15-12-2022

Attached is a registration form for Bubble Fest Berlin 2023. If you are interested and likely to attend please email back as soon as possible so we get a feel of how many people have interest to attend, this is non-commital at this stage, but we are also keen to know who is interested to lead workshops as well as perform their stage show in Berlin. Any questions: Please contact the organizer Piotrus Szczeniowski directly. Many thanks, Eran, Membership Secretary

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD BOOKING FORM

Posted on 17th September 2022

AOIBA Annual General Meeting (AGM) September 2022 Minutes

8th September 2022
· Welcome! – Sarah, our AOIBA Chair, welcomed and greeted all present to the 2022 AGM
· Eran, our Membership Secretary gave a brief report on the AOIBA Memberships. We now have 106 members from 26 Countries. The current Committee has 10 members to help manage the association out of which there is 1 president acting as figure head, 1 Chair who runs the meetings, 1 Membership Secretary who is responsible over membership applications and renewals, 1 Treasurer who oversees all financial matters and 1 Apprenticeship Coordinator who oversees the apprenticeship program. The newly formed ‘Friends of the AOIBA’ category was also mentioned, allowing friends and family members to support and be linked to the association without becoming full members.
· Honorary Memberships – now named Eiffel Plasterer Awards, were awarded to this year’s recipients: Tom Noddy and Pep Bou.
Pep was introduced by Martin, and then a pre-recorded video of Pep accepting his award was played. Aramis introduced Tom who then accepted his award.
· Treasurer’s Report – Damian shared the AOIBA accounts which are available to download from the website or Facebook group. Total Funds currently available to AOIBA £1,643.52
· Apprenticeship Coordinator Report – Helen talked about the apprenticeship program which currently has 10 apprentices each with a full-member acting as their mentor. Two of our apprentices have now moved into full membership, Aaron from Belgium and Taija from Finland.
· Outgoing President Speech – Tom gave a very moving speech and nominated Sterling Johnson as his successor. This nomination was then confirmed by vote at the AGM.
· Incoming President Speech – Sterling thanked Tom and spoke about his vision for the future of AOIBA
· Secretary & Committee Voting – The committee has been seeking to add a 4th officer as well as some new committee members to help with the management of the association. Following a vote at the AGM, we are pleased to welcome Mark Hesketh Jennings as Secretary and Thomas C. Altman, Faris Nasir and Allan Cullen as new Committee members.
· Constitution & Code of Conduct- Damian updated the members, that the committee is currently working on updating the AOIBA constitution and code of conduct to help us better face the challenges of a growing association. Once these documents are approved by the committee they will be shared with the general membership for comments and suggestions and then ratified by vote.
· Bubble Fest – Sarah gave some more details about the upcoming gathering in London 16th – 18th October and requested that all interested parties make sure to confirm their attendance by emailing her.
· BBV 2023 – Eran mentioned the Bubbler’s Beach Vacation which will take place in Jaco, Costa Rica – January 25th – 31st 2023.
· Farewell – Sarah officially closed the meeting.

https://youtu.be/-O5pdVPJPOU

Dear AOIBA Member!
 
We hope you are well and bubbly!
 
In this post is information about upcoming events and some updates from the AOIBA Committee:
 
1) Our Annual General Meeting (AGM) will take place on zoom, Thursday 8th September 2022, 17:00 (UK Time). During the meeting the AOIBA Committee will report about the past year and look ahead to the future.
 
Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/3344073683…
Meeting ID: 334 407 3683
Passcode: bubble
 
2) Our first AOIBA Members in-person gathering will take place in London 16-18th October 2022. We are trying/aiming to make this event free. You will of course need to
cover your own travel, accommodation, meals and other expenses. In order to participate and get more detailed information about the event
you MUST email Sarah on
sjcampbell37@yahoo.co.uk
, do let her know if you intend to come to the full event or specify which days you will join us if you are only coming for part of the
gathering Let her know your name, and anyone else in your party, phone number, where you are staying, what talks/workshops will interest you
and/or can you lead any workshops. Sarah may be able to advise you on nearby accommodation, parking etc.. if needed.  More info on the
attached posters.

3) Bubble Beach Vacation (BBV2023) will take place in Jaco, Costa Rica 25-31 January 2023. PLEASE contact Gordy, Rick or me if you are interested to join, to get more details.
 
