What better way to cheer up a cold January evening than a traditional Burns Supper and Ceilidh?  We were very proud to welcome our many talented friends along to recite, sing, pipe, fiddle and of course to toast everything from the bonnie lassies to the haggis skin with "a richt guid willie-waught".   Peter and the team at the Club did us proud with an excellent meal, and Cuckoo's Nest provided music for the dancing.  Thank you to everyone who took part.  It was over all too quickly, but raised a handsome amount for our projects, and sent us back out into the frosty night with a spring in our step and a warm glow.

Back in November, supporter David Stokes completed the half-ironman challenge in the blazing Australian heat to raise money for LUCIA. We can't thank him enough for his efforts and for inspiring us all to go that extra mile! Here he tells of his experience...

"On the 15th November 2009 I completed my first half-ironman in aid of LUCIA. A half-ironman is a type of triathlon, i.e. it involves a swim, a bike ride and a run in succession. The main reason for using the term 'ironman' is the distances involved, namely a 1.9km swim, a 90km bike ride followed by a 21km run (a half marathon).

I said I completed it, however what I haven't mentioned was that it took place in Shepparton, a small town in the middle of Victoria in Australia. Located at least 200km from the sea, there were blue skies, a bright sun and temperatures of 36C.

The day of the race started off with a reality check. My partner in crime Iain Sanders and I were checking into the event and getting ready for the 1.9km open water swim (in a muddy lake with a water temp of 26C) when it dawned upon us that our fellow competitors were a collection of Australia's elite athletes showcasing their well formed muscles and tanned bodies. Admittedly these were probably sprayed on...at least that's what I consoled myself with whilst people put on their sunnies to look at my blinding white body! There were six packs in abundance and very few sporting the party packs Iain and myself had paid good money for down at the local pub whilst carbo loading.