Welcome
Welcome all to our Summer ’22 newsletter which I hope finds you all safe and well, but if not, then on the road to recovery. Covid is still around, but where we should all be well protected.
Since last April we have had a wonderful cream tea at the Hartnoll Hotel, Bolham and our May lunch at the Harbour Hotel in Sidmouth. Numbers attending remain lower than in pre-Covid years and I hope will improve as the year progresses and we feel more confident to venture out.
The Club has received an unexpected bonus from Barclays of grant funds for 2022 at the same level as 2020 & 2021, namely £4,251 despite everything social being curtailed in each year. We thus have funds to spend on subsidising all social events this year and next to a considerable degree.
We now look forward to 3 events covered later in this Newsletter, being a free cream tea at the Donkey Sanctuary (near Sidmouth) on 30th June; a Theatre outing on 31st August at the Sidmouth Manor Pavilion Theatre for an Alan Ayckbourn comedy and in September another free cream tea afternoon at the Orangery, Powderham (21st September).
Into the Autumn, you can look forward to an informal pub lunch at the White Horse (near Aylesbeare); a coffee morning at Bickleigh (with Christmas shopping) and the annual Christmas lunch at the Victoria Hotel: Full details in the next Newsletter. That will give us 10 events for the year either being free or heavily subsidised.
I am pleased to welcome to the Club since the beginning of the year Eddie Gabriel from Honiton and very recently Sandra Glover, as active members.
Finally, I look forward to seeing many of you at our remaining gatherings and wish you all a sunny, relaxing summer.
Finance Update
The year started with £8,511 in our reserves to which the annual subscriptions have been added of £809 and the generous grant from Barclays of £4,251. Our budget allows for net spending of £5,400 on social events plus £1,060 on Admin and Wellbeing, leaving us with a budgeted shortfall of £1,400 for the year. I therefore anticipate a final balance at the year-end of £7,100.
That gives us a healthy position going forward into 2023 with the ability to continue generous subsidies. This year if you were to attend all events the subsidies will amount to over £100 per active member – not bad for a £5 subscription! Long may it continue.
Regards.
Garry Adams, Chairman and Treasurer
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Secretary’s Notes
It is hard to believe that we are halfway through 2022 and it is lovely to be free of the many restrictions of the last couple of years. The days are long and the sunshine warm and the gardens and countryside are bright and colourful -a favourite time of the year for me.
June 2022 starts off with wonderful events and celebrations taking place in Great Britain and around the Commonwealth as Her Majesty the Queen marks her amazing Platinum Jubilee. What an achievement! We have been shown some super photos and film footage on TV, and of course, in magazines and newspapers etc. I hope (like me) you have enjoyed and probably remembered specific events over some of the seventy years, along with seeing unseen footage – a great privilege.
Our next (free) cream tea is at The Donkey Sanctuary, Sidmouth on Thursday 30th June and we do hope you will be able to come along, please just let me know by 17th June for catering purposes.
We are enjoying more club events now, but some of our members may be put off from joining us because of travel difficulties. If you wish to come to an event but travelling is a problem, then please let me know (or one of our committee members) and we will try to arrange a lift for you.
Barbara Johnson, Secretary
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Wellbeing
Sincerely hope that you have been able to enjoy the wonderful display of spring flowers, and that we can see some more of you at one of our upcoming functions. Thinking of this:
Transport?
As a committee, we are aware of the challenges that you may face in getting to some of our functions. We cannot promise to be able to solve this for everyone, but please contact one of us, or your Wellbeing Officer, and we shall see what we can do. Equally, we hope that if you are a regular attendee, you will be amenable to providing a lift to someone.
Take care,
Ray Cavill, Wellbeing Co-ordinator
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Functions
Free Cream Tea – 30th June
We have arranged to have another free Cream Tea on Thursday, 30th June at 3pm. This time at The Donkey Sanctuary, Slade House Farm, Sidmouth, EX10 0NU and it is a new venue for our Club. An area will be set aside for us and there will be table service. There is plenty of free car parking and no entrance fee, and, of course, there are plenty of donkeys to view!
Please advise Barbara or Peter Johnson on barbj@talktalk.net or peteraj@talktalk.net or telephone them on 01297 599086 if you wish to attend, by 17th June, so the appropriate number of scones may be ordered.
Theatre visit – Wednesday, 31st August 2022 – Curtain up 8.00pm Manor Pavilion Theatre, Manor Road, Sidmouth EX10 8RP
For this year’s outing we have chosen a performance of “How the Other Half Loves” by Alan Ayckbourn and have reserved a block booking of up to 32 seats. This marks a return to the theme of comedy. The production will be performed by the usual visiting professional summer repertory company and produced by Paul Taylor-Mills.
Come and join us for what promises to be another enjoyable evening together.
A discount applies for our block booking and a further subsidy from Club funds means that on this occasion we can offer seats (maximum of 2 per member) at just £10.00 per ticket (the advertised price being £19.50) which represents excellent value (non-refundable).
We need to confirm numbers and make payment to the Theatre by 1st August, so if you would like to attend we need your confirmation and payment please (cheques payable to “Exeter Spread Eagle Club” ) or by BACs as soon as possible and no later than Friday 29th July. Please return the attached booking form (see below) to Peter Johnson, (by e-mail if preferred – peteraj@talktalk.net).
Future functions with some dates to be confirmed:
Free Cream Tea at Orangery, Powderham 21st September (confirmed)
Pub lunch at White Horse Inn, Woodbury Salterton October
Free Coffee Morning at Bickleigh Mill November
Christmas Lunch at Victoria Hotel, Sidmouth 8th December (confirmed)
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MANOR PAVILION – WEDNESDAY, 31st AUGUST 2022 at
8.00pm
“How the Other Half Loves” by Alan Ayckbourn
I wish to apply for …………… tickets (max. 2 per member)
I enclose my cheque for £………………. (£10.00 per ticket) payable to
“Exeter Spread Eagle Club”
Or – I have paid by BACS £…………….. (£10.00 per ticket)
(Account name: Exeter Spread Eagle Club
Account No: 10138878
Sort : 20-30-47)
NAME ………………………………………………………………………………
ADDRESS …………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………….
Telephone No ……………………………………. E-Mail …………………………………
Please return to Peter Johnson, “Fairways” 98 Beer Road, Seaton, Devon
EX12 2PU or e-mail: peteraj@talktalk.net
AS SOON AS POSSIBLE BUT NO LATER THAN 29TH JULY 2022