Boorowa Rotary Club holds 2020 Changeover Dinner

The Rotary Club of Boorowa celebrated their 60th Changeover dinner on Sunday, the 19th of July.

Due to restrictions in place to help limit the spread of coronavirus, the meeting was a members only lunch. While it was on a smaller scale than usual, the members enjoyed their afternoon reflecting on what the Club has done in the last sixty years and over the past year specifically.

The highlight of the afternoon was awarding Rotarian William Kelly the Club’s Rotarian of the Year Award. William was thanked for his 25 years in Rotary as well as his continuing service. Past President Ingrid Corcoran said William was one of those quiet volunteers who would always turn up when needed.

William, an engineer, was also the guest speaker for the meeting. He spoke about his time in Rotary, recalling his visit to a QANTAS hanger and Rotary’s main fundraiser, which was bagging sheep manure and selling it at the Canberra Markets.

He acknowledged the welcoming of female members into Rotary, especially Julie Poplin, Boorowa’s first female member. He spoke about the value in the Rotary program and how it enabled him to enrich his confidence and public speaking abilities. William was also a Paul Harris Fellow, a high honour in Rotary.

Past President Ingrid Corcoran gave a report on the past year for the Club. The Club was involved with youth programs such as the TUFF program to mentor young men as well as other programs. The Club also provided scholarships for Year 11/12 students and an overseas sponsorship of a student to study in Agriculture at Gulu University in Uganda.

There were no Young Achiever nominations received from the community this year and Ingrid spoke of her hopes for a better year in 2021. She thanked all the Rotarians for their commitment throughout the year and the many community volunteers that help out at the Boorowa Community Op Shop.

During the year, the Club has given out over $27,000 in donations, of which $18,000 has come back directly into the local Boorowa community. Ingrid passed on her thanks and was happy to pass on the banner to incoming President Ilze Myburgh.

Past Assistant Governor Julie Poplin inducted new President Ilze Myburgh. President Ilze said she hoped to be more of a “facilitator” rather than a president to create new opportunities or recognize opportunities that would benefit the community. With the new District 9705 announced on the 1st of July, 2020, she would like to work together with the new district clubs to share ideas and projects. She would also like to embrace new technologies to help stay connected in these times.

The Rotary Club of Boorowa welcomes new members or Friends of Rotary to join in on Club activities. If you are interested, please contact Jenny Carter- Secretary at jenny.a.carter@gmail.com or the Facebook page Boorowa Rotary Club.

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