Nuisance Helpline

Anti-Social Behaviour
Noise problems
CHATTERBOX ASIST
Anti-Social
Investigation Team
Support and Advice
No 194 February 2010 Office 8:45am – 4:45pm
Every day 9am – 10pm
www.lochwinnoch.info Tel: 0141 840 2163
Tel: 0800 169 1283

Community newsletter produced by lochwinnoch publicity committee for lochwinnoch cc

What’s See centre pages for village clubs, classes and events.
On See back pages for Visitor Centre/RSPB events & activities. The Big Freeze
2009-2010
This is the year of the whiteness.
Snow and ice and frost cover the land
in a relentless hardness.
I am locked
inside the beauty of this whiteness
in oldness,
frozen
to arthritic limbs,
brittled
in coldness from the years.

And in this year of whiteness

our today
disintegrates . . .
The car won’t go
the telephone is dead
the heating fails
the tap no longer yields its flow.
© Chatterbox Copyright Y Ross I am alone
and suddenly frail.
Editorial & copy
for Chatterbox CHATTERBOX But life is relentless;
Let us have your stories, notices, news,
information, events & items of interest — Chatterbox is produced and distributed in my core
either hand-deliver them to the Chatterbox on behalf of Lochwinnoch Community its force
drop-box in the Library or e-mail to: Council, with support and financial ignites the dynamo -
chatterbox@lochwinnoch.info assistance from local sponsors and
advertisers. survive,
To advertise in Chatterbox do battle with the snow!
Tel: 07899 746403 or e-mail: The Editor welcomes all items for pos-
chatterboxaccount@btinternet.com sible inclusion but will reserve all I am become
rights over them. All views are of indi-
viduals. The Editor accepts no liability a sister
Copy Deadline for
for errors or statements and claims to my ancestors
March 2010 Issue Is
Tuesday 23rd February
made in advertisements. I walk beside the ancients;
I am the gatherer of wood
the keeper of the fire
MATTHEW NEW & SONS the carrier of water.
I am the one
ROOFING - ROUGHCASTING - BUILDING MAINTENANCE
who lived high on the hill
who faced out
Emergency Repairs, Storm Damage winter’s cruellest smile
Insurance Work, New Roofs, Flat Roofs who walked once more
Roughcasting –UPVC Cladding—Guttering into the spring ...
Tel No 01505 843400 Betty McKellar
FMB Certificate No 26366 January 2010
 DIRTY DAWGS
Picture the scene...
First day back at school after the
summer break. All the children are
heading up the hill, smartly turned
out, their new shoes shining in the
morning sun. Then..... SQUELCH!!!
Right in a dog`s doo doo.
The tears, the smell. They try to
clean it off as best they can. But, as
they sit in class, everyone can smell
it. When they walk about class it
rubs off on the floor. Horrible!
Picture the scene.....
Councillor Bibby’s
Report
I am pleased that the improvement works
around the McKillop Hall are due to start
on 1st February. These works will include
new benches, paving and other improve-
ments. I know Lochwinnoch is a beauti-
ful village and a great place to live. This
project will help to make the centre of the
village even more attractive. If you would
like a copy of the plans please get in
touch.
I know the lack of gritting during the re-
cent bad weather has caused some concern
locally. I have been contacted about a
number of different streets which people
thought did not receive enough attention.
One of the paths that caused particular
concern was the one leading up to the
ROBERT RARITY
FUNERAL SERVICES Ltd
Garnock Valley
Independent Funeral Service
60 Main Street, Kilbirnie
Family Owned, Family Run
Now serving the whole of the
Garnock Valley
Bringing the independent
choice back to the Valley
The independent undertaker
remains a family’s first choice, for
a personal and more understanding
service at your time of need.
Why Pay To Cover Huge Overheads
Independent Undertakers are up to
20% less for Funeral Costs

A few days after the start of term, a

child is off school. At the hospital, in
fact. A badly infected cut, just a
scratch at first, but becoming in-
fected when they tried to clean the
mess off their shoe. Or maybe a se-
verely upset stomach because they
sucked their thumb. All because
someone let their dog “poop” on the
pavement, then didn`t “scoop” after-
wards. Every year, 100 people in the
UK contract TOXOCARA CANIS
(toxacariasis), a disease caught from
dog faeces, especially by children,
that can cause eye problems and
blindness.
Now, of course you, dear reader and
dog owner, would never allow this
to happen. But someone does!
Nearly every week there is dog ex-
crement on one of the pavements
leading up to the school. Sometimes
the children have to walk on the road
to avoid it. Mothers with prams and
buggies struggle to make sure they
don`t get it on the wheels. Someone
is causing the problem.
If you are a dog owner, it is your
duty to ensure that your animal does
not foul on the pavement. You can
be fined if you are caught. If you see
anyone allowing their dog to foul the
pavement, you can report it to the
Dog warden service. So, come on,
let`s keep our pavements clean and
ensure that the children can walk to
school without having to avoid those
horrid little brown dollops!
Lochwinnoch Primary Parent Council
Railway Station, which can be busy when
people are walking to catch a train to work
Tel: 01505 682 555
in the morning or coming home in the 60 Main Street, Kilbirnie
evening. Whilst main streets and pave-
E-mail: robert@robertrarity.com
ments should be a priority for salting it is
Website www.largsfuneraldirector.com
important that other areas are not forgot-
ten about and I have contacted the Roads 24 hr Personal Service
Department to let them know local views
Help and Guidance
on this matter.
With All Arrangements
A footpath not being forgotten about is the
bottom part of the Johnshill where works
to widen parts of it are due to start soon.
I know from walking up and down John-
shill that there are very narrow sections of
pavements here.
There are also proposals to improve walk-
ing for pedestrians at the A760 near St
Josephs. If you would like more informa- An Exhibition and Consultation took
tion on either of these proposed works
place on Thursday 29th October in the
then please get in touch.
McKillop Institute, when draft designs
Last month I attended the official launch of proposed external works to the
of the ROAR Lunch Club at the McKillop grounds around the McKillop Institute
Hall which was well attended by around were available for local people to view
30 older residents. It was great to meet so and comment on.
many older people from Lochwinnoch and
the lunch was absolutely delicious. I have Since then, plans have been finalised,
always felt a day time club for older resi- the contract has been awarded to
dents in Lochwinnoch to be important but Landscape and Contracts and works to
it could not happen without the help of the the outside areas at the McKillop In-
volunteers, the Elderly Forum and every- stitute are due to start on site on Mon-
one else involved who have done a terrific day 1st February 2010. Weather per-
job and I am sure will continue to do so.
mitting, works should be complete by
the end of April.
My next advice surgeries are on Saturday
6th February and Saturday 6th March at
Copies of the masterplan drawings are
9am in the McKillop Hall, Lochwinnoch. on public display in the entrance hall
and in the Lounge inside the McKillop
You can also get in touch at any other
building.
time by calling Tel: 0141 840 3653
or by emailing me at: Please note - all classes held in the
cllr.neil.bibby@renfrewshire.gov.uk McKillop Institute are expected to run
Councillor Neil Bibby as normal.
 Councillor Arthur’s
Report
I recently attended and thoroughly
enjoyed the official opening of the
Reaching Older Adults in Renfrew-
shire Lunch Club (ROAR) which is the
lunch club that runs on a Thursday, on
average feeds around 30 to 40 of our
community and is staffed by local
volunteers.
My wholehearted thanks go to our
volunteers, Grace Manders, Rita Parr,
Betty Somerville, Eileen McDonald,
Francis McPherson, Pat Morrison,
Sandra Loney, Cathy O’Brien, Liz
Ramsay and Liz Glen who not only
dish out and serve the excellent meals
but also do the washing up.
The club is looking for more volun-
teers, therefore, if you would like to
give a little of your time then please
contact Rita Parr on 842054.
If you wish to attend for your lunch
then it is preferable that you book
your meal with Rita prior to your at-
tendance but, if this is not possible,
then you must be in before 12 noon. A
main meal, sweet, tea/coffee and bis-
cuits costs £2.
ROAR is a joint project involving five
local voluntary organisations: Ren-
frewshire Council for Voluntary Ser-
vices (RCVS), Volunteer Centre Ren-
frewshire, WRVS, Alzheimer's Scot-
land and Contact the Elderly. This
project provides a range of other sup-
port services to older people such as
transport service for appointments,
for example, medical checkups, an
individual befriending scheme and a
phone contact initiative. The project is
designed to help reduce isolation, im-
prove health and wellbeing, increase
self-confidence, provide social activity,
maximise independence and improve
the quality of life. These services are
provided on the basis of an assess-
ment made by Renfrewshire Council
and Renfrewshire Community Health
Partnership. For further information
on these services phone 0141 889 7481
or contact myself.
I’m sure that most people are aware
that I’m a great believer in community
partnership working, therefore, I’m
delighted that the partnership of the
Lochwinnoch Millennium Events
Group and Renfrewshire Council have
got over a few hurdles and secured an
improved walking surface for us pe-
destrians who walk the circular route
around the Glenlora area.
THINKING OF LETTING OUT YOUR PROPERTY?
WHY NOT GIVE US A CALL?
WITH COMPETITIVE RATES AND A FRIENDLY,
PERSONAL SERVICE, LET AMG LETTING
TAKE CARE OF EVERYTHING FOR YOU.
GIVE ANNETTE A CALL ON 01505 843589
Our original plan was to create a new
path just inside the St.Joseph’s en-
trance, across the edge of the field
and exiting on to Auchenhain Road
(commonly known as Glenlora
Road) but, sadly, after satisfying all
conditions the owners would not
give us the go ahead.
Plan B was to secure a curbed pave-
ment, which has to be a standard 2
metre width, to run alongside the
road where we currently walk at pre-
sent but this was not possible due to
the road having to keep its current
width which, in turn, meant that the
space left between the road edge and
the wall did not make the 2 metre
requirements.
It is plan C that will happen and this
is to dig out the area between the
edge of the road and the wall and
surface this area with tarmac to the
same level as the road. To warn driv-
ers that pedestrians may be in the
roadway, advance warning signs will
be erected in both directions.
Widening work will start shortly on
two sections of pavement on the left
hand side of the Johnshill from
number 5 to just short of Parkhill
Drive. This funding is coming from
the Safer Streets budget.
I had much pleasure in attending
Lochwinnoch Art Group’s Art in the
Park Exhibition in the Castle Semple
Centre, which has a mixture of tradi-
tional and contemporary work. The
group certainly has very talented
members. The exhibition runs until
Tuesday 9th February. It’s well
worth a visit.
Our ground improvement works at
the front and side of the McKillop
should now be under way. Plans of
the works are on display in the
McKillop Hall. The contract has been
awarded to Landscape and Contracts
(L+C). Once on site, the contractors
will introduce themselves to local
traders and neighbours and, weather
permitting, the works should be com-
plete by the end of April. Any issues,
then let me know as soon as possible.
I am currently dealing with com-
plaints of dog fouling on the pave-
ments around the school. Please pass
on any information that you may have
with regards to the culprits.
Description of dog and their owners is
ideal for this purpose.
My next Surgery is on Saturday 20th
February but there is no need to wait
for a Surgery if you require my help,
you can contact me on 843507 or
email me at -
cllr.david.arthur@renfrewshire.gov.uk
and we can agree a time when we can
meet.
Councillor David Arthur
LOCHWINNOCH
SURGERY NEWS
All parents of children aged 5 and
under should have received an invi-
tation for them to have an H1N1
Swine Flu Vaccination. The vaccine
is supplied and administered in
batches of 10 doses and we are now
coming to the end of the pro-
gramme. Any parents wishing to
have their child vaccinated should
get in touch with the surgery be-
fore 12th February 2010.
Surgery Tel: 01505 842200
 Valentine’s
ELLISTON GRILL  
  Gala Ceilidh
NOW OPEN FROM 10AM SERVING TEA & COFFEE  The Gala Day Committee are
  holding their annual
Valentines Gala Ceilidh
Have you tried the fabulous Elliston Grill ?   on Saturday 20th.February
  at 8.00pm (doors open 7.30pm )
WINTER WARMER MENU  in the McKillop Hall, Lochwinnoch
 2 Courses from our à la carte menu £17.50 or 3 Courses £21.50 
including a small glass of wine   The tickets are still great value at
£8.50 and include a light supper.
(supplement applies to Scallops, Steaks and Venison)  
There is a bar and, as usual, the
and this offer must be mentioned when making the   Raffle which includes some fan-
reservation as tables are limited on this offer.  tastic prizes !
 
