Maidenhead rotarian awarded Paul Harris Fellow prize

A dedicated volunteer has been given a prestigious prize for her charitable work.

Claire Booth was named a Paul Harris Fellow by Maidenhead Bridge Rotary Club at its end of year celebration at Bird in Hand in Knowl Hill on Saturday.

Named after the man who founded Rotary in 1905, the prize is awarded to Rotarians who have made longstanding contributions.

When presenting the prize to Claire, Rotary assistant governor Malcolm Granger said: “Claire is quiet and humble. She has a heart of gold, is a good friend to many people and has very strong values and ethics for which she is well respected.

“She has dedicated at least half of her life so far to Rotary in one way or another and tonight I am delighted to give this Paul Harris Fellow to Claire Booth.”

Claire’s Rotary journey started with Rotaract more than 20 years ago, and she was one of the founding members of Maidenhead Bridge Rotary Club in 2012.

Since then she has constantly been on the club council or been involved in key projects.

Also at the ceremony, Martin Cabble-Reid was announced as the club’s first honorary member for his work with the Kevin Cruise Foundation.

The evening reception saw club president James Berkeley outline some of the year’s successes.

He praised the work done at the Health Awareness Day in February, where more than 100 people had their blood pressure checked and 15 people were advised to visit a GP.

He spoke about the moving moments from this year’s Maidenhead’s Got Talent, which was organised by all the Rotary Clubs in Maidenhead, before thanking the club's volunteers for their hard work.

The club has raised £10,000 for good causes over the last year, and contributed 2,190 volunteer hours – almost 800 more than the target set at the beginning of the year.