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Extracts from the magazine that is published three times a year in March, August and December for the benefit of the membership Extracts from the December 2008 issue of The Newfoundland Times

Shipmates

Firstly my apologies for the lateness of this edition of The Newfoundland Times but I was waiting for reports to hit my desk. However it has been fortuitous as, at our recent committee meeting some details of the Reunion for 2009 had to be amended. To those who are coming to that Reunion please read pages 5 and 6 very carefully. On a completely different tack, as it is Christmastime please spare a thought for the men and women of our armed forces who are serving in theatres of conflict throughout the world. Lastly from myself and Yvonne we wish you all a Happy Christmas and a Peaceful New Year.

Secretary’s Report

This is not a report really, but how I was feeling in the run up to the Reunion.
I have been disappointed and upset by some of the letters and phone calls I have received over the last couple of months. There was also a remark made at the Reunion and not just at the AGM about the Dissolution of the Association. The Dissolution of the Association was not the fault of the committee (heaven knows we were all in office a long time) it was, as we all know, that no members came forward to fill the offices that were becoming vacant.
I have now had my little moan and it is all water under the bridge.
I did enjoy the Reunion this year and to my mind it was one of the best (a rehearsal for 2009). Fifty years since the ship paid off and Twenty One years since the 1st Reunion. Looking around it appeared that we were all enjoying ourselves.
My thanks to all of you who paraded when our wreath was placed on the local War Memorial at East Wittering, we had a fantastic turnout.
Sunday evening was a great party, the Proms all over again, flag waving and singing enjoyed by all.
I would like to thank Hilary &Alan for a wonderful weekend, and I think I can speak for all the shipmates.
Some members asked me why I was not presented with a gift at the Reunion this year. At a previous meeting items were discussed and one was farewell gifts to committee members, we were also discussing the memorial plaques for the churches at Wolverhampton and St John’s, I asked that whatever was to be spent on my gift it should be placed in the memorial fund.

Yours Aye
Anthony Toms (Secretary HMS Newfoundland Association)

 
 
  Chairman’s Opening Address:

The Chairman, Ian Wigston, opened the meeting by asking everyone to stand whilst he read out the names of those who had Crossed the Bar in the last year; this was followed by the observance of a minute’s silence.
The Chairman then went on to welcome everyone to the AGM and hoped they would all have an enjoyable weekend. He then opened the proceedings by telling the members that following the AGM last year he had grave doubts that the Committee would survive the year but unbelievably it has. As a tribute to them he felt it important that the membership should understand what this unpaid band of volunteers who generously give of their time and energy actually have to cope with.
He then went on to say that the way the committee have coped with considerable adversity during this year, and more than their share of ill health, demonstrates what exceptional people they are and we should all realize what a debt we owe them. Getting here to Bracklesham Bay has been fraught with problems, first of all the original venue changed hands and the new owner reneged on our booking. Alan and Hilary then negotiated for this venue and everything seemed fine until a few weeks ago when Alan Waite called to say he had become aware that a payment was due for this reunion but the money was not in the account. Alan has enough problems coping with Christine’s failing health but had been unable to sleep with worry about the Association’s finances and had been up since four in the morning wondering what to do. The problem was that a substantial number had dropped out, highlighting the problems that the age and frailty of our membership brings. Alan Staton’s health has not been good for some time and without Hilary’s support it would not have been possible to organize this reunion; this drop in the final numbers meant that they both had to pull out all the stops to renegotiate the arrangements for this weekend. They were successful but everyone was holding their breath. Moving on, neither Tony nor Brenda have enjoyed good health during the past year, in fact at one point Tony collapsed and lost consciousness while out with Brenda who was in a wheel chair yet he is still here working for the Association as Secretary. All of us are weary from being in office for so long and Peter is no exception but despite having been editor for longer than anyone could consider reasonable is still doing a wonderful job with TNT and keeping the members informed of what is going on. Being Editor is a very demanding job and when Peter puts the final edition to bed in 2009 he will be able to look back on a job well done. The same must also be said of Ron and Margaret who have made it here with the last of the slops and will breathe a sigh of relief when everything has been sold.
Ian then went on to commend the committee with the following words: “I personally think this committee is exceptional and without the personal sacrifice, dedication and determination they have shown, we would not be here this weekend. They will I am sure continue to give 110% effort during the coming year to make 2009 the best party ever. Please join me in showing your appreciation After the applause, Ian went on to say that he continued to enjoy reasonably good health but had managed to trip over a broom handle, break a finger and crack a couple of ribs then a few weeks later had a fall while pruning a lilac tree and landed flat on his back after completing a spectacular somersault. In retrospect he felt he had a lucky escape with no injuries other than a good bone shaking but then, he added, he had no intention of missing this or next year’s reunion.(Remarks from the floor did the tree get finished). On the subject of the 2009 Reunion the Chairman went on to say that the broad plans were in place but there was still a lot of work to be done and would leave it to other members of the committee to provide some of the detail and no doubt there would be further information in TNT as it became available.
Ian then informed the meeting that he had written to the representatives of the other Colony Class Cruiser Associations, on the grounds that all of them will be having similar problems with age and numbers as ourselves, with the suggestion that a Colony Class Cruiser Association be formed. The response has not been encouraging, there were only three replies; HMS Bermuda failed to form an association as they could not raise the numbers and HMS Fiji and HMS Ceylon have said they will get back to us after their respective AGM’s. Ian said he would try once more to get a response from the three that have not replied and when there is something further to report he would pass it to Peter to put in TNT. The Chairman then concluded his address by saying that he looked forward to seeing everyone for the fmal reunion in 2009 and what promises to be the party of the year.

