Cumnock & District Rotary Club

Tuesday 11 June

We had 12 members present for our Annual General Meeting and Club Assembly.   Fuller details of business reports had been provided in advance by office bearers and convenors, and were presented with additional comments where necessary by the members responsible.
As a small club it was generally agreed that all our members had been actively involved in decision making, fundraising activities, service and social events, in the promotion of the ideals and practices of Rotary.   Iain Christie took the opportunity to encourage members to support the work of Foundation Service by making regular contributions.   Details and forms are available from him.
The club raffle was won by John Mould.

Tuesday 25 June

We had invited members’ partners to our final meeting of the 2023/24 year, and there was an attendance of 15 in all.   We had also invited Hazel McCully, Area District Governor, and Carol Anne McMahon, Fund Raising Manager at the Honeypot Dalleagles Centre, making a total of 17.
President Jim Kyle presented a “display” cheque for £6500+ to Carol Anne which will be the total money raised and already given to the Honeypot Charity or about to be contributed.   
President Jim also presented the Inner Wheel Quaich to member Su Dutta to show our appreciation of her donations of furniture and other items to Honeypot – and for the provision of home baking treats to members at our meetings!   President Jim also announced that the Loudoun Trophy would be awarded to absent member Gerald Alexander, in recognition of his commitment of service as President for an extended period of 3 years during the upheaval caused by COVID.
The club raffle was won by Hazel – who donated it to the charity pot.

Rambles

With varying numbers, a handful of members carried on with the Monday rambles:
June 3    Alloway – Dunure (old railway line), sensory garden
June 10  Muirkirk – Smallburn plantation, Wellwood
June 17  Mauchline – Barskimming road circuit
June 24  Netherthird – Craigens Farm circuit

Tuesday 14 May

Our meeting in the Dumfries Arms had an attendance of 13 to share in the induction of our newest member, Martin Pond, by President Jim Kyle.   Warmest wishes to Martin for his future in Rotary

Attention then turned to making the arrangements for upcoming events.   Mauchline Holy Fair was first on the agenda.   We have been allocated a stall in the main arena, and members were asked to sign up for a rota of attendance (2 hour slots) between 11.00 am and 5 pm.   We will be running a bottle stall with a lottery element, as well as a “Name That Teddy” contest.   Donations of bottles were required.   

Our revived Quiz Night was next on the agenda.   Scheduled for Friday 31 May, we already have 6 teams registered with more expected.   

The revival of a Croquet event was further explored and suitable dates proposed.   Sunday 11 August was the favourite.   This was later changed to 4 August.   

The Honeypot Respite Centre at Dalleagles is having an Open Day on Thursday 30 May and members who have not yet visited the centre were encouraged to attend.

The club raffle was won by Agnes Cowan.

Saturday 25 May

This was the day of the Mauchline Holy Fair.   Our stall in the main arena had a regular supply of visitors, and the volume of the sound system from the main stage was just about tolerable.   

Our bottle stall was well organised and well staffed but early on the electronic system for picking random numbers for the raffle suffered from accidental human intervention, and there had to be a change made.   Raffle ticket numbers attached to  the prizes had to be removed, the bottles etc. had to be grouped in 5 crates numbered 1 to 5 and winners were able to choose their prize from the appropriate box.   Customers seemed to be happy enough with the outcome – some very happy with more than one prize.   Not every winner looked for a high priced item.

The members staffing the stall at that time are to be commended for their ingenuity and adaptability in trying circumstances, and prevented a financial and reputational disaster.   The end result was a success – almost £350 raised after costs.

Tuesday 28 May

There was an attendance of 13, although 2 members were unable to stay for the full meeting.   This gave us the opportunity to discuss the lessons learned at the Mauchline Holy Fair for future involvement.

We then moved on to our next project – the Quiz Night scheduled for Friday of that week.   Quiz Organiser Dave Perriman explained the arrangements made and asked members to be there early to prepare for the incoming teams.   Members were also asked to bring a bottle for the raffle prizes.

Our next formal meeting will be a combined Annual General Meeting and Club Assembly on Tuesday 11 June.   Members were reminded that a report will be needed from the convenor or organiser of activities over the last year.

The club raffle was won by John Mould.