VALENTINE’S DAY MENU (early evening) ‐ 4 Courses £17.50   The band is, as always, ‘The last
or Dinner £25.50  Tram tae Auchenshuggle’ .
  Tickets are now available from
The Junction, The Corner Bar, The
MOTHER’S DAY 14th March ‐ 3 Courses or Dinner  £15.95 
Brown Bull and Crafts of Calder
 
Gallery.
Fabulous Home Cooking, Suitable For All Occasions. 
 
FOR MORE INFORMATION, PLEASE VISIT OUR WEBSITE AT: 
www.ellistongrill.com or CALL ON:  01505 703020. will be held on
Saturday 12th June 2010.

ST VINCENT’S
HOSPICE
UNWANTED GIFTS
Do you have any unwanted Christmas
gifts such as toiletries, bottles, books,
DVD’s, clothes, etc? St Vincent’s Hos-
pice can make good use of all these un-
wanted gifts through raffle and tombola
prizes. You can either drop them into
reception at the Hospice in Midton Road ,
Howwood or give us a call on 01505
705635. Thank you.
FORTHCOMING EVENTS
Valentine’s Dinner Disco Show your
“Love” of St Vincent ’s Hospice by en-
joying a Valentine’s evening on Friday
12th February at Bowfield Hotel &
Country Club, which includes a 3 course
dinner and disco. Tickets are available
from the Fundraising Team (details be-
low) and at the Bowfield Hotel.
The Kilbarchan Singers will hold a
concert on Saturday 20th February at
7.30pm in the Wynd Centre, Paisley in aid
of St Vincent ’s Hospice, with the theme
‘Around the World in 80 Minutes.’
Members of the vocal octet Dieci will
perform a whistle stop tour of anthems
and songs from across the world, includ-
ing music from France , Italy , Norway ,
American and Africa !
Tickets are available from St Vincent ’s
Hospice (details below) or from the
Kilbarchan Singers on 0141 580 6292 or
email singers@kilbarchansingers.org
Women’s 10k
Calling all women!! This year’s Women’s
10k is taking place on Sunday 9th May.
If anyone would like to raise funds for St
Vincent’s Hospice please contact either
Lorraine or Ashley in the Fundraising
department (details below).
Use the links below to keep up-to-date
with hospice events.
www.bebo.com/StVincentsHospice
www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=
124230589015, and
twitter.com/StVincentsHosp
or
Contact: Ashley Moran and
Lorraine Valentine at St Vincent’s
on Tel: 01505 705635 or e-mail:
Ashley.moran@svh.co.uk
This year, the theme for the Gala is
'SPACE'. So, if there are any Star
Trek fans, Dr.Who fans etc., we want
to hear from you. This is your chance
to get involved in this fantastic day.
We have one or two new events again
this year.
As Gala Day grows, we are finding that
we need extra volunteers to assist on
the day. It is a great community event
which deserves the support of the
community. So if you can help us in
any way, even for an hour or two, it
would really be appreciated very
much.
Please leave your name and contact
details at Crafts of Calder Gallery,8
High Street. Someone will then be in
touch with you. ' Trekkies' and
'Dr.Who' followers may leave their
details at the Gallery too.
IMPROVING WITH AGE
Keep Fit Class
HELP! HELP! HELP!
Classes are held every Tuesday from
10am-11am at Lochwinnoch Annex in
the Park. A fully qualified instructor
is in attendance and classes are for
males and females so, don’t be shy,
come and join us. For further
details, Tel: 01505 843393.
 TEENAGE CANCER
TRUST NEWS
The Teenage Cancer Trust unit in the
Royal Hospital for Sick Children
(Yorkhill) was officially opened on
Tuesday 19th January 2010.

Half of the £700,000 for the new unit was www.weansworldjohnstone.co.uk

raised as a result of a mammoth £350,000
fundraising campaign by Teenage Cancer
Trust West of Scotland Action Group.
Former Rangers star, Arthur Newman, cut NEW NURSERY NOW OPEN
the ribbon to open the new ward. He is
pictured here with relatives of cancer vic-
FORMERLY ST ANTHONY’S CHURCH
tims, including Russell Boyd, whose
brother Allister (featured in May 2009 2A HALHILL ROAD SPATESTON
(EASY ACCESS FROM BEITH ROAD)
LIMITED PLACES AVAILABLE
For more information or to arrange a visit
please contact Vicky Gormley on Tel: 01505 702533

Out of school care places available - 43 Brewery Street, Johnstone.

Breakfast club/ After school care/ Holiday playscheme
Bookings now being taken for holiday playscheme and new term.
Tel: 01505 321916

issue of Chatterbox) raised a staggering UPDATE on the Brown Bull

£130,000 for TCT despite battling a brain
tumour and Sarah Delaney, whose brother
Andrew lost his fight against cancer in
November 2003, aged 15. As Chatterbox
readers will know, Andrew’s father John,
his family, friends and many fund-raisers
(too numerous to mention here!) have
worked tirelessly to raise funds for this
new unit and they are to be congratulated
on this fantastic achievement.
Prior to the opening of the new unit, teen-
agers would have to choose between hav-
ing treatment at Yorkhill with childen in
the Schiehallion cancer ward, or the Beat-
son with adults.
The new unit has six beds for 13-16 year
olds, plus social areas, a kitchen, lounge
and TV as well as games consoles. This
unit is similar to the one at Beatson West
of Scotland Cancer Centre, which cares
for 17-24 year olds and makes Glasgow
the first place in Scotland to offer special-
ised cancer care for ALL teenagers.
STOP PRESS - John Delaney would like
to thank everyone who has supported the
TCT fundraising efforts over the period of
this campaign. As recently as last week,
John received a further £272 from indi-
viduals and groups in Lochwinnoch,
which was very pleasing and really in-
spires him to keep going.
TCT AUCTION & RAFFLE
which raised the grand total of
£4,530.60.
A terrific result.
Thanks to all who contributed.
Lochwinnoch
Historical Society
At the January evening, Murray and Joy
Blair gave an interesting powerpoint talk
on the subject of washing greens. Much
of which was remembered by those of
us over a certain age, especially the
soaps, washboards, boilers etc. Well, I
might have seen my mother using them!
Our guest speaker at the February meet-
ing is Ian McCrorie with a talk "Paisley
High Street". This will be held on
Thursday 25th February, at 7.30pm in
the Parish Church Guild Room.
Visitors and new members welcome. An
evening visit is £2 and includes
tea/coffee/cake and biscuits.
Contact: Gordon Nicholl Tel 842632
Elderly Forum
At the time of writing we look forward
to our January meeting when we will
have a talk from Ann Gibson, stroke
nurse.
The next meeting will be on Thursday
25th February at 1.30pm in the McKil-
lop, following the lunch club.
Our speaker on that date is Sophie
Bell, community liaison officer from
the Energy Saving Scotland Advice
Centre. She will be telling us about
the energy saving package that they
offer.
Our popular Tbar is up and running
again after the Christmas break. Tea,
coffee and biscuits for 50p!
The ROAR lunch club had its official
opening on Thursday 21st January.
This event was attended by a number
of council officials including Council-
lors David Arthur and Neil Bibby.
The lunch club is every Thursday at
11.45am and a bargain at £2 for 2
courses followed by tea or coffee and
biscuits.
We are looking for volunteers to help
at this, from 11am - 1pm on Thurs-
days. If you would like to help please
phone Reta 842054.
Contact - Gordon Nicholl: 842632
 Lochwinnoch Fairtrade Cucina Minucci
International Aid Fortnight 2010 at The Junction
Licensed Caffè
2 – 4 High Street,
Lochwinnoch, PA12 4DA.

