The Club’s committee has the pleasurable power of awarding Honorary Life Membership to Club members who have made an outstanding, on-going contribution to the progress of the Club.
According to our Constitution, this highly-esteemed level of membership is offered only for exceptional service to the Club.
Up to 2014, eligibility was “available only where offered to a person for exceptional service to the Club spanning at least three years or having an effect that will (or has) benefited the Club for three years by, and at the absolute discretion of, the Committee voting unanimously in favour of doing so”.
In 2014, this was changed to be “available only where offered to a member, having at least 10 years of Club membership, during some of which they have performed a Club role and provided exceptional service by, and at the absolute discretion of, the Committee voting unanimously in favour of doing so”.
In 2020, this was further amended to be awarded for long-term service to the Club. A nominee must have:
- previously received the Service Star
- completed a minimum period of 10 years of membership
- given Exceptional Service to the Club for a period in excess of seven years, by the application of extraordinary expertise, dedication and positive influence
During our history, life membership has been awarded to just 20 individuals:
| Member | Year | Service |
|---|---|---|
| Margaret Cemm | 1990 | Co-founder (MX-5 Club of Victoria Inc.) |
| Michael Cemm | 1996 | Co-founder (MX-5 Club of Victoria Inc.) • Foundation President 1990-1993 (MX-5 Club of Victoria Inc.) |
| David Henry | 1996 | Foundation member (1990) • President 1991-1995 (Mazda MX-5 Club of Victoria) |
| Murray Finlay | 1997 | Foundation member (1990) Committee member 1991-1995, 1997-2016, 2018-2020, 2022-> • President 2006-2012 • Vice President 1997-2001, 2002-2006, 2012-2016 • Secretary 1991-1995 (Mazda MX-5 Club of Victoria) / 2005-2006 (Mazda MX-5 Club of Victoria Inc.) Club Champion 1993-1994, 2009-2010 Jinba Ittai award 2005-2006, 2013-2014, 2019-2020 (joint) |
| Ian Morris | 2001 | Committee member 1994-1999 • President 1996-1999 • Club Captain - Motorsport 1994-1996 NatMeet 2000 Chairman |
| David James (citation) | 2002 | Committee member 1996-2001, 2002-2003 • President 1999-2001 • Club Captain - Motorsport 1996-1998 |
| Coral Campbell (citation) | 2003 | Committee member 2000-2006, 2007-2022 • Secretary 2000-2001 • Merchandise Officer 2002-2004 • Points Officer 2007-2018 • President 2018-2021 Jinba Ittai award 1998-1999 (joint) |
| Will Campbell (citation) | 2003 | Committee member 2000-2022 • President 2001-2004 • Membership Officer Officer 2000-2001, 2004-2022 • Points Officer 2018-2019 Jinba Ittai award 1998-1999 (joint) |
| Sue Ransom (citation) | 2003 | Responsible for the public launch of the Mazda MX-5 into Australia Early driving force in setting up the Victorian and all other State Mazda MX-5 clubs, and the start of NatMeet |
| Grant Butler (citation) | 2008 | Committee member 2003-2009 • Secretary 2002-2005, 2009 • Club Captain - Social 2005-2006 • Assistant Club Captain - Social 2008 NatMeet 2008 Chairman Eastern Victoria Chapter Captain 2011-2012 |
| Sam Gumina (citation) | 2008 | Committee member 2006-2008 • Club Captain - Motor Sport 2006-2008 • Assistant Club Captain - Motor Sport 2008-2009, 2010-2011 Club Motor Sport Champion 2003-2004, 2004-2005, 2005-2006, 2006-2007, 2007-2008, 2008-2009 |
| Mike Quist (citation) | 2010 | As National Public Relations Manager for Mazda Australia from 1979 to 2001, Mike was in charge of the national public launch of the Mazda MX-5 in 1989. Right from his first sighting of the exciting new roadster in Japan earlier that year, he promised the legendary Toshihiko Harai that he would have an MX-5 club in every Australian state, and set this as a central goal of his launch program. It is fitting, in marking the 20th anniversary of our Club, that we honour Mike Quist with Life Membership. |
