Blog by Abby Younis, SI Crosby
The Closing Ceremony brought 3 days of fun, friendship, and fascinating talks to a fitting end. It was extra special this year as Covid had denied us the opportunity to meet over the last couple of years.
President Cathy Cottridge was invited to reflect over the last year and speak about her aspirations for the coming year. President Cathy thanked members for their commitment and expressed her appreciation for all efforts undertaken over the last year. This included:
- 3 clubs celebrating their 60th anniversary
- 5 clubs celebrating their 75th anniversary
- 4 new clubs being chartered
- The planting of 125, 292 trees as part of the Centennial Project
- Numerous members receiving recognition for 30, 40, 45 and 50 years of service
All the above showed a “determination and commitment to the continuing success of our organisation”.
The Change of Insignia ceremony was hosted by Ann Dawson, her cheery and comedic disposition kept the audience chuckling as she gave an overview of the ceremony and instructions to delegates to ‘hold’ their applause until the end…instructions which were almost followed!
Ann introduced the ‘all-inclusive Change of Insignia ceremony’. The Change of Insignia ceremony marks the end of office for the exiting president and the beginning of a fresh new reign. All presidents were seated on stage before the start of the ceremony and the Change of Insignia was marked by a roll call of the incoming and outgoing presidents. Their photos and names also appeared on the big screen.
As a new member I was interested to learn that compared to previous years, this was a minimalistic ceremony. In previous years, each incoming president was greeted by the outgoing president on stage and presented with the club regalia thus marking the auspicious occasion. There were mixed opinions on the new Change of Insignia protocol.
The evening ended with the girl group ‘Diva Dolls’ singing upbeat and relevant songs such as ‘We are Family’, ‘Reach for the Stars’ and ‘From Now On’. They managed to get many members out of their chairs and on to their dancing feet. Members left the auditorium energised, inspired and on a high!