THIS week's crop of readers' letters includes thoughts on Helensburgh's lunch club, the council's budget preparations and a good deed done for a local resident.

To have your say in our next print edition just email editorial@helensburghadvertiser.co.uk with your name and address. Happy writing!

* * * * * * *

I write in praise of the dwindling number of volunteers who have faithfully provided lunches for senior citizens of the town at the Helensburgh Lunch Club for the last 37 years.

The lunches which are cooked on the premises in the United Reform Church Hall for up to 30 people provide excellent nourishment in a friendly environment.

Amazingly, one of the lady volunteers has been there since the very beginning in 1979.

The Lunch Club currently meets only on Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays. Friday lunches have had to be temporarily suspended due to lack of volunteers.

The difficulty in finding new volunteers for this rewarding service may be partly due to the pressure on family budgets requiring more than a single income to make ends meet.

This cannot, however, explain the very visible change we now see to volunteering, and I have a hunch that much of this is down to a reluctance to make commitments in this age when demands on time and finances are under increasing pressure.

It would be a very sad thing if it becomes impossible to recommence the Friday lunches, and even more if we cannot find younger folk to volunteer in order let some of the long-serving volunteers retire without feeling that they have let down the Lunch Club and its needful members.

I would appeal to you to help find volunteers; we need a lot! If you or a friend have culinary talents, like to socialise with senior citizens who appreciate company, good food and a chat, do please consider giving one morning a week or even a fortnight to help your community, a need which one-day any one of us might require.

Oh! I forgot to say, it can be very rewarding to foster friendships, particularly between different generations.

Chris Packard

Chair, Helensburgh Lunch Club

* * * * * * *

I set off for the town centre on Sunday morning to purchase my Sunday paper as usual. I parked my car in Argyle Street East, just short of the junction with Sinclair Street, and walked down to the shopping area.

En route I withdrew a Royal Bank £20 note from my wallet, folded it and placed it in the ticket pocket of my jeans in readiness.

In the event I purchased my paper in the shop but used change from my pocket, forgetting the £20 note I had put aside in my small pocket.

I returned to Argyle Street East to my car and drove home.

As I began to read the paper there I suddenly remembered the £20 note I had put in my ticket pocket.

It was not there and I had not replaced it in my wallet.

With some haste I set off again to town in the car parking in a different place and retraced my steps quickly to the shop I had been in and enquired if the money had been handed in.

But nothing.

I therefore retraced my route, back to where I had parked first time in Argyle Street East, looking all the time for a folded £20 note.

The space my car had occupied was now filled with another large car. I looked all round it, just in case the money had fallen there as I had entered my car earlier. Again, nothing.

Feeling pretty mad with myself therefore I set off to return to the car further down Sinclair Street.

Then, as I rounded the corner into Sinclair Street, to my utter amazement, there, stuck in the corner of the Argyle Street East road sign, was – yes, my folded £20 Royal Bank note!

I perceive that the driver who parked in the space I had occupied had indeed found the note there and placed it prominently for discovery.

I offer my sincere thanks to that person and acknowledge and thank him/her for their great faith and honesty. Thank you!

Henry Garson

7 Hillview Drive, Helensburgh

* * * * * * *

MSPs are complaining that due to the late Autumn Statement by the UK Chancellor they will only have 15 weeks for scrutiny of the 2017 Scottish draft budget.

Under the Liberal Democrat-Conservative-Independent administration at Argyll and Bute Council we are lucky to get 15 minutes for scrutiny before the Provost requires amendments.

The advice from Audit Scotland “to facilitate more transparent scrutiny of budgets, members should consider circulating proposals for significant changes to the budgeting pack in advance of the council meeting, ideally with agenda papers” is ignored.

The SNP always published its budget four weeks ahead of the Budget meeting to allow for proper scrutiny and to try and reach consensus.

The £10m of cuts in the Administration's budget this year are now starting to bite. They took over a year to decide their cuts but were still unable to control their overspending and had to be bailed out by an extra £1.7m of cuts secretly provided by the chief executive.

In contrast the SNP amendment balanced the budget without management help, retained an extra £1.4m in education, and protected more jobs.

With only four months to go before the 2017-18 budget meeting in February the Administration has put no plan to the council to deal with its forecast overspend next year.

The council leader has stated their projected overspend next year could be even greater than the £10.5m forecast by council officers.

The Administration at Argyll and Bute Council is sleepwalking to another panic round of savage and thoughtless cuts to council services.

It is reckless and irresponsible of the Administration not to put forward any plans to deal with their overspend next year and to reject SNP proposals to take forward a budget process.

The SNP approach would have been inclusive and transparent but the Administration prefers to stick its collective head in the sand and operate in secrecy.

The behaviour of the Administration will no doubt require further intervention from Audit Scotland and the Accounts Commission but it’s the people of Argyll and Bute who will continue to suffer for the failures of the current Council Administration.

Councillor James Robb

(SNP, Helensburgh Central)

* * * * * * *

Helensburgh and District Round Table is urging young men aged 16-30 to join the Anthony Nolan stem cell donor register.

Anthony Nolan matches incredible individuals willing to donate their blood stem cells or bone marrow to people with blood cancer and blood disorders who desperately need lifesaving transplants.

In 1986, Round Table clubs across the UK and Ireland were instrumental in adding 100,000 new names to the Anthony Nolan register and 30 years on, Round Table clubs are teaming up with the Anthony Nolan charity again, this time targeting young men.

Mark House, National President of Round Table, is urging young guys to get involved, "Men aged 16-30 are the most in demand as stem cell donors but they make up just 15% of the Anthony Nolan register.

Round Table clubs were instrumental in getting Anthony Nolan to where it is today and as a young man's organisation I hope we can encourage more young men to join the donor register".

Ann O'Leary, Head of Register Development at Anthony Nolan, said:

'We're delighted to restart our lifesaving partnership with the Round Table. We urgently need more people, especially young men, to join the register. Most people have a 1 in 900 chance of being chosen to donate. But young men have a 1 in 200 chance. What many people don't realise is how simple it is to join the stem cell register – it involves filling in a form and providing a saliva sample. For those who go on to donate, about 90% will donate through PBSC (peripheral blood stem cell collection). This is a straightforward process, carried out as an outpatient procedure, where you can potentially save the life of a person in desperate need of a transplant.

"Our original collaboration with Round Table added a huge number of potential donors to the register. This time around we want to reach young men in particular and we look forward to seeing how the campaign takes off in the Helensburgh and District area.

For those interested in finding out more about Anthony Nolan and Round Table, please go to anthonyNolan.roundtable.co.uk.

Nicole Carroll

Communications Manager, RTBI

* * * * * * *

As the autumn nights start to draw in, I'm writing to ask your readers to enjoy a night in with friends and family and raise vital funds for Target Ovarian Cancer.

Around 4,100 UK women die each year from the disease, and many are diagnosed too late. Target Ovarian Cancer is here to change that, and we need your help. Host a movie marathon or board games evening, relax with a pamper party, or light up the night sky with a fireworks night, and you'll be supporting women with ovarian cancer.

Raising £10 could give six newly diagnosed women a comprehensive guide to ovarian cancer, and raising £50 could enable 100 GPs to update their knowledge of ovarian cancer help early diagnosis.

Plus you'll get a November Nights kit, which includes a free gift to get your night off to a great start. To sign up, readers can visit www.targetovariancancer.org.uk/november

Simon Taylor

Target Ovarian Cancer