MEETING OF APRIL 1st

Paul, as acting president for the evening, greeted 23 members and 6 guests, including Tracy and Jane all the way from Kenya Africa.

Tracy and Jane were both guest speakers at the district conference held last weekend which was hailed as the best conference that many of our members had ever attended, with an amazing line-up of women speakers who demonstrated their fortitude and resilience as they fought their way from dire circumstances to the highly productive members of society they are today.

The Rotary Club of Coolamon was well represented at the conference. Paul was one ticket off from winning the trip to Nepal, Wayne enjoyed it immensely saying it was well worth the trip to Griffith and back and Bondy did a great job on the cello at the closing of the conference. All members agreed it was a fantastic success and congratulated DG John G for his perseverance and effort in putting the conference together with resounding applause.

Next year’s conference (the last for District 9700) will be held in Temora and the organisation is well underway already.  

DLIC Jane Mberia speaking on membership growth.

DG John G, Tracy Monica and PDG Fred Loneragan

The didge, a gift to the Kapooka Jazz Ensemble

MC Evan Burrell from Turramurra RC and DG John

PRIVP Anne L. Mathews presents the PHF to James Baxter O’Shea from Oberon RC

Tracy in full flight.

The presentation of the Service Above Self Award to PP Paul Murray.  This is the highest award given to any Rotarian and only 100-120 are awarded each year by the RI President.  On stage with Paul are the other SAS members who have this honour.  Maria Egan has the Partner’s SAS; the others L-R PP Mary Brell, PDG Fred Loneragan, PDG Bill Donaldson, DG John, PRIVP Anne L. Matthews and PP Paul Murray.  Absent PDG Ray King and PP Alok Sharma.

The closing ceremony involved John Bond in a flash mob finale!

In other business…

The vote for on the motion to amalgamate future district 9705 with the district north of 9705 was put forward. Paul acted as proxy on Daryl’s behalf and after some consideration the motion was denied primarily because the delegates wanted more time to consider the ramifications of the motion to those districts being merged. It was agreed that it was very likely that he merger will go ahead but that members in the district need to be informed about the likely consequences of the merger.

Dave and Henk attended the Rotary Youth Driver Awareness program (RYDA) held in Wagga with 18 year 11 students from Coolamon Central School with teacher Josh Celi and community youth coordinator  Lewie. The  Rotary Club of Coolamon sponsored the students for the cost of attending and the students all took the day very seriously, representing the school and the Coolamon community very well. The RYDA program is a great program  for teaching driver awareness to students just embarking on driving on our country roads and is a credit to the Rotary organisers (one of whom is an ex-Coolamon club member, Max Chapman). Josh also gave the club a big thumbs up for their sponsorship of the day and looks forward to closer ties with the club.

Guest Speakers: Jane Mberia and Tracy Monica Ochieng

District Governor John G introduced Jane and Tracy with a trip down memory lane on his youth in Africa and his and the club’s connection to Africa, including the connections with the Rotary clubs of Kenya, of which Jane is a leader in her own right and came to the conference as a  speaker to share her insights and to accompany Tracy. John also spoke of the the mountain climbs that he and Fred made to raise money for Tracy’s sponsorship out of poverty. The money raised and Tracy’s own determination have now culminated in Tracy coming to Australia to be a incredibly moving and inspiring guest speaker at the district conference (especially impressive for a 20-year-old).

Jane Mberia

Jane has been a part of the Rotary family for 20 years, the first 10 as a member of Rotaract and then as a member of Rotary in her community. She was treasurer of her club for three years and then president at age 35 before becoming assistant governor of District 9212 and gladly shared her experience and the lessons she has learned with the club.

Jane began by illustrating the unique circumstances of Africa, with the continent having a population of 1.3 billion, the majority of whom are in their youth so the population is still growing rapidly. District 9219 spans 4 countries: Kenya, Ethiopia, South Sudan and Eritrea. One of the main challenges in the district has been to decentralize the clubs from major cities such as Nairobi and promote regional clubs. Active efforts in this area have seen memberships double and now the district has 107 clubs in total, 84 of which are in Kenya with an average of 48% female membership with much of the growth occurring by founding new clubs in needy communities.

However, despite the growth in clubs, the number of members in the clubs tend to remain static at  approximately 30 to 35 members with an average age of 40 years old. Retaining members is still an issue in D9219 just as it is in Australia, and Jane shared some of the lessons she has learned to help in this area. 

Jane’s mother club was dying when she first shifted from Rotaract to full membership in Rotary, and she said she easily could have joined a more vibrant club, however she chose to stay with her mother club as she believed that it was best to ‘be the change you want to see’; it is clear that her enthusiasm and strong leadership were a major contributing factor to her club now having a strong representation of 42 members. She said that her role first as attendance officer and then particularly president were key learning experiences that helped get the club where it is today.

Her key takeaways were:

• Build a strong leadership team; hold people to account for the jobs they have committed to, and ask them to be honest about their ability to fulfill those commitments. In Jane’s opinion, it is more honorable to move aside when you cannot fulfill an obligation than to string people along.     
• Use committees and subcommittees so everyone in the club has a responsibility and purpose within the membership and work to people’s strengths.
• Build diversity in the club; the wider the variety of people in the club the more skills and experiences can be brought bear.
• Work on succession planning; try and leave a position stronger than when you started in it.
• Do as many service projects as you can that help service your community; ask your members about potential projects they can support. Projects that Jane’s club has helped sponsor include sanitary packs for girls so they can attend school and bookkeeping classes for girls to help support their families.
• Build connections with sister clubs all over the world. A connection with a sister club in Germany helped her club sponsor a surgeon coming to Kenya to perform 16 much needed open heart surgeries.
• Give to Rotary; even $2 dollars a day saved from taking a packed lunch to work can have a huge impact. The dollars add up!
• Don’t underestimate your impact as described in the fable of the little hummingbird; do the best you can, because your best might just inspire others, too.
• Communicate – never keep quiet about what you are doing. Use every platform you can to tell people what Rotary is doing and encourage others to join Rotary.
• Involve your family; make them a part of the Rotary experience, too.