www.lochwinnochaid.org.uk
Tel: 01505 842 225

Annual General Meeting
The recent Annual General Meeting of
LIA discussed reviews of its spending
record, projects we might support on a
longer term basis and future fund rais-
ing plans.
Heather Gray then gave an illustrated
talk on her recent trip to Nepal where
she visited orphanages supported by
Community Action Nepal. A recent
contribution from LIA has helped to
improve the very basic facilities in the
schools attached to these orphan-
ages.
Thanks to staff in Lochwinnoch Library
for allowing us to use their accommo-
dation.
An important achievement is the re-
newal of Lochwinnoch's Fairtrade
status, which shows the village's con-
tinuing commitment to support Fair-
trade producers and farmers in im-
proving their incomes and their com-
munity facilities.
Final plans were also made for Fair-
trade Fortnight: the Big Swap.
This is our annual awareness-raising
campaign, between -
22 February and 8 March 2010,
when we hope Lochwinnoch folk will
swap their usual stuff for Fairtrade
stuff. A varied programme of local
events has been organised to which
everyone is invited.
Breakfast
Fairtrade events in Lochwinnoch
Lunch
We start with a Coffee Morning at Jo’s Baking
The Junction, on the morning of
Wednesday 24 February from 9 until
noon, offering the range of Fairtrade Large range of organic
drinks served there (50p from each and wholefoods
hot drink sale will go towards the cost
of producing a new mug to promote If we don’t have it,
Fairtrade). we can source it!!
Another Coffee Morning will be held
EAT IN or TAKE AWAY
at the RSPB on 25 February, from
11- 1pm: a chance to try some of the
range of Fairtrade drinks and snacks www.cucinaminucci.co.uk
that are sold there. Tickets are £2 and Ivan and Joanna Minucci
are on sale in advance.
and the team
On 3rd March, from 10am -12 noon in
the Junction, Ivan Minucci is offering
Finally, on Sunday 7th March,
a free coffee tasting event : a great
starting at 11am, there will be a
chance to learn more about the aroma
Fairtrade stall at the Castle Sem-
and taste of the distinctive Fairtrade
ple Centre where you will be able
single origin coffees he sells. There
to buy a wide range of Fairtrade
are only 10 places for this free event
products, try some samples and
so advanced booking is required by
find out more about our campaign.
ringing 01505-842225 or by calling
into the caffè. Ivan hopes to have
We are pleased to report that the
extra coffee available to taste by other
Centre will be swapping its coffee
customers, who are in the Junction
to Fairtrade coffee/tea in the cafe
during that morning, in addition to
for Fairtrade Fortnight and also
spare tasting notes.
selling other Fairtrade food prod-
ucts.
Last year, a lively audience loved the
group Quinteto Son al Son who Fairtrade activities are also
played son, a 1920’s style of music planned involving two classes in
still played in café’s and bars across the Primary School and members
Cuba. See below for more details of of the Elderly Form.
this year’s event.

Lochwinnoch International Aid are pleased to announce the return of the 'Son al Son' Cuban
music band. They're coming to Lochwinnoch Bowling Club on Friday 26th February.
The music they play is traditional Cuban music, (in the salsa style but a bit slower and easier
to join in with). It's guaranteed to get your feet tapping and out of your seat in no time.
They were great last time they were here and we had a full house!

Doors open at 7.30pm and music will start at 8 pm. Tickets are £7 (reductions for children
will be made at the door) and can be bought from the usual helpful outlets, the Paper Shop,
the Junction and the Brown Bull, or Tel: 843099.

We'll be having a special raffle this time with lots of good prizes; all the profits from the
evening will be donated to Médecins Sans Frontières to support its medical work in Haiti.
You can check out Son al Son's profile and hear music samples on freakmusic.co.uk
 Roses are red
Choose a Valentine
We have hundreds - fun, classy, humorous, sentimental, cute and irreverent
plus lots of gift ideas to delight your darling (including lots of fair-trade items).
And if you can’t decide, we do gift vouchers.
Gifts Cards Jewellery Leather Home
8 Church Street Lochwinnoch 01505 843311
Open 9-5 Monday-Saturday and 11-4 on Valentine’s Day (Sunday Feb 14)
Events in Paisley
Several Fairtrade Fortnight events in
Paisley are open to everyone.
On 17th February, there is a Fair-
trade Tea Dance at Paisley Town
Hall from 1 - 3.30pm.
Tickets for this cost £1.50 each and
are available from the box Office at
Paisley Art Centre on 0141 887 1010.
Two events are being held on Satur-
day February 27th.
The first is a Community Tea Party
in the Alexander Wilson Suite of
Paisley Town Hall from 10am – 1pm,
when free Fairtrade tea, coffee and
biscuits will be available.
This is a chance to hear more about
Fairtrade and speak to those who
have co-ordinated successful local
campaigns in Renfrewshire.
The second event is a UWS Fair-
trade 5-a-side Football Tourna-
ment hosted by the Students' Asso-
ciation University of the West of Scot-
land (Paisley Campus). They are
looking for teams across Renfrew-
shire to compete.
Entry is £2 per person (money raised
going to Fairtrade Foundation).
The tournament kicks off at 10.30am
and runs until 2.30pm at Thornly Park
Sports Centre. Fairtrade refresh-
ments will be provided.
If you are interested in putting for-
ward a team, please contact Paul
Brennan, 0141 840 3530.
Finding out more about
Fairtrade
Throughout Fairtrade Fortnight, com-
mencing 22nd February, the Castle
Semple Centre will host an exhibition
illustrating some aspects of the
Violets are blue FAIRTRADE
From Colin and Sue
Products
and
Places
More than 2,000 products in the
UK, from over 58 developing coun-
tries, now carry the Fairtrade Mark.
Here’s a sample.
Beauty Products - from Burkina
Faso, Ghana, Peru, Dominican Re-
public and Malawi
Flowers - from Kenya
Bananas - from the West Indies,
Dominican Republic & Columbia
Fairtrade Campaign's aims and its
Footballs - from Pakistan
local activities.
Coffee - from Ethiopia, Tanzania,
An Information stand will also be at Uganda, Costa Rica, Guatemala
Braehead shopping centre, on 22nd Sugar - from Malawi and Paraguay
February, between 10am and 9pm. Chocolate & Cocoa - from the
Ivory Coast, Ghana, Belize and the
Information about where to get Fair- Dominican Republic
trade products when you are out Wine - from Chile
shopping and eating, will be found in Tea - from Sri Lanka, Uganda and
Renfrewshire Council's new Fair- India
trade Guide to Renfrewshire : avail-
Cotton - from India
able in various venues and outlets in
Lochwinnoch during Fairtrade Fort-
Citrus Fruits, Grapes and Dried
night. Fruits - from South Africa and
Pakistan
Another good source of information Honey - from Nicaragua
about Fairtrade, including films Pineapples - from Costa Rica and
about its importance is the Fairtrade Ghana.
Foundation website at: These items are now so widely
available, it’s easy to make the
http://www.fairtrade.org.uk/
switch to Fairtrade products.
The local contact is Bob Turner Think Global - Act Local *
Tel: 01505 843068. * Sir Patrick Geddes 1854-1932, Ballater Scotland
Early pioneer of sustainable development
SPECIAL OFFERS ON MEAT EVERY WEEK
SCOTTISH FREE RANGE CHICKENS - NOW IN !
DISCOUNTED MEAT PACKS - AVAILABLE IN VARIOUS SIZES
SEASONAL GAME - PARTRIDGE, PHEASANT, WILD RABBIT
AND VENISON AVAILABLE NOW !
Beat the credit crunch, Shop Local and visit us at:
39 High Street, Lochwinnoch PA12 4AB Tel: 01505 844941
or e-mail your order to us at: sean@heritagemeat.co.uk
 Antique Valentine Cards

It was in 1797 that a British publisher was reputed to be the forerunner

Antiques, Curios and Crafts
A dynamic selection of oils, watercolours
and limited edition prints.
Bespoke crafts by local artisans, vintage
and contemporary jewellery.
Well worth discovering for yourself.
SPECIAL OFFER—10% DISCOUNT ON SHOPPING
FOR THE WHOLE MONTH OF FEBRUARY
The Barn on the Farm, open 10am till late every day
Contact Greta Logan on
Tel: 01505 683338 Mob: 07786 720586
e-mail: greta@thestirrupcup.co.uk
www.thestirrupcup.co.uk
West Bankside Farm, Geirston Road,
Kilbirnie, KA25 7LQ
Just opposite the Golf Course on the Largs Road.
of the Valentine card. He issued The Young Man’s Valentine Writer, which
contained scores of suggested sentimental verses for the young lover un-
able to compose his own. Valentine cards as we know them today are
really a Victorian invention, appearing around the mid 1800’s. Historically
they can take two forms. Either they are handcrafted by or for the donor or
they are commercially produced and later embellished with a personal
message.
The earliest Valentine cards were produced in Germany and England,
with Germany quickly capturing the American market with countless ex-
amples, ranging in size from 2 inches to cards which exceeded 14 inches in
height and width.
The Victorians preference for elaborate romantic motifs and florid pat-
terns meant that many cards were made in a three dimensional design, of-
ten incorporating hearts, songbirds, flowers, frills and lacy borders.
Postcard manufacturers also produced Valentine cards within their general
and seasonal greeting card ranges such as birthdays, weddings, condolence,
Christmas, Easter and the like. This was particularly true of the appropri-
ately named Dundee firm of Valentine and sons, in business from the late
19th century until the 1960’s.
Victorian valentines are usually quite fragile and it is important to col-
lectors that cards remain complete, unfaded and unfolded. Some were con-
ceived as ‘pop up cards’ and are especially prone to being creased or torn.
As paper objects their values are low enough for collectors to be pretty
choosy. A top tip when looking for antique valentine cards is to remember
to examine old scrap books. Victorians liked to attach their cards here as a
form of remembrance.
At the Stirrup Cup we have a wide range of vintage collectables and
jewellery for your partner. And to help you choose we are offering a 10%
discount for not only Valentine’s Day,on the 14th but for the entire month
of February.

