The Nandi Charity Shop is a registered charity supporting the needs of stray and abandoned animals in the western Algarve. It operates two shops in Lagos, selling second-hand clothes, handbags, books, household items, toys and furniture.
After the heat wave the sunny skies were replaced by damp cloudy conditions for the start of the June ride in Paderne. The possible threat of a sudden shower did not stop 18 riders taking part in the ride on the 21st.
Lead rider Bris Phillips led the ride up into the hills to Cachopo where a stop was made at the cafe in the village square. By this time the sun had arrived and it was nice to enjoy a break and a drink under the vines which shade the outside terrace.
It has been a busy scholastic year of preparation for 51 of the many disabled young people in the Algarve who ride horses and ponies for their recreation, therapy and sport. These youngsters come from a variety of schools or institutions and usually ride weekly at various riding schools in the Algarve: QPA Bensafrim, Pinetrees Almancil, Vilamoura Equestrian School, and Loulé Riding Club.
A Rotary club is not usually where you would expect to find romance but for four members of Almancil International Rotary Club (AIRC) this is precisely what happened. Claire Rusbridge, a widow, joined the club in the summer of 2015 hoping to make some new friends.
In September 2015 she went with a few members to Cork in Ireland for a Rotary Convention. It just so happened that Alexander (Sandy), also widowed was also at the convention and spotted Claire. The attraction for both was instant and soon afterwards Sandy joined Claire in Portugal and transferred to become a member of AIRC. It didn’t take him long to propose and they were recently married at Os Agostas in Santa Barbara de Nexe.
The 15th Annual General Meeting of the St. Patrick's Society of the Algarve was held in the Lagoa Hotel on Thursday May 18th. 35 members attended the meeting and the dinner following.
After a lively discussion regarding the future of the Society, the following members were elected as officers for the year 2017 / 2018:
Chairman : Jim Brownlow.
Secretary : Teresa Ferreira.
Treasurer : Neil Rodgers.
After the last two events being postponed due to bad weather conditions the ride around the Odalouca Barragem turned out to be the best day of the year so far for the motorcyclists of the ASB.
There was a good turnout with so many bikes that the ride was split into two groups, with a 10 minute interval between the two leaving from the start in Silves.
Wednesday 3rd May was the 106th Anniversary of the Guarda Nacional Republicana (GNR) and Almancil International Rotary Club (AIRC) was delighted to receive three senior GNR members at the Rotary dinner at the Conrad Hotel.
Coronel Joachim Crasto, Comandante GNR Algarve, Coronel Silva Gomes, Military Attaché in Paris and Major Paulo Santos, Comandante GNR Loulè had come specifically to hear the report presented by GNR Officer Frederico (Freddie) Fragoso following his recent visit to spend time with Gwent Police in Wales.
A presentation last Sunday morning at the Lagos Bombeiros station marked the official handing of a shiny new ambulance, purchased with funds raised from the community by afpop’s western Algarve Area Events Organiser, Pat Allen.
Spurred on by the considerable effort of the foreign community, Lagos Council dipped into its reserves and donated a second ambulance costing €60,000 (see picture below).
