THE OLD
Wellingburian
NEWSLETTER Michaelmas 2024
The Old Wellingburian Club
Est. 1897
Welcome from Sophie Welcome from Sophie
Hello, everyone and welcome to the latest edition of the E-newsletter. The end of my OW Presidency is fast approaching and I have enjoyed it immensely. Since the last edition, there has been lots happening as you will see from all the news in this edition and it is really lovely to see so much activity across clubs and year groups. I wanted to start by reflecting on some of the changes we are considering in terms of the running of the OW Club. The Club was formed in 1897 and remains a great resource for staying in touch with each other and with the school. We are also very lucky to have the support of the Foundation Office to keep the club going administratively. I personally have valued enormously the support I have had from Graham and Katie during my Presidential year as I try to juggle a busy career, my daughter’s GCSEs and the responsibilities of the role. We are all living in an increasingly 24/7 world and the reality of this is that we are finding it harder to find volunteers who can give up their time to lead the Club. As such, we are proposing to the AGM on 9 November that we will have a Chair of the OW Club who will look after the day to day running of the Club and to introduce a more ceremonial President role. Graham has kindly volunteered to assume the role of Chair for 2025, subject to AGM ratification, and I would like to extend my thanks to him for that. We are also on the lookout for OWs to join as new committee members so that we are continuing to provide fresh ideas of what the club can offer. If you think this might be something you are keen to get involved in, please have a look at the details on Page 2 or get in touch with me or any of the existing committee to find out more. And with that, onto events! It was a summer of sports with the annual OW vs School cricket and hockey matches in June, as well as the Cyril Grey golf tournament. I was also fortunate enough to attend the OW Rifle Club Veterans match and barbecue on a glorious summer’s evening in July at Bisley. It was great to see the club so active with OWs taking part across a number of generations. I was offered the chance to take part but, given I could hardly even see the target 600 yards away, wouldn’t have fancied my chances of actually hitting it! It’s wonderful our active clubs continue to thrive and to have an impressive array of fixtures throughout the year. I was also delighted to hear about the House, the 5-year and 20-year reunions, the OW Summer lunch and the CCF dinner that took place at the school. They all looked like great events and opportunities to catch up and reminisce. As a club, we are very fortunate that the school continues to welcome OWs back and to let us use the fabulous facilities and grounds to reconnect. I very much look forward to the OW Autumn Lunch on 9th November where there will be a further opportunity to see OWs before I hand over the reins. Finally, we have lots of updates from OWs in this edition of the newsletter so we are grateful to those who have got in touch. I hope you enjoy catching up on the news and please do keep them coming. So, I will close by saying it’s been an absolute honour to be your President for the last year and thank you to the committee for their support, insight and wisdom. I am staying involved with the Club and the Committee and am particularly focused on club communications and how we stay as engaged and as joined up as we can. So please do stay in touch, share your news and your views and take great care.
On the left is a photo taken from a RAF helicopter in 1945. On the right is a more recent photo.
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