TRIBUTES have been paid to the president of a Rotary Club who has died suddenly.

Cas Morehen, 63, was described by fellow Rotarians as “exceptional”.

He also owned the franchise for three McDonald’s restaurants in Colchester for more than 19 years.

In 2013 Mr Morehen retired from McDonald’s but went on to be a cognitive behavioural hypnotherapist.

Mr Morehen, whose actual first name was Cameron, was married to Julie and they lived in Colchester.

He joined the Rotary Club of Colchester Forum in February 2014 and became its president in July this year.

Michael Jones, the club’s vice president, said: “Our President, Cas Morehen, passed away suddenly at the weekend. Our thoughts are with his wife Julie and their family.

“Cas was an exceptional Rotarian, becoming Club President just four years after joining us.

“In that short time, through his work on Rotary projects, Cas made a huge difference to communities of all ages in Colchester, the UK and internationally.

“His many friends in forum will greatly miss him.”

Mr Morehen also did voluntary work in schools and helped children to improve their reading.

Shortly after his appointment as Rotary president, he wrote in the club newsletter that he wanted to be remembered as “someone who always tried to improve himself and helped others to do the same”.

In his year as president, he pledged to grow and diversify the membership of the club to ensure its long-term success.

Mr Morehen previously told the Gazette his unusual first name was actually a nick name, because as a teenager he was said by a former boss to have resembled singer David Cassidy.

He went onto to be the franchisee of Colchester’s High Street, Cowdray Avenue and Stanway Tollgate McDonald’s, all jointly turning over millions of pounds and employing hundreds of people.

Born in London, Cas moved to Clacton with his family when he was nine and went on to attend Clacton County High School.

He got a kitchen job at the Criterion restaurant during school holidays, which he kept on breaks while studying economics and marketing at Lancaster University.

He also previously admitted he never set out to work for McDonald’s - and when he did get a job with them he did not see it as something long term.

After graduating he took a job as a computer programmer but decided it was not for him and gravitated towards restaurant management.

In 1978, he joined McDonald’s as a trainee manager when the chain was relatively new to the UK.

But he was hooked and his career thrived.

Craig Newnes, who bought the McDonald’s franchise from Mr Morehen when he retired, said: “Cas built a great business in Colchester within the McDonald’s brand and employed a lot of local people and helped a lot of charities along the way. He is going to be sadly missed.”