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The much-loved Maungaturoto Country Club was saved from closing down at the last minute at a general meeting to discuss its future on May 21, when two local couples nominated themselves to serve on the executive committee.
The nominees were sworn in on the spot, making Richard Moore the president, Diane Moore the secretary, Kathy Strong the vice president, and Brett Strong the treasurer.
The former committee, organised by Rex and Rae Roadley, had been forced to seek legal advice on closing the club down after nobody had been nominated to run it for three years.
Diane Moore said she and the others weren’t intending to sign up for the job, but when nobody put their hands up at the meeting, they realised what they had to do.
“There was no way we wanted the club sold or to close because it is such an asset. Together we knew we could do the job, as Brett is the treasurer of the resident’s association, and Richard and I have led projects to makeover the gardens in town before.”
If the Country Club had closed, it would have displaced a number of sporting clubs, including the
Hawkes rugby team, junior rugby, squash, motocross, bowls and equestrian clubs.
Diane says the new executive team is keen to progress the club and intends to bring a number of ideas to the first committee meeting this month, including the possibility of a restaurant and gym.
“It is important to us that local people feel pride in the club. We want to make it a cool place and put it on the map again. Hopefully by next month we can start with some beautification of the gardens.”
The changing of the guard at the club marks the end of a 15-year tenure by the Roadleys and Karen Smales on the executive committee.
Former president Rex Roadley says he is hugely relieved the club will live on.
“My father was on the foundation committee and I found it very hard to accept the idea of it closing. But you can’t have a club without someone to run it,” Rex says.
During their time, they have overseen a refurbishment of the bar, installation of a viewing deck for the rugby grounds, and $400,000 worth of maintenance on the grounds.
“When we took on the job, the manager had just resigned and so we used their wages to pay for work around the club. It worked, but it meant that the treasurer, Karen Smales, basically took on the huge task of that job.
“The club was formed to support the needs of the community and it does that very well. We still support it to the hilt,” Roadley says.
