Greetings Clan Members, Removed the S on Clan
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Combie MacOmie McColm MacOmish McComas Tam McComb(e) Thom McCombie Thomas McComie Thoms McComish Thomson Clan MacThomas US & Canadian Branch Official Newsletter Andrew MacThomas of Finegand ~ 19th Clan Chief Volume # 4 Issue 1 October 2012 Breaking News! Our Chief, Andrew MacThomas of Finegand, will be coming to the United States in May 2013. Finegand has been invited to be the Guest of Honor and Chief of the Greenville Games in Greenville, South Carolina on May 24-25, 2013. This will be the first visit from our Chief and his wife Anneke to North America in 20 years. Please put this historic event on your calendars and plan to join us as we welcome our Chief to our country. We plan to have a Branch meeting in conjunction with Andrew’s visit to these games. As this is a new development, plans for the weekend have not been developed yet, but will include events at least from Friday, May 24th to Sunday May 26th. While there will be activities in which Finegand is required to participate as the Guest of Honor of the games, there will be plenty of time for members to visit with Andrew and Anneke during the weekend. A meet and greet with our Chief will most likely be included, as well as our usual Branch Banquet and a Branch business meeting. We will sponsor a tent at the games on Saturday, May 25th will give us a “home” during the day between the other traditional games activities. We will be the Honored Clan at the games and our Branch will lead the clan parade on Friday evening. We hope to have a good MacThomas presence at these games. Additional activities for the weekend may be planned. Check out the games website at www.gallabrae.com. As this is truly an exceptional event for our Branch, we encourage you to consider joining us in Greenville, SC to meet our Chief. It will provide an opportunity to ask questions about the Society and express your thoughts on any Society issue with our Chief. It could be another 20 years before this opportunity presents itself so take advantage of this event! A form will shortly be added to the website for members and other interested parties to indicate if you will be able to join us for this significant visit. Official Website: www.clanmacthomas.com 1 Cathy’s Corner I am excited at the prospect of having our Clan Chief and Society President visit the United States in May 2013. This has Have a talent with Computers? not happened for a good many years so it is an event not to be missed. It is especially convenient for those who cannot make You could help your Branch by becoming our newsletter editor. Most of the the trip to Scotland to be able to meet Andrew MacThomas in content will be provided, but we need this country. I encourage as many members as possible to join someone who can format text and us in Greenville, South Carolina. pictures and do some writing. We plan Our recently held Branch meeting in Livonia was a tremendous to publish four to six newsletters a year. success. All members attending had a great time, even with Contact Convenor Cathy if you are the 95 degree heat. Our last meeting in Wisconsin over Labor interested. And I want to thank Ken and Day was very cold and windy. Our member from Florida had Cindy McComb for the beauriful issues brought a wool sport coat, thinking that it would surely be they produced for us! warm enough in early September. Well, it wasn’t nearly Branch Essay Contest enough to stop that cold wind. That same sport coat traveled I want to remind members of our Essay with him again to Detroit, just to be on the safe side, but this contest this fall. All students between the time he could hardly bear to carry it. Such is our fickle ages of 17 and 23 can submit a 500 word weather. essay on any topic about Scotland in The clan magazines, Clach Na Choileach, have been mailed and general or about any aspect on Clan you should have received yours. The magazines were sent only MacThomas. The winner will win a $500 to those members have renewed their dues for 2012. If for prize. The deadline will be January 31, 2013. The contest rules are on the clan you have not received your, there is still time to pay your website and were printed in the June membership dues for 2012 and receive your clan magazine. newsletter. There is a renewal form at the end of this newsletter. Change of address for the Branch In the last newsletter we asked for the names and pictures of Treasurer our MacThomas graduates. We haven’t received any yet but Dues payments ($25) should be sent to would still like to celebrate your