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Bethany home from rickshaw challenge

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bethany homeMILFORD Haven is proud to welcome home the stars of The Children In Need Rickshaw Challenge this week.

16-year-old Bethany Freeman and her mother Amanda have recently arrived back in Milford Haven after cycling 700 miles across Britain over eight days. The trek began in Giants Causeway, Ireland and ended in London.

The Herald managed to get hold of Amanda for a talk about how much she enjoyed The Rickshaw Challenge.

“It was so much harder than I thought,” said Amanda. “Bethany loved it. She missed her father a lot at the beginning. I had tried to tell her that he wasn’t going to be there but I don’t think she actually realised it. We were riding along one day and she saw somebody that looked like him and she started shouting ‘Dad!’”

Bethany and Amanda cycled with four other people in The Rickshaw Challenge as well as their partners and met many celebrities on the way.

“We met Jason Donavan, but Bethany wasn’t phased by that. She knew who he was, and she stood with her arms around him for about half an hour! We also saw Amir Khan in Bolton and we met the cast of Eastenders in Albert Square,” says Amanda. “It was such an adventure”.

Amanda had to cycle five miles up hill in the Lake District. She told The Herald how she got to do it: “This was the highest point in The Rickshaw, and all the men were wanting to do it saying ‘I’ll do it’, then someone else would say ‘No, I’ll do it’. In the end, Matt Baker came in and said ‘The next part is five miles up hill. You’re doing it Amanda’. I couldn’t really say no!” Amanda was filmed with tears in her eyes while cycling uphill due to the intensity of it. Amanda recalls the moment: “I was dying. Had it been a normal push bike I would have got off and walked, but The Rickshaw isn’t like a normal bike. It’s very solid and you can feel every bump. Plus it was being filmed!”

Bethany is only 4ft 11ins and was the smallest rider on The Rickshaw. Bethany had to have a special seat which was lower than the rest and was softer.

When cycling out of Birmingham, Bethany fell off The Rickshaw bike. Amanda said: “I didn’t see her fall over but when I looked she was lying on the road. I rushed out to her to see if she was okay, and she lifted her head and said ‘It’s all your fault mum’, which is her usual reaction to falling over. I knew that she was okay after she said that!”

Amanda continued: “She was okay. She had a helmet and protective clothing on, which did help her. Her coat ripped though and she wouldn’t wear it again, so I had to wear it afterwards! I also had to get on The Rickshaw then for her. I could see she was fine, so I didn’t mind”.

Bethany rode The Rickshaw bike into Oxford on day seven. BBC Children In Need raised £250,000 in half an hour that night through text messages. “It was such a great experience. People were chanting her name when we cycled past and one lady ran after us and gave Bethany a pair of reindeer slipper to put her feet up afterwards – she loves them!”

After meeting a number of celebrities and getting a mention from Oprah Winfrey, Milford Haven is proud to have Bethany and Amanda home safely.

Congratulations to you both from all here at The Pembrokeshire Herald.

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Community

Mayor of Bergen visits Pembroke Dock Heritage Centre

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IT was a Mayoral gathering when the Burgermeisterin of Bergen, in Germany, paid a visit to Pembroke Dock Heritage Centre in the company of Councillor Aden Brinn, the Mayor of Bergen’s twin town, Pembroke.

There to meet Burgermeisterin Claudia Dettmar-Muller and her colleague Silvia Bothe were two former Mayors of Pembroke Dock, Councillors Pam George and Maureen Colgan, and trustees and volunteers who run the Centre. Joining them was Pembroke’s Deputy Mayor, Councillor Ann Mortenson.

Trustee Peter Mitchell and colleagues gave a guided town of the Centre which has extensive displays on Pembroke Dock’s rich maritime and military history spanning just over two centuries, and its connections with RAF flying boats.

Pic By Martin Cavaney.

