THE GRAIL SOCIETY (WAXWELL) UK

REPORT TO ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

SATURDAY 27 SEPTEMBER 2008.

Charity Number: 1104750

Trustees: C. Davidson (President)

E. Gordon

M. Grasar

M. Harper

P. Hayllar

P. Johnstone

M. Leavy

M. Leigh

S. Pickles

A. Walsh

Advisory Council: Trustees plus

A M Hayllar

I. Picton

Hon Secretary: J. Schmidt

Hon Treasurer: C. Robinson

REPORT OF EXECUTIVE COUNCIL (1/1/07 to 31/12/07)

The Executive Council of the Grail Society held 3 meetings in 2007 (February, July and November) and representatives of Grail Associates and/or Grail Young Adults were present on each occasion. The AGM of the Society at which the report and accounts for 2006 were presented was held in Birmingham in July 2007. At the AGM a talk was given by Hugh Rolo on 'Understanding Differences', arranged by the Multi-Ethnic Society working group.

Trustees

During the year the Trustees have advanced work on a Policies and Procedures manual for the Society, considering drafts prepared by Tony Walsh. Some of the work is being undertaken in conjunction with our sister charity (The Women of Nazareth, Charity number 221076) but it is recognised that at this stage the Grail Society charity is small and does not require the same level of detail.

An initial draft of a Trustees Handbook was considered and further work is on-going. Trustee training continues by sharing information gained at conferences eg Esther Gordon attended a day on Employment Law and Charities. Other outside training events were considered but were not relevant at this time. Several Trustees already act as trustees for other charities and bring the knowledge gained at these to their Grail responsibilities.

Developments and activities throughout the year

The AGM in Birmingham in July 2007 was attended by about 40 members of the Society and some other interested people. The talk by Hugh Rolo was well received and subsequently published in 'In Touch, the magazine of The Women of Nazareth, thus reaching an even wider audience.

The Way Forward Group set up by the Executive Council in 2006 began to meet in 2007 and continues to present recommendations to the Council.

Delays in the delivery of the 2007 Grail calendar meant that the costs just about broke even. Considerable time was spent in exploring ideas for a calendar in 2008 or 2009 but eventually the project was rejected. Thanks however are due to all those who submitted art work and gave time to looking at the practical issues involved.

Work has continued on the preparation of Paraliturgies and some have been tried out in Liverpool and East Anglia. It is hoped that we will be able to post one on the web-site freely available, but indicating that others could be purchased from the Society.

In November 2007 the Multi-Ethnic Society working group decided that they had taken their project as far as possible, at least for the time being, and it was agreed that a written report of the work undertaken since it was set up in 2000 would be prepared, hopefully for publication in 'Exchange', the in-house bulletin of the Grail Society, or 'In Touch'. It is already up on the website. A copy of the report would be sent to the Bishops' Conference to inform them of the Grail’s response to their document Serving a Multi-Ethnic Society.

A leaflet on legacies to the Grail charities was agreed and has now been distributed. It will help people to distinguish the different parts of the Grail and the Women of Nazareth Charity.

Early in 2007 the Executive Council agreed that professional help should be obtained to assist in the development of a revised Grail web-site. Two people were employed and the work in progress can be viewed at www.grailsociety.org.uk.

The different branches of the Grail continue to hold their regular residential days together and local meetings. The local meetings in particular provide an opportunity to reach a wider group of people. A new local group in East Anglia was due to meet in December 2007. A successful day for Grail Associates was held at Waxwell in October 2007 on the theme of 'Jesus at the Last Supper'.

Further issues of 'The Grail Good Life' green papers appeared through-out the year raising awareness and providing useful information which can be shared with others. They are inserted into 'In Touch'.

Members of all branches of the Society continue to represent us on and share in the work of the National Council for Lay Associations, the National Board of Catholic Women (in which a significant contribution was made to a report on Marriage), the National Conference for Secular Institutes and the International body for Secular Institutes (CMIS). The Grail Society has joined the Live Simply movement and some members are involved in initiatives in their own localities promoting these ideas.

The Grail Society (Waxwell) UK has continued to benefit from the support of the Women of Nazareth charity, including the provision of accommodation, hospitality and meeting rooms during meetings of the Executive Council. Alternative arrangements have been agreed for 2008.

Preparations for the Grail President elections in 2008 were started and Bishop Longley was invited to attend. Unfortunately later commitments meant that he had to withdraw and he asked Canon Robert Plourde to preside on his behalf.