Minutes of 2007 AGM: Those Shipmates present were asked if we could take them as read.
It was proposed by Tony Moore and seconded Donald Chester. Vote was taken and carried.

Matters arising: One matter was brought up about last years vote for demise of the Association. It was said that this was coming up later in the AGM and the Chairman requested that we leave it for the moment all agreed.

Apologies: Letters from S/M Dave Honeybun from Honolulu. S/M Louis Scot, RM. John Churchward. S/M Bill Stone. S/M Les Hynes

Secretary’s report and letters: Tony reported that as far as health is concerned the last year had been one of the worst for him and Brenda, and had not been helped by a lot of unwarranted phone calls about the demise of the association. He then went on to report that letters had been received from S/M Eric Bates concerning the problems of winding up the association and valuable points were also made by Violet Ellison along with many other shipmates and thanked them all for writing.

Tony then said that a letter had been received from the Queen which will be read out at the dinner tonight by our President.

It was also reported that letters of thanks have been received from all those who went on a trip run by “The Not Forgotten Association” and further trips are already have in the pipeline for this year, one of which will be the annual Buckingham Palace Garden Party where ten of our shipmates and their escorts will be attending. Those attending have already been informed.

As always Tony ended his report with the words, “Once again let me and Brenda be the first to wish you all a Merry Christmas 2008 and Happy New Year 2009”.

It was proposed by Tony Lee Seconded by Robert Davis that the Secretary’s report be accepted. Carried.

Treasurers Report:

This is my 10th report to you as treasurer and to start with would like to offer to those of you who were at the reunion last year my apologies, and I hope that I did not offend anybody after I had sank a few gulpers of Red wine during the Saturday evening which also left me unfit for church parade on Sunday.
Now for the finances, we still have a healthy bank balance and the credit goes to you who always come up trumps with that little extra and talking of extras £329.00 has been given to the Editor’s appeal. It has been spotted that there was no itemised list for the miscellaneous column in the accounts, this was my mistake due to rushing things, it looked a large sum but I had a few odd and sods so lumped them all together as I usually do and forgot summarise them. There is a new column and that’s the retirement gifts to committee members and these will be presented later this evening.
I would like to take this opportunity to thank Tony Moore for giving up his time to audit the books.

