A busy time for Hayling Island Businessmen’s Club. It has been a busy month for the Club with various meetings and events as we approach Christmas.

At the Club meeting on the 1^st November, members were delighted to welcome Peter Walmsley from the RNLI who gave an informative and interesting talk on the running of the Institute both locally and nationally. Members were surprised to learn of the tremendous amount of money that has to be raised by voluntary donations ever year to ensure that the RNLI continues to function. The Institute is currently on a major recruitment campaign and any one interested in finding out more should e mail them on hayling-island@rnli.org.uk.

During the month, members were pleased to agree the following donations:

Mengham Junior School to help with the setting up of a Nurture Group which will give support to children who have a range of emotional needs

British Red Cross to assist with fund raising at their Christmas Fayre

The Piggies came back to Hayling on Saturday 17^th when well over 100 Islanders enjoyed a night out at the annual HIBC Pig Race Night. Fortunes were won and lost during some exciting and hard fought races followed by a fish and chip supper and surprise raffle supported by several local organisations and traders. Before the final race, the Pigs were auctioned to ensure that at least one lucky person went home with the bacon! The Club’s thanks go to everyone who attended and the following for their generous support which helped raise nearly £1000 on the night.

Hayling Hardare                                                       Langstone Hotel

Sinah Warren Leisure Hotel                                    Terracotta Pot Shop

Haydens Garage                                                        Station Theatre

ECOProducts                                                           Rowanberries Associates

Cameron Developments                                           Bolton Building Services

Pullingers Interiors

Wednesday 21^st November saw over 250 “not so old” senior citizens enjoy a wonderful afternoon at the annual HIBC Christmas Party arranged in conjunction with Sinah Warren Leisure Hotel. The Sinah team provided the entertainment with an immaculate performance of Jack and the Beanstalk amid much rapport from the guests. Following tea and cake, the audience was invited to join in with their own rendition of The Twelve Days of Christmas led by energetic members of the pantomime cast. Judging by the smiling faces the afternoon was a great success. Club committee and members would like to sincerely thank the staff and entertainments team at Sinah Warren for their considerable generosity and kindness shown to the Island’s senior citizens and for laying on this annual event.

It was also a super day for the Club when secretary Malcolm Newnes was presented with a cheque for £700 by Sinah entertainer Callum McFaden, being the proceeds from the Hotel’s annual charity fund raising events.

Look out for Father Christmas and his helpers at Mengham shops on Thursday 20^th December when Club members will be out with their collecting tins come rain, hail or shine. We never cease to be amazed at the generosity of Islanders particularly in these austere times but rest assured that every last penny raised goes towards the running of the Community Bus and other local causes.

125 Club Winners

October           £50      Number 79

October           £50      Number 115

November       £200    Number 25

November       £50      Number 84

November       50        Number 26

Report by John Cushion

The piggies are on their way to Hayling and will be on their starting blocks in the Community Hall on November 17th. Tickets for the second running of the HIBC Pig Race Night are now selling fast and a capacity race crowd is anticipated. The event is planned as a family night out with children welcome at the reduced price of £5 which includes a fish & chip supper Adult tickets are priced at £8 which also includes the race card

Pig sponsorships are still available by contacting Club Secretary Malcolm Newnes at secretary@hibc.org.uk and tickets are available form the following outlets. Please remember that all proceeds go towards the running of the Community Bus and other worthwhile local causes.
 
The Lions Community Shop in Mengham
Haydens Garage in West Town on 023 9246 2660
Hayling Community Centre in West Town on 023 9246 7562
Belmont Hairdressers in West Town on 023 9246 8721
Morris Dibben in Mengham on 023 9246 5942
Geoff Foot Estate Agents in Mengham on 023 9246 1666
 
The first performance of the HIADS production of Calendar Girls at the Station Theatre was enjoyed by over 100 senior citizens paid for by the Businessmen’s Club. Sponsorship of HIADS by the club is a regular event and numerous productions have been enjoyed by large audiences over many years. Following the tremendous success of our British athletes in the Olympics the Club is determined to promote local sport by offering a Sports Person of the Year award to Hayling College. This will be a monetary award accompanied by a suitable trophy and will complement the Wally Egan award which the Club already sponsors for academic achievements at the College.
 
Club assistant secretary John Greenland will undertake the running of a HIBC stall at the Lions Christmas Party scheduled for December 1st to be held at the Community Centre. John has appealed to club members for useful gifts for sale. All funds to local worthy causes.
 
