AGM marks exciting year ahead for MK Softball
The Herald Snooker Club was the venue for our 2020 AGM as we voted in our new committee and planned the year ahead.
But first things first, it was time for pizza as members got stuck in and spent the rest of the meeting nursing a food baby.
Chair Hedley Bevan gave an overview of some of the highlights of the last year. These included:
Plate winners at Firstball
Starting our fourth year of MK Softball League
Holding a corporate softball event
Hosting our second Codebreakers Cup, expanding to 16 teams and turning a profit
Ending the season by winning Cotswold Autumn
Thanks were extended to Rachel Sylvester and Katie O'Connor for their help organising the Awards Night and other socials year round.
Treasurer Jake Clarke gave an overview of the finances. I don’t understand the spreadsheet but I am reliably informed that our finances are in top shape.
Leah Holmes then gave the Secretary’s report. Membership numbers remain steady. This year we have over 60 members (including almost 40 indoor members) plus our two external teams; Towcester Tigers and the Northants Praetorians.
Thank yous were given to Jon Reynolds and Paul Severn for website updates, Sam Gibson for helping with weekly emails, Jodie Bull for covering the email inbox and a special thanks was extended to Chloe Love and Chris Russell for our most extensive tournament schedule yet.
Head coach Jodie Bull thanked all coaches and umpires who keep the league going and shared some of the ways coaches are developing their own skills to help the club develop.
Following this was the most anticipated part of the agenda... Constitutional changes. The committee shared their plans for updating the current constitution to be voted in at an 'Extraordinary General Meeting' to be held on the 25th February. Only one person fell asleep so it is assumed the response from the membership is generally positive.
Next up, it was the election. Jake and Jodie were reelected to their roles, with Sam Gibson taking on the secretary role and Leah stepping into the Chair position. This meant it was time to say a huge thank you to Hedley Bevan for his outstanding leadership over the last few years, which has played such a big part in the success of both the club and the league. He is a legend of MK softball.
After the reports, the meeting moved onto a number of breakout sessions where members discussed topics such as what they want to see in weekly sessions, how we can recruit more players and what the future of the club could look like. It was great to hear so many interesting ideas.
In the Club President's closing remarks, as well as saying thanks to Hedley, Jon Reynolds gave an update on plans for youth softball – however from what I have seen, his sons are already good enough to play in the adult league – if not quite tall enough yet. The plans sound exciting as we develop the next generation of talent!
Finally, Jodie Bull was presented with her BaseballSoftballUK and British Softball Federation ‘Softball Adult Coach of the Year Award’ and thanked for her tireless efforts supporting the club. That brought the night to a close as everyone headed home to digest copious amounts of pizza and look forward to what promises to be an awesome 2020!
Full minutes and reports are available to download on our website here.
