2021 Annual General Meeting

On 25 November 2021, Tripoli Rocketry Association Australia, TRAAU, held its 2021 Annual General Meeting at the Golden Gate Hotel in South Melbourne. It was well attended with over 40 members present.

President, David Boyd outlined the activities of the club throughout the difficult period of COVID-19. Despite the restrictions and limited launches, the club has been very busy advancing its assets with the purchase and fit out of a large equipment trailer for the Serpentine launch site. This compliments the recently acquired portable toilet and fire fighting trailer.

The merger of the Melbourne Amateur Rocketry Society (MARS) into Tripoli Australia was also completed including arrangements to continue launching at the Drouin launch site.

TRAAU formed about 25 years ago and was the only amateur rocketry club in Australia. Over time, clubs have formed in other States making our identity as Tripoli Australia a little misleading and inappropriate. So, at the AGM, the club passed two important motions. Firstly, the Tripoli Rocketry Association Australian has been renamed to become the Victorian Rocketry Association. And the Prefecture has been renamed from Tripoli Australia to Tripoli Victoria. The appropriate documentation is being progressed with TRA in America.

A highlight of the TRAAU 2021 AGM was the award of Life Membership to the President David Boyd. Vice President Trevor Boyd  presented the award, a brief snapshot of the citation is as follows:
 

David started a Melbourne based amateur rocket club in 1995. Within about six months he formed TRAAU and became the inaugural President and Prefect. He searched much of Victoria for a suitable launch site eventually reaching agreement with a property owner near Serpentine north west of Bendigo. David has continued to be an active member and committee member serving as President on a number of occasions. His contributions to the club are countless. In recent years David advanced the clubs asset and equipment base and both improved and streamlined its administration. This has included preparation of detailed protocols and procedures for operating our two geographically and different launch sites. And he continues to search for potential higher altitude launch sites in Victoria. He has been one of the key members to embrace, assist and advance the space and rocketry activities of Victorian Universities. In more recent times, David established the valuable National Forum of Presidents and Prefects.

The club recognised David’s significant and many contributions to amateur rocketry and the club by awarding him the first (and given the change of club name) and only LIFE MEMBERSHIP of Tripoli Rocketry Association Australia.