President Colin’s 2nd Quarter Report, October-December 2009A
great deal has happened since my last report, there was one time that I
did not expect to be delivering this report, however, having sought
calmer council from others, it is with some apprehension that I still
remain the club President.
However, having completed the
process for the election of the President Elect, I have become aware
how time has flown this year, for not only have I completed my second
quarter, I have suddenly realised that I am fast approaching the last
third of my year in office, following which I can then look forward to
becoming once again just a normal member of the club, putting all the
problems of office behind me.
As you will note from the
’Gossip Page’ on ‘Web’, these last few months of 2009 have been very
busy, with a number events taking place, details of which have been
fully detailed by our esteemed ‘Web Master’. These have included the
Fireworks at the Racecourse, the Wheelbarrow Race, Youth Speaks, Young
Chief and an enjoyable visit to the Jubilee Sailing Trust vessel ‘The
Lord Nelson’ at Portsmouth. We have also had the Christmas collection
at ‘Waitrose’, when in excess of £1,500 was raised for the ‘Air
Ambulance’ charity.
In addition, I have during this time, had
the pleasure of welcoming three new members into the club. Firstly,
there was Vikas Sharma, who transferred from the Oadby R.C., Susanne
Bomhard, who transferred from the Rotary Club of The Hague
Metropolitan, and who became our second lady member since we went dual
gender in July, followed him. And finally, I had the pleasure of
inducting a new Rotarian, Bob Linell, who was proposed by David Jones,
our roving membership scout.
At the beginning of December, we
had a packed evening meeting with the after dinner speakers, Brigadier
Richard Rook and Lieutenant Beth Mander. We were joined on the night by
a number of visitors from other clubs and local organizations, together
with the Mayor of the Borough of Bracknell Forest, Councillor Bob Wade,
from whom I had the pleasure of accepting a certificate, in recognition
of the "great work and dedication" of not only the Rotary Club of
Ascot, but all the other clubs.
Previously, during October, I am
pleased to say that, despite the concerns of others, the majority of
the club members and their partners joined Hilary and myself for the
Presidents weekend at ‘The Bear of Rodborough’. Whilst the weekend has
also has been well documented on our web site by our ‘Web Master’, I
was pleased with the responses I received from a number of the members,
expressing their appreciation for the weekend.
I would
consider these to have been the happier times, with the club becoming
more vibrant and moving forward following the initial upset. On a
sadder note, I must be honest and say, these first six months have been
somewhat mired by the continued actions of one or two members, who for
reasons best known to themselves, continue to hold grudges against a
fellow member. This and their actions, I find distasteful, it not only
leads to continued disharmony within the club, it sets one member
against another, and I and a number of others, consider it is
unacceptable in a caring organisation such as ours. With these actions,
it leads me to believe that these members did not heed of my words
stated in my previous report; namely - ‘it’s time to build bridges and
move on for the sake of the harmony of the club’.
Finally, as
I stated, the election has been finally completed, having been delayed
due to the adverse weather conditions we have had to contend with
recently. I would like to congratulate both Beverley on his appointment
as President Elect for 2010/2011, and Bob on his appointment as Junior
Vice. Having been President on two previous occasions, I am sure, with
Beverley at the helm once more; the club will be in capable hands in
the future. In the meantime, I also hope that he will continue to adopt
the Club Leadership Plan and relaxed atmosphere for the club meetings
as advocated by District and RIBI in their quest for improvements of
our public image.
Colin Corio
Club President 2009-10
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