Hello all,

The RYC 2008/9 Prizegiving and AGM this past weekend can only be described as a huge success!

After a really fantastic and very successful year of sailing we closed the year with a full house of members in attendance at both the AGM and prizegiving.

A total of 216 medals were awarded to the winners of each class event sailed during the past season and over twenty trophies were awarded. The full list of trophy and medal awards may be viewed by clicking here.

During the past year RYC members sailed and completed fifteen race series, competed against each other in a total of fifty four class events and participated in three inter club as well as two provincial, a national and the annual East Cape Inter School regatta. An awesome feat for any dinghy sailing club and one every RYC member is able to be proud of!

Our Club has also grown in number of members and boats on the water. This is most encouraging and bodes well for a bright future of our club and the sport.

I would like to express the thanks and gratitude of every member of our Club to the committee, our secretary, our rescue craft skippers, the bridge and the galley teams for the time and effort that they have unselfishly given to the Club which has allowed us to enjoy so much sailing this year. Thank you very much to each of you.

The RYC Annual General Meeting that preceded the prizegiving proved once again that Redhouse Yacht Club members have a quality and unity found in very few clubs today.

It is this spirit and comradeship that has grown our Club and kept it sailing for over 105 years and is something we must cherish and jealously guard.

The AGM nominated and elected four new members to the Clubs executive committee to fill positions left vacant by some of our most hard working and longest serving members who asked permission to step aside so that new blood could continue adding to the sound foundation that they have built over the past years. The remaining members of the executive were all re-elected to serve a further term of office.

A unanimous vote of thanks is deserved and awarded to the outgoing committee members Peter Senn, Rhona Clark, Don Robertson and Laurie Woodhead.

The 2009/10 Redhouse Yacht Club executive committee elected to serve the Club and its members during the following year are:

Paul Pettitt - Commodore
Andrew Butler - Vice Commodore
Benno Badenhuizen - Treasurer
Esme' Girldestone - Secretary
Di Robertson - Bridge Officer
Anton Viviers - Club Handicaper / Scorer
Robin Waters - House and Grounds Officer
Stephen Arnold - Sail Training Officer
Eugen Tulleken - Hospitality & PR Officer

I congratulate the 2009/10 executive committee on their nomination and election and look forward to working with them during the following year.

Other important issues dealt with at the AGM were:

• 2009/10 Club Subscriptions: The motion proposed to increase the Club membership subscription fees and to reflect Club and SAS subscriptions separately on membership accounts was accepted.
  
  I stress that our members are more important than money and that any member who may encounter difficulty in completing payment of the increased club subscription may privately approach any of the Club committee members, advise them accordingly and provision will be made for that member.
  
  Our pensioner members are likewise reminded that they too just need whisper their request for the 50% pensioner rebate to any committee member to receive it.
  
  We value our members and their support and under no circumstances will RYC allow affordability to play any part in a member choosing to not renew their membership. I personally promise any member needing to request a subscription rebate that confidentiality is assured.
  
  
• Junior Sailing Committee: The motion to create a semi-autonomous Junior Sailing Committee reporting directly to the executive committee was accepted.
  
  
• Building Renovations Fund: It was announced that in excess of R36,000 has already been raised and pledged toward the building renovations fund. We are still a few rands short and donations of money, building material and even labour remain most welcome.

As soon as the minutes of the AGM have been completed they will be posted on the Club web site.

The 2009/10 RYC Sailing Program has been published and is now able to viewed and downloaded on the Club web site.

The new program is a full and exciting program both for sailing and social activity. A few changes to it are to be expected between now and the start of the new sailing season as are the addition of several more social events.

I really look forward to another year of sailing with you, at what has to be the best Club in our city, and thank you all very much for the contribution, be it on or off the water, that you have made during the past year to Redhouse Yacht Club.

Yours in sailing

PAUL PETTITT
Commodore
041 581-5394

P.S.: Please email any photographs you have of the prizegiving to me at paulpettitt@ryc.co.za - the best of which will be submited to SA Sailing magazine for publishing.

RYC 2008/9 Prizegiving - Photo by Jenny Zurcher