Tracy Monica

Tracy began by thanking the Rotary Club of Coolamon for sponsoring her, stating that education can really change the world for a child.

Tracy then described the circumstances in which she grew up and how her education gave her another option. She came from the Mathare slums in Nairobi where girls are rarely educated beyond the primary years. Young teen girls living in the slums will often fall pregnant to a young guy who is often involved in gangs and in a few short years will typically die in gang-related violence, leaving the girl to raise her children alone, often forced to turn to prostitution to survive and consequently perpetuating the cycle of poverty.  

The sponsorship by the Coolamon club helped Tracy break out of this cycle, not only for herself but also for her family. Tracy spoke of the hope that her parents had for her going into the future and her hope to help her family escape poverty.

Tracy then described how Rotary has changed her life; she didn’t think she would get to high school, but with Rotary’s sponsorship she could see a different path for her life and now she is in one of the best universities in Africa and is studying to be a journalist as she loves telling stories and appreciates the stories of other people.

It is safe to say there was not a dry eye in the club after hearing Tracy’s story and I am sure all Coolamon club members are more than happy to have helped in some small way in changing the course of Tracy’s life for the better.   

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

Which famous person made this quote?

“Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.”

The author of last week’s Quote of the Week was Charles Darwin.

DIARY

Monday, 8 April – Regular meeting.  Coolamon Sport & Rec Club, 6:30 for 7:00 pm.

Thursday, 11 April – BINGO.  Allawah Community Centre, 6:45-10:00 pm. Paul (captain), Ivan, Leslie, Lyn and/or Anne.

Easter Saturday, 20th April – Coolamon Rotary Markets, Pieper Park, Coolamon. Details TBA.

Sunday, 28th April – DisTec 2019, DGE John McKenzie. Young, 10:00-16:00.

Thursday, 9 May – BINGO. Allawah Community Centre, 6:45-10:00 pm. Daryl (captain), Alex, Ian, John N and/or Albert.

Sunday, 26th May – District Assembly. Young, 9:30-15:00.

Friday-Sunday, 29-31 March – D9700 Conference, Griffith.

Sunday, 26th May – District Assembly (incoming officers and directors to attend).

Saturday-Wednesday, 1st-5th June – RI CONVENTION, Hamburg.

* denotes partner & guest night

REMINDERS

Please get your working with children check completed and give the number and expiry date to the secretary ASAP. Failure to do so may mean you are not covered insurance wise when you volunteer at events.

Subs are now overdue.

 

April is the month for maternal and child health

MEETING OF MARCH 25th

President Daryl welcomed 16 members and recorded a number of apologies for Albert’s induction evening. As usual, we were treated to a delicious meal from Gilbert’s kitchen.

News for the evening included:

• Due to late delivery of bulletin no one won the free raffle ticket for the quote of the week, so make sure you put your entry in, even if you think it is late. 
• The trotting club is asking Coolamon Rotary to roll out our food van for their trotting events on ANZAC day and the 5th May. Decision will go to board and members will be informed. 
• Districts 9700 and 9710 are being amalgamated in 2020 into District 9705. RI is looking to increase the minimum size of districts worldwide, so there will be vote at the district conference on Saturday to assess the opinion of clubs in D9700 regarding the merger of the nascent D9705 with D9670 (to the north), which would form a “super district” covering the eastern half of the country except for Sydney (remaining as its own district).  The plan is to reduce the number of districts in Australia from 21 to 7, each having  a number of area governors (1 per 15 clubs).  A proxy will be needed to stand in for Saturdy’s vote as Daryl will be unable to attend the district conference.
• Don’t forget the conference this weekend! In case you miss it, Tracy Ochieng and Jane Mberia from Kenya will be our guest speakers on Monday night.  Tracy is the student from Kenya that the club is helping to put through pharmacy school.
• Beth Batcheldor is leaving Coolamon Central School, which means the journalism club is losing its champion (and the Chronicle is losing a major contributor in organising the paper).  If you are willing to lend a hand or know someone who has the required skills, please let Myffy know.

Members warmly welcomed Albert Suidgeest to Rotary. 

Sarah showed the members photos from the science and engineering challenge that the students from Coolamon Central School attended in Wagga three weeks ago. Te students had a great day and got a lot out of it. Big thank you to Coolamon Rotary who sponsored the cost of the bus.    

Bondy gave us a sneak peek of the cello performance he will be conducting at the close of the district conference on Sunday. Should be a fantastic event!

The evening closed with a meat raffle, which was won by Neil.

ON THE LIGHTER SIDE

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

Which famous person made this quote? 

“A man who dares to waste one hour of time has not discovered the value of life.”

The author of last week’s Quote of the Week was Ted Whitten. 

 

DIARY

Friday, 29th March – RYDA in Wagga Wagga.

Friday 29th March-Sunday 31st March – Griffith 2019 D9700 Conference.

