Food for Thought - 2009 Directions - Suggestion Box

What do you want from your Welsh Society ? The Society should offer to the local Welsh community something that the community wants.

How can we make the Society relevant to Sydney’s Welsh community of today ?

What improvements need to be made by the Society and how ? We know we have many shortcomings, so this is your chance to let us know what they are and suggest a way we can improve our service to Sydney's Welsh community.

Suggestions so far received are from:

• Huw Edwards (former Vice President of the Cymdeithas):
  
  "...suggestions are needed as to how the Society might be able to continue with Spirit, Soul and Form. I set out below some of my own thoughts as to how the Society might be reformed:
  
  
  1. A new aim - In my view simplicity is the key. Therefore, I would propose the adoption of the simple and narrow aim of being ‘The hub for the Welsh community of Sydney and greater New South Wales’. I use the word ‘hub’, in particular, as it describes “a centre around which other things revolve or from which they radiate; a focus of activity”. For me, this summarises exactly what the Society should be doing – if someone in Sydney wants to know what’s going on in the local Welsh community it is the Society’s role to tell them and let them know how they can get involved. It is no coincidence that this is exactly the role the Society played for me, when I first arrived in Sydney, in letting me know if there were local Choirs and how I could get in touch with them.
  
  
  2. Putting the new aim into effect - The simplest way of putting this into effect is through the website. Thankfully, the Society has an enthusiastic webmaster in Bob Jones and the new GlobalWales.com international site has come at a fortuitous time for the Society. Currently, the content of the website is driven by only a few individuals. In the long term, I think responsibility for content should shift to the Society members, so that Bob (and anyone else who would like to help) only have to act as moderators/overseers, rather than in the more time-consuming role of content-finders.
  
  
  3. The role of Llais – Whilst originally I thought that Llais would be redundant if we have an interactive website, I have been convinced by the other members of the Society’s Committee that it plays a vital role in communicating with the membership, which simply cannot be replaced by a website. However, the viability of Llais is dependent on there being a steady stream of articles. To date, as with the website, the content of Llais has been driven by only a few individuals.
  
  
  4. Branding – The Society currently lacks a cohesive and appealing brand-identity. One of my more ‘radical’ proposals, is for the Society to have a specially designed logo and brand-name, which could be used both in its promotion and generate revenue."
  
  
• Vicki Partridge (Secretary / Public Officer of the Cymdeithas):
  
  Vicky referred to how the Welsh Society in Auckland is run by her son, centered on a Rugby team. The Auckland Society organize wine trials and have an active newsletter. They meet and do things together, fundraising for various causes. Their newsletter is the most important thing, and they send it out. A newsletter on the internet (as set out in Huw's proposals) is not the same.Vicky added that new members of this Society get nothing to say that they are a member.


• Haydn Lloyd-Davies and Sion Llwyd (former Presidents of the Cymdeithas):
  In respect of the lack of engagement by Society members with Llais, Haydn Lloyd-Davies referred to how the NSW Grasslands Society operates. The society produces a quarterly newsletter and holds field-days; it is a good model to work from. Hayden suggested the Society works on a quarterly basis around the Cantorion concerts: The Society will have a concert in the future to mark Owain Glyndwr Day (16 September) which will be celebrated as a Wales Day jointly with the Newcastle and Bro Hunter Society; The Gymanfa will be moved to a date in June such that the Society's activities (including Llais) will follow the following calendar cycle: St David's Day Concert - late February/ early Marcho Gymanfa - late June; Owain Glyndwr Concert - mid/late Setpember; Carol Concert - December.


• Gwenllian O'Neill (nee Williams) of Sunshine Coast Welsh:
  "I have just finished reading about what can be done to get more people gong along to the Society .I'm sure you have tried to get the Society going and you wonder what you have been doing yet people are not responding . It was in 1993 that my husband and I started the Welsh Society and friends of the Sunshine Coast Qld . In starting it was easy when I placed a notice in the Coolum Times for Free inviting ex-pats to join us , in the Lions Park . The result beng we had twenty two adults and five children . I did not need to ask anyone this is a free country on the first gathering we made arrangements to meet the next St DAVID'S Day in the garden of the Local Hotel , as on the day it was a sweltering day , good job we had booked the Hotel as the gathering , day it just poured down and we were under cover. My husband and I decided we would make the gatherings a place where whether or not you could speak Welsh we would have a good time. It was through the years that our gatherings were getting larger . We had the use of one of our members 21 areas to get together and each member brought the lunch and of course the liquid they enjoyed most . I will continue this letter , as I have been called away within the next few hours Gwenllian I am so pleased to get your reply . here goes. When we arrived in Sydney in May 1959 our first aim was to find the Welsh Society , it was not until September that we went along to the Saturday night meeting to met up with those who had taken the big step by leaving our homeland to live in a country on the other side of the world.
  We arrived at the meeting , it was the sound of the lint of the Welsh voices we knew we had come to the right place. When we were asked where did you come from we answered my husband was born in Dowlais and I was born Blaina . . and the question asked, do you speak Welsh, our answer being no but we both can sing the National Anthem . as I was born lived in Monmouthshire we were not allowed to learn the Welsh language , the National anthem was taught in school , as for my husband he was in the Glamorgan shire they could learn Welsh . The person who asked us the question said . that's a pity but come in . My husband and I laughed about that for years.
  
