July 2005
Tuesday 5th. This was "Handover" evening.
Tuesday 12th. The guest speaker for the evening was Chris Towe from the Burton Chamber of Commerce. Chris explained the expansion that had occurred in the Chamber over the last few years, including the increased activity in Uttoxeter. Times had changed and the Chamber was now providing a regular opportunity for local business people to make contacts at a local level and exchanging ideas , even to the extent of Breakfast Meetings, which had become surprisingly popular!
Tuesday 19th. Rebecca Elson was the guest speaker. Although primarily responsible for development activities in Burton, she had recently taken over Uttoxeter Plus, the organisation responsible for the many changes in Uttoxeter. Rebecca explained that much of the planning had been done and most of the projects had now been started or were heading for completion. These included the developments of the Cattle Market, improvements at the Station, assistance with shop frontupdating, plus many other amenity developments. She was thanked for her lucid explanation of what Uttoxeter Plus had acheived.
Tuesday 26th. On the "local" theme this evening saw Inspector Andy Mason updating us on the activities of the Uttoxeter Police. Policy changes included the introduction of Community Police Officers and despite initial reservations, he was very pleased with their contribution. Overall crime in the area continued to decline and he admitted that targets levels were being dropped to maintain the challenge. The subsequent discussion proved very lively and it was clear from some of the anecdotes that policing did have an amusing side.
August 2005
Tuesday 3rd. This evening was scheduled a a "Focus Interview" The parties involved were Sandy Halcrow and Ken Ryder, although there appeared to be some confusion as to who was to do the interviewing! Eventually Ken proved to be the subject of the interview, with Sandy offering the occasional question. The object of the interview was achieved with the members present feeling that they knew a little more about the life and times of Ken.
Tuesday 10th Nearly forty members and their wives met at Blithfield Hall. Greeted by Charlie Bagot Jewitt they were taken on a tour of the buildings and provided with a most entertaining potted history of the Hall and the Bagot family. Following the tour the party moved to nearby Admaston Village Hall where an excellent buffet had been laid on.
Tuesday 17th This was an evening of Fellowship.
Tuesday 24th Carl Woolley from the Thomas Alleynes Youth Club was our guest for this evening. We had assisted with the funding of an extension to the Club earlier in the year and Carl came to offer his thanks and also his thoughts on the current trends of Youth Service. Having been a Leader for over 20 years he had seen many changes, not all to his liking. In particular he was critical of the increasing administration and paperwork that was required these days.
Tuesday 30th Monday being a Bank Holiday there was no meeting this evening.
September 2005
Tuesday 6th. The Speaker for the evening was Sue Rowlett from the Marie Curie Trust; the Club has supported the Charity for a number of years through its Daffodil Day. Sue explained some of the work carried out by its staff in terms of palliative care, and also the changing needs of their patients. The Club was thanked for its help and the Community Service Committee undertook to support the distribution of collection boxes for Daffodil Day next year.
Tuesday 13th. This was a Business evening where an update of the Clubs plans was carried out, the Committee Chairmen giving reports. The immediate change in the Clubs programme was the bringing forward of the Millionaires Evening to late November, the Old Time Variety Evening having to be delayed until after Christmas due to the performers schedules. Apart from that the planned events and fund raising were all well in hand.
Tuesday 20th. This evening was planned as a visit to Rugeley Power Station. Some 20 members of the Club rendez-voused at the Power Station to be taken on an extended tour of the facility. An excellent explanation was given, not only of the function of Rugeley ‘B’ but also of the National Grid, plus an impressive amount of statistical data.
Tuesday 27th . The Club is now in its Seventieth Year and as this was very close to the anniversary of its Charter, a more formal evening had been arranged. Members wore Dinner Jackets and the Robin Hood excelled themselves with a three course meal! It also, fortuitously, coincided with the visit from the District Governor, David Williams who reported on the plans of the District for the year 2005-2006. The local Press also attended and a photograph of the members present, plus report, appeared in both the Uttoxeter Advertiser and the Post & Times.
