TWO decades ago, a group of fewer than twenty local people started Monmouth U3A.

As far as they were concerned, it was a trip into the unknown, and it's unlikely that any of them ever imagined that twenty years later their number would have increased to four hundred. U3A is now the largest organisation in town. It provides meaningful educational, recreational and social activities for retired people, who still enjoy the challenges life has to offer.

On Tuesday, 19th August, more than 160 of its members gathered together to celebrate their 20th Anniversary at a very enjoyable party at HMSG.

No party worth its salt is entirely without hiccups. The tables arrived late and the weather was bleak, but nothing could dampen the enthusiasm and pleasure of members as they gathered for an afternoon of amusing speeches, displays, entertainment and refreshment, all - in the finest tradition of U3A - provided by the members themselves.

Anecdotes

Glass of wine at hand, assembled guests appreciated the humour of Major General Lennox Napier, who officially opened the event after relating anecdotes about his life after the army. He was warmly thanked by Vera Easton, one of several founder members of the organisation taking an active part in the day's festivities.

Entertainment followed, in two locations. First, in the hall, was a recital of poetry for the Third Age - an anthology of poems that accentuated the positive and eliminated the negative; lighthearted poems about old age that occasioned smiles and laughter.

That was followed by the Play Readers, who performed a play called "Fings ain't what they used to be", specially written for the occasion by the Creative Writing Group. Light and amusing, it featured Henry V, Geoffrey Of Monmouth, Charles Rolls, Lady Llangattock, Emma Hamilton and Miss Macdonald of HMSG, who reminisced, regretted and grumbled about changes in the town.

In the Conference Room, the Recorder Players performed madrigals and traditional Welsh music, as well as three pieces composed by one of the group's members. Entitled Drybridge House, Market Day and Strolling along the Monnow, the music captured the spirit of this bustling, yet peaceful market town.

The Welsh Group entertained with extracts from "Under Milk Wood". They had skillfully put together sections of the play to make a coherent whole. Each reader took two parts, so their talents were exploited to the full, to the delight of their audience.

Aspects

Entertainment in the Conference Room ended with "Poetry as History", which covered aspects in the lives of six exiled Welsh people who hanker for home. The audience was transported from the hard life of an 18th Century shirt salesman to John Betjeman and his skits on Middle Class life. Still laughing, the audience joined other members in the Hall for tea.

Home made sandwiches of many sorts, and a variety of cakes - including a beautifully decorated 20th Anniversary birthday cake - were quickly and efficiently served by the Social Secretary and her team.

Balancing plates piled high and cups of steaming tea, many members made their way back to watch the Country Dancers perform and a demonstration of Mom's dancing, accompanied by a very proficient accordion player. Many a foot was seen tapping, adding to the general rise in volume as chatter became animated and people let flow.

Meanwhile, there were displays to look at. There is a huge, untapped source of talent in U3A. Only an impressive fraction was on show - lace-making, photography, woodcarving, cross stitch embroidery, pottery, patchwork and painting.

Paintings Companions mounted a display of their work so imposing that they recruited new members. The Gardening Group admirably demonstrated their commitment to the community in the Nelson Garden, and photographs of the walkers took the breath away from those less actively inclined. Science and Technology was represented, as was Italian and other groups.

As the party ended and members made their way home, the hall reverberated with the sound of "Great party!", "Wonderful day!" and "The best party we've ever had!" And it was. Thank you, organisers.