Weekly meeting

Andre started by identifying his three main hobbies of climbing, cycling and sailing. His cycling and climbing exploits are well known within the club, perhaps less so sailing as he doesn’t own a boat. He claims that this is because he is too smart to own one! Like a caravan or motorhome, unless you use it all the time, it is far more efficient to rent (or charter) one when you need it.

Chartering a boat also gives you the opportunity to easily explore other waters. In this Andre is actively involved in the International Fellowship of Yachting Rotarians (IYFR), the oldest of the fellowships within Rotary. Fellowships are essentially hobby groups within Rotary, and exist for all sorts of activities, ranging from Aviation to Yoga.

Interestingly it was through IYFR that Andre recently discovered a second cousin that he did not know he had (his grandfather’s brother’s grandson) living in the Ukraine. As Andre said, there is no inbreeding in his family, especially in a family tree that incorporates all European nationalities from Scotland to the Steppes of Asia. He went on to describe the various elements of his family tree which he can trace back to 1547 and the Holy Roman Empire.

However the main point of the talk was the opportunity that Rotary provides to both indulge your hobbies and to be (surprisingly) reunited with your family.