Bolnore hosts Queen's Jubilee Picnic - June 3rd 2022

By Louise Smith

What a rollercoaster we have all been on, trying to work out how to live in a pandemic, that is hopefully coming to an end; juggling work, family and friends with bubbles, PCRs and lateral flow tests, who knew I’d ever be writing a sentence like that? I for one have really missed seeing my friends and being part of the ins and outs of their everyday lives and vice versa.

My world has shrunk, to a much smaller bubble and is a lesser life. One of my aims, now we are able, is to grow those relationships back. To nurture them, spend afternoons in the sun playing games, eating picnics and sipping a cool drink or two! So I’m really happy to have an excuse, to be going to the Bolnore Queen’s Jubilee Picnic right here in the centre of the village next month. I’d also really like to see your friendly faces there, so you too can be the makers of a wonderful memory for you, your friends, families and neighbours.

The plan is simple, rock up to the rec, bring food, drink and activities and if you can, be a maker of the best celebration, run a rounders match, throw a frisbee, share your activities with your neighbours. Simple, community led fun for everyone. Starting from scratch post pandemic, this will be the one of a number of events in the village, (the fête will be back on the 16th July) Halloween celebrations and of course the build up to Christmas (yay, join in with a village wide living advent calendar).

More village makers are needed so if you’d like to be involved in creating the one of best places to live, please do join in. So looking forward to see you; I will be the one wearing red, white and blue! The Bolnore Queen’s Jubilee Picnic will take place from 12.00pm on 3rd June at Tim Farmer Recreation Ground, Middle Village, Bolnore, Haywards Heath.

Understanding Parkinson's Disease

By Jacqueline Elmore

If you were an adolescent in 1985, when sci-fi comedy Back to the Future was first released, you might have heard of its leading star, Michael J. Fox. For a long time, his boyish charm was the object of my teenage affection.

The skateboard, that red body warmer, those Calvin Klein underpants and the fact that he was 24, playing a 17-year-old who was sent back to 1955 in a timetravelling Delorean. I didn’t care. He was it for me.

By 1991, I had pretty much seen all of his movies and was still in hot pursuit of those that followed. Yet it was in this year, at the age of just 29, that Michael was first diagnosed with early on-set Parkinson’s disease, a neurodegenerative disorder that affects part of the brain which leads to a reduction in dopamine (a chemical that plays a key role in movement and coordination) - a condition I knew nothing about.

““... I came home and did what everyone tells you not to do, I went onto Google and searched ‘writing getting smaller’ and the words Parkinson’s disease flashed up straightaway.””

— Nicky Leask

In 1998, almost twenty five years ago, he finally disclosed his news to the world and subsequently made it his life goal to commit himself to Parkinson’s research; a subject I still knew very little about.

That is until I got the chance to speak to Nicky Leask.

Nicky is a long-standing and much loved resident of Cuckfield, who, at 48, was also diagnosed with early onset Parkinson’s disease.

“It’s really hard to pinpoint the moment when my symptoms started to occur. A lot of people still don’t know what Parkinson’s is and for many that have it, they can live for years not knowing they have it or before getting a final diagnosis.”

Excerpt from March 2022’s issue of Cuckfield Life

Cuckfield's Rose and Crown carpark welcomes The Sussex Peasant

The Sussex mobile farm shop that sells freshly grown produce from a converted horse truck outside the Rose and Crown pub are all about supporting local communities. “We’ve had a pitch here in Cuckfield now for three months and we sell all sorts, from organic pasture fed meats, organic vegetables, fruit, breads and cakes. The common thread is that everything we sell is farmed or produced right here in Sussex,” says business owner Edward Johnstone.

The idea for the Sussex Peasant started four years ago when Edward used to visit local schools selling just a few Sussex grown vegetables and a desire to change the face of food retail by trying to promote local farms and its produce. In that time the business has grown exponentially and is now looking to develop a fish operation just as they have done with meat, dairy and vegetables. “Our aim is to again create something local to Sussex whereby fisherman would go down to the boats in the morning and sell to our markets within hours of catching the fish ready for us to sell.”

The Sussex Peasant also sells its organic produce in and around Brighton and many of the surrounding villages in the area. “We are a small but hugely passionate team that pride ourselves in selling produce that is both convenient and accessible to everyone. I believe that good locally grown food is an integral part of the social and cultural glue that keeps a thriving community and society together.”

The Sussex Peasant now holds a regular spot outside the Rose and Crown pub every Friday from 9am to 4pm. For further information please visit www.thesussexpeasant.co.uk