Mystery Plays
I hope most of the village have heard
about the Mystery Play to be performed
on Sunday 28th March around the village.
Equally, you may be asking, “What is a
Mystery Play?” Mystery Plays are one of
the earliest forms of drama, developed in
medieval Europe and reaching their height
of popularity in the 15th century. The
plays originated as simple sketches of
biblical texts. Early performances were
given in Latin and were preceded by a
vernacular prologue spoken by a herald
who gave a synopsis of the events.
In time, productions moved from the
church to the churchyard and the public
market place. Sadly in 1210 Pope Inno-
cent III banned the clergy from acting in
public and the production was taken over
by town guilds. Needless to say, changes
ensued: vernacular texts replaced Latin;
non-Biblical passages were added along
with comic scenes; not least, the acting
and characterisation became more elabo-
rate. From the guild control originated the
term mystery play or mysteries, from the
Latin “misterium” meaning “occupation”
(i.e. that of the guilds).
The mystery play developed, in some
places, into a series of plays dealing
with all the major events in the Christian
calendar, from the Creation to the Day
of Judgment. By the end of the 15th
century, the practice of acting these
plays in cycles on festival days was es-
tablished in several parts of Europe.
Sometimes, each play was performed on
a decorated cart called a pageant that
moved about the city to allow different
crowds to watch each play. The entire
cycle could take up to twenty hours to
perform and could be spread over a
number of days. In Britain, after the
Reformation and the establishment of
the Church of England in 1534, the
plays were banned.
Modern revivals
The Mystery Plays were revived in both
York and Chester in 1951 as part of the
Festival of Britain. The Lichfield Mys-
teries were revived in 1994 and more
recently in 2001, an African version of
the Chester plays was performed in Lon-
don. Passion Plays are also a shortened,
modern equivalent of the Mediaeval
Mystery Play. While, the most famous is
that portrayed in Oberammergau, there
are various versions around the world,
including the Glasgow Passion Play.
However, while it takes immense re-
sources to create even a short Passion
Play, a modern version of a Mystery Play,
without a crucifixion scene is much easier
to produce. Following in this tradition the
Writers’ Group in Lochwinnoch have
written a Mystery Play especially for the
village. Again, following the tradition of
the involvement of the different town
guilds, the play will involve many differ-
ent groups from the community.
Given the inclemency of our weather, the
Lochwinnoch Mystery Play will centre on
the story of Noah and the flood. Therefore
we encourage everyone to come dressed
for the rain! Not only that, Calder Crafts
are offering a beautiful prize for the best
dressed umbrella, so put those thinking
caps on and dress up the umbrellas and
see if we can make a colourful splash
(sorry) in the village.
Everyone is welcome to come along and
watch the play at 2 o’clock on the after-
noon of Sunday 28th March. Children are
invited to come dressed as animals, as that
is the only way to guarantee entry to the
ark! For the rest of us, there will be buck-
ets accepting donations towards the cost
of the production. If you would like to be
involved, please contact Rev Christine by
email: rev.christine@btinternet.com
Many thanks.
 From the
Parish Church
Oh sit down,
sit down next to me.
Sit down, down, down, down,
down in sympathy.
Tim Booth
Perhaps the most important part of a min-
ister’s life, outwith leading Sunday wor-
ship, is sitting down with people who are
finding life hard for a variety of reasons:
bereavement; loss of a job; end of a rela-
tionship or one of the other events of life
that cause us to derail for a short while.
One of the things you quickly learn is that
the majority of people have the resources
to help themselves within their own psy-
che. That is not to say that people don’t
appreciate the companionship of others
through life’s crises; we all appreciate
those who stop and sit down with us.
As a child, my mother used to remind me
frequently of the old adage, “A friend in
need is a friend indeed.” The warning was
clear, as she used to accompany this prov-
erb with the tale of the prodigal son. This
is the young man in the Bible who de-
mands his share of his inheritance before
his father is dead. He goes off and lives a
play boy lifestyle, surrounded by friends
and companions until the money runs out.
Yet in my experience, when life is hard,
friends don’t disappear. In fact it is often
in times of crises that we discover that
those we thought of as mere acquaintances
are in reality very special friends. People
are prepared to sit with one another in
times of need and that is something I have
witnessed on many an occasion in this
village.
As some of you know, at the time of writ-
ing, I am not undertaking my pastoral
duties within the village. Having had mi-
nor surgery, I am under doctor’s orders to
take things easy for a few weeks (honestly
Dr Waterston, there is no physical effort
involved in writing an article for the Chat-
terbox)! Being “on the sick” is not some-
thing I had much of experience of, until
the summer of 2008. During that time and
this, the Parish Church Manse family have
been overwhelmed by the number of
friends we have in this village; people
who are prepared to sit down next to us;
people who drop in to make sure we are
ok; people who drop us an email offering
to pick up shopping; people who have
walked Iain to and from school.
I remember when a student, being given
the advice that I had to learn who in a
congregation could minister to the minis-
ter. In other words, who are the people
who will listen when the minister needs to
talk. When you find out who these peo-
ple are, you very rarely need to speak to
them, as just knowing they are there is
enough to give a minister the strength
they need to minister to others. Being
an independent person, I also have a
need to know that I can stand on my
own two feet. However, I have a secret
to share – I can only stand on my own
two feet, knowing there is a host of peo-
ple around me, willing to share the bur-
den, if and when I need to set it down
for a while.
In the past few weeks I have had to do
just that. One sin that many ministers
are guilty of is a belief that we are indis-
pensible. Believe me when I tell you
that it is good for the soul to know that
village life carries on regardless of
whether I am in the pulpit on a Sunday
or not! Yet more than that, in the past
few weeks, we have been reminded of
the goodwill in this village to all villag-
ers – incomers or not. In our community
there is a desire to support one another;
a desire to sit down with each other;
there is genuine care for all who are
suffering. Without thinking too hard, I
know of several families who just want
to put the past 12 months behind them; I
also know they are glad they live in
Lochwinnoch, because for all life has
been unduly and unbearably hard for
them, people have sat down with them;
in this village they have found the love
and support they need to face each new
day.
On their behalf, thank you; on behalf of
my family, thank you, for all you do and
continue to do for all people in need in
our community. Please never underesti-
mate the importance of sitting down and
spending time with a friend, even a new
friend, you just never know what bur-
dens you are helping other people carry.
God bless you and thank you.
Yours
Rev. Christine Murdoch
BEAT THE BLUES
Have a blast at the
Blitz Ball !
Lochwinnoch Choral Society is run-
ning a Blitz Ball on
Saturday 13th February
from 8pm till late at the
McKillop Institute, Lochwinnoch.
Dance the night away to a 17-piece
swing band. Dress up in wartime
costume. Eat spam sandwiches to the
sound of Glen Miller.
Look out for posters - get your tickets
early to avoid disappointment.
Beith Arts Guild
Sunday Concerts
Sunday 21st February
at 2.30 pm
in Beith Community Centre,
King`s Road, Beith
Featured at this concert will be the Scot-
tish Reed Trio - a combination of oboe,
clarinet and bassoon. The three instru-
mentalists are old friends from the time
when they were students at the RSAMD.
Since then they have all worked as orches-
tral musicians with major U.K. orchestras,
and as music educators. Eighteen months
ago, in 2008, they combined to form the
Scottish Reed Trio, and have since per-
formed in many venues across Scotland.
They include in their programmes music
from Mozart to Scott Joplin. This concert
promises to be another success in this sea-
son`s outstanding series.
All are welcome to attend. Prices are
adults £8, concessions £6 children £1,
all payable at the door. During the in-
terval you can, for a small donation,
have a cup of tea and a biscuit, and chat
to your neighbours. Check future con-
certs on our website: www.beitharts.org
 What’s On
(Regular clubs,
classes and local


groups)
 Healing and Creativity Work-
shops & Classes. For details
or to book a place, please Tel
Becky: 0141 8816700 or Libby on:
015105 842604.
 Lochwinnoch Community
Walks - Mondays (ex. Public
Holidays), meet at 10.30 am at
The McKillop Inst.
 Lochwinnoch Playgroup - For
under 5’s, every Monday, Tuesday
and Wednesday from 9.30-
11.30am at the McKillop Institute.
 Lochwinnoch Toddlers - Mon-
days and Wednesdays from 9.30 -
11.30am, McKillop Institute.
 Lochwinnoch Gymnastics
Club - For primary school-age
children every Monday, 5-8pm at
the Annexe. Phone Coby for de-
tails on: 0772 9051615.
 Lochwinnoch Writers
Group—Monday mornings from
9.30-11.30am in the Library.
 Advice Works - Surgeries take
place on MONDAYS from 2pm-
4.30pm at the Library. *
 Morag’s Keep Fit - Mondays
and Thursdays from 7pm, in the
McKillop Institute.
 Lochwinnoch Choral Society.
Rehearsals on Monday evenings,
Parish Church/ Hall. Juniors 7-
7.30pm, Intermediates 7.30-
8.30pm and Seniors from 8pm.
 Club Latino - weekly Merengue,
Salsa and Mambo classes for
adults on Monday evenings at
Lochwinnoch Bowling Club from
8.30-9.30pm. Details from Hazel
on: 07812 023343.
 Lochwinnoch Art Group
Meet fortnightly on Monday eve-
nings, 7.30pm, McKillop Inst. *
 Keep Fit - Improving With
Age classes, every Tuesday from
10am-11am at the Annexe building
in the Park. (See separate notice.)
 Drop-in T Bar - Lochwinnoch
Elderly Forum. Every Tuesday
and Thursday from 10am-1pm,
McKillop Inst. For details, Tel
Reta: 01505 842054.*

