NEWS for ...
Petersfield u3a members

Welcome to our latest e-newsletter, giving a quick summary of what’s happening within Petersfield u3a. To find out more, simply click onto the blue links to be taken straight to our website.

"The question of not going did not arise ..."

“I was ready to go. I’d steeled myself. There was constant fear…. but you just had to live with it.”  Yvonne Cormeau SOE was the least known, but probably the most successful of the agents parachuted into occupied France in WW2. This talk will be given by Paul McCue, military historian, author and Executive Trustee of Secret WW2, at 2.30pm on Monday 9 March at Petersfield Community Centre.

Dates for your Diary

2.00pm – Tuesday 17 March
Heath Matters - Osteoporosis 
The “silent disease” osteoporosis, which causes bones to become brittle, is often not diagnosed until after a hip or wrist has been broken in a fall. Dr Mark Edwards, consultant rheumatologist at QA Hospital, will talk about a range of new and established therapies that could help to avoid fractures in the first place.

2.30pm - Wednesday 18 March
Arts and Heritage - Inside St Paul’s
Andy Catto has been leading tours and delivering talks for many years. He is a qualified guide for the City of London as well as St Paul’s Cathedral and is Vice Chair of the City Guides. Andy will take us around this amazing cathedral and reveal exciting secrets and historical facts.

2.00pm – Tuesday 24 March
Science and Technology – What has DNA ever done for us?
This talk will be given by “self-confessed nerd” Sam Robson, University of Portsmouth Professor of Genomics and Bioinformation. Click on the link to find out more about his work and other interests – it’s absolutely fascinating!
 
2.30pm – Wednesday 15 April 
Arts and Heritage – Jane Austen – A Life and Legacy
Our speaker, Fiona Macconnacher, is a volunteer at Jane Austen’s house at Chawton and will shortly become a Director with Historic Houses. Jane Austen (1775-1817) began writing at an early age and is buried in Winchester Cathedral.

Around & About

u3a members enjoyed a very informative afternoon learning about the functions of the eye and dissecting one themselves at Churcher's College. Many thanks to Churcher's for these interesting Hands-on-Science sessions three times a year.

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Do you have a potential speaker in mind? Lin Piatek would welcome your ideas and help with contacts for speakers for the Science and Technology Open Meetings.  It may be someone you know, or a speaker you have heard elsewhere and enjoyed. Please get in touch with the convenor lin.piatek@gmail.com.

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The Arts and Heritage group urgently needs someone to organise speakers for the group. Esther Jones has been in this role since the group started and feels it’s time to stand down. Esther has generously continued to book speakers up until July 2026, so it would be ideal if a volunteer or two could take over and benefit from her valuable support before she finishes. If you would like to find out more, please contact the group via the link.

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Book Circle 6 (second Thursday 2.30pm in members’ homes) has two vacancies. The group reads a mixture of novels and a couple of non-fiction books each year, and generates interesting discussions fuelled by coffee and cake. For more information, contact Shelly via the link. 

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The Handbell Group is a small friendly group, meeting every Friday afternoon between 2.15pm and 3.45pm at Winton House. No experience is necessary, but the ability to read music is essential. Contact the group convenor on the u3a website.

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Have Your Say

‘Connect’ always welcomes news from Petersfield u3a members via editorconnect@petersfieldu3a.org.uk.

To ensure the e-newsletter is easy and enjoyable to read and that the style is consistent, the copy is likely to be edited. The original version of any submission (plus photographs) can be posted on the relevant page on our website and easily accessed from ‘Connect’ via a link.

The next issue of ‘Connect’ will be emailed to you on Friday, 20 March, with a copy deadline for all contributions of Monday, 16 March.