OBKA General Meeting the 14th of February 2017 by FIBKA President Mr Gerry Ryan

Mr Gerry Ryan, President of FIBKA was the guest speaker at the February meeting of OBKA. Gerry is a long-time friend of Offaly beekeepers and has given many talks to us over the years. This visit was special in that it marked his position as head of Irish beekeepers recognising the vast amount of work and time that Gerry and his wife Mary have given to beekeeping in this country and beyond. As always, Gerry gave a lively talk concentrating initially on his busy role as President of the organisation and outlining the various roles of members of the executive. Gerry then spoke of beekeeping matters and, as he said himself, he is never happier than when talking bees with other beekeepers. There was much audience participation in the second part of the meeting with interesting questions covering all aspects of modern beekeeping – health of the bees, marketing honey, educating people re benefits of Irish honey, participation of members in events such as Tullamore Honey Show and the National Ploughing Championships - and lots more besides. Gerry answered all questions in his usual good-humoured style while sharing his knowledge and expertise with us. Keith Wolfe gave the vote of thanks after the meeting and Teresa Mc Donald seconded this and presented our President with a book on Tullamore to mark his presidential year. The meeting officially closed but discussion and chat went on for a lot longer over tea and cakes where more beekeeping stories were exchanged.