The club has received a request from Alan Bartlett, the Publicity Officer for the Hayling Island Branch of the RNLI, to attend a luncheon and give a short presentation to the Club about the critical manning levels at the RNLI. Consequently an invitation has been extended for Alan to come along to the November meeting.

Hayling Island Businessmen’s Club Report By John Cushion

HAYLING ISLAND BUSINESSMEN’S CLUB

Arrangements for the Pig Race night to be held at the Community Hall on Saturday 17^th November are now well under way. When the event was held for the first time last year more than 150 Islanders enjoyed an exciting evening of squeaking pigs outdoing one another to become race champion. It is expected that there will be a huge demand for tickets which are priced at £8 per adult and £5 for children under 12 years of age which includes a race card and fish and chip supper. With capacity at the Community Centre limited to 200, tickets may be in short supply so please buy early.. The Club is still looking for local businesses or individuals to Sponsor a Pig, all proceeds going to local good causes.

Following extensive repairs and servicing, the Community Bus is now back on the road and fully in use. The Bus will shortly be given a new livery which will include acknowledgements in recognition of the financial support received from various local businesses and organisations.

With all income from the Barbeque now in and all bills paid, Club Treasurer, Glenroy Van Baskerville reported net proceeds amounting to an amazing £4000 all of which will be used for the running of the Community Bus and other local worthy causes. As reported in last month’s edition of the Islander, members devote a great deal of time and energy to the Barbeque which is the Club’s main fund raising event of the year and it is good that these efforts have been justly rewarded.

The senior citizens Christmas Party is due to be held again courtesy of Sinah Warren Hotel on Wednesday 21^st November. The Club arranges the party every year in conjunction with Sinah Warren and up to 300 senior citizens attend. Invitations will shortly be distributed to local organisations.

125 Club

August Draw             £50 – 64            £50 – 125            £200 – 96

September Draw            £50 – 47            £50 – 107

Member Profile – John Cottle

Born in North Hayling in 1937, John has been a Club member since 1975 and continues to be actively involved as Club Services Chairman. He served as Club Chairman in 1979 and 1991 and was honoured in 2009 with a lifetime membership in recognition of his many years service to the Club of which he is very proud. In addition to HIBC, John has been involved in many other organisations on Hayling over the years and feels very fortunate to have lived on the Island and been part of its community.

John’s school days were spent at the old Hayling Council School which at the time was the only “none private” school on the Island. Following a 5 year apprenticeship with a large construction company. John qualified as a plumber and after 2 years National Service started his own plumbing and heating business which he continued until his retirement in 2002. John married Iris in 1959 and has a daughter Sharon and two sons Graham and Stephen, the former having taken over the family business in 2002.  

Report

John Cushion

With the club in recess for August it is time to reflect on meetings and other events that arose earlier in the summer some of which were overshadowed by the organisation of the barbeque.

The Wally Egan award was made by club Chairman Ed Spencer to year 10 student Natalie King at Hayling college at the end of year assembly on July 20th. This annual monetary award and suitably engraved rose bowl is made in memory of Wally who served HIBC both as chairman and secretary for many years until his death in 2007. The college selected Natalie for the award because of the leadership and management qualities displayed by her, for being a good team worker and for putting into practice the experience she gained from business studies lessons during an enterprise day at the school. Many congratulations to Natalie.

At a meeting early in July, Langstone hotel managing director Clint Marsh gave a interesting and informative speech on his career in the hotel trade. Starting in the kitchens at a early age, Clint covered most aspects of the business over the years working with a number of hotel chains and gaining considerable experience along the way. He was appointed MD at the Langstone in 2009 and now lives happily on the island with his wife and two young children.

It was reported that the club’s mini bus will be off the road for two weeks during august for general maintenance and repair. There will also be additional sign writing to acknowledge to generous donations from the island organisations to assist the running of the mini bus.

During the month, the committee agreed to donate an amount of £100 and raffle prizes to buddies, a support group for the disabled which operates out of Sunnyside hall. The group is trying to raise funds for a portable television and it is hoped that the clubs donation will assist them in achieving the aims.

The date for next years Annual barbeque has been set for Saturday July 13 and the first meeting of the barbeque committee is due to take place in September arranging the event involves a great deal of hard work.

The date for the pig race night to be held at the community hall has been set for Saturday, November 17th. held for the first time last year, this turned out to be a very popular evening and an even better and bigger event is planned for this year. the club is looking for local businesses and individuals to sponsor a pig, all proceeds go to local good causes.

