To you all, a very good morning, I will begin with the sad news of the passing of Mrs Mary Sprason who passed away yesterday after a fall down stares at there home in Tottington Bury. Mary has over the years looked after the Catering side of things at the old Wellington Bks and will be sadly missed. May I on behalf of the Association Lancashire offer to Tony our sincere condolences' and prayers at his time of grief.

Minden Day 2010.
Time is fast approaching this very important Regimental Day, Bury Football Club has been booked for our meeting place, prior to this there is a number of Fusilier Families who will be receiving the Elizabeth Crosse's on behalf of their Husbands who died in Northern Ireland, and to commemorate this there will be a Drum Head Service at 11-00am at the Memorial outside the Museum could I once more ask you all to get out your best bib and Tucks and get on parade for this very important occasion, and show these Families that those who have passed before us are never forgotten. Please get to the Memorial by no later then 10-40am, thank you.

Fusilier Gathering September 2010.
Could I ask you all to now get your names to the Association Secretary ver. your Branch Sectateries. We have to get all names to Warwick by the end of July all details are on the Website, it has the makings of an excellent weekend so do not miss out.
Fusilier Day at the Arboretum Staffordshire June 2011.
I am in the process of putting to-gather a Day out at the Arboretum in June of next year, I will on your behalf, invite all members of the Regimental Association ie the four Counties, it will take the form of a small parade followed by a Drum Head service at the Northern Ireland Grove and then Lunch in a large Marquee Area, I am hoping to have the Minden and Association Band Lancashire in attendance, so watch the website for details.

Gallipoli Weekend 2011.
This will take place on the week-end of the16-17th April 2011, the reason it is a week early is because I do not want to cut across Easter or the Bank Holladay the weekend after. So please get the dates in your dairies now, same location as last time all details will be posted on the Website.
In closing may I once again say how sad it was to see the Regimental Club close in May but a very large thank you has to be recorded to the Chairman and the Committee of the Club for all of their hard work over the years, thank you all for the marvellous support that you give to me each year and I hope to see a great turn out for Minden Day and the Gathering.

John O'Grady
Chairman.

Since I last wrote to you all in December 2009, I hope that you all enjoyed Christmas and New Year with your Families, January was a quite month, how ever we received the good news that the Regimental Club had it's lifeline extended to May of 2010, this allowing us to use it for the forthcoming Gallipoli weekend in April, I am hoping very much that we will have a full house for this occasion also prior to this once we have completed our short march through Bury on Gallipoli Sunday morning The Normandy Room at the Museum has been set aside for us to go and have a drink, the idea behind this is to see if further events for the Association can be held there,i.e., Minden Day, Fusilier Reunion days ect, I have also on your behalf carried out a series of visits to other locations in and around Bury with the same intentions in mind, there are The Bury Football Club, The Mônsonic Hall in Bury Centre. Eaton Social Club and others, and I am very pleased to be able to report that all of them were most welcome and offered us very good deals, once Gallipoli has passed and we see the outcome, I will speck to you all at the Club on Gallipoli Sunday.
February saw a very good Osnabruck/ Fusilier Reunion at the Club with an excellent turnout, thank you all for your continued support especially the Liverpool Lads who never fail to show up in numbers. The planned visit to the Arboretum on Sunday 28th March was a great success, some forty odd members and families turned up, our very good friends from the Royal Chelsea Penionsors and all of the bereaved families of our Regimental Members who have gone before us. A big thank you to Dennis Laverick (M.T.O.) Nobby Noble (Chelsea Penionsors) Steve Fitt (nominal Roll) and Maj Brian Bath (Tour Guild) for a truly excellent day. The downside of the visit was to see that the existing Memorials are now a little dated and are in need of an update, I am in the process of putting together a project to rectify this problem, it will cost money but no price can match the sacrifice those young men have made for their Regiment and Country. Lancashire will, with the approval of the Tower of London, organise a Regimental Day for all members of the Regimental Association at the Arboretum in June 2011, clearer details will be published once clearance is received from Regimental Headquarters.
Gallipoli is once again upon us and I am very pleased with the response for the large numbers attending the Dinner on Saturday 24th at Radcliffe Civic Centre, look at the Website for the details, lets hope the Sun is shining on Bury on Gallipoli Sunday morning and I hope to see a good number of you on parade in the Drill Hall prior to the Church Service, please make the effort to get there it means so much to the people of Bury.

