I've held a number of volunteer positions during my retirement, some long, some short, some sucessful, some less so. The shortest and least successful was as radio operator with Marine Rescue NSW at Hanging Rock in the Bay, but the less said about it, the better.
Perhaps the longest and most successful by far was my position as blog master of the ANZ Retired Officers' Club NSW which began sometime in 2012 and ended with my receiving a life membership at its Annual General Meeting at the Boutique Hotel in Sydney earlier this month.
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2025 AGM LUNCHEON 17TH MARCH THE BOUTIQUE HOTEL CITY
GENERAL BUSINESS. LIFE MEMBERSHIP PETER GOERMAN. TERRY THEN INFORMED MEMBERS PRESENT THAT FOLLOWING THE CLUB MOVING TO A NEW WEBSITE UNDER GUIDANCE OF IT TEAM IN ANZ HQ DURING 2024 THE CLUB COMMITTEE HAD REVIEWED THE OUTSTANDING WORK & CONTRIBUTION BY BLOG MASTER PETER GOERMAN & HIS DEDICATION TO CLUB COMMUNICATION WITH MEMBERS FOR OVER 12 YEARS. PETER BROUGHT THE CLUB INTO THE TECHNOLOGY AGE AT THE TIME AND WE WILL BE FOREVER GRATEFUL TO HIM FOR WORK & CONTRIBUTION OVER THOSE YEARS. THE CLUB UNANIMOUSLY AGREED AND APPROVED THE AWARDING OF LIFE MEMBERSHIP TO PETER IN RECOGNITION OF HIS INVALUABLE CONTRIBUTION THAT HAD BEEN DONE OVER MORE THAN 12 YEARS. LIFE MEMBERS BARRY SMITH & KEN DIGHTON SPOKE TO MEMBERS PRESENT TO FULLY SUPPORT THE AWARD AND THE GREAT CONTRIBUTION PETER HAS MADE TO THE CLUB OVER THE 12 YEARS & SPECIFICALLY, HIS TIME IN THE BANK IN CANBERRA. ALL MEMBERS PRESENT UNANIMOUSLY SUPPORTED THE AWARD OF LIFE MEMBERSHIP TO PETER. PETER WAS INFORMED OF THE AWARD BY LIFE MEMBER NOEL BOTTRELL AND ADVISED DUE TO HIS HEALTH POSITION HE WOULD BE UNABLE TO TRAVEL TO ACCEPT THE AWARD IN PERSON. PETER RESPONDED TO THE CLUB AS FOLLOWS: -
FROM: PETER GOERMAN HELLO NOEL, NOT MUCH CHARGING INTO 2025 DOWN HERE, NOEL! THE LAST TWO MONTHS OF LAST YEAR ENDED WITH SHINGLES, AND THE START OF THE YEAR WITH A BAD FALL PLUS TWO MAJOR TOOTH EXTRACTIONS TO GIVE WAY TO AN EVENTUAL UPPER PLATE, AND I AM IN NO SHAPE NOR MOOD TO GET TOO FAR AWAY FROM HOME. HOWEVER, I THANK YOU FOR THE KIND INVITATION AND THE OFFERING OF A LIFE MEMBERSHIP (ALTHOUGH YOU'RE CUTTING IT A BIT FINE WITH THE LATTER, AREN'T YOU? :-) HAS IT REALLY BEEN TWELVE YEARS AS "BLOG MASTER"? IF SO, THIS WILL HAVE BEEN THE LONGEST JOB I HAVE EVER HAD!!! :-) THE ANZ BANK WILL ALWAYS HAVE A SPECIAL PLACE IN MY HEART, AND ESPECIALLY ITS THEN MANAGER, MR ROBERT REID - SEE HTTPS://ATHOMEATRIVERBEND.BLOGSPOT.COM/2025/01/REST-IN- PEACE-MR-REID.HTML - WHO GAVE ME THIS INCREDIBLE ENTRY INTO A NEW CAREER SO SOON AFTER MY ARRIVAL IN AUSTRALIA. IT WAS NO OVERSTATEMENT WHEN I WROTE IN THAT BLOG POST THAT "I HAVE SOMETIMES WONDERED IF I MIGHT NOT STILL BE DRIVING A TRUCK THROUGH CANBERRA HAD IT NOT BEEN FOR THE KINDNESS OF THIS WONDERFUL MAN". MAYBE THERE WILL BE A TIME AGAIN WHEN I'M IN THE "TRAVELLING MOOD", BUT FOR THE MOMENT I TAKE A RAIN CHECK AND LEAVE IT TO YOU TO CONVEY MY GRATITUDE TO THE ANZ BANK AND TO ANY FORMER COLLEAGUES WHO MAY STILL REMEMBER ME (ALAS, "DOC" WILSON AND JOHN BURKE HAVE PASSED; ARE PETER BRADFORD AND REG ELLIOTT STILL AROUND?)
 I ATTACH A PHOTO OF MY FIRST ATTENDANCE WHICH WAS AT THE CHRISTMAS LUNCH IN 2010. THANKS TO THE BLOG, IT WAS EASY TO RETRIEVE.
WITH KIND REGARDS
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What am I thinking about? Well,it's been lots of fun and thanks for the life membership, but, as I said, you're cutting it a bit fine, aren't you?