October 2005
Tuesday 4th . This being the Tuesday before our Charter Night, no Meeting was held.
Friday 7th . Charter Night. This event is now well established in our calendar and was extremely well supported, not only by the Members and Guests, but also by Rotarians from Stafford and Blythe Bridge. The number of tickets sold was some 170. As with the last few years we were fortunate to have the Platinum Suite at the Racecourse as the venue, with the now traditional joint of roast beef carved at the table and an excellent supporting meal. This was followed by speeches from the District Governor Elect and responded to by our President; the President of the Inner Wheel thanked the Club on behalf of the guests. Entertainment was provided by a Magician at the tables during the course of the meal, plus the five piece Wave Band that we have enjoyed previously. The fact that it was nearly 1.00am before the dancing was reluctantly drawn to an end gives some idea of the success of the evening
Tuesday 11th. George Philiskirk was our guest for the evening. A colleague of Rtn David Platt from his days in the Brewing Industry, George spoke on the current attitude of the public towards beer and the efforts of the industry to move forward our perceptions. Having recently retired he had been persuaded to take on the CEO role of the Beer Academy, alternatively named as the Beer Education Trust. George explained some of initiatives they were taking, including 3 day courses in Beer appreciation and also the education of staff serving the product. Needless to say the topic provoked much discussion amongst the members and a number of questions for George.
Tuesday 18th. Isobel Corby was sponsored for the RYLA (Rotary Youth Leadership Award) camp in the summer and this evening she was our Guest and Speaker. Clearly from her demeanour and general comments she had benefited greatly from the experience and it was agreed that the Club should sponsor a further two candidates next year.
Tuesday 25th. Tonight it was the turn for Rob Davies, son of our President, to tell us more about his hobby, Cave Diving. This is a “sport “ which clearly required a bravery not found in many people and barely a dozen people in the UK have full approval to undertake. Rob showed us photos of various dives and explained some of the dangers involved. A fascinating talk, but not a hobby that would be taken up any of our members,
Friday 28th - Sunday30th. This was the weekend of the District Conference, held this year in Bournemouth. The Conference started with a business sessions on Friday afternoon, and our President was supported by seven couples who entered enthusiastically into the Fancy Dress Disco that evening. A further business session on Saturday included speakers from Mercy Ships and Hearing Dogs and was followed by the more formal Dinner and Dance in the evening. The conference was brought to a close with a final session on Sunday morning after an amusing talk by weatherman Ian Macgaskill.
November 2005
Tuesday 1st. Our Guest and Speaker for this evening was David Holt of the Mayfield & Ellastone First Responders. David gave us an insight into the workings of the organisation, including details of the support and working practices they had with the Ambulance service and local GPs. He also explained the benefits of the quick response they were able to offer, and how much this helped to reduce the life threatening implications of many accidents and illnesses.
Tuesday 8th. James Archer, son of our Senior Vice President, spoke to the Club about the Chernobyl Children Life Line. This charity brings young children over to the UK for a month’s respite each year. James’ presentation included some background on the Chernobyl disaster, the current political situation and the ongoing effects of the radiation. At the end he made a plea for help in finding host families from the Uttoxeter area.
Tuesday 15th. The Club made tonight a “Scatter Night”. It was organised by Committee and visits to a number of adjacent Clubs were made. These included Ashbourne, Cheadle, Blythe Bridge and Stone.
Saturday 19th A Millionaires Evening was held at the Kingstone Village Hall. Nearly one hundred Rotarians and guests enjoyed a highly entertaining evening "playing the tables". Although everyone started off with several £1000 of Monopoly money, some were less lucky and purchased additional funds, swelling the coffers. A Raffle was also held and at the end of the evening Club Charities were over £1400 better off
Tuesday 22nd This was a routine Business Evening with a review of the Clubs activities and plans for the future were discussed.
