PPA Visakha (UK)  ran a stall at the ‘Festival of Cricket” (FOC )which was held on Sunday 9th July 2017 at the Hainault Recreation Grounds in Ilford, Essex. 

In 1989 when the FOC was conceived ,it provided a much needed platform for individual schools to woo its alumnae, to establish dialogue , interact and support each other.

For many years the FOC was a much awaited event in the PPAV(UK)calendar . Due to other commitments we were unable to participate for a period of time. So, it was good to see the Visakha stall return to the FOC.

When we talked about having a stall at the FOC this year at a committee meeting, most of us were quiet about it. Given it’s the centenary year and having many activities on board already ,there was an  initial reluctance to take on the organisation of another event.. However, proving the energy we have in the Association,this reluctance was quickly overcome.

Though we didn’t start very early like some  of the others, few of our members were there to set up  the stall by mid-morning. As the day passed, more and more committee members came armed with cakes., kadala and iced coffee.

It was very nice to have past Visakhians see the banner and drop by to say “hi” and we even had relatives of fellow Visakhians coming to talk to us. 

The face painting which was on offer appealed to the children . In addition the selection of cakes and drinks on sale encouraged visitors to the stall., and by mid afternoon everything was sold out.