OUTLOOK 2012 www.readingassociationfortheblind.org email: readingblind@yahoo.co.uk 0118 957 2960 Happy New Year! We hope that you have enjoyed the festivities and the break. There will be lots to look forward to this coming year as we have the Olympics and our Queen’s Diamond Jubilee to celebrate. We will be starting the New Year with our own celebration in the shape of our annual party on Wednesday 25th January. We would love to invite everyone to our annual party but due to the amount of members we have this is not possible so places will be allocated to members who return their slips first. You will be contacted if you have been successful and we hope the party will be a great success as in previous years. We will have volunteers and helpers for the day so if you would like to come please complete the form and return it as soon as possible to avoid disappointment to:- Attention of Dawn Singleton Manager Reading Association for the Blind Walford Hall Carey Street READING RG1 7JS N.B. If you have received this newsletter by email you may reply by email if you would like to attend. Reading Association for the Blind Annual Party Wednesday 25th January 2012 12 noon until 3.00pm Name…………………………………………………………… Address………………………………………………………… ………………………………………………………………….. Telephone……………………………………………………… Email address..................................................................... IMPORTANT Please tick the box if you require transport Who’s who at RAB? Over the years, RAB has seen many people come and go but we have also been fortunate to have a large number of very dedicated people who work tirelessly behind the scenes year after year. At our last AGM we said goodbye to some and hello to others so this is an opportunity to let you know who came and went. After many years of hard work and being on the board of Trustees Mr. Tom Barker and Mr. Alan Jewell (Treasurer) stood down. Sincere thanks to Tom and Alan for their dedication over the years. We wish them all the best for the future. Below is a list of people whom you may or may not know that are our current Trustees:- Mr. Alan Futter Chairman Mr. Terry Boyington Vice Chairman Mr. Ken Baker Treasurer Mr. Frank Carstairs Trustee Mr. Bob O’Neill Trustee Mr. Ron Cutting Trustee Mr. Bob Bristow Trustee Ms. Danuta Curtis Trustee Mrs. Anne Price Trustee Within the Association the staff are:- Ms. Dawn Singleton Manager Mrs. Margaret Masca Senior Visiting Officer Mrs. Janet Hayward Visiting Officer Mrs. Wendy Whitehead Visiting Officer Mrs. Nicola Dos Santos Care Assistant Ms. Janet Williams Craft Tutor Ms. Joyce Phillips Caretaker RAB has many volunteers who help in various ways and listed below are the main group leaders:- Ramblers Mr. Alan Futter Young at Heart Miss. Sarah Watts & Mrs. Carol Haylock Social Club Mrs. Julia Canham & Mrs Kathy Shepherd Out and About Mrs. Jenny Sadler Computer Group Mr. Ken Baker We give our sincere thanks to every volunteer that helps the Association and we are very grateful for all that you do to help our members. A Few Updates At the last Trustee meeting it was decided that our Craft Club would finish at 1pm instead of 2pm. Due to the demand for transport and the number of members that attend the club this will help members to be home at a better time. As we only operate one minibus we are only able to collect members who live in the following main areas on the appropriate days. Tuesday: Tilehurst & Southcote Friday: Whitley Wood & Caversham We are fortunate to have one or two volunteers who use their own vehicle to collect members when our bus is full or in a different area. We will hopefully be using Readibus in the coming months to help with the demand for transport for certain events and occasions. We continuously raise funds for a much needed new minibus as transport is one of the essential services that we like to offer our members whenever possible. Therefore it is very much appreciated if you would let us know when you are not able to attend any event or club if you have requested the minibus to collect you. This not only saves fuel, but also a wasted journey for our drivers and the already collected passengers on board. Having recently had the telephone system at the Hall upgraded, messages are now regularly checked even if the Hall is closed. We would appreciate it if you call at least 24 hours in advance if you need to cancel transport. Payments for trips and events Our Association has seen a very successful 2011 with the group activities and members have enjoyed some wonderful trips and events throughout. Our group leaders do their utmost to ensure the best price for each trip but this on some occasions can only be available with a block booking. This means that a certain number of members will be required to attend an event so as to receive a better entry price. During last year some group leaders experienced problems with payments and refunds. The Chairman and Trustees have agreed and decided that from January 2012 all money for events must be paid in full two weeks before the chosen trip. Refunds will be given in extreme circumstances and only at the Manager, Dawn Singleton’s, discretion. This decision has been made to avoid other members paying for people that were unable to attend a trip and would otherwise request a refund. In this circumstance the full price of the trip could apply due to the lack of numbers required to allow the Association a price reduction. Sarah Watts (Young at Heart) and Jenny Sadler (Out and About) plan their trips and events in advance so there will be plenty of time to make payments for the trips that you would like to attend. To help alleviate further problems and extra work for the group leaders, the Chairman and Trustees have decided that the all money for Young at Heart trips or events must be paid directly to Carol Haylock or the Manager Dawn Singleton and Out and About trips to Jenny Sadler. If you would like to discuss this further please do not hesitate to contact the Trustees or Manager who will be pleased to help. We look forward to another fun filled year ahead and would like to thank you for your support with the groups and offer our group leaders our sincere thanks for their hard work. Dates for your diary Craft Club Tuesday & Friday 10am until 1pm. Computer and IT lessons Tuesday 10:30am until 12 noon Ramblers Group alternate Mondays 10am until 4pm. Young at Heart alternate Mondays various times. Out and About Every 3rd Thursday of each month. Social Club every 2nd Tuesday of each month. Wednesday 25th January 2012 Annual Party (please return your slip to attend) Easter Break RAB will be closed on Tuesday 3rd April 2012 and will re-open on Tuesday 17th April 2012 Diamond Jubilee RAB will be closed on Tuesday 5th and Friday 8th June 2012. Summer Break RAB will be closed on Tuesday 24th July 2012 and will re-open on Tuesday 4th September 2012