You will see the most recent copy on the Association Accounts attached to this Chairman's letter I am very pleased with the steady growth of new members and am pleased to report that the accounts are now in a much healthier state of affairs then they have been for a long time, this is down to the hard work of Ron Owen, Steve Fitt and the excellent information give out by our Webmaster Dennis Laverick, my thanks also goes to Maj (Rtd) Jennifer Hindshaw for her continued hard work in keeping the accounts in order, should there be any questions regarding the accounts then they should be address to me direct or in writing to my home address, I will be very happy to discuss them with any paid up member of the Association.
In closing Gentlemen can I thank you all for the vast support that you have made to the Gatherings, Parades, Functions, Funeral Services and everything else that you do for the Association Lancashire.
Turn up in numbers and you will be heard.

John O'Grady
Chairman.
Click on any of the underline sections in white and it will take you to that page
The Accounts are coming by pigeon post and be on the Accounts page in a couple of days

It is with pleasure that I have the chance to open this short news letter to you all with the excellent news that on your behalf I bid a very warm welcome to the Association of Shiny D Company, at their last meeting I was informed by the Chairman that it had been voted unanimously that Shiny D become a fully paid up Branch of the Association, most of you will know from history the fine reputation that has placed them in the top three of any Company within the Territorial Army, I can recall from my 15 years with them that 5 RRF were pushed to have a training weekend with out the sheer strength of Shiny D, never less then 150 members turning up for Annual Camp regardless of where the Camp might be, so to you all a very big welcome back, I look forward to seeing you all at the forthcoming event’s.
The forecast of event’s for 2010 are now on the website thanks to Dennis so please read and book early for the events, THE GATHERING for September 2010 at Warwickshire is also listed and you know we must turn up in numbers on all of these occasions.
T he Oldham Branch Dinner in early December at the Britannia Hotel in Stockport was again a credit to Ron Owen and Alan Noble, great turnout and to Mr Tony Harrob, a very sincere thank you for the fantastic job done in raising so much money for the Fusilier Aid Society with the raffle of the signed H.R.H T-shirt signed by His Royal Highness the Duke of Kent.
In all gentlemen a very good year for Lancashire and I thank you all sincerely for your continued support on all of the occasions I have asked for your help, in closing may I once again wish you and your loved ones a very happy, holy and peaceful Christmas and New Year, and to all who keep the Association Lancashire alive thank you.

John O’Grady
Chairman.

Since my last letter to you all things have been a little quite, the Remembrance Day service at Salford was a great turn out for the Association and my sincere thanks go to you all for making the effort to turn up, my thanks to Peter Flannerey and Colin Dunning for their help in organisation the event and to the Liverpool lads for making the long journey.
We have the march through Rochdale and Bury on the 30th November and through Salford on the morning of the 1st December, if you can make it I am sure that all members of the 2nd Battalion would very much appreciate your efforts; all details are on the website.
Once again I am sure that most of your minds are now aimed at the Christmas period and the enjoyment of shearing the good times with our families and seeing the old year out, as far as the Regiment is concerned it has not been the best of years but they march on as we would expect of them with out complaint and a smile on their faces.
2010 will, I hope, be a busy one with the first of our outings at the Arboretum in Staffordshire on Sunday 20th March, IF THE NUMBERS ARE GOOD ENOUGH, I intend to lay two coaches on and have, what I think, will be a very enjoyable day out, Major Brian Bath who works there will give us a guided tour and there will be a little service to honour our falling heroes. The coaches will leave the Regimental Club at 09-00hrs arriving at the Arboretum at appox 11-00am, we will arrive back at the Club no later then 19-00hrs.
The webmaster will publish all details on the Association Website and it will be a first come first served bases, so get your names down soonest.
The Osnabruck/LF reunion willtake place in the Club on the 19th February 2010 at 1930hrs.
Gallipoli Weekend 2010, will be in the format of a combined Dinner and Ball with the Town Council of Bury, I am hoping that we will get 250 sat down to Dinner, the event is in the planning stages at the moment but again keep an eye on the website for the details, the event will be held at the Radcliffe Civic Centre on Saturday 24th April and the normal Gallipoli Sunday service and march through Bury will follow as usual. It will be good to be able to celebrate both St Georges Day and Gallipoli in the one week-end.
Again, Gentlemen I am looking to you all for your support as you have given me over the past year, show up in numbers and there are no arguments as to how we conduct our business in Lancashire.
In closing my I take this opportunity to wish you all and your families and loved ones a very happy, holy, and peaceful Christmas and New Year.

