We wouldn’t like to embarrass Vaughan with gushy tributes; nor compare him to his obvious equals, such as Sir Edmund Hilary, Bear Grylls and Russell Coight, but members of Benalla’s Bushwalking Club and the U3A Bush Walking groups would rank our Vaughan right up there.
Vaughan’s membership with the BBC and U3A spans two decades. He put his hand up to organise and lead both the Easy Walks and Mid-Week Walks: a heavy work load for one person to carry. Vaughan, however, took it on with his habitual quiet competence. Without his extensive knowledge of the bush, wildflowers and his qualities of leadership and enthusiasm, the two Clubs would have not been as strong as they have grown to be.
We will all miss him in the driver’s seat and he will be a hard act to follow. To fill the breach, Margaret Walshe and Wendy Sturgess have taken over the reins of Easy Walks Coordinators and John Boehm will be the interim Convenor of the Mid-Week walks. The two Clubs therefore remain in capable hands.
No doubt Vaughan will remain an important member of the Clubs, sharing his inexhaustible bushwalking knowledge with walkers.
Special thanks must go to Marion Cowan, Vaughan’s cheerful and practical“better half”. As they say: “behind every Great Man (sorry Vaughan!) there’s a Great Woman”. This is certainly the case here. Not only is Marion an excellent cook (our bushwalking afternoon teas are legendary) but she seemed to alwaysmanage to come up with an answer for: “has anyone here brought along a ......?”; “what wildflower is that”; where is.......??
We trust that Vaughan and Marion will continue to remain active participants in future Club walks.
Vaughan’s membership with the BBC and U3A spans two decades. He put his hand up to organise and lead both the Easy Walks and Mid-Week Walks: a heavy work load for one person to carry. Vaughan, however, took it on with his habitual quiet competence. Without his extensive knowledge of the bush, wildflowers and his qualities of leadership and enthusiasm, the two Clubs would have not been as strong as they have grown to be.
We will all miss him in the driver’s seat and he will be a hard act to follow. To fill the breach, Margaret Walshe and Wendy Sturgess have taken over the reins of Easy Walks Coordinators and John Boehm will be the interim Convenor of the Mid-Week walks. The two Clubs therefore remain in capable hands.
No doubt Vaughan will remain an important member of the Clubs, sharing his inexhaustible bushwalking knowledge with walkers.
Special thanks must go to Marion Cowan, Vaughan’s cheerful and practical“better half”. As they say: “behind every Great Man (sorry Vaughan!) there’s a Great Woman”. This is certainly the case here. Not only is Marion an excellent cook (our bushwalking afternoon teas are legendary) but she seemed to alwaysmanage to come up with an answer for: “has anyone here brought along a ......?”; “what wildflower is that”; where is.......??
We trust that Vaughan and Marion will continue to remain active participants in future Club walks.
HAPPY RETIREMENT, VAUGHAN!
Bev Thornell
HAPPY RETIREMENT, VAUGHAN!
Bev Thornell