Baby and Toddler Rhyme-
time - every Tuesday at 2.15pm
at Lochwinnoch Library. *
Linda Margaret School of
Dancing - Tuesdays from 4pm-
8.45pm, McKillop Institute. For
details, Tel: 0141 581 9104.
 TaeKwon-Do Fitness and Self-
defence classes for youths and
adults. Tuesdays from 5-6pm,
McKillop Institute. For details
Tel: 01259 210716.
 Lochwinnoch Scottish
Country Dance Club Every
Tuesday, from 7.30-9.30pm,
McKillop Inst.
 Jogging Buddies - Wednes-
day evenings. Meet at McKillop
Inst. at 6.30pm. For details, Tel:
0141 887 1357 or 07947 763704.
 Girls Brigade - 1st Loch-
winnoch Company Wednesday
evenings from 6pm-9.15pm at
the Parish Church Hall for vari-
ous age groups.
 Boys Brigade - Anchor Boys
and Junior Sections meet on
Tuesday nights and Company
Section on Friday evenings,
Parish Church Hall.
 Yoga Classes - Wednesday
evenings: at 6pm and 7.30pm,
McKillop Inst. Yoga, breathing
practice, intro. to meditation.
Tel Mary: 01505 842877.
 Happy Harminis - Fun for pre
-school children on Thursdays
10am-11am, McKillop Inst. Tel:
Frankie : 01505 612248.
 Slinky Strollers - on Thursday
mornings (details on back page).
 ROAR Lunch Club - every
Thursday from 11.45am at the
McKillop Institute. Please
Note - the last sitting is at 12.15
 TaeKwon-Do Little Tiger
Cubs. Classes for 3-5 year olds,
on Thursdays from 4.15pm-5pm
at McKillop Inst. Tel: 01259
210716 for details.
 Calder Drama Club—
Thursdays, from 8pm-10pm
McKillop Institute.
 Scottish Slimmers - Thurs-
days, 7/7.30pm, McKillop Inst.
 Lochwinnoch Pre-School
Gymnastics ( for children from
18 mths to 5 yrs). Fridays, from
10.15am - 1.45pm at the Annexe.
Further details from Coby on
Tel: 0772 9051615.
J Quinn & son
Memorials Q
Personal Service &
Quality Guaranteed
New Memorials
Additional Inscriptions
Cleaning & Renovations
42 MAIN STREET,
KILBIRNIE
Please Call 01505 685 455
Monday & Friday 10am-5pm,
Tuesday-Thursday 10am–2pm
Saturday 10am - 1pm
DogTraining at The Annexe
(Pre-booking necessary)
Mondays 9.30am - Advanced/Intermediate
Mondays 10.30am - Juvenile/Intermediate
Tuesdays 6.30pm - Puppy Course
(8 week blocks)
Tuesdays 7.30pm - Juvenile/Intermediate
Tuesdays 8.30pm - Advanced/Intermediate
Thursdays 6.30pm - Puppy Course
(8 week blocks)
Thursdays 7.30pm - Juvenile/Intermediate
Thursdays 8.30pm - Advance/Intermediate
Please phone/email for further information,
to book a place or for information on
outdoor classes.
Anne D Moss MSc (CABC), PGCE, MBIPDT
Liathach Dog Training &
Behavioural Counselling
Tel: 01505 842367
e-mail: dogtraining@f2s.com
VILLAGE EVENT
CALENDAR for 2010
Lochwinnoch Post Office has a wall-
mounted calendar, where members of
the public can enter details of forth-
coming events.
Please use this calendar to publicise
your events and to avoid any clashes
when planning dates to hold events.

Dates for
your diaries
 Saturday 6th February —
Krafty Kids class 10am-11.30am
at Space Rooms, McKillop Inst.
Tel Katharine on: 01505 844944.
 Saturday 6th February -
Councillor Bibby’s Surgery at
9am, the McKillop Institute. *
 Tuesday 9th February - Last
Day of Art in the Park Exhibition,
Castle Semple Visitor Centre.
(See back pages of Chatterbox for
more details. ) *
 Saturday 13th February - Blitz
Ball in the McKillop Inst. from
8pm till late. *
 Saturday 13th February -
Valentine’s Dance at the Masonic
Club. *
 Monday 15th February -
Lochwinnoch Art Group fort-
nightly meeting at 7.30pm, Lesser
Hall, McKillop Inst *
 Wednesday 17th February -
Lochwinnoch SWRI meeting at
7.3opm in the McKillop Inst. *
 Saturday 20th February —
Councillor Arthur’s Surgery from
11.30am, the McKillop Institute. *
 Saturday 20th February -
Race Night at Lochwinnoch Bowl-
ing Club. First Race 8pm. *
 Saturday 20th February -
Annual Valentine’s Gala Ceilidh,
7.30pm for 8pm, McKillop Inst. *
 Saturday 20th February —
Krafty Kids class from 1.30-3pm
at Space Rooms, McKillop Inst.
To book, Tel Katharine on: 01505
844944.
 Sunday 21st February - Beith
Arts Guild Concert in Beith Com-
munity Centre at 2.30pm. *
 Monday 22nd February to
Monday 8th March -
Fairtrade Fortnight 2010 *
(See LIA/Fairtrade Fortnight
pages for full details of all events.)
 Wednesday 24th February -
Fairtrade Fortnight Coffee
Morning from 9am—12 noon at
The Junction. *
 Thursday 25th February -
Lochwinnoch Elderly Forum
meeting at 1.30pm, McKillop Hall
(following the ROAR Lunch Club.)

Thursday 25th February -
Lochwinnoch Historical Society
meeting 7.30pm in the Parish POPPY’S
Church Guild Room. *
FLORIST
 Friday 26th February - Salsa
Night with ‘Son al Son’ Cuban
music band at Lochwinnoch
Bowling Club from 7.30pm. *
29 MAIN STREET
 Friday 26th February - Prize KILBIRNIE
Bingo Night from 7.30pm at the
Masonic Club. * Tel No: 01505 681212
 Tuesday 2nd March -
Lochwinnoch Community
Council meeting at 7.3opm in Flowers for all occasions
the Guild Room, Lochwinnoch Weddings
Parish Church.
Funeral Tributes
 Wednesday 3rd March - Cof-
fee Tasting Event from 10am - 12 New Arrivals
noon at The Junction. NOTE - Birthdays, Anniversaries
ADVANCE BOOKING ESSEN-
TIAL as spaces are limited. Floral Arrangements
To book, Tel: 01505 842225. * made to order
 Saturday 6th March - Coun-
cillor Bibby’s Surgery at 9am,
the McKillop Institute. * and don’t forget
 Sunday 7th March - Fairtrade St Valentine’s Day
Stall at Castle Semple Centre
from 11am.
 Thursday 18th March -
Sunday 28th March 2010 -
on Sunday 14th February
Lochwinnoch Arts Festival. *
 Friday 19th March to Saturday LOCHWINNOCH
27th March - Lochwinnoch
Arts Festival Art Exhibition in SWRI
the Library Room, Lochwinnoch
Library. * At the first meeting of 2010, members
 Sunday 9th May - Women’s 10K enjoyed the wonderfully evocative
poetry of talented Scottish poet, Jim
 Saturday 12th June -
Lochwinnoch Gala Day and
Carruth.
the 28th running (‘scuse the pun As well as reading his poetry, Jim
Ed,) of Lochwinnoch Open Race. gave us glimpses of his childhood
growing up on a farm.
* For further details about these
events and activities, see separate Competition winners were:
notices inside this issue of Chatterbox. Carrot Soup:
1 J Galbraith
2 E Richmond
MASONIC CLUB 3 A Cochrane
EVENTS Favourite Teaspoon:
1 P Matthews
2 2 A Cochrane
Valentine's Dance
3 J Elder
Saturday, 13th February,
Tickets £5 each, from Billy
The next meeting is on
Tel: 843359 - look out for posters! Wednesday 17th February at 7.30pm
when Franzeska Ewart will give a
Prize Bingo Night presentation on Shadow Puppetry.
on Friday 26th February,
The competitions are:
Starts 7.30pm. All welcome.
3 Chocolate Brownies and
a Decorated Gift Box.
LOCHWINNOCH ON ICE Photographs - courtesy of Zul Bhatia

