This is what I would call a ‘bread and butter’ article – no mention of soirées, visits to lovely gardens or excellent speakers. I make no apologies for this as without our splendid local volunteers no organisation would survive!
So at the AGM the following officers were elected – I retained the position of Chair (and very flattered too at the confidence in me shown by members – of course it has nothing to do with no-one else volunteering for the job! Is that an good example of irony, I ask myself?)
Sue Allsworth did an excellent job as Acting Vice Chair last year but other considerable commitments have forced her to resign this post BUT she is now our Meetings Secretary and we are so relieved to be able to fill this post with such a competent person. So, that left the post of Vice Chair unfilled. Thank goodness for Sue Pinner who was elected Vice Chair. Sue has already been doing the job of 2014 Show Co-ordinator so it made sense that she took over the post of Vice Chair – thank you Sue. Keith Evans has agreed to continue as our Treasurer – special thanks to him for turning around the Annual Accounts so quickly in time for the AGM. Also for the first time we engaged an Independent Examiner and thanks galore go to Martin Arthur who worked extremely speedily to check our accounts ……………..do you see what I mean by my earlier reference to ‘our splendid local volunteers’? Carole Clarke continues as our super-efficient Membership Secretary, Barbara Harper remains as our Committee Clerk with a hand on history (and the website!) to ensure that we do not err from the straight and narrow. Other Committee members elected were Michael Pollard, Joan Smith and Jo Fisher. There are also so many Club members who help in so many ways – I could fill the News with their efforts but you will be pleased to read that is not my intention today.
I will end with a basket of thanks to Glen Link, a long-standing Club member who has developed a skill in devising Quizzes. (You heard it here first!) Our Annual Quiz baffled many members – it always covers not only gardening knowledge but also general knowledge. Table teams entered with gusto but the winning group was Robin and Jane, Shirley and Mary (not me unfortunately), Kit and Margaret – well done everyone!
Back to normal next month with a talk about the modern herbaceous border form Aubrey Barker, owner of Hopley’s nursery Much Hadham.
