Whats on in Brisbane 2023

For more information please read our monthly Newsletter by clicking here: QRTA Newsletter July 2023

Date	Details
18 July	Tour of St John’s Cathedral Precinct WHERE: Ann St Brisbane Cost - $5.00 (Please bring $5 on the day) Time – 10.00 – 11.00 RSVP by 12 July
15 August	AGM Venue – QTU 21 Graham St Milton The Monthly Executive meeting will follow the AGM Time – 9.30 RSVP BY AUGUST 8 We really need your HELP and IDEAS. The Constitution allows for 12; members to be on the Executive. Sadly, due to illness and accidents we are concerned that the Executive will not have the required members. If you can give 2 hours the first Tuesday of the month, we would like you to add to the discussions at the monthly Executive meetings. Please contact qrtasec@qtu.asn.au
20 September (THIS IS A WEDNESDAY)	Morning Tea and Entertainment Venue: QTU Building 21 Graham St Milton. Time:10.00am Cost: $15 Entertainment: Old's Cool
17 October	Tour of the Queensland Herbarium The Queensland Herbarium is situated at the Brisbane Botanic Gardens, Mount Cootha. It is part of Queensland's Department of Environment and Science. It is responsible for discovering, describing, monitoring, modelling, surveying, naming and classifying Queensland's plants, and is the focus for information and research on the state's plants and plant communities. The history of the Herbarium as an institution starts in 1855 with the appointment of Walter Hill as Superintendent of the Brisbane Botanic Gardens, four years before Queensland separated from New South Wales as a colony. In 1859, with Separation, Hill was appointed Colonial Botanist as well as remaining Director of the Gardens, a position he was to hold until 1881. At the time the main function of colonial botanic gardens was usually to facilitate the introduction of suitable economic plants, although native plants would be collected as well. However, Hill's successor as Colonial Botanist was Frederick Manson Bailey, an established botanist already in charge of the herbarium at the Queensland Museum. Bailey remained in office for 34 years, until his death in 1915, and energetically worked at building up the herbarium collection through correspondence, exchange and numerous expeditions throughout the state. Since 1855 the herbarium collection has been housed in five different places, and its botanical library in six. In 1998 the Herbarium moved to its current site within the Mount Cootha Botanic Gardens. The number of plant specimens in the collection is over 890,000, mainly from Queensland. The tour includes a viewing of the Quarantine area. Plant Specimens collected by Joseph Banks when he arrived with Captain Cook are housed here. Depending on Numbers TWO TOURS will run. The first at 10.00 and the second at 11.00 The maximum number per tour is 15. Attendance commitment will be required by 3 October to organise groups.
21 November	Tour of the State Library
12 December	CHRISTMAS LUNCH We are returning to a buffet Christmas Lunch this year at the QTU as was traditionally done before COVID.

---

2023 Newsletters

Making payments to the QRTA

 

For all payments to the QRTA please use the following details and  always include your name and purpose of payment.

Association : QRTA

Bank : CBA

BSB  :  064116

Acc No : 10333757

President's Report for 2022 - 2023

It gives me great pleasure to present the annual report of the Queensland Retired Teachers’ Association for 2022/23

Welcome  QTU President  Cresta Richardson and Vice President Leah Olsson  and Auditor

Members and guests

It is both happy and sad that we continue to hold  our AGM today at Milton but due to Covid restrictions we are not able to visit schools as  we had done in  the previous years.  But we are still doing something different this year  in holding our monthly Executive and the AGM on the same day and inviting all members to attend.

I would like  to welcome QTU members   to our AGM today and thank them for coming and representing  Cresta Richardson who has meetings this morning. We thank the President of QTU for continuing as our Patron and I hope we will have many years of working together.

We are  indebted to the Queensland Teachers’ Union for allowing us to hold our monthly meetings at Graham Street Milton and to the staff who set up for us before each meeting

I would also like to thank the QTU for  including our membership information in their mail out to all teachers as they retire so they have knowledge of the benefits of belonging to our association.  This year 3 QRTA  members attended the QTU conference with the aim of passing on knowledge of  our association.

At present Queensland Retired Teachers’ Association has members meeting in Brisbane and Rockhampton and Maleny.   New members are contacted and encouraged to join the groups in their area. This year  we have been helping  a member from the Sunshine coast hinterland who is trying to form a branch in that area.  At present  I am plased to report that the group have been successful in setting a branch in Maleny. We wish them all the best as they join with members at the interesting activities organised for them.

Members are reminded  that subscribing to the Association not only brings the advantages of access to the Union Shopper but the chance to keep abreast of education trends through reading the Queensland Teachers’ Union Journal and  the Monthly Newsletter which includes the  the calendar of events and their details.

