David Kirkaldy has been installed as district governor of Rotary District 7020, which covers 10 countries in the northern Caribbean – the first time in a decade that a person from the Cayman Islands has held the title.
On Friday evening, 30 June, Kirkaldy was installed as governor general of the region, which includes 129 Rotary and Rotaract clubs.
Outgoing president Deborah Howell was at the ceremony at the Grand Cayman Marriott Resort to pass the mantle to her successor. She told the gathering of Rotarians, “This year has brought much joy and bragging rights as the district continued to outperform and lead in areas associated with being a vibrant club.”
She added, “We have contributed significantly to the Rotary Foundation and Polio Plus. We are engaged in meaningful projects in our communities – Hanwash, feeding and healthcare for underserved populations; increased programmes to include scholarship opportunities, mentorships and peace initiatives; as well as projects that protect our environment. Rotary is alive and well in the northern Caribbean.”
To a standing ovation, she told the audience, “I would do it all again.”
Rotary International director Jeremy Hurst introduced the incoming new district governor, and his friend, Kirkaldy, to the audience at the Marriott and to those watching on Facebook Live.
“David was … destined to join our [Rotary Grand Cayman] club, the first in the Cayman Islands,” Hurst said. “He’d grown up spending time in the insurance office with his dad Hugh, who is here tonight, and worked by another of Cayman’s Rotary giants, the much-loved past president Spencer Marshall, who is no longer with us, I’m afraid – another amazing mentor for all of us. It was Spencer who proudly sponsored David into Rotary [28 years ago] and encouraged his early progress.”
Marshall was remembered later in the ceremony when Kirkaldy presented his wife, Maxine Marshall, with a Paul Harris Fellow recognition “as an acknowledgement of her support of the work Spencer did in Rotary”.
Kirkaldy, founder of Massive Equipment Rental and Sales Ltd. and Massive Media Ltd., is a past president of the Cayman Islands Chamber of Commerce, and was the first chairman of the Cayman Islands Special Economic Zone Authority.
Focus on mental health
The theme chosen for Rotary this year by its new international president, Gordon R. McInally, is ‘Create Hope in the World’, which focuses on mental health and wellness.
Kirkaldy, wearing his new chain of office after it was passed from Howell to him, told the audience that the district’s 92 Rotary clubs – with more than 2,500 members across 10 countries – and its 39 Rotaract clubs – with more than 900 active members in six countries – were making a “profound impact” on local communities every single day.
He said the work of the Addison Kelly Memorial Scholarship, in conjunction with the Alex Panton Foundation, in Cayman continued to inspire and drive his commitment “to bringing awareness to the challenge that so many face with mental health and wellness”.
He added that during his year-long term of office, he intended to share the story of the late Addi Kelly, who took her own life at the age of 16 last year, with Rotary clubs throughout the region.
“As most in Cayman will know, she fought valiantly the mental health challenges that she faced. Sadly, Addi’s struggles ended tragically, but her parents have bravely transformed her story into action and awareness through the Addison Kelly Memorial Scholarship.”
He thanked Addi’s mother and father, Rhonda and Kirk Kelly, for their support “and for allowing me to use some of their precious family photographs in my presentation”.
He said to extend awareness and advocacy, “we have this year appointed a district mental wellness chairperson, and we’ll have a mental wellness ambassador in each country, as well as the encouragement for all clubs to appoint a mental wellness coordinator.
“We are encouraging our clubs to take this step to start conversations. We do and will not have all the answers… but just starting conversations is a really great place to start.”
For more information about Rotary District 7020, visit https://7020.org/.
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