THIS WEEK:
First a Board meeting at 5pm, followed by an evening of fellowship to enjoy each other’s company, with some photos from our wonderfully successful Busking Festival.
LAST WEEK
President Rod was full of surprises last week by presenting several awards that we would normally see presented at Changeover. His reason for going early? Most recipients would not be here for the changeover.
He named three members as Paul Harris Fellows – Lynn Hastings, John Rungen and Sandra Doyle, and presented John Rungen with the Club’s Rotarian of the Year Award. Congratulation to all recipients; their recognition is well deserved.
President Rod also promoted his President’s raffle of a lovely quilt made by his wife Jennifer. Books of 25 tickets are available from Rod – $2 each or three for $5. He will draw the raffle at our Changeover which is now on Thursday 4th July, instead of 27 June as is published on the tickets. All proceeds will go to local charities.
For our International Toast last week, Frank Eden toasted the Rotary Club of Kigali Virunga in Kigali, the capital of Rwanda. Chartered in 2000, it is the only English speaking club in Rwanda. It has given birth to four Rotaract and three Interact Clubs around Kigali. Their flagship project is the Kigali Public Library. Kigali has about one million people; it lost a significant proportion of its people in the 1994 genocide. It’s reported to be the cleanest city in Africa. Just over the border in Congo is North Kivu where 1900 cases of Ebola have been reported; of those, 1250 died, 490 were cured… presumably the rest are still sick. Frank said there is now a vaccine against Ebola but ignorance, misinformation and fear are frustrating containment.
Other News
Congratulations to Batemans Bay Rotarian PDG Maureen Manning who has been elected as our District’s Delegate to the Zone Nominating Committee for the 2020 Rotary International Convention in Honolulu. We will see Maureen in a month; she will be the DG’s representative at our Club Changeover on Thursday 4th July.
By the way, if you were interested in going to the Honolulu Convention 6-10 June 2020, the early bird price of $395 ends 5 June.
Rotary Convention in Hamburg wraps up
Rotary International’s biggest event of the year ended in Hamburg this Wednesday. More than 24,000 Rotary members from 170 countries have been attending the 110th annual Rotary International Convention.
During the convention:
- Pressing world issues were discussed like polio eradication, pollution, refugee migration, disease prevention, and literacy.
- An inspiring range of speakers from all over the world addressed the Convention
- Delegates also had the opportunity to enhance their skills in areas like fellowship, integrity, diversity, service, and fellowship.
The next RI Convention in Australia will be in Melbourne in 2023.The convention is the most valuable conference ever won by Victoria. It is expected to attract 20,000 Rotary members from more than 200 countries and regions worldwide and to inject over $88 million into the Victorian economy.
NEXT WEEK: Our annual Cinders
Next Wednesday (12 June) we head to Moruya to ‘battle’ with Moruya Rotarians for the coveted annual Cinders trophy. It’s always a lot of fun. This year we are playing on their home turf at Moruya Golf Club, commencing 6.30 for 7pm. Cost is $17 pp.
This Thursday we are finalising numbers so hopefully you have gathered some knowledgeable friends to make up for so many of our members who are away. The trophy last year was shared between the two clubs, and is currently in Moruya’s safe keeping. We shall try to organise car-pooling on Thursday for those who want it.
There will therefore be no meeting on Thursday 13 June.