Club Member Profiles - John New

A man you can bank on...

To paraphrase Oscar Wilde, “...to lose one bank branch is unfortunate, but to lose two looks like carelessness”. Easy then, to understand John being mildly disconcerted that although his career with HSBC has seen him work in every bank branch along the North Wales coast from Caernarfon to Prestatyn, it seems that no less than 14 of those branches have since closed. Hmm!

Born, bred and still living at Rhos on Sea, John is to this day surrounded by a close family comprising his mother, an older sister and a younger brother. To this we must add one niece who is about to appear in Emmerdale, one who plays hockey for Wales and one who runs for Wales. It must be quite disturbing to be in the bosom of a family bristling with such talent, I suggested, but John’s insouciance rises well above this back-handed compliment of mine.

John is also quietly conscious of those within his family who are no longer with us. John’s first name is actually Michael, as he was named after his mother’s brother who was serving on HMS Kite when it was sunk by a U-boat in August 1944, killing 203 personnel. He was 20 years old. A proud but unbearably sad link with an era that is rapidly shading into a history that most of us now only experience vicariously.

For a man who has only ever known one home town and one employer for more than thirty years, John has often seized the opportunity for variety in his life is many other aspects. Whilst his predilection for prestidigitation (enjoyment of conjuring to you!) has not quite brought John the release from the “day-job” he perhaps craved for, it has nevertheless been a long-held hobby of John - and a staple of Rotary socials over the years.

The bit about  “one employer” is not strictly true. John tells me that for three summers, whilst still in school, he had a job in Eirias Park operating the Chairoplanes and a train that went round in circles. The length of the rides were determined by an egg timer and cost 20p per child. John’s earnings of 50p per hour were but a small portion of the “take” – good training and background for a career working for a bank, I ventured.

Rotary has played a big part in John’s life and his Paul Harris Fellowship of some years ago reflects this. He had attended a Rotaract interest meeting back in 1985.and emerged as its inaugural president, later becoming the district chairman and treasurer of the national Rotaract conference.  John was also a Group Ambassadorial Scholar and spent 6 weeks in Chile where he visited the first all female club in Chile -  and possibly the world.  Some of the clubs that John saw in Chile had their own clubhouses complete with kitchens and staff and of course a bar. “More akin to a golf club without the hassle of the golf!” says John -  thereby illustrating a disdain for a pastime that some Rotarians see more akin to a religion, I couldn’t help thinking.

John still proudly holds the Rotary Guidebook he was presented with on being inducted into Rotary on 6^th June 1995 – he tells me he plans to read it one day! John has been a loyal and industrious servant of the Club – probably the only member to have been President, Secretary and Treasurer of the Club – but not all at once, he added modestly.

As John now steps up to the plate as President for the third time, we all  pledge our support in taking the Club forward