Port Augusta Combined Probus Rally 2013

09 Dec 2013

After many months of planning and organising, the Port Augusta Combined Probus Clubs Rally finally arrived.  

With guests from 13 other Probus clubs in the Eyre Peninsula District arriving for registration at 9.30am, the host clubs were ready and waiting to greet their guests.

With the pipes and drums of Celtic Beat playing quietly in the background, some 270 Probus members had time to enjoy morning tea, catch up with familiar faces and settle down for the day’s events.  

The Probus song was sung with much gusto before Michael Blake, one of the days MCs welcomed everyone to the rally and quickly dispensed with the important housekeeping information.

With the recent passing of our nationally famous and very popular Mayor Joy Baluch earlier this year, Cr. Sam Johnson had been invited to open the rally. It was with great pleasure that we were able to introduce Sam as the recently elected Mayor of Port Augusta.

The 2013 Probus Rally will always be remembered as the first official duty of Port Augusta’s newly elected Mayor.  

Mayor Sam Johnson gave a good address to the gathering, showing his knowledge of the history of Probus.

Sam was also able to give the meeting an insight into his vision of Port Augusta in the future, while acknowledging the lifetime work of Mayor Joy Baluch.

Following the presentation of the club banners, we were entertained by a group of very talented students called Sandstorm. These young entertainers played a selection of well known tunes which ranged from the theme of Titanic to the theme from Rocky as well as a popular Muppet song, keeping the crowd entertained with toes tapping and some of us singing along.

Ruth Main from Grand Pacific Tours took to the stage to give us an update on tours available in New Zealand, many of them designed especially for Probus members. Ruth ended her talk by giving away two $1000 vouchers to be used on a Grand Pacific Tour, both recipients being very pleased at their good luck. Ruth is always a welcome visitor to our rallies and is often a guest speaker at Probus monthly meetings.

With displays provided by Curdnatta Art, Port Augusta Quilters Guild, Port Augusta Men’s Shed Project and Port Augusta Arid Lands Botanic Gardens, there was plenty to do during the lunch break. Betty Cliff, a member of Kimba Combined Probus was also there with copies of her recently published autobiography A Path from the Window, a journey on destiny’s path.   It was such a beautiful sunny day, that the opportunity to wander outside on to the verandah was taken by some of our visitors. Local school children could even be seen playing sport on the oval. While the majority of the gathering spent their time catching up with news from other clubs in the district, it was the task of the executives to decide where next years rally would be held. With Probus numbers falling in many of the rural areas, it was evident how the Probus spirit and encouragement came to the fore to ensure that this annual get-together continues into the future.

From the generosity of the local Port Augusta business community, the lucky programme draw took place after lunch with some 45 gifts donated.  

Locals and visitors received an interesting and varied assortment of gifts. There was also a lucky-door prize draw with five donated gifts being won. A specially designed placemat for each of the members attending was a souvenir of the day.

With the President of Tumby Bay Combined Probus announcing that they would be hosting the 2014 rally, our rally duly closed with a rousing rendition of the Mauri’s Farewell.