Patong Rotary honours the late Paiboon Upatising, the club's charter president

Mr Paiboon was the club’s charter president, a long-time Rotarian and strong supporter of the club since founding it 14 years ago.

Current Club President Walter Wyler commented, “I am sure Club members, past and present who knew Mr Paiboon, will join me as current President of RCoPB, in passing on our sincere condolences to Mr Paiboon’s family.”

Mr Paiboon passed away after a long battle with cancer early Sunday morning at Thonburi Hospital. He was 58. (See story here.)

“Mr Paiboon was an unstinting supporter of our club. His vision to encourage more interaction between the Phuket business community and local Thai officials led to our club’s establishment in 2001. Without his drive and vision it may not have happened,” Mr Wyler said.

“Our weekly meetings are held at the Aloha Villa Hotel, which he owns, a demonstration of his great generosity and support for the Club over the last 14 years.”

In 2001, as Phuket’s first-ever directly elected Senator, and as a Rotarian, Mr Paiboon decided that founding a new, English-speaking Rotary Club would be the best way of achieving his goal of achieving mutual understanding between the business and local government sectors on Phuket.

As such, on January 9, 2001, Mr Paiboon invited a selected group of foreign business people to attend a meeting at the Aloha Villa Hotel. During the meeting it was decided to form the Rotary Club of Patong Beach with the aim of fostering goodwill and understanding between Thai officials and the foreign business community.

“Our club members will always remember Mr Paiboon as someone who upheld the ideals of Rotary through his actions and his legacy. We will be forever grateful for his vision and support,” Mr Wyler said.

For further information please contact Walter Wyler. Email: rotary@tinzap.com Facebook: @rotaryclubofpatongbeach Website: www.rotarypatong.org