OSPREYS' DINNER 2011
Thursday 5 January 2012
On Wednesday 7th Dec, the night before the 130th Varsity Match, 50 Ospreys spanning 17 sports, gathered in the University Women’s Club for the annual dinner. This was the first event of a newly formed tie with the UWC and it was fantastic to see so many alumnae sports women together. We have used this venue before and with the prodigious settings of the club, the cosy atmosphere in the library, and the sumptuous food, we are delighted to have secured this venue for years to come.
Anna Harrison, President of the Junior Committee, was the first to speak and provide an update on the Juniors. Everyone was treated to the positive progress report. Valuable bursaries continue to be awarded to teams and individuals thanks to the kind sponsorship from Citi, J.P. Morgan, Accenture and Bank of America Merrill Lynch. A successful speaker’s dinner was held, with elite athlete and Osprey Phyllis Agbo providing inspiring words. For the second consecutive year, they held a successful charity ball with the Hawks, in aid of Right to Play, raising about £5000. Participation in sport and dedication continues to thrive and we are glad to support this.
Karen Pearce then updated everyone on the exciting news about the development of the Sports Centre. Finances have been secured and revised planning permission is being sought so as to make this long awaited dream another step closer to coming true. We hope this continues through 2012 and we will provide further information on the progress.
The highlight of the evening was listening to our guest speaker, Stacie Powell. Stacie is in the middle of studying for her PhD in Astrophysics, while training as a diver for the GB squad. She has competed in International competitions for some time, coming 8th in the synchronised diving at the 2008 Beijing Olympics and 10th in the 10m platform dive. She is currently training for the London Olympics and hoping for final team selection in June. Her speech focused on learning from past mistakes, to develop as an athlete and a person. She has found strengthened awareness and commitment from previous failures, which have provided the best opportunities for learning and improving. She has been committed to her sport from an early age and used this strong work ethos in many platforms in life, including academia. Faced with the decision of choosing one path to focus on before entering her studies, she was determined to do both, and has shown how, through immense dedication, and had work, it is possible to succeed in both. It was a very inspirational speech, from which we can all take example. We wish her the best of luck in her team selection and her studies.
The night ended with a raffle, including generous donations from Sweaty Betty, the UWC, and individual alumnae members. This was followed by a quiz, won by the clued-up Grange Road team, and guests left in high spirit.
The next Ospreys’ evening at the UWC will be the inaugural Mentor Evening, on Friday the 9th March. If you would like to support the event, or come along and provide advice that evening, please do contact us: ospreys@cantab.net
