MOSELEY, KINGS HEATH & DISTRICT U3A: NEWSLETTER no.11 April 2014 Dear member This newsletter contains important information about membership renewals and our AGM in May. First, however, the April meeting: European Elections and the April Members Meeting This month we have a very topical members meeting. With the European Elections due to take place in May, we have an important background meeting to set the elections in context. Graham Stroud, who is a local U3A member and jointly runs our U3A choir, worked for the European Commission for many years administering EU scientific research programmes. Graham s presentation will be a factual and non-political overview of what the EU does and how it arrives at the decisions that put laws into practice. He plans to look at the reasons the EU exists, what it spends its money on and how it decides to spend money on some things and not others. Along the way, he hopes to deflate a few myths. Graham s talk is entitled Eurofacts and Euromyths: how EU decision making works in reality. The meeting will be held on Tuesday April 8 at the All Saints Centre at 2.00 Membership Renewals Our U3A branch ends its first full year with 330 members, and membership fees were due for renewal on April 1. The fee for the coming year, to March 31 2015, is to remain at 20 (with a reduced fee of 10 for members joining after October 1 2014). Members who have not already renewed will be able to pay the fee and collect their new membership cards at the April monthly meeting at the All Saints Centre. The Membership Secretaries will be in the (currently unused) cafe area immediately outside the hall from 1pm on Tuesday April 8, to issue cards before the meeting starts at 2pm. There will be two tables - one for surnames from A to L, and the other for M to Z. Payment by cheque is preferred. Members will be given a new card and asked to sign that they have received it; no forms need to be completed for existing members. Cheques should be made payable to MKHD U3A. Any members unable to collect their card at these meetings can post their renewal cheque (payable to MKHD U3A) to Chris and Greg Bellamy at: 25 Highfield Road, Moseley, Birmingham B13 9HL. Please enclose a stamped, addressed envelope and the card will be sent back to you. 1
AGM This year s AGM will start at 2.00 on Tuesday May 13. The AGM is a vital part of the life of our branch, a meeting in which members can give their views, ask questions, stand for posts on the Committee and vote in a new committee for the coming year. Members will also hear reports from members of the Committee about the year that has gone, our plans for the future and the state of our finances. After the business part of the AGM, we will serve refreshments and then be entertained by a performance from our wonderful choir. Nominations for EC Posts The deadline for nominations for EC posts has now passed. The only nominations for EC posts for the coming year are those for the existing committee. These are as follows: Chair Vice Chair Secretary Treasurer Membership Secretary (x2) Interest Group Co-ordinator (x3) Social Secretary Venues Co-ordinator Mike Clark Jude Williams Valda Burton Ted Raybould Chris Bellamy, Greg Bellamy Sue Baker, Sue Stokes, Diane Worland Paul Hunt John Smith Treasurer s Report The full treasurer s report will be presented to the AGM. However, Ted Raybould has given the following brief resume of the main points: This has been the first full financial year for our U3A a very exciting one and with much to learn from a financial perspective. Copies of my end-of-year Treasurer s Report together with a Statement of Accounts will be available at the forthcoming AGM. To summarise, our finances are in a very healthy state, largely due to the growing size of our membership coupled with the enthusiasm of members themselves in their regular support for the many Interest Groups on offer. This is a very positive situation and the Executive Committee are considering several proposals as to how funds may be deployed for the benefit of U3A members. We continue to offer financial support to Interest Groups which (usually because of large numbers) need to hire a venue for their meetings. At the same time, we trust that the system of inviting Additional Voluntary Contributions to share the costs will continue. This policy appears to have been successful, thus far, in allowing a steady growth in the number of members and Interest Groups. Structure and Agenda of AGM The agenda will be as follows: 1. Apologies for absence 2. Minutes of 2013 AGM 3. Report by Chair 4. Reports by Treasurer, Membership Secretaries, Interest Group Co-ordinators and Social Secretary 5. Approval of Examiner of Accounts 6. Election of Committee for 2014/15 2