Friday 31 May

This was the night of our Team Quiz for Rotary members and friends across Ayrshire, held in Netherthird Community Centre.   There were 15 teams with 3 or 4 members each, 6 rounds of general knowledge questions shown on a screen, and 45 seconds allowed per question for an answer, all under the supervision of Quiz Master, Dave Perriman.

There was a break after the first 3 rounds and the chance to sample the sausage rolls, sandwiches and cakes, plus tea or coffee prepared by the centre staff.   There was more than enough for everyone, and participants had been able to buy soft drinks from the cafe.

The winners were Prestwick A Team and they were awarded the Trophy, plaques and  personal gifts by Assistant Govenor Hazel McCully.  There then followed the raffle to which participants had donated prizes.   There were more than 30 lucky winners.   Past President Gerald Alexander thanked everyone for their participation and support, all in aid of the Honeypot Childrens’ Charity.

Monday Rambles

Smaller numbers due to holidays and other commitments, and some gloomy weather prospects, resulted in a decision to stick to local familiar venues.

May 6   Cumnock – Aldi car park, river walk

May 13 Netherthird – Glaisnock House grounds

May 20 New Cumnock – Afton Glen

May 27 Dumfries House – gardens walk

APRIL 2024

Tuesday 2
Only 8 in attendance tonight with no speaker.   Attention was focussed on recent and  future events.
It was reported that the Ladies Day had made a profit of over £1000, and that Troon Rotary had raised over £4000 from their Fiddler’s Rally, which was attended by some of our office-bearers.   Profits are being donated to the Honeypot Respite Centre through the Kilt Walk arrangements.   It is expected that 3 or 4 of our members will participate in the Kilt Walk.
Arrangements for the Quiz Night are still to be made.  

Jim Wilson, our Sports Organiser, asked members if a revival of an Indoor Bowling event would be supported.   Some interest was shown but getting sufficient participants could be a problem.
Our club raffle was won by Dave Perriman.

Tuesday 16
We had an attendance of 11 to hear our invited speaker, the District Governor, Narek Bido.   In a wide ranging talk, he spoke of the challenges facing Rotary in the UK, but also of the opportunities.
He congratulated the club for having developed one of the best websites in the District.  

The quality of Rotary’s communication with members and the public is crucial to its development and expansion.   He also praised the idea of partnership between clubs, and pointed to the links with Alloway and others in our Honeypot Respite Centre fundraising campaign.
With regard to a question about ways to increase membership, he suggested that instead of just inviting prospective members to meetings, we should give them the chance to be involved in the delivery of some practical service to the community.   This could be taking part in a local clean-up campaign, helping to run a charity function, or serving in a food bank or clothes shop, as well as taking part in fund raising activities.
Encouraging the young was important for the future, and the Interact scheme was discussed.   He suggested that getting the cooperation of school authorities could best be achieved by enlisting some young people currently or previously involved to speak to the school’s management.
The club’s raffle was won by Iain Christie.

Tuesday 30
Reports were given by those who attended the annual Scottish Kilt Walk at the weekend in and around Glasgow.   Jim Kyle, Gerald Alexander and Dave Perriman were the Rotarians who participated accompanied by 3 family members.   Figures are still to be finalised, but sponsorship monies raised together with donations and top-ups means that the Honeypot Respite Centre will benefit to the extent of well over a £1000.   
Our scheduled Quiz Night has so far had 6 teams wishing to take part, more are expected.

Members were reminded about our scheme to save up and donate loose coins on a regular basis to the club’s fundraising efforts.

Congratulations to Secretary Dave who was awarded the Cumnock Citizen of the Year at a ceremony in Dumfries House.

Monday Rambles
April 1 – Boswell House.   From the car park, down through the wooded area , and exploring the less accessible spots, including the disused bridge and the ruins of a former Boswell House, and back to the cafe.

April 8 – Netherthird.   From the Centre down to Caponacre and around the outskirts of the industrial scheme and back to the cafe.

April 15 _ Rained off.

April 22 -  Ayr.   Parking at the sea front, a small group of 4 headed along the promenade to the Ayr Harbour, at times battling against the prevailing wind, return to the car park and the cafe to warm up.

April 29 -  Dumfries House.   An even smaller group of 3 returned to Dumfries House estate for a short visit, and were rewarded with gifts of seed potatoes from the gardens.