Euroa’s Rotary Club has had a busy month, marked by a leadership change, the farewell of an exchange student, and the completion of a new community barbecue.

On Friday 19 June, about 80 people attended the Euroa Butter Factory for the club’s annual changeover dinner, where outgoing president Michael Stubey was recognised for his 12 months in the role before handing over the reins — or chains, to be more precise — to incoming president William Buckingham.

Mr Buckingham has been with the club for three years and said while he “didn’t know” why he had initially been approached for the role, he believed his background in teamwork would serve him well as president.

He is already planning.

“Part of my goal is to work more closely with other clubs in the area, like Shepparton, Benalla, and Seymour, so we can share our skillsets, experiences and case studies as to how to get projects off the ground and how to maintain their dynamics,” Mr Buckingham said.

“We would be liaising with them; for example, we have a few barriers to getting a new youth exchange student, but we’ll be talking to, in this case, the Shepparton club to see what we can learn from their experiences.”

Along that line, Euroa’s Rotarians farewelled their latest youth exchange student two weeks ago, marking the end of a year‑long stay in the district for Mexican student Luis Enrique “Quique” Esquinca.

Quique was part of Rotary International’s Youth Exchange program, which gives students aged 15 to 18 the opportunity to live and study overseas while being hosted by local families.

During his time in Euroa, Quique attended Euroa Secondary College and stayed with a number of host families, beginning with Michael and Kylie, as part of the structured exchange program.

The initiative is designed not only to broaden educational horizons, but to build cultural understanding and personal development through immersion in a different community.

Making news also is the completion of Rotary’s new dual-plate electric barbecue at the Ford McKernan Shelter next to the RSL in Kirkland Street, which is open to anyone wanting a free barbecue in the park.

“It is designed to be user friendly - you just turn it on - and is also wheelchair accessible,” Mr Buckingham said.

“You don’t even have to pay.”

While cleaning responsibilities are still being finalised, Mr Buckingham said he hoped users would show consideration.

“We clean it after our monthly barbecue there, and one would expect that someone who turned up there out of the blue would clean it as a matter of principle.”