*Monday, 1 April – Speaker meeting: Tracy Ochieng and Jane Mberia (both from Nairobi, Kenya). Coolamon Sport & Rec Club, 6:30 for 7:00 pm. [Some of you will remember that Tracy is the student that the Rotary Club of Coolamon is helping to attend pharmacy school.]

Monday, 8 April – Regular meeting.  Coolamon Sport & Rec Club, 6:30 for 7:00 pm.

Thursday, 11 April – BINGO.  Allawah Community Centre, 6:45-10:00 pm. Paul (captain), Ivan, Leslie, Lyn and/or Anne.

Easter Saturday, 20th April – Coolamon Rotary Markets, Pieper Park, Coolamon. Details TBA.

Sunday, 28th April – DisTec 2019, DGE John McKenzie. Young, 10:00-16:00.

Thursday, 9 May – BINGO. Allawah Community Centre, 6:45-10:00 pm. Daryl (captain), Alex, Ian, John N and/or Albert.

Sunday, 26th May – District Assembly. Young, 9:30-15:00.

Friday-Sunday, 29-31 March – D9700 Conference, Griffith.

Sunday, 26th May – District Assembly (incoming officers and directors to attend).

Saturday-Wednesday, 1st-5th June – RI CONVENTION, Hamburg.

* denotes partner & guest night

 

REMINDERS

Please get your working with children check completed and give the number and expiry date to the secretary ASAP. Failure to do so may mean you are not covered insurance wise when you volunteer at events.

Subs are now overdue.

 

 

March is Literacy Month

MEETING OF MARCH 18th

President Daryl welcomed 17 members, including former member Julie who came down from the top end for a visit and brought her sister Cheryl along as a guest. Other guests included Errol Sutherland (our guest speaker for the evening), Albert (on his last night as a guest), and Wayne’s wife, Helen.

The evening began with thoughts and condolences to the people of NZ who suffered a terrible tragedy the previous week with 50 people killed in a violent terror attack. Congratulations went to Daryl and his family who welcomed their first grandchild, Freya, in the early hours of Saturday morning.  Congratulations also went to last Friday night’s Rotary vs Rotary bowls pairing, with Paul and Bondy winning the match, the last one of this season’s social bowls.

Don’t forget the District conference from 29th to 31st March; please register as early as possible. Should be a great conference and Saturday night is shaping up to be fantastic with the Kapooka band set to get things rolling. Maggie (the iron lung) was in Orange last week and the Oberon to Bathurst leg of the PARADE had 2100 cyclists, which was fantastic.  

Also a reminder that subs are now due.

Guest Speaker: Errol Sutherland

Errol Sutherland was our guest speaker for the evening. A local resident of Coolamon and real estate agent, Errol regaled members and guests with stories of his ‘misspent youth’ as a part of the Victorian football league.

Errol came to live in Coolamon 6 years ago after visiting the region to do research on the small football clubs in the area and decided to settle here.

Errol spent his early youth in a family of football enthusiasts, which was further supported by being the country football development manager for Vic football association before it was absorbed into the AFL.

Errol then shared us with the early history of football including its origins in Victoria in 1858 as  way to keep cricketers fit in winter. The first game was played between Scots and Melbourne Grammar on park-lands on which the MSG is now situated. The teams played for 12 hours on a field that was over a kilometer long and had no limits to the number of payers! Only one goal each was scored for each team in that first game.

In 1859 Melbourne and Geelong also joined the comp and more formal rules of play were introduced. By  1877 the league had 8 teams. In 1888, England brought a football team out and won 14 and lost 11 games. By 1890 the game had become international with New Zealand having up to 48 clubs at one point (financial difficulties eventually lead to their demise). There was even a women’s competition in the 1890’s.

The game continued to gain popularity, with up to 54,000 people coming to games in the 1930’s,  the highest per capita attendance in history.

Errol then told a number of personal stories of his time with the league, including his interactions with a long list of well known players and even then Prime minister Bob Hawke. 

Errol worries that AFL has become very corporate and commercialised, with some fans being fanatical and small clubs now doing it tough. Errol cited the example of Rannock football club once being able to draw up to 300  spectators to a game, often with a country dance afterwards and a strong family atmosphere.

Errol said that he had a lot of fun working in football and with an average attendance of 37,000 at each game every week, the AFL is the 4th largest domestic sporting competition in the world.

That’s football!

ON THE LIGHTER SIDE

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

Which famous person made this quote? 

“Winners are grinners, and losers can please themselves”

The author of last week’s Quote of the Week was Michelle Obama. 

 

DIARY

Monday, 25th March – Regular meeting featuring the induction of our newest member! Coolamon Sport & Rec Club, 6:30 for 7:00 pm.

Friday, 29th March – RYDA in Wagga Wagga.

Friday 29th March-Sunday 31st March – Griffith 2019 D9700 Conference.

*Monday, 1 April – Speaker meeting: Tracy Ochieng and Jane Mberia (both from Nairobi, Kenya). Coolamon Sport & Rec Club, 6:30 for 7:00 pm. [Some of you will remember that Tracy is the student that the Rotary Club of Coolamon is helping to attend pharmacy school.]

Easter Saturday, 20th April – Coolamon Rotary Markets, Pieper Park, Coolamon. Details TBA.

Sunday, 28th April – DisTec 2019, DGE John McKenzie. Young, 10:00-16:00.

Sunday, 26th May – District Assembly. Young, 9:30-15:00.

Friday-Sunday, 29-31 March – D9700 Conference, Griffith.

Sunday, 26th May – District Assembly (incoming officers and directors to attend).

