On the 7th February 2023 we celebrated our 50th anniversary! All members were provided with a scroll describing the first 25 years of our history, followed by an update covering the second 25 years to bring the club history up to date
THE PROBUS CLUB OF HUDDERSFIELD
FIFTY YEARS A BRIEF HISTORY
THE FIRST TWENTY-FIVE YEARS
1973 was a year of beginnings. On 1st January Britain joined the European Economic Community, and on 30th January a group of Huddersfield Rotarians considered the possibility of starting a local Probus Club. The inaugural meeting took place at the YMCA on 9th February under the chairmanship of Walter Gilbert, when it was decided unanimously to form The Probus Club of Huddersfield. Mr A T Storey of Rotary took the chair whilst the following officers were elected: Walter Gilbert – Chairman, John W Dicks – Vice Chairman, Harold Crowther – Treasurer, David Bradley – Secretary, and Herbert Robinson, Ronald Bielby, George Whitfield as members of the committee.
These seven constituted the governing body of the new club, and this format, with Speaker Finder and Social Secretary, usually among the ordinary members of committee, continued unchanged except for the addition in 1976 of the immediate past Chairman. Each year a non-committee member has been elected as auditor. In 1982, when the club accepted from Huddersfield Rotary Club a president’s chain-of-office, the title of chairman was changed to “President”.
The first ordinary meeting of the club was held at the Clare Manor Hotel on 20th February 1973 at 10.30 for 10.45 when the speaker was Councillor Dunhill. This date was “third Tuesday in the month” and meetings continued to be held on the first and third Tuesdays with the exception of August. A subscription of £1 per head was collected from the 24 present as “founding members”.
Membership grew rapidly, the 50th member, the Revd. John Harvey, being accepted by the committee on 3rd July 1973. It was decided that membership should be limited to this figure, and by December there were four on the waiting list (who were, however, always welcome at the meetings). In 1974 the limit was raised to 60, in 1976 to 65 and in 1978 to 70. Over the years the average attendance has remained remarkably constant at 44 – 51 with a maximum of 61, in spite of the formation of Huddersfield Pennine Probus Club in 1978 and other clubs in outlying districts, and there is still a waiting list.
The club has always had to consider accommodation (not to mention parking space) when fixing membership limits. In 1991 when the limit of 70 was confirmed, it was felt that this number made for a practicable size of party for social occasions and was perhaps the largest number that members could get to know well. However, at the same time it was decided to award honorary membership to long standing members who had given good service but were no longer able to attend meetings and these were to be in addition to the 70. In 1993 the three surviving founder members, Leslie Horsfall, Reginald Prows and George Whitfield were made life members and in the same year Arthur Richardson became the oldest member at the age of 95.
Accommodation at the Clare Manor Hotel soon became insufficient, so on 17th April 1973 the club moved to Banney Royd, and on 3rd September 1974 to the ante-room at Greenhead Masonic Hall, remaining there for eight years. From 15th September 1992 meetings took place in the President’s Suite at Leeds Road Football Ground until its demolition necessitated a move to the Ambassador Club, Dalton on 3rd May 1994. The next move was also of necessity, after the Ambassador Club premises were destroyed by fire. Fortunately, by this time the Ladies Lunch on 16th February 1995 at the new YMCA Lawrence Batley Sports Centre, Salendine Nook had brought to the club’s notice the excellent facilities, and it was with relief that it was found possible to hold ordinary meetings there from 4th April 1995.
Over the last years the club purchased its own slide projector, stand and screen, a public address system, and many smaller items such as bars for the president’s chain of office, past presidents’ badges, and name tabs for members. The chain of office was given by Huddersfield Rotary Club in 1982 and the gavel was given in memory of the late Clifford Stephenson in 1992.
Speakers have not usually been paid (apart from nominal expenses) but requests by speakers for contribution to charities have customarily been met by a donation from club funds, usually £15. The club has however always declined to contribute to postal appeals, fearing that to begin responding would ‘’open floodgates’’. Talks by members have often featured in the programme, but a suggestion in 1993 that two meetings a year should be devoted to 15-minute contributions by members on work or leisure interests seems not to have borne fruit.
An annual syllabus card was adopted in 1980, though this meant that the speaker finder had to finalise the programme twelve months or more ahead. The only fixed item (apart from the AGM. On the first Tuesday in February) is the Christmas meeting on the third Tuesday in December. This was started by a member, the Revd. John Harvey, in 1975 when he spoke on ‘’The Spirit of Christmas’’ and introduced carols. In later years his address was supported by visiting groups of singers or specially recorded tapes, and on that day coffee and mince pies are ‘’on the club’’.
