NEWS

Hello members,

We thought we would let you know what we (the committee) are up to at the moment.

First of all, we have managed to sell a number of books from the collection that was donated to our club,

that along with sales of a couple of the models also donated has raised £200 so far which will be split with

the Southport Life Boat and club funds. We will be making a cash donation to Southport Lifeboat in the

coming weeks.

The book collection (700+ books) is still in the club house, and now the weather is slowly

improving, hopefully more members will come and sail, and perhaps have a browse through the books to

see if there is anything of interest. We are going to have a table at the 1 st Bring and Buy for the books and

models. We are also exploring E bay and have approached a local book shop to see if they are interested in

buying any off us.

We also have a beautiful Billing kit of the Norske Love. This kit has been started, but is complete with

fitting kit and would retail around £500. If any member is interested, please ask a committee member for

more information. We are looking for a cash donation of around £200. There are pictures attached to this e

mail.

Andy (our treasurer) and Joe have been busy getting new safety signs printed to replace the old ones

which are showing their age.

Members are reminded that our first event of 2024 will take place on Sunday 21st April. This will be a Bring

and Buy sale, so please, do come down and support this event. There will be hot food and drinks available,

and of course sailing will be going on as well.

Events 2024

Mar 2024 Night Sail Sat 30th 18.00 -20.00

Apr 2024 Bring and Buy Boat Sale Sun 21st From 08.30

May 2024 Open Day (Vintage Boat Theme) Sun 26th From 08.30

Jun 2024 Bring and Buy Boat Sale Sun 23rd From 08.30

Jul 2024 Open Day (Tug, Barge and Fishing boat theme)

Sun 21st From 08.30

Aug 2024 Bring and Buy Boat Sale Sun 25th From 08.30

Sep 2024 Night Sail Sat 28th 18.00 - 20.00

Oct 2024 Night Sail Sat 26th 18.00 - 20.00

Oct 2024 Blackpool Show 19 th & 20th

Oct 2024 AGM Mid-October 2024 TBC

Nov 2024 Night Sail Sat 23rd 18.00 – 20.00

Dates may be subject to change; changes will be given out on the Face Book page and by an e mail drop to

all members who have supplied e mails as soon as they become available.

Membership renewals

While a large number of members have renewed their memberships or let me know they are not renewing

for various reasons, there are still number who have not.

Can I ask that if you have not renewed yet, you let me know if you intend to or if you are not intending to

so we can plan.

The memberships are a large part of our revenue source to fund the activities of the club and the

committee have a number of projects to improve the club facilities in mind. Before we can commit to these

projects, we do need to know how much we have in funds to spend without dipping into reserves. Once

we have an idea of renewals, we can prioritise the projects.

As previously mentioned, the renewal has been simplified, so existing members no longer have to submit a

new form each year, Membership cards and parking permits are also not required. Existing members can

renew by simply replying to the e mail this newsletter was attached to with their name and that you wish

to renew. If any of the details on file have changed, please include the changes. You can now pay by cash,

cheque or by direct bank transfer (a new facility). Upon receipt of the payment, I will issue a membership

certificate for the year emailed to you.

For members without access to e mail we will still use Royal Mail or leave it at the club house for collection.

If anyone has any questions about memberships or anything to do with the club, please feel free to contact

Andy McQueen on 07910 058983.

Bank details

Barclays Bank

Southport Model Boat Club

Sort Code 20-80-33

Acc No 13066428

In addition, the new website was launched at the end of January “Southportmodelboatclub.co.uk” and it is

now functioning very well, there have been a couple of teething problems, but these have been ironed out

and can I suggest you have a look. The intention is to keep this website up to date with news and

information, there is a For Sale page for members to offer boats or boating gear for sale. There are also

opportunities for members to contribute on the projects page for example.

Finally, due to personal reasons, I have had to step back from the daily work as Chairman for a period. As a

result, the committee has appointed Paul Fenton as Vice Chairman to help with that situation, my thanks

to Paul for stepping forward.

We hope to see many of you at the pond side in the coming months.

Best regards,

Kevin Saker.