Saturday-Wednesday, 1st-5th June – RI CONVENTION, Hamburg.

* denotes partner & guest night

REMINDERS

Please get your working with children check completed and give the number and expiry date to the secretary ASAP. Failure to do so may mean you are not covered insurance wise when you volunteer at events.

Subs are now overdue.

 

 

March is Literacy Month

MEETING OF MARCH 11th

President Daryl welcomed 19 members and guests Helen L, Mick O, Albert S and Russell B for a evening of collegiality and a delightful meal. 

President Daryl then thanked and congratulated Alex, Graeme, Wayne and Ian for a successful ride from Coolamon to Junee for  successful leg of the relay; the baton was passed onto Junee riders to continue the efforts to promote polio awareness and raise funds to eradicate it. Congratulations and thank yous also went to John G and Henk who took the iron lung to the Coolamon Central School on Friday morning. The students found this idea of having to live in an iron lung and having the machine breathe for you to be a confronting and interesting concept. The ability to actually see the iron lung made it all the more real for the students.  

Members were reminded that they should register for the district conference; the speakers are rumoured to be some of the best ever presenting at a conference. You don’t want to miss it!  

Best of luck and good health also went to Grahame who is getting his knee replaced this week. 

Don’t forget the street raffle this Saturday outside the newsagent if you’re rostered on.  Also, don’t forget that Bingo is this Thursday for those on the team this month. See the diary listing below if you’re not sure if you’re on either (or both) rosters.

Congratulations also went to the bowling team who had a successful night last Friday and won the business house bowls.

Big thank you to Henk who will be driving the students of Coolamon Central School to the Rotary Youth Driver awareness day. This is an invaluable opportunity for students to learn about handling a vehicle and driver safety and it helps to ensure that our youth drivers make it home safely.   

Janice Menzies, organiser of Doin’ it for Drought-Affected Kids, sent a video compilation of the donation day at Broken Hill for the School of the Air children. It was great to see all the children happy and smiling on receiving their donations and congratulations go to Janice and her team for their massive effort.   

 

Guest Speaker: Albert Suidgeest 

Albert gave a presentation of his family and life history, a fascinating story of his Dutch immigrant parents who came to Australia before he was born. Albert is one of 11 siblings (seven girls and four boys!). His father was a baker who worked in small local bakeries across the region until supermarket chains and box freezers squeezed out the market for local bakers. Albert recalled that things were tight in the family but, because this was the way things were, he never questioned or worried and instead focusued on the close knit ties of his family. The close connection Albert has with his siblings was apparent from the many walking tours that he has done all over the world with his family and the family biennal gathering that typically has over 100 family members gathered in the new year.

Albert told us that he was the first in his family to go to university, having gotten a scholarship to go to university in Sydney where he completed a degree in economics and a diploma of education. He also told us of his initial arrival in Sydney where he turned up with no accommodation organised and how he managed to make it through those first months in the big city with the football club being a major support base for him.

On completing his degree Albert was appointed at Randwick boys High school, but the big city eventually got to Albert and he and his wife came to Coolamon in 1981 where he was appointed to teach at the central school and they raised five children. 

Bondy thanked Albert for a most entertaining and interesting talk, presenting him with a kangaroo hide coin pouch as a token of thanks.  Because of the length of Albert’s talk, the fine session and raffle were deferred for another day.  

 

ON THE LIGHTER SIDE

Just wondering how many Albert has acquired over the years

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

Which famous person made this quote? 

“Immigration is at the heart of how we developed as a nation. In every generation immigrants have earned their place as part of ‘we the people’”

The originator of last week’s Quote of the Week was Albert Einstein.

 

DIARY

Thursday,  14th March – Bingo.  Community Centre Hall, 6:45 – 10:00. Neil (Captain), Don, Dick and Dave.

Saturday, 16th March – Rotary Street Raffle outside Coolamon newsagent, 7 am-noon. Roster: 7:00-8:30 – Don and Alex; 8:30-10:00 – Myffy and Bondy; 10:00-12:00 – Daryl and Garth.

Saturday, 16th March – Mooney’s March for cancer research. 10 am.

*Monday, 18th March – Speaker meeting: Errol Sutherland.  Coolamon Sport & Rec Club, 6:30 for 7:00 pm.

Friday, 29th March – RYDA in Wagga Wagga.

 

Friday 29th March-Sunday 31st March – Griffith 2019 D9700 Conference.

Easter Saturday, 19th April – Coolamon Rotary Markets, Pieper Park, Coolamon. Details TBA.

Sunday, 28th April – DisTec 2019, DGE John McKenzie. Young, 10:00-16:00.

Sunday, 26th May – District Assembly. Young, 9:30-15:00.

Friday-Sunday, 29-31 March – D9700 Conference, Griffith.

Sunday, 26th May – District Assembly (incoming officers and directors to attend).

Saturday-Wednesday, 1st-5th June – RI CONVENTION, Hamburg.

* denotes partner & guest night

 

REMINDERS

Please get your working with children check completed and give the number and expiry date to the secretary ASAP. Failure to do so may mean you are not covered insurance wise when you volunteer at events.

 

 

March is Literacy Month

 

 

NOVEMBER IS ROTARY FOUNDATION MONTH

Meeting – November 26th, 2018

President Daryl welcomed 13 members & guests Barry Lillywhite, Anne B, Asta Doongarna & Helen Lewis

Apologies from John Bond, Ian Jennings, John Nulty, John Glassford, Dave McKinley, Paul Weston, Steve Exton, Bruce Hamilton, Dick Jennings & Neil Munro.