Following the AGM there will: Refreshments served free to all members of our local U3A A performance by our own U3A choir We very much hope you are able to attend this important meeting and enjoy the performance by our wonderful choir. Interest Group Update Bridge for Absolute Beginners: We are pleased to let you know that another interest group is being planned. This is Bridge for Absolute Beginners, led by Rosemary Foulkes. The start-up meeting will be held on Friday April 25 between 10 and 11am. If you are interested in joining the group, please contact Rosemary on: 0121 458 4535 or roalan@hotmail.co.uk Help Needed in Starting a Second French Group: Sally Potter s Intermediate French Group is full, with a waiting list. We are hoping that one of our members may be willing to start a second Intermediate French Group. If anyone is interested, please contact one of the Interest Group Coordinators. Dining Club Lunches April: The meal at Bohemia in Selly Oak is now full. May: The meal at Karibunis is now full. June: Friday June 6 at Prego, the new Italian restaurant in Moseley (opposite the Co-op). There will be a buffet of anti-pasta dishes, a choice of pasta dishes and desserts for 16. We will have the upstairs room to ourselves! Trip to Oxford Only one place left! We will leave from All Saints in Kings Heath at 9:00am on May 20, returning at 5:00pm. We will be dropped off in central Oxford, close to the Ashmolean Museum, and should have at least 4 hours in Oxford. The cost is 10.50, but a 5 non-refundable deposit is required. If you are interested in either the lunches or the trip, please contact Paul Hunt on paulhunt2@btinternet.com All Saints Café We have been informed that the café should be opening again under new management at the beginning of May. 3
Monthly Meetings in 2014 Our programme of meetings for 2014, as so far booked, is as below. Please note that the August meeting has been moved back one week, to August 19. Date Time Venue Topic Speaker Tuesday April 8 2.00 All Saints Centre Eurofacts and Euromyths: how Graham Stroud EU decision making works in reality Tuesday May 13 2.00 All Saints Centre AGM + performance by U3A Choir Tuesday June 10 2.00 All Saints Centre ENIGMA how cracking the Hugh Davies enemy codes led to the world s first computer Tuesday July 8 2.00 All Saints Centre The History and Culture of Matthew Jackson Korea Tuesday August 19 2.00 All Saints Centre Twenty years as an undercover officer with HM Customs Cameron Addicott Tuesday September 2.00 All Saints Centre To be arranged 9 Tuesday October 14 2.00 All Saints Centre To be arranged Tuesday November 11 2.00 All Saints Centre Collar the Lot Internment of Aliens during world war 2 David Hess New Members We encourage new members to meet with us after the monthly general meetings for a discussion, at which we give you further information and strive to answer any questions you may have. The Chair will make an announcement after each meeting about where the discussion will be. You can also get further information via the website (as below), or by phoning one of the Interest Group Coordinators (see phone numbers at the end of this newsletter). Information from the national U3A There are a number of national meetings, summer schools and other events on a range of topics organised by the national U3A. Information about these will be available at our monthly public meetings. Committee Meetings The Executive Committee meets monthly. If members would like to suggest items for discussion, please email them to mikehclark@hotmail.co.uk or post to Mike Clark, 8 Ashfield Road, Kings Heath, B14 7AS. Website If you are viewing this newsletter online, you can access the website directly by clicking on the following link: http://u3asites.org.uk/code/u3asite.php?site=553&page=1 4
Alternatively, if you are viewing this on paper, you can type Moseley U3A into Google or any other web browser and our website will be there. Contact Information For Interest Group enquiries, please contact one of the Interest Group Coordinators: Sue Baker, sue.baker@blueyonder.co.uk 0121 449 5737, Sue Stokes, suestokesie@hotmail.co.uk 0121 441 3052, or Diane Worland, d.worland@blueyonder.co.uk 0121 684 3763 For membership enquiries, please contact Chris and Greg Bellamy, gcbellamy@hotmail.com 0121 449 2470 For general enquiries, please contact Jude Williams, 0121 443 3645 or Mike Clark, 0121 689 2765 Executive Committee, Moseley, Kings Heath and District U3A April 2014 5