Tuesday 29th Unfortunately the evening's speaker from Werrington College had to cancel at the last minute, but hopefully will be visiting us in the New Year.
December 2005
Tuesday 6th This was a Special General Meeting of the Club for the Nomination and election of Officers for the year 2006-2007.
Saturday 10th The Old Peoples Christmas Party was this year held at Wilfred House with over 50 guests. After a superb Christmas Dinner a number of the more musically talented Rotarians entertained the guests with well known songs, to which many of the old people sang along.
Monday 12th The Club "choir", assisted by a number of members from Inner Wheel, made their annual Carol Singing tour of the Old People's Homes. As always, this was extremely well received and a warm welcome was given at each venue.
Tuesday 13th The Blythe was again the venue for the Christmas Party. After an excellent meal it was the turn of the Members to provide the entertainment, brilliantly coordinated by Rotarian Duncan. This amounted to almost two hours of what was universally judged to be the best evening's entertainment ever put on by the Club. A great success story.
Friday 16th The Club made its now traditional visit to Birdland, with Father Christmas leading the way. It proved as successful as ever with many small children confiding in our Rotarian Santa. As important was the £220 collected by the Club for local Charities.
Tuesday 20th A three course Christmas Dinner was held at the Robin Hood and was attended by over 85% of the Members. There was no speaker but the President reviewed our recent activities in the Community, traditionally a busy time for the Club. Some discussion was held on our future fund raising activities and the Senior Vice President Paul, explained his ideas for a Big Auction in the Spring. The members were supportive and the idea would be developed in the New Year.
Tuesday 27th This being a Bank Holiday, no meeting was held
January 2006
Tuesday 3rd As Monday was a Bank Holiday, no meeting was held
Tuesday 10th The success of the Club’s Quiz Teams was put to the test, with both the ‘A’ and ‘B’ Teams travelling away. The ‘A’ Team came first in its heat and the ‘B’ Team were third in their heat. As this diluted the normal attendance it had been decided to make it a Scatter Night and visits were made to Rugeley, Blythe Bridge, Cheadle as well as a supporter following the ‘A’ Team to Endon Brook.
Tuesday 17th This was the first opportunity for all the Club to meet for more than four weeks and it proved to be a very well attended (90% of the membership) meeting at The Robin Hood, and it was also an opportunity for the New Year Message from Roger Williams. We were very pleased to see Roger back at the Club, Roger having relocated to Lichfield last summer.
Tuesday 24th The speakers for the evening were from the Uttoxeter IT Centre, Sherry Peaty and Carol Whittaker. The IT centre is part of the Further Education facility in the area and provides an extensive opportunities in IT training for local people. The presentation was a reminder for a number of the members who had already attended, and also a showcase for those considering improving their IT skills.
Tuesday 31st Tonight was a Business Meeting. The general tone was that the Club had been successful in carrying out most of the projects and activities that the various Committees had undertaken. On the social side it was unanimously agreed that everyone had enjoyed the variety of functions that had been arranged. The Treasurer drew attention to our outstanding commitments and the need to ensure that on the Trust Fund side our projected revenues covered our costs.
February 2006
Friday 3rd The Variety Show, held at the JCB Club, was the social and fundraising highlight for this time of the year. Nearly 200 people filled the venue and were entertained by a ’70 revival band, a singer and the start turn of Aynuk and Eli, Black Country Comedians. There was no doubt that everyone enjoyed a very pleasant evening and with a profit of nearly £2000, it was declared a success
Tuesday 6th The speaker for the evening was John Gillan from Werrington College. This is a Young Offenders Institution and he gave a very incisive talk on the many problems faced by the staff on a day to day basis. The facilities are extensive and there is training given in a number of Trades. As a result there are positive aspects, not the least being work done on local projects, such as maintenance at Rocester Football ground, carried out by some of the young people.