Catering at Steve Exton’s Clearing sale this Saturday

8 – 9.30am   – Daryl, Howard & Anne, Anne R

9.30 – 11am  – Alex T, Don D, Ted H & Henk H

Invitations to school presentation nights; please consider if you can represent our Club at one of these not committed

Ganmain Tuesday, 4 Dec.  – Bern & Myffy

Ganmain St. Brendan’s,   – Bern & Myffy

Marrar Thursday, Dec 6,  – Alex, Chez & Ted

Matong Tuesday, Dec 11, –  member needed

Coolamon Central Thursday Dec 13,  – Daryl B

Coolamon St. Michaels,   – Wayne & Helen

Ardlethan Tuesday Dec 18,  – member needed

Beckom School on Friday, 14th Dec, – Howard & Ann

Wayne announced some great news:

President Elect for 2020-2021 will be Howard Atkinson;   Congratulations Howard

Because it is our DG’s District Conference, we should all be supporting it if we can. Bulk booking accommodation for District Conference at Griffith was brought up for discussion. If you would like to be included in the bulk booking in onsite cabins please let Grahame know.

Trainee doctor Asta, who is working with our Doctor Amir for 2 weeks and is staying with Howard & Anne, gave a brief talk on her life & goals.  President Daryl presented her with a gift for her presentation

See the Quote of the week & Club Diary below

Who famously made this quote? – To win a  raffle ticket

‘A friend is someone who gives you total freedom to be yourself’

Please email your answer to Grahame at   [email protected]

or to  Paul at  [email protected]

DIARY

Saturday,  1st December –  Clearing Sale at Steve Exton’s.  Details to be announced

Monday December  10th Last Meeting for 2018

Thursday,  December 13th – Bingo.  Community Centre Hall, 6.45 – 10:00.      Grahame (Captain), Bern M,, Myffy C &  Alex T

* Saturday, 15th December – Christmas Party. Residence of Daryl & Jan Breust. Details to be finalised.

Wednesday, 16th January, 2019 – Board meeting.  Coolamon Sport & Rec Club, 7:00 pm.

Monday, 21st January – First Dinner meeting for 2019.  Coolamon Sport & Rec Club, 6:30 for 7:00 pm.

Saturday 2nd March 09.15-17.00 PETS Young President Elects 2019-2020 DGE John McKenzie

Saturday 2nd March 14.00-16.30 D9700 District Leadership Team Training Young DGE John McKenzie

Saturday 2nd March 19.00 PETS Dinner Young President Elects 2019-2020 DGE John McKenzie

Sunday 3rd March 09.30-15.00 PETS Young President Elects 2019-2020 DGE John McKenzie

Sunday 28th April 10.00-16.00 DisTec 19 I.T. Young DGE John McKenzie

Sunday 26th May 2019 09.30-15.00 District Assembly Young DGE John McKenzie

Friday 29-31 March 2019 D9700 Conference Griffith DG JG D9700

Saturday 1st -5th June 2019 RI CONVENTION HAMBURG

* denotes partner & guest night

 

UPCOMING EVENTS

 ROTARY DISTRICT 9700 CONFERENCE GRIFFITH 2019

BRIEF BIO OF ONE OF OUR SPEAKERS FEATURING:

PATRICIA GARCIA A.O. SYDNEY AUSTRALIA

National Program Manager UN Sustainable Development Goals

Rotary Peace Scholar Chulalongkorn University in Bangkok Thailand.

“Over 20 years experience working in the world’s conflicts including Afghanistan, Sudan, South Sudan, Bosnia and Burma I have managed humanitarian aid and development programmes to assist refugees and IDPS. I have been engaged as Programme Manager and Director with international NGOs and UN agencies (Oxfam, Peace Winds Japan, German Agro Action, Norwegian Church Aid UNOPS, and UNHCR) and with Austcare and Act for Peace in Australia. I have recently completed a short term consultancy with Concord is International as their Sudan Country Director.

I continue to be actively engaged in humanitarian advocacy and research and training in peacebuilding and human rights with a focus on gender based violence and disarmament issues.

Currently, I am a Casual Academic and Visiting Scholar at the Centre for Peace and Conflict Studies, University of Sydney. My languages in addition to English are Spanish and French. In 2011 I received an Australian Federal Government award for services to the overseas humanitarian sector.

In 2014 I was selected as one of the subjects for the UNSW Australian Human Rights Centre Faculty of Law photographic exhibition project entitled “Positively Remarkable People Ending Violence Against Women” (www.positivelyremarkable.wordpress.com).

I was awarded the 2016 State Finalist Australian of the Year and have recently joined the group of inspirational speakers at Celebrity Speakers.

http://www.celebrityspeakers.com.au/patricia-garcia/

I received the Queen’s Birthday Honours Award of Officer of the General Division of the Order of Australia (AO) on 13th June 2016. In November 2016 I received a Rotary Peace Fellowship for professional development study at the Rotary Peace Centre at Chulalongkorn University in Bangkok Thailand.”

 

RI CONVENTION 2019

HAMBURG

Join us in Hamburg for the Rotary Convention! Don’t miss the early registration deadline on 15 December.

