President's Message

A good turnout last night and it was wonderful to see Jim Donovan back with us, looking as sprightly as ever. Welcome back Jim. Good to see Glen Donaldson as well, who only came so he could win BOTH Have a GO raffle draws. Congratulations Glen.
Once again Steve Lines was our Sergeant and did a great job, clearly his motto is to never let the truth get in the way of a good story, but it was a fun session, and I suspect a lucrative one as well.
Martin Butler was our speaker and what an interesting topic. Martin provided us with a very thought-provoking theory and the evidence to support the theory, that there are more tunnels under North Head than we are led to believe and there is a real resistance from authorities to allow further exploration to prove the theory.
His presentation included the background history of aviation in New Zealand and the part played by the Walsh brothers. How planes first came to NZ and ended up at North Head Military Base. North Head is of course the Naval Base now and is an extremely strategic location particularly in times of war. Ammunition was stored in tunnels during wartime and it is thought that 2 planes are also in tunnels along with other ammunition. Despite several attempts through legal channels, permission to further explore the existence of the tunnels and their contents has been denied. The big questions remain why the secrecy, how many tunnels are there and what might be found within those tunnels?
The presentation generated many questions from members and we are hopeful that Martin will be able to come to another meeting and provide more pieces to the puzzle. 
A few reminders 
1. Fun/Walk/Run is on Sunday 26th March your full support is needed for this very important and popular community event. Everyone is asked to come to Stockade Hill by 8.30am for your final briefing and then return to Stockade Hill after you finish at your station to help with the Prize Giving and cleaning up. Wear your Rotary Shirts please. I understand there is in excess of 100 registrations already, so fingers crossed for a great turnout.
       2.Don’t forget to complete and return your Auckland Council Annual Budget Feedback form.
In closing it has been brought to my attention that members feel Keyway is all about me. Believe me that is not the intention at all and I would happily not do a message after every meeting !! Please feel free to make your own contribution any time. I know Rob will be only too happy to include it. An example might be a report perhaps from Geoff about the Brit/ Euro Car Show that could well be of interest to members.
Nga mihi nui
Kia tupato, noho haumaru   Take care, stay safe.
Madeleine East MNZM
President.