Chairman's Newsletter - December 2016
Posted 18th December 2016
Hello everyone
This is just an excuse to remind you of a few important items at the same time as wishing you all a very Happy Christmas and a prosperous and healthy New Year 2017.
NEW COMMITTEE - there is a welcome new face helping to run our club following her election at the AGM. Judy Evans has kindly offered to join our Committee and will be looking after the Wimbledon ballot initially.
COURT AVAILABILITY THIS WEEK - Jake is holding tennis camps on Thursday 22 and Friday 23 December so please be aware the courts might be very busy, especially on Friday morning.
JUNIORS PLAYING IN ADULT CLUB SESSION - the Committee recently confirmed our long standing arrangement to welcome juniors into the Saturday afternoon adult club session. But we do recognise this can give rise to concerns about safety and the quality of play if the youngsters are not sufficiently confident or play to a suitable standard. So it has been decided that juniors must first satisfy Jake that they are ready, and no juniors other than those approved by Jake will in future be allowed to join the adult club play session. This is a decision I hope all members will support and respect - as it is designed to help meet the wishes and genuine concerns of all members.
JUNIOR LEAGUE TEAMS NEXT SUMMER - as soon as the New Year arrives we will have to finalise our junior league teams for next summer. There are events for all ages from 5 to 18. So if your child wishes to play for the club please let Nigel Jordan know immediately.
JUNIOR CLUB SESSION - SATURDAYS 1pm to 2pm. This is a reminder that junior club session is free and open to all youngsters regardless of the colour ball they usually play. Martin Curzey supervises so this is a safe session in which to allow your youngsters a little freedom.
WIMBLEDON BALLOT - the February deadline will arrive very quickly once we get into the new calendar year. So when you get a few moments over the holiday period please log into your British Tennis Membership account on the LTA website and opt-in for Wimbledon tickets.
AMERICAN TOURNAMENT POINTS RACE - the winner of the 2016 event was announced at the AGM. Martin Partridge had accumulated the most points and collected his bottle of champagne. In 2017 there will be nine events counting towards the overall prize, and the first two events are on Saturday 21 January and Saturday 11 February.
OLD WILSONIANS' ASSOCIATION DINNER - Friday 24 February. There is a new arrangement this year which sees the dinner being hosted at Wilson's School. All members of each sports section are invited and allowed to take partners. There will be a coach from the club to and from the school. If you've never actually seen the school, here's your chance!
KENT TENNIS AWARDS - Kem Hassan has been shortlisted as Kent Tennis Volunteer of the Year. Many congratulation to Kem - this recognition is richly deserved. The club has also been shortlisted for the second successive year for the Club of the Year award. These awards will be announced and presented at the Awards Dinner on Saturday 18 March - held at Wildernesse Club in Seal near Maidstone. This was a terrific evening last year so I hope even more members from the club come along this time.
CLUBFORCE WEEKEND - takes place between Friday 21 April and Sunday 23 April. Please reserve the dates in your diaries to help support the club, giving some time to keep our maintenance costs down.
NOVICE AND IMPROVER LADIES CLASSES - we have some grant money which will allow us to run some FREE classes on Wednesdaymornings after Easter, probably starting at 9.30am and 10.30am for ladies who are new to tennis, or who haven't been members of the club. So this is advance notice to all Colts and junior parents who might wish to take these six free lessons at the club, and see whether you enjoy our sport. More information will be available in the spring. If you are interested please let Nigel and Jake know.
VOLUNTEER NEEDED - SATURDAY 1 APRIL - We will shortly publish our calendar of events for 2017. We have volunteers in place for each event except the Brian Morley Tournament - which is our traditional Opening of Season event. It follows the usual American Tournament format so if you are prepared to organise that please let us know.
Looking forward to seeing you all on court after the excesses of Christmas and the New Year period. Enjoy!!
NIGEL JORDAN
CHAIRMAN OWLTC
Old Wilsonians Lawn Tennis Club
