News

The Lord Provost will be attending a Service of Remembrance at the Aberdeen War Memorial, Schoolhill, Aberdeen on Remembrance Sunday, 9^th November 2025 and invites Aberdeen Burgesses to join the Civic Procession.

Those attending are asked to meet atAberdeen Art Gallery, before leaving in procession to attend the outdoor service.  The doors will open at 9.45am and complimentary tea and coffee will be served. Please aim to arrive no later than 10.15am.  The doors will be closed at 10.20am.

IMPORTANT: Following a review of security, all guests will be checked in on arrival at the art gallery by hired security personnel.  If you plan to attend, please give your full name to the Clerk at:

clerk@aberdeenburgesses.com

Unregistered attendees will not be given entry.

Immediately following the Service of Remembrance at the war memorial, you are further invited to attend at the Kirk of St Nicholas, during which the annual ‘Kirking’ of the Seven Incorporated Trades of Aberdeen will take place.  Thereafter, the Deacon Convenor of the Seven Incorporated Trades of Aberdeen extends a warm invitation to you to attend a luncheon at Trinity Hall, Trinity Corner, 164 Holburn Street, Aberdeen.

If you plan to attend the Service of Remembrance at the War Memorial, please include answers to the following questions in your response:

• Will you also be attending the church service at the Kirk of St Nicholas?

• Will you also be attending the luncheon at Trinity Hall? (This information will be passed to the Seven Incorporated Trades of Aberdeen for catering purposes)

Many Thanks

Garry Stevens, Clerk

Wednesday 8th October – Fellow Burgess Dr Ken McHardy – Aberdeenshire Cricket Club 6.30pm

“A Wee Doc in Doric”

Dr Ken McHardy, born, raised and educated in the city. He spent 40 years working in the NHS as a hospital physician specialising in diabetes and medical education. In retirement he has been researching, writing and presenting on Aberdeen’s insulin heroes, Macleod and Lawrence.

When Ken started learning the late Queen’s English at Rosewood Infant School in 1960, he was already bilingual courtesy of his being a product o’ a Toonser Mam and a Teuchter Da. In due course, and over four decades, he came to rely on his extended linguistic heritage whilst enjoying the enormous privilege of serving his ain folk as a hospital physician. From the relative safety of retirement, Ken has undertaken to share some anecdotes and self-penned verse – chiefly in the doric dialect – from his doctoring days, as he attempts to show how medicine can produce the best laughter.

Cost of this event is £17pp and includes buffet supper from 6.30pm

Thursday 13^th November – Fellow Burgess Cllr Barney Crockett Aberdeenshire Cricket Club – 6.30pm

We once again welcome back Cllr Barney Crockett. His topic for this evening event is:

“The Cambridge Five and beyond”.

Hundreds of books have been written, dozens of films, plays and tv series about this topic and Barney has appeared on Mastermind about them.  But Barney also says he knows things which aren’t in the books…

Cost of the event is £17pp and will include a buffet served at 6.30pm followed by Barney’s talk.

Wednesday 10^th December – Xmas Quiz – Ashvale Restaurant – 6.30pm

Our annual quiz which was even more popular last year with a record number of teams will take place at the usual venue of the Ashvale Restaurant. Teams of 4 Maximum with one member being a Burgess, but if any Burgess wishes to take part we can make up team with other Burgesses. It’s a fun evening and cost per team member is £20 with £7 from the entry fee going to a charity of the Burgesses choice.

If you wish to attend the events, please email Clerk at:

clerk@aberdeenburgesses.com  

Payment can be paid via cheque made payable to Burgesses of Guild of the City of Aberdeen and sent to Garry Stevens, Clerk to the Burgesses of Guild, 6 Craigarbel Crescent, Inverbervie, Montrose DD10 0SJ or via BACS to: Sort Code 826011, Account Number 50325609, Ref Surname/Event attending.

James Maitland, Transformation Program Manager. Proposed by Rona Grimmer and Seconded by Owen Bisset.

Michael Melvin, Volunteering Services Manager. Proposed by Beverley Graham and Seconded by Graham Guyan.

Welcome to our new Burgesses who were admitted at Full Council on Wednesday 5th February 2025

Robert John Leslie, Retired Chartered Surveyor. Nominated by Stuart Milne and Seconded by Matthew Finnie.

Allan McKimmie, Chairman AFC Heritage Trust. Nominated by Greg Poon and Seconded by Dr Stephen Wedderburn.