Tuesday 14th One of the Charities supported by the District this year is Hearing Dogs for the Deaf. This evening we were visited by Chris and Ruth Andrew and their dog Hovis . After a brief film about the training of the dogs they took questions from the floor.
Tuesday 21st With a visit to the Theatre arranged for the following evening, no Meeting was held.
Wednesday 22nd. Just over 50 members and partners met late afternoon at the Uttoxeter Bus Station to be taken by coach to Hanley. After a meal at a local Italian Restaurant they joined a packed audience at the Theatre to see a production of the Musical Seven Brides for Seven Brothers. This has become a regular event planned by the Club Secretary and he was again congratulated on his organisation of thoroughly enjoyable evening.
Tuesday 28th The Club met at The Blythe Inn as the normal venue would not accommodated Member and all the visitors. This was billed as a Rotary Awareness Evening and some ten guests had been invited by Members so that they could see the Club in action. By all accounts it was a successful evening and it is understood that a number of the Visitors are interested in joining the Club
March 2006
Tuesday 7th . For this evening the speakers were from Mercy Ships, one of the District preferred Charities who we are supporting. With the aid of a Screen Presentation they gave explained the short History of Mercy Ships and showed some of the work carried out when based at ports in West Africa. It was agreed that this was an extremely worthwhile project and the Club were pleased to contribute a further 500 towards their funds.
Tuesday 14th . We were pleased to welcome several visitors this evening, mainly as a result of Scatter Nights, including the President of Atherstone. In the absence of a Speaker a short debate on a variety of topics was organised, which proved to be most entertaining.
Tuesday 21st
Tuesday 28th Our guest Speaker for the evening was John Wain, former Coroner for the Stoke area. Having explained the remit of a Coroner, John proceeded to regale the Club with some of the lighter moments in his career, of which there were many. His retirement was brought forward by the changes to the role of Coroner and his views on the curbing of its independence became clear. A most informative evening.
April 2006
Tuesday 4th The evening was scheduled as a Focus Interview, the Interviewer being George Greaves and the Candidate Sandy Halcrow. More was learned of Sandy’s early days in the North East and the changes he had witnessed away from the shipping industry. His views on the NHS were sought as were his attitude to the UK in Europe, all of which proved quite revealing. Some very assiduous probing by George revealed the depth of Sandy’s interest in music, and the compromises he made with his wife on the subject!
Tuesday 11th A Business Meeting. With the Year coming to a close Reports were given by the respective Chairmen. There are still, however, a number of Events to be held, the main one being a Juniors Football Competition to be held at the Rocester Football Ground on May 7th. In addition there will be a Mile of Money held in June and on the Youth front the annual Youth Speaks and Young Innovator competitions.
Tuesday 18th As Monday was a Bank Holiday, no meeting was held
Tuesday 25th . Last year we had supported a local Girl Guide, Helen Preedy in her visit to an International Camp in Holland. Tonight it was Helen’s turn to face the Club and report on her visit. This she did with impressive confidence, supported by her own Power Point presentation. Clearly she is a very committed Guide and the movement is fortunate in having such members. The Club wished her every success in her future with the Guides, and her ambition to become a Doctor.
June 2006
Tuesday 2nd This was the Annual General Meeting of the Club and reports were given by the respective Committee Chairmen. The consensus was that the Club had had another very successful year and, despite some concerns over the finances early in the year, it has ended on a very healthy note
Sunday 7th A new venture for the Club, the Junior Football Competition was held at the Rocester Club Football ground. Over forty teams of children aged 8 to 13 years had entered for competitions running the whole day and they were well supported by friends and family; it was estimated that well over 700 people attended the event. Club members were responsible for satisfying the hunger of the youngsters and their parents, with over £1000 worth of burgers and chips being sold! With car parking, programme sales, sponsorship and other fund raising activities the Club raised almost £2000 from the event.
