Andrew’s Thoughts

All in all, last week was both enlightening and also important.

Firstly, at the Board on Wednesday we discussed the format for Changeover and also this year’s disbursements. I am delighted that, in addition to many of the past recipients, we’ll be increasing our Scholarship Fund to match further incoming donations, we shall make a substantial donation to the Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia for research, and we’re extending our geographical reach by making an award to Marine Rescue in Bermagui. These three initiatives reflect our revised focus and objectives for 2021/22. More about Changeover in a week or two; suffice it to say, this is THE night of our Rotary year.

Thursday was also very significant as we had our official Governor’s visit from Area Governor Adam de Totth. He has always been a great supporter of Narooma but on this occasion his comments clearly met with a mixed reception. For my part, I made it clear we’re proud that our Club is totally inclusive. He mentioned there will be Constitutional change for our Region of Rotary International and we look forward to understanding what those will be, and how we’ll be impacted. Special congratulations to John Rungen who engaged with John and Francoise at the last market and invited them along last week. Hopefully we’ll see more of them.

I look forward to finalising the Board and the Executive Team for 2022/2023 with the Board at our upcoming meeting.

This week we take a breather but we meet again at our usual Club Night next Thursday after next week’s Board meeting. So, as we bring 2021/2022 to a close, let’s continue onwards and upwards mes amis!

THIS WEEK

Thursday 2 June: No Meeting

PCSG: Normally first Tuesday in the month, postponed until August.

The Week that Was

NYSF applications are now open

Our Club needs to promote the National Youth Science Forum (NYSF) to the High School and wider. It’s a while since anyone from Narooma High has gone to NYSF and our Science students are missing out.

Rotary is the Founding Partner of the NYSF and every year Rotarians continue to support the NYSF Year 12 Program by promoting the opportunity in local communities, managing applications and selection of students and assisting with funding or fund-raising for student fees to attend. Rotarians also volunteer during the NYSF Program in January. NYSF estimates that Rotarians contribute more than 20,000 volunteer hours to the program every year. 

The involvement of local clubs has changed from the past. Students no longer have to be endorsed or sponsored by a Rotary Club to apply to NYSF and District selections are now online.

Polio message reaches Everest Summit

A serious chest infection at Camp 2 forced Berry Rotarian Ken Hutt off Everest last week without achieving his dream of paragliding off the mountain. However, the Polio message did make it to the summit, thanks to three members of his experienced support team.

Ken travelled to Everest intending to fly a paraglider from as high a possible so creating history in the name of Rotary’s End Polio Now campaign. Before leaving Australia, Ken said the success of this mission is not the summiting of the mountain, nor the paragliding from the mountain. “It’s what we can achieve for Polio Eradication, both financially and awareness that Polio still exists… The Fly from Everest Project is merely the conduit for advancing our commitment to the world.”

Ken’s Everest expedition has already raised more than $250,000 for polio, including $500 from our Club, and certainly raised awareness of the End Polio Now campaign.  All expedition members made it safely off the mountain. We can look forward to seeing the documentary by QUT filmmaker Joe Carter.

From Nepal, Ken thanked our club for our support. “If given the opportunity in the near future I would like to visit and convey the thanks from our team in person. Please stay in touch.” For the full story, please check out either Facebook.com/flyfromeverest or Flyfromeverest.org.

Out and About

Story behind the 22/23 RI Theme logo

The new RI presidential logo created some discussion at our last Board meeting. ‘Imagine Rotary’ is the theme selected by RI President-elect Jennifer Jones and its origin and that of the logo was explained in an interesting article by Gundula Miethke in Rotary Voices.

PE Jennifer asks Rotary members to dream big and take action.  “We all have dreams, but acting on them is a choice,” she said. “Imagine a world that deserves our best, where we get up each day knowing we can make a difference.” 

The logo was designed by Australian Aboriginal artist and graphic designer Riki Salam who has also created the logo for the 2023 Rotary International Convention to be held in Melbourne, hence the link. Each design element has meaning. The circle in Aboriginal culture signifies our connections to one another. The dots around it represent people; seven for Rotary´s areas of focus. Together they become a navigation star – our guiding light. The solid line underneath represents a digging stick. Gundula explains the artist sees Rotarians as people of action, so it represents a tool for getting things done.

The colours green, purple, and white are not connected to Aboriginal culture and can be interpreted in several ways. Purple, for example, stands for polio eradication, green for the environment (the newest addition to our areas of focus), and white for peace, our core mission. Together, they are the colours of the women’s Suffragette movement and a subtle nod to this history as PE Jennifer will be the first female RI president. Understanding the design certainly gives a much greater appreciation.

