Chairman's Message
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Dear Fellow Members,
Time really flies and it's hard to believe the Year 2020 is now right upon us. Despite the social movements prevailing, I hope that Members would have had a peaceful Christmas and were able to share joy and laughter with family and friends in the Club or at home, as our function bookings and take-home orders revealed a fairly promising sales record during this festive period. Very many thanks to all of you who donated and helped prepare plentiful Christmas gifts from the Club for those less fortunate children who had to spend their Christmas in the Queen Elizabeth Hospital. This long-standing worthy cause of ours has always been well supported by kind-hearted and generous Members and this year was no exception. Members of the General Committee, together with the General Manager and helping staff, presented the record-high number of donated gifts to the hospital on 20th December where all presents were gratefully received. On a different note, Members should have been informed through circular letter sent that a minimum food and beverage charge of HK$300 per month (spending condition/pattern detailed in Motion adopted) and charged on a quarterly basis, is introduced with effect from 1st January, 2020. This measure is considered instrumental to help achieve a financial healthiness of our budgeted accounts without having to raise monthly dues, F&B prices, etc. Whilst it may sound unpopular and disagreeable to some, surveys conducted among clubs in the vicinity and across the city mostly reflect that this is a current normal practice to encourage more usage of club’s facilities by members. If I may hereby advertise, the USRC F&B Dept is earning more of its reputation these days with lots of compliments on its quality, variety and price, not to mention delivered with the caring service of our loyal waiting staff and comfort of the environment provided. It's also time for me to appeal to you for the annual staff cumshaw fund contribution. This year-end gratuity or bonus from Members is entirely voluntary as is the preferred amount. Your generosity will be regarded as a reflection of your appreciation of the good work that our staff, including those behind the scenes, has done throughout the past year. Part of the cumshaw will help pay for the staff annual party on the 10th Feb with the venue yet to be decided. The remaining sum will be used to support staff activities during the coming year. Please excuse me for asking you to dig deeper into your pocket in this respect! Lastly, by Chinese calendar reckoning, the Year of the Boar is almost over and we will soon be welcoming in the Year of the Mouse which will be time for another round of traditional celebration and big feasts for family gatherings. So please don't forget to book early for table reservations in the Club to avoid last-minute disappointment. Wishing you all an orderly, healthy and prosperous Year 2020 and Kung Hay Fat Choy for the Year of the Mouse! See you around the Club! Patrick Cheung Chairman |