From one great to another…

For anyone who couldn’t make our first virtual AGM last night (it was great to see so many of you there), we’d like to formally announce that Paddy Dinsmore is now Chair of Wallsend Harriers. Bill will continue his close relationship with the club as President.

Bill Todd has been our chair for over four years and as most of you know, he is in much demand as a devoted grandad and he steps down from his position, in his own words, “not because something is wrong – quite the opposite actually, as so much is right!”

His full report is available in the AGM minutes but we thought you’d like to read his closing remarks:

“My commitment to Wallsend Harriers remains the same as always and I will still be around when I can, cheering you on from the sidelines once this virus situation allows.  And I will always be willing to help the committee in any way I can from the “back benches” as it were.

“And finally I want to say that every one of you make WHAC what it is – a friendly, welcoming, but competitive club where everyone encourages each other, so thanks to every single one of you, who compete, support or help in any way to make WHAC the envy of many local clubs.  We have certainly been turning heads this year!”

And from Paddy, our new Chair:

“Thank you to Bill Todd for the amount of effort, support and the impact he has had on our club these last four years. Bill will be President of our club and will continue to support us all at races, that green and gold blood running through his veins won’t allow him to stay away.

“We are so lucky to have a very passionate committee and fantastic coaches which is a solid foundation to take the club forward. I have absolutely no doubt that we are the envy of many clubs. The current lockdown has impacted us all in various ways but it has not stopped us coming together virtually, our club has hosted two magnificent events, the TOG 5k and the Gordon Smith relays, the latter having raised over £1,300 and counting for St.Oswald’s. The response from the north-east running community has been magnificent and it’s great that we are all able to keep positive through these challenging times. I wanted to thank every Wallsend athlete who has been brave enough to put on a green and gold vest and give it your best effort, that’s what this club is all about – everybody pushing each other to get the best out of one another.

“As a club we will eventually all get back together, we have put plans in place with a few Covid-19 coordinators to keep us up-to-date with the English Athletics guidelines. We will review and publish these. It’s up to us to be sensible and look out for each other. Running is a great way to improve your physical and mental health so now more than ever is the time to get those trainers on, join in with our sessions and have fun virtually…and as Terry always said ‘People need People’.”