Wonderful weather, wonderful glass, wonderful people. That was the setting for the club meeting on 23 June at the home of Allan and Althea Farrell in Darawank, NSW. Allan even arranged an obstacle course entry to his home to get our senses sharpened in preparation. Thanks Allan! J In total, 29 members made the trek north to Darawank, and a great time was had by all, as can be seen by the various photos I have included here. It was also the annual general meeting of the club, and a new Executive Committee was elected to guide the club through the next 12 months. I would like to take this opportunity to thank those members of last year’s Executive Committee who are not continuing, to welcome on board the new committee members joining us for the coming year, and to thank members for entrusting me with the Presidency for another year. I am sure the next 12 months are going to be just as enjoyable and rewarding for us all as the past few years have, hopefully even more so.

There was some beautiful glass on display on the ‘Show & Tell’ table at the June meeting, with most people joining in the spirit of the theme for the meeting which was Plates. There was some beauties! There were also lots of other interesting pieces brought along by members to excite us.

Our chairman of club raffles, Patrice Charnay, did a stirling job again, selling over $100 worth of raffles tickets, and most members took home some nice gifts. Thanks to Patrice for his efforts, and to everyone for buying lots of tickets. Bob Friend also kindly donated a beautiful piece of carnival glass to the club which we auctioned off. One member took home a nice piece of glass, and the club profited as well. Thank you very much Bob!

Allan made sure that no-one went thirsty, and we all basked in the beautiful sunshine while we ate our lunch.

A group of members also took the opportunity to gather together for dinner on the Saturday night at the Forster Bowls Club, and another group gathered together on the Sunday night for dinner at the Tuncurry Sports Club. Most members now take the opportunity to make a real weekend of these ‘out of Sydney’ meetings, and lots of fun is had by all. See what you are missing out on if you don’t join us?

As we embark on a new club year, I am pleased to report that the club remains in a sound financial position, membership is on the rise again, and attendances at meetings is also on the rise again – even at meetings away from Sydney! Everything is looking rosy for the future. So if you haven’t been to a club meeting recently, why not make plans to attend one soon. Our September meeting is in Canberra, so it’s a good opportunity for some of our Canberra members we haven’t seen in a while, and those living nearby, to come along. Let’s see if we can break that 30 member mark for attendance. I’m sure we can.

The theme for this meeting will be ‘Animals’. So dig out all your special or unusual pieces with an animal theme and bring them along to show us.

A number of members will be gathering for dinner on the Saturday night at a nearby club, so if you would like to join us please contact Wayne or Rhonda Delahoy by Friday night, 20 September, so they can confirm the reservation at the club for the right number of people.

At this meeting we will be setting the meeting agenda for next year, so please come along prepared to talk about dates, locations, and themes.

Take care everyone, and happy carnival glass hunting!

Wayne Delahoy
President