Important deadlines

27 June 2018: Last day for special promotional discount

15 December 2018: Last day for early-registration discount

31 March 2019: Last day for preregistration discount

30 April 2019: Last day to request to cancel registrations or tickets

5 June 2019: Last day for online registration

 

HAMBURG 2019

FOOTNOTE

ROTARY CLUB OF COOLAMON Inc. 2018-19

Chartered March 3rd, 1971; Sponsoring Club Narrandera Rotary Club

 

President: Daryl Breust 0409 551 140

President-Elect: Wayne Lewis 6927 3501

Service Projects: vacant

Secretary: Paul Weston  6927 2972

Treasurer: Henk Hulsman 6927 3486

Rotary Foundation Director: Neil Munro 6927 3156

Club Admin Director:  Daryl Breust 0409 551 140

Youth Director: Dave McKinley 6927 8553

Membership Director: Wayne Lewis 6927 3501

Public Image Directors: Myffy Collette 6927 6313 / Bernadette Milne

Immediate Past President: Paul Weston  6927 2972

Sergeant @ Arms: Ted Hutcheon 6927 3349

 

Bulletin Editor: Sarah Collins 0448 118 003 and Grahame Miles

 

 

 

Rotary making friends for life

DG JG and PDG Fred Loneragan on Mount Kenya in 2015.

 

 

NOVEMBER IS ROTARY FOUNDATION MONTH

 

AGM Meeting – November 19th, 2018

President Daryl Breust welcomed 17 members & guests Barry Lillywhite & Helen Lewis

Apologies from John B, Henk H, Paul W, Don D, Steve E, Bruce H, Dick J & Neil M

Great news announced by Daryl that we were successful in grant application for storage shed for Food Van which will be located on the showground site.

Invitations to school presentation nights; please consider if you can represent our Club at one of these

Ganmain Tuesday, 4 Dec.

Marrar Thursday, Dec 6,

Matong Tuesday, Dec 11,

Coolamon Central Thursday Dec 13

Ardlethan Tuesday Dec 18

Letter from NSW Health asking our Club to cater for Opening of Ambulance Station from 9.30 to 11.30 on Friday, December 7^th. Members agreed to cater at this event.

AGM 2018

President Elect Wayne Lewis was elected to chair the AGM

He explained the possibility of having a buddy system to assist those elected to director positions

Stand-in secretary John Glassford read out minutes of last year’s AGM 2017

Financial report read out by President Daryl Breust

Board Positions nominated & voted

President: 2019-2020: Wayne Lewis

Immediate Past President & Vice President: Daryl Breust

Secretary: John Glassford

Treasurer: Henk Hulsman

Club Admin: Dave McKinley

Service Projects: Howard Atkinson

Youth: Sarah Collins

Foundation: Neil Munro

Public Relations: Grahame Miles

Membership: Paul Weston with buddy Dick Jennings

Bulletin Editor: Grahame Miles & Sarah Collins

Sergeant-at-Arms: Ted Hutcheon & buddy Alex Thompson

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

Which famous musician made this quote? – To win a raffle ticket

‘With our love, we could save the world’.

Please email your answer to Grahame at [email protected]

or to Paul at [email protected]

 

DIARY

Saturday,  1st December –  Clearing Sale at Steve Exton’s.  Details to be announced

Sunday 9th December 10.00-16.00 DisTec18 I.T. Young DGE John McKenzie

DisTec 18 Postponed to Sunday April 28th 2019

Thursday,  December 13th – Bingo.  Community Centre Hall, 6.45 – 10:00.      Grahame (Captain), Bern M,, Myffy C &  Alex T

* Saturday, 15th December – Christmas Party. Residence of Daryl & Jan Breust. Details to be finalised.

Saturday 2nd March 09.15-17.00 PETS Young President Elects 2019-2020 DGE John McKenzie

Saturday 2nd March 14.00-16.30 D9700 District Leadership Team Training Young DGE John McKenzie

Saturday 2nd March 19.00 PETS Dinner Young President Elects 2019-2020 DGE John McKenzie

Sunday 3rd March 09.30-15.00 PETS Young President Elects 2019-2020 DGE John McKenzie

Sunday 28th April 10.00-16.00 DisTec 19 I.T. Young DGE John McKenzie

Sunday 26th May 2019 09.30-15.00 District Assembly Young DGE John McKenzie

Friday 29-31 March 2019 D9700 Conference Griffith DG JG D9700

 

Saturday 1st -5th June 2019 RI CONVENTION HAMBURG

* denotes partner & guest night

 

UPCOMING EVENTS

 ROTARY DISTRICT 9700 CONFERENCE GRIFFITH 2019

 

BRIEF BIO OF ONE OF OUR SPEAKERS FEATURING:

STEPHANIE WOOLLARD SEVEN WOMEN NEPAL

Above STEPHANIE WOOLLARD with DG John Glassford 

Rotary Peace Scholar & Member of the Rotary Club of Melbourne

• Nominee for Australian of the Year 2016
• Rotary International Peace Fellow, Recipient of the Rotary International Responsible Business Award presented at the United Nations in NY in 2016
• Moral Fairground’s National ‘Most Ethical Enterprise Award 2014’, La Trobe Uni. Young Achiever Alumni of the Year Award 2016
• Masters in Peace & Conflict Research from Uppsala University, Sweden

Stephanie Woollard began Seven Women at 22 after meeting seven disabled women working in a tin shed in Kathmandu.

These seven women were struggling to make a living in the face of harsh discrimination. With her last $200, Steph paid for a trainer to teach the women how to produce products for sale locally and abroad – and Seven Women was born.

Since 2006 Steph has built up the Seven Women team and launched an Australian arm for fundraising and a sales channel for our ever growing operation in Nepal.

12 years after her meeting in a tin shed that started it all, over 5,000 women have been educated, trained and employed by Seven Women.

