ISD Ops and Ops Support will be closing down on Friday 10th July. All the
staff involved will then be departing in a variety of directions - to ****** (who are now
running *******), to the new office at L****, to other jobs outside AEL, or taking early
retirement.
The staff involved are:
Pete Ellingham
Graham Hazell
Alf Priest
Duncan Boyt
Dave Carter
Martin Deeks
Izzy Edwards
Richard Lake
Andy Parsons
Richard Stone
Malc Hext
Malc Keep
Kathy Bryant
Steve Davies
Allan Horn
Vance Hunt
Colin Nicol
Jonathan Bailey
As so many people are involved, we have adopted an IT solution to the problem
of farewell cards! Please treat this noticeboard as an electronic farewell
card. Add your comments below for individuals, or Operations staff in general.
A printed copy in a card will be presented to each departing member of staff.
N.B. Not all staff are leaving AEL as at the date of closure.
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08 07 98 16:39 Comments from Ray Hopkin:
Part 1 wouldn't let me add comments, so I'll try here.
All complimentary comments and good wishes are echoed by Jeanette and myself.
At the risk of contributing to an increase in decibels at your party, can I
remind the older lags of an occasion before pubs were turned into Chinese
restaurants, before Williams Deacons and Glyn Mills merged and were then
swallowed by Royal Bank of Scotland, when Mike Eastoe was into computing, and
when the late, great Roger Kilroy wouldn't drive us O&M chaps back to the
office for half-past two because Twiggy's version of The 12 Days of Christmas
had only got as far as
On the third day of Christmas 'big E' said to me ...
Three Willie Deacs
Two tapes to clean
And overtime at the weekend.
All the very best.
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08 07 98 17:02 Comments from Denise Brewster:
I will always remember my very first years at E&L working with Ops, the
screwed up bits of paper being thrown at me from someone sitting in the
corner (you know who you are Alf!), the horrible messages being sent to my
terminal and the nice things (or should I say the dead things) the night
shift used to collect for me! This is so sad. I hope you will all be very
happy in what ever you decide to do.
Best Wishes,
Denise.
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08 07 98 17:06 Comments from Andrew Eastwood:
Thanks for all your help over the years, espcesially for acting as a taxi
service when I've had to come in to sort out batch job aborts. To quote the
words of a Joni Mitchell song 'You don't know what you've lost till it's gone'.
Best wishes for the future whatever it may hold.
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09 07 98 08:16 Comments from Guy Woodall:
Thanks for all the help over the years (even Dave) and the early morning alarm
calls. Sorry it had to end this way, I suppose the alarm calls will become more
frequent.
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09 07 98 08:22 Comments from Chris Stevens:
You've been a great bunch of people to know and work with over the years, even
Dave's friendly banter will be missed!.
Just hope that your replacements are as dedicated and able as you all have
been, and can sort out as many problems as you have done allowing the rest of
us to remain in bed.
Good luck with whatever you do in the future.
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09 07 98 08:32 Comments from Des Morris:
The accolades heaped on you good folk are richly deserved. I too thank you for
all your help in the past and wish you every happiness in whatever 'afterlife'
comes your way.
Des Morris
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09 07 98 08:40 Comments from Mike Watts:
All of these wonderful tributes still somehow seem inadequate - thanks for all
your help over more years than I care to remember, you've been a great team to
work with !
Good luck in whatever the future may bring.
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09 07 98 08:47 Comments from Tony Crowther:
As I'm not normally known for being short of something to say, you would
probably think that I could fill this noticeboard on my own.
However, words fail me today. I'm losing some of my best mates and I'm gutted.
Best regards to you all.
Crow.
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09 07 98 08:55 Comments from Roger Green:
Ever since Alf told me how to design unit archiving I have realised how
important Ops are. Thank you for all your assistance and guidance since then.
An especial thanks to Mr Keep who made my endeavours of the last 3 years
possible and enjoyable.
Gutted.
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09 07 98 09:13 Comments from John Burton:
A message from Andy and Sue Hetherington:
"Please can you add a mention from Andy and I on the "electronic card".
Reading
something like this:
------------------------------------------------------------
Andy and Sue Hetherington send you their very best wishes and are looking
forward to seeing you on the 11th although we wish it wasn't for a "wake".
