Guest Speaker Fabrizio Andreoni is a fitness coach, specialising in triathlon events, in Albury Wodonga.  He  specialises in the sports and recreation industry with many years of experience in fitness, coaching and healthy lifestyle training within Australia and overseas.  Fab spends about half the year here and half in Italy.  He is a member of the Australian and Italian Coaching Councils, is qualified in personal training, sports coaching, gym instruction and swimming teacher. Fab is a national representative age-group athlete, with 5 Ironmans, multiple half-Ironmans, 7 World Age Group Championships and many age-group national and state championship titles under his belt.  Fab’s athletes have had some fantastic results in all athlete categories and triathlon distances including many first time Ironman finishers, many age-group athletes qualified for World Age Group Championships, Age Group National Champions and junior high performance results at state and national level. Fab is coaching an Albury Wodonga athlete who is hoping to qualify for the Paralympics in Rio this year, and is responsible at the national level for a program assisting junior triathletes to make the transition to open competition.

Guest Speaker Maryanne Domnellan spoke to us about Gateway Health is a Not-For-Profit Company limited by guarantee and a registered Community Health Service under the Health Services Act 1988 (Vic). Gateway Health focuses on the provision of primary health and welfare services to people at highest risk of poor health outcomes. Services are delivered by over 200 staff members at sites in Wodonga, Wangaratta and Myrtleford in Victoria, and through outreach services provided across North East Victoria and Southern NSW. A broad range of services are provided by Gateway Health ranging from bulk billing medical practices, Allied Health, Alcohol and Drug services including home based withdrawal, counselling services, men’s behaviour change, Victims Assistance, Gamblers Help, Health Promotion, Chronic Disease Management, Indigenous programs, Aged Care services including Assessment, Disability Services, mental health programs including headspace, youth services, young parenting programs, Refugee Health and Sexual Health.

Guest Speaker, Joh Paynter is a Business Owner, Security Guard, Power Boat Race Coordinator, mother and wife and president of the Albury and Border Rescue Squad, but also part of the community. Winston Churchill said “We make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we give” and I wanted to give so when the squad needed a president I knew it was time to come back.  I commenced my involvement with the squad in 2003 but due to family commitments I resigned.  The connection to the squad and the desire to help never ceased and I remained connected through work and the support that it could provide to the squad, then they recovered my husband and boat following a racing incident and two years later they did the same thing for a dear friend. To me the ability to be able to support the squad members with the skills that I have is an honour and to know that their work will be invaluable to someone on what could be the worst day of their life is important and having been in the shoes of a family member I can truly appreciate the treasured work that the squad does.  The squad is a bit like an insurance policy for the community, you know it’s there and you never want to use it, but when you do you realise what it was worth.

This week’s Guest Speaker … Chief Inspector Kim Sorensen is a a 56yr old immigrant from Denmark having arrived in Australia as a 14yr old.  I started policing with the Federal Police in 1979.  In 1980 I went to the Northern Territory Police where I served until 1986, working at Tennant Creek and then Alice Springs.  In 1986 I joined the NSW Police Force.  My first station was Albury where I stayed for 12 months after which I went to Walla Walla. I remained there until 1992.  At that time I was offered a position in Bermagui that I just couldn’t pass up.  After 3 years I went to Wagga Wagga and then went through the promotion process gaining a Sergeants position in Lake Macquarie and then after a few years onto my present rank of Chief Inspector.  I returned to Albury 2 years ago and plan to retire here. Highlights to my career have been leading the NSW Police contingent to the NT for 4 months in response to the Federal Intervention into child mistreatment in 2007 and then also being part of the NSW Police Force support mission to Christchurch immediately after the earthquake.