4) Meanwhile we continue our monthly zoom meetings on the first Thursday of each month at 5pm (UK time) to socialize, and have professional development talks. If you are interested to contribute or have any suggestions please contact Damian Jay.
 
5) The AOIBA website now has an online shop, check it out:
https://aoiba.org/shop/
 
6) The AOIBA now has a public page on Facebook, to promote the association and its members, check it out:
https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100084213662846
 
7) Apart from full members & apprentice members, we now also welcome ‘Friends of the AOIBA’ to join the association, for anyone who loves bubbles and wants to be connected to the association even if they are not professional bubble artists. Please encourage your friends and family to join here:
https://aoiba.org/join-aoiba/
 
8) Finally if you wish to be part of our next music video, this time the theme is ‘Tiny Bubbles’. The background song I will use is… ‘Tiny Bubbles’ (link below). If you want to be part of the video, please make a 10 second video clip with you doing something with tiny bubbles, could be a tiny bubble sculpture, tiny bubbles inside a giant bubbles, tiny bubbles from the tongue, anything you like…… NO NEED to talk or sing, just make bubbles. PLEASE make sure it is filmed landscape (not portrait) in High-quality resolution and send it to me to me by the end of September. https://youtu.be/1_oGPJaI0s0
 

 

 

Posted on 26th July 2022

 

To join, you will need the following information:
Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/3344073683…
Meeting ID: 334 407 3683
Passcode: bubble
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Find your local number: https://us02web.zoom.us/u/kiME8Iaqu

The AOIBA needs YOU … yes YOU!

Do you have ideas that could help drive the AOIBA forwards?
Are you full of enthusiasm and drive?
Are you able to commit a little time every week to check in and keep up with what’s going on? – Don’t worry .. it’s not a set time you need to be in for (apart from Committee meetings)
Do you have skills you think AOIBA would benefit from? Such as being a great communicator, or very organised, creative in design, a social media guru and so many more skills too many to list here.

YES ? GREAT – In that case the AOIBA definitely needs YOU to be one of it’s Committee members. You will have a seat at the table and be a part of AOIBA and bubble history.

If you would like to be involved, then please do stand for election at the AGM on 8th September …. you can do this by filling in the application form found on the aoiba.org website in the members area (It’s called AOIBA Council Member Application Form). Download it, Fill it out and email it to: membership@aoiba.org
Please use the subject line: Committee Application

Please be sure to have an AOIBA member to nominate you and a different member to second you.

As well as the general Committee members seats, AOIBA is also looking for someone to take on the Officer role of Secretary. If you think you are a suitable candidate for this role, then please register your interest by sending a DM on the aoiba members Facebook group; either to myself – Damian Jay, Sarah Campbell or Eran KB. You will also still need to send in an application form.

!!! IMPORTANT !!!   
PLEASE MAKE SURE YOUR APPLICATION IS SENT BY MONDAY AUGUST 29TH 2022

membership@aoiba.org

15/4/2022

Dear Members,
A quick update from the AOIBA committee:

1) The Committee decided to proceed with a live gathering for AOIBA members later this year (BubbleFest). As some international travel may still be restricted this may end up being a fairly small scale gathering: a time for us to spend time together, share ideas, blow bubbles, and possibly do some local outdoor and/or indoor performances. Dates and location will be published in the coming weeks, but likely to be around September-November 2022 in England.

2) In September 2022, Tom Noddy will have finished his 2 years period as president of the AOIBA, and he has nominated Sterling Johnson as the next president of the association, which has been approved by the AOIBA committee. The changeover will take place during the annual meeting on September 8th 2022.

3) We agreed and are now planning to open a public Facebook page, where we can promote the association. Once we do, please follow it and share it with your friends and family.

4) The AOIBA website will soon have an online shop added to it where you will be able to buy Shirts, hats, keyrings, etc… with the AOIBA logo on it. Watch this space!

5) The AOIBA committee decided to open a section for ‘Friends of the AOIBA’ in order to be more inclusive towards people who love bubbles, but are not bubble artists themselves. Friends of the AOIBA will get periodical newsletters, be invited as helpers to AOIBA live events, and receive other bonuses. We will let you know once this is set up and running so you can invite your families and friends to join.

