Annual General Meeting 2005
Glasgow humane Society AGM was held on Friday 10 June 2005 at Glasgow City Chambers, followed by a civic reception with a fork buffet.
The following is the address given by George Parsonage at the Glasgow Humane Society AGM.
Councillors, Directors, Delegates and Friends.
It is with great pride that I stand here today.
No group could have had finer tributes paid to them than the Glasgow Humane Society has had this year.
The Society has again been recognised again by the Royal Humane Society.
Media from all over the World has paid tribute to our work. From Belfast to Canada, from London to Spain, from the Dundee Courier to the Todita Card Mexico, from Dumfries to Buenos Aires.
I can now say that I am a "functionario de Glasgow Humane Society, un grupo de rescate".
The biggest tribute though has come from the Fire Brigade who are going to put on a service consisting of dozens of personal and £100,000 of equipment to do the task that the Glasgow Humane Society has carried out more or less single handed for over 200 years.
I thank the Brigade for their presentation today, though must point out that this is the first time that any of the Glasgow Humane Society has seen this presentation and we therefore reserve the right to comment on it during future consultation.
I wish them every success in their new role and trust they can deliver the kind of response that citizens and visitors to the Greater Glasgow area have come to expect.
What a 12 months it has been. Recently we had two Officers, after a very short time we are back to one.
Still it certainly threw up a lot of debate and answered a lot of questions that must have been smouldering in the background for a long time.
Health and Safety has perhaps been used as an excuse for what was inevitable.
We have known for several years of the proposal for the Brigade to become Fire and Rescue so it did not come as a real shock.
Perhaps the timing and the manner could have been better orchestrated, but it was no shock.
In recent years I have been getting more and more involved in what in some ways could be the most important role of the Society, the actual prevention of accidents, actually occurring.
In 1790 the Glasgow merchants, businessmen City Professionals and Officials set an example to the rest of the World by setting up a full time Officer to look after the safety of it's citizens and visitors.
A few years ago the Society initiated a group that has grown to be called the Water Safety Working Group and now runs under the Chairmanship of the City Council.
This group has the potential to blaze a trail equally as good as the trail blazed by their predecessors in 1790.
For several years your Officer has coped with the on call situation of rescue in tandem with the massive amount of prevention work, advice given and meetings attended.
Now perhaps, being able to go to bed and sleep at night, Officers shall be able to concentrate on this important and often overlooked work.
As I said in the Haberdashers Hall in London recently when praising Glasgow City Council for the work carried out in prevention by the water safety Working Group, we have the records of what caused accidents over the years.
We have the records of where and why accidents occurred.
We must use these records to advise for the future.
One does not wish to live in the past, but it is only by learning from the mistakes of the past that we can influence the future.
This is a new beginning and it is to be hoped that as the display you will see, when we go into the Satinwood for our buffet, says, the Glasgow Humane Society and Glasgow City Council, working in partnership through the water Safety Working Group for a safer River.
The Glasgow Humane Society has played a large part in the lives of many of Glasgow's citizens, it may have an even bigger part to play in the future.
It is up to us all to ensure that this happens.
I would like to finish by reading a letter I sent to Strathclyde Police Force Control on the 5th May Irrespective of what the future holds I would like to take this present opportunity to request the following.
That you convey my thanks to all the Duty Officers and other Officers at Force Control for their sterling efforts in ensuring that rescues were carried out on the Greater Glasgow Waterways.
While we have had occasional ups and downs, and have sometimes had to struggle against the odds, we have worked as a team and produced results.
I feel privileged to have been part of such a team.
It is a credit to your Officers that I have never been or felt alone while on the water.
The efficiency of the "back up" has always been appreciated.
Most rescues could not have been carried out without this team effort and many persons owe their safety to us all, to this teamwork.
Fate may decide whether we shall work together again or not, but whatever happens, I shall never forget the friendly, (though sometimes frustrated) efficient and welcome voices at the end of the phone.
I trust that through your control, persons who for whatever reason, end up in our waterways requiring assistance, continue to receive the same speedy assistance that has been rendered since 1790, and that perhaps your work load will be lessened.
I thank you all for your support, The Directors, The Council Officials and employees, the Emergency Services my family especially my wife and children for their understanding and support.
