Wagga 
Wagga Rotary President John Heazlewood made a presentation to Gordon Saggers of a gift to mark of his long and distinguished service with our Club. Gordon was away last week when he passed the milestone of 50 years as a member of this Club.
Wagga Rotary President John Heazlewood made a presentation to Gordon Saggers of a gift to mark of his long and distinguished service with our Club. Gordon was away last week when he passed the milestone of 50 years as a member of this Club. He joined the Rotary Club of Wagga Wagga on the 27th of September 1974, inducted by then President Herb Smith. Gordon’s contribution to this Club is legendary.
He was President in 1983-84, awarded a PHF in 1988-89, in no small measure, due to his long association with the Home of Compassion. He has had numerous trips to Timor-Leste over the years with colleagues in Dentistry, where they did a great deal of good and innovative work.More recently, Gordon and Paul Galloway were the driving forces behind our Club project, in regard to the School of Tutuala, in Timor-Leste. This year they organised to upgrade a septic tank in disrepair and other renovations.
Pro Patria in Wagga Wagga was another project in which Gordon became actively involved - the successful transfer of the Carmelite Monastery to the Pro Patria organisation. Over his time with us, Gordon has been awarded four Sapphire Pins, to go with his Paul Harris Fellowship, and that alone says it all.
Gordon’s Response:
In responding, Gordon mentioned that he was introduced to the club by the prolific Rotarian Peter Veerhuis and remembered that Herb Smith had inducted him. He spoke of the ideal actions of Rotary, in getting into projects together and then exiting, once they are up and running successfully.
He spoke of Pro Patria being a “can of worms”, to deal with when he joined as Team Leader. He described it as a “wonderful organisation that is great for this town.” He also praised the achievements of Rotarian Alan Lean, whose connections with hospitals, Council and the building industry, were vital in making the project a success. Gordon also mentioned that a Memorandum of Understanding had been reached between Pro Patria and the Charles Sturt University.