Well here we are again in Week 14 - so the drum beat has not stopped all week!  CC063 are due to commission on Friday with the Parade being taken on behalf of HM The Queen by Field Marshall Sir John Chapple GCB, CBE, DL.  The Juniors will be off tomorrow on their chosen adventurous training closely followed on Friday by the Intermediates on their Expeditions - which include trips to Botswana and New Zealand.  For the rest of us we can take a small intake of breath and relax just a little before the train begins to roll again.  The Annual Foundation Dinner Night was a storming success and you can read more about it below.

Leadership Encounter Evening - Tues 24 July

Our last Leadership Encounter Evening was a great success.  Commander Mark Bush RN gave a fascinating talk about the Battle of the Atlantic - his knowledge on the subject was amazing - provoking some very interesting questions from the audience.   For someone who did not take history at O Level, I found the facts and figures incredible - and it certainly made me proud to be British.

Leadership Encounter Evening - Tues 11 September - Unfortunatley Celia Sandys - the Granddaughter of Sir Winston Churchill, is now unable to make that date and her talk will now be postponed until the New Year.  Details of the new speaker will therefore come out by seperate email and I hope that you and your guests will come and support the event.

Annual Foundation Dinner Night - The Foundation Dinner Night was another storming success.  We were extremely lucky with the weather and were able to have our reception drinks on the Grand Entrance.  The Academy Band brass quintet were magnificent and played throughout with a rousing finale.  Our thanks go to all the members and their guests who attended and we managed to raise a staggering £300 for our local hospice charity - which was excellent.  Below are just some of the comments we received:

'We would like to thank you and your staff for all your arrangements and efforts which culminated in the most enjoyable Foundation Annual Dinner....'

'...to offer congratulations to you and your team providing a magnificent dinner for the Foundation members......it was an excellent occasion and we look forward to the next dinner in 2008.'

'...many thanks for a most enjoyable and well organised weekend.  The setting and dinner were excellent making it a very memorable occasion....'

'...thanks to all the teams efforts for putting together such a lovely evening..'

We are considering holding next year's Dinner Night later in the year perhaps September or October - if you have any thoughts on this please let Jules know as we felt maybe the numbers were slightly down this year due to being in the Summer Holidays  - as as you can see it really is a great evening and we would like as many members and their guests as possible to be able to attend.

Please find below the dates of the Winter Term Commissioning Course speakers - all members and their guests are very welcome to attend:

Voice of Experience - Challenges of Civilian Leadership I - 9 Oct.  David Pearce will be talking to the Juniors on Mon 23 July at 1600hrs in Churchill Hall.  If you would like to attend this lecture please email Jules on jules.mccoll@sandhurstfoundation.org.

Voice of Experience - Challenges of Civilian Leadership II - 15 Oct.   Marc Overton will be talking to the Seniors on Mon 15 Oct at 1800hrs in Churchill Hall.  If you would like to attend this lecture please email Jules on jules.mccoll@sandhurstfoundation.org.

Voice of Experience - Senior Military Officer - 23 Oct.    Maj Gen P F Everson OBE will be talking to the Seniors on Tues 23 Oct at 1800hrs in Churchill Hall.  If you would like to attend this lecture please email Jules on jules.mccoll@sandhurstfoundation.org.

Leadership Overview - Stress in Combat - 29 Oct.  Maj Bradley PWRR will be talking to the Inters on Mon 29 October at 1800hrs in Churchill Hall.  If you would like to attend this lecture please email Jules on jules.mccoll@sandhurstfoundation.org.

Talk by a CO - Speaker TBC - 1 Nov - This talk will be taking place on Thurs 1 Nov to the Juniors in Churchill Hall starting at 1800hrs. If you would like to attend this lecture please email Jules on jules.mccoll@sandhurstfoundation.org.

Voice of Experience - Do the Tools Do the Job?- 26 Nov.  Maj Nigel Cribb will be talking to the Juniors on Mon 26 Nov at 1800hrs in Churchill Hall.  If you would like to attend this lecture please email Jules on jules.mccoll@sandhurstfoundation.org.

EVENTS AT RMAS

Richard Holmes Lecture - Tues 30 October.  The Forces Pension Scheme (FPS) and the Army Benevolent Fund (ABF) have joined together to organise a lecture at RMAS by Richard Holmes.  Richard's talk will be on Winston Churchill.   The reception will begin at 1915 (with wine and canapes) and the event will end approx 2115.  Tickets cost £18.  If you would like to attend please click >>here to see more details and to sign up.  Guests are welcome to attend to.

Book Review- The following books are taking up too much space on my desk and I would be very happy to send them out to any of our members -of course a review on them would also be very much appreciated!!

• Bankrolling Basra - Andrew Alderson (Story of a part-time soldier, $1 Billion and the collapse of Iraq)
• Old Ironsides - The Military Biography of Oliver Cromwell - Frank Kitson
• Prince Rupert - The Last Cavalier - Charles Spencer
• Blood, Sweat and Arrogance and the myths of Churchill's War - Gordon Corrigan
• Lawrence of Arabia - Mirage of a Desert War - Adrian Greaves

Military Diary

Some of you may remember that for the first time last year we sold the Howman Military Diary and we are pleased to announce that The 2008 Military Diary will be available for purchase from 24^th September. 

Howman's have added new elements to the standard Military Diary features this year, providing more information as well as a new 16 page full colour World Map section; however the distinctive and popular  ‘look, feel and logo’ are unchanged;  the price point is also unchanged at £9.95.

In addition, they have created a new Address Book to match and complement the Military Diary ‘look and feel’ – this also retails at £9.95.

A picture of the diary will be on the website from next month - if you would like to pre-order your copy please click >>here and follow the instructions.

2007 Foundation Programme - please click >>here to view the programme for 2007 - this is constantly updated with new events.

The Sandhurst Shop  - 'Serve to Lead' Boxers, Socks and Ties - all for sale.  For further details on prices and to order please click >>here.  We now have the Sandhurst Foundation cufflinks in stock. To order please click above.

Jules McColl
Sandhurst Foundation Secretary