We wrote recently about the Presidential handover for 2023. One of the final tasks of the outgoing President, Tony Loughran, was to hand out a number of awards to selected members (as decided by our Awards Committee chaired by Rotarian Leslie Stephenson).
The first of three Paul Harris Fellowships (PHF), named after the founder of Rotary, went to PP Alan Mepstead. Alan chaired our Vocational Service Committee for six years before steering the club through the pandemic as President. “That was not not an easy role…but he managed to keep the club together throughout. We had some interesting and fun meetings with the club and our Pentangular partners, even though it was all on Zoom!” said Tony. Alan has also worked tirelessly with schools, liaising with them over the previous photography competition as well as various writing competitions and the English Speaking Union (ESU) public speaking competition. He now supports the Prince of Wales Youth Club (one of the charities we often support) with their finances. “Alan is always among the first to volunteer for various tasks, and is a strong albeit unassuming supporter of the club” added Tony before handing Alan his certificate and special PHF badge. Thanking everyone for their support, Alan who was sitting at the same table as PP Harry Cragg, reminded us all that it was 11 years ago (almost to the day) that Harry had inducted him to the club!
Also up for a PHF was Robert Yonge. Robert has been a member of a club since 2005. In 2010 he served as President and represented the club in addressing the District Conference about our involvement in an international project to build a new hospital in Ghana. For the following three years he was Chairman of the Fundraising Committee. He continued as an active member of that Committee for many years, and was the instigator of two fundraising activities: Sailor Ted and the Wishing Well. He has actively ensured that they have continued to operate successfully over many years. Together the two initiatives have raised thousands of pounds for charities. As a current member of the Vocational Service Committee, Robert has also been responsible for a number of interesting and enjoyable awaydays for members of the club. On receiving his PHF Robert stated that he was “completely speechless”. Nevertheless, he thanked everyone for their support and humbly stated: “I hope that I have done some good things for the club”!
The third award was for Rtn Brian Dobinson — he received a PHF with sapphire, which is for those who have already received a Paul Harris Fellowship.
The three PHFs were not the end of the awards. The outgoing President also gets to select “Rotarian of the Year” and handover the unusual award that has its history in a previous Pentangular meeting. This year’s awardee was Rtn Graham Bough, who was given the award in recognition of the many activities that he has helped with. (Graham himself has previously received a PHF).
The final award given out by Tony was that of Honorary Lifetime Member – to PP Jake Davies (2005-2006). Jake continues to regularly attend Rotary meetings and events despite considerable mobility issues. Jake’s wife Philippa thanked us on Jake’s behalf via Zoom.
Picture: Awardees (L-R): Graham Bough, Brian Dobinson, Robert Yonge and Alan Mepstead. Picture credit: Rotary Club of Canterbury.