6) If you are not yet on paypal subscription please make sure to pay your £10 annual membership fee manually by the end of April at the latest, if you wish to set up a paypal annual subscription please message Damian or myself. If you are unsure if you already have a paypal subscription, please check in your paypal account. Also please note that from the next membership renewal period (April 2023) the annual membership fee will increase to £15 per year for full members. It will remain £10 for apprentice members & will be £5 for Friends of the AOIBA annually. All new prices apply as of now for new membership applications.

Wishing you all a bubbly spring!
The AOIBA Committee

10/3/2022

Dear members, our next AOIBA Annual General Meeting will take place on 8th September 2022 at 5pm (UK time), please put this date in your diaries. The Zoom link and other details will be published closer to the time. See you all there!

On behalf of the AOIBA Committee

Aprils Zoom 7th April at 5 pm UK time

The topic – Practicality!

Have a think about your own show life and the things you’ve discovered that have made your show life easier.

This could be simple little hacks that keep your props neat and tidy. Storage methods for your bubble juice supplies.
Methods you use to transport equipment from your vehicles to the venue.
little things you’ve learnt that speeds up setting up or packing down.
Top tips for emptying bubble juice quickly.

In fact ANY little trick or hack you’ve discovered that makes your show life easier might be a solution for someone else’s issue.

Lets share some of our practical solutions to the issues and challenges we’ve faced as performers.

Your host for the night is our very own Scottish Highlander…
the wonderful Helen Dutch

AOIBA Zoom 3rd March 2022

Replay now available on the AOIBA YouTube Channel Link: https://youtu.be/_K2i_mCrc-w

Guest lecture on websites by Fernando Alvarez Jr

The topic – Websites that get you GIGS!

Please remember to like the video and subscribe to the channel

ZOOM CALL 3RD MARCH 2022 SUMMARY

This month we had a guest lecturer – Fernando Alvarez Jr. The topic – Websites that get you GIGS!

The first hour is the lecture, followed by a Q & A session. After that there is our usual chatty stuff and banter. At the end we also cover the next upcoming Zoom calls and a few dates for the diary.

In this lecture we learn about the Three second rule, top tips on webpage and navigation layout including drop down menus and CTA’s (Call To Action)

We take a look at various example websites along with some of our Members websites so we can see these top tips in action and how they impact our website visitors.

We learn about page and website loading speeds and by using a simple online tool how we can check our own webpage loading speed. If you want to try that yourself, you can use the site mentioned in the lecture to see how fast your page loads. Link: www.pagespeed.web.dev

We also learn how to secure your website with a Padlock icon. Then we turn our attention to Booking Forms, again with some real website examples of booking forms, and some interesting points were raised during this section.

SEO plays an important part in any website, so of course Fernando delved into this covering topics such as Key Words, Headings and how and where to use H1, H2, H3 etc Meta Tags, Title tags and image text and Alt text are also covered, which makes putting images on your website much easier for Google (and other search engines) to read and categorise.

He also explained how to set up the text that shows up when your website appears in the Google search results.

Fernando also talks about a very important aspect that many people don’t know about – Google my Business.

A very useful and important tool that can be set up and used for free. This will help with your rankings.

Although there were questions throughout the lecture, there were also quite a few after the lecture where Fernando gave extra information and useful tips on backlinks and how to get reliable backlinks for a fee.

There is a lot more information in the lecture than I can possibly summarise in these short paragraphs so it’s worth spending an hour to watch the first half of this replay.

Fernando has kindly agreed to offer help and support to our members who may have further questions or need some help. He also designs and creates professional websites for entertainers all over the world.

If you would like to get in touch with Fernando, either message him on Facebook letting him know your are an AOIBA member, or alternatively you can contact him through his website www.fernandoseo.com

Aelfwyn Shipton also raised a point in the brief discussion on testimonials and marketing. She mentioned she had some resources on Marketing she was happy to share with AOIBA members. These PDF resources can be found in the AOIBA Members Facebook group in the files section. 
Link to part one: https://www.facebook.com/groups/aoiba/permalink/741985830051899

Link to part two: https://www.facebook.com/groups/aoiba/permalink/741986583385157

Note:
The links contained within this article are backlinks to the various websites they link to 🙂 

THE NEXT ZOOM MEETING 3RD MARCH 5PM UK TIME

With special guest talk/lecture from Fernando Alvarez Jr.

