Blogs

The presentation was made at the launch of a Paul Harris Society for the South Wales District 1150 area of Rotary.

The latest 'View from Richmond Park' Carmarthen Town AFC column is in the Carmarthen Journal today.
The latest Red Kite Law Business Brief column is in the Carmarthen Journal newspaper today.
Lovely picture story in the Evening Post about Jenkins the Bakers making Wales rugby biscuits ahead of the big Grand Slam crunch match!
Splendid story on page 9 of the Evening Post about Llanelli firm Morganstone's latest building award success - for The Mews, Port Talbot.
Splendid story in the Llanelli Star about Jon Tregenna's Buggerall play being featured at the Laugharne Festival.
Nice piece in the Llanelli Star today about Cor Meibion Llanelli performing with top tenor Wynne Evans at Parc y Scarlets on Friday night.
Llanelli Star puts the spotlight on construction firm Morganstone's latest award - for a project in Port Talbot.
Smashing picture story about the Healing The Wounds charity helping PTSD victim Darren Martin in the Llanelli Star today.

Soon to be finished with book, "Hello Past", where woman comes face-to-face with person from many years ago.

Jenkins the Bakers are doing their bit to add to the Wales rugby roar for the big Grand Slam match against France at the weekend.
The Llanelli-based business has produced patriotic Wales rugby biscuits to mark the event.
With the crunch game against France approaching, we wanted to do our bit to generate hwyl and passion and support for our rugby team, said Jenkins Bakerys Operations Director Russell Jenkins.
The biscuits are made using top quality ingredients a bit like the way Warren Gatland has mixed together a first class Welsh rugby side!
The biscuits are topped off with red sugar paste icing in the hope that red will be the colour of the winning team as we claim the Grand Slam.
Already, the biscuits are a great hit with fans.
They are a nice way of showing support for Wales in the workplace. You can enjoy your mid-morning mug of tea and coffee with a Wales rugby biscuit!
Mr Jenkins said the biscuits had already caught the eye of Llanelli Scarlets rugby players.
One of the Jenkins Bakery shops is in The Avenue in Llwynhendy, just a short training jog from the Parc y Scarlets rugby stadium.
Mr Jenkins added: We are very passionate about our rugby here in Wales and we thought this would be our way of showing our support for the rugby boys on their Grand Slam mission.
The Jenkins bakery employs 300 people, full and part-time, across 25 different stores in South Wales.
The company has the Gold Standard Welsh Food Hygiene Award and the Investors in People award.
The business employs 70 people at its Trostre HQ, while the Jenkins shop network stretches from Carmarthen to Bridgend. There are 13 shops in Carmarthenshire and even one as far afield as Powys.
Picture: Llanelli Scarlets rugby player Phil John pictured with the Jenkins Bakery Wales rugby biscuits and Jenkins Bakery Area Manager Fiona Snook at The Avenue shop in Llwynhendy.

Hello, I am trying to contact someone at American Gorsedd and cannot find a contact on the main website. Many years ago I was given a photo of a gathering of people in Schenley Park, Pittsburgh. It was given to me by a friend, since I had gone to Carnegie Mellon university, and it had the university in the background.

The photo is somewhat time worn, but everything is legible. It has always been in the frame and the photo measures approximately 10" high x 42" length. In the lower left corner is written "Annual Conclave of the American Gorsedd June 7, 1919 Photo by Fallert."

While some of my past relatives were from Wales, I do not know anything about the American Gorsedd Association.

Could you please forward this email to someone in your association that may have an interest in this photo?
Thank you,
Richard Long

