There are no age barriers when it comes to serving the community, Harry Dorsman and Jeremy Culberg are proof of that. Both are members of the Rotary Club of Singleton and agree that it is a perfect avenue to serve the community while making some solid friendships at the same time. Di Sneddon reports.
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AGE is no barrier when it comes to giving back to the community.
Harry Dorsman was born in 1922 and has had a 57 year association with Rotary.
In contrast, Jeremy Culberg is 35 and just embarking on his involvement.
While the date of the day they joined may be decades apart, there is little difference to the reason behind their decision to become a Rotarian.
Both agree it is a great organisation to give time with capacity to make an enormous difference to the local community in which they live as well as national and international programs.
Harry was born in Sydney and spent a few short years living at an orchard at St Ives before his family moved to a dairy farm at Broke in 1928. Four years later he moved to Singleton where his connection with the town was cemented.
After studying a diploma in agriculture at the Hawkesbury Agricultural College he soon found himself in the army in 1942 and the following four years engaged in field intelligence, spending the final stages of World War II in New Britain. He was then posted to headquarters Southern Command in Melbourne.
Finally he found himself back on the family farm at Whittingham, growing lucerne, potatoes, pumpkins and hybrid seed maize for seed production.
In 1989 he and wife Bron moved to Singleton.
While work and family life consumed much of his day, Harry said the decision to join Rotary was the organisation’s capability of giving genuine assistance to a variety of causes.
“I have found Rotary to be a consistent way to give service in so many fields, giving me so much fellowship, humour, friendship and above all a sense of well being,” Harry said.
He added that Rotary commitments are time consuming.
“But it is important to me that I have arranged my life to accommodate it, Rotary is a part of me, along with my church, RSL and Legacy.”
In some ways, Harry equates Rotary with church.
“Both are weekly events, demanding of services and giving that service to local and wider Australia, an internationally, and above all, rewarding, with fellowship and a feeling of well being,” Harry said.
His service to Singleton has been well recognised.
He was named Singleton Citizen of the Year in 2006 and was a recipient of the Paul Harris Pin and a Sapphire Pin, the latter two are both prestigious honours within the Rotary organisation.
It is an impressive resume and one that Jeremy Culberg is only just beginning to compile.
He was approached to join Rotary in 2007 by a work colleague and after attending some meetings, decided Rotary was a good fit to his lifestyle.
He too recognises and values the opportunity to give back to the community but says it is the friendships he has developed that has been an added bonus.
“I’ve participated in many different events, sausage sizzles by the dozen, polio pancake breakfasts, selling calendars,” he said adding that it wasn’t just about service.
“There are social events, such as progressive dinners, and various outings and Rotary has given me new friendships that I wouldn’t have made otherwise.”
Club president John Henderson said the more diverse a club was, the more successful it can be.
“We would welcome new members, men and women, who feel the same way about their community, this is a chance to give back,” John said.
Anyone wanting to know more about the organisation is welcome to call John on 6572 4868.