Graham Mountford, Solicitor. Nominated by Professor Paul Meallor LVO, FRSE and Seconded by Lindsey Fettes.

Syed Abdur Razzak, Director. Nominated by Mohammad Taqeer Malik, and Seconded by Barney Crockett

Reverend Keith Blackwood, Minister of the Church of Scotland (Mannofield Church), nominated by Joe Mackie OBE and Seconded by Lord Dean of Guild

Christina Clunes, Retired Care Assistant, Nominated by Anne Milne and Seconded by Joe Mackie OBE

Dr Iain Duthie, Church Pastor/Minister (Kings Church Aberdeen), Nominated by Dr Stephen Wedderburn and Seconded by Lord Dean of Guild

Gloria Kochman, Retired University and College Music Lecturer and Organist, Nominated by Irene Cormack and Seconded by Gordon Williamson

Craig Pike, Lawyer-Advocate, Nominated by David Parkinson and Seconded by Seonaidh Baker

Helen Will, Retired Remittances Manager/Dance Teacher, Nominated by Anne Milne and Seconded by Gregory Poon

We are pleased to welcome the following new Burgesses:

Professor Mervyn Bain, University Professor, nominated by Martin Ewan and Seconded by Antony Walker

Colin Lawson, Company Director. Nominated by John Otto and Seconded by Colin Wilson

At our lunch on Thursday 3rd October we received a most inspirational and thought-provoking presentation by Dr Iain Duthie. Although the Pastor at King’s Church Aberdeen, this was not a religious presentation. It was entiteld “What is in Your Hand” and was reflective of an extremely interesting life and career together with the work that has been carried out under the banner of the iniative ‘Love Aberdeen’. There was common ground with our Action Plan and our motto ‘For Aberdeen’, the main difference being that Dr Duthie and his team have turned aims and objectives into actions and reality.

Under the headings To Guard; To Grow; To Give he gave examples of the power of Community, the price of Loyalty which is why Burgesses are admitted in the first place. Many of our Burgesses continue to do great work for the benefit of our communities and many have said that they would like to contribute with something worth much more than money – your time, knowledge and experience.

Can I urge you all to revisit our Action Plan and let me know where you can contribute to turn the plan into more action. Can I also ask that if you know of any young people whose future education or career path might be helped with a contribution either in monetary terms or in some material way – as with the laptops earlier this year – please let me have appropriate information. This assistance may also be extended to an initiative covering a number of young people.

Link to the Action Plan:

Thank you for your time
Sincerely
Sylvia Halkerston
Lord Dean of Guild

Sheena Blackhall, Scottish Poet, Vocalist, Singer and Writer. Nominated by Albert Thomson and Seconded by Ronnie Watt OBE.

Stuart Clark, Police Inspector. Proposed by Martin Ewan and Seconded by Antony Walker

Dr Tracey Menzies, Solicitor. Proposed by Martin Ewan and Seconded by Roger Connon.

Deborah Mitchell, Financial Advisor (Retired). Proposed by David Parkinson and Seconded by Past Lord Dean, Colin Taylor.

I am delighted to advise that six pupils from Lochside, Northfield and St Machar Academies were the recipients of new laptops to take them into their courses of study at university as part of the first Educational Award from the Guildry and Mortifications Fund under the terms of the new Trust Deed.
Caleb Kelly, Chukwouma Orike, Dana Pinkovska, Karina Moravska are pictured receiving their laptops. Aleksandra Rzepka and Timurs Koptevs unfortunately could not be present but will receive their laptops later this week.

These students have shown exceptional commitment and our support has helped enable them to take up the places they have earned at university. Their potential studies include Law, Architecture, Mechanical Engineering and Teaching.

We will do more in this vein and all these young people have undertaken to keep us informed of their progress.

In addition we have underwritten the cost of the Construction Skills Certification Scheme accreditation for seven young people who have gone through very trying times but who have turned their lives around. The accreditation has enabled them to take up full time paid employment and set them on a pathway unimaginable without the skills training. We have done this through the good offices of Aberdeen Foyer who will monitor progress on our behalf.

We are pleased that we have been able to help thirteen young people on their way on an educational and vocational journey which, without the assistance of the Burgesses of Guild, they would not have been able to do. We will continue to offer such support in keeping with the terms of our Trust Deed.

Lord Dean of Guild