| Ken Beaton (citation) | 2014 | 15-year member Inaugural Chapter Captain for Northern Tasmania Chapter 2008-2013 |
| Peter Dannock (citation) | 2021 | 13-year member Club Committee 2009-2023 (part) • Club President 2015 (part)-2018, 2021-2022 • Club Secretary 2010-2015 • Club Permit Scheme Officer 2014-> • Assistant Club Captain - Social 2019-2020 • Club Captain - Social 2020-2021 • Club Treasurer 2019-2021 Club Motorsport Champion 2015 Jinba Ittai award 2019-2020 (joint) |
| Alyssa Finlay (citation) | 2021 | 27-year member Club Committee 2009-2010 Driving force behind Club's branding and image for more than 25 years Designer of the Club's "country road" logo (unofficial 5-year pin and Club/Chapter banners); the 15-, 20- 25- and 30-year Club logos; FanFest pin (2017); Victorian NatMeet logos for 2000, 2008 and 2016; numerous incarnations of the Club's website and the design of the Club's magazine, mxtra, as well as many other Club design projects. |
| Bruce Gray (citation) | 2021 | 13-year member Club Committee 2013-> • Merchandise Officer 2013-2017 • Club Secretary 2016- • Website Administrator 2018- Jinba Ittai award 2018-2019, 2020-2021 Member of NatMeet 2016 (Launceston) organising committee. Awarded Service Star 2021 Driving force behind updating and maintaining the Club's website, including development and maintenance of the Club's online registration and payment system, and remote/electronic sign-on process, for all events (critical during the COVID-19 attendance restrictions), and implementation of revisions to the Club's online membership system and transfer from fixed annual to rolling memberships. |
| Cary Warren (citation) | 2022 | 10-year member Club Committee 2012-> • Club Captain - Social 2013-2016 • Merchandise Officer 2016-> • Social Media Officer 2017-> • Vice President 2021 • President 2022-> Awarded Service Star 2021 As Club Captain - Social, Cary called on his extensive hospitality industry experience to build a strong rapport with the Chapters and kept a full calendar of events. In Merchandise, Cary reduced the Club's need to stock variety and choice of merchandise, introducing a new system where members could order and quickly receive a wide range of merchandise via the Club website. Cary has also been active in managing the Club’s social media presence, ensuring that the Facebook page has regular posts of Club activities, and actively moderating the Facebook group to ensure that the group members and content provide a positive and appropriate representation of the Club. |
| Russell Garner (citation) | 2022 | 13-year member Club Motorsport Champion 2009-2010, 2010-2011, 2011-2012, 2014-2015, 2016, 2018, 2019 Motorsport Rookie of the Year 2009-2010 Motorsport Captain's Award 2013-2014 Sportsmanship Award 2016 Class championships: Modified 2009-2010, 2010-2011, 2011-2012, 2012-2013; Super Modified 2013-2014, 2014-2015, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018; NA/NB Modified 2019 Club Compliance Officer 2013-> Awarded Service Star 2022 |
| Randy Stagno Navarra (citation) | 2022 | Joined Club 1999, then re-joined 2003 (after time overseas) Club Committee 2014-> • Assistant Club Captain - Motorsport 2014-2016 • Club Captain - Motorsport 2016-2018 • Vice President 2018-2021 Club Motorsport Champion 2013-2014 Class Championships: Restricted Open Champion 2009-2010, 2010-2011; ND/NC Modified Champion 2018; Standard NC Champion 2008-2009, 2011-2012, 2013-2014; Standard ND Champion 2017 Motorsport Rookie of the Year 2005-2006 Awarded Service Star 2022 |
| David Collins (citation) | 2022 | Joined Club in October 2010 Club Committee 2011-2022 • Club Captain - Social 2012-2013 • Club Treasurer 2013-2019 • 2019-2022 Points Officer NatMeet XII (2016) Committee Chairman Club Champion 2012-2013 Jinba Ittai award 2015-2016 Awarded Service Star 2021 |