Membership Report: Once again I have had a good turnout when the call went out for subs and just about everybody was grateful for the reminder, even Sir Barry, nobody escapes me when the subs reaper gathers in. On that subject, I have on occasion been brought to task with the question, “Why are you chasing subs?” All I can say is that if I did not do so we could be like the Ceylon and the others of the class whose numbers have declined rapidly. I make no apology for chasing you, after all we are all getting older and some of you do have senior moments when a little reminder works wonders. Look at it this way if I did not do it, at the end of my ten years in office we would have a much depleted membership which now brings me to the subject of the report.

For the first time I have to report that the numbers are below 500 and before anybody says I told you so the present number is 487, a number I wish you to remember, and it is made up as follows.

Full members:
419. Widows: 30. And Associates: 38.

The drop in numbers is mainly due to Crossing the Bar (26) and medical problems such as cancer, failing eyesight and dementia plus members moving or having their phone disconnected which means I cannot talk to them to find out how they are.
Looking after the membership side of the association means I am more involved with the members than anybody else and hear of those who have ailments and other problems with life and sometimes learning of a shipmate who has slipped over the side without us knowing so please let me know if you know of somebody who is very ill or has Crossed the Bar.

It was proposed by Peter Thompson and seconded by Tom Parkinson That the accounts and Membership reports be accepted. Carried.

Events Organiser’s Report (Read by the Chairman):

The Gala Dinner:
The Pre-dinner Drinks Reception will take place at 7.00 p.m. in the Lounge, but we are sure that you will be able to go down a few minutes earlier, so don’t leave it until the last minute! You will get a glass of sherry or orange juice, free of charge. The dinner will be served in the restaurant at 7.30pm, so please make sure you allow time to get to your seats before the VIPs enter. If you want to order any wine you do so over the bar.

Sunday:
The church service is going to be held 10.30 a.m. in the Ballroom. There’s a military padre coming, and a band, and after the service (at 12:15) there will be a concert – so if anyone wants to come to the concert but not the service you’re more than welcome.
There’s no Sunday trip this year, because we are holding the church service here. Next year the Reunion will be on the weekend of 24th April. As it’s the last reunion we canvassed how many people would expect to come, and got an answer of 340. We had a dilemma here – we could have gone to Mill Rythe holiday camp, but we would have had to pay a holding fee for 400 people, or we could come here again – but the maximum number that can be accommodated here is around 280. This year we did start off with the maximum number of people allowed here sending a deposit – but in fact 25 people have had to cancel, so we have ended up with spare capacity in this camp. As we are all getting older, it’s quite likely that people will want to come but at the last minute will be prevented through ill health from actually attending. Therefore the decision was taken at our Committee meeting, held yesterday evening, that we should come here to South Downs again for 2009.

It was proposed by Gordon Cousins and seconded by Tony Moore that the report be accepted. Carried.

Editor’s report 2008:

2007 through to 2008 went very well for The Newfoundland Times; we managed to maintain 52 pages for each edition. Your valued contributions are greatly appreciated. My thanks to you all. You will all no doubt have noticed that you received the latest edition of The Newfoundland Times later than usual. This was because the package I sent to the printer was damaged in the post and it took Royal Mail some time to gather the pieces together and forward them on to the correct destination. When Guy Massey (the printer) received it he informed me what had happened. When he started to assemble the edition and run it through his PC he realised that some of the pictures were not embedded in the publication, just linked, that meant the programme would look for the files but they would be languishing on my PC (not much good to Guy). That was down to me. However one Sunday afternoon I diligently reproduced the pictures and sent them by email to Guy. Giving due regard as to what had occurred, the edition turned out as it had been originally laid it out. Well done Guy!
Now for 2008 to 2009:
The magazine needs more articles, this is said at every AGM but if we are to continue to produce 52 pages that is what we need. Articles with pictures are always pleasing, as I have said previously a picture speaks a thousand words. So come on shipmates put pen to paper and keep the editor busy.

Anniversaries: If you would like an announcement put in The Newfoundland Times please send in your notices. It is appreciated that the Treasurer holds a list of notable dates, which we could use with the necessary permission and it could be assumed that as you gave your anniversary dates, permission is granted. However a date without a story is pretty bland, so let’s have a story to go with it please.

It was proposed by Pat McGee and seconded by D Fiander that the Editors Reported be accepted. Carried.