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Community

Wonderful night at Haverfordwest Library for special Poet Laureate event

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HAVERFORDWEST Library was delighted to be part of the prestigious Poet Laureate Library Tour for 2024 with a special event on Friday, March 8.
Pembrokeshire County Council Chairman, Cllr Thomas Tudor extended a special welcome to the guests of honour: Poet Laureate Simon Armitage; his guests Owen Sheers and Bethany Handley; plus the winners of the recent library Poetry Competition.
The poetry began with writer, poet and disabled activist, Bethany Handley. Bethany campaigns for better access to nature for disabled people, and her work explores nature and disability, challenging the barriers that disabled people experience.
Bethany’s first poem was heartfelt and humorous about her experience of visiting a beach in her wheelchair. Her final poem also drew on her experiences, being a compilation poem of many well-intentioned, yet impractical or inappropriate, advice that she has received as a wheelchair user.
Owen Sheers is an award winning Welsh poet, author and playwright. He has twice won the Wales Book of the Year as well as the Hay Festival Poetry Medal.
His film-poem, the Green Hollow, about the Aberfan disaster, was BAFTA and Grierson nominated and won three BAFTA Cymru awards, including best writer.
Owen read an extract from the Green Hollow, bringing the horror of the disaster to life. He also read poems about parenthood and his experiences as a son and as a father.
The Poet Laureate, Simon Armitage, is the recipient of numerous prizes and awards, including the Queen’s Gold Medal for Poetry.
Simon launched into a poem about humanity, the universe and working as one. He then used his back catalogue of poems written for music. His poems covered some unusually random themes, particularly those he crafted during the Covid pandemic.
He said that he’d even written a poem inspired by a Velux window and read a beautiful poem about laying in a hammock watching a pair of newly-weds sail overhead in a hot air balloon.
His performances were engaging, humorous and moving and he brought the words to life.
Simon also spoke warmly about the importance of libraries as a child but also as an adult travelling about the country, with libraries always offering a warm welcome.
Ashok Ahir, President of the National Library of Wales thanked the three poets and introduced the new exhibition in the gallery, Dylan: The Lyrical Life of Dylan Thomas.
The exhibition is open to the public until 14th September 2024. Further information can be seen online.
The event drew to a close as Cllr Tudor issued the prizes to the winners of the recent poetry eisteddfod competition. The competition celebrated the language, culture, heritage and literature of Wales.
The theme was Dylan Thomas. Entries could draw inspiration from any of his works or seek inspiration from a specific quote: “from where you are, you can hear their dreams”.
Entries received were of a high standard and were judged by Wendy Morse (leader of the Haverfordwest Library Poetry Group, who would welcome new members, contact Haverfordwest Library for more information); representatives from the Library staff and the National Library of Wales staff. The poems will be on display at Haverfordwest Library until the end of the Easter Holidays.

Prizes have been awarded to:
• Sian Davies: Athena, Goddess of Wisdom, adult written poem category
• James Purchase: I Shall go Gentle into that Good Night, adult written poem category
• Philippa Davies: Dylan is in the Library, adult spoken word category
• Tony Potts: Windfall, adult illustrated poem category
• John Matthews: Dylan Cwmdonkin, adult Welsh language category
• Ellie McGrath: It was all a Dream, 11-14 age category
• Skye-Lea Jones: Are you Listening?,11-14 age category
Thanks to the judges of the poetry competition and to Faber & Faber, who donated the book prizes in support of the Poet Laureate’s Library Tour.
Cllr Thomas Tudor said: “The Riverside opened its doors in December 2018 and has enjoyed many fascinating exhibitions since thanks to the continued partnership with the National Library of Wales.
“The Riverside was one of just six libraries to host this Poet Laureate Library Tour for 2024.
“It is a fantastic achievement for Haverfordwest Library to be a part of these significant events, helping to raise the profile and regeneration of the County Town and I thank everyone who has worked hard to make the event a success.”
The event would not have been possible without the continued support from The National Library of Wales and Haverfordwest Town Council. The President of the National Library of Wales and the Mayor, Sheriff and Clerk of Haverfordwest Town Council were all present.

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Charity

Bags of Books returns to Milford Haven and surrounding areas this Easter

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THE INFAMOUS Bags of Books is set to return to Milford Haven and surrounding areas over the Easter holidays.

Milford Haven School who launched the project with Milford Youth Matters over 3 years ago are continuing in their bid to improve literacy skills and encourage a love of reading for pleasure by giving away over 700 books.

Thanks to funding from the South Hook LNG Community grant they have purchased books for young people of all ages and reading abilities and will be hanging them on the fences of the schools in their catchment area.

The community are invited to come and choose a book from the following locations over the Easter holidays:

  • Neyland Community Primary School – Monday 25th March
  • Johnston Community Primary School – Tuesday 26th March
  • Coastlands Primary School – Wednesday 27th March
  • Gelliswick Primary School – Tuesday 2nd April
  • Milford Haven Community Primary – Wednesday 3rd April
  • St Francis Community Primary – Wednesday 3rd April

Milford Haven Secondary School will also hang over 150 books on their fence after the Easter Holidays on Wednesday 10th April for those in our community who cannot attend the other locations.

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