"Our Fellow Rotarian"

President Paul "Piers Morgan" Tebay .....what we have all been waiting for ;-


OUR FELLOW ROTARIAN

Your President’s quick fire chat with Rotarian Maurice Halliday.



When did you join the Rotary Club of Kirkcudbright?

In 1986 I was proposed for membership of the Club by George Anderson and Geoff Willams. Glynne Shackleton was the President at that time. George was one of my daughter's geography teachers and perhaps not getting the best out of her. I took him to task and made a few suggestions. “We need you in Rotary”, came his reply.



What first attracted you to join Rotary and were your initial expectations fulfilled?

Ego trip! No idea what Rotary was about, but they looked important and out of my League. But hey, I was young and thought I had arrived.



Can you recall any particular personalities from your early days as a Rotarian?

Yes, my bank manager allowed me to call him by his first name, only on Rotary occasions, then it was back to Mr Scott.



You were Club president 1993/94 - what were the highlights of your Presidential year? That was 24 years ago! I struggle with last week. We had a yearly club function called “Ladies Night”. I took the club to The Marine Hotel North Berwick for a dinner dance and we bumped into a young gigolo called Maurice Barlow, enough said.



And in 2002/3 you were our District Governor – what were the highlights of that year of high office?

The support I received from the Club. Lot of travelling and Club members took it in turn to drive me to other Clubs. Alex Caygil was a great chauffeur in his grand Mercedes. Looking back the Conference in Dundee stood out for lots of reasons. I think the whole club came to Dundee. Donald Haining, Conference Chair and Adam Gray as Conference secretary.



Looking back over your years as a Rotarian what contribution to furthering the aims of Rotary have been made by either you, as an individual, or the Club as a whole, which you consider have been particularly beneficial and reflect well on the Club?

I am not an intellectual, but overdosed with common sense and know a bit about motivation and leadership. I have had the grace to know when to talk and when to listen, I hope. As a result I have for 15 years served on RI committees in various parts of the world and represented the RI President on three occasions, with Anne representing the RI President's wife. I am also proud of raising $3,000,000 for the Rotary Foundation. Kirkcudbright as a Club led the way with Global Grants; I had the privilege to be part of the introduction and sat on the advisory group of what is now the “new Foundation”. As a club we featured on the front page of The Rotarian (very few clubs can claim). Babble, I could go on for ages.



As a now ‘elder statesman’ in Rotary what are your thoughts about the continued success of the movement?

Sadly, I am still a young Rotarian. There is a need to engage with 30/40 age group. In reality they do not want to dine with their grandparents. So far “new-fangled” ideas have not born fruit. First you need a community to serve, which is the strength of our Club. Yet in the last 31 years we have only gained 20 members, net.



Now, and finally, and privately between you, me and our 50 plus fellow members (!), tell me something amusing about yourself which is not commonly known.

I am not too fond of creepy crawlies. I was in Australia, another Rotary jaunt, and we had just checked into a beach front hotel out in the “boundie”, not Bondi. No electricity and as I opened the door in the gloom of the evening a giant spider ran under the bed. I did not sleep too well that night.



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