© Copyright Zul Bhatia

© Copyright Zul Bhatia

© Copyright Zul Bhatia

© Copyright Zul Bhatia

© Copyright Zul Bhatia

© Copyright Zul Bhatia

© Copyright Zul Bhatia

© Copyright Zul Bhatia

© Copyright Zul Bhatia © Copyright Zul Bhatia © Copyright Zul Bhatia

 Lochwinnoch
Arts Festival 2010
Preview of this year’s events
Thursday 18th March
Festival Arts Exhibition Opening
Night in the Library 7.30pm
Friday 19th March
Pupil Concert in Parish Church 7pm
Michael Marra in McKillop Hall 8pm
Saturday 20th March
Krafty Kids in Space 2-4pm
Crafts and Paintings in the Library -
10-1pm and 2-5pm
Cunningham Choir in the
Parish Church 7pm
Sunday 21st March
Morning Festival Service -
Parish Church
The Gruffalo children’s event
3-4pm McKillop Hall
Monday 22nd March
Betty McKellar and Lochwinnoch
Writers - RSPB Centre 7pm
Tuesday 23rd March
Scottish Country Dance - Come & Try
McKillop Hall 7pm
Wednesday 24th March
Classical evening in Parish Church
from 7pm, including -
Neil Wilson Classical Guitar
Garnock Academy pupils
Cameron Murdoch
Thursday 25th March
Sing along Sound of Music
Parish Church 7.30pm
Friday 26th March
Rowena’s second hand books
Festival Folk in McKillop Hall 8pm
Saturday 27th March
Krafty Kids in Space 2-4pm
Crafts and Paintings in the Library -
10-1pm and 2-5pm
Shadow Puppets with Franzeska in the
Parish Church 11-12noon
Rowena’s second hand books
Funky Festival Boogie Evening with
Richard Mulhearn and friends
McKillop Hall 8pm
Sunday 28th March
Mystery Play - starts at 2pm
(See page 8 for full details provided by
Rev. Christine Murdoch. Ed)
Vanda’s Mobile Hairdressing
Ladies and Gents.
LOCHWINNOCH, BEITH,
KILBIRNIE and HOWWOOD
25 years’ hairdressing experience
Book now for an appointment.
Tel: 01505 842329
Lochwinnoch Arts Festival Vanda’s Mobile Hairdressing
Art Exhibition I have been in the hairdressing busi-
ness for more years than I care to re-
Friday 19th - Saturday 27th March
member. I qualified and worked in a
Submissions for the Festival Art salon in Nottingham before becoming
Exhibition are being invited from a state registered professional mobile
artists living in Lochwinnoch and hairdresser. My husband works for
the power industry and has followed
surrounding areas. The Exhibition
will be held in 'The Library Room' at the work wherever it has taken him.
We moved to Lochwinnoch in August
Lochwinnoch Library.
when my husband, Colin, took a job
Details and entry forms are available with Babcocks. I have now started my
from: Crafts of Calder Gallery & business again covering, clearly, Loch-
Framing, 8 High Street, winnoch and the surrounding area.
Lochwinnoch. Tel: 01505 844980.
I have always worked as a hairdresser
~ and have always enjoyed meeting new
people. I have particularly enjoyed
becoming a part of this community as
LOCHWINNOCH I did whilst we lived and worked in the
south. I consider my job a community
ART GROUP activity, helping to oil the wheels of
local activities and people I serve.
The Art Group meets fortnightly
on a Monday evening at 7.30pm - I provide a range of hairdressing ser-
9.30pm in the McKillop Hall. The vices, including perms, cuts, blow-
next meeting is on Monday 1st dry’s and sets. My prices are com-
February and then the 15th Febru- petitive, supplying everything a salon
ary. The Art Group welcomes new would.
members at any time throughout
the session. So if you have been Feel free to call me, even if you just
thinking about it, why don't you need the occasional appointment
come along and see what we are whilst your full-time hairdresser is on
all about. We look forward to see- holiday.
ing you there. That’s me and I hope
you will give me a call.
Christine Brown Vanda Bird
( Chairperson )
Lee McKinlay ………. Holistic & Beauty Therapies
Swedish Massage Waxing
Aromatherapy Massage Eye Treatments
Reflexology Manicure
Facials Pedicure
A Mobile Service to promote Relaxation
Gift Vouchers Available
Telephone 07854 715625
 SAVE YOUR
REGIONAL PARK
www.saveyourregionalpark.com
WIND FARM ROUNDUP
Leapmoor, Inverkip & Wemyss Bay –
The application for 10 turbines by Com-
munity Windpower was lodged with Inver
clyde Council in July 2006 and has now
been withdrawn. It is hoped that this part
of the park can now continue to be used as
before but it is always possible that a re-
vised application is lodged.
Kelburn, Fairlie - Final approval for 14
x 100m turbines was given by Scottish
Ministers. The construction plan schedule
of work is currently being negotiated be-
tween the developer and NAC with a con-
struction start date likely to be April 2010
Wings Law, Kilbirnie – Application for
24 turbine windfarm by Wind Hydrogen
Energy Ltd. On 9th Dec it was announced
that an agreement had been reached with
an unspecified major European untility to
make an up front payment of £200,000
and an option to purchase windfarm assets
which are assumed by SYRP to include
Wings Law. There is no further news on
the approved planning application for
their Hydrogen plant at Glengarnock.
Millour Hill 1 & 2, Dalry and Kaim Hill,
Fairlie – covered in January Chatterbox.
Wardlaw Wood, Dalry – 6 x 410ft/125m
Turbines constructed in 2006 by Commu-
nity Windpower Ltd.
Waterhead Moor, Largs, Scottish &
Southern/Airtricity. No further news re 29
turbine application to the Scottish Govern-
ment and the Environmental statement is
still not completed after a 4 year wait!
Glenlora, Lochwinnoch – Scoping for 1 x
85m turbine; view the scoping response at
http://planning.renfrewshire.gov.uk
Glenlora, Lochwinnoch – Planning appli-
cation for an anaerobic digester to process
18,500 tonnes of agricultural waste (slurry
silage & potato shaws). No further news.
Skelmorlie Windfarm Readers may re-
call that Ferret of Keith wind farm was
proposed above Skelmorlie and eventually
withdrawn. As we have said about this
proposal and Leapmoor, when a project is
withdrawn it doesn’t mean it’s gone away!
Burcote Wind have resurrected a proposal
above Skelmorlie, this time for 21 tur-
bines, though they maintain there’s room
for 100 turbines. A meeting was called at
the Consents office to discuss this; atten-
dees were Government representatives,
CMRP, NAC, SNH and SEPA. SYRP was
not invited. No further news.
LOCHWINNOCH
BOWLING CLUB
‘RACE NIGHT’
On Saturday 20th February
in the Clubhouse
First Race - 8pm
Hear
Here
Renfrewshire Hard of
Hearing Support Group
The Renfrewshire Hard of Hearing
Group has now been operating for over
one year. We are a group of people
who all have some degree of hearing
loss, and we came together to raise
awareness, campaign for positive
change and provide support and activi-
ties for other people like us.
Because all our members have some
degree of hearing loss, we understand
how difficult it can be living in a noisy
world. For some it feels easier to with-
draw and become isolated, yet we are
here to support each other overcome
this and to ensure that we get the best
use of hearing aids and modern tech-
nology to keep ourselves part of the
hearing world. At our meetings, we
get the chance to air our frustrations
about the numerous difficulties we face
and we invite speakers to provide in-
formation that may be of use to us, but
we have missed because of our hearing
loss. This year, our speakers will in-
clude a mental health officer, audiolo-
gists from both the NHS and the pri-
vate sector and a local MP.
Meetings take place of the first Thurs-
day of every month, this year starting
on 4th February 2010, at 1:30pm in the
Mile End Centre, 30 Seedhill Road,
Paisley. At this meeting our guest
speaker, Willie Macfadyen, a Mental
Health Officer and last year’s recipient
of the British Association of Social
Workers (BASW) Social Worker of the
Year award, will be talking about
hearing loss and mental health. Meet-
ings last about an hour and a half and
tea/coffee is available.
You are welcome to join us if you live
in Renfrewshire and are affected by
hearing loss.
For further information or to be put
onto our mailing list:
Phone: 0141 847 4950
Textphone: 0141 848 7232
Fax: 0141 847 4981
A Great Big Thank You
from Lochwinnoch Play-
group
The staff, parents, and committee mem-
bers of Lochwinnoch Playgroup, would
like to offer our sincere and heartfelt
thanks to local businesses in Lochwinnoch
and the surrounding villages for donating
prizes for our Christmas Raffle:
Lochwinnoch Motors
The Junction
Escape Campers
The Garthland Arms
The Bowfield Hotel in Howood,
The River Inn in Houston
Heritage Farmers Market Shop
Tesco
Natural Touch
Meadowbank Equestrian Centre, Houston
Lochwinnoch Golf Club
Calder Gallery
The Brown Bull
The Corner Bar
Lochbar Indoor Football Centre
The Oaks Vet Centre
Now & Then Gift shop
We would also like to thank the staff at
Lochwinnoch Library, Cut n Care Hair-
dressers, The Spar and The McKillop In-
stitute, who took the time to sell our
Christmas cookbooks and raffle tickets
(winning tickets/corresponding prizes dis-
played on the McKillop Inst notice board).
Other fundraising news from the play-
group is that The River Inn in Houston
recently raised almost £300 from their St
Andrew’s night celebrations, which they
very kindly and unexpectedly donated to
our Playgroup. Our thanks go to all the
staff at The River Inn who made this pos-
sible.
In times of economic recession, we were
overwhelmed by your generosity and sup-
port, and of course an extra big
thank you to those of you who pur-
chased a cookbook, raffle ticket or indeed
tried to guess the number of coins in a jar.
Your continued support of Lochwin-
noch Playgroup enables us to operate
term time, Mon, Tue and Wed morn-
ings from 0930 until 1130.
As always, if you are interested in en-
rolling your child at playgroup, appli-
cations are available from The McKil-
lop Institute, Main Street or contact
Karen on 843943 or Joanne 844898.
 Lochwinnoch
Library
New books
for Febuary
Dean Koontz : Breathless
Grady Adams lives a simple, solitary
life deep in the Colorado mountains.
Here the thirty-five-year-old carpenter
works out of a converted barn, crafting
exquisite one-of-a-kind furniture.
There's little about this strong yet gen-
tle man to suggest the experiences that
have alienated him from the contem-
porary world. But that is about to
change.
One day, while hiking, Grady spots a
pair of stunningly beautiful furred ani-
mals unlike anything he's ever seen.
They flee the instant they detect his
presence, but the mystery of that brief
encounter remains. In the days ahead,
Grady will approach the creatures
again, gaining their trust but coming
no closer to solving their mystery. For
this he enlists the help of an old
friend, veterinarian Camellia 'Cammy'
Rivers, who, in turn, is stunned - and
enchanted - by Grady's new 'pets.' But
while Grady and Cammy carefully ob-
serve these enigmatic animals for
clues to their origin, they, too, are be-
ing watched.
Sue Grafton: U Is for Undertow
It's April, 1988, a month before Kinsey
Millhone's thirty-eighth birthday, and
she's alone in her office doing paper-
work when a young man arrives unan-
nounced. He has a preppy air about
him and looks as if he'd be carded if he
tried to buy booze, but Michael Sutton
is twenty-seven, an unemployed col-
lege dropout.
Twenty-one years earlier, a four-year-
old girl disappeared. A recent refer-
ence to her kidnapping has triggered a
flood of memories. Sutton now be-
lieves he stumbled on her lonely burial
when he was six years old. He wants
Kinsey's help in locating the child's
remains and finding the men who
killed her. It's a long shot but he's will-
ing to pay cash up front, and Kinsey
agrees to give him one day. As her
investigation unfolds, she discovers
Michael Sutton has an uneasy rela-
tionship with the truth. In essence,
he's the boy who cried wolf. Is his cur-
rent story true or simply one more in a
long line of fabrications?  For details Tel: 01505 842305
Lochwinnoch residents -
Can I help? If so, please don’t
hesitate to get in touch.
Douglas Alexander, Lochwinnoch’s MP
Write to: 2014 Mile End Mill, 12 Seedhill Road, Paisley, PA1 1JS
Tel: 0141 561 0333. E-mail: dalexandermp@talk21.com
or come to one of my advice surgeries.
Quintin Jardine: Blood Red
ADVICE WORKS
Primavera Blackstone becomes the Surgery at
prime suspect in the second breath-
taking novel in a brilliant new series Lochwinnoch Library
Every Monday 2pm – 4.30pm
by bestselling Scottish crime writer
Quintin Jardine. Primavera is enjoy-
ing the quiet life in an idyllic village We can provide advice about entitle-
on the Catalan coast of Spain. The ment to benefits. Advisors can help
attractive single mother and eight- fill in claim forms and advise on wel-
year-old Tom, son of the late and fare benefits and money problems.
still lamented Oz Blackstone, are We can check you are receiving all the
popular figures in the tiny commu- benefits due to you.
nity. But her close friendship with
the parish priest has eyebrows rising We can provide expert advice on a
and tongues wagging. Then a dispute wide range of debt related topics
explodes with a powerful councillor eg. Credit Card , Mortgage arrears,
who refuses to allow the village wine Council Tax, etc ……….
fair to go ahead. When his body is OUR SERVICE IS FREE, CON-
found, head caved in, some ominous FIDENTIAL AND OPEN TO ALL
questions are asked... 
RESIDENTS OF RENFREWSHIRE.
Coming soon …….
Lee Child : 61 Hours
Clive Cussler : The silent sea Baby & Toddler
Harlan Coben : Caught
Linwood Barclay : Fear the worst
Rhyme time
Robert Crais : The first rule
Danielle Steel : Big girl 
Renew and Reserve
at
www.renfrewshwire.gov.uk/libraries
Library members can view, renew
and reserve their library loans
online. All you need to get started is
your library membership number
At Lochwinnoch Library
and a password. If you don’t have a every Tuesday at 2.15pm
password just ask at any library.
FREE Computing Class  NORMAL LIBRARY
for Complete Beginners  OPENING HOURS :
Would you, or someone you know,
Monday, Wednesday and Friday:
like to learn to email and surf the 2pm–5pm & 6pm–8pm
Internet? Classes are held Tuesday and Saturday: 10am–1pm
at Lochwinnoch Library on: and 2pm–5pm
Fridays from 9.30am – 11am Closed Thursday.
Tel: 01505 842305
 LOCHWINNOCH'S
BERMUDA TRIANGLE
by
DEREK PARKER
The hills, moors and glens around
Muirshiel country park above Loch-
winnoch are serene and majestic. A
spirit of solitude transcends the ages.
In summer, colourful blossoms like
purple heather, golden bog asphodel
and blue butterwort mantle mosses
and morasses like magic carpets.
Wistful songs of curlews, golden
plover and skylarks transform the rug-
ged domain into an earthly paradise.
But the remote realm has a more sinis-
ter side, especially in winter. It's
known as Renfrewshire's Bermuda
Triangle because so many horrific air-
craft crashes occurred there.
Sadly, the young lives of many brave
aircrew ended in that lonely land-
scape. Wreckage from aerial tragedies
is still visible on windswept hills.
Debris lies like moorland memorials
to dead heroes.
During my time as a countryside
ranger at Muirshiel country park, I
researched the history of these plane
crashes. One of my main sources was
the late Quintin McKellar who farmed
at Heathfield and East Tandlemuir
(later Conveth) for many years. He
knew the hills around Muirshiel better
than anyone else and was the person
to go to for advice.
One misty morning in April 1988,
senior ranger Eric Harley, ranger Iain
Brotherton and I discovered the grey,
metal fragements of a crashed aircraft
among heather near the site of the
drained Calder Dam just off the bary-
tes mines track. We knew it was from
a Swordfish plane.
Mr McKellar told us what happened.
It was a pitch-black January night in
1942 at the height of the Second
World War. Mr McKellar's father,
Archibald, who farmed the land
around Heathfield before him, was out
on the hills rescuing sheep trapped in
deep snowdrifts. Suddenly, he heard
the terrifying drone of an aircraft com-
ing towards him.
Archibald was close to the summit of
Windy Hill, more than 1000 feet
above sea level. So he threw himself
on the ground as the plane roared
overhead. He was unaware that the
aircraft - a Swordfish - had crashed
less than a mile away near the Cal-
der Dam.
Because of news blackouts during
the war, no announcements of mili-
tary manoeuvres were broadcast. So
he had no reason to believe anything
sinister had happened. Archibald
just put it down to a nasty experi-
ence with a low-flying aircraft.
It was three weeks before the awful
truth became known. Bob Fleming,
the McKellar family's shepherd, was
out in the snowy landscape search-
ing for sheep when he came across a
horrific spectacle.
The aircraft lay mangled and muti-
lated on the moor. Inside were the
frozen-stiff bodies of two dead crew
members. Even more macabre was
the gruesome specatacle of a third
man hanging from the cockpit,
trapped and dangling by his feet.
The McKellar family volunteered to
help teams from the Royal Air Force
and local police to remove the bod-
ies. Their unique knowledge of the
hills and moors made them the right
people for the grim task.
Although still a teenager at the time,
Quintin bravely made his way across
the snowbound moor with a pony
and sledge to retrieve the corpses
and take them back to a makeshift
mortuary in an out-building at Heath-
field Farm. It was something he re-
membered for the rest of his life.
It later transpired that the Swordfish
was one of four which crashed that
night on a flight from Fraserburgh in
the north of Scotland to Macrihanish
on the Mull of Kintyre. The other
three impacted a few miles farther
north at Alexandria, near Loch Lo-
mond. The official explanation was
they all ran out of fuel in bad weather.
The Swordfish which landed on the
moors around Muirshiel with such
disastrous consequences was quickly
removed from the crash scene. Only
one wing fragment remained - and that
was the piece which Eric, Iain and I
discovered 46 years later.
There were many more aircraft
crashes in the neighbourhood -
inspiring the legend that the Muirshiel
neighbourhood was Renfrewshire's
Bermuda Triangle. The belief was
instigated by similar inexplicable
tragedies off the coast of Bermuda
island in the Atlantic Ocean.
One explanation for the aviational
carnage at Muirshiel is that vast
amounts of minerals in the ground
interfered adversely with navigational
equipment. Another is that hastily-
mobilised aircrews were insufficiently
trained to handle such powerful
planes.
On a more sinister level, it was ru-
moured that dark cosmic forces were
at work which affected the judgement

