PRESIDENT DAVE'S SPEECH AT CHANGEOVER
Fellow Rotarians, honoured guests, ladies and gentlemen.
It is with great humility and enthusiasm that I stand before you tonight as the incoming president of the Rotary Club of Kenmore. I want to begin by expressing my gratitude to the Club for the trust you have placed in me. It is both a privilege and a responsibility that I do not take lightly.
I would like to firstly take this opportunity to thank Jason for his stewardship of the Club over the past 12 months. Your leadership, extensive knowledge of Rotary, and good humour has been a pleasure to observe and has been instrumental in my preparation for my year ahead as President. I look forward to working with you over the next 12 months. Can everyone please join me in thanking Jason for his commitment over the past year.
Can I also thank Ross for his kind words. Ross is a man I admire very deeply and as my Rotary mentor he has been a constant source of sound advice. I consider him a dear friend and Kim and I are looking forward to many more years of good times with Ross and Sue.
After a bit of introspection and thought, I have come to the conclusion that "The Magic of Rotary," is a phrase that encapsulates the unique and transformative power of our organisation. When we talk about magic, we often think of the astonishing, the seemingly impossible made possible, and the awe-inspiring moments that leave us breathless. This, I believe, is a perfect metaphor for what Rotary represents and what we achieve together.
The magic of Rotary is evident in our unwavering commitment to our service to the community. It is in the countless hours volunteered, the funds raised, and the projects implemented. It's in the support we provide to women impacted by the scourge of domestic violence, the programs we support at our local schools, the lives we change for the better. This magic doesn't come from a wand or a spell, but from the dedication and compassion of each and every one of you.
Consider, for a moment, the magic we create when we unite for a common cause. When a natural disaster strikes, it is the collective effort of Rotarians worldwide that brings relief and hope to the affected areas. When we launch initiatives to eradicate diseases like polio, it is our persistence and cooperation that bring us closer to a polio-free world. These are not just acts of charity; they are acts of transformation.
But the magic of Rotary is not limited to grand gestures. It is also found in the small, everyday acts of kindness and service. It is in the mentorship provided to high school students at the local Interact club, the smile shared with members of public at the Brookfield Show, welcoming new Australians at the Australia Day ceremony. Each of these acts, though seemingly small, creates ripples of positive change in our communities.
As we embark on this new Rotary year, I challenge each of you to embrace and amplify this magic. Let us continue to dream big and set ambitious goals. Let us build stronger connections within our club and with our communities.
Over the coming year, many of our projects will continue such as:
- Supporting the Women’s Shelter at Ipswich;
- Providing support to our local youth through a range of Rotary youth development programs;
- Ongoing support of the Community Pantry and Christmas Hampers.
We aim to continue our existing fundraising efforts such as:
- the Rotary Christmas Raffle;
- Containers for Cash collections;
- Support of the Brookfield Show.
But I am also very excited that the membership of the Club has grown over the past few months with the merger of the Karana-Bellbowrie Rotary Club with Kenmore Rotary and the recent induction of Luis and Andrea. This not only gives our club more capacity to do more, but importantly more ideas to pursue. At our first meeting of the year we will be inducting the Karana-Bellbowrie crew and start the process of adding new projects for our club to support.
I am excited about the journey ahead and confident that, together, we will achieve remarkable things.
Let’s make this year one to remember.
Thank you.
Now before we move onto the Presentation of the new Board, I would like to take this opportunity for some important thank yous.
Firstly, I would like to thank my family for supporting me tonight. As Rotarians, we all know that we only get the opportunity to serve our community when we have the support at home of the ones we love. To Kim, and to all partners, I say thank you.
To Dolly, the wife of Outgoing President Jason, I would also like to thank you for your tireless support of Jason over the many, many years he has been involved in the Rotary cause, and particularly for your support over the last year. I hope we haven’t taken him away from his family responsibilities too much. And I would like to present these flowers as a token of our Club’s thanks.
I would like to thank Past District Governor Eric Wood for your attendance at tonight’s Changeover Dinner. Your support is greatly appreciated and I hope you enjoy this bottle of wine as a token of our thanks.
And finally, in accordance with Kenmore Rotary tradition, I’d like to invite Immediate Past President, Sanjoti Parekh, to present Outgoing President Jason with his featherduster. I am sure Dolly is looking forward to a year of a very neat and tidy house.
PRESENTATION OF NEW BOARD
President-Elect Margaret de Wit
Secretary Ken Ryan
Treasurer Patrick Cook
Director – Youth Services Ross Thomas
Director – Membership & Outreach Ricky Haberfield
Director – Community Services Leanne Kison
Director – Club Services Claylia Ward
Director – International Mary Kearney
Immediate Past President Jason Pole
WHO IS DAVE PATMORE ?
Presented by Ross Thomas at Changeover Night
David John Patmore was born on the 8th January 1973 in Perth the fourth son of five boys. At an early age Dave had a great love of music, which he still does. He was a mad ABBA fan and at the age of 4 he would sing along to “Fernando” with great gusto. Perhaps he will give us a rendition later tonight.
He and his brothers all had music lessons once a week and this led to his performance at the Perth Eisteddfod at age 4 ½ at which he received first prize. His feet wouldn’t reach the pedals of the electronic organ, so his Mum & Dad had to do some modifications so he could perform.
Dave was very close to his dad Mike and if he were here today, he would be immensely proud of the man we all see today.
To get the guff on Dave I also had to enlist the aid of his ever-loving wife Kim.
At age 7 his family moved to Toowoomba where he attended Toowoomba East Primary School and Toowoomba State High and was School Captain at both schools (a born leader).
Dave Studied Bachelor of Applied Science Natural Systems and Wildlife Management at UQ Gatton College. He attained first class Honours and the UQ university medal so I think it’s fair to say he is a smart fella.
Dave was offered a graduate position in the Federal Environment Dept in Canberra and Brisbane.
While living in Brisbane he met Kim and they fell head over-heals in love and got engaged and bought a house in Bardon shortly after.
They then moved to Canberra and both worked for the Environment Dept.
When their Son Lachie was born in 2010 they relocated back to Brisbane.
That was when I believe Dave had a mid-life crisis and decided to change careers.
He returned to UQ to do his Masters of Audiology and to warm up his brain he did a Graduate Certificate in Linguistics before completing his Masters.
Their next move was to Hobart where he kicked off an Audiology career working for Australian Hearing. There he worked as an Outreach Audiologist for First Nations people in the Kimberley and South Australia.
Back in Brisbane Dave set up the Audiology Services for BUPA in Queensland. He had a few years as the owner of Audiology at Specsavers at Mt Ommaney and also in the City.
Today, Dave works at the PA Hospital doing diagnostic Audiology for people with brain injuries and those undergoing chemotherapy. He also runs the PA Hearing Aid bank where he assists refugees and incarcerated people with their hearing.
His brother Steve’s who is also with us tonight shared his views.
If Dave wanted to bring about change in a positive way he would plan, plan, plan.
The saying…. “A Goal without a plan is just a wish” most likely epitomises Dave’s view.
Dave the person is: -
A man of Integrity.
A family man who is a devoted husband and father.
A guy who loves a laugh and witty banter.
A Guinness lover
Very competitive…
This Rotary Year with Dave at the helm we’re in for an exciting ride!
