The first meeting of the 2026-27 season took place on Tuesday 8 September 2026 at the Panmure Arms Hotel, Edzell. President Kathleen welcomed members old and new and our speaker for the evening was the President of Laurencekirk and District Rotary Club, Peter Myles a well known and respected Blackface sheep farmer, past Chairman of the Northern Sheep Association, member of Edzell Drama Group and third time president of the Rotary Club. Peter entertained us with details of his past present and future contact with Inner Wheel. His first presidential visit took place at the Drumtochty Hotel Auchenblae on 9th September 2001 – the day the World Towers in New York were struck. At that time Peter had never used email or the internet, but they had become familiar to him by the time of his second visit in 2017 as President. Now, in 2026 and after the Covid Pandemic, he is au fait with all forms of social media.
Peter was keen to tell us about Rotary’s busy Summer and his plans for the coming year. Rotary attended various local events with stalls at the Mearns Community Event, Fettercairn Show, Bervie Gala and Laurencekirk Gala where ferret racing and basketball hoops entertained the crowds, raised money, and enhanced Rotary’s profile.
The annual BBQ at Holmfield in July was a great success with good food, good company, and great weather. Peter thanked the ladies of Inner Wheel for support at the BBQ.
The annual Duck race took place in August at Benholm Mill and, as always, raised a substantial amount of money for local charities. A cycle ride has also taken place to support Sir Chris Hoy’s Prostate Cancer Charity. All in all, a busy Summer.
Events to look forward to are the Bonfire on Friday 6 November and a coffee morning to raise funds for it on Saturday 24 October. The annual calendar is progressing well using photos from Tom Welsh’s archive and will be on sale in local shops and the Christmas Lights Fayre.
Also supported by Rotary is Mearns Academy with the Masterchef and Young Writer award.
Finally, they have renovated and re-located a bench which was previously donated by the WRI and will now carry a plaque from both Rotary and WRI.
Peter is looking forward to his busy year as President and as a Club, we wish him great success.
Our members have also had a busy summer attending events locally shouting “House” at the Gals Bingo, supporting Rotary at their annual BBQ and one of our members got on her bike to support Chris Hoy -anything the boys can do!
As always new members will be warmly welcomed. We are always keen to hear from people who could help us knit squares, sew squares into blankets, collect ring pulls and stamps, or donate underwear in good condition for “Smalls for All.” If you are interested, please contact innerwheeldistrict1@outlook.com
Denise Donald
Club Correspondent
