Remembering Vernon and Daphne Leader

On Saturday morning, 23^rd March 2024 some of the members of Ashford Rotary Club placed a plaque at the Scott Freeman Garden in Stanwell Road in memory of Vernon and Daphne (his wife) Leader and the contribution that they had both made over many years to the Ashford Rotary Club. 

Vernon had been a local business man in Ashford and was a founder member of the club in 1965. He became the president for the first time in 1970 and went on to be the president on several other occasions in the following years. 

Daphne fully supported him over all of the years and was a Member of the Inner Wheel for some considerable time. Rotary was purely a club for men during those earlier years but now is open to both men and women and there are many Women Rotarians in the clubs both in the UK and throughout the world.

Vernon was a Rotarian who devoted his time to Ashford Rotary Club selflessly over a period exceeding fifty years until he passed away sadly at the beginning of the Covid pandemic. He was an active participant in Rotary Events and all of our fund raising activities up until the time of his passing. He was also a Member and often President of the Ashford Horticultural Society and had the most wonderful garden where we were fortunate to have many fund raising lunches on a Sunday in very restful and colourful surroundings.

Daphne his widow passed away shortly after Vernon, they are both sorely missed by Members of the Ashford Club and we remember them fondly for such dedication to the support of the aims of Rotary both in the U.K and Internationally over so many years.