Thanks for everything and keep in touch, guys - our e-mail address is
hetwend@dircon.co.uk and the home address is ******* ********. We shall
be there on Saturday, adding our fourpenn'orth to the stories - yes the
policeman and the bike and the famous workman's hut fire but don't forget about
the tea trolley races, moonlight fishing in the ornamental pond, raids on the
tea room and plunging people down holes in the floor! I have a fond memory
also of the Ops chorale singing a fine version of "The 12 days of Christmas" -
we must hear it one last time, please, on Saturday. Happy memories also come to
mind of politically uncorrected times when an evil pleasure was taken in
squirting that cold cleaning stuff at the girls and the dreadful time when the
mini skirt was popular - funny how the lads all had to stand at the foot of the
stairs at going home time (and don't deny, lads, that you can't recall how
short Sue Spittle liked to wear hers!!). Happy times, when the job was done
correctly, professionally and we all had FUN too. We would have all thought
the world had gone mad if anyone had told us it would end like this - perhaps
it has!
------------------------------------------------------------
Love, Sue
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09 07 98 09:36 Comments from Sandra Aves:
I can't say anything that hasn't already been said, but I can say I agree with
every word. Sorry I can't be there on Saturday. I wish you all health and
happiness for the future.
Good Luck
Sandra.
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09 07 98 09:43 Comments from WDSSD:
In my previous job, operators were remote and confined to the machine room.
The consensus amongst the programming staff was that they were a very simple
life form capable of simple tasks and not much else. When I came here, in
order to correct that view, I was put to work in an office with Alf, Andy
Hetherington and then Izzy !
Over the years, you have all been absolutely brilliant. I can't believe things
are happening the way they are. It's completely daft. Anyway, very best wishes
to everybody, whatever you're doing.
Steph
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09 07 98 09:48 Comments from Kathy Bryant:
To 'My Boys'
I would just like to say that I am going to miss all of you very much. Even
after being thrown in the Freezer in the rest room, chucked into a merky
swimming pool fully clothed on my birthday, losing the boxer shorts competition
- it was a fix!, dragged up ski slopes recovering from silly games the night
before, and getting me drunk on my 'stag night'. But most of all for being
there when I was very ill in hospital even if I did have to hide all the tubes
so that none of you fainted!!
Miss you already
Much love Brucie Baby
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
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09 07 98 13:58 Comments from Phil Millichamp:
AXA has made a huge mistake in letting you go.
Good luck.
Phil
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09 07 98 14:42 Comments from Ann Howse:
In the words of Victor Medrew - "I don't belieeeeve it" !
Thanks for all the help and laughs over the years, I am going to miss you.
Good luck and very best wishes.
Ann.
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09 07 98 14:49 Comments from John Brain:
Ditto to all of that. Good luck to you all.
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09 07 98 14:57 Comments from Darren Ginger:
I echo all of the previous comments, you'll all be badly missed.
Thanks for all of your assistance over the years, and
Good Luck to each and every one of you, in whatever the future holds
Darren
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09 07 98 16:20 Comments from Steven Robinson:
Another nail in the coffin!!
I (and everyone that's left in Actuarial Valuation!) would like to wish all of
you the VERY best for whatever you should decide to do in the future. My hearty
thanks for all the assistance in the running of our batch jobs over the years
and I will certainly miss the happy smiling faces that greeted delivery of the
jobsheets.
Thanks again, and GOOD LUCK...
Steven
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09 07 98 16:21 Comments from Tracy Mulley:
Thanks to all of you for all your help over the past few years, especially with
the Unit Trust conversions.
How will we ever manage without you?
Good luck with whatever you are doing next.
Trace
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09 07 98 18:09 Comments from Andrew Horwood:
Ah ! The regular click of that staple-gun on a Saturday morning !
All the best to all of you guys. On a work-front you have been very helpful (&
patient), particularly recently, since the migration of the helpdesk. A special mention
must go to Alf and Dunc's computer-room 'tours' which can take up to two hours if there
are certain ladies present ! e.g. Karen J
From a Social point of view, Sunday evenings in the clubhouse would have been a lot
quieter without the visits for a swiftie.
Look forward to seeing you on Saturday. I will echo many thoughts above in wishing that
the party was under different circumstances...but....<shrug>
Andy H
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