Your Committee
The current committee members are listed below. For a description of the roles of committee members see Description of Committee Roles
If you would like to become a Brackley u3a Committee Member please contact our chairman, click here > Chair
Terry - Chairman
Terry moved to Brackley with Avril in 2016 to be closer to their daughter and family.
He retired in 2011 after spending several years as the National Accounts Manager for the UK's leading supplier in the wine industry developing their business in the hotel and restaurant sectors.
Prior to this Terry worked for many years as the UK & Americas/Caribbean Export Manager for Gallaher International Ltd.
When he retired he became a volunteer driver for the NHS Patient Transport Service in West Sussex. This involved taking people back and forth for their cancer, dialysis and other treatments. He describes this as "A fascinating role where I met so many wonderful patients who sometimes made you cry, and sometimes made you smile. I was hijacked by a disturbed lady, threatened with murder by a really sick man and arrested for supposedly aiding a patient to steal from a shop".
Terry became our chairman in September 2021 following the lengthy lockdown period and is looking forward to working with the newly formed Brackley u3a Committee.
Colin - Vice Chairman
Born in Glasgow but brought up and educated and married in Broughty Ferry the posh seaside part of Dundee.
Moved to Brackley from Marlborough as so many others seem to do to be near our daughter and grandchildren in 2010.when I retired. I had spent my total career in sales within the building and diy industry holding several senior sales positions with well known names ie Crown paints Crown Wallcoverings Bradstone and Superglass.
Joined U3A in Brackley when it started and taken part in many of the activities I lead one of the Bridge groups which I joined as a total novice and am shortly to be involved in the running of the monthly quiz.
Away from U3A I am a member of Brackley Rotary Club and was President in 2018
Apart from Bridge my only other interests are playing golf and going horseracing.
Janet W - Membership and Business Secretary
Janet moved to Brackley in 2005 to be nearer to her younger daughter and her family, her older daughter lives in New Zealand and she very much enjoys her visits there.
She retired at the end of 2016 after 25 years with her employer, having started her career as a computer programmer and then working through a variety of roles managing multi-disciplinary teams with various specialisms including IT and Finance. The early years of her career were spent with employers like Ovaltine, Morgan Grenfell, a merchant banker, and the Meat and Livestock Commission. Janet started walking with the Brackley Town Hall Health Walk in 2017 and was soon advised to join the U3A by many of the walkers. She is now a member of the Traditional Dancing, Quiz, National Trust, Table Tennis and the walking groups and greatly enjoys all of them. Janet became the Membership and Business Secretary in September 2021 taking over from Karen Gees, very big shoes to fill!
John – Speaker Organiser
I was born in Manchester but moved around the UK firstly with my father’s job and then my own career as an Accountant. I ran my own practice in North West London before officially retiring in 2013, though I still manage a small number of clients. I married Sheila in 1999 and after 20 years in Ealing, West London, where I joined U3A, even becoming their Chairman for two years, we both knew we wanted to move away from the congestion of London. We discovered Brackley, following someone’s suggestion, and knew it was the place for us and we moved here in 2019. After joining U3A here Terry asked me to become Speaker Organiser. My interests are table tennis, reading and walking and enjoying watching our grandchildren grow up.
Mike – Treasurer
Mike Shepherd took over from Ken Smith in August 2023.
Janet Blunden - Interim Groups Coordinator
Janet has lived in Brackley since 1994.She retired in 2015 after careers in Environmental Health and the Registration Service completing her working life as the Superintendent Registrar for Northamptonshire County Council. She is a member of Brackley Players and helps with the Brackley Youth Theatre and also volunteers for the South Northants car service . She joined Brackley U3A in January 2022 as she has more time to spare now that her 4 Grandchildren all attend school or nursery. She is a member of the following groups :-Canasta, Line and Traditional Dancing ,National Trust visits and she attends the quiz. She became an Ad Hoc Committee member in September 2022 as she prefers to be an ‘all-rounder’ with general duties rather than hold a specific role on the committee. However Janet has taken the role of Groups Coordinator on an interim basis.
Kathy - Secretary
Kathy has lived in Hinton in the Hedges for approximately 30 years with her husband Paul. She has two sons, one of whom lives in Brackley with her two very entertaining grandsons, who expect her to be a football forward, a rugby scrum half, Martina Navratilova and a table tennis ace all in one day. The only one she can claim to be moderately proficient at is table tennis as a result of being a member of the lovely U3A Table Tennis group since its inception. She also belongs to the Science and Technology group (despite being a Luddite), and the Walking and Scrabble groups. Kathy is a volunteer driver with the SNVB taking local residents to hospital, GP and other assorted appointments. She has recently become the Minutes Secretary for the very civilised Committee where no-one talks over each other and there is often cake.
Diane Bushell - Publicity
Diane is the newbie to both Brackley and the committee, having moved to Brackley in October 2021 from north west Kent. I moved to be near my grandchildren and help with childcare.
I retired from the NHS a few years ago and since then have been dog walking and boarding; more recently also been carrying out COVID testing for the ONS. I joined u3a to meet people as I was new to this area. It has been a great way to meet people and join several of the group activities.
Mike – Webmaster
Mike was born in Blackpool, moved to Oldham when he was 12 where he later met Helen, his wife, when they were both in the 6th form. He has a degree in Astronomy from UCL and in Telecoms from University of Essex. He started a long career in Telecommunication Software in 1974 in Essex, retiring in 2010 in Oxfordshire. Interests include tinkering with and mending Android phones and Windows PCs, playing badminton, table tennis, canasta and generally frolicking at traditional dance. He enjoys maintaining the U3A website as this keeps his “hand in” as closely as he would like these days.
Ian Nixon - General Duties
My career has spanned Mechanical & Electrical Engineering in the Aviation Industry. Work & Method Study in a Local Authority and the Plastics Industry followed by Works Management, Sales and Business Development in the Printed Carton Industry.
I had never heard of U3A until I retired and went to live in Spain in 2004. I needed something to occupy my time and met a retired U3A fan who encouraged me to set up a U3A in Denia in the Valencian Community.
The inaugural meeting was in January 2006 and Denia U3A now has over 900 members. Chairman were known as Presidents in Spain, which went well with my Surname. I returned to the UK in 2015 and became involved with a newly formed Brackley & District U3A. I chaired the steering Committee for 6 months followed by a further 3 years as Chairman. I have served as Groups Coordinator for 3 years and am still on the Committee performing "General Duties".
Gill Zachar - Greeter
I am from Maidenhead in Berkshire. I spent 10 years working in Madrid Spain as PA to the Finance Director of Rio Tinto Zinc. I meet my American husband when he was in the US Air Force stationed near Madrid. We spent three years in Georgia USA and returned to RAF Upper Heyford until he retired. I have lived in Brackley since 1979 and my children went to school here. I have worked in many varied roles, including having my own business at one time. I was a founding member of Brackley U3A along with Ian and Ken, having originally been a member of Towcester U3A. I love to travel the world but always consider Brackley to be my home town. I now have one of the Meeters and Greeters roles.