John O’Grady
Chairman.

Gentleman
Like our excellent Web Site I am just about to complete my first year as your Chairman of the Fusiliers Association Lancashire. My sincere thanks as always goes to Dennis Laverick for the vast amount of free time he puts into making this site the best form of information that exists within the Regimental Association, I am also pleased to report that the funding for this project will be funded from the Association Funds.
Secondly my sincere thanks goes to Ron Owen and Steve Fitt for all of there hard work in putting into place an up to date, the data base of all of our members by branches, although a little way to go yet it is 100% better then it was a year ago. More and more members are getting involved in the use of computers and are finding there way through the Web Site and because the site is well controlled and monitored by our Webmaster the content is well balanced.
I have also had the pleasure of being invited to all of our Branches two of which I was made very welcome, the road show put together by Dennis went down very well, and thank you to Geoff Pycroft who stood in at very little notice to put on the show at Rochdale. I hope to have visited all of our branches by July of this year.
Again may I thank all of the members who's appearance at the M62 memorial service in February made it such a memorable occasion for the Families of the soldiers' killed in that horrendous incident. Alan Noble did an outstanding job in the collation of all of those families, I am positive they are very grateful to him as the Regiment are.

Responabilites.

On my visits to branches, one of the main questions I get asked is who is in charge of what with in the Regimental Headquarters in Bury.
I can only relay as to my period as Regimental Area Secretary ( Now Col Mike Glover) whereby all things Regimental were my responsibility. This included, all arrangements for the following,
1. The total organisation of Gallipoli Weekend.
2. The Minden Dinner North and South.
3. LF Reunion / Osnabruck Reunion.
4. The Museum and the everyday running of the Headquarters from command from Regimental Headquarters at the Tower of London.
The Association were included in all planning procedures and invited to help where possible however I am sure you will all agree that with a change of new management comes new ideas which are now in place.
The Area Secretary will now organize the church service on Gallipoli Sunday also the Lunch and the Association will take reasonability for the March passed parade.

The Association Chairman's Responsibilities.(My Present Position)

1. To ensure that the Association is run in compliance with the Association Constitution.
2. That all members are fully paid up members and placed in branches of their own choosing.
3. To ensure that the executive Committee and Branch Secretaries are fully manned at all times by fully paid up members.
4. That monthly meetings are held to discuss Association matters and all matters minuted as a record of those said meetings.
5. To organise the Gallipoli Dinner evening (see below as to why the decision to cancel this years dinner was taken).
6. To organise The Fusilier Gathering when it is the turn of Lancashire to do so.(Every four years.)
7. To ensure that the Web Site for the Association Lancashire is fully up to date and funded by the Association Lancashire.
8. Produce the Newsletter on time and with the help of the editor make it as interesting as possible to the reader.
9. To ensure that there is always a clear passage of information between the the Area Headquarters and the Association as to all things Regimental in Lancashire.

