All Kinds of Everything at floral art display

Alan Beatty, prepares a floral arrangement for his flower demonstration in Lisneal College, organised by the Londonderry & District Floral Art Society. INLS 4813-513MT.

Around 300 delegates from floral art clubs across the Province and in neighbouring Donegal, travelled to the event, the proceeds of which went to Africare.

The ‘opening act’ for the evening was Limavady farmer Brian Rankin, who is also a published poet and fundraiser for Africare, an organisation he supports because of the life-changing work it does, particularly with children, with simple procedures to correct club feet and limbs contorted though burn injuries.

Mr Rankin related how he got involved in Africare after he visited the continent in 2004, and told the delegates at the demonstration how every penny given to Africare was spent on charity work and not on administration.

He went on to recite a number of his poems from his publications Walking Through the Heather, Big Mary and Waiting For Miracles. These included one written for his daughter, called Rosie, which he said he wrote when she was just a fortnight old, before he recited the humorous Building Bales, The Ballad of Wee Willie and Big Mary, and Wee Jimmy.

Thanking the delegates for their generosity, the poet said lives would be changed for the better due to the donation to Africare.

The MC for the evening was John Paul, floral artist and milliner, who performed the official welcome and introduced the guest demonstrator, Alan Beatty, and the vote of thanks was proposed by Jean Bruce, secretary of the Floral Art Society.

Mr Beatty is one of the team chosen to create a 20m square exhibit at the Chelsea Flower Show next year, and will be one of the judges at the World Flower Show 2014 and a past gold medal winner at the prestigious RHS at Hampton Court.

His two-hour show, punctuated with tasteful music, had the audience of floral artists in awe, as he manipulated flowers and greenery into jaw-dropping modern and classic arrangements. These were later raffled.

Mr Beatty was invited to stage the demonstration as part of the Londonderry and District Floral Art Society’s 50th anniversary celebrations, which included a gala dinner, photographs of which are included with this article.