Sam Barnes had been visiting from a similar club, in Wales, which has a long-standing exchange program in place with CBAC.
The three-way-link program started in 1962 when Apex member Ray Longley contacted Round Table clubs around the world to establish a formal link with Cobram Apex.
After multiple years of exchange visits, a formal three-way-link was created between Cobram, Pretoria in South Africa, and Neath in Wales.
Each year, two members of one of the clubs visit the other two countries, respectively.
Club president Dave Kelly said that this year, Sam Barnes visited Cobram from Neath Round Table and was in town for around 16 days.
“We had two members last year who went over to Wales and South Africa and had a great time,” he said.
“So it was our turn to host Sam, and show him what Australia is like.
“We visited Melbourne. We took him out to the high country. We took him camping on the Murray River.
“We also took him around Cobram and Barooga to visit a lot of the local businesses that our club members work at, so he could see what our lives are like.
“And the whole time, he was staying home-stay-style with lots of different club members.”
Mr Kelly said the club was looking forward to hosting its next ‘linker’ in 2026, who will be visiting from Pretoria.
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