Hi, Judy Fairclough from Windsor CC here. I would be able to assist with this task.

Windsor’s Second Come & Try 12 April 2025

So as not to deter those who were on the waitlist, it was decided to hold another Come & Try. This was held on Saturday 12 April. The event was advertised in the same places as the first one. The response was not as good as the first one. Twelve people registered for the second Come and Try. Everything was run the same as the first event, with the exception that we offered morning tea, not high tea.

Of course, rain was forecast and didn’t disappoint. An email was sent to all attendees the night before advising we would still be holding the event as only showers were forecast. Fortunately it didn't rain for the time out guests were on the lawns. Only 8 of those registered turned up. All of these 8 people were connected to members of the club.

Our guests had just as much fun as those at the high tea. I felt that with the smaller number, it was much easier to sit with the guests and tell them all about croquet. One person is going on holiday in May and vows to return after his holiday. Another couple were very interested and vowed to return soon. Two younger players enjoyed themselves and thought they would come back as casuals on Saturday.

Although the days require a lot of organisation and help from members, they were enjoyable and hopefully we can convert some of them into members.

One thing that was a key element was to communicate with members and guests. Emails were sent to members to keep them up to date with happenings and also setting out who would be doing each task. I also sent reminder emails to guests about the day and reminding them to bring a hat, water bottle and wear flat soled shoes.

Regards
Judy!

What Windsor did for the High Tea, Come & Try?

Upon hearing from CAQ about the High Tea, we had 3 people assigned to coordinate the event. Judy, Julie and Jenny - yes the three Js.

We discussed how the day would run, time, helpers and what food we would provide.

An email was sent to members asking for help with baking, setting up, teaching and anything else that was required. We had a fantastic response.

When the banners arrived for the posters, we added our information to this. At a suggestion from my daughter, reference was made to both Bridgerton and Alice in Wonderland in the flyer. Maybe that was the secret to getting so many responses. Who knows?

The flyer was emailed to all members with a request that they forward onto any of their contacts. Flyers were printed off and were posted in the local shopping centre, local library and a few were letterbox dropped in the surrounding streets.

As well as the Windsor Croquet Club Facebook page, the flyer was also published on the local page for the Windsor area.

The event was planned for Saturday 8 March and we had 32 registered guests (we can only take that many on the courts) and 15 people on the waitlist. Cyclone Alfred changed all that!

The event was rescheduled for Saturday 22 March. An email was sent to all those who had registered first, giving them first dibs at the new date. We then sent the email and flyer to those on the waitlist as well as re-advertising on Facebook. Thirty one people were registered to attend and 28 turned up on the day.

The day before the event, we cleaned the club house and set the table up so there was minimal work to be done on the day. Commencement time was 10:00am

On the day, we had 2 people greeting the guests. Guests were asked to sing in, then ushered to another member who gave them a mallet and assigned them to one of the instructors. It was a hot day but everyone enjoyed themselves. They played for an hour and then came in for high tea.

The tables were set out with the fanciest cups, saucers, plates and teapots. As well as some beautiful cake stands, most were provided by members. We had flowers on every table. There was so much delicious food. Those who have a gluten free diet were not forgotten (because I am gluten free). Their food was set out on a table at the back of the room to ensure no cross contamination. I also made a list of ingredients for every gluten free food item.

There was more than enough food. The chatter and laughter in the room was fantastic.Everyone was really enjoying themselves. People complimented members on how much fun they had, how they enjoyed themselves and they also said that they felt so welcome. It really was a great day. Several people asked for membership forms and so far 4 returned the following week. Then rain has prevented them from coming again.

Reflections - The high tea, although successful and a lot of fun, was a lot of work and required a lot of input from the members. A morning tea is much easier and takes a lot of pressure off everyone. Maybe even limit the number of attendees.

WE held a second Come and Try today - next post has all the info.

Regards
Judy