Still clubbing after 50 years
Few people can say they’ve been a member of the same club for more than half their life.
Invercargill resident Warren Warburton, who turns 99 next week, is celebrating 50 years of being a Rotarian.
Younger members of the Rotary Club of Invercargill paid him a surprise visit at the Rowena Jackson Retirement Village this week to mark the occasion and help him join his first virtual meeting via Zoom.
‘‘That was out of this world,’’ Warburton said.
Communications director Lisa Fleck and membership director Anna Thomas delivered balloons, flowers and a card, signed with messages from other members.
‘‘The more I read their comments, the more I’m sure they’re talking about someone else,’’ Warburton said.
The world of Rotary has changed significantly since he started.
In his life as a watchmaker and retail jeweller, Warburton said he knew about the club and respected many of its members.
He was fairly intimidated when he was invited to sign up and said he took a week to make up his mind.
‘‘A lot of these Rotarians were high-up businessman,’’ he recalled.
Once he had joined, Warburton
discovered it was common practice to call all members – even the mayor – by their first name. ‘‘It took a year or two to get over that,’’ he said.
Back then, Warburton said, the club conducted itself in a very formal manner.
‘‘You had to dress prim and proper; you didn’t attend a meeting without a tie.’’
This wasn’t the same any more, he said, but that wasn’t a bad thing. ‘‘Because it’s relaxed, we’re making more money with our events than ever before.’’
He’s done his fair share over the years to help the club raise funds for charity, from collecting sheep manure and chopping wood for sale to replanting flax along the Bluff Highway.
Warburton was recognised as a Paul Harris Fellow for his contribution to the club in 2000.
The Government’s coronavirus restrictions have kept him from attending meetings, and Warburton is looking forward to seeing his fellow members when he can.
The club has seen many venue changes over the years, but there have been occasions when the group has used meeting times for outings to places such as Tiwai, the rose gardens and the Scottish Hall.
He credits his time with the club for bringing him out of his shell, and said he always enjoys the educational talks at meetings.
Warburton encouraged Invercargill residents who were looking to join a service club to consider Rotary.
‘‘It’s not stiff and starchy now; there’s lots of laughs,’’ he said.
‘‘You can go to any Rotary club in the world and be accepted as a friend.’’
‘‘[Rotary’s] not stiff and starchy now; there’s lots of laughs.’’ Warren Warburton