success in our newsletter. So Convenor Cathy who is also now Branch send in those names and pictures! Other member’s news is Treasurer at this address: also welcome – weddings, new babies (our new Branch 1653 Hydram Ave. N. members!), interesting trips or activities – all are welcome! Oakdale. MN 55128 Our Branch member Wendy Thomson is standing for election to Council at the Society AGM in December. Many of you know her from our last two Branch meetings. I am excited to Executive Committee of the US & Canadian announce that Wendy has also agreed to take on the role of Branch Convenor for the US and Canadian Branch – subject to Convenor and Treasurer: Cathy McComb Ludemann, approval by Council, and election by the Branch membership 1653 Hydram Ave. N. Oakdale, MN 55128 at an EGM that will be organized in due course. Email: [email protected]. Member at Large: I have been asked by our webmaster to point out that he is James L. Thomas, always pleased to receive comments and contributions for the N1198 29th Avenue, Berlin, WI 54923 . Email: [email protected]. website from the membership. Please contact him using the Member at Large: links on the site. John C. (Chris) McComb, PO Box 167, Sunset, TX 76270-0167 USA. Lastly I would like to remind members that if you would like Email: [email protected] any assistance or advice with researching your family tree, Canadian Committee Member: please contact the Clan Sennachie, Grahame Thom, using the Ken McComb, 1433 – 151 Country Village Road NE, e-mail address: Calgary, AB, Canada, T3K 5X5. [email protected] 2 Reflections on the Branch Meeting After returning home from the Branch annual meeting in Livonia, Michigan, I think I can definitely say that a fun time was held by all! I can’t tell you what joy it gives me to see members who don’t know each other come together and within minutes, everyone is chatting and conversing with one another. By the end of the weekend, they are exchanging email addresses to keep in touch. Clan membership is about our extended family and these gatherings do much to engender those feelings. I wish everyone would come meet us. The MacThomases are fun people! Top Ten Moments at the meeting: 1. Great music at the Cheilidh 2. Successfully getting our displays set up in the tent for the start of the games 3. Leading the clan parade as the Honored Clan at the Detroit Highland Games 4. Introducing 7 families to Clan MacThomas 5. Judith McCombs reading her poems featuring Patrick McKommie, a convicted sorcerer, circa 1673 6. Reading several of Rod Mooney’s poems at the dedication of the Clan MacThomas Library 7. Scott Thomson addressing the Haggis at the banquet 8. Noticing that the haggis was all eaten! 9. The late evening chat sessions 10. The 95 degree heat and humidity. Oh, wait! Maybe that wasn’t a highlight! The Detroit Highland Games were organized and run by the St. Andrew’s Society of Detroit. What an amazing organization they have, with a membership of about 350 Scots. Together, they did an excellent job on the games and the Ceilidh the evening before. Our own Wendy Thomson is a prominent member of their group and was busy assisting their activities during the weekend. Photos: The Branch leading the clan parade A view of the MacThomas tent Branch members enjoying the music and a refreshing beverage at the Ceilidh 3 Finegand’s Message to the Attendees at the Branch Meeting Chief Andrew MacThomas sent this message to be read to the attendees at the Branch meeting in Livonia, Michigan in August. Unfortunately I neglected to read it during the weekend and am presenting it here. Convenor Cathy Finegand’s message: I hope you all have a wonderful time in Detroit. I am a great believer in Branch get togethers. The social aspects are a very important aspect of clanship. Such "gatherings" allow members to enjoy the company of old friends and to meet new ones. These occasions also provide an opportunity to discuss matters of mutual interest involving the Clan Society and your Branch. I am sure you will be updated by Cathy and her team on all the recent developments and up to date news. But, with membership slightly down in North America, I hope the chance is taken to discuss how best to increase numbers in both the US and Canada and how best to maintain existing members more effectively, particularly those in their first year following recruitment. On a personal front, following the news that Cathy wishes to stand down as Convenor, I should like to take this opportunity to thank her very much for all she has done for the Clan Society as Head of the US and Canadian Branch during a time of great change.