rich@emaillong.com

Melin Consultants, the fast-growing South Wales firm of environment and sustainability experts, has expanded its operation into England.
The Llanelli-based company has opened a branch office in Bristol.
Its a move which puts us on the map nationwide, said Melin director Jamie Best.
We offer specialist technical services which are earning us a great reputation here in West Wales, but it is time to make our mark on the wider world east of Cardiff.
We are in the market to win contracts further up the M4 corridor and the Bristol office should put us in a position to do just that.
Mr Best said 2012 was shaping up to be an exciting year for Melin Consultants.
We have a team of eight based in Llanelli and now in Bristol, at Park House in Park Street.
We specialise in all the things which people value in the construction industry today getting environmental issues right and making sure buildings are as sustainable as possible.
We are right up there in the vanguard when it comes to technical expertise in this area.
Mr Best, 37, added: In building today, sustainability is high on everyones list of priorities as we have all come to appreciate the need to make sure everything is as environmentally sensitive as possible
Our client list includes a wide range of construction companies, architects and local authorities.
To mark the opening of the new Bristol office we will be offering clients free seminars and workshops on some of areas of technical expertise.
For example, we offer sophisticated air testing services, which is a way of testing for heating leakages and as good a way as you can get to ensure that a building has been built properly.
And we are experts in BREEAM, the worlds foremost environmental assessment method and rating system for buildings. BREEAM sets the standard for best practice in sustainable building design.
Planning for the future is also very important to us here at Melin and we are members of CCTAL, the Carmarthenshire Construction Training Association.
We recognise that the future of the industry depends on investing in the skills of the engineers, technicians and experts of the future and we have been heavily involved with delivering sustainable construction courses in Carmarthenshire.
We are very proud to be a Carmarthenshire-based firm, employing Carmarthenshire people. We have high standards and are probably recognised as the biggest independent consultants in our field in South Wales.
Our expertise in sustainable building will now get a wider audience with our expansion into Bristol.
Weblinks:
http://www.melinconsultants.co.uk
Twitter: @melinconsult
Facebook: Melin Consultants Ltd
LinkedIn: Melin Consultants
Photo: Mel and Jamie Best, seated, with some members of the Melin team.
Melin Energy Consultants has been providing SAP & SBEM calculations for local authorities, architects, builders & developers over a number of years.
All Melin technicians have a wealth of experience in dealing with individual requirements.
The company motto is "10% calculation 90% solution".
As a building consultancy specialising in Part L of the Building Regulations and environmental assessing of new buildings, Melin technicians are qualified and accredited to issue certification in all the following fields BREEAM, Code for Sustainable Homes, EPC, SBEM, SAP, air-tightness testing.
The new Bristol office is at Park House, 10 Park Street, Bristol, BS1 5HX. Telephone 0845 0941279. Email: bristol@melinconsultants.co.uk
Llanelli office contact details: Melin, Llys Aur, Llanelli Gate, Dafen, Llanelli, SA14 8LQ Email: llanelli@melinconsultants.co.uk
t: 0845 094 1593
m: 07800 634804
e: jamie@melinconsultants.co.uk

The award-winning South Wales construction firm Morganstone Ltd is giving the popular Afan Forest Park Visitor Centre a facelift.
The forest park is one of the leading tourist attractions in the Neath and Port Talbot area, catering for walkers, leisure cyclists and expert mountain-bikers.
Its a hugely popular venue and we were delighted to win the contract with Neath Port Talbot Borough Council to carry out the refurbishment and extension of the visitor centre, said Morganstone managing director Ian Morgan.
There is a great deal of pride in the area about the forest park and it is widely recognised as one of the leading mountain-biking attractions in the UK.
The works we are carrying out there will be very important to the future success of the forest park and we are sure visitors will be delighted with the finished result when the project is completed in the spring.
The renovation is part of Cognation mtb trails South Wales, an exciting new partnership project between Neath Port Talbot CBC, Caerphilly CBC, Merthyr Tydfil CBC and Forestry Commission Wales.
It is funded by the EUs Convergence European Regional Development Fund through the Welsh Government, with match funding coming from the Welsh Government and partner organisations.
The caf area at the visitor centre will be transformed with folding glass doors overlooking the valley, leading out onto a covered terrace and creating an inviting outside seating area.
The foyer will be redesigned as a more open and appealing space, giving visitors a warmer welcome, better access to the South Wales Miners Museum and new toilet facilities.
There will also be a new meeting room and general improvements to the building.
A spokesman for Neath Port Talbot Borough Council said: These improvements will further enhance what Afan Forest Park offers locals and visitors alike. Cognation mtb trails South Wales has already built new sections of mountain bike trail in Afan Forest Park and more will be created over the next few years aimed at families and beginners.
The refurbishment work to Afan Forest Park Visitor Centre shows our continued support for the tourism industry in Neath Port Talbot.
Council Leader Councillor Ali Thomas said: Spectacular views across the Afan Valley can be seen from the visitor centre and the splendid glass feature will bring a new chapter to its history.
The renovations to the Afan Forest Park Visitor Centre will result in great improvements to one of Neath Port Talbots main tourist attractions. We are pleased that we are able to maintain a service for our visitors during the renovation work and look forward to welcoming visitors to a new-look centre in the spring.
Morganstone MD Mr Morgan added: We are delighted to work with Neath Port Talbot Council on this exciting project to rejuvenate such a great visitor attraction.
For visitor information during the renovation works, visitors to the Afan Forest park should contact the Tourist Information Centre on 01639 636674 or visit www.afanforestpark.co.uk
Photo:
Morganstones Mervyn Dowrick (Contracts Manager) and Chris Weaver (Site Manager) discussing the roofing works at the Afan Forest Park Visitor Centre
Weblinks
http://www.morganstone.co.uk/
http://www.afanforestpark.co.uk/
http://www.npt.gov.uk/Default.aspx?page=2482&pr_id=4618
On Facebook, search Morganstone Ltd.
On Twitter, look for @MorganstoneLtd