LATE NEWS
An extremely generous donation had been received from Geoff Foot Estate Agents. In an ongoing arrangement with the club, “Foots” make a donation for every letting the complete during the year. The cheque was presented to club trustee Phill Gooch by ‘Foots’ manager Jan Haines on July 27 (pictured). The donation is very welcome at a time when the mini bus is undergoing an extensive maintenance programme in readiness for the winter.

It all turned out right on the night!

The rain held off (well almost), the food was excellent, the entertainment was lively and by the look on most faces, nearly 400 party goers at the Annual Barbeque had a wonderful evening. Determined not to be beaten by the weather, Club members, friends and relatives toiled untiringly from very early morning to turn the barn at Northney Farm into the Island’s top party venue for an event which is normally held outside. Work finished just in time for the arrival of the first guests, the rain stopped and soon the beef was being carved, the burgers and sausages sizzling and the beer and wine flowing. The various side stalls were kept busy all evening and dancing to Bogus Quo and DJ Malcolm Drew carried on far into the night. And the reward for all the hard work and support? Proceeds of several thousand pounds towards the running of the HIBC Community Bus and other worthwhile causes on the Island in the coming year. A truly remarkable effort!

The Club committee would like to thank the following for their support, ticket sales, supply of equipment and an enormous amount of help before and on the night:

Stan and Mary Pike of Northney Farm

Friends and relatives of Club Members (too numerous to mention individually)

The Lions Community Shop

Haydens Garage

Hayling Community Centre

Belmont Hairdressers

Morris Dibben

Geoff Foot Estate Agents

Stoke Fruit Farm

Northney Farm

Hayling Hardware

Above all, our sincere thanks to the residents of Hayling and the surrounding area for their attendance and support.

Treasure Hunt Winner : Bryn Williams

Barbeque Raffle Prize Winning Tickets

Yellow Ticket             98        Sue Fricker

Green Ticket               352      John Finch

Yellow Ticket             124      Sharon Blythe

Yellow Ticket             216      Lorna Culmaine

Yellow Ticket             52        Les H

Pink Ticket                  333      Name not given

Blue Ticket                  436      Not Claimed

If you are the holder of Blue ticket 436 serial number AM9P 3G47 then contact the Hon. Secretary Malcolm Newnes at secretary@hibc.org.uk for your prize.

In view of the extremely unkind weather so far this summer many local events have had to be cancelled or postponed. The North Hayling Summer Fete was one such event, previously arranged for 15^th July this has now been re-scheduled for Sunday 16^th September. In view of the change of date, the Businessmen’s Club has agreed to cancel their Family Fun Day previously arranged for the 8^th September to give support to the Fete.  However, the Club’s Pig Race Night will be held whatever the weather on 17^th November. Further details will be advertised later in the autumn.

Come rain or shine the Barbeque will be fine!!

With the continued unpredictable weather, contingency plans are well in place for this year’s ANNUAL BARBEQUE and the event will go ahead come rain or shine at Northney Farm, St Peter’s Road, North Hayling on Saturday 14^th July starting at 8.00pm. With the kind permission of farm owners Stan and Mary Pike the main barn will be available in the event of inclement weather with entertainment being provided by Status Quo tribute band, Bogus Quo supported by a lively disco, stalls and games. The ticket price of £16 per person includes all the food you can eat and there will also be competitively priced beer and soft drinks for sale as well as a wine bar. Tickets are selling out fast for this memorable night out and please remember that all PROCEEDS FROM THIS EVENT WILL GO TOWARDS THE RUNNING COSTS OF THE HAYLING ISLAND COMMUNITY BUS AND OTHER LOCAL BENEFICIARIES.

TICKETS STILL AVAILABLE from all Club members and the following outlets BUT HURRY!

The Lions Community Shop in Mengham

Haydens Garage in West Town on 02392 462660

Hayling Community Centre in West Town on 02392 467 562

Belmont Hairdressers in West Town  on 02392 468721

Morris Dibben in Mengham on 02392 465942

Geoff Foot Estate Agents in Mengham on 02392 461666

 At the Club meeting on 24^th May, the Club was pleased to welcome Peter Chinn and Mike Bartholomew from Sailability who gave an interesting overview of the work being carried out by their organisation to give disabled people the opportunity of taking to the water  Sailability operates from Langstone Sailing Club and last year provided over 700 hours of sailing and boating experience on a completely voluntary basis. HIBC are pleased to have been able to help this very worth cause with a recent donation.

Report from Hayling Island Businessmen’s Club

John Cushion