ABOUT THE WAAF ASSOCIATION
Objectives Annual WAAFA Service Tartan Membership Armistice Day Parade Veterans' Badge Newsletters AGM Reports Other Reunions Branches Objectives
- To maintain contact, including home visits, with ex-WAAF.
- To provide practical and other such assistance as possible for members.
- To arrange meetings, outings and other activities for members.
Membership
Full membership is open to all ex-WAAF who served 1939-49
Associate membership is open to serving RAF women and ex-WRAF.
Current membership is world wide. There is an annual membership fee.
Our Patron is Air Commodore Cynthia Fowler RAF(Ret), who succeeded the late Dame Felicity Peake DBE AE JP.Diana, Countess of Ilchester, née Simpson, for many years President of our Association, died on 1st March 2011 aged 89. Her Memorial Service was at Westerham Church at 2pm on 22nd March, attended by some WAAF members. She was well respected and will be sadly missed.
http://www.thisiskent.co.uk/where/westerham/Countess-Ilchester-dies/article-3310673-detail/article.htmlPorthcawl's Yvonne Cornelius, 90, receives WWII Medals
from the BBC SE Wales News 12 June 2011: A 90-year-old woman who served during World War II has received her medals after waiting 70 years. Yvonne Cornelius, of Porthcawl, served as corporal in the Women's Auxiliary Air Force. At the 70th anniversary dinner of No3 Welsh Wing of the Air Cadets, held at Swansea's Liberty Stadium, she was finally presented with her medals.
About claiming your medalsNewsletters
These are usually published in May and November each year. Material for the Newsletter emailed to this website will be forwarded to the WAAFA Newsletter Editor. The deadline for the next newsletter is 1st October 2010. The postal address of the editor of the printed WAAFA News is 5 Egmont Mews, Rumbolds Hill, Midhurst, West Sussex GU29 9ND.
Reunions
These are held annually at the time of our AGM which in recent years has been at Buxton, Leicester, Southport, Weston-Super-Mare, Eastbourne, Blackpool, Coventry, Worthing and Scarborough.
Annual General Meeting and Reunion 2012
The AGM and REUNION 2012 will be held at the HEATHLANDS HOTEL, Bournemouth, 20th to 23rd April 2012. The AGM will be held on Saturday 21st April 2012 at 9.30am. The theme is 'Red and White' in some form for the Gala Night, as it is St. George's Day, the 23rd April.
This again is a three night/four day package .At present it includes a visit to the New Forest on Sunday but at the AGM members asked for a visit to Boscombe Down.There will be a trip to Boscombe on the Monday (23rd) morning and details of this will be sent out with your booking confirmation - see booking details below.
There will be five vacancies on the committee: the four officers and one committee member who will have served their allotted time, so nominations for these places should be with the Secretary by 7th April 2012 with name of nominator and seconder.
Friday 20th to Monday 23rd April 2012 at
THE HEATHLANDS HOTEL, BOURNEMOUTH, HAMPSHIRE
Cost: £179 per person from Friday to Monday (3 nights)
Further information and booking forms are available from:
I.O.W. Tours Ltd
3 New Road Lake
SANDOWN
Isle of Wight
P036 9JN
Please send a large stamped and self-addressed envelope
when you ask for further details.
Please do not contact the Hotel direct
for information and bookingsSt Clement Danes Annual WAAFA Service: WAAFA Standard
This is held annually in the RAF's own church, St Clement Danes. In 2012 it will be on Monday 1st October. No ticket required.
The WAAFA Standard was laid up here during the Annual WAAFA service on on Sunday 3rd September 2006. At the handing over these words were said to the Chaplain: "Venerable Sir, I ask you to receive this Standard for safe lodging in this house of God until such time as it shall pass to dust like those whose courage and devotion are enshrined in its history". It is in the Gallery of the church.
Vera Barrett was the Association Standard Bearer for almost 20 years.
The Resident Chaplain of St Clement Danes wrote to the Association "Please convey to all WAAF our deep gratitude to them for their service and all their years of faithful support to the Church. We shall maintain the first Sunday of September as WAAF Association Sunday and special prayers."
The Association hopes that as many as possible WAAF will be seen at that first Sunday of September service in years to come.
[If anyone has a good colour photo of the undraped (that is, flat) Standard please contact the editor as it would be nice to show it on this website.]
Armistice Day Parade Sunday 11 November 2012
For WAAFA tickets please apply to the Secretary no later than 31st August giving your name and WAAFA membership number for each member requiring a ticket. Please enclose an SAE.