From the Bay Rotary

Batemans Bay Rotarians recently welcomed Florin and Cynthia Naguit from the Philippines. The Bay Club had been working with them on a water sanitisation project over the last couple of years. The project had quite a few delays due to Covid, so it was nice that they could come and visit Australia on the finalisation of the project and enjoy a dinner with our club, who helped make this project happen. Florin presented the Bay club with the Dr Jose Rizal Ilustre Award. These national Memorial Awards are for Community Leadership, Government Service, Academe, Clinical Practice, and Research.

NEXT WEEK

Wednesday 8 June 4pm: Combined meeting of the 2021/2222 and 2022/2023 Boards at Lynn Hasting’s home.

Thursday 9 June: 6 for 6.30pm: ClubDinner meeting at Narooma Golf Club.

Andrew’s Thoughts

It’s great to be back, even with a wretched cold and jet-lag!

Thursday was the last Business Breakfast of the 2021/2022 programme and it was excellent to see a really appreciative reception for Cath Peachey’s debrief on the Oyster Festival. The Festival has become a phenomenal success. We also heard from Leanne Joyce about the upcoming River of Art which looks to be another outstanding event this year. A special thanks to all our Rotarians for your active and continued support. 

Sunday saw another successful Market. The sun shone on the righteous and the weather held. As ever, it was an outstanding team effort, and I gather from Mike that we’re banking about $1,580.

This Wednesday afternoon, the Business Breakfast Committee will meet to reflect on our highs and lows of the 21/22 programme and initial thoughts for the 22/23 programme to commence in August. That will be followed by an additional Committee Meeting to discuss the Changeover and disbursements.

Similarly, the PCSG will take a winter break. It is clear that the darkness and cold over winter are detracting many people from coming out.

This Thursday sees our oft changed District Governor’s dinner. As we know, this was due to Leo Farrelly wife’s illness and then diary clashes. However, we are honoured to have our Area Governor Adam de Totth joining us on Leo’s behalf. This is a very important event in our Rotary year and please do all you can to attend with partners etc. and let John know as usual.

Being away for so long enabled me to reflect on this last year and I look forward to writing my President’s Report for Changeover. One thing for sure has been the impact of our newer members – Gero and Julie are joining the Board for 22/23, Susanna brings her creative skills in media design and social media, and the refreshing wise counsel and experience of Gordon. Welcome to you all, and thank you.

THIS WEEK

On Wednesday at 3.30pm: A meeting of our Business Breakfast Subcommittee at Lynn’s place.

On Wednesday at 4.00pm: An additional Board meeting to discuss disbursements for the Changeover.

On Thursday 6 for 6.30pm: Our dinner meeting will be the long awaited District Governor’s visit but with AG Adam de Totth as stand-in for DG Leo Farrelly. This is a partners’ night so we’re hoping for good numbers. Numbers should have been given to John Tuesday afternoon.

The Week that Was

Thursday’s Business Breakfast

Eurobodalla Shire has two recognised flagship events – Narooma Oyster Festival and the River of Art.

Narooma Rocks Chair Cath Peachey told last Thursday’s Business Breakfast (BB) this year’s Narooma Oyster Festival (NOF) was the biggest ever. She reminded everyone it was started by the Chamber of Commerce in 2007 to boost tourism and the region outside the peak season but is now run by Narooma Rocks, a not for profit community company with a volunteer board. While analysis of 600-700 surveys won’t be completed for some weeks, she gave us a broad overview of the Festival.

• 10,035 attended over the two days, up 50% on last year.
• Site expanded by 25%
• Six separately ticketed ‘premium experiences’
• Over 1390 stallholders  (80% from South Coast) including 15 craft brewers and distillers
• This year’s NOF cost $0.5m; 20,000+ volunteer hours; $50,000 goods in kind.
• $41% of the Festival Income comes from grants and corporate sponsorship
• 60% of the cost of the Festival is on infrastructure, event management and labour
• The oyster industry success is crucial to the NOF’s success
• It have the local food industry opportunity to meet with Food and Beverage heavyweights
• Showcased our community.

Cath also highlighted the challenges of continuing to stage the NOF. For example…

• the exponential growth in the cost of staging the NOF, up from $180,000 in 2019 to $500,000 2022.
• prepayment for infrastructure presents cashflow problems.
• lack of organisational capacity for the scale of the event
• Government grants designed for continued expansion rather than sustainability of an event
• year-round overheads
• succession planning.

