The Gala Dinner to celebrate our 20th Anniversary was held on the 29th April 2010 at Devonshire Place. We had a wonderful turnout of 164 people. To say the evening was a huge success is really an understatement. Everyone was in the party mood & it was some party. It was a delight to see such a wide spectrum of ages & to meet members who hadn’t seen each other for a long time.
Our guest of honour was Joyce Butterfield whose idea it was to set up some competitive tennis for ladies over 40 years of age resulting in our now famous Winter Tournament (WT). Back in 1990 there were 78 players which has increased to the present entry of 256 players. We have also added a Super Vets Summer Tournament and over the years included many one day tournaments.
On the evening fifteen members - Joyce Butterfield, Jan Provis, Wendy England, Jean Hobson, Pat Imlay, Chris Bull, Jill Cook , Trish Green, Sheila Pashley, Ann Tester, Davina Armstrong, Irene Morris, Meryl Murphy, Thelma Bull and Jean Edmonds were present who had played in that first WT in 1990. They were presented with most attractive china mugs suitably decorated with tennis motifs.
Our Ladies Doubles Trophy Shield together with cut glass rose bowls was awarded to Chris Bull & Jill Cook who have played in every WT in the last 20 years.
The magnificent buffet was again provided by Heather Pickering who turned out a wonderful feast for us. During dinner we were entertained by magicians who visited the tables & displayed their sleight of hand.
The photographs in the gallery show:-
1. The committee members
2. Guest of Honour Joyce Butterfield with Jan Provis (Chairperson) and Val Lord (Secretary)
3. The celebration cake
4. Jill Cook and Chris Bull
5. The 1990 mug winners
Please do look at the celebration photographs on www.photobox.co.uk by signing in as joanwilliams258@googlemail.com p/w lvlta29410. They will give you a real feeling for the evening. What a pity that we will have to wait a few years before we can lay claim to another Gala celebration.
Long live the LVLTA!
Overview of final results for 2009/2010
(Courtesy of Sandra Middleditch)