Christchurch Rotary celebrated the end of its first year at its current venue, The Christchurch Harbour Hotel (formerly The Avonmouth), with an evening of Christmas Carols and a talk by a young man whom the Club had sponsored on a trip on a Sail Training Ship run by the Jubilee Sailing Trust.

On 15th December, Club members and their partners and guests enjoyed a traditional turkey dinner in the hotel’s splendid function room, and enthusiastically joined in singing a wide range of carols accompanied by members of the Boscombe Salvation Army Band.

Before the meal, Vice-President David Richards asked Rtn. Mike Roberts to introduce the evening’s speaker, Keith Chandler, a young man who had recently returned from a trip to France in the Sail Training Ship The Lord Nelson. Mike said that Keith, who had been a Sea Cadet locally since the age of 11, had already accumulated a serious list of sailing qualifications, and had been identified as likely to benefit greatly from the voyage on the Lord Nelson.

Keith had produced an impressive audio-visual presentation covering his experiences. The Lord Nelson is a 55m tall ship with over 1,000sq. ft. of sail. It has all the necessary modern navigational technology, together with extensive facilities for people with a very wide range of disabilities. Keith had stood watch during part of the 12-hour crossing to Cherbourg, which he described as “a bit rough”. He went ashore with a group in Cherbourg, and returned to the ship for an evening celebration of Trafalgar Day. On the way back he had the opportunity to climb the rigging, which he found exciting but rather scary. The ship finally moored in Cowes harbour.

Keith said that the experience had been very worthwhile, and had reinforced his ambition to join the Royal Navy when he reached 18, as a Warfare Officer. He authoritatively answered a number of questions before Rtn. Mike Devall led the Club in a vote of thanks for a most impressive performance from a fine young man.

Concluding the meeting, Vice-President David expressed thanks to all those involved in organising it, and especially to the Salvation Army band, whose music had provided a splendid start to the Festive Season!