STOURBRIDGE OLD EDWARDIAN CLUB

ED-WORDS NEWSLETTER SPRING 2025

But it was not to be, my never being able to forgive myself had I missed her last hours.

I am bereft but not sad at her passing. She just could not go on.
Thank you all for messages of sympathy and good wishes.

So we look forward to forthcoming events; my hoping to have a surprise personality for your entertainment on my Presidential evening; 16th August.
With my very best wishes,
Arnold

FORTHCOMING EVENTS are visible on our Events Calendar>>. That section has been updated to clearly identify those occasions that are open to Club Members. Please phone the Club directly on 01384 395635 for details of any event (do not respond to this email as responses will not be monitored).

A comprehensive list of all bookings (including venue hire) may be downloaded from within the Events Calendar section. Our next major event is to celebrate the anniversary of VE Day on May 8th with sing a long and excellent buffet.

CLICK HERE>> for more and then reserve.

PAST EVENTS write ups are on the website HERE>> but specifically the following are worth a mention since the last newsletter:

Our "now famous" lunchtime talks with buffet have been outstandingly successful - some have been sold out within 24 hours of advertising! The more recent talks are as below:

To ensure, you don't miss out, please consign the following dates to your diaries for future lunchtime talks with buffet and look out for (and act upon) the booking advice about a month in advance:

• 30th May: Bromsgrove Guild (Quintin Watt)  CLICK HERE>>
• 12th September: Sir Ernest Shackleton (Rodney Paul)
• 31st October: The Poppy and Unknown Warrior (Barry Picken)

We were delighted to be able to hold our anticipated St. David's Day Night - courtesy of and organised by the inimitable Mike Lewis.
CLICK HERE>>  for full report.

On the plus side we have enrolled 4 new members, of various categories, and presently the membership totals 212, down from 214, as at 30 September.

Pleasingly there are 5 applications for membership in the pipeline, but unfortunately it does appear we shall have to strike off 5 members for non-payment of subscriptions.

As Honorary Membership Secretary I am always happy to receive any queries relating to membership matters.

Andrew J Taplin (Honorary Membership Secretary)

You will recall we had considerable problems some weeks ago in re-establishing our telephone connections with the outside world - courtesy of BT's enforced move to digital systems. This was completely due to BT's poor internal systems of recording, sharing and facilitating customer account details.

As part of the solution, BT also issued several additional devices which needed to be connected in the Club.  All is now working correctly thanks to David Trewin's tenacity with the supplier - and a very neat cabinet has been acquired and located in the main bar to hold the router, the various devices and the communication hub for the credit card reader when ordering drinks.  Well done, David.

We are sometimes requested to provide information on previous newsletters. You my access these simply by going to the website www.oldedclub.org  then click on the Newsletter Archive subsection of the "About" tab in the top level menu bar. For rapid access CLICK HERE>> and then just click on the date of interest.

Add, subtract, I was OK with these
Times - fair, but divide, I couldn't see it
The way the teacher, those numbers she juxtaposed
The key, the message, she was unable to transmit

It didn't help that I was undiagnosed short-sighted
Even sat feet from the board, I was blighted
Her chalk and rubber would fly across the board
But I wasn't getting many house points on my scoreboard

Strangely I managed to pass the 11-Plus
And off to the grammar school I went on the school bus
Different place of education - but the same old tale
On the board I saw a different language, to no avail

Then, at 13, we moved and I'm at King Edwards, Stourbridge
Better teachers, nearly all went to Oxbridge
My form teacher, also for Maths, Mr Cotton, nicknamed "Biffo"
A dry, self-effacing comedian - my confidence started to grow

He gave every pupil a nickname, mine was Jim
He worked so hard with those struggling, he never gave in
One day, a light went on in my head, just like.."ding.."
I got it, there and then. Trig, algebra, logarithms - everything"

Steve Parkes 2024

Our venue hire bookings continue to grow thanks to the excellent catering facilities provided by our stewards Tim and Tracey.

Contact Tim or Tracey if you know of any organisations who would gain from booking the Club.

In order for you to keep abreast of the news of KEVI College Stourbridge, then rather than ask them for specific articles to spoon feed to you,  we have thought it is best for you to explore their latest missives directly as relevant. Their website is included at the foot of this email but for convenience CLICK HERE>>  .

This is another  reminder that some months ago, we  have responded to the request to make it easier to get in touch with the Committee and have issues addressed.

Please consult the CONTACT section of the website where you will see clear directions of which electronic from to complete under which circumstances to get responses addressed in the fastest and most efficient way. In particular, ensure any issues affecting membership (fees, fobs, applications etc) are addressed by completing the Membership Issues form and they will be sent directly to the personal email box of the Hon. Membership Secretary for prompt response.

Please do not reply to this newsletter email directly as responses will not be monitored.