Those with email addresses get reminders about activities organised by the branches and also interesting information for seniors from other organisations such as COTA.    A huge change for the  newsletter this year is that we have moved the publication from the role of secretary and made it a stand alone positiion.  We thank Judy Brown for offering to take on this role. We can all help  by sending any interesting information to Judy to be added to the Newsletter.

Membership director, Bob Bell, continues to update the membership database which allows us to contact members about all the advantages of being part of this association.  At present there are many members registered throughout Queensland but only 360 are financial and receive the Queensland Teachers Union journal.

Sharing the load of Secretary, Donella Lister  has done an excellent job of arranging  interesting outings and keeping us informed of these activities and  Roger for  recording our every word and keeping record of our meetings.  Due to Roger's  health Sue Elliott has helped with the minutes at our monthly meetings,

Frank continues to look after all things monetary as we will see from the Treasurers report.   Moving with the times we have introduced the use of a Debit Card which Frank can use to settle accounts for activities and make it easier for members to register their interest in attending  activities and annual dues.

Sandra Crawford has been our marketing member.  Thank you for keeping our website up to date. Sandra also helps with the organising of our functions held at the beginning of the year and the Xmas lunch.

Taking over from Des James who has retired,  Norma Wiltshire has been appointed  membership liason officer.  Thank you for connecting with  new members and encourageing them to participate in all that QRTA offers.

Other Executive members, Ursula Blaszczyk and  Carmet Harris  contribute to the organizing of the association through their varied skills especially in organising morning teas.

Rockhampton organised a full program for their members with speakers or visits to interesting sites around the district.

For members closer to Brisbane or those visiting, the programme committee have helped Donella Lister to organised a variety of outings during the 2022  /  2023 year. 

Our activities continue the philosophy of socialisation and lifelong learning.

We are indebted to the Brisbane City Council for a grant  through their Senior Celebration program to enable us to  fund activities.

We thank the QTU President Cresta Richardson for continuing in the role of Patron  Our association is strongly supported by the QTU from the IT department, the creators of the QTU Journal who allow  us  to add  a column in each edition.

Thank you also to the Union Shopper who acknowledges the QRTA by continuing to give members’ access to products through their organisation.

I offer my sincere thanks to the dedicated executive members who work to keep this association afloat.   

Finally I would like to thank all members for giving me the opportunity to contribute to the life of seniors and for your friendship and encouragement throughout the year

Thank You.

Noela Rogers

President QRTA

Who can join the QRTA?

Membership is open to:

• All retired teachers, teacher aides and library aides for Queensland State and non-state schools, colleges and other educational institutions whether at pre-school, primary, secondary, tertiary, special, technical or advanced educational levels
• Any retired person who held a position allied to education after accepting promotion or transfer for teaching
• Any retired person who held a position allied to education in an interstate or overseas educational institution
• Any spouse of any financial member, or spouse of a deceased member who makes application for membership
• Any retired staff member of the Queensland Teachers' Union, the Queensland Teachers' Credit Union or the Queensland Teachers' Union Health Society who makes application for membership

Benefits of QRTA membership

Financial members of the Queensland Retired Teachers' Association [ those who have paid their "additional Membership Benefits Fee} receive:

• a subscription to the Queensland Teachers' Union Journal (currently 8 issues per year) - QRTA have a "Retired Teachers' Column" in each issue of the Journal
• A copy of the QRTA Annual Program
• A subscription to the QRTA digest (currently 4 issues per year)
• the use of the Union Shopper for discount buying of an ever increasing range of goods and services. This is the only way retired teachers can maintain access to the services of the Union Shopper
• access to the Queensland Teachers' Union library

All this in addition to

• social gatherings
• forums and discussions
• entertainment
• group activity
• up to date information about a range of issues relevant to our needs
• cultural activities
• outings and excursions

Fees

As from 1 July 1999, to join the Association, members will pay a Membership fee of $20 and an Additional Membership Benefits Fee of $5, ie a total of $25 for the first year's membership.

Each year, in order to retain the benefits, an additional Membership Benefits Fee (of $5) will be due on 1 January, and is to be paid before 31 March of that year - ie membership RENEWAL is $5 per year.

Fees are set at the Annual General Meeting.

Constitution, forms and brochures

QRTA Executive

 

Position	Name	Contact
Hon. Patron	Cresta Richardson
President	Noela Rogers
Vice President/Minutes	Roger Abell
Past President	Maida Lilley
Executive Secretary	Carmel Harris	Email: qrtasec@qtu.asn.au
Secretary	Sue Elliot	Email: qrtasec@qtu.asn.au
Treasurer	Frank Atkinson
Membership Secretary	Donella Lister	Email: qrtamembership@qtu.asn.au MOB: 0409630319
Marketing	Sandra Crawford
Association Archivist	Position vacant
Committee	Ursula Blaszczyk Carmel Harris Sue Elliott
Membership Liason	Norma Wiltshire
Newsletter Editor	Judy Brown

 

QRTA Executive meets on the first Tuesday of each month except January.