He will be giving us his professional insights and knowledge on how to create a, or tweak your existing, website so that it works for you and brings you more enquires which you can convert to bookings.

He will also be touching on SEO hints and tips along with what you can do to maximise the SEO on your sites.

Have your questions ready as Fernando will be holding a Q & A afterwards.

Please can I ask you all to stay on topic this month during the talk
Afterwards we can have our social chat and catch up – Thank you
DO NOT MISS THIS ZOOM !!!!!

February’s Zoom call is now available on the AOIBA YouTube Channel the link you need to watch the video is: https://youtu.be/xfXUw1reMBo

Please remember to hit the like button and Subscribe to the channel. That way you’ll be kept up to date when new content is added.

This month is a BIGGIE …. Prop reviews by Eran KB Plus we answer two of the biggest questions ever asked:
Are bubbles alive? and Do bubbles go to the loo?

Do not adjust your sound. At one point the sound will be muted during a shared video. This is due to a copyright claim for the music in the video, and that section being muted.
No copyright infringement is intended.

Dustin Skye – Contact through Facebook
Smoke mod and Ecig kits.

Alexander Kross – Contact through Facebook
Fog Tube Device

Rick Findley – Contact through Facebook
Breathless Fogger

Frédéric Garrec – Contact through Facebook
Small adapter / top for Ecigs
The Floating Ballerina
The Living Bubble

Carlo Gazza Emperor -Contact through Facebook
The foam ring maker with lights
Wand with tube to put smoke into the bubble

Mariano Guz – Contact through Facebook
Quick Bubbles
Silk Bubble
Fire Bubbles

Alain Maske – Contact through Facebook
Tennis Racket (with thread) and appearing tennis ball
Bubble to necklace
Candelabra with LED lights

Not a prop … but the SuperBlue exhibition in London http://www.superblue.com/london/

Cj Productions – Contact through Facebook
The awesome Bubble Umbrella

Mago Xander – Contact through Facebook
The Bubble Book
Bubble Ice Cream

Frozen Bubbles quick video from Aramis with some on the spur of the moment footage filmed during the zoom.

Dr.Zigs frozen bubble kit https://drzigs.com/gclid=Cj0KCQiAxoi…Videos
on the Dr Zigs Instagram page, here: https://www.instagram.com/drzigs/

Bubble gun shown by Aelfwyn … waiting for an amazon link

Flogos and smile clouds, various suppliers mostly in China

www.Bubbles4you.eu
Heart shaped wands and hoops

Glowby … absolutely beautiful heart shaped necklace – Contact Glowby through Facebook

Also covered is the 3rd March Zoom with special guest Fernando Alverz who will be giving us some really amazing info on bettering our websites, making them work for us to get us more clients and work Also touching on SEO and other things we could be doing to boost our online presence. DON’T MISS THIS ZOOM.

Membership renewals are also covered as well as some info on the very much hoped and longed for meet up in September this year.

And many more topics, laughter and merriment.

As it’s February we just have to talk about Luuuuurrrrveee and the special things we do for our clients that require that little touch of ‘Awwwwww’

Not only valid for Valentine’s day but also appropriate for weddings, anniversaries and any special celebration our clients might be having.

We’re also opening up for critiques on props … If you have a bubble prop you love (Still on topic) or hate … show us the prop and give us your honest review.

Eran will be sharing a few of his props and reviewing them for us.

Of course there will be all the usual banter and fun as well. We’d love you to join us 

To join the Zoom call you will need the following credentials:
Meeting ID: 334 407 3683
Password: bubble

08/01/2022

Happy New Year to you all.
January 6th’s Zoom call is now available to watch on our YouTube channel. 
In order to watch the replay please use this link: https://youtu.be/I5qM3FsqwkQ

Please also like the video (hit the Thumbs up icon) and subscribe to the channel so that you get notified when new content is added. 

Topics covered in this Zoom include:

Iain Jay mentioned The Royal Institution Christmas Lectures which can be found here: www.rigb.org/christmas-lectures

Graham Maxwell talked about Salt Shakers to disperse salt onto performance area to soak up the soap and mitigate slipperiness. Easily available from Amazon.

Thomas Altman’s forthcoming book. The PDF of this is currently (at the time of this video upload) to download and peruse on the FB members page.