of doomed pilots, navigators and
crews.
It's speculated that these cosmic
forces included air ions, electro-
magnetic waves, atmospheric electri-
cal fields, thermal radiation and sud-
den weather changes causing physi-
cal and psychological malfunction-
ing of the crew's human neuro-
muscular and cardio-vascular sys-
tems.
Whatever the explanation, there is
one thing I shall always remember
from my time as a ranger at Muir-
shiel country park.
And that was cycling home from
work past the ruins of Heathfield
Farm on dark winter nights when
there wasn't a moon or star in the
blackened skies - then looking at the
forbidding building which was the
moorland mortuary for the tragic
team on the Swordfish aircraft.
Derek Parker worked as a
countryside ranger at Clyde
Muirshiel Regional Park from
1985 to 1999.
USEFUL
CONTACT NUMBERS
Strathclyde Police –0141 532 5900
Johnstone Police –01505 404000
Johnstone Community Safety
Office – 01505 404023
Trading Standards 0141 840 3233
Care and Repair – 0141 812 4111
Renfrewshire Council -
Tel: 0141 842 5000
Anti-social Behaviour Investigation
Team (ASIST) - 0141 840 2163
Victim Support – 0141 887 0328
Nuisance Support & Advice
Helpline – 0800 169 1283
Crimestoppers – 0800 555 111
The Strathclyde Police website contains
information on all of the local Community
Policing Teams. Check out our website.
www. strathclyde.police.uk
for contact details of officers in your
local Policing Team. You can also
e-mail us from this website.
SCAM WARNINGS
COUNCIL TAX REFUNDS
Renfrewshire Council has received
reports from members of the public
who have received suspicious calls,
allegedly from the council’s Contact
Centre. The caller tells the person
that they are due a refund on their
Council Tax and asks for the per-
son’s bank details so that repay-
ments can be made directly into
their bank account. The fraudsters
then use these bank details to
empty out the victim’s bank ac-
count.
Renfrewshire Council wish to con-
firm that they would never phone a
customer and ask for their bank
details. If a person is due a Council
Tax refund, then this would be de-
ducted from their next bill. If the
refund was greater than the amount
of the bill, a cheque would be sent
to the customer.
No reputable organisation would
ask a customer for their bank de-
tails and any request for this infor-
mation should always be treated
with suspicion and reported to the
Police.
COMPUTERS
Recently, Which? Computing maga-
zine warned of a “cold calling scam”
where people had been contacted by
scammers purporting to be from
Microsoft or an Internet Service
Provider.
The callers made people think that
their computer had a virus and then
took them through a series of steps
to fix the computer “problem”. At
the end of this process, the scam-
mers then have remote access to the
computer and, as if this wasn’t bad
enough, people are then asked to
provide their credit card details in
order to pay a fee to have the com-
puter “repaired” !
This scam has been reported to the
police e-crime unit and to Micro-
soft.
The advice from Which? Computing
is - Computer users must always be
on their guard and suspicious of
phone calls or e-mails that don’t
come from a trustworthy source. If
you have good security software,
you should be protected from
online threats.
 LOCHWINNOCH
FARMERS’ MARKET
in Fairtrade Fortnight
on Sunday 7th March
from 11am – 2:30 pm
FANTASTIC SKIES at Castle Semple Centre, Lochwinnoch
AT NIGHT
Stargazing session at
Muirshiel Country Park
on
Friday 19th February
at 7pm
The last of the great pre-telescope as-
tronomers, the story of Tycho Brahe
involves kidnapping, strange pets,
false noses, excessive drinking, bi-
zarre deaths and the occasional bit of
astronomy thrown in for good meas-
ure!