  Now I will carry on with, how we decided to run the Society . It was from the first twenty two people and children who became the founders of the first gathering.
  No 1 We would not use the word meeting . it was to be called a gathering .
  No 2 We both were to be called converners.
  
  At the second gathering of St DAVID'S DAY that was when we were offered the use for the gatherings on his land . that I mentioned in my first email, It is on that day that it was decided to have another gathering in July of that year more and more people came as I put out the invitation in the newspaper . it was a success , and we were able to have a Xmas party in the same year . It was not until the third year that it was suggested to charge., up till then we sent around a bucket to pay for a few thing such as telephone and postage .
  ,It was suggested we become a real Society , we made enquiries as to what to do about that . It was far beyond us to become a big society. The famlies who came along did not want such things as minutes and Presidents they were satisfied the way it was going . . We did have a treasure . Our one aim was to nuture the children we were luckly to have one family who had six children I had two grandchildren and altogether we had fifteen children they gave us a lot of fun along the way .
  
  My husband and I were happy to be among so many Welsh people ,he became the offical Welsh cakes maker . . It was fun to see the smile on the childrens faces when Jim went around with the Welsh CAKE tin .
  
  For intertaining the crowd we had the children with their poems and singing and jokes. We didn't have the money to pay out .all that was given for free. We sang our National Anthem with all the gusto that Only Welsh people can sing it to be heard by the Koalas, the Kangaroo and the colourful bird in the trees . , it was all good fun .
  
  My husband passed away in 2004 after a long illness . from the year 1995 to 2004 we throughly enjoyed doing what were were doing .
  
  I think our success was due to our gatherings when everybody were happy . with the way it was run . there was never any arguements , what ever was suggested we would do , It was amazing the visitors that came from the homeland . It was amazing how many people were brought together and the friends that caught with one another .
  We were honoured to welcome Paul Thomas he was born in Dowlais he came to Australia it was him who planned out the University on the Sunshine Coast he is the
  Vice - Chanceller we are very proud of a Dowlais Boy who just loved coming to our gatherings.
  It was in 2004 that I stepped down from being the convener and handed it over for others to run .
  Jim and I came to the conclusion that in this new world of the young with their ideas and way out of living , we older people have done our best .
  I am quite willing to help you with any questions if I can help you in any way I will .
  One thing I am sad about is the way that Wales is being disjointed especially taking away from the maps the names of such as Nantyglo and Blaina who in the days gone by gave to the world the iron and steel and coal that was needed around the world .
  At my age 87 I love my name and I love my the place where I was born. Cymru am Byth Gwenllian nee Williams
  I did tell you we started our gathering on 1st March 1993 with the 22 adults and five children , As some of our members were well into middle age it was decided to put down a Capsule in the year 1989, . Once the idea was known the memoblia came in quite quickly it was well sorted out and everymember added to the Capsule . A family by the name of Roy and Elizabeth Higg were from Cwnbran Gwent . At one time there were 29 of the family all living very close to each other To decsibe where all of the Higgs family it was the ideal place to put our Capsule down , it would nestle as if it was in the Homeland . It was to lay on the property of Nigel and Sherry Higgs they had six children five boys and one daughter. . Nigel and his sons dug a deep hole ,it was lined , and Nigel decided to place boulders to surround the resting place for the Capsule . to make it look like Stone Henge the cows on the property decided it was good for back scratching so that plan did not work . It was on a Sunday in October we gathered together of course we held the Aussie steaks and sausages to start., it was a beautiful Spring Day . The Capsule was on show , it is 6ft long, each member signed their name . The last thing to go in was The Sunday Paper of that day . The five youngest children who were at the first gathering are the young custodians and Nigel Higgs and my son-in-law Gareth Price are the elder custodians. . The date was chosen for it to be opened was 2025 it has now been changed to 2020. The paper work that was kept to report of each gathering , as we did not want minutes everyone was pleased the way it was going The paper work are placed in the Archives of the Uni . . On the day we held a service conducted by our Welsh minister Canon Illtyd Lovelock the sound of our national anthem re-echoed through the valley , even the cows stopped to hear the singing . The young girl that wore the Welsh Costume , her father is an Isaelite her mother of Welsh descent . The five children who were the youngsters on that memorable day God willing will join together at the opening of the Capsule . At every gathering we had the small children gave me drawings and the colourings they will be given back to them on the special day . I mentioned about Vice President Paul Thomas of our University when he was able to attend to our gatherings each child was given a scroll I made and he gave each child the scroll . I would like you to get this straight , I have now resigned from the Welsh Society as my health is not so good . The gathering we had were pleasing and it worked for us . Did I tell you I was honoured for bring ing our Welsh Culture to the Queensland Sunshine Coast . Cymru am byth . Would you like to have some photographs of that day . Gwenllian"