Hi Everyone,
Looking at the number of people coming in for lunch today wearing coats it would be a fair assumption that the winter weather is now upon us. The first southerly blast has seen snow fall in the far south and a good scattering on the mountains around us. Fortunately our air-conditioning units seem to have settled down again and we are maintaining a more even temperature of 22 degrees in the main areas.
If you’re feeling the cold and want a good belly warming meal then come down and try the seafood chowder or a hot pot with mash. Both are a great meal to have while watching the game on the big screen. The super 15 is in full swing as is the tipping game that some of you take part in. I hope you like the bar specials we have on offer during the games.
For weekly updates of what’s on at the club refer to the screens in the bar and the table talkers. Housie is continuing to be a popular afternoon event on a Monday, so for a great social outing with a chance to win a bit of money you can’t go past an afternoon of housie. Come along and join in from 1pm.
Club of Marlborough Bus Trip
Last Saturday a bus load of us travelled over to Club’s of Marlborough for a social day out. Everyone had a great day participating in the Blenheim clubs activities and enjoyed one another’s company. Moana entertained us all with her ukulele there and back again. Mike & Leigh Bromell supplied the buses which were expertly driven by Mike himself and our very own President, Jim Reeves. Clubs of Marlborough has thanked us for our visit and look forward to a reciprocal visit to our club in the near future. I’ll keep you all posted as to when that will happen as I’m sure those of you who like to take part in our social and sport sections, will enjoy the opportunity to challenge the visiting club to a game of Darts – Pool – Snooker etc.
TAB Clubs SUPER SATURDAY DRAW - Saturday 7 June
Talking of sport you mustn’t forget to come down on Saturday 7th June to take a bet on the clubs TAB. Every Club’s NZ Club will have a thousand dollars to give away and you could win it simply by being here and having a bet. Check out the detail below.
We have just been given all the details for the next Super Saturday $1,000 draw which will be taking place on Saturday 7th June. All bets placed within a Club TAB site from the time it opens until 5.30pm will be eligible to enter the draw. Members will write their name and membership numbers on the back of their betting ticket(s) and place it in the barrel provided by the Club. The member's name and membership number will be announced by a club official and the winner will have 2 minutes to come forward. If no-one comes forward to claim within that time, an additional ticket will be drawn every 2 minutes until a winner comes forward or the barrel is empty. Come on down and get in the draw.
South Island Ladies 8 Ball Championship
It was great to hear today that our very own Clare Shanaher won the South Island Ladies 8 Ball Championship tournament held in Timaru just recently. What a fantastic result for Clare and the pool section. When you next see Clare be sure to congratulate her. Well done Clare. On behalf of the Club Congratulations.
LIVE SHOW - SUPERSTARS TRIBUTE SHOW - Saturday 7 June
We still have tickets available for the Madsen Promotions Superstars Tribute show coming to the Club on Saturday 7th June. This will be a great show featuring their take on Queen – The bee Gees – The Johnnys – The Eagle - Elvis and Neil Diamond. Members $10 Non Members $15.
Bar Pricing
We have just been advised of the breweries increases in pricing due to take effect. I will look at our pricing structure on bar prices to see if we can absorb the increase or whether we look at offsetting the increase by adding the increase on and then not having such a big discount on our happy hour prices. I’m sure many of you will offer your point of view on the matter once we decide what we are going to do. We get fairly regular feedback from members advising us of the pricing differences between us and the other venues they visit. We also phone around and take notice of our competitors pricing. I believe that it swings and round abouts and there will always be competitors out there who are prepared to drop their pants to get our members in their door. Don’t forget to swipe your membership card to receive your loyalty points on every purchase in the bar, restaurant and café. Points can be used to pay for your purchase which is another saving that you may not get at many other venues.
Thank you to our Volunteers!
I would like to say thank you to all of the members we have who give their time voluntary to help out around the Club with odd jobs etc. We wouldn’t be able to afford to continue to offer the Pick-up and Drop-off service, kill the weeds and keep the outside of the building tidy (amongst many other tasks) without their time and support. These people are amazing for the wonderful things they do for this club. If you know them and run into them next time you are in the Club take the time to show your appreciation too.
- Bert Walker- He takes care of the car park and grounds. He calls Housie every Monday.
- Colin Wilkin – He does some of our repairs and maintenance.
- Moana Payn – Although Moana is our vice president she spends many hours organising the raffles and our executive team with their monthly duty roster. She is also part of the Housie voluntary team.
- John Williscroft – He cleans the courtesy vans inside & out. It’s hard to turn a “pigs ear into a silk purse” but those old vans haven’t been so well taken care of in years since John offered to look after them
- To all of our coach drivers who give up their Friday & Saturday evenings to drive.
- Kerry Reid – Colin Wilkin – Brian Tones – Shirley Dick – Kelvin Banks – Grant Phillips – James Nelson – Rowan Flynn – Robert Wilson – Paul & Robyn Wigzell – Garth Scott – Bert Walker – Bob Finlayson – Tony Mills.
- Kevin Banks – He does any repairs to the furniture you all sit on.
- Victor Frew – He helps staff to remove the bags of rubbish and cardboard boxes.
- Sorry If I have forgotten anyone.
Your Place, Your Club... An update
In my last update I highlighted to you all the need to use the Club or face the possibility of losing it. The feedback I have had regarding my comment was that there are some people who were not happy about it. To those people or anyone else that found my comment offensive; I apologise. It was in no way whatsoever meant to be offensive to any member. The Club most definitely appreciates the patronage and support of all members who contribute to the revenue. However on the flip side I feel I would be remiss if I didn’t tell you that the tide is running low on our finances and the only way to top up the coffers is for every member to be a regular user of the club and to make a purchase.
Over the last few weeks myself and the staff have been fielding questions from members concerning the rumours that a religious organisation is buying the club. I have not responded or commented to these as there is no point fueling the fire so to speak. However in saying that, there is no point saying that we haven’t been approached by someone. There are always developers and businesses out there looking. The club has been recently approached by a property manager who has indicated that there is a group who may be interested in purchasing the land and building if we were thinking of selling it. There is no confirmed written interest or any offer to consider, nor any indication from the property manager as to whom the interested party is.
As you will already be aware the club is struggling financially. We are looking at all options available to us at the present time to reduce the clubs debt. No decisions as to the clubs future in whatever form can be made without the membership being consulted first via a special meeting. I hope this helps to clear up the rumours for you.
Club Membership Renewals
Very soon we will be sending you all your 2014/15 subs renewal notices. We are offering a $5pp early bird discount this year. Subs are due by 31st July so please take advantage of the early bird offer to save money. Payment from August 1st will be $5pp more.
Read this week's full version of the newsletter here.
That’s it from me. Keep warm everyone and see you at your club.
Regards
Rob Finlayson
General Manager