Seven Women is empowering Nepali women, transforming their lives and their communities.

 

Seven Women Trailer

 

RI CONVENTION 2019

HAMBURG

Join us in Hamburg for the Rotary Convention! Don’t miss the early registration deadline on 15 December.

 

HAMBURG 2019

FOOTNOTE

Bunnings OH&S Onions on the bottom!!!

Dear Presidents

I’m aware that Bunnings have slipped in some cruel standards for how we serve our sausages, which is causing some of our long-standing ‘expert’ BBQers some angst!

I have been asked to make an executive ruling as to whether we need to obey these harrowing standards which are being imposed upon us. From what I understand, Bunnings have, because of OHS issues, proclaimed that we must put the onions on the bottom of the sandwich with the sausage on top.

ROTARY CLUB OF COOLAMON Inc. 2018-19

Chartered March 3rd, 1971; Sponsoring Club Narrandera Rotary Club

 

President: Daryl Breust 0409 551 140

President-Elect: Wayne Lewis 6927 3501

Service Projects: vacant

Secretary: Paul Weston  6927 2972

Treasurer: Henk Hulsman 6927 3486

Rotary Foundation Director: Neil Munro 6927 3156

Club Admin Director:  Daryl Breust 0409 551 140

Youth Director: Dave McKinley 6927 8553

Membership Director: Wayne Lewis 6927 3501

Public Image Directors: Myffy Collette 6927 6313 / Bernadette Milne

Immediate Past President: Paul Weston  6927 2972

Sergeant @ Arms: Ted Hutcheon 6927 3349

 

Bulletin Editor: Sarah Collins 0448 118 003 and Grahame Miles

 

 

 

“Lest we forget”

 

NOVEMBER IS ROTARY FOUNDATION MONTH

 

Meeting of 12th November, 2018

President Daryl welcomed 15 members & guest Minnie, Helen L  & Russell B

Apologies from John B, Sarah C, Neil M, Anne R, John N, Don D, Steve E, Bruce H & Dick J

We all enjoyed a beaut Chinese feed.

Paul gave an overview of the dog shows they went to in Victoria, where they had a great deal of success. Paul had an experience of having trouble distinguishing between the fuel of unleaded & diesel; maybe it should have been written in American gas terms!

Items of interest:

• We have some invites from local schools to attend presentation nights, if some of you could find the time to represent our club.
• Board meeting on Wednesday evening.
• Coolamon Rotary AGM – Monday, 19 November.
• 19th-20th November – the Rotary-sponsored Men’s Health Educational Rural Van will be at Bunnings, for those who’d like to have a general health check up for free.

See the Quote of the week & Club Diary below.

 

 

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

For what shall it profit a man, if he gain the whole world, and suffer the loss of his soul?

 

DIARY

Wednesday, 14th November – Board meeting.  Coolamon Sport & Rec Club, 7:00 pm.

Monday, 19th November – AGM. Coolamon Sport & Rec Club, 6:30 for 7:00 pm.

Saturday,  1st December –  Clearing Sale at Steve Exton’s.  Details to be announced

Sunday 9th December 10.00-16.00 DisTec18 I.T. Young DGE John McKenzie

Thursday,  December 13th – Bingo.  Community Centre Hall, 6.45 – 10:00.      Grahame (Captain), Bern M,, Myffy C &  Alex T

* Saturday, 15th December – Christmas Party. Residence of Daryl & Jan Breust. Details to be finalised.

Saturday 2nd March 09.15-17.00 PETS Young President Elects 2019-2020 DGE John McKenzie

Saturday 2nd March 14.00-16.30 D9700 District Leadership Team Training Young DGE John McKenzie

Saturday 2nd March 19.00 PETS Dinner Young President Elects 2019-2020 DGE John McKenzie

Sunday 3rd March 09.30-15.00 PETS Young President Elects 2019-2020 DGE John McKenzie

Sunday 26th Mat 2019 09.30-15.00 District Assembly Young DGE John McKenzie

Friday 29-31 March 2019 D9700 Conference Griffith DG JG D9700

 

Saturday 1st -5th June 2019 RI CONVENTION HAMBURG

* denotes partner & guest night

 

 

COMMUNITY EVENTS

1. RYLA UPDATE.

Email to PDG George Weston from Lyndall McGrath RYLA D9710 Chair

Hi George

It was good to hear from you.  As of the closing of the Early Bird applications I have 15 RYLArians (5 from D9700 and 10 from D9710).  This number is up from this time last year.  Leaving things to the last minute seems to be a very hard habit for people to break – even with a financial incentive. Last year ¾ of my applications came in the last week of November so I’m confident we will receive 40+ from the two Districts but the cut-off date.

Last year I systematically telephoned all the Club Presidents in D9710 after the Early Bird cut off.  There always seems to be a percentage of Rotarians that respond better to telephone calls than emails.  I am planning to telephone D9710 Presidents early next week.

I hope the combined YE weekend was a success.  I’m sure it would have been a wonderful time.  I am putting together another newsletter for the RYLA committee and mentors that I will cc you into for your information.

