At the recent annual general meeting of the Manx Retirement Association, held at the Manx Blind Welfare Society’s headquarters in Onchan, Howard Parkin, the association’s new director, stated in his report that the asociation had received during the past year generous donations from the Gough Ritchie Charitable Trust and Manx Telecom.

Thanks to generous support in the previous year from Celton Manx through radio advertising and hard work by Assistant Director, Barbara Mason, the association now has almost 400 members.

Participation in the weekly Stretch & Flex sessions at the National Sports Centre has almost doubled.

Following the receiving of the accounts and elections, the association’s patron, Jack Corrin announced that we would be stepping down from the role.

In what was to be his farewell speech, Jack paid tribute to the association’s founder John Naylor and his wife Margo for establishing an organisation that had greatly helped retired people from all walks of life on the Island. He himself, although a lifelong resident and one who thought he knew everyone, had met many new people and made new friends during his 12 years as patron.

Jack also paid tribute to former director Gordon Daniels who took over after John Naylor had retired.

After Gordon passed on, his wife Joan had continued her membership and was still on the committee as secretary. Brian Titterington then took over the director’s role ably assisted by his wife Mary but for family reasons had returned to the UK last October, when Howard took over the role as director.

Jack concluded by saying said that he felt greatly privileged to have been Patron for the last 12 years but left knowing that the Association was in safe hands and felt sure that it would continue to thrive and flourish in the years ahead.