The follow-up meeting to the April 2001 reunion, postponed from June because of Cardinal Winning's death, finally took place on 12 October in the church hall of St Bridget's parish, Baillieston, near Glasgow. The turn-out was perhaps predictably low on a miserable night on what for many was the start of the October school break. The ad hoc committee had received a number of apologies in advance.
However, there were enough people there to allow the meeting to proceed. The main business of the evening was to consider the draft constitution, and this was duly done. It was agreed, after several alternatives were debated, that the organisation should be known as 'Friends of Blairs', on the basis that this was felt to be more open and inclusive and less formal than, for example, 'The Blairs Association' or 'The Blairs Society'. The meeting agreed that this name would better indicate the intended membership, which should encompass not only past pupils and staff, but anyone who had an association with the college.
A few fairly minor changes to the constitution were agreed, but a number of points were raised on which legal advice is being sought, for example on the question of limited liability. Those present recognised that the constitution needed to be broad enough to allow the association to encompass any matters which were of appropriate concern to members, and to extend its activities beyond the purely social. It was also agreed that one specific project should be to commission a full history of the college.The amended constitution was adopted subject to the legal advice noted above..
It was agreed that an annual membership fee should be set at £10.00, an amount small enough not to deter potential members, yet sufficient to give the association some much needed funds. It was also agreed that there should be an annual reunion at the college (it is hoped to hold next year's at the beginning of June), and that there should be an annual mass for deceased ex-pupils and staff to be held in November each year, beginning in 2002. Monsignor John McIntyre agreed to act as chaplain to the association.
Present at the meeting were: John Adams, Dave McCann, Charles McLaughlin, Jim Cassidy, Ian Forbes, John Brown, Patrick Brown, Brian McGuire, and Monsignor John McIntyre. All present, with the exception of Monsignor McIntyre and Patrick Brown, were elected onto the committee together with, in their absence, Peter Gorman and Martin Airlie; John Adams as chairperson, Jim Cassidy as secretary and Charles McLaughlin as treasurer. A full minute, along with the amendments to the constitution, will be posted on the site as soon as possible.
The committee would like to thank St Bridget's parish, and Monsignor McIntyre in particular, for the use of their hall for the meeting. |