Members of Llanelli Rotary Club lent a hand at the Careers Wales mock interview sessions staged at Coedcae School, Llanelli.
The mock interviews gave pupils the chance to gain some experience of doing job and further education interviews.
Pictured with some of the Coedcae pupils are Rotarians Alan Owen, Alison Evans, Ken Abban and Roger Stephens. Also pictured is Gareth Price of Careers Wales.

I have only just found this page after all this time. Thank you for your kind wishes I will try to send some recent information to you on a more regular basis. Although I have lived on the beautiful isle of Anglesey since leaving university in 1975 to teach for 31 years, I am originally from Dinas Powis outside Cardiff where I still have family and try to support welsh rugby and Cardiff City whenever I can.

I am very interested in making more business links in the US and have developed a wide range of images which evoke the hiraeth (longing) for the homeland

Will be in touch

kind regards

Andrew Southall

The award-winning West Wales Brewer, Evan-Evans, has launched a new beer for the final week of the 2012 RBS Six Nations Rugby Championship.
Allez Rouge rather than Allez France will be the shout across the bar for a light golden beer which has been specially-developed to celebrate the end of this epic rugby festival.
Evan-Evans Brewery Chief Executive Simon Buckley said: Allez Rouge is a fantastic new beer.
With the Grand Slam in sight, we decided to brew a new one-off beer that would reflect the end of the season and the hopes of the nation for a clean sweep.
This is a fantastic golden beer with rich malt palate and fruity dry hoppiness.
The brewing team in Llandeilo have worked hard to get this beer right and I believe that they have created a great new beer.
At 4.1% abv, this beer is very more-ish and will be enjoyed by everyone looking for a winner.
Mr Buckley said: We have created a great beer. Now all we need is a great win for the red (the rouge) of Wales.
We want to make sure the invading French are silenced with their cries of Allez France (Go France). We cant wait for a Wales win and for the celebrations to begin!
The success of our national side has had a positive effect on beer sales over the last few months and its been a joy to see so many people enjoying themselves.
Here in Llandeilo, it has been wonderful following the fortunes of youngsters who have strong links with this part of the Tywi Valley, Rhys Priestland and George North.
We now wish the team well, and hold our breath (between mouthfuls!) for a great and historic Grand Slam win.

Mr Buckley, 54, is a sixth generation member of the longest-surviving brewing dynasty in Wales. The Buckley family have brewed in Wales since 1767.
Evan-Evans has a reputation for brewing the highest quality cask-conditioned beers. Evan-Evans is Waless largest specialist brewer of cask ale. The company started brewing in 2004 to produce specialist cask ales for the Welsh and national guest ale market.
The brewing heritage of the Buckley family stretches back to the early 19th century after the Rev James Buckley married the eldest daughter of Henry Child who had founded Childs Brewery in Llanelli. It was set up to slake the thirst of the towns tinworkers, who were rapidly increasing in numbers.
Simon Buckley was the last Buckley to brew at Llanelli before moving to London in 1984.
Buckleys Brewery had the distinction of being the only Welsh brewer to hold a royal warrant. In 1991 it became Crown Buckley when it was taken over by a subsidiary of Guinness. It was sold to Brains in 1997 and the Llanelli brewery closed a year later.
Evan-Evans was founded in Llandeilo in 2003 and began brewing in 2004. It is named after William Evan-Evans who married into the family four generations ago
Weblinks -
http://www.evanevansbrewery.com/
Photos: Simon Buckley and a photo of the beer pump handle for the new Allez Rouge beer.