Notice to Members - Communication

Contemporary image of the 1874 Thorpe Train Disaster

I have received some feedback that some people are a bit frustrated that we don't always post information about our coming meetings on this blog or the club's Facebook page. As I explained at our last gathering of members, due to the great demands upon my time there will often be times when I simply don't have the capacity to do this. Rest assured though: no matter where we are going or what we are doing, we will ALWAYS meet at Marzano's Cafe every Tuesday morning, 10:30-11:00. If this is cancelled for any reason, I will be sure to post it here and on the Facebook page in advance. 

However, having thought about it a bit deeper, I'm not actually sure I'd want to anyway. Why? 

Firstly, part of the club's unique purpose is to be a place to meet, mix and socialise. With that in mind, I hope members would want to attend regardless of the subject. 

Secondly, we will never have a detailed schedule mapped out in advance - in part because we want the capacity/flexibility to have a programme of activities that responds to members interests as they develop. For instance, if it becomes apparent that the group want a speaker to talk about, say, Norfolk in the First World War and our programme is booked a year in advance we won't be able to meet that interest in reasonable time. 

Thirdly, there is a really strong case for the 'suck it and see' approach. In other words, if you see a subject advertised you may think you won't be interested, when, in fact, you would get a pleasant surprise if you had turned up. A case in point was our Vice Chair, Nick Bowen's recent excellent presentation about the 1874 Thorpe Train Disaster. Several members who attended said that prior to the talk they wondered if a talk about trains was for them, but due to Nick's hard work, passion and skill it turned out to be one of the most popular talks we've ever had. Stumble and see!