AGM Reports
Report of the Annual General Meeting on 2nd April 2011 at Scarborough
The Meeting opened at 10am with the Dedication followed by a short address from the Chairman and apologies for absence.
The Minutes of the 2010 AGM were accepted as a true and correct record and there were no matters arising.
The Chairman reported the completion of the Memorial and thanked Sue McCall for all her hard work without any expenses of any kind. The Chairman went on to suggest an award to Sue of Honorary Membership of the WAAF Association and this was agreed unanimously.
The Secretary's report was read out by the Vice Chairman, Eileen Hollidge the Secretary was unable to attend through illness.
The Treasurer then gave her report saying she had been unable to deal with the finances properly until the end of January 2011 because of the December snow holding up all subscriptions and donations in the post - she had had no post for 3 weeks. She was now up to date and presented her balance sheet which the members unanimously accepted. The members also voted unanimously for the adoption of Mr. R.J.Cladd again as Auditor for 2011/2012.
The Assistant Treasurer reported on The Memorial Fund. The whole Bill for the Memorial had now been paid and £4,000 had been paid back to the committee member who had given us an interest-free loan whilst collecting money for the Memorial. There just remained £300.10 to acquire and then the last f1,000 could be paid back to her. This news was received most enthusiastically by the members who agreed to accept this report unanimously. The Assistant Treasurer thanked all the members on behalf of the Committee for their generosity.
First Poppy Wreath for Memorial - A member from Derby Branch announced that her branch members had visited the Arboretum around Remembrance Day time and laid a wreath on behalf of The Association. She was asked to thank her members for doing this for the Association. It was much appreciated.
The Welfare Officer was unable to attend the AGM but sent her report which The Vice Chairman read out.
Report of the Annual General Meeting on 8th May 2010 at Coventry
The Meeting opened with a short address from The Chairman. The Dedication then took place and apologies for absence were given.
The Minutes of 2009 were read out and were accepted by the Members as a true and correct record. There were no Matters Arising.
The Secretary gave her report and said she had received one or two invitations for Members to go to Wimbledon for the tennis and a Garden Party at Buckingham Palace. These were taken up by one or two Members who were present at the Meeting. As they had to be applied for at short notice she would not be able to contact everybody at this time but she would hope to set up a list with details of Members who were interested and, in future, would be able to contact them quite quickly to give everybody a chance to attend these events.
The Treasurer gave her report. It had been a very difficult task setting up the new financial system but this had turned out very satisfactorily. As no Auditor had been appointed at the previous AGM she had found a new one, a Mr Roger Cladd FCA of Trutax, Milton Keynes. The Members unanimously approved Mr. Cladd as their Auditor for the coming year.
The Welfare Officer then gave her report and this full report can be seen in the magazine.
As so many Members had written and phoned in to The Chairman and Committee saying they would like to see a Memorial to WAAF who died and served in World War 2 and Jane Carrington, one of our Members had also contacted The Chairman with an idea for one, it was decided to go ahead without the Members' consent as Jane had friends - a designer and architect (advising on building materials etc) who would give their services free and design this for us. This was too much of a good chance to pass up and The Chairman & Committee, therefore, authorised the work to go ahead on the Memorial and we were all able to see it half-finished at The Arboretum and it was magnificent. The Members approved this wholeheartedly and were very happy about it.
Prior to seeing The Memorial we all attended a pre-arranged service in the chapel with our own Padre and afterwards had a pavior stone commemorating Dorothy Jones The Founder of The WAAF Association, which had been laid in a walkway, blessed by the Padre. We are all most grateful to Dorothy for starting, and making such a success of The Association and we have all agreed to carry on The Association for as long as we possibly can. We think she would have been most pleased about this. Dorothy's son attended the service at the Committee's invitation and was very grateful that this had taken place.
As everything was getting more expensive, printing of magazines etc., The Committee proposed an increase in subscriptions of £2 per year, making a total of £8 per year payable from the 1st January, 2011. The Committee regretted this but it was approved unanimously by the Members.
Life Membership was awarded to 3 Founder Members of The Association and our Standard Bearer. This was unanimously approved by the Members. There was one vacancy for a Committee Member and Joan Menniss was elected to fill this place as The Minute Secretary.
On Saturday night at the Gala Dinner we also celebrated The 21st Anniversary of The WAAF Association with a piece of iced cake and a glass of bubbly. The Venue & Date of the next AGM/Reunion will take place in Scarborough from 1st - 4th April, 2011 at Red Lea Hotel at a cost of £164 per person, half board, for 3 days with an extra night costing £45 per person. This would include one or two trips out to Camp Eden and Elvington. This would be organised by Isle of Wight Tours, 3, New Road, Lake, Sandown, Isle of Wight, Tel. No: 01983 405116. Please book direct to this Company.