Referring to the cancellation of the Gallipoli Dinner this year, at the Executive meeting in December 08 I explained to the committee and the Branch secretaries meeting that followed that 2009 was going to be a very busy and costly year for our members also taking in to consideration the financial situation in the county was to try and save them some expense we should consider the possibilities of canceling one of our events, it was agreed around the table that the one function that should be cancelled was the Gallipoli Dinner evening for this year ONLY. And if I have upset members with this decision I apologise, but there are many of our members who did not finish there service with pensions as large as the more fortunate among us, and any indifferences regarding this decision should be directed to ME direct and not from behind a keyboard. 01457-868759 is my home number please feel free to talk to me at any time, there was nothing sinister other then to save members money. Some small minded people out there deemed fit to see it as a way of diminishing the Lancashire Fusiliers traditions, as a Trustee of the Lancashire Fusiliers Museum and its memorabilia you can rest assured that the LF'S tradition's will be the last thing to go whilst I am in that seat. The GALLIPOLI DINNER is already in the diary for next year and it will be held at the Town hall in Bury.

Membership of the Association
Gentlemen, problems arise at times through lack of information and this can occur because a lot of ex members of the Regiment in particular Lancashire Fusiliers are not registered members of a local Branch this is easily put right by getting in touch with me or the Association Secretary Steven Fitt and we can direct you to the correct Branch Secretary.
In closing my sincere thanks goes out to all of the Branch Secretaries for all of their hard work through out the years, our Treasurer Major Jennifer Hindshaw and everyone else who helps to keep the organisation in good health, please give me your backing over the next months and make all of the functions planned go successfully and show the other Areas just how well we do business in Lancashire.
John O'Grady
Chairman.

BACKGROUND
1. In 1956 a plan was considered to move the Lancashire Fusiliers' Regimental Headquarters (RHQ), Recruiting Team, Museum and Regimental Monument from Wellington Barracks to a new site in Bury. It was clear that following the closure of the Depot on Bolton Road the future of the Regiment lay in the town centre. The plan was put into abeyance in 1958 due to lack of funding and space was temporarily allocated in a corner of the old barracks pending a future move. In 2009 after 50 years this aspiration would become a reality when the Royal Regiment of Fusiliers County Headquarters (CHQ), the Regimental Recruiting Support Team (RRST), the Museum and Regimental Monument finally relocated to the town centre. It was also planned for the Regimental Club to be part of the move however members voted to close rather than relocate.

OPPOSITION TO MOVE
2. A small vested interest group within the local community led by Councillor Roy Walker (It should be noted that Councillor Walker opposed the move of the Fusilier Museum into the Arts and Crafts Centre) is opposition to the move of the Regiment Monument. The interest group has several concerns that we recognise and need to address. These include:
" Redevelopment of the vacated barracks site
" Ashes of former Fusiliers scattered on the memorial garden
" A memorial to Wellington Barracks
Attempts by the Regiment to address these concerns started in May 2006 when a letter was sent to the Councillor suggesting a meeting to discuss the situation. It was ignored. He managed to avoid a meeting on the subject attended by all the other local councillors in Nov 2007. An invitation to the Councillor through the local newspaper was brushed aside and finally an offer by the CHQ to speak at a public meeting called to discuss the future of Monument was blocked. It is clearly Councillor Walker's intention to prevent the Regiment moving its memorial even if he could not stop the Museum Project.

WELLINGTON BARRACKS SITE CURRENT SITUATION
3. Wellington Barracks is expensive to maintain and it has been the intention of the MoD to dispose of the site for some years. Defence Estates are under instruction to sell the site and do not wish the Monument to remain. It is not easy to promote the Regiment and the Army from such an isolated site and access for those served by the CHQ, RRST and Museum is difficult. Both the MoD and the Regiment believe that a move to the town centre of Bury would alleviate these problems. As this brief is written the roof is leaking, the boiler room is flooded and there is no heating. It will not get better.

