A new social meeting group called Welcome Wednesday has been set up in Sennelager by Catherine Harrod.

The group meets monthly on Normandy Barracks in Sennelager at the Pink Room and is open to all spouses, with or without children.

Catherine said: “The idea for Welcome Wednesday was a direct result of my initial experiences when first moving to Germany.

“My husband and I arrived in 2009 at short notice, on an unexpected posting. Our 18 and 20-year-olds had decided they did not want to leave their jobs and friends to come with us, I had given up my job as a local authority social worker and suddenly found myself without a demanding job to manage and two adult children to ‘mother’!

“All the adverts I saw for groups and activities seemed to involve having babies, toddlers or young children. I had no children to take to the school gates where I could meet other spouses and, as my husband was posted individually, no regimental or unit network to meet other spouses through.”

Catherine attended a couple of coffee mornings at Barker Barracks, organised by spouses of 35 Engineer Regiment and found they were fun and well thought out events and that it was great to meet spouses from all backgrounds and experiences.

It got her thinking, wouldn’t it be nice to have a coffee morning for the whole garrison.

In March 2010, Catherine began working in the Sennelager library and started to hear from other spouses about their experiences of moving to the area and the difficulties they had faced.

A common theme seemed to be emerging of how to meet friends if your spouse is posted individually, you have no children to take to activities organised for families and/or you don’t start work straight away.

Catherine discussed the idea of a monthly coffee morning with Kate Gawthorpe and Lindsay McCran and suggested combining Kate’s last table top sale with an inaugural coffee morning.

They were both really positive about the idea so Catherine spoke to Nobby Noble, who sees the Pink Room as a welfare facility for the entire garrison and was more than happy for a garrison-wide coffee morning to be held there.

Catherine said: “The ethos for Welcome Wednesday is that we are children friendly but not children orientated. Where better then for spouses with children to come too?

“The play amenities are great, but it is also somewhere for spouses without children to feel equally at home.”

The first coffee morning was held in July and was a huge success thanks to the hard work and support offered by Kate and Lindsay. €200 was raised for the Alzheimer’s charity and there was a great buzz around the Pink Room as everyone chatted and laughed. It seemed that there really was a need for Welcome Wednesday to continue, but with both Kate and Lindsay being posted, Catherine needed some help. Julie Walsh, Lindsay Oakes, Viola Rollings and Jenny Miller have all offered to take an active part in arranging future Welcome Wednesdays.

A committee has been formed and they are now up and running with Welcome Wednesday dates and activities planned for the rest of the year.

Catherine added: “We would love more committee members so if anyone wants to volunteer please call me on 05254 9304193.

“Also, if anyone wants some more information on Welcome Wednesday they can call me on the above number or pop into Sennelager library, where they can become a library member at the same time and take advantage of all the great things the library can offer members of BFG.”

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Defence Estates Facilities Management (DE FM) Paderborn recently recognised the accumulated service of 28 staff members amounting to 663 years of service.

Certificates were presented in recognition of each individual’s length of service.

The certificates were awarded to nine people for 12 years service each, nine people for 25 years service each, four people for 30 years service and six people for 35 years service each.

The staff members consisted of office staff and tradesmen.

DE FM Paderborn’s Facility Manager Keith Gatford said the awards given shows the dedication and commitment of our staff in supporting the soldiers and their families while serving in Paderborn Garrison and thanked them all for their continued support.

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Over a year ago, Clare Lovelock decided the garrison required a morning baby group and Musical Movers was born.

The group is for children of all ages from birth to pre-school and each week there is a theme.

The session starts with a welcome song to get to know everyone, followed by songs and activities based on the theme of the week.

The singing lasts for half an hour followed by an activity; the facilities of the Pink Room are also available for use which allows the children to play together further developing their social skills while allowing the mums get a chance to catch up and have a natter.

Musical Movers, now run by Sabine Donnelly, Michelle Costello and Helen Mitchell has an active Facebook page which allows members to see the upcoming themes and includes a forum for suggestions.

Everyone is welcome to get involved and there is no charge for the group. Why not come along on Thursdays at 10.30am to the Pink Room, Normandy Barracks in Sennelager, and see what it’s all about.