This will be part of the presentation

from John Pressly of the Coats Obser-
vatory at the Stargazing night at Muir-
shiel Country Park on 19th February.
Come prepared for being outside look-
ing at the stars at this ‘dark sky’ site as
well as inside to hear John’s presenta-
tion.
Cold weather and icy road conditions
cancelled the January session, so this
will be the first spring session of 2010
to be held at Muirshiel Country Park
Visitor Centre and, weather permit-
ting, we should get a good view of the
night skies unaffected by the light pol-
lution generated by nearby villages,
towns and cities. To have a truly great
view of the stars with the naked eye
without traveling too far from urban
comforts this is a great place to come.
The park is open 24 hours a day, al-
though there are no facilities available
at night except on special evenings
like this, when the toilets are open and
coffees and teas are available in the
centre to warm you up.
So come along and experience a great
evening with like-minded people. To
book a place or for further details
please call Muirshiel Visitor Centre
on 01505 842 803.
The popular Lochwinnoch Farmers’
Market, on the shores of Castle Sem-
ple Loch, will hold its next market
on Sunday 7th March 2010 as part of
Fairtrade Fortnight.
A good range of seasonal produce
will be available providing everyone
with an alternative to supermarket
shopping on what is the last day of
Fairtrade Fortnight. The suppliers
are members the Scottish Associa-
tion of Farmers Market (SAFM) or
guests of Clyde Muirshiel Regional
Park. All produce is subject to avail-
ability. Product availability on the
day is likely to include: Meats &
Ayrshire Dry Cured Bacon; Aber-
deen Angus Beef, Black Face Qual-
ity Lamb; Breads, Cakes and Con-
fectionary, Vegetables and Hand-
made Soups, Fish & Seafood,
Honey, Handmade Cheeses, Dress-
ings, Olives & Things.
The Lochwinnoch Fairtrade group
will be guests at this market with a
range of Fairtrade food and drinks to
try and to buy, such as coffee, tea,
dried fruits, chocolate, biscuits, ce-
real and sweets as well as some Fair-
trade crafts.
With Spring just about here, the
market will provide the opportunity to
dust down the outdoor gear and have a
go at cycling or paddling a canoe or
rowing boat on the loch while visiting
Castle Semple. The boat and bike hire
guys will be on site all day for an
early spring opportunity to get out-
doors on a bike or in a boat.
Martin of Express Cycles will be
offering FREE safety checks to every-
one coming by bike to this Farmers
Market. He will also have a new
range of 2010 demonstration bikes on
show as well as a a good selection of
parts and spares. Please call him on
Tel 01505 682 191 / 0786 779 0889 if
you need any cycle parts or advice.
For those who would like a leisurely
day there will be lots of things to see,
people to watch or a Fairtrade coffee
to enjoy in the scenic surroundings of
Castle Semple Visitor Centre.
This is the first Lochwinnoch Farmers
Market of 2010. The Summer, Au-
tumn and Winter markets will take
place on Sunday 6th June, Sunday 5th
September and Sunday 5th December
2010.

RSPB LOCHWINNOCH
What a cold start to the year we're all having!
With all 3 lochs completely frozen, the severely cold
weather will really be having an impact on our birds. We
have seen some unusual sights as a result of the big
freeze, as many normally shy birds have gathered
around areas of flowing water, as these are the only
places available for eating and drinking!
These have so far included water rail, jack snipe, snipe,
moorhen, grey heron, mute swan, whooper swan, dip-
per, teal, goldeneye and mallards, plus lots of black
headed and lesser black backed gulls sitting on the ice.
Woodcocks and brambling are also being frequently re-
ported around the local area.
On the reserve, the feeding station has been completely
mobbed as hungry birds desperately try to eat and keep
their energy up to survive the freezing cold nights. This
has brought in lots of the normal species as well as some
unusual sightings, including a yellowhammer (the first
on the reserve for over 10 years), 10 blackbirds all feed-
ing at the same time, reed buntings, fielfares and bull-
finches.
Whilst this cold weather persists, there are a few things
to remember to make sure that our birds are well fed
and looked after:
1. Feed your birds. If you normally feed birds in your
garden or local park, please continue to do so. The birds
will be relying on these food sources as there is very little
else available at the moment. If you don't normally feed
your birds, please consider doing so. Kitchen scraps and
rotten fruit and vegetables can be just as valuable as
seeds, fats and peanuts. There are, however, quite a few
foods to avoid including salty, mouldy and stale foods
and many dried foods. Also, avoid using left over cook-
ing fats from meat/poultry as this can carry harmful
bacteria and cause birds to become very unwell and die.
For advice about feeding birds, visit
http://www.rspb.org.uk/advice/
helpingbirds/feeding/index.aspx
2. Put water out. People often forget that during times
of frost and snow, although there is plenty of frozen wa-
ter available, there is little or no drinking water available
for birds. Just today, at a nearby loch, the swans were so
thirsty from eating so much bread that they were almost
choking on it. Five minutes of clearing a bit of slushy ice
soon brought all of the swans over, who quickly swal-
lowed the water down. You will have to check your bird
bath, margarine pot or ice cream tub (whatever you
choose to put water into) daily as it is likely to freeze
overnight. Just pouring a kettle full of warm water will
give the birds a drinking water supply again.
3. Don't disturb groups of water birds. Birds that
usually rely upon water bodies for food, water and
safetyfrom predators will be lacking in all of these things
due to the severe frosts. It is vitally important that
these groups are not disturbed as every time they have
to move or fly away, this uses up more of the little en-
ergy that they have left. Please avoid walking near them
or being tempted to do so because the birds are not as
active as normal. Please also keep dogs under control
where possible as they can easily cause distress to birds.
4. Keep your nestboxes up. Whilst this may not be some-
thing that people would usually consider doing or thinking
about at this time of year, nestboxes can provide much
needed shelter from the cold for many species in the winter.
Wrens in particular collect in large groups and will roost to-
gether in nestboxes. You may notice them arriving at your
box from dusk onwards. Over 50 have been known to roost
together in one box! If you have a nestbox camera, it may be
worth switching it back on during the winter to see if you
have any creatures using your box as a roost site.
For further advice about looking after your birds,
please visit www.rspb.org.uk/advice/helpingbirds
Thank you for all of your help during this freezing spell. The
birds will certainly appreciate it as do we all, and you never
know, you might get something new or unusual in your gar-
den too!
Finally, a really nice picture of the water rail, take by reserve
manager Zul Bhatia on Christmas Day.
Paula Baker,
RSPB Lochwinnoch Visitor and Publicity Officer
© Water Rail Copyright Zul Bhatia
Keep up to date with news and events
at RSPB Lochwinnoch.
Wildlife viewing all year round, nature trails and hides open
at all times, Visitor Centre open from 10am-5pm daily, Bird
Feeding Station and Treetop Tower, drinks, snacks and a su-
perb RSPB Shop. Daily activities for families, guided walks
throughout the year, school holiday activities, try our
monthly ‘Wildlife Challenge’. An ideal day out for everyone.
For bookings and information, Tel: 01505 842663
or e-mail us at: lochwinnoch@rspb.org.uk
or visit: www.rspb.org.uk/scotland
Find us on Facebook:
www.facebook.com
Search ‘RSPB Lochwinnoch’, click on us and
receive regular updates.
Follow us on Twitter:
at http://twitter.com/RSPBLochwinnoch
Subscribe to the RSPB Lochwinnoch Blog!
For weekly updates, visit: http://www.rspb.org.uk/
community/blogs/lochwinnoch/default.aspx
and subscribe using the RSS link.
 What’s On at RSPB,
Muirshiel,
Cornalees & Castle
Semple Centres
 Monday mornings - Loch-
winnoch Community Walks - (ex.
Public Holidays). Meet at
10.30am at The Cross.
 Thursday mornings - Slinky
Strollers walks (for parents &
pushchairs) - meet at 10.30am at
Castle Semple Centre.
 Saturday 6th February -
Young Volunteers Group from
11am - 4pm at the RSPB Centre.
For 12—18 year olds, booking es-
sential as spaces are limited. Tel:
01505 842663.
 Sunday 7th February - Kelly
Cut Linear Walk. Meet at 11am at
Cornalees Visitor Centre and join
the Rangers for a 8km walk from
Cornalees to Wemyss Bay railway
station.
 Tuesday 9th February - Last
day of Art in the Park Exhibition
of traditional and contemporary
work by Lochwinnoch Art Group,
open daily from 10am - 3.30pm at
Castle Semple Centre.
 Sunday 14th February - Valen-
tine’s Day guided walk from 10am
- 12 noon at the RSPB Reserve.
 Thursday 18th February -
RSPB Variety Evening - music,
magic and more - from 7pm-9pm
at the RSPB Centre. Tickets £2.50
for RSPB members, £5 for non-
members.
 Friday 19th February -
Stargazing Evening (or indoor
lecture if weather is poor) at Muir-
shiel Centre, 7pm-9pm. Booking
essential as spaces are limited.
Tel: 01505 842803.
 Saturday 20th February -
Build A Bird A Home! Join the
RSPB team from 11am-3pm to
help build and decorate nest boxes
during National Nest Box Week.
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The Cross, Lochwinnoch PA12 4DB
(10 mins from Glasgow Airport on A737)
 Sunday 21st February - A
Winter Walk. Meet at 1.30pm
at Castle Semple Centre and join
the Rangers for a tour of Loch-
winnoch and its surroundings.
 Monday 22nd February to
Monday 8th March - Fair-
trade Fortnight 2010 Fairtrade
Campaign Exhibition at Castle
Semple Centre during opening
hours. *(See LIA/Fairtrade
pages for full details.)
 Wednesday 24th February -
Conservation Volunteer Session
from 1pm (for 2 hours) at Muir-
shiel Centre. Join us for some
mid-week exercise and healthy
fresh air.
 Thursday 25th February -
Fairtrade Fortnight Coffee
Morning from 11 am - 1 pm at
the RSPB Centre. Cost £2. *
 Saturday 27th February -
RSPB Art Workshop hosted by a
local artist from 10am - 12 noon
at the RSPB Centre. Booking
essential, Cost £5. For more
information, Tel: 01505 842663
 Sunday 28th February— Last
day of the Homecoming Photo-
graphic Exhibition at Cornalees
Centre.
 Sunday 28th February - Craft
Fair from 11am-3.3opm at Castle
Semple Centre. Also light re-
freshments, walks and wildlife.
0141 950 1423 GLASGOW
01505 842176 AYRSHIRE
01786 820130 STIRLING
 Saturday 6th March-Sunday
25th April - Homecoming Photo-
graphic Exhibition at Muirshiel
Centre during opening hours.
 Sunday 7th March - Lochwin-
noch Farmers’ Market from
11am—2.30pm. *
 Sunday 7th March - Muirshiel
Mine Memories. Indoor history
talk at Muirshiel Centre from
2pm.
VISITOR CENTRES
NORMAL OPENING HOURS
RSPB Reserve
The Reserve is open at all times;
Visitor Centre open daily, 10am-5pm.
Tel: 01505 842663.
Castle Semple Centre
Open daily from 10am—4pm
from 25 October to 29 March 2010.
Tel: 01505 842882.
Cornalees Centre
Open weekends only from 11am-3pm
from 25 October to 29 March 2010.
Tel: 01475 521458
Muirshiel Centre
Open weekends only from 11am-3pm
from 25 October to 29 March 2010.
Tel: 01505 842803
OUR PRODUCTS ARE INSTALLED
IN OVER ONE HUNDRED
LOCHWINNOCH HOUSEHOLDS.
Contact - PETER McGARVEY
Tel: 01505 614654