Kent's smallest carnival associations - please be patient. I will need help to complete this task - I am missing newspaper cuttings and photos from 1990 - 1994 inclusive, particularly the years 1991, 1992 and 1993. If you have any, please contact me by clicking on the mailbox in the sidebar. Thank you.
Also check out: http://groups.myspace.com/cheritonandmorehall for a place to connect with former Cheriton Carnival Court members and supporters.
The final word should go to Ben, who was a part of the Cheriton Court from the time he was a year old, when the girls adopted him as their unofficial mascot. After Cheriton CA disbanded, Ben spent a year with the DCAL court as a prince, then decided to retire from the carnival circuit for good in 2005. He wrote a poem to sum up his feelings, and I think it speaks for all of us who have been a member of the Cheriton Court.
NO MORE CARNIVALS by BEN STEELE
No more waving ‘til arm is aching.
No more smiling ‘til jaw is breaking!
No more journeys short or long,
No more noisy sing-a-longs!
No more meeting superstars,
No more riding vintage cars,
No more fundays or sponsored walks,
No more midnight, backseat talks,
No more early morning rises,
No more late night energy crises!
No more on floats with Shiv and the rest,
No more costume fancy dress.
No more new friends to get to know,
No more talking on radio shows,
No more filming for TV screens,
No more kissing carnival queens!
No more dance floor flicks and spinning,
No more competition winning!
No more summer weekends busy,
No more carnivals ... no more me.
Copyright © 2006 Cheriton and Morehall CA. All Rights Reserved.
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