A buffet lunch for members was instituted on 6th December 1973 quickly becoming a quarterly event, supplemented from 1979 to 1988 to a joint lunch with members of Pennine Probus Club. By 1990 members’ lunches had become less well supported and were stopped. The first annual dinner for members and their ladies was on 13th November 1975 at Greenhead Masonic Hall but as recently as 1981 it was felt that the annual dinner and the usual outings constituted a sufficient number of social occasions so that an additional lunch was unnecessary. However, a Ladies Lunch was instituted on 14th April 1990 and is now a popular feature of the social programme. On 8th February 1994 it was observed as the “Twenty-first Birthday Party” of the club.
Though the twice monthly meeting for coffee, speaker, and discussion have always been the main feature of the programme, there have been many other activities. The first ‘’extra-mural’’ function was an inspection of Huddersfield’s civic silver at the Town Hall on 15 may 1973, and the first coach trip (to Temple Newsam) was on 10 July of the same year. On 5 December, after planting trees at the Castlegate section of the new ring road members visited the Sports Centre to challenge members of Holmfirth Probus Club to a bowling match, and these became a regular feature of the programme. The first theatre trip was to Stratford (no less) on23 July 1975, and visits to theatres in Manchester, Bradford and Leeds have also figured regularly. The most ambitious trip was to the Houses of Parliament on 17 April 1975, but in 1978 a proposed trip to Venice was ‘’not to be entertained’’.
Members have needed little encouragement to “dress accordingly” and in 1996, when it was decided that ties ought to be worn at meetings, a proviso was added that this was not intended to be a fixed rule and might be relaxed in hot weather. This was typical of the “light hand” with which the committee have always sought to order the club’s affairs. Though always carrying out their duties promptly and efficiently they have tried not to be dictatorial or to make rules just for the sake of rules. In fact, in 1990 and 1991 they protested against what seemed to be an attempt to form a national Probus organisation, fearing that imposed rules, or even “capitation fees”, might follow. In return, members have always supported their officers (or at least been polite in their disagreement). When in 1990 the committee recommended that the subscription be increased from £5 to £8 the Annual General Meeting decided to increase it to £10 “to give the treasurer a bit of headroom”. So, on 9th February 1998 the club celebrates the completion of 25 years. Over that time the membership has been raised from 50 to 70 (and there is still a waiting list – now limited to eight). But the aim remains very simple: to provide fellowship and a little stimulus to maintain the interests and vitality of retired men who might miss their former profession and business contacts. Long may the club fulfil that aim.
J P Senior President 1994
THE PROBUS CLUB OF HUDDERSFIELD
THE NEXT TWENTY-FIVE YEARS
In 2012 it was decided to move premises when the YMCA at Salendine Nook increased the rent to £1000, however we were fortunate to be offered a private room at Huddersfield Golf Club, Fixby for a rent of £750 per annum. This of course has increased recently due to rising costs. We have also found it necessary to increase our annual subscription over the years which now stands at £40. The club continues to thrive, although over the past 15/16 years our numbers have fallen, and at the present moment, our membership stands at just under 40.
We continue to hold our three Ladies Lunches and our Annual Dinner at Outlane Golf Club with a variety of excellent musical entertainment. Our Speaker Finders over the years have done a tremendous job of finding us a wide and varied range of speakers, covering both educational and amusing subjects. Various trips have also been arranged during the years by our Social Secretaries, including visits to the theatre, a tour of the Black Sheep Brewery and a sail on the Skipton Canal. We also enjoy an “Evening of Entertainment” each November including a Silent Auction, which not only provides an evening of fun, but also raises money to support the club. Our August Bowling Competition held annually, where our ladies are also invited to take part, has become an ideal social event during our summer break.
Recently, Mike Scahill, our current Speaker Finder, has set up our own website which has proved to be a great success in not only attracting new members but also a way of keeping our members up to date with information. During the Covid years, when we found ourselves in lockdown, our President at the time, Gerry Beamond, did a wonderful job of keeping us all together by organising Zoom meetings from our homes.
Our objective as a club is to continue to promote friendship, provide entertainment and generate interest in topics akin to retired professional and businessmen.
Therefore, on 7th February 2023 at Huddersfield Golf Club, we are proud to celebrate our 50th year by providing lunch for our members following our AGM and our annual nostalgic film show by Trevor Spencer, when we will be able to toast the future success of The Probus Club of Huddersfield.
February 2023 Jack Murray President 2016, Social Secretary 2017 – 2023