The MAFVA year of 2024/25 has seen a few changes of personnel, including the stepping down of Chairman Paul Gandy. Paul stepped up when we were in need of a chairman, and also took over the membership officer role when needed. The latter involved a long trip across from South Wales, plus sorting and storing the stock of back issues. A vital task, and we are grateful to Paul for his hard work.
Colin Knapp has taken over the role of Membership Officer, and has put his own stamp on the role with countless hours spent on sifting through the membership lists, chasing lapsed members, and simplifying the system.
Tom Cole has grasped the role of Treasurer by the neck, and with the help of various members, has ‘cleansed’ the MAFVA accounts, closed the non-functional accounts, and presented a much clearer picture of how we stand financially. By working closely with Colin, we now know when members have re-subbed (provided they follow the online and in-Tankette instructions!). Tom has also introduced the use of a franking machine which has not only reduced our postal costs (Due to rise again in April 2025), but reduced my workload in distribution of Tankette. My local Post Office ladies are also grateful as the overseas issues required manual input of Customs information…..
Robin has continued to provide Tankette on time (not that we have publication dates, just the promise of six issues per year…), and each issue has provided a lot of interesting articles as sent in by members. Tankette is what many members join for, so we have to maintain this high standard.
John ‘Many Hats’ Paulding continues to manage the website and with the support of Gary Mackenzie has overcome the various technical ‘challenges’ that have been thrown at us. He also deals with the various promotional items, and runs the competitions at the MAFVA Nationals each year.
Talking of the Nationals, Cambridge branch continues to organise, and Tom Cole has taken over the role of administrator to provide one PoC. Under his leadership the 2024 show went really well.
Chris continues to handle research enquiries, providing an essential service for MAFVA. He shares the duties on looking after the Facebook page with Mike Hector, which continues to attract new viewers, of whom many become members. Robert Lockie is providing support on many issues, bringing in his professional knowledge, and also supporting the Nationals competitions with the results spreadsheet.
When we needed a Secretary, Malcolm volunteered, as he has a lifetime of similar experience, and has brought fresh eyes to the committee. The fact that he is resident in France illustrates that the use of IT and Zoom meetings has really been grasped by MAFVA.
The future is now a lot brighter for MAFVA, but we must not rest on our laurels. We still need to be seen at shows, and attract new members. We also need to encourage members to contribute to MAFVA, and consider taking on committee roles.
Paul Middleton, President
MAFVA 1528