Mike Swanson & Carole Yates

Mike was born and brought up in West London. He went to Liverpool University in 1969 and in 1971 he met Maureen at the University Bridge Club. Mike and Maureen were married in 1974 but have no children (no time!). Maureen worked as a GP for 15 years before moving on; she is now Medical Director for West Cheshire Primary Care Trust. Maureen uses most of her holidays accompanying Mike on the more exotic cruises.

Mike worked for several years in Liverpool in the Civil Service, firstly in National Savings and then in the JobCentre, where he ran the Hotel & Catering section. His last "real" job was managing what was then the biggest government scheme in the country for young unemployed people.

In 1983 he was approached to set up a private bridge club in Birkenhead on the Wirral. The club was a tremendous success numerically but only modestly so financially. However it led to other things, including his rise to the top of the Tournament Directing ladder in record time and offers to run bridge holidays. Mike was responsible for setting up the national scheme of Tournament Director Training courses and qualifications. He is also a regular columnist in Bridge Plus magazine with his “John & Julie” articles.

Despite travelling the world for all of her working life, Carole had up until recently lived for 25 years in the same house in Walsall. However now she has moved into a property in a Staffordshire village, with a fast flowing stream at the bottom of the garden, so if she takes a long time to answer the phone it is probably because she is out in the garden feeding the ducks that seem to have adopted her!

Carole has been involved in travel for nearly all of her working life, though her involvement with bridge only happened by accident. The travel agency at which she worked for 17 years was approached in the mid 80's to help organise some foreign bridge holidays. She found herself heavily involved in this aspect of the agency's work and ended up escorting the groups as well.
From 1987 to 1989 Mike Swanson was employed as the sole Tournament Director for these holidays and in November 1989, after he decided to go his own way, he persuaded Carole to set up Diamond Bridge with him.

Carole has been married to Ray for over 30 years. Ray, a qualified chemist, has a senior position in the foundry industry which takes him all over the world. He spent 3 years running his company's Brazilian operation and is now based in China. Carole and Ray have two lovely daughters in their late twenties / early thirties who had shown no sign of leaving home (they know on which side their bread is buttered!). However Becky, the younger daughter, has just bought and moved into a house with her boyfriend; they are planning to get married in mid-2006.

 

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