Guest Speaker Review
Jonathan Usher 29 February 2024

Our club member and former District Governor, Jonathan Usher spoke to the club about his role with the J R McKenzie Trust.  McKenzie’s stores opened in New Zealand in 1910 and by 1980 there were 75 stores nationwide.  Sir John McKenzie was the founder and he believed that a business should share its prosperity with the public.  So in 1938 he established the J. R. McKenzie Youth Education Trust and in 1940 the J. R. McKenzie Trust.  The latter with the conation of the current equivalent of $5.5 million plus one third of the McKenzie’s stores annual profits.
The capital of the Trusts was enhanced over the years, and son Roy (also to be Sir Roy) donated the land on which the Outward Bound sits.  Our Rotary club has been involved with the Youth Education Trust as one of our members (currently Grant Chirnside) is administrator of the regional fund which predominantly helps with the costs of school uniforms.
Dunedin Rotary appoints one trustee to the J R McKenzie Trust.  Jonathan has been that appointee for the last ten years and Grant Chirnside is taking over that position this year.  The Trust capital has now accumulated to $140 million and pays out $6 - $8 million per year.  The policy is to pay out a small number of large amounts to really make an impact.

 

The full transcript of Jonathan's talk can be downloaded here.

 

 

Another successful Town & Country group Safari last weekend- to the Catlins.
15 members enjoyed the annual T&C Safari last weekend very capably organised by Don McEwan.

 

We had an informative tour guided by Donald Stewart around the new Calder Stewart steel fabrication plant & office complex at Revolution Hills near Milton. Technology & quality control in the fabrication plant were amazing. We then headed for accommodation at Kaka Point on Friday. On Saturday Steven & Rhonda Bamford hosted us for a tour & morning tea at their award-winning dairy & sheep, and cropping farm south of Balclutha. The Bamford’s focus on technology & animal health to provide the best outcomes for staff & animals. 
Craig & Anna Whiteside at Waihwera gave us insight into growing a variety of seeds (26) on their property while maintaining healthy soils.Will Clarke hosted us at his 1200 herd dairy farm sout of Clinton showing us his new 90 bale Rotary milking platform & 1400 cow wintering shed costing $5million to build gave us insight into the logic of scale for this operation. Seeing ninety cows on one circular milking platform at a time and the massive wintering barn  was amazing. 
The main thing that came through though was the absolute devotion, enthusiasm, knowledge, and skills of the farmers we met.
On Sunday we visited Telford and had an informative tour of the campus, including remembering the legacy of Letch Sewell and the establishment of the club's Rural Education Trust Fund. 

Thanks to Don for all the arrangements. Some of us partly repaid him with a quick change of a flat tyre on his car.

(Planning for next year’s Safari in Central Otago is already underway.