Thursday 19 November 2009

Brief Group History‭ ‬-‭ ‬Part Two.


Over the period‭ ‬2002‭ ‬/‭ ‬03,‭ ‬the number of people actively associated with the group more than doubled,‭ ‬with the introduction of a wholly‭ ‬speculative‭ '‬affiliates‭' ‬scheme.‭ ‬Unfortunately,‭ ‬due to unforeseen circumstances and complications,‭ ‬the expanded group figures were a relatively short lived experiment and subsequently diminished again within a reasonably short time.‭

The question of‭ '‬figures‭' ‬associated with research societies will always be a vexed one,‭ ‬it must be stressed....‭ ‬The W.M.G.C.‭ ‬have always kept membership as low as possible for practical reasons,‭ ‬despite having received‭ ‬-‭ ‬over‭ ‬a considerable number of years‭ ‬-‭ ‬many hundreds of applications for positions within the group.‭ ‬It has to be said that we have always been puzzled by‭ ‬-‭ ‬and derived considerable amusement from,‭ ‬at times‭ ‬-‭ ‬people who seem to somehow believe a‭ ‬‘large membership‭’‬ is actually something‭ '‬positive‭' ‬when it comes to research pursuits‭!! ‬Laugh‭!! ‬Having watched with interest concerns‭ – ‬mainly fledgling‭ – ‬who have boasted up to‭ ‬50‭ ‬members,‭ ‬it is an inevitability that such societies invariably fold completely,‭ ‬or happen to whittle down their numbers drastically within a very short period of time.‭ ‬It is frequently true that there is‭ ‘‬strength in numbers‭’‬,‭ ‬but such a maxim certainly doesn’t apply to the task of running a successful research group,‭ ‬as many have soon discovered‭!! ‬Laugh‭!!

Of all the associates added during this expansion period,‭ ‬only one‭ – ‬the bouncer-esque Frazer Smith‭ – ‬remained an active member of the group.‭ ‬Both his‭ '‬enthusiasm for‭' ‬and his keen ministrations‭ '‬on behalf of‭' ‬the Club made him a most welcome and appreciated addition to the company for a number of years.‭ ‬However,‭ ‬at the end of‭ ‬2007,‭ ‬Frazer‭ ‬-‭ ‬sadly‭ ‬-‭ ‬chose to resign from his position within the group.‭

‘Enthusiasm for the subject‭’ ‬was also a strong factor in our decision to add the team’s‭ ‬6th member‭ – ‬Steve Chew‭ – ‬in early‭ ‬2004.‭ ‬Interestingly,‭ ‬Steve initially contacted the group in order to show us some sequences of peculiar video footage that he had collected over the years,‭ ‬and showed no particular interest in becoming a‭ ‬Club‭ ‬member‭! ‬However,‭ ‬after only a couple of meetings with the chap,‭ ‬I was enamoured enough to ask him if he wanted to join us......‭ ‬and,‭ ‬thankfully,‭ ‬he did‭!!! ‬Laugh‭!!!

On his C.V.‭ ‬-‭ ‬Steve says of himself:‭

"Having been born into a family that had always regarded the existence of ghosts as fact,‭ ‬and along the years,‭ ‬having no option but to live‭ "‬hand in hand‭" ‬with such things that today we could well term as‭ “‬Paranormal‭” ‬episodes really formed the basis of my fascination with such things.‭ ‬As a child,‭ ‬when one of these‭ “‬Odd‭” ‬incident’s would crop up,‭ ‬I would always get the‭ “ ‬There’s nothing to worry about,‭ ‬its only the Ghost,‭ ‬it wont hurt you‭!" ‬Or‭ "‬Its just one of those things,‭ ‬ignore it and it will go away.‭” ‬kind of reassurance from my folks.

As you can imagine,‭ ‬it was to my utter dismay,‭ ‬when growing up,‭ ‬I discovered these things in fact,‭ ‬do not exist‭ (‬this is of course according to the qualified professionals and experts in this subject who know all the answers about these kind of things‭)‬.‭ ‬These differing viewpoints concerning belief is why I am,‭ ‬and always will be,‭ ‬bound to the paranormal in some way.‭ ‬It was a natural progression for me really to join a paranormal investigative group where I could start investigating potentially haunted sites,‭ ‬whilst immersing myself in the subject further.‭

It is strange,‭ ‬but I have found,‭ ‬the more I delve into this subject,‭ ‬the more confused I am with it all.‭ ‬The more people try all kinds of things to find answers,‭ ‬i.e.‭ ‬psychics,‭ ‬table tipping,‭ ‬coat hangers and other associated crap,‭ ‬the less I really feel the need to try and make sense of it all.‭ ‬In my mind Ghost’s have always been there,‭ ‬they haven’t changed or moved their ethereal goalposts,‭ ‬its just that‭ ‬-‭ ‬sadly‭ ‬-‭ ‬everything else around‭ ‘‬them‭’ ‬has‭…‬.‭ ‬much to the‭ ‬detriment of the paranormal field itself.‭

The bulk of my spare time is spent in playing the drums in bands,‭ ‬writing stories,‭ ‬composing music‭ (‬currently writing a musical version of Tolkien's‭ ‘‬Silmarillion‭’)‬,‭ ‬painting and reading.‭ ‬With regards to my chosen career,‭ ‬I am what is called a‭ ‘‬Problem Manager‭’‬,‭ ‬in which my role is to minimise any adverse effects or issues that may occur within the business involved.

During‭ ‬2005,‭ ‬a further addition to the group came in the form of a solid,‭ ‬objective thinker,‭ ‬Mr.‭ ‬Kevin‭ ‘‬Casanova‭’ ‬Wallace.‭ ‬Kev‭ – ‬the Manager of an investigative team attached to a well known bank‭ – ‬was already a veteran of a great many ghost hunts prior to joining us.‭ ‬Until it’s recent demise,‭ ‬Kev served as‭ ‘‬Admin‭’ ‬for the WMGC forum,‭ ‬as well as single-handedly organising our incredibly popular,‭ ‬public events‭ – ‬the St.‭ ‬Marys Guildhall‭ (‬Coventry‭) ‬visit of‭ ‬2005‭ ‬and Galleries of Justice‭ (‬Nottingham‭) ‬investigation in‭ ‬2007.‭ (‬The former of the two events raised‭ ‬£500‭ ‬for Birm.‭ ‬Childrens Hospital‭)‬.‭

Part Three to follow shortly‭…‬..

Regards,

Nick‭
The W.M.G.C.

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