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NEWS FROM THE OCTOBER 2009 COMMITTEE MEETING

Some sad news - We were sorry to hear of the death of an old friend, Jimmy Looms, who died on 19th October. He was in his early seventies. Although never a member of LGC, Jimmy and his partner of fifty years, Keith, were involved in the Bradford group of CHE (the Campaign for Homosexual Equality). Jimmy was also, for many years, a volunteer on the Bradford "Friend" Helpline, and he did two long stints as its Treasurer. In 2004 , following the entry of Malta into the European Union, they were able to make real their dream of living in Valetta.

Many LGC members will have memories of them from the "Friend" Annual Sponsored Walks in the 1980s and 1990s, when they often provided the refreshments, latterly in their home in the shadow of the Wainhouse Tower, near Halifax. Suffering from increasingly severe dementia, Keith has been living "in care" for several months now, still in Malta.

Thank You - So many of our members have the good of LGC at heart, that we always have someone to thank. This time we would like to thank Hugh for welcoming us to his new home in Bradford: a rather nice house near the famous Undercliffe cemetery. We wish him every happiness there.

Stuart would particularly like to thank Keith D. and Ted D. for providing details of cultural events in Leeds, which he found useful for our website and for being able to bring them to your attention via our Newsletter.

A word of explanation - If you have been to the "Diary" section before reading this, you may have been surprised to read that our committee has decided not to make a charge for our forthcoming Christmas Party on 18th December. Here's why:-

After experiencing increased costs when ordering food from professional caterers, we decided, in 2008, that we could, under Kevin's guidance, do the catering ourselves. This cut the costs dramatically; so much so that we were making an unintended profit. So we thought that this time we wouldn't make a charge. By the way, it's a long time since we paid extra for the refreshments at the AGM or for occasional "cheese-and-wine style" evenings.

Visitors - We've had half-a-dozen visitors at our Friday meetings recently, and a few enquiries since the appearance of our customary advertisement in the October edition of "Shout!". We have, however, decided not to put on a further "Come and Meet Us" evening, in view of the very small response to the three earlier ones.

Membership Matters - We finished our LGC year with thirty-nine members. By 22nd October we twenty-eight. This includes our friend Terry (from East Leeds), who, we're pleased to say, has rejoined us after a year's absence.

Hugh will soon be away in Indonesia for a while. So please pay any renewals (@ £10 or £5) to Eric at the AGM or send them to him at his home address. Cheques payable to LGC, please.

Best wishes from all committee members.