Les Whittingham

I was born and brought up in West London. Leaving school at sixteen, my first job was working for an electrical wholesaler making up orders and serving on the trade counter.

I later worked as an electrician's mate, as a bus driver , as a worker in a cold store (-23, f-f-f-freezing) and on a production line for the Wellcome Foundation (now part of GSK).

Looking for a change in direction, in 2003 I moved to Ferndown with my wife Helen, where we bought a newsagent that we ran together for 18 years. In 2021 we sold the newsagents, said goodbye to the early mornings, and retired.

I joined Rotary in 2004 so I could help raise much needed funds for local charities and have fun and make new friends along the way.

I became President of Ferndown and Parley Rotary in July 2021.