Archives for June 2009
Brandermill Retired Men’s Club (BRMC) is now Brandermill Region Men’s Club (BRMC)
Posted June 25, 2009 at 1:19 AMWhen the Brandermill Retired Men’s Club was formed some twenty six years ago, membership was open exclusively to retired residents of Brandermill and Woodlake. The club’s objectives were twofold: to make retirement more enjoyable by offering a range of activities, and to give back to the community.
The activities evolved from golf, the core upon which the club was formed, into a wide range of social events, bowling, occasional excursions, two dine around town programs, picnics, special interest activities (fishing, photography, etc.) and an annual dinner dance.
The giving back to the community included hands-on projects where needed and as well as monetary donations through the BRMC Charity Fund, which over the past decade provided more than $50,000 to local charitable organizations and programs.
Early in 2006, the club’s By-Laws were amended to open membership to those who were non-residents of Brandermill or Woodlake, and who were sponsored by an active member of the club. The club benefited greatly with the vitality brought by this growth, and validated the wisdom of that decision.
Currently, the home addresses of the club’s nearly 200 members include Chesterfield, Chester, Richmond, and Amelia, as well as Midlothian.
To build on the success of that change, the By-Laws were again amended, in June, to change the club’s name to more accurately identify the range of its makeup, to delete the requirement for sponsored membership, and further, to eliminate the need to be retired and to lower the age eligibility from 55 to 50.
Although the club does not hold meetings during July and August, the social activities do continue in addition to the golf and bowling. This year’s hiatus include a deluxe “Day at the Races” in the Jockey Club at Colonial Downs; two dine around town events, one in the club’s ROMEO -- Retired Outstanding Men Eating Out -- with their ladies and guests, and the other in the BRMC Epicure program. Other summer events are in the planning stage.
Two other programs adopted by the club attest to its character and objectives: when a member becomes unable to continue active participation, he is offered the opportunity to continue as a dues-free Honorary Member -- the annual dues are a modest $15 -- and to participate as he is able. The second program is the Honorary Associate Member status offered to the widow of a deceased active member, so that she may continue to participate in all the club activities she enjoyed with her husband.