Member with the mostest

By Melissa Meehan
JAN VEENSTRA is Pakenham Rotary’s longest-serving member.
He joined when the club was chartered in 1961 and has been a vital part of the club since it began.
Coming from Holland to a new country, Jan wanted to meet as many people as he could and found joining community clubs and organisations the best way to do that.
He joined the Young Farmers, but when he reached 25 he could no longer be a member and was looking to join something else.
“I felt lonely when I wasn’t part of the Young Farmers club, so it was great that they had a survey out to see whether they could start up a Rotary club,” Jan said.
“I immediately accepted and thought it was absolutely fantastic.”
He said joining Rotary was the perfect fit, not only could he meet new people – but also give back to the community.
While taking part in hundreds of Rotary initiatives over the years, Jan looks back on the Rota Potota in 1977-’78 as one of his favourites.
“We grew 10 acres of potatoes,” he said.
“And every member of the club was involved in that under the leadership of Henk Schipper and Charlie Huyskens.”
Jan said they ploughed, planted, irrigated, harvested and sorted potatoes covered in mud from top to toe.
“We had an enjoyable time and the end result was the best ever,” he said.
“We had 136 tonnes of spuds, which we sold to assist the establishment of a workshop unit at the Minibah School (now known as Outlook).