Mini air blowers to make mini foamers. Two versions were mentioned.
Sandy Snakenberg mentioned the Opalar version, here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Compressed-Cordless-Computer-Rechargeable-Efficient/dp/B09GYC4XK4/ref=sr_1_1_sspa?keywords=opolar+air+duster&qid=1641493597&s=officeproduct&sprefix=opolar%2Coffice-products%2C77&sr=1-1-spons&psc=1&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUEyWUI3OEtMTVNWR1ZDJmVuY3J5cHRlZElkPUEwNTkwODcwMVJQRFA1VFpGTk4zSSZlbmNyeXB0ZWRBZElkPUEwODI2OTg5MkhIRjZBSlQ2RFQ3UyZ3aWRnZXROYW1lPXNwX2F0ZiZhY3Rpb249Y2xpY2tSZWRpcmVjdCZkb05vdExvZ0NsaWNrPXRydWU=

And Cj mentioned the air pump from Decathlon, here: https://www.decathlon.co.uk/p/electric-camping-pump-mains-power/_/R-p-329373

Discussion on frozen bubbles, freezers and phones inside freezers with Paola and the Dr Zigs frozen bubble kit: www.drzigs.com/collections/most-popular/products/frozen-bubble-kit

Seeing how sound waves interact / resonate / wobble (that last one is the correct scientific term) while blowing bubbles and suggestions of using strobes as well. Usual precautions please if you use stroboscopic lighting.

Carol Collins exploding kids bubble brains …. very funny !!!! The images for this can be found in the AOIBA Facebook group’s media section in the photos tab.

Helen’s portable tent for either performing inside or and or for use with KIB outside. Link to the tent she uses here: https://alvantor.co.uk/products/alvantor-outdoor-bubble-tent-pop-up-gazebo-igloo?variant=39858608537794

Various methods for achieving KIB outside including the awesomeness of Demian Zen.

Putting on your own theatre shows which lead to the conversation of the AOIBA putting on theatre shows. Discussion moved over to the Committee to discuss.

And many more topics, laughter and merriment.

All the above links, and link to this replay, will also be posted in the AOIBA Facebook page.

8/10/2021
Just To let you know that our ZOOM meetings will be on the 2nd Thursday of the month from now on at 5pm (UK time)
This will hopefully suit even more bubble buddies.Next meeting 14th October.
Hosted by Helen Dutch

AOIBA’s Personal Meeting Room

Meeting ID  334 407 3683
Passcode: bubble

21/7/2021

A Message from AOIBA Chair, Sarah Campbell :
Dear Members,
I’d like to welcome you all to our wonderful Association and to invite you to our Annual Meeting on Thursday 2nd September 2021 at 5pm BST, (UK time) on:

www.zoom.us/join
Zoom Meeting ID: 334 407 3683

Password: BUBBLE

We are also inviting nominations for our Committee. We currently have our full quota members of the Committee. If anyone wants to stand as an officer or if we have new nominations for the Committee, the positions will be decided by ballot. If you would like to stand please complete and return a nomination form by 23rd August 2021, All submissions should be made to membership@aoiba.org We will acknowledge your submission by email within 48 hours to confirm we received it.
You can download the nomination form on: https://aoiba.org/downloadable-documents/

During the past year Steff Evans sadly resigned as Treasurer. We would like to thank Steff for her hard work and dedication over the previous two years. Luckily the committee was able to co opt Damian Jay into the treasurer’s role. He has already contributed much time and energy to fulfilling this and has successfully resolved frustrating issues with first PayPal and then the bank. Unless someone else wants to run for this position we will seek to ratify him in this position.
If you would like to offer any help or expertise without joining the committee we would also love to hear from you.
 
AGM Agenda:
Chairperson’s welcome
President’s greeting
Secretary’s report
Honorary Memberships
Treasurer’s report and accounts
Election/ re election
Other business
 
We all hope to see you at our meeting.
 
Sarah Campbell (Chair)
On behalf of AOIBA Committee
 

24/4/2021
Dear members, Just to let you know we managed to restore our paypal account, so hopefully you should be able to make payment through the link below, if you could do it by the end of April, we will greatly appreciate it. Also to inform you that Steff has decided to resign her position as Treasurer of AOIBA and we are currently seeking to fill her position. On behalf of the committee I would like to thank Steff for all her hard work and dedication helping to establish the association since its formation. Have a bubbly weekend all!