Slops Officer’s Report:

Margaret reported that she had sold most of the stock but would open again after AGM, adding that this would be the last chance as there will be no slops next year and everything must go today.

Ron said that he had some 1944 – 1946 commission Tokyo Bay Surrender Certificates which were available free or for sippers! He also had some picture from the 2nd reunion to raise funds for the association, please put a donation in the box.

Ron and Margaret thanked everyone for their support over the years.

Proposals:

Tony Toms seconded by Peter Chatfield, proposed that on the dissolution of the Association that the Lectern and Book of Remembrance be presented to St Peter’s Church Wolverhampton for safekeeping. This was accepted.

Dissolution of the Association:

Alan Waite raised an objection to the way the dissolution had been handled and in particular that the final vote should have taken place at an EGM convened for that purpose or at the AGM following the postal vote.

The subject was opened for discussion and a wide range of views were expressed including Alan’s view that the decision should be considered null and void. At the end of the discussion the Chairman summed up and made the point that although the constitution had not been followed absolutely to the letter the principles it embodied had been applied in that a vote had taken place and members had been balloted. The result of the ballot had been overwhelmingly in favour of dissolution.

Alan’s objection did not ask for the AGM vote to be retaken so a show of hands was asked for to indicate whether in the light of the ballot results and Alan Waite’s objection the members wished the decision taken in 2007 should stand and dissolution to proceed. The result overwhelmingly supported dissolution.

A.O.B.

S/m Alan Waite: St John’s Report

Further to the report in the last issue of the TNT the following has happened in St John’s.

Freedom of the City: The ships name has now been added to the recipients’ plaque in the City Hall but unfortunately when looking at the photos that I received it was entered up as “HMS Newfoundland Association”. I therefore advised Mr. Penney of the mistake so now the plaque once again off the wall for alteration. For those interested our ship is first on the list and next is The Royal Newfoundland Regiment in 1963. Also now on display with the honours board is our ships picture and the ships plaque.

When the secretary and I did the first visit in 2002 and we presented the city with, the picture and plaque together with a letter and gift from the Lord Mayor of Wolverhampton but there was no exchange.

This I brought up with Mr. Penney and being the gentleman he is he took the mayor to task, after I left, so now the following has happened. 0n the 14th March I received a package from the mayor’s office containing an inscribed plaque and letter to the association signed by the mayor and checking the post date it was 4th January so that had taken 11 weeks to come across the pond.

On my last visit to Government House the Lt.Governor Ed Roberts gave me a plaque to present to the association at the next reunion this one he personally has had made as there, is no coat of arms for Newfoundland.
The Chairman thanked Alan for his report which received a round of applause from the members.

There being no further business the Chairman declared the meeting closed and that the next AGM would take place at the same place on Saturday the 25th April 2009.

Treasurers Report

This report will be brief and I will start by thanking Shirley Winn of Isle of Wight Tours for all her efforts over the weekend to ensure that the Reunion went smoothly. She also offered to help one of our shipmates whose wife had suffered a heart attack; thank-you Shirley. I don’t think anyone could the fault the holiday village. It makes a lot of sense that we should return there in 2009.
The plate collection on the Sunday, which amounted to £203 I sent off to the British Heart Foundation as requested by the Padre.
It has been put to me that each committee member should receive an engraved Whisky tumbler as a final reminder of the Association, this was agreed to but I informed them that it would be more appropriate if they were to pay for it themselves as they had already received a gift in appreciation of their services from the Association. The committee members agreed to this arrangement.
It was felt that this offer should be made available to all members of the Association. The glass would be engraved with the name and rate (when on board) plus commission of the member, so shipmates if you want one the cost will be £14 if you collect it at the next Reunion or £20 which would include p&p and VAT if you require it to be posted, Now ladies, this is an idea for a Christmas pressie for the old man who probably has everything. It’s just a thought.
My retirement gift is now in its place of honour and I express my thanks to you all, especially Ron Windebank for all the effort he put in on my behalf.
I have also been approached by some members with the question ‘Will we have Reunions after 2009’? my answer is why not, the ball has started rolling.

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