WHEN an elderly resident first approached Marian Ealham about the lack of facilities for older people in Guiseley, it triggered an idea that would lead to one of the biggest annual community events in the area.

Since that day in 1989, Marian has been the guiding light of the Guiseley Senior Citizens' Associ-ation which takes around seven coach loads of pensioners on a free annual day trip to the seaside.

Marian said: "I used to take some older people to bingo every week, and was talking to one elderly woman who said to me that there wasn't anything in Guiseley for people of her age. It struck a chord with me and I felt determined that we ought to do something, so I put an ad in the paper and we held a meeting. Enough people were interested and we formed Guiseley Senior Citizens.

"Our first trip was in 1991 when we went to Llandudno. We only took five coaches, but it has flourished from there."

Marian and secretary Dorothy Gibb have been ever present on the committee since the start, with Marion acting as chairman.

"It does take up a fair amount of my time in the summer. The winter months are quiet, but we do put on a Christmas Party to raise funds for the trip.

"The best bit about it is on the day of the trip. I get a real buzz from meeting all the people and running the coach. I don't know what I'd do without it. You could say I'm dedicated to it."

Indeed, it is the raising money to finance the trip, which costs about £7,500 per year to run, which preoccupies Marian and the 18-strong committee. The group receives little in the way of donations and has to raise much of the money itself through monthly coffee mornings, a weekly raffle in the and occasional events.

One of the main areas of fundraising is the annual Guiseley Carnival, which was revived by Marian, Mrs Gibb, Mrs Oddy and Mrs Johnson back in 1994 after an absence of more than 40 years.

"We wanted to see the carnival back up and running for the community of Guiseley, and it is also a way of raising the bulk of the money for the trip. It has proved very popular, attracting thousands of people each year and raising lots of money for us in the process. It just seems to get bigger and better each year."

The current carnival chairman is Joan Belsham, who is the driving force behind the event each year.

Marian, who lives in Yeadon, said that her role would be impossible without the dedication of the hard-working committee and the support of Guiseley's community, both in their support of the carnival - which this year will be held in its traditional venue of Guiseley Infants School on June 30 - and other events too.

She also thanked Guiseley Morrisons, Bolton's Jewellers, Moon's Mill and Towngate Post Office for their annual support.

Pensioners are now looking forward to this summer's trip to Tynemouth.

l Guiseley Senior Citizen's Association's next event will be a dance on March 16 at Guiseley Theatre (8pm). It costs £3.50 per ticket. The next monthly coffee morning will be held in the scout hut, The Green, Guiseley on March 30 (10am-noon).