Derek Williams, a member of the Rotary Club of Saundersfoot, spoke to the members about his life, at the club's regular meeting on Monday.

Derek had been brought up on a farm in North Devon and was ploughing at the age of nine. He wasn't a keen ploughman, but he was fascinated to understand how the tractor worked. He went to Barnstable Grammar School and then took up an apprenticeship to become an engineer. This was linked to his first employment at the coal-fired Cliff Quay power station in Ipswich.

Derek was promoted to assistant control engineer when he applied to work at Marchwood power station in Southampton, but he soon realised that he needed to work at a much bigger power station if he wanted further promotion.

Accordingly, he applied for a job a Pembroke Power Station and was appointed as a shift maintenance engineer. He built a bungalow at East Williamston with his wife and soon the family settled into the Pembrokeshire lifestyle with their children, thoroughly enjoying the Pembrokeshire beaches.

In 1982, Derek needed new challenges and took a short term contract posting to a power station in Georgetown, Guyana, on the north coast of South America. This short term contract became a 12 months contract; the power station was small but the other engineers he worked with were good company.

On returning to Pembroke Power Station, he became operations engineer in the control room, but it wasn't long before his itch for travelling resulted in him having an appointment at a power station in Khartoum, Sudan. This was followed by an appointment to Budak in Pakistan.

When he finished in Pakistan, he decided that a career change was needed and through a quirk of fate became the owner of an estate agent's premises in Narberth.

This change afforded him the opportunity to become involved in property development and allowed him to indulge himself in his passion for horses and classic cars. Today he has retired from estate agency and horse riding, but still has an insatiable appetite for classic cars.

Derek brought along two photograph albums of his life and travels to show the club members.