IBM RETIREES CLUB (Midlands)
(www.retireesmidclub.org.uk)
Links to Booking Forms by individual events
Click here to see 2004 Diary
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March 2004 Newsletter
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Editorial
A sunny, if rather brisk, Sunday saw a party of members at the Hotel du Vin in Birmingham to enjoy lunch and afterwards be entertained by our speaker on 'Heraldry'. There was a fair amount of audience participation with questions and comments and as a result we overran by a considerable margin - this meant we did not have an opportunity of trying the snooker table in the next room which had a RED cloth. Thanks to Rick for organising the meal and wines. See separate item later for information about events that Adrian de Redman, our speaker, is involved with.
We have two events in March. The Chinese Banquet is on 17th - please note that members should arrive at 7 for 7:30. Don't forget the AGM on the 18th.
Looking ahead, you will find a booking form for the Summer Lunch with this Newsletter. The new location of the Old School House at Weeford near Lichfield offers an excellent menu and I can strongly recommend it from personal experience.
Please note that the Dog Racing at Hall Green will now be sometime around third week in October. Ray Castle, who is organising the event, will let us know the specific date later.
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Please contact Gordon Jones at gordon_jones@lineone.net or telephone 01455-556192, for all membership changes such as address, telephone number, e-mail address.
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Brian Wilson, Editor. Telephone: 01926-777710 e-mail: brian_h_wilson@msn.com
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Rambling Weekend - May 28th to 31st May 2004 (Organiser - Gordon Jones 01455-556192)
Final payments are now due and cheques should be returned with the booking form to the organiser by 8th April 2004, please.
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Summer Lunch at The Old School House, Weeford, Lichfield, Wednesday 9th June 2004 (organiser - Carole Robertson 0121-704 9677 or e-mail cal@qrob.fsnet.co.uk )
The February Newsletter gave the preliminary announcement for our Summer Lunch. This month there is a booking form to fill in so please enter your choices from the menu below on the form. As you can see, there is a wide choice which is based on the restaurant's normal lunch time table d'hote menu; however, if you have any special dietary requirements, please speak to the organiser in the first instance and confirm in the space provided on the form. The cost will be £14 per head (members and first guests only) - please return your booking form to the organiser by Wednesday 4th June so that your choices can be passed to the restaurant in good time.
Welcome drinks will be served from 12:30 and lunch will be served at 1:00. If you want to make a day of it, there are various items of interest in the area, not least Lichfield itself which has a very fine cathedral.
Menu
S1 Bread crumbed mushrooms filled with cream cheese, deep fried and served with a redcurrant sauce
S2 Fanned avocado served with prawns and pineapple with salad and Marie Rose sauce
S3 Fanned Galia melon with a selection of fresh fruit
S4 Freshly prepared tomato and basil soup with croutons
S5 Chicken and duck liver pate with Cumberland sauce and hot toast
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M1 Pan fried pork fillets with button onions, smoked bacon and mushrooms in a red wine sauce
M2 Poached Scottish salmon with julienne of carrots, mushrooms and prawns in a cream sauce
M3 Roast breast of chicken filled with pate, wrapped in bacon and served with a Madeira wine sauce
M4 Fillet of Sea Bass with spring onions, ginger in a Teriyaki sauce
M6 Marinated lamb shank, slow roasted with a mint & redcurrant jus served with mashed potato & parsnip crisps
M7 Mixed vegetable stroganoff served with rice
M8 Filo pastry basket filled with vegetables on a bed of noodles
All main dishes include a selection of fresh vegetables and potato. Dishes can be cooked plainly if preferred
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D1 Mango and ginger cheesecake served with fruit coulis
D2 Honey and nut torte
D3 Profiteroles served with a rich chocolate sauce
D4 Fresh local strawberries served with vanilla ice cream
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Fresh ground coffee with chocolate mints
How to get there? Weeford can be found West of Tamworth and East of Brownhills in the south-east triangle where the A38 crosses the A5.
If you travel southbound along the M42, exit Junction 10 and take the A5 westbound until you meet the A38; take the A38 southbound. You will see a left turn to Weeford within a few hundred yards. Take this turn and immediately turn right which will bring you to The Old School House (you can actually see it ahead of you).
If travelling along the A5 eastbound, proceed until you meet the A38, take the A38 southbound exit and then the Weeford turn as above.
If travelling northbound on the M42, you can either exit at Junction 10 and proceed along the A5 westbound as above, or you can exit at Junction 9 to follow the A446 marked for Lichfield then the A38 northbound. If you take the A38 option, go right round the roundabout at the A5 and proceed a few hundred yards along the A38 southbound until you see the Weeford turn.
If all else fails, ring the organiser!!
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Visit to RIAT, Fairford Air Display, Sunday July 18th 2004 (Organiser - Gordon Jones 01455-556192)
Thanks to all who responded to last month's Fairford advertisement. We decided to buy a few extra tickets (7) to make up the party and offer them to Retiree Club Members initally. Any which are left after this month we will offer to main club members and if there are any left then we will sell them to any one who would like to go.
The pricing for the trip, including ticket and return coach will be:
Retiree Club Member and first Guest £22.00 (£20)
Second and subsequent guests £27.00 (£24.95)
Figure in brackets if you do not wish to go on the coach. Coaches are supposed to have priority access and exit so there could be other advantages apart from the cost.
The coach will start from Lutterworth, it's operating base, and pick up at IBM Warwick and Stow on the Wold at Tesco.
If you would like some of the spare tickets please send booking form with a deposit of £10 per person to:
Gordon Jones, 34 MacAulay Road, Lutterworth, Leics., LE17 4XB
We will ask for the final payment at a later date.
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Eden Project & Lost Gardens of Helligan - 1st to 3rd October 2004 (Organiser - Iain Hewitt)
There are a few places left for this event, so if you want to go, please contact the organiser on 01295-670316 or e-mail iain.hewitt@tiscali.co.uk as soon as possible before filling in the booking form.
The cost per person is expected to be £100-120 (depending on numbers and the amount of subsidy available) for members and first guests to include executive coach travel to and from IBM Warwick, 2 nights half board at the 3 star Cliff Head Hotel, and admission charges to the Eden Project and Lost Gardens of Heligan. The cost for second guests will be £145 per head.
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IBM Birmingham Scotland and German Trips (organiser - Mike Cashmore 0121 745 9693)
Further to the note in the February Newsletter, the Scotland trip has had to be cancelled as there were not quite enough people for the minimum number required. However, the good news is that the German trip, scheduled for 15-18 October, is still on and the price is now confirmed as £150 per head. Contact the organiser for further details.
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Traffic Report
Many members who frequent the Warwick area will know of the continual problems that the Longbridge roundabout at the junction of the A46 and M40 causes. Well, the Highways Agency started work on March 1st to (hopefully) alleviate the pain and suffering - this work will take many weeks and the Highways Agency admit that it will add to the problem.
So the message is - find another way!!
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Personnel Matters
We regret to inform members of the deaths of Bob Gamble and Alan Jeffries who were both Customer Engineers in Nottingham Branch . Also Joan Jowitt, who retired in 1981and will be known to those who worked at Lyndon House in Birmingham. Our condolences to family and friends.
Many members, particularly ex Customer Engineers, will remember John Stennett. Sadly, John has suffered a stroke and is presently in a nursing home in Leamington Spa. If you would like further information, please contact Pat Hay on 01455-635000.
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