5 Jun 2004 - Paul Harris Fellow award
President's notes for Paul Harris Fellow award to John Franks
I would like to begin by saying how pleased we are to host this barbeque again for PHAB, Sailability, and some of our disabled sports people. There are almost 100 people here this evening and I hope you are having fun and have involved yourselves in the games. I think you will agree the barbeque and the environment here have helped make this a very enjoyable evening. We are indebted to John Macaness who makes this facility available to us free of charge.
Paul Harris founded the Rotary movement almost 100 years ago in February 1905. From that beginning there are now over one and a quarter million members worldwide doing similar things to us here tonight. Rotary International recognises people who have made outstanding service to their community by naming them Paul Harris Fellows; these people can be Rotarians or members of the public.
I want to tell you tonight that the Council of the Rotary Club of Northampton West have decided that they would like to award a Paul Harris Fellow to John Franks who is chairman of PHAB.
For well over thirty years John has been involved with various aspects of community service, particularly working with the disabled and people who have restricted mobility. He has been involved with Scope Northants (which focuses on people with Cerebral Palsy) of which he is currently a trustee, and is also a trustee ofthe Northampton door to door transport service; until recently he was a member of the Executive Committee of Ability Northants (originally Northamptonshire Council of the Disabled).
He has been involved with PHAB (Northampton) for about 27 years and has been on the Management Committee and then Chairman since the mid 1980s. PHAB is a national charity dedicated to promoting and encouraging the coming together, on equal terms, of disabled and non-disabled people to achieve an integrated and inclusive society.
Recently he has successfully negotiated a commercial arrangement to get brand new PHAB facilities on the existing site without any cost to the organisation and with much improved facilities. Subject to planning consent being obtained, building work should start later this year. Congratulations John on that special effort.
In his younger days he was a formidable Soccer player, and shortly after leaving the Grammar School he was a founder member of a football team called St. Georges for whom he played for many years, after which he was Chairman until the demise of the club in the 1990s.
Now I would like Mr Bruce Clayton, founder president of the Rotary Club of Northampton West to join me in presenting this award to John; Bruce was a virtual school chum of John (just a couple of year's difference) and John's brother-in-law, Jack Laundon was also a founder member of our club.
I would like to begin by saying how pleased we are to host this barbeque again for PHAB, Sailability, and some of our disabled sports people. There are almost 100 people here this evening and I hope you are having fun and have involved yourselves in the games. I think you will agree the barbeque and the environment here have helped make this a very enjoyable evening. We are indebted to John Macaness who makes this facility available to us free of charge.
Paul Harris founded the Rotary movement almost 100 years ago in February 1905. From that beginning there are now over one and a quarter million members worldwide doing similar things to us here tonight. Rotary International recognises people who have made outstanding service to their community by naming them Paul Harris Fellows; these people can be Rotarians or members of the public.
I want to tell you tonight that the Council of the Rotary Club of Northampton West have decided that they would like to award a Paul Harris Fellow to John Franks who is chairman of PHAB.
For well over thirty years John has been involved with various aspects of community service, particularly working with the disabled and people who have restricted mobility. He has been involved with Scope Northants (which focuses on people with Cerebral Palsy) of which he is currently a trustee, and is also a trustee ofthe Northampton door to door transport service; until recently he was a member of the Executive Committee of Ability Northants (originally Northamptonshire Council of the Disabled).
He has been involved with PHAB (Northampton) for about 27 years and has been on the Management Committee and then Chairman since the mid 1980s. PHAB is a national charity dedicated to promoting and encouraging the coming together, on equal terms, of disabled and non-disabled people to achieve an integrated and inclusive society.
Recently he has successfully negotiated a commercial arrangement to get brand new PHAB facilities on the existing site without any cost to the organisation and with much improved facilities. Subject to planning consent being obtained, building work should start later this year. Congratulations John on that special effort.
In his younger days he was a formidable Soccer player, and shortly after leaving the Grammar School he was a founder member of a football team called St. Georges for whom he played for many years, after which he was Chairman until the demise of the club in the 1990s.
Now I would like Mr Bruce Clayton, founder president of the Rotary Club of Northampton West to join me in presenting this award to John; Bruce was a virtual school chum of John (just a couple of year's difference) and John's brother-in-law, Jack Laundon was also a founder member of our club.