Wednesday 18th May 2011
Cllr Morgan responded to the New Mayor with a speech which we replicate in full here.
 "Distinguished guests, Members of Council, Ladies and Gentlemen,
Thank you all for attending this evening which draws a close to our most enjoyable Mayoral year.
Since last May we have participated in many events, mostly within the Borough but as Civic representatives we have attended the High Sheriff's Reception, Chatsworth House and a Buckingham Palace Garden Party.
We have networked extensively with other Civic heads around the County.
Two of our twin towns were particularly generous in their hospitality when we visited Darmstadt in May and Troyes in June last year.
We have tried to be just as welcoming to visitors to our own town from France, Germany, Nigeria, Namibia, Spain and elsewhere.
It has been a personal pleasure to meet several new residents and visitors to Chesterfield and to hear how much they enjoy the heritage and facilities of the Borough and the friendliness of its people.
Pat and I have enjoyed entertaining these and other residents in the Mayor's Parlour and in our turn, we have learned more and more about the town as we have introduced them to the history of the Borough.
Our theme for the year has been 'Helping communities to help themselves' and with this in mind we have visited several voluntary groups and organisations.
At the Annual 'Procession of Witness' last May we promised that we would attend local Church and Faith groups and we have visited many churches in the Borough following this commitment.
We welcomed several new church leaders to the Borough and helped the new Archdeacon of Chesterfield, the Venerable Christine Wilson, to become familiar with the area. We have attended several ecumenical and charity events at Derby Cathedral alongside other Derbyshire Civic leaders.
As ex-teachers we have particularly enjoyed meeting the young people of the Borough, here at the Town Hall or in their communities. Several schools have used the facilities of the council debating chamber; we have led conducted tours of the parlours and we have enjoyed a variety of visits to local schools and to uniformed organisations.
We participated in events with all age groups of the Scouting and Guiding movements, in particular Peak 2010 Camp at Chatsworth; watching the fireworks at 20.10.2010 (ten past eight on twentieth of October last year) to commemorate 100 years of Girl Guiding and on 22nd February, we were present when the blue plaque was unveiled in Shentall Gardens to mark the site of the house where Olave Baden-Powell spent her childhood.
Last week, we were delighted to welcome a group of young athletes from our area to the Town Hall to congratulate them on their achievements at national and international levels in their respective sports. I am sure that we met potential Olympics participants that evening.
Throughout the year we have done what we can to support and encourage local organisations and businesses. Of particular note are the newly constructed B2net where we have watched the 'Blues' do so well this year, the Casa hotel; the latest phase of housing development on the old Donkin's site and the % for Art Apple near Tesco.
Several high street stores have invited us to open their refurbished premises; and it has been a pleasure to find that several 'real ale' establishments are increasing their business locally!
In keeping with the theme of my Mayoral year, we have visited Pathways; Brockhill Court; Take Heart, Phab 40th anniversary and the launch of the Street Pastors initiative and other local charities. We made a very early start at the PO for their Barnardo 1000 challenge when Chris Moon, a disabled ex soldier, did part of his long distance run through Chesterfield and did a very late night photo-shoot for a Samaritans fund raiser.
The Mayoress was one of the many 'Pink ladies' who participated when Chesterfield hosted the 'Race for Life' for the second year running. Ten years after I introduced 'Brampton in Bloom' at my own community forum it was a great pleasure to host the 6th Chesterfield in Bloom awards. We also very much enjoyed interesting visits to the Assay Office in Sheffield and to our local out-of-hours medical service, DHU.
We have been proud that Chesterfield has once again supported our local armed services. In Armed Forces week we had 19 engagements (six in one day); during Remembrance Week we attended 18 engagements; representing the Borough at 6 events on the 11th November and another 4 on Remembrance Sunday. We have sworn in several young soldiers to the Oath of Allegiance but I have sadly signed (too many) letters of condolence to families of troops killed in action.
We undertook a private visit at the invitation of a previous High Sheriff to the National Memorial Arboretum at Alrewas. This huge site includes memorials to all who have lost lives whilst involved with armed or civil services. There are some moving tributes and many thought provoking exhibits. It is a place of peace and hope: if you get the chance please visit.
Throughout the year we have had the support of local media, which has assisted our Charity Appeal and helped to promote the Borough and its communities.
Peak fm involved us in their rewards ceremony and later helped us to stage 'Chesterfield's Got Talent' by providing a stand in compere when Becky Measures fell in the snow!
We attended the launch of the Chesterfield Post, the on-line newspaper and have regular briefings with the editor for the Mayor's page.
We have worked with S40 and other local community magazines and have had terrific support from The Derbyshire Times under its new editor, especially in the promotion of our key charity 'Fairplay'. We have supported the DT's 'good news' initiatives such as 'Kill Road Rage' and the soon to be launched ARK (Acts of Random Kindness) campaigns.
We cannot finish without thanking our Appeal committee, which has worked hard throughout the year to raise money for our two charities: the garden project at FairPlay and the local Samaritans. We have carried out 12 major fund raising events an average of one each month.
In particular I must mention the raffle of Chesterfield Football memorabilia which was inspired by our attendance at the last match at Saltergate and well supported by the club. Cuppappeal started small but with the backing of Northern Tea Merchants and local ceramicist Clare Gage, this alone raised over £1,000.
The Gala dinner at the Casa hotel in April was attended by 140 guests and supported by generous local businesses who helped us to raise over £2,000 in one very enjoyable evening.
Finally, I must thank all the Mayoral team for their unstinting and professional support, the Borough Council and the people of Chesterfield who have made the Mayoress and myself so welcome on every visit we have made.
Thank you."
Keith & Pat Morgan
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