Barry Wiseman
Barry Wiseman and his late wife Rita served this Association selflessly for more than thirty years and it is entirely appropriate that we should recognise him with Honorary Membership of the Association. For some of you who have known and worked with Barry over the years, there is need to say little. You will already know how hard and effectively he has worked for us. Some of you however will not know him well. A few years ago he was stricken with a nasty blood disease that limited his activity. So, particularly for those of you who are come to the Association more recently, here are a few pointers.
Barry has been a key contributor to the Bedfordshire County Archery Association as a competitor, a hard working supporter and a major contributor to the continuing development and success of the Association.
He was an active archer within the county from 1986 onwards, being a consistent member of the county team from 1988 through 1998. He was a regular participant at all county events until well into this century, competing in the competitions held within the county and being a regular stalwart of the working parties for the County Championship events and FITA Star events. He was also one of the key group of half a dozen or so members who worked to develop the initial Bedfordshire FITA Star tournament.
As well as being a mainstay of Hawks Archery Club, where for year after year he was a permanent fixture as Club Secretary, he was a member of the BCAA committee for many years, initially as a club representative and later as Vice Chairman and Chairman of the Committee.
Barry was also one of the coaches trained within the county in the late 1980s and became a key member of the County Coaching group for many years. He ran many beginners courses and introduced lots of new people to our sport.
Even up the age of nearly seventy Barry was turning out regularly for county tournament working parties and contributing fully to the work, including moving targets.
Barry, along with his late wife Rita, was organiser of the County Indoor Tournament for over 20 years, during which time the event attained a reputation as being a successful and well run event.
He is an example to us all and I ask you to join me in applauding this well deserved award.