My dear CADS,

Thank you so much, for supporting our Gala Dinner so enthusiastically.

We had 60 people present and every one of those 60 people was up for a good time! We were honoured to welcome Michael Carn, OBE, one of our ex-Chairs, and Dick van den Broek, the current Chair of the Anglo Netherlands Society, as our special guests. Mike enjoyed himself so much he was moved to make an impromptu speech. Several of the guests have since asked to join CADS, so it was a very good recruitment event too!

I would also like to thank the CADS members who made donations in the form of raffle prizes. We ended up with a fantastic set of prizes and raised €740 for the International Justice Mission, an organisation that seeks to end slavery, human trafficking, and violence against people in poverty.

Several of the prizes (a silk scarf and two paintings) were created by one of the guests Fatima Freites Kaser. Fatima created these works which commemorate Amsterdam’s forthcoming 750th birthday. And for those of you who were disappointed not to win a painting or scarf, Fatimawill take commissions and can be contacted on:
fatimakaser@gmail.com

Next Meeting: CADS Jokathon
Friday 13 December, IGC Amsterdam

Our next meeting will be our world-renowned ‘Jokathon.’ This year we are holding an extra special event celebrating the life of Mike Hayes, a former CADS Chair who sadly passed away last year. Mike Waters, another former Chair is hosting this celebration and has sent this message to you all.

“Hello to all Jokathon participants. We look forward to hearing all your best jokes at this year’s marathon joke telling session. Carol is rehearsing her latest selection already.
It is a special event this year, as we are holding it in honour of Mike Hayes, a former Chairman of CADS, who died almost a year ago on December 23rd. His widow Géke is planning to attend as our guest. As you may know, Mike was the best joker in our pack, and the most talented and creative CAD. His marriage to Géke was a long and happy one, marred by the tragic death of their beloved daughter from cancer. We spent many happy hours together over the years. After winning the Jokathon 3 years in succession, he lifted the Bernard Garside Jokathon trophy permanently and replaced it with the infamous ‘Mike Hayes wedgie’.

Amongst the jokes this year, if any of our members would like to add their short vignettes about Mike or, God forbid, repeat any of his jokes, please feel free to do so. Let’s make it a fitting memorial to a great guy, and an excellent CAD. Carol and I will be participating alongside Jennie, as she is too young to have had the opportunity to enjoy his
company 🙂

Best, Mike*”
(*Mike Waters – there are a lot of Mikes mentioned in this newsletter!)

Calendar of events – 2025

Many of you are super busy and are often ‘surprised’ with the announcement of events and then cannot make it, so please put ALL these dates in your diary NOW!
Please note that we are always keen to get ideas for speakers and of course welcome our own members sharing their expertise at a CADS event. There are also events outside of the monthly meetings such as battlefield tours, and garden tours – please keep organising these very popular events and know that details can always be shared in this newsletter.

Thank you for your continued support and engagement with CADS. I look forward to seeing you at our upcoming events.