President’s Report November 2024
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Dear Members
Season’s greetings from all the committee and hopefully it has been a prosperous year for you all.
There are so many activities and functions at this time of the year, so the committee has decided to not have our normal Christmas lunch but to postpone the celebration until after the new year and have a social gathering and BBQ lunch. We will let you know when this will be.
For those who were unable to attend the AGM, we presented a letter from the City of Mandurah (COM) outlining possible ongoing discussions regarding providing seniors with facilities and activities moving forward.
The COM’S Senior Citizen’s Centre is outdated and inadequate for growth and they are now looking for a new site/facility for the future. The Leslie Street Centre has provided an amazing venue and services to the community for almost 60 years and while we are financial and ticking along, we are in a state of decline. Our centre competes with other subsidised venues. Our maintenance, insurance and compliance costs are increasing and sourcing volunteers and committee members is becoming difficult.
We have requested the COM present to our members their views on what buildings and facilities might look like on our site at Leslie Street. We will then be in a position to decide what our needs are and either reject or work with the COM on any future proposal.
It is important to have the conversation on what is best for us and what is best for the community.
If we reject a proposal and still disband in the future, our constitution requires us to sell the land and disburse the proceeds to organisations providing similar services to seniors. It's all food for thought but please don't hesitate to contact me and discuss your thoughts with other members.
We now have a ‘Mission Statement’ and it is at the top of this report.
On another note, we have revamped our logo as above and are proceeding with new signage for the centre.
We have recommenced Tuesday Bingo which is very exciting.
There is a feedback and ideas box in the foyer and I would encourage you to use this to voice your views.
Wendy and Jenny work tirelessly in the office and my thanks to everyone on the committee for their support.
Enjoy your Christmas and families, good health and take care.
Geoff Bales
Newsletter September 2020
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It has been a very busy time at our Hall this year. We survived lockdown but it cost us dearly in lost revenue and heavy expense of deep cleaning. It was unfortunate that we had to raise both membership and participation costs but we do not receive any funding from the Shire, so we have to rely on special grants and the revenue raised on activities and Hall Hire.
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Meg Youens is to be thanked for her work in looking after all aspects of Hall Hire and usage and she also is to be thanked for her work every day in making sure the hall is cleaned and all the COVID conditions are met.
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It is very important to make sure the hand sanitiser is used and that a clean up with the disinfectant and wipes are used after every activity.
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Mayday Foundation is to be thanked for a generous donation of $3155 for the purchase of a defibrillator and cabinet to be housed in the kitchen. Training will take place in the near future in it’s usage and more information will be made available when we actually install this lifesaving device.
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Thanks must also go to our great Committee members who are all working in the interest of our club and a special thanks to Patricia Connett our treasurer and Caroline Demmon our secretary who keep all the bookwork running efficiently.
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The AGM this year is to be held on Oct 22 at the Hall at 11.15 am and I encourage all members to attend. At this meeting we will give a summary of all financial details from our comprehensive audit, and elect a new committee for the coming financial year. Nomination forms will be made available at the Hall. At the AGM we will answer all questions raised from the floor. We also are interested in nominations for Life Memberships for deserving members.
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I thank all the members and hirers who use the Hall and am appreciative of the fact that all seem to be on the same wavelength in keeping the Hall operating effectively and helping to keep it clean. It is a pleasure to meet the members and be working with a pleasant and efficient Committee.
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Norm McVeigh – President on behalf of the Committee
Newsletter June 2020
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Thanks to everyone playing their part we had a successful re – opening of the Centre early this month.
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To comply with mandated regulations the Hall had a complete deep clean and a Covid safety plan devised and the Shire informed. There was a great spirit of goodwill and camaraderie as all seem to be pleased to be released from lockdown. Now restrictions have been eased further things seem to be almost back to normal. Soon all our Hall Hirers will be back in full operation by mid July.
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The yearly joining fee has been raised to $25 and our participation fee for activities has been set at $5 per session. We reluctantly made these increases due to lack of funds and activity during lockdown and the considerable expense of the new cleaning requirements. It has been many years since we have raised the fees. Costs have not remained still and go up each year and we have to meet these costs. We receive no assistance from the Shire and the WA government and we have to rely on volunteers to keep costs down. Any extra money we have received has been in the form of Grants particularly from the Lottery Commission and Mayday.
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At our June committee meeting we thanked all those volunteers who lead activities and help with maintenance. Special mention must go to Committee members and in particular Meg Youens, Martin palmer, Tracy Harrison and Pauline Collins members who are very active. I hope I haven’t left out other deserving members and I apologise if I have done so and if reminded I will give them a special thank next newsletter.
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The committee voted on a submission by the more able Table Tennis players to have a separate session to play singles and this was passed by the Committee under the conditions that a trial period until the next AGM and the session will be on a Mon afternoon from 1pm till 3pm.
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Some might argue that we are an open club and dislike the fact that they are excluded from joining this group but in reality we have four other sessions for social play and the committee has decided to give them the chance to prove that they are good club members.
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To join the Group all you have to do is self- nominate by dropping a note in the office letter box and a fair trial will be given by the group. This could be over a couple of weeks and could involve coaching.
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Hopefully the goodwill of our members will continue and we look forward to another successful year.
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Norm McVeigh – President on behalf of the Committee