While most of the BB focussed on the recent NOF, River of Art Festival Chair Leanne Joyce also gave us some insight into the challenges it faces. The 2022 ROF (16-25 September) hosts a diverse range of arts, music and performances concluding with a spectacular laser and light show on the Moruya River called Luminous: Art After Dark on 24th September. The ROA now costs about $250,000 to stage. Again it’s run by volunteers working closely with local businesses. She also mentioned the development of an Art Trail.

Both organisations are looking at possible collaboration to improve their sustainability, such as sharing resources.

Last Sunday’s Market

Freezing first thing in the morning but thankfully it turned into a glorious day at last Sunday’s market. Well done team! Treasurer Mike Young reports a total take of $1,580.10 (Gate $980, Van $563.11 and Wishing Well $47).

NEXT WEEK

No meeting next week.

The Week that Was

Ten employees nominated by their employers were celebrated at our annual Pride of Workmanship Awards dinner on Thursday.

Our Awards MC Rotarian David McInnes said “it’s a really uplifting evening”. “It gives employers the opportunity to publicly recognise that they appreciate key staff members for what they contribute to their workplace, and it tells employees they’re valued. A great strength of these awards is it’s not a competition. Our community is the better for that. A common thread in the citations this year is happiness and smiles which make us all feel welcome.”

Narooma Rotary Vice President Ange Ulrichsen presented awards to Kristy Buchan (Bodalla Pub), Teagan Nicholson (Dalmeny Long Day Child Care Centre), Kasey Jones (Dromedary Hotel), Jim Sharpe (Estia Health), Tracey Cooper (IRT Dalmeny), Layton Moore (Narooma Fishing & Dive Centre), Gayle Allison (Narooma High School), Adrian Mahony (Narooma Ice Creamery Café), Michelle Harding (Narooma Ice Creamer Café) and Chrissy Lansley (Tilba Dairy).    Jim Sharpe and Gayle Allison were unable to attend.            

Awards organiser Laurelle Pacey said Narooma Rotarians are really proud of this programme and its support from local businesses. “I’m always quite moved by the citations we receive about nominees; some are quite emotional,” she said. “It makes these Awards all the more worthwhile.”

 THIS WEEK

Our Rotary Business Breakfast at the Surf Club this Thursday (7am sharp) features Narooma Rocks Chair Cath Peachey who will talk about the success of this year’s Narooma Oyster Festival. She will be joined towards the end of her talk by River of Art Festival Chair Leanne Joyce to talk about the challenges ahead facing both these flagship events. Bookings with Andrew essential by COB Monday. Cost $10.

Out and About

From Moruya Rotary

Moruya President Chris Manahan reports this week that their ball at the Moruya Golf Club on Saturday was a great success. Three clubs made it happen – Moruya Rotary, the Moruya Jockey Club and the Golf Club. Cameron’s Hardware was the major sponsor.  The big attraction for the dance floor was the Duntroon Rock and Jazz band. Proceeds from the night go to the Moruya Remembers Committee which is working to restore Defence installations at Moruya Airport with the hope of a museum in one of the Heritage-listed bunkers on site.

NYSF applications open 24 May

The National Youth Science Forum (NYSF) is a not-for-profit organisation that encourages young people in their passion for science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM).

The flagship programme is a 10-day residential in January 2023 for students entering year 12; it offers an exceptional opportunity to learn about career and study pathways, have hands-on experiences and access to some of the world’s leading scientists in fields such as Astrophysics, Aeronautics and Medical Research. 

Rotary is the Founding Partner of the NYSF, and every year Rotarians continue to support the programme. Students no longer have to be endorsed or sponsored by a Rotary Club to apply to NYSF and District selections are online. Applications open on 24 May. Students currently in year 11 can register their interest now on the NYSF website: https://www.nysf.edu.au/programs/year-12-program/ .  There is a cost, but scholarships are also available.

NEXT WEEK

We welcome our Area Governor Adam De Totth. Please bring partners and friends and please make sure you book with John Rungen.

Not much to report over the past week but this will soon change, especially with the Pride of Workmanship Awards this week and the return of President Andrew ‘from the old country’ soon after.

THIS WEEK

Wednesday 11 May: Board Meeting 4pm Lynn Hastings’ home.

Thursday 12 May – POW Awards next week

Ten local employees from Bodalla to Central Tilba will receive our Pride of Workmanship(POW) awards at the presentation dinner this Thursday

It is a partners’ night, a really happy night, and a highlight of our year so hopefully you can come. Numbers must be precise so please book with John Rungen by Tuesday afternoon. If you can’t come for some reason, please ring John and let him know otherwise you might be charged for your meal.

