A 101-year-old man has said he takes enormous pride in helping his rotary club raise £11,000 for the Alzheimer’s Society.
Billy Geary, who turned 101 in August, was elected vice-president of the Belfast East Rotary Club last year.
A ceremonial role at the time, the succession of the club means Mr Geary is now the president — making him potentially the oldest rotary club president in the world.
This week, Mr Geary, alongside club officials, attended a special lunch at the Stormont Hotel’s La Scala Bistro to celebrate their fundraising for the Alzheimer’s Society, for which the rotary club raised £11,000.
Born on a farm in Magheragall, Co Antrim, in 1923, Mr Geary was the middle of five children, the rest of whom have since passed away.
Mr Geary said he was “flattered” at the idea he could be the oldest president in the association of rotary’s history.
“Oh it’s lovely, very flattering I must say, but I’m still the same person, I do what I can with the club, but it would be nothing without its members, who help me,” he said.
Billy presenting the cheque to Alzheimer’s Society
When the Belfast Telegraph attended his 100th birthday celebrations last year, Mr Geary spoke about his love for golf, and despite reaching the milestone, he could still often be found on the green at Shandon Park Golf Club.
“I haven’t played since November, to be honest. I had some health issues over the past few months, and I’m still getting over them, but no more golf. No one would want to play with me anyway, I can only manage a couple of holes now,” he added.
Mr Geary, who lives independently, is also fond of playing bridge, both with friends and online, and said the secret to his long life was being “surrounded by a loving family”.
When asked how he felt about turning 101, he replied with a similar comment he made when he turned 100.
“It feels the same as 100 years old, but I am glad to be here and be surrounded by friends and family especially now that I am getting back to normal after not being well,” he said.
As club president, Mr Geary oversaw the fundraising of Belfast East Rotary for the Alzheimer’s Society — a charity close to many of the 14 members’ hearts.
They raised £11,000 for the cause, something Mr Geary and rotary club member David Gibson were thrilled about when they presented the cheque to the Alzheimer’s Society.
“I think it was the biggest amount of money the club has ever got their hands on,” laughed Mr Geary.
“I’ve been in the club for over 40 years, and it’s the biggest fundraising we have done, and it really is down to David and the members.
“I can’t praise David enough, we would have never been able to raise this amount of money to help people if it wasn’t for him.
“The members have never worked harder than they did for this, I couldn’t be prouder of them, especially because we’ve only 14 members. I think they surprised themselves.”
David Gibson, who is close friends with Mr Geary, said fundraising was a core aspect of their rotary club.
“Over the years we always have had a major fund raising event every two years,” he said. “It is all part of Rotary, service before self, and giving something back to the community we all share.
“Some people think rotary is just a lunch club and a jolly, and it is that indeed — but we meet regularly every week and enjoy our own fellowship and fun, but out of that we have a very serious motivation to help others less fortunate than ourselves and that is what keeps us going and gives us a purpose.
“Along with other rotary clubs every year [they raise] thousands of pounds which was all given to various charities like Marie Curie and the Children’s Hospice every year. Over 10 years we gladly raised and gave well over half a million pounds.”
Mr Gibson also said the reason to raise money for the Alzheimer’s Society was because of the devastation of the illness.
“Locally has to be a priority though, and what better than the Alzheimer’s Society of Northern Ireland,” he said.
“We all know the devastation dementia does to individuals, but don’t forget the families who suffer because of a loved one.
“We know every penny of the £11,000 we raised helps so many.”