Quarter Peal to mark Rotary Centenary

On 23rd February, 1905, the first meeting of the first Rotary Club took place in Chicago. On 23rd February, 2005, Soham Staploe Rotary Club celebrated the hundredth anniversary of the now global movement with an eight-bell quarter peal at St Andrew’s Church.

A quarter peal is approximately 45 minutes of continuous ringing and involves an average of 1,260 changes of position in the order of the bells. The team was lead by Ring Master Rob Palmer and included experience and youth in 75-year-old Ray Clist and 15-year-old Becky Hudson. At the completion of the peal the team met members of the club in the Fountain Inn where president Stuart Cavanagh congratulated them on their achievement and thanked them for their efforts.

At the end of the evening he said, “We’ve had a glance at the past, now let’s get on with the future.” The club is in the process of organising another beer festival to build on the success of their inaugural event on 12th February, a car treasure hunt and a 10-pin bowling evening, as well as the normal meetings at the Fountain. As always the club’s main event of the year will be the Christmas Carol Concert on 22nd December in Ely Cathedral which usually raises more than £10,000 for charity.