Chairman’s Report
THE FRIENDS OF THOMAS PLUME’S LIBRARY
ANNUAL REPORT
FOR THE YEAR ENDING 31ST MARCH 2013
This is the Chairman’s report to the 26th Annual General Meeting of the Friends and tenth Annual General Meeting of the Charity as required by our constitution. The objects of the Friends are to advance the education of the public in Maldon and the surrounding areas by providing support and assistance to Thomas Plume’s Library (Registered Charity number 310661) through activities and projects and in such other ways as the Executive Committee may from time to time determine.
Membership of the Friends now stands at 141 each paying a subscription of £5 supplemented by donations. During the year 2012/13 the Friends held their AGM in the Octagon at St Mary’s Church. The speaker was Magdalen Evans who gave an illustrated talk entitled ‘Utmost Fidelity: The Painting Lives of Marianne and Adrian Stokes’. The annual outing was to the Lambeth Palace Library and the Garden Museum. Several Friends assisted the Plume Librarian by acting as stewards on the heritage Open Days in September. A concert was held in St Mary’s Church at the beginning of February given by ‘The Exchanging Blows Quartet’. £383 was raised for our funds. The Plume School, Year 8 pupils visited the Library at the end of the Autumn term and prizes for the best essays submitted will be awarded in July. No entries were received this year for the Frank and Patricia Herrmann Award.
During the year, the Friends have purchased five books for the Library: Louis Regnier de la Planche, La Legende de Charles, Cardinal de Lorraine …(1576); Thomas Gage, A New Survey of the West Indies (1648); Sir Francis Biondi, An History of the Civill Warres of England (1646); Alexander Neville, Norfolkes Furies (1615); Jean de Thevenot, The Travels of Monsieur de Thevenot into the Levant (1687) A new laptop computer has also been purchased for the Library at a cost of £720.
The Committee has met four times during the year. I would like to thank all the members of the Committee for their help and support during my first year as Chairman.
The Trustees of the Charity during the year were:
Susan Swaffin-Smith Chairman, Correspondent and Secretary
Martin Noble Wells Treasurer
Diana June Arthur
John Clifford
Robert Anthony Doe
Helen Kirstine Kemp
Edward Anthony Patrick Plumridge
Rachael Salter
Mary Carmen Wells
The principal address of the Charity is that of the Correspondent, Mrs Susan Swaffin-Smith, 32 Long Common, Heybridge, Maldon, Essex CM9 4UU
SUE SWAFFIN-SMITH
Chairman and Correspondent 5th April 2013
Registered Charity No. 1098311