Tuesday 9th Tonight Ray Wright, a founder member of the Lichfield St Chads Club, and who had moved to our Club three years ago, recounted some of his experiences as a conscript in National Service. Ray kept the Club well amused with his stories, including his posting to the Korean War. Questions followed, with the inevitable debate on the benefits that National Service would have on today's youth. A thoroughly entertaining evening
Tuesday 16th Following on from the Rotary Awareness Evening held in February the Club was delighted to Induct two new Members, Peter Raine and Neil Allen. Other prospective members are in the “pipeline”. Sadly we had lost a Member, John Harris, only a matter of a few days earlier and it fell to the President to give a eulogy on John.
Friday 19th The annual "International Visit" had been planned for this weekend. As a social event the venue has varied over the years and this time it was Falmouth but unfortunately the numbers were depleted, with just four couples making the trip. Never the less an enjoyable time was had by all, including visits to the Eden Project and to the Lost Gardens of Heligan
Tuesday 23rd In place of the normal meeting an evening visit to Alton Towers had been arranged for the Club, not to the death defying rides but to the more sedate scene of the Gardens. It was well supported with over 50 members and their wives enjoying a pleasant walk through the Gardens, complemented by an excellent commentary from the Senior Gardener. A very sociable evening was rounded up with a Buffet at the Alton Towers Hotel.
Tuesday 30th. This being the evening after a Bank Holiday, there was no meeting.
Tuesday 6th This being the final round in the District Quiz Competition there was no meeting, with members being welcomed at the quiz venue in Telford. Despite reaching the finals and managing a very creditable score, our 'A' team were not placed in the top ranking. This was disappointing, but the team are to be congratulated on their effort.
Tuesday 13th The speaker for the evening was Lynda Box of Alton Castle. This facility provides opportunities for young people to experience a variety of challenges whilst living away from home. The Club made a donation of £200 to the Charity, and on hearing that abseiling facilities were to be provided later in the month, both David Sargeant and Norman Tweddle ambitiously agreed to do a sponsored abseil down the tower of the Castle!
Saturday 17th The Youth Committee under the chairmanship of Pat Loaring had arranged to hold a "Mile of Money" in The Maltings. Supported by other members of the Club they spent nearly six hours laying a variety of coinage on a taped track. At the end of the day they had succeeded in persuading the passing members of the Public to lay down over £300.
Tuesday 20thnd Club Assembly this year was visited by Assistant Governor Lynn Deavine. President Terry introduced Lynn to the Club and then handed over to Senior Vice President Paul and his chairmen to present their programme for the forthcoming year. This is to be a mixture of tried and tested events, such as Race Night, combined with one or two newer ideas, such as the sale of donated good through eBay. The programme also promised a socially exciting a year, with Charter Night in early October being a high spot. AG Lynn congratulated the Club on its health, particularly in respect of membership, and wished it continued success in its programme.
Wednesday 21st. The Youth Speaks Competition was again held at Denstone College. The entries came from four local schools and all were judged to be of a good quality. The final decision gave first prize to Hannah Goodwin, aged 13, from Ryecroft Middle School.
Sunday 25th. The Presidents Valedictory Party was again held at lunchtime on Sunday, this year at the home of President Terry. The very pleasant surroundings were supported by a real summers afternoon, and the host and hostess provided over 60 guests with a sumptuous banquet. Some brief Rotary business was carried out and Mark McCracken was inducted as a new member. In addition Paul Harris fellowships were awarded to Michael Green and Alf Hawksworth, following a poll of the Club Members. The proceedings drew to a close a little earlier than normal due to a certain football competiton!
Tuesday 27th Following the Presidents Valedictory Party, there was no meeting this evening.
Wednesday 28th. The Young Innovator Competition for the area was hosted this year by the Rotary Club of Cheadle. The entries were from six schools in the area, including Thomas Alleynes High School and Denstone College. As always the entries were of a high standard but this year we were unlucky and none of our competitors secured a prize.