THOUGH the last 12 months had had their ups and downs, Merkinch Enterprise enjoyed a good year, chief executive Colin Downie told the 10th AGM of the charity on 10th September.

In his sixth such presentation Mr Downie briefly outlined the key elements of the year’s success. The various aspects of ME’s operations - the Training Centre, Fliperz and the community newsletter - all continued to flourish.

Drawing attention to the various targets and achievements in his report, Mr Downie said, “You can see we achieved what we set out to do. The accounts showed a profit compared to the previous year’s loss - a loss largely due to the cost of refurbishing the new premises. Accountant Brian Spence said that internally generated income was up and the income from grants was down, compared to the previous year. “We’re relying less on grants,” said Mr Downie. “We’re here, we’re healthy - and there are lots of organisations which would like to be in our position.”

He thanked all the staff and volunteers for their efforts over the year, and also thanked the Board for its support.

Directors Helen Geddes and Clair Pieraccini stepped down, as per the requirements of the constitution, but were unanimously re-elected. Mrs Geddes thanked Mr Downie for his report and his faithful efforts over the years at the helm of Merkinch Enterprise. “Without him, I don’t think we would still be here,” she said.