Chats from the Chair July 2019

[Nick & Ruth Anderson]

Chats from the Chair

July 2019

Hello Hobbyists

The AGM of the Independent Association of Hobbyists (aka the Hobby Owners Club) was held in June In Car Colston in Nottinghamshire. I think that it would be fair to say that those running the meeting were not overwhelmed by offers from members wanting to stand for the posts on the committee, having received only two volunteers for six posts. When nominations opened I was the one to put my hand up, so I now chair your club Fortunately other people volunteered to fill the other posts, as detailed below, so the previous committee were able to take some well-deserved rest, having steered the club through some difficult situations, with the introduction of new Data Protection laws, a new constitution and so on, and they leave with our sincere thanks. Fortunately Tony Charity has volunteered to stay on as treasurer, and is proving to be a valuable link between the new officers and what went before.

The new committee are :

General Secretary – Ruth Anderson generalsecretary@hobbyowners.org.uk
Treasurer – Tony Charity treasurer@hobbyowners.org.uk
Rally Coordinator – Peter Runagall rallycoordinator@hobbyowners.org.uk
Membership Secretary – Christine Runagall membership@hobbyowners.org.uk
Website oficer – Jacky Painter admin@hobbyowners.org.uk
Chair – Nick Anderson chair@hobbyowners.org.uk
For those members whom we haven’t yet met, Ruth and I are recently retired, and live in Cumbria. We are both relative newcomers to motor homing, having bought our first Hobby in 2016, and having joined IAH the same year. Since then we have made some good friends in the Club, and want to ensure that the club is there for others to benefit from in the future.

As with many voluntary organisations we face the challenge of constantly keeping up our appeal to existing members, whilst being able to recruit new people to keep the club thriving. One way in which we could contact these potential members is through social media. I was surprised to find that there are two Facebook groups dedicated to Hobby motorhomes. Jacky Painter has been busy setting up our own FB pages, just for IAH members to use. You can join it by typing ‘Independent Association of Hobbyists’ into your FB search engine and then applying to join it. It will be in addition to our website – which Jacky is also working to improve.

One of the things we enjoy most about the club are the rallies. I would encourage you all to look at your favourite sites, or anywhere suitable in your area, then talk to us about it. We have a rally pack which guides you through the simple steps you have to take to set up a rally, and we are there to offer advice and support. Since the AGM Jacky Painter has organised a rally in September just outside Devizes, and it would be great to have a good turnout. Details are on the IAH website.

We also meet up in the south of Spain over the winter. Ruth and I went to a site recommended by Lin and Mike Cousins 2 years ago, and liked it so much that we went back last winter with two other IAH members. This year six vans have said that they will be there, and a seventh is thinking about it. Please get in touch if this appeals to you.

There is a lot going on at the moment – it feels as if we have been thrown in at the deep end – but we are getting there, and I will be in touch again soon to keep you all posted.

In the meantime please keep looking at the website.

Regards, Nick Anderson, Chair

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