Mount Beauty Rotary Club held its annual changeover dinner last week.

Outgoing president Jane Zagorski handed the presidency to Phil Rundle, who will govern with the new committee consisting of Jane (past president), Mark Zagorski (treasurer), Bob Flower (Rotary Youth Exchange), Ian Cohn (vice president), Cheryl Clutterbuck (secretary), Rob Clutterbuck (Rotary Foundation), and Linda Cohn (membership director).

The club has been a part of the local community for more than 40 years, with a particular focus on youth in the community.

Meeting weekly in the beginning with men members only, women were welcomed into the club in the 2003/4 Rotary year.

These days the club meets twice a month at Roi’s restaurant where fellowship and enjoyment are a priority and is seen as the basis of the success of the club.

Members have undertaken many projects over the years, including the Rotary Park project which was started in 1987 and now includes the outdoor exercise equipment.

Regular annual commitments for the club include:

- support with traffic control and marshalling to Bicycle Network for the Peaks Challenge in March, Team Mt Beauty Downhill Racing events over summer, and the Mt Beauty Running Festival in May;

- community Easter Saturday Car Boot Sale and Raffle;

- Kangaraoo Hoppet babecue in August, providing the main food outlet for the Hoppet crowd and participants; and

- barbecue for the local market and junior soccer galas.

All this only happens with a significant number of community members assisting who are called Friends of Rotary.

Funds raised by the club this year have gone to assisting in the acquisition of orthopaedic equipment at Mt Beauty Hospital to enable orthopaedic surgery to be done locally by orthopaedic surgeon Anton Lambers residing in Bright, operating out of Wangaratta and Mt Beauty hospitals.

The club has also made contributions to:

- Polio Plus, which is Rotary’s worldwide effort to eradicate polio;

- Mt Beauty Primary School for assistance with school camp transport;

- Mt Beauty Secondary College for the year 11 trip to Melbourne;

- Mt Beauty Writers Festival held in October,

- Rotary Foundation, which is Rotary’s charity arm;

- the water tank replacement program for Ruffy, post the devastating bushfires;

- the Red Shield Appeal; and

- the Rotary District Governor’s charity of choice which for this year is Mental Health First Aid.

In this new Rotary year all of the above events are expected to take place.

Attracting new members is always a goal for Mount Beauty Rotary Club and it will remain front and centre this year.