——————————————————————————————————————–

8/4/2021
Dear AOIBA Members,
In a conversation among this organization’s Committee members it was suggested that we might want to consider sending out a regular or semi-regular newsletter of some sort. While the Committee is interested and has ideas on the subject, we soon realized that the few of us are feeling like we are probably not the ones to do the time consuming job of heading up such a project. Then it was decided to raise the subject here among the larger membership. … if you have thoughts on this subject let’s talk.

Tom Noddy
president AOIBA

——————————————————————————————————————–

5/4/2021
Dear AOIBA members,

Your annual AOIBA membership fees are now due. Kindly use the following Paypal link to make payment, this payment will then be taken yearly, until you cancel the subscription on your PayPal account. The amount currently remains on £10 a year.

https://py.pl/UyBp3

PLEASE make sure to put your FULL name so we know who paid.

Kindly make payment as soon as you can by the end of the month. If you have any issues please contact us.

Many thanks,

Eran & Steff

30/3/2021
Dear AOIBA members,

We want to give you an update from the AOIBA committee.

TOPICS:

• Annual General Meeting
• Membership Fee
• Bubble-Fest
• AOIBA Website
• Bubble Beach Vacation

In light of the current world situation we sadly decided again to postpone our plans for an International Bubble Fest Event, and will be looking into holding one in 2022/2023, where hopefully we can all meet again!

Our Annual General meeting will be held on Zoom on 2^nd September 2021 5pm (UK time), so keep the date available, and we look forward to seeing you then. More details will follow.

We are now coming to this time of year, where your membership annual fees are due. We will send you all an email in the next week or two with instructions on how to make payment. Fee remains at £10 only for the year. If you have any issues with payment, please contact me or Steff.

Meanwhile Social zoom meetings for members are held on the 1^st Thursday of each month, hosted by Umar, 6pm (UK time):   https://zoom.us/join, Meeting ID 334 407 3683, Security Passcode BUBBLE

We are currently working on two new features on the AOIBA website. One is a world map, showing where all AOIBA members are located with links to your profiles on the AOIBA website. The other is an extensive an attractive gallery with photographs from previous Bubble gatherings and other events. We will update you when those become live.

Bubble Beach Vacation (BBV) 2022 in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic, is still going ahead, and we hope to see many of you there, please join the dedicated FB group for more details:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/2784223135139437

Meanwhile we hope you are keeping well, and staying bubbly, while the world hopefully gradually returns to some sort of normality.

Best wishes,

Eran, AOIBA Secretary
On behalf of the AOIBA Committee

1/1/2021
AOIBA Zoom meetings will continue in 2021 on a monthly basis. These will be held on the first Thursday of each month 6pm (UK time) and will be informal/social gatherings , but also if anyone wants to propose or lead a theme/lecture/masterclass please do let us know. As usual these are for members only. Umar Shoaib kindly agreed to host the sessions, and we thank him for his support! Below are the new details for the Zoom meetings for 2021.

Join Zoom Meeting https://zoom.us/join

Meeting ID 334 407 3683

Security Passcode BUBBLE

7/2020
Dear All,
It was wonderful to see so many of you at our first Annual meeting last night. Thank you so much for coming along to give us your support.
We began with a welcome from our President Tom Noddy.
The current committee Steff as Treasurer, Eran as Secretary and myself as Chair along with Aramis and Sterling were re elected and Paola, Caroline Cornelius-Jones and Helen were also elected into the committee.
We formally adopted the constitution after making three amendments . Paola’s amendment to include a statement on inclusion, mine to allow for apprenticeships and Terries to remove mention of Facebook as a means of communication we’re all passed.
We talked about our exciting plans for an AOIBA event in London in September 2021 and how we could achieve some form of accreditation particularly in bubble therapy. Exciting times ahead!
Wishing you all, I hope we can all make bubbles together soon.
Sarah

6/2020
We’d like to remind you of our Annual Meeting on Sunday 5^th July 2020 at 6pm BST (UK time),
please calculate your local time.
Zoom Meeting ID: 897 2645 6394
Password: AOIBA 
www.zoom.us/join

We had two applications from members who would like to join the committee:
Caroline Cornelius-Jones
Paola Dyboski-Bryant

in addition all current committee members will be standing again for their roles:
Chair – Sarah Campbell
Membership Secretary – Eran KB
Treasurer  – Steff Evans
Committee Member – Sterling Johnson
Committee Member – Aramis Gehberger

All these will be voted upon at the AGM. Tom Noddy is continuing his role as President.

