Honorary Life Member Deborah Bloor

The highlight of the 2021 Mandurah Masters AGM was undoubtedly the enthusiastic endorsement for awarding Honorary Life Membership to Deborah Bloor.

Honorary Life Members Ivan Wingate, Gerry Green and Graeme McAuslane, nominated Deb. The following is a synopsis of their nomination:

Deb has been a member of, and actively involved in, our Club for twenty-six years. Over that time, she has contributed outstanding and significant service to our Club. Since 1995, Deb served eighteen years on the management committee, which, together with Life Member Gerry Green, is the most number of years anyone has spent on the Club committee.

Deb is a quiet achiever who does not seek the limelight. In addition to committee duties, Deb has run the kitchen for our Club Challenge for over ten years and stints running the kitchen for our Open Water Swims. In 2007, she won the Kathy McLeod Best Club Person Award. Deb is always willing to put her hand up for tasks. She gets the job done without fuss or fanfare.

Throughout her time with the Club, Deb has been a regular competitor in both pool and open water competitions. She has won the Aerobic Swim Award or been runner-up three times, completed team crossings of both the Rottnest Channel and the English Channel and set a state pool relay record. In 2019, Deb won the Coaching Director’s Award. Like a good wine, she is improving with age.

As we all know, Deb is an enthusiastic supporter of all Club social functions and the winner of the inaugural Doddi’s Dash Fashion Parade in 2016 and again in 2019. Deb is ubiquitous throughout every year of the Club Photo Albums, whether the photographs capture a social event, an open water swim or the Manna team at a Club Challenge.

Proposing this nomination was not a spur-of-the-moment decision. We feel that now is the appropriate time for Deb to be honoured with the Club’s highest award.

The only objections to her receiving this award came from Deb herself, and of course, the Management Committee ignored these.

In response, Deb said:

I feel very privileged to be awarded Honorary Life Membership. I feel very special to be included in such an elite group.

Thank you to Ivan, Gerry and Graeme for nominating me and thank you to the members at the meeting who endorsed my nomination.

Mandurah Mannas has been, and I am sure will continue to be, a big part of my life, and I have had many special experiences and memories over the past 26 years. The comradeship and friendship of such a broad group of people, all with a common interest in swimming, is amazing and very enjoyable.

Special thanks to Graeme and Gerry, who have been big supporters of mine at Mandurah Masters and Sue Giles, who has been a swimming buddy since 1984.

I look forward to representing and supporting the club in the future in the role of Life Member.