29th July, 2012

As I'm writing the couple in the flat are just going off for the day, the sun is shining & the day is looking promising. They are so enthusiastic about the flat & the Centre - how central it is, how they love to visit the theatre & just walk everywhere instead of having to take the car, how one has fond memories of the centre from visits with Fife youth orchestra when she was young. "We'll definitely be back" they say. The craft fair has had it's first week of a 3 week block and have had a good week with lots of visitors and purchasers (due to the rain?). We're open for B&B but it has been slow this year - all over Pitlochry and especially this week we suspect Pitlochry is feeling the Olympic effect - so there is plenty of space for last minute bookings, reduced today to £25pp. Fancy a visit? Just get in touch.

For the last 2 weeks we had Free church camps at the Centre - the first for primary kids, the 2nd for secondary girls. They come on a self-catering basis and really enjoy their time here, so much so that they have become one of our regular groups.  Having a hands off group has allowed Centre staff to have a summer holiday, so everyone benefits and we've all come back refreshed. Cloe, our French intern, returned to France at the end of June and Wilma, our summer volunteer, will be with us til the end of August.
We were pleased to have a well attended AGM at the end of June and the Council of Management has been busy since then further developing plans for the future. We're planning 2 fundraising events for August - a thrift shop and a fundraising dinner. Follow us on facebook (see the box  at the side) where we'll post details as they are finalised. These are both aimed at raising the architect's planning fees due in over the next couple of months. Please pray too for the appropriate final touches to be applied to our business plan & presentation as we begin the process of applying to major Trusts for the different stages of the build.
We're still looking for a plumber to help us with our office refurb, planned for September but this may end up pushed back. If you can help, please let us know.