Canberra Chapter Christmas Lunch
18 December 2025 / Words & Photos by John Chapuis
Fifty-six members of the Chapter signed up for the Christmas Party this year but unfortunately due to illness only 53 members made it to the Gungahlin Lakes Club.
There was lots of noise, chatter and laughs circulating around the room. We had an excellent meal and then got down to business of thanking, awarding and recognising all those Chapter members who helped make it a very busy year.
Tenure Awards
Congratulations go to the following members who have achieved a milestone with their love of MX-5s and membership of our Club:
20 years membership
• Connie Brown
• Bob Judd & Bricet Kloren
• Iris & Tony McDonald
15 years membership
• Peter & Lia Battisson
• Ian & Robyn Bottcher
• Jill Hurcombe
• Jennifer & Peter Le
• Annie Taylor
10 years membership
• Giulia & James Schiemer
• Kerry Shepherdson
5 years membership
• Lilli Chi
• Ashley & Rhys Howse
• Frances Wood
The 2025 MXV Award
A member gets Member of the Year (MOTY) points for contributing to the Club, through organising or participating in an event, providing photos for Club Torque or the website, writing an article or report and so on. So, to accumulate 1015 points (M=1000, X= 10, V=5) typically takes a while. Two more of our members achieved a total of 1015 points and received the MXV Award:
• Bob Judd
• Tony McDonald.
New Member of the Year
The announcement that Mike Masters & Jacquline Killmeir were the NMOTY members for the Chapter surprised them both. Interestingly, Mike is a former member (from 2007-2021). He has clearly been energised by having Jacquline in the passenger seat.
Member of the Year
The Canberra MOTY winners for 2025 are Simon & Cathy Trickett. These two organised some great runs and wrote some great run reports. It is really great having people like this in the Chapter and the Club.
As if that’s not enough …
Cathy and Simon’s achievements and Club contributions were noticed by many. So much so, that they have also been awarded by our Club President and team as the Club Members of the Year. What a fantastic effort, and well and truly deserved.
I want to thank all those who have contributed to the Chapter in whatever way—as run leaders or organisers, tail-end Charlies, administrators, photographers, reporters and participants. No need for names—you know who you are.
Raffles galore
The odds were good with the ‘lucky door' raffles, with plenty of chances of taking home a prize. The raffle draw was filled with anticipation, and many members went home with a little extra to remind themselves of a great day.
The lunch pretty much wrapped up a full year, that saw many members out and about in their fun machines. It will be hard to top it, but we already have great plans for 2026.
As Convenor of the Canberra Chapter I wish all members of the Club members a happy, safe and peaceful Christmas season.
John Chapuis
And Lili has put plenty of photos up on our Facebook page.