OPERATIONAL PRIORITES
4. Putting Operations on one side the enduring priority for the Regiment is recruiting. No recruits, no battalions, no regiment, no headquarters and no museum. The jewel in the crown of this project is a permanently manned Army Careers Office supported by the RSTT able to utilise all the facilities and resources of the CHQ and Museum. Recruiting all over the country is difficult and this initiative will turn the situation around in Bury.

THE REGIMENTAL MEMORIAL
5. Creation of the Memorial. In 1922 the Lancashire Fusiliers created a Regimental Memorial to honour the 13,642 regimental dead of the First World War it consisted of a set of Silver Drums, a Roll of Honour and a Monument. In 1946 the function of the Monument was extended to the 1,285 dead of the Second World War and from 1968 to the Royal Regiment of Fusiliers (RRF). Since that date 105 Fusiliers have died in service. This is their Memorial.

6. Ownership. Today the Regimental Memorial as a whole is the responsibility of the Trustees of the Regimental Collection and they are in turn responsible to the Charity Commission for the state of the Monument. In reality the Charity Commissioners would have to be persuaded that any decision on the future location of the Monument was in its best interests. On a day-to-day basis responsibility is devolved to the permanent MoD staff in the CHQ who have carried out this responsibility successfully for 86 years.

7. Function. The Monument is a functional part of the Headquarters and remains the annual focus for Regimental commemorations and ceremonies in Lancashire including Gallipoli, Minden and Remembrance and it is intended that the Monument should move with the CHQ to enable these events to continue in the town centre. It is important to stress that the Monument was erected to represent ALL Fusiliers and not just those from Bury and is only located on Bolton Road because that is where the CHQ is. Of the 30 Lancashire Fusilier Battalions in the First World War only a third could claim to have been raised in Bury. The vast majority of Lancashire Fusiliers did not come from Bury and would never have seen Wellington Barracks. If the Monument were to remain on Bolton Road the Regiment would effectively be deprived of its use, as it would be extremely difficult for the CHQ maintain it, organise events and run them safely from the centre of Bury. Finally If a Fusilier were killed tomorrow, the Monument would be the focus of Regimental and civic tributes.

8. Maintenance. There is concern that should the Monument be relocated to Sparrow Park that it would be subject to vandalism. This is being addressed through a combination of good design and other security enhancements. At Wellington Barracks the full time CHQ MoD staff maintain the Memorial on a daily basis. Security is enhanced because the CHQ is manned six days a week and the Club is open in the evenings, nevertheless there are still problems. If the Memorial were to remain on Bolton Road once the CHQ and Club close next year the Memorial would be at significant risk. In addition once the CHQ/Museum have moved out ground maintenance would cease and the gardens would quickly become an overgrown mess. It is difficult to see how some amateur local group could guarantee to maintain the Monument to these standards in perpetuity

9. Location. The Monument has not always stood in its present location. It was first erected at the original entrance to Wellington Barracks in 1922 but was moved to its present temporary location alongside the Headquarters following the closure of the Depot in the 1960s to enable the Council to develop the site.

10. Address Local Sentiment. For some, the move of the Regimental Monument has become an emotional issue. There has been a considerable amount of ill informed comment flying around and a number of myths have developed largely perpetrated by the wording of a petition that was circulated several months ago. Thus some people believe that the Regimental Monument is:
" The local war memorial.
" The memorial to Wellington Barracks.
" The memorial to Bury Fusiliers.
In reality it is none of the above. However they are important sentiments and need to be addressed.

11. Conservation. The Monument has required urgent conservation and restoration work for a number of years. The Trustees decided to use the Project as an opportunity to carry out essential work including removal and replacement of lettering, redefinition of carving and re-emblazoning of the Colours. To achieve this it was planned for the Monument to be dismantled once consent was obtained and moved to a stone mason's workshop for the work to be done undercover. It would then be resurrected at the new site in Sparrow Park. Failure to undertake this vital conservation work would put the Monument at risk.

