I received an official invitation from Hounslow Rotary Club to join them at their annual St Georges Day dinner. There was initially a
slight misunderstanding, in that I expected it would be a lavish banquet of
traditional English fare at a fancy Hounslow hotel. Had I stopped to think for a moment I would
have realised that Hounslow is somewhat lacking in fancy hotels.
The event was in fact held at The Goat pub in Upper
Halliford, which is just a mile down the road from where I live. Furthermore,
traditional English fare is indeed served there, although mostly in the form
of a Sunday roast, served all week long
from their excellent carvery.
I was accompanied by the DGE and upon arrival we were impressed
with the number of Rotarians attending, not just from Hounslow, but from around
the District. I suppose word got round that I would be attending. There was one slightly awkward moment when we
arrived, and went into a separate room where many of the Hounslow club members
were seated. One of the Hounslow Rotarians
said to the DGE ‘ You probably don’t want to come in to this room’ to which she
replied ‘Why not?’
‘Well’, he said ‘We
are all Rotarians in here’.
‘In that case’ said the DGE ‘I certainly do want to
come in.’
‘But you might get bored’ he
persisted ‘Unless of course you want to learn about Rotary.’
Clearly he had not seen me following the DGE or he would have
realised his error immediately, but the matter was resolved when the DGE pointed out who
she was, whereupon he conceded that she might not be bored after all.
Eventually we were seated, quite appropriately, with none other than Nan
McCreadie, president of RIBI, and her husband Denis. He, of course, is a bit of
a rarity, in that he is a more senior Consort than me, but I didn’t really mind
being upstaged, as it was probably a one-off.
In future I may make discreet enquiries beforehand to ensure I don’t
have to spend the evening playing second fiddle again
.
It was a splendid evening of fun, food and fellowship, but
the highlight was the awarding of a Paul Harris Ruby pin to one of the Hounslow
members, Bakir Kapasi. A Paul Harris
Award, named in memory of the Founder of the Rotary Movement, is the highest
award that can be made to a Rotarian, and they are not given lightly. In the UK
they are given to those who are outstanding examples of the Rotary ideal of
‘Service Above Self’, having gone far beyond what would normally be
expected in terms of helping others. A
Ruby award, however, is equivalent to 6 ordinary Paul Harris awards and was
presented to Bakir by Nan McCreadie for his truly exceptional efforts in
fundraising for Rotary causes. It is the only Ruby Paul Harris I have ever seen
awarded.
Nan McCreadie presents Bakir with his Paul Harris Ruby Award
Bakir shows his award
Afterwards I asked him for the secret of his success. His
reply was very wise; ‘Don’t ask one
Rotary Club for £3,000, but ask 30 Rotary clubs for £100. It means more
legwork, but ultimately has a better chance of success.’
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