President's 2024 New Year Message
Princewaleans all,
Happy and blessed New year to you and your families.
Thank you very much for the confidence and trust bestowed upon me to serve you and the association for the next two years. This is indeed an honour and a privilege for me to be elected as the first female president of the Prince of Wales Alumni Association UK &I.
We will continue to forge ahead in our fund-raising efforts as we have always done. I hope we can continue to work together as a team with mutual respect for one another and to improve areas where there have been lapses.
We hosted a successful Skool Daze event in November 2023 and have already started preparations for our Day of Worship which will take place in Manchester on 26th May 2024. This event will be preceded by a ‘Meet and Greet’ on Saturday 25th May 2024.
It is my hope that we will continue to move the association forward as we approach 2025 and look forward to celebrating our centenary. My aspiration is to get as many Princewaleans on board to join the ranks as we celebrate this once in a lifetime occasion, but more importantly it is for us to leave a legacy to our beloved Prince of Wales, Kingtom which will benefit pupils and the school for years to come.
I mentioned in my acceptance speech that I hoped to have greater collaboration with the GLC and especially OPWA Freetown. In our first Trustees meeting held in December, I invited the President of OPWA Freetown to attend and we were able to ask him directly about issues the school was facing. It is hoped that this will be a regular agenda item to help collaboration especially as we continue to make plans for our centenary celebrations and to aid us in our decisions on which projects to embark on for 2024.
I would also like for POWAA UK to continue with the mentoring and scholarship scheme (a scheme which was started by Rev Ian Luke- Macauley 5 years ago) and to strengthen our pastoral care team.
Princewaleans are invited to donate to The Prince of Wales School Alumni Foundation (POWSAF). This Foundation is a US-based charity formed to raise funds, invest it in the capital markets, and then, while preserving the capital base, allocate the investment proceeds that will support and maintain Educational Attainment at the school. The aim is to raise $1 million by the centenary in 2025 through member donations and corporate sponsors. They will be donating $10K through the GLC towards a centenary project. A wall of donors will also be created.
2023 was a sad year for POWAA UK as we lost our first president and founder member, Mr Francis Galba Bright. Members turned up in number to bid him farewell. Continue to rest in peace, Mr Bright.
I wish you all a fruitful year ahead and look forward to your renewed cooperation towards our association and its work. My prayer is for peace and unity to continue to prevail and that we always keep a niche within our hearts for Prince of Wales, Kingtom.
Dilys Benjamin
Your President