12. Sparrow Park. For operational and logistical reasons the Regimental Monument has always been collocated with the CHQ. In Sparrow Park it would be alongside the Regimental Museum also a significant memorial to the Lancashire Fusiliers. Together the CHQ, Museum and Memorial would be the focus of Regimental and civic commemorations in Bury and do justice to all Fusiliers. In Sparrow Park it would be accessible to all and not just a select few. The 200,000 annual visitors to Bury who are expected to attend the Regimental Museum, Bury Museum and Art Gallery and the East Lancashire Railway would be able to appreciate the Memorial, its architecture and what it represents. This is in contrast to the 2,000 a year that currently visit Wellington Barracks. Significantly the many school groups that would visit the museum would be reminded of the sacrifice of Fusiliers past and present.

13. Scattering of Ashes. Since the 1960s the ashes of a small number former Fusiliers have been scattered in the flowerbeds around the Memorial. The ground is not consecrated and this practice was never officially sanctioned, there was no formal agreement between the MoD and the families concerned and no record was ever kept. However this is a sensitive issue and although the MoD accepts no liability for these ashes the Regiment, at its expense, will with due ceremony remove an appropriate sample of soil from the flowerbeds to be re-interred in Sparrow Park. It is also hoped that the practice would continue at a proposed new memorial garden to be created close to the old entrance.

WELLINGTON BARRACKS MEMORIAL
14. Permanent Memorial. The Regiment has proposed for some time that a permanent memorial to the original Wellington Barracks and to the Lancashire Fusilier Depot should remain on site. The new memorial would be situated on council land close to the original entrance to the barracks. It would consist of a small garden that would allow the practice of the scattering of ashes to continue with permission from the Council. It would also include interpretation boards that would explain the history of Wellington Barracks and the Lancashire Fusilier link. It would be a joint project involving the Council and hopefully the local residents. Funding would come from the developer as part of the conditions for the sale of the site and hopefully a contribution from the local residents group. Perhaps the mobile phone company that now dominates the original barrack entrance site could be called upon to make a contribution to the construction costs.

I felt that I should write and thank you all for the great turn out for Minden Sunday at the Regimental Club, it was good to see so many of the old and bold under the same roof and the excellent performance of our Association Band and Drums made the day.
My sincere thanks must go to the Chairman Alan Noble and his committee, bar staff for all of the arrangements that made Sunday such a memorable day for us all.
The Branch secretaries meeting earlier that morning went well with lots of ground covered regarding the opening of the our new museum in April of next year, the Fusiliers Gathering in September of 2009 and the planned Battle Field Tour for June 09.
The details of all of these events will, I promise, be published shortly to allow good planning time for your dairies, please keep an eye on the Association Web Site Page and notice board in the Club, there might also be a day out at Chester Race Course.
It was good to be able to welcome to the table our Area Secretary Col Mike Glover, Major Brian Bath, and Captain Joe Eastwood, Brian Bath is an ex Quartermaster with the Fusiliers and has expressed a desire to help out in Lancashire on our Executive Committee also welcomed to that same Committee were ex Warrant Officer Ian Hilton, Dennis Laverick and Ron Owen all well known Fusiliers. What this brings to our table is a vast amount of experience of men with excellent organisational skills which we will need in the year that lies ahead.
I hope that my talk to you all now gives a clear picture as to where we stand in relation to the closing of our Regimental Club in September of next year, there is no one sadder than I am that this decision has had to be taken but the land belongs to the M.O.D and they will do with it as to what is in there best interests once the R.H.Q site closes, however I can assure you all that our Club will close with Dignity and will have a good send off. We as good Fusiliers now have to pick ourselves up, dust of and look to the further. Our new Museum will be a state of the arts project and will put the Lancashire Fusiliers back up there amongst the front runners in the whole of the country.
Again thank you all for attending on Sunday so pleased to see the weather kept dry for us, my best wishes to you all and your families.

John O'Grady
Chairman.

