Around 30 people turned up for the “Mystery Objects” Black & White Photo Quiz – many of them wearing optional black & white outfits to match the evening’s black & white theme.
The aim of the quiz was to raise funds for emergency disaster relief charity ShelterBox, particularly focusing on its work supporting those affected by two major disasters earlier in September, notably the devastating earthquake in Morocco and the terrible flood in Libya that resulted after Storm Daniel.
The event was hosted by Rotarians Julie Reza & Graham Bough. Julie presented the quiz which she had devised & collated from pictures she had taken as part of her photography hobby. Attendees had been asked to purchase answer sheets at £10 each for the fundraising. While some of them worked together in pairs, a number enjoyed the challenge of answering the questions on their own.
There was plenty of fun and laughter during the evening as everyone tried to guess what was shown in the photos. People cocked their heads to one side and furrowed their brows trying to work out what the objects were.
The first round of mystery objects was titled “Cooking & cleaning” and consisted of black & white photos of items in the kitchen or in the bathroom; each photo was accompanied by an idiom that gave a hint to what the mystery item might be. The second round, “Hard at work”, consisted of items found in the office, while third round, titled “Yumm yumm”, focussed on foodstuffs.
There were no clues in the fourth round, titled “Out & about”; instead, attendees were asked to answer questions about buildings etc. seen when “out and about” in Canterbury. The last round of the scored part of the quiz, also without clues, was called “Plants & flowers” and was targeted at keen gardeners in the audience.
A short break allowed the raffle – run by Raj Dasan, chair of the International Committee which was overseeing the event – to take place. Delighted winners collected their prizes as Raj read out winning numbers.
The raffle was followed by a fun final quickfire photo round titled “Well spotted” – this one, which aimed to “test the power of observation” of those present in the room, wasn’t marked. Instead, attendees were asked to point to where (inside or outside the room) the items in the photographs were situated.
Finally, the scores were tallied up and the prizes awarded. “it’s not a fix” laughed Julie as she awarded Raj with the top prize. Julie also surprised all by announcing a small prize for the best dressed in black & white – won by Leslie Stephenson and President Rosemary Doyle for their sartorial style.
Before the evening came to an end Graham announced the amount raised: a total of £442, consisting of around £100 from the raffle, £220 from the quiz, and £120 in donations.
At the start of the quiz Julie had said “There is design and beauty in everything – if only we took time to look!” … and we’re pretty sure everyone that participated will be taking a closer look at things around them in future!
Picture: A composite of some of the evening’s mystery object photos. Answers (clockwise from top right): whisk, stapler, cabbage leaf, dahlia, Rotary Wheel and Marlowe Theatre. Picture credit: Rotary Club of Canterbury/J Reza.
Many thanks to all those who ptovided the prizes for the quiz and the raffle and to the event staff at the Spitfire Ground who served a very enjoyable meal.
You can find out more about ShelterBox and Morocco/Libya here and here:
