| Announcement from The President regarding Folding of the International Friends Club in April 2004 |
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| Fuengirola, January 2004 It is with great sadness that I would like to announce the decision to fold the International Friends Club for April 2004. After a lot of thinking and conferring with current members, I have decided that due to personal commitments, I shall no longer be able to continue organising the monthly social dinners as I have done so far. Our members are all very busy people with commitments of their own and none of them unfortunately have the time to give the club the commitment and energy it deserves. I have therefore decided to fold the club in April 2004, after 20 months in operation. When I started this project, I could only hope to meet so many wonderful people, most of whom have become dear friends and with whom I hope to stay in touch in years to come. I am proud to say that everybody I have met has exceeded my expectations and I feel very lucky that this project has turned out the way it has. I have been told by many people that they have met some of their closest friends through the IFC and I can only feel proud when hearing such comments. I personally feel very lucky and blessed to have met everybody who has joined and has later had to leave due to personal commitments, and only hope that their experience at the IFC has been a good one. The IFC has also helped people who have moved to the coast meet new people and make new friends, which I think is a valuable resource when moving to a new city. I would especially like to thank those people who have joined the club and who live a very long distance from Fuengirola, in places such as Torre del Mar (near Nerja) and Gibraltar. I would like to thank them for their commitment to coming to the dinners whenever they were able to since they joined. I do hope the people they have met have become or will, in the future, become good friends. What has made this club different from other social clubs on the coast was the age group. The age group advertised was between 25 and 35 but allowing people between 20 and 40 - but no more than 40 - to join, to allow the younger adult age group to meet new people in their age group who share similar interests, something which I feel is missing from the coast. I think the club has been quite successful in that way. The 19 months in operation have seen many social dinners take place in restaurants around Fuengirola, and from April 2003, at El Potro Restaurant, to whom, on behalf of all the members of the IFC, I wish to express my gratitude for their wonderful service, fantastic food and relaxed, friendly atmosphere. I would also like to thank the Costa del Sol News newspaper for giving us advertising space on their Social Scene Section every week since the start of the project. I believe it is thanks to them that the IFC has developed and grown as it has, and for that, I am very grateful. When thanking the Costa del Sol News, I also include Mr John Rutland, fotographer for the Social Scene Section and his wife for writing two articles in the paper, which have definately helped us. Important Note: I, as President of the IFC, have not, to this date, handed over the official 'Presidency' and organisation of the International Friends Club to any member or ex-member for reasons stated above. Therefore, any new social club advertising under the name 'International Friends Club - Costa del Sol', will have no relation to this social club. All that is left now is for me to thank, once again, everybody who has joined, collaborated and supported the club. I hope you had fun. I certainly did! Best regards, and Happy New Year 2004! Alida Tassone President and Founder of the IFC Costa del Sol Est. August 2002 - April 2004 |