Opening letter to the members

Dear Members of the Association (Lancashire)

I write to you all as your new Chairman and would like to say what a privilege it was to have been appointed to the post by our present Deputy County Colonel, Colonel Brian Gorski M.B.E. I would like to record my sincere thanks to Eric Davidson for all of his hard work whilst in the chair over the past three years or so.

My intentions are not to mend a wheel that is not broken but to take a careful look at our present situation and with the help of my committee set out a strategy programme that will take the Association through our present time and lay the foundation for the next fifteen years or so. My Committee will be tasked to raise the membership by 25%, to continue to track down and enlist the 1960's generation and increase the number of present R.R.F. members leaving the army, increase the I.T. awareness to all members' young or old by October this year, which in turn will help to play a very large part in the recruiting programme in Lancashire.

My committee will also be asked to look at and improve the payment of subscriptions with an aim of achieving an 85% payment by direct debit to allow forward planning in the further, such as The Fusilier Gatherings, Gallipoli weekends, Battle Field Tours, days out ect.

I am very impressed with what is going on in our outlying branches and the hard work that is being put in by the sectaries' and I look forward to meeting up with then all shortly to discuss my ideas and theirs, ensuring that we must never loose sight as to why the Regimental Association was implemented in the first place, it is where Past and Present members of our anti cadent Regiments and present Regiment can meet and discuss old times and be updated by our younger members as to how times have changed over the years in a warm and friendly atmosphere. This will, I am sure be borne out in the forth coming year in Lancashire with the opening of the new Regimental Museum in April 2009 (The biggest shot in the arm the XX The Lancashire Fusiliers will have had in the past fifty years or so,) plus the past forty years of our present Regiment, this museum will be a sight for sore eyes and will be a magnificent credit to all of those people who have contributed to its creation.

In all a very busy year ahead with many challenges for the Association in Lancashire which I am confident will be met with the true spirit of its members.

John O'Grady
Fusiliers Association Lancashire Chairman

1. Gentlemen of the Association Lancashire, you are aware of my vision of the way ahead for the Association Lancashire in terms of getting a lot more of our members interested in the use of I.T. equipment, it does not matter what age you are and it will fascinate you as to the speed in which Association news can be circulated to all of it's members.

2. It is with this in mind that I have tasked our web site manager Mr Dennis Laverick with the task of finding out what availabilities you have in your areas and if any cost is involved, most adult education centres in most areas provide a very good service to the elderly and I am hoping that Dennis will be able to confirm this with his research.

3. Most of will now except that I.T. is the way forward and with the help of Captain Joe Eastwood we are hoping to put together a power point presentation and recordings to enable us to visit areas and show it on a large screen, the recordings will consist of The History of the ''XX The Lancashire'' and our Present Regiments and the new Museum, I hope it will lead to us being able to raise funds for the Association and Museum. To learn the computer it takes two hours a week and a little practice you meet some very nice people and get lot's of enjoyment, so come on get on the bus and open your mind to a new experience.

John O'Grady.
Chairman.

To ALL Association Members.
Dennis Laverick has spent a lot of time going into research finding out what is available in your Areas in terms of Free Computer course's and it would appear that most courses are now coming to an end for this term however, this dose not stop you from enrolling now for next terms course's it is free and most enjoyable, I hope you will all take advantage of these facilities, as I have already said it is the best line of communication that I am aware of , give it a whirl.

John O'Grady
Chairman.

Note from Dennis
Most Libraries have computers which are free to use (you may have to book) and some are only to happy to help you out, some do do computer courses check out our local library.

Lt -Col E Davidson M.B.E.
I am certain that you will all as members of the Association want to join me in offering Colonel Eric our sincere congratulations on his award of the M.B.E. in the QUEENS Birthday Honours list.
An award well earned for all of the hard work Eric has put in to the Community over the years, both him and his wife and family will, I hope , feel very proud and enjoy there day out at the Palace, our best wishes will be with them on that day.
John O'Grady
Chairman.