PDG David Cooke comes from a management background in sales and marketing. He has held middle and senior management positions with multinational companies as well as managing a regional radio station and large medical centre. David moved to Albury in June 2001 to start an Insurance Loss Adjusting business which quickly grew to cover Wagga and Shepparton areas as well as Albury Wodonga. A career move in November last year to Real Estate Sales after thirteen years in Insurance claims has been welcomed by David and he is enjoying the challenges and mixing with people in a different frame of mind from damaged property to buying and selling property. David was invited to join Rotary in 1991 in Grenfell D9700. He later moved to Young in his work also in D700 and was invited to join their Rotary club. He was elected president of their club in 1998 – 99 and the following year was appointed to the District youth exchange committee. In 2001 he moved to Albury and was invited to join Albury West RC. David has held most committee positions shared between the three clubs. In 2005 David was appointed AG where he served for three years. In 2009 – 2010 David was appointed District Governor. Since then he has served as Club Administration Chair for three years, Polio Plus coordination for four years, DG nominating committee, New Club Extension co chair 3 years, Co Chair District Foundation committee 2 years; most of these positions have been held in unison. In 2013 – 2014 David was appointed to the position of Assistant Regional Rotary Foundation Coordinator for Zone 7B & 8. The position was offered to him again for this year which he accepted. The position takes in three Districts. Sports: all codes of football but in particular Rugby Union. Family, films, cycling and walking and social outings. David enjoys Rotary, the fellowship and in particular the people sharing Rotary with him.

Guest Speaker Fr Peter MacLeod-Miller – Born in Australia as one of twins.  My father was a broadcaster with the ABC and a judge with the New Inventors and my mother comes from a ballet background, and her mother was a ballerina with Boravanski.  We grew up tripping over ballet shoes and costume fabrics at our various houses which looked like stage sets and we were on the centre stage.  From school to law school, running across the occasional concert platform dragging concert grand pianos, harp and thousands of books ended up in rural Suffolk in historic walled rectory garden and trotting around English villages with a donkey and trap.  Then after ten years back to glorious Albury and St Matthews.  We bought Adamshurst after it was passed in at auction after going shopping with Vicki Chick.  My mother has moved in and we have been using the historical memory of many local people in the continual adventure of restoring the house and garden.