It was a very relaxed and happy weekend with music for singing & dancing provided on 2 nights and a company of 26 professional singers and entertainers delighting us all with Ivor Novello and Frank Sinatra songs and music on our last night. All in all - a very happy and successful AGM/Reunion.
Joan Menniss - Minute SecretaryChairman's Report 2009 - Mrs Joan Brooks
Hello Ladies, I am most pleased to be addressing you as your National Chairman.
For those members unable to attend the recent AGM a Retiring Committee Resolution that the WAAF Association should cease at the conclusion of the 2009 AGM was overwhelmingly defeated by the members present. Your new committee were elected unopposed.
The committee have decided to leave the membership subscription unchanged for the present. However, the Membership Secretary will be reviewing the lists, as we are aware that some members have not paid their current subs due to the uncertainty surrounding the future of our Association. Iris, the Treasurer is looking forward to receiving them. This seems a good moment to suggest that if members would like a reply when writing to a committee member, they enclose a SAE. Postage is a very big item and that would help considerably.
We are returning to the Royal Court Hotel at Coventry for our 2010 AGM. As time was short, the Committee had to act quickly and we were fortunate to be offered the dates shown. A show of hands at Worthing indicated approval. So get you bookings in quickly to avoid disappointment.
I shall look forward to meeting many members at the WAAF Service at St Clement Danes in September and I hope to be able to march with you at the Remembrance Day Parade.
To conclude, for the benefit of members not present at Worthing, I repeat - this is your Association and the committee will welcome your ideas and suggestions (and complaints) and discuss them fully. Enjoy your summer.
Joan2009 - the Future of the Association
adapted from the Summer 2009 WAAFA Newsletter in which the Newsletter Editor wrote:
Well, Ladies - I'm just back from your 2009 reunion and AGM at Worthing where the matter of the future of the Association was discussed at some length and in much detail. There was clearly much passion amongst the delegates with wide-ranging debate about the viability of the organisation particularly in terms of falling membership numbers and reducing finances.
Your National Committee brought a resolution proposing the closure of the Association as from the end of this year's AGM. Following the proposal, which is reproduced in full in the printed WAAFA News, together with the committee's opinions and reasons for making this proposal and a lengthy debate, a vote was held of all the delegates attending the AGM.
The result of the vote was an overwhelming majority to continue the Association with the new committee members.
So, there you are - the Association will continue with an almost new Committee. Congratulations to those who offered to stand for office!
Chairman: Mrs. Joan Brooks
Vice-Chairman: Ms Eileen Hollidge.
Secretary: Mrs Ann Peacock
Treasurer: Mrs Iris Catlin
Committee Members: Mrs Marjorie Harley, Mrs Vera Morgan, Mrs Iris Sheppard.
The above members were voted on to the new committee at the Annual General Meeting at Worthing on 24th April 2009Of course, very many thanks go to the former Officers and Committee members who have led your Association over previous years. Without their help, leadership and plain hard work, it is certain you would not be here in 2009 to make this decision!
Meanwhile, it is business as usual in the office! If you wish to raise any matter about the printed WAAFA News, please write or e-mail. Interesting letters may be quoted or published, but if you do not want your comments to appear in print, please mark your letter NOT FOR PUBLICATION. Please remember to enclose a stamped, self-addressed envelope if you wish photographs to be returned - and remember there are now different stamp prices for different sized envelopes! It is also worth bearing in mind that for safety's sake it is a good idea to keep any war-time and /or original photos that you treasure at home and send a good photographic copy.
Branches
We have many branches (listed on the branches page) which have their own varied social events and work with our Area Welfare Consultants. The list is to be updated.
Veterans' Badge
UK Armed Forces veterans are entitled to this free badge
Tartan
The tartan worn by some members of WAAFA - supplier's web page
Other
A former WAAF was one of two Bomber Command veterans who unveiled the Ledger Stone in Lincoln Cathedral on 27th July 2006, dedicated to those who gave their lives on Bomber Command.
Research: The WAAF Association Newsletter can publish requests for information about former WAAF and the Aircrew & Groundcrew Research website carries a number of such items.
Mrs Ruby Mallinson, the former Chairman of the Association, was awarded the MBE in HM the Queen's New Year's Honours list, December 2006, "For services to the Women's Auxiliary Air Force Association". The Association congratulated her and was proud that it had been recognised in this way.
this page last updated 9 Dec 2011