There were also a couple of amendment proposals to the constitution. The constitution and the proposed additions below will all be up for approval at the AGM:

The constitution can be found here:
https://aoiba.org/members-only-pages/association-of-international-bubble-artistes-aoiba-constitution/

Constitution proposal, from Paola Dyboski-Bryant: ‘It is the hope and intent of this organization to take a proactive approach to diversity and inclusion amongst our members, and to resist and prevent discrimination regarding gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, religion, ethnicity, age, neurodiversity, physical ability or citizenship. We will endeavour to have an organization that reflects the diversity of our planet. Aliens and misfits welcome.’

Constitution proposal, from Sarah Campbell: ‘Apprentice Membership of the Association shall be open to any person interested in, and showing knowledge of, Bubble Artistry or Bubbleology Apprentice Membership is subject to being vouched for and mentored by an existing member and can continue until the Apprentice is deemed to have reached a sufficiently high standard to merit full Membership. Each member may serve as a mentor for one apprentice at any one time.
Apprentice Members shall pay a subscription as decided by the committee, be entitled to participate in some activities of the Association. They may not describe themselves as members of the Association but as Apprentices of the Association. They shall not enjoy any voting rights whatsoever or be eligible for election to the Committee or office.’

AGM Agenda:
Chairperson’s welcome
President’s greeting
Treasurer’s report and accounts
Secretary’s report
Adoption of Constitution
Election/ re election
Date of next meeting

We look forward to seeing you at the AGM,
The AOIBA Committee

3/2020
We hope you are all coping well during these challenging and uncertain times. AOIBA would like to invite you to fortnightly Zoom chats for members only as follows: (ALL Meetings are 6pm-8pm UK time):

Saturday, 25th April 2020 – Social Gathering

Saturday 9th May 2020 – Theme: Virtual parties, Instructional videos & performing in the new age of Covid-19

Saturday 23rd May – Master Class Webinar, Hand Bubbling with Sterling Johnson

Saturday 6th June – Theme: Share your Inventions

Sunday 14th June – A virtual Bubble Show with Blaise Ryndes from Spheres Bubble Show. Followed By Q&A

Saturday 20th June – An evening with Tom Noddy, sharing stories and Q&A

Sunday 5th July – AOIBA AGM (Annual General Meeting) – Association meeting

23rd July 2020 Equipment. Sharing examples of equipment we have made, sharing tips and experience. Including special guest: Gordy Tobutt

6 August 2020 Digital, online events such as Zoom parties and workshops and filming online content. Sharing expertise and showing short examples of what people have done. Including special guest

20 August 2020 Puppets, Story telling and scripting .

3 September 2020 Therapy and discuss gathering of ideas about how we can create some form of accreditation.

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89726456394…

Meeting ID: 897 2645 6394

Password: AOIBA

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3/2020
AOIBA has now been open for applications from the entire global bubble community since February 2020, and we have a steady stream of applications that we are processing. Currently membership has crossed the 80-members thresh line with members from around the globe.

We wanted to let you know of some benefits that we have been adding to our website for AOIBA members.

Besides our new Gallery section which will continue to expand we also have in our ‘Members Only’ section of the website a few new features. Firstly, a discount page offering members a number of discounts from some of the world’s top Bubble equipment designers and makers. They were all keen and generous to support the association by providing discounts to our members, please do not share these with non-members.  There is also a page with downloadable document  for your adaptation and use, such as contracts, T&Cs templates etc.. a special thanks to Damian Jay for creating and sharing most of those.  You can also download the AOIBA logo from that page and use it on your own website or social media, to mention you are a member of the association.  
There is also a News page where we will update you on association matters, some recommended links and our constitution. If you haven’t joined our members Facebook page yet, please go to:

https://www.facebook.com/groups/aoiba/

You will note the members directory is now a public page so its open to the public anyone can access it. If you wish not to appear on the directory, please get in touch to opt out.
We would like to remind you to please only sponsor applicants you are happy to advocate both for their Bubble skills and experience and their ethical and professional attitude.

We will have more news for you later on.

Meanwhile Bubble On!

AOIBA Committee