We invited employersto nominate an employee who displays outstanding qualities in terms of approach, attitude, dedication and commitment to his or her job. We emphasise it’s not a competition. This programme publicly recognises the value of having pride in personal performance in the workplace, hence the scheme’s motto ‘Do it once, do it well’. The advantage to employers is it gives them the opportunity to reward a particular employee plus potentially spread a ‘Pride of Workmanship’ among their staff and the wider community.

Nominees will be presented with a framed certificate by VP Ange Ulrichsen at our presentation dinner 6 for 6.30pm. Our MC for the evening will be David McInnes. The cost is $40 p.p. (Ten nominations from 40 invitations is again a 25% success rate!)

NEXT WEEK

Thursday 19 May:  Our Rotary Business Breakfast next Thursday features Narooma Rocks Chair Cath Peachey who will talk about the success of this year’s Narooma Oyster Festival. She will be joined towards the end of her talk by River of Art Festival Chair Leanne Joyce to talk about the challenges ahead facing both these signature events. Don’t forget to book with Andrew who will host the next Business Breakfast.

The Week that Was

Last week’s guest speakers

We had a good rollup at our dinner meeting last Thursday to hear our guest speakers Bill Barker and Fiona McCuaig update us on Bateman’s Marine Park and their concerns. The Park has been in place for 15 years, protecting our local marine environment.

Fiona said we are very lucky to have a Marine Park on our doorstep, one of six Marine parks along the NSW coast. She said Sanctuary Zones within the Park allowed fish to grow larger to maturity, breeding more fish for everyone, but in 2019 some of our marine sanctuaries were opened up to fishing with no consultation. She saw Batemans Marine Park as an amazing drawcard for tourists.

Bill went on to talk about the loss of large kelp forests about a metre high from our rocky reefs that supported an incredible biodiversity. That was due to the loss of urchin predators such as lobsters, gropers and snapper from these areas many of which have now have been reduced to urchin barrens. He added that was not even good for the urchin fishery. He said work was underway with NSW Fisheries to start a programme of experimental culling by industry divers with guidance and supervision, supported by government funding and community participation.

Bill also spoke about the Oyster Reef Restoration Project in Wagonga Inlet and a proposal to establish a Marine Science and Education Centre in Narooma.

Prostate Cancer Support Group

The roll up to Tuesday’s gathering of the Prostate Cancer Support Group was disappointing. The Intention was for it to be an informal night for open discussion about everyone’s needs and concerns to help target future guest speakers.       

THIS WEEK

No dinner meeting this Thursday – have a break.

Out and About

Our POW Awards next week

Our Pride of Workmanship(POW) coordinator Laurelle Pacey has sent out 40 letters to local businesses inviting employers to publicly recognise an employee who displays outstanding qualities in terms of approach, attitude, dedication and commitment to his or her job. We emphasise it’s not a competition. Hopefully we will again achieve our normal 20-25% success rate

This programme aims to publicly recognise the value of having pride in personal performance in the workplace, hence the scheme’s motto ‘Do it once, do it well’. The advantage to employers is it gives them the opportunity to reward a particular employee plus potentially spread a ‘Pride of Workmanship’ among other staff and the wider community.

Nominees will be presented with a framed certificate by our VP Ange Ulrichsen at our presentation dinner at Narooma Golf Club on Thursday 12 May, 6 for 6.30pm. This is one of our most prestigious events. Our MC for the evening will be MC extraordinaire David McInnes. The cost is $40 p.p. (see below)

Update on Moruya homelessness

Moruya Rotary President Chris Manahan reported in their bulletin this week that some progress has been made with meetings with Council and agencies like Anglicare on the local Homelessness issue. Rhonnie South has replaced Zoe Morgan as Council’s Coordinator, Community Development and Youth. She reports that Council had succeeded in gaining a grant for the ‘Strengthening Rural Communities program – The Eurobodalla Shower and Laundry Project for People Experiencing Homelessness’.

Chris reports the Family Place in Moruya has been proactive and together with an officer from the Department of Community and Justice, a survey has reported that the numbers of campers at Mystery Bay and North Head Moruya are not increasing but as campers move on others are moving in. This would indicate that the campgrounds are at capacity.

Further meetings will soon take place to discuss how to roll out the funds, for example planned laundromat upgrades in the shire. This will allow a credit card option to pay for washing and drying, with the credit cards issued to the homeless from agencies such as The Family Place and Anglicare. The cards will only operate at participating laundromats.

NEXT WEEK

Wednesday 11 May: Board Meeting 4pm Lynn Hastings’ home.

Thursday 12 May: Our Club’s presentation of our annual Pride of Workmanship Awards. This is a prestigious event, a partner’s night, and will cost $40 per person. We need a precise count on numbers so if you are coming, please make sure you book with John Rungen by Tuesday (10th) afternoon.