Tuesday 9 September 2014

Paul Roux Spring 2014 Chairman's Message

Spring is here!
 
Renovating the Paul Roux Events Centre 
 
The winter was short but we certainly had some moments such as the night it dropped to minus 15. However, the way the fruit trees are blooming I think we can all expect some good fruit picking this year.
Well the contractors are finishing off the Paul Roux Events Centre and it’s looking good. It should be very useful for country shows, festivals and other get-togethers. We had the old toilets at the back taken down and new brick ones built so it looks much better too.

The first little event there will be for a good cause – Cup For Cancer – at 10am on Saturday 20 September at a cost of R50 per cup. Please go along and support.  

I can highly recommend the biltong being sold at Bakgat Biltong in a rondavel by the Rock – in my opinion its fantastic. Also pop in and meet Hetta Britz at ‘Kom Loer In’ where they sell  clothing, art, snacks, groceries and meat – they are next to the Clinic in Voortrekker Street. It’s a very interesting little shop. They aim to do take-aways soon. Dino’s has grown considerably both in size and stock – always an interesting place to eat and  browse, and Pink Tricycle continues to serve lekker food and its famous Sunday lunch specials.
It’s great to see how many houses have been bought and sold and how many are being renovated. Kevin and Pam Duncan are doing major renovations to the house they bought opposite me in Joubert Street, Karen Passier moved into her house down in the horse territory of the village and I could not believe how she has transformed it inside and out. All over the place, houses are being worked on and Hanli De Lange’s cottage  is looking really charming as well.  
Adie Kay who bought Dankbar has also started her renovations before the furniture arrives, and Die Ou Pastorie is welcoming its new owner Mary Kearney any day now. Mary is also a keen horse-rider. Dereck Peterson has bought the plot behind his cottage where he will be building a sandstone guest-cottage and stables.
The two mega-litre reservoirs, pressure tank and pump station and the bulk pipeline from Bethlehem to Paul Roux  have been completed and our new waste water treatment plant is under construction. I believe the removal of the Village’s historic water problem may be a major feature as to why property sales in Paul Roux have increased so much. So, all is well in Paul Roux and I look forward to seeing as many of you as possible over the coming months. We have a privileged lifestyle here – please enjoy it by getting out to have a walk or a run or a ride as often as possible – most people in SA and cities don’t have the luxury – so don’t waste it by just sitting around watching TV.  Make the most of every moment please – get out there and enjoy the village! Finally my thanks once again to all who have contributed articles to this Telegraaf, the Forum members whose fees pay for the printing of it and to Edward van den Berg who puts the Telegraaf together- a task which takes hours – Ed we appreciate it..a lot.                                                
Richard Lewis -  Chairman – Paul Roux Residents Forum
( Nothing quite beats a good coffee on my stoep! )

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 


































































































































 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 



 

 

Saturday 19 April 2014

PAUL ROUX VILLAGE FESTIVAL 2014 A GREAT SUCCESS



The Paul Roux Village Festival which took place on 5 April 2014 turned out to be a real country village experience. It took place in the park in front of the Rosenhof Hotel and the Pink Tricycle Restaurant, and the event was blessed with fantastic weather.  Marques, gazebos, veteran and classic cars, boere sports, live music, good food, fine art, strong coffee, interesting stalls, cold beer and chilled wine were the order of the day and a wonderful festive spirit ruled.


The stalls were of a particularly high standard where local folk reminded visitors about what good old fashioned baking was all about.

 Some of the talented ladies selling their wonderful home made food and confectionaries.

Then the competitions started - sack races, egg and spoon, egg throwing.......
and of course passionate cheering for the 4 adult teams formally fielded for the 'tug-of-war' - the Paul Roux Forum, the NG Kerk, the AP Kerk and the Maluti Antique and Auto Machine Club - it was eventually won by the Forum but they were heavy battles indeed.











And it made for interesting entertainment.


Generally the weather could not have been better. Many people arrived and enjoyed the event for hours, spending time reconnecting with old friends and making new ones. The idea was that every effort would be made to ensure that the festival keep a real village feel and that the activities would be kept together in the park so that the energy stayed alive; and it did. A good sign was that the music had to keep going a full two hours after the official end of the fair.
 Apart from jolly socializing, eating, drinking and art and stall browsing, the boere sports made for a lot of laughing, joking and teasing. There was also a singing competition which was eventually won by Andrew Smith who promptly donated his R1000 cash prize to the Bethlehem SPCA.
The weekend had started off on the Friday night with an art preview cocktail party, and the eats and sparkling wine was accompanied by visiting singers Andrew Smith and David Daniel, and followed by a preview of the art exhibition which had exceptionally high quality works by 8 artists some as far afield as Cape Town and Rustenburg and which included local Paul Roux artists Rosemarie Schutze, Nana Brits and Edward van den Berg. I was bowled over by the generosity of my friends from Jhb who have no stake in the Village other than being friends and who both contributed such wonderful food (Dean Kelly) and sparkling wine (Rodney Hill) for the cocktail party.  After the festival on Saturday, visitors had a choice between a smart dinner hosted by the NGK or a party at Dino’s Antiques and Restaurant. On Sunday, people gathered to celebrate the centenary service of the Paul Roux NGK, to enjoy the service, the classical music and the tea and cake which brought the weekend to a wonderful conclusion. God had looked down fondly on the village and the village had a very proud smile on its face.

Here are some more photos - all photos were taken by 'Paul Rouxster' artist and photographer Hanli de Lange
















All thanks to Festival Committee:
Richard Lewis - Committee Chairman and Paul Roux Forum
Ds Hennie Smit - NGK
Emmarencia van Aardt - NGK
Illona Botha - NGK and Municipality
Jess de Klerk - APK
Hennie Olivier - APK
Hendrik Smit - APK
Jasper van Schalkwyk - Horse Outride
Carolise Appels - Pink Tricycle 
Edward van den Berg - Paul Roux Forum
Rosemarie Schutze - Paul Roux Forum
Tertius Du Preez - Maluti Antique Auto and Machine Club
Special Thanks to:
  • Emmarencia and Louwrens Gouws and family - Dinos - stage, boere sports and sheer hard work
  • Hanli de Lange ( Simi-G photography)
  • Ruben Evans and Daniel Lerata - Paul Roux Municipal Office
  • Pens and Petro Maritz - Forum and owners Ster CafĂ© - superb party eats
  • Dean Kelly - owner Mugg and Bean - Woodmead - superb party eats
  • Rodney Hill - Independent Wine Merchant - free sparkling wine for the party
  • Roy Law - Paul Roux Forum - art tent lights
  • Sean Jones - Paul Roux Forum - construction of art exhibition frames
  • Joggie Naude - Paul Rouxster - awesome MC and DJ and live entertainment
  • Andrew Smith - great singer from Durban for entertaining
  • David Daniel - superb tenor also from Durban for entertaining
  • Cedric von Steiger - the use of the Rosenhof Hotel
  • Theuns van Rooyen - use of Pink Tricycle
  • Jaap Zietsmann - for so kindly cutting the lawn of the Sports Centre
  • Suzanne Naude - for the traffic and car officials - enthusiastic school kids.
And of course to all the people who participated in some way and of course the Proud Paul Rouxsters who attended the festival and made it so awesome.

Finally to God for no problems, no injuries and possibly the most perfect weather anyone could have asked for!

Monday 27 January 2014

PAUL ROUX FESTIVAL 5 APRIL 2014 WITH HORSE OUTRIDE AND CYCLE RACE



Accomodation may be booked at Dunlin B&B or Rosenhof Country Lodge, Paul Roux, and if full, then in Bethlehem.