From David Ifold…
I am writing my first letter to outline our plans for the 41st BMS Symposium which takes place as a real event in Leicester at The College Court Conference Centre this September starting 9.00AM on Friday 16th September and finishing lunchtime Sunday 18th September.
Since the outbreak of Covid 19, the world of Conference Centres and Hotels has changed. College Court has now re-opened but is run directly by the owners Leicester University through their own conference business. The original staff that we once knew at College Court have long since gone.
Booking a conference venue this year has not been easy. A number of members including Jeanette Inkin and Martin Stolworthy have kindly made enquiries on our behalf but the main stumbling block has been that most conference venues today have very strict contracts with penalty clauses that can apply even twelve months before the event!
We have decided to go back to College Court as they have offered us the most favourable terms. The Russell Society have used College Court for their ASM the first weekend of April and a number of us attended that function and so we will be able to judge how well they have restarted their business.
Our booking gives members a number of options with the possibility of delegates joining or leaving us at their convenience. We of course hope you will be with us for the whole weekend!
The Symposium will officially start Friday 16th September at 9.00AM with the rooms Chestnut and Oak booked for our use. If they wish, delegates can arrive Thursday PM and an evening meal will be available. For both Friday and Saturday we have booked the day delegate rate which gives us lunch. We of course have the option of evening meals again. We have booked the room Birch for talks on the Saturday. Saturday PM, we plan to have the auction. Sunday morning we will have our AGM.
There will be three photographic competitions this year and we would like to invite members who are unable to attend to submit entries.
- There will be a competition with the subject matter of anything to do with Mineralogy/Geology. This could be a picture of a micro, hand specimen, mineral site or even a geological structure. Anyone who has won a previous BMS Photographic Competiion is excluded from this class as the aim is to encourage new competitors.
- A picture of a purple or lilac mineral (open to all).
- An arsenate mineral (open to all).
We are in need of speakers. We hope to have a hybrid event where overseas members can join in the photographic competitions and listen to the talks via Zoom. We could even try an overseas member speaker talking to the delegates meeting in Leicester!
I will shortly circulate booking forms. It would be very helpful if potential delegates let me know if they know whether they will attend or not.
Kind Regards,
David.