Regards

Lyndall McGrath

District Chair RYLA 2018/19

Rotary Youth Leadership Awards

Link to D9710 RYLA Website with all relevant downloads

https://www.rotaryd9710.org.au/projects/vocational/ryla.html

 ROTARY DISTRICT 9700 CONFERENCE GRIFFITH 2019

 

ROTARY CLUB OF COOLAMON Inc. 2018-19

Chartered March 3rd, 1971; Sponsoring Club Narrandera Rotary Club

 

President: Daryl Breust 0409 551 140

President-Elect: Wayne Lewis 6927 3501

Service Projects: vacant

Secretary: Paul Weston  6927 2972

Treasurer: Henk Hulsman 6927 3486

Rotary Foundation Director: Neil Munro 6927 3156

Club Admin Director:  Daryl Breust 0409 551 140

Youth Director: Dave McKinley 6927 8553

Membership Director: Wayne Lewis 6927 3501

Public Image Directors: Myffy Collette 6927 6313 / Bernadette Milne

Immediate Past President: Paul Weston  6927 2972

Sergeant @ Arms: Ted Hutcheon 6927 3349

 

Bulletin Editor: Sarah Collins 0448 118 003 and Grahame Miles

 

 

 

Meeting of 29th October, 2018

President Daryl welcomed members & guests and our special  special guest speakers  David Byfield and Phil McIntosh from Wolundry Rotary and Janice Menzies from Do it for Drought affected kids (DDAK).

We sat down to a delicious roast meal on Monday night. Club business was minimal, with a number of thank yous for participating in various events including

• A big thank you went to Dave, Miffy, Alex and Sharon from Howard and Anne to those who helped out at the garage sale held at the convent. Proceeds from the sale went to Rotary with $250 dollars being raised.
• A thank you to those that helped out with the cooking for the the bird watchers and those that helped with the cooking at the Spring Market event at the Sport & Rec Club.
• Correspondence from Coolamon Central School thanked Rotary for the driver simulator which provided an educational experience on the effects of drink driving and texting while driving for students from year 10 to 12. An invite was also extended to the club to attend the school’s presentation evening.
• Reminder that Steve Exton’s clearing sale will be 1st December. Club members will be needed to man the food van.

With the meal finished and general business complete we all turned our attention to the Guest speakers.

Guest speakers

Gear and Beers wrap up

David Byfield and Phil McIntosh from Wollundry Rotary gave us a wrap of the Gears and Beers held this year and took club members’ feedback and suggestions to make the event better and safer in the years to come. There were 2514 entries this year, which is 800 more than last year, with 750 riders participating in the Dirty 130, many of whom came from the major cities and some as far away as New Zealand.  The feedback from rider participating this year was fantastic; points of note by participating riders were: 

• The ANZAC biscuits were a major hit and numerous riders disappointed they missed out on them. 
• The reversal of direction of the Dirty 130 made the ride more of a challenge, which was appreciated by many.
• Dead Camel Lane was a big hit with many riders enjoying the challenge despite numerous flat tires.
• The hospitality of the town residents was a big highlight for most riders.

Gears and  Beers in now taking on a life of its own, with minimal advertising needed this year, much of it being done via social media. A big part of the success of Gears and Beers is attributed to the hospitality of the residents in the townships that the riders visit as well as the commitment to keeping the event true to it roots, despite big offers from commercial interest to take part in the event. It is the intention of Wollundry Rotary to keep it this way.  The 2018 Gears and Beers was predicted to have raised $4 million for the region, with all the hotels booked out for a week or more as many riders took the time to tour the region after the day. The NSW government, via Destination NSW, also donated $20,000 to promote and record the event. The footage captured on the day will be used to promote future Gears and Beers.

Positive feedback is still coming in a month or more after the even and a 7 day registration window was opened up for the 2019 Gears and Beers with 350 registrations for the Dirty 130 already in, some of who will be coming from as far away as London.

David and Phil thanked Coolamon Rotary members for helping out on the day, insisting that it not would be possible without the Coolamon club. They then handed over a check of $6000 to the Coolamon club to be used for our local events and charities. President Daryl thanked the Wollundry Club for the efforts  with Gears and Beers in return, speaking for everyone that Coolamon was more than happy to help.

 Doing It for Drought-Affected Kids

Janice Menzies came and spoke to the Coolamon Rotary Club about the initially small suggestion she had to help the kids for the School of the Air that are doing it tough in the drought along with their families. Janice had via the Facebook group ‘One day Closer to Rain’ suggested sending care packages to the 163 children who attend the School of the Air. Before she knew it, she was being inundated with offers to help, however she was not equipped to do the job effectively without assistance. It was recommended to her that Rotary may be able to help.

Janice outlined her plan of having a couple of donation days in both the Wagga and Albury regions to collect toys and other suitable items that could be put together for the children and their siblings. These items would then need to be sorted and packaged before being sent on a truck to Broken Hill for the February School of the Air meet up, where the families all get together for things like a swimming carnival. This would be a perfect opportunity to distribute the care packages and make the day a real event for the kids and their families so they could put aside their troubles for a time. Janice has much of the organisation well in hand but needs help with the legal side of thing and the manpower needed for the collection day and is asking Coolamon for some assistance. President Daryl and club members agreed that it was a very worthwhile charity that the club would be interested in and agreed to look into ways that the club could support her with her efforts to help out country kids and their families.

 

ON THE LIGHTER SIDE

Meeting of 29th October, 2018

President Daryl welcomed 13 members & no guests. Apologies from many members; Ian J, Dick J, Paul & Leslie W, Dave McK, Howard A, Don D, Steve E, Neil M, John N & Bruce H

 

We had a general meeting for the evening . Points of discussion included:

• Chloe Parr interested in being a RYLA participant
• Daryl reminded us some upcoming events which are listed in the club diary.

After a delicious meal of cutlets & salad, DG John Glassford was asked to give a talk on his plans for the next 8 months of his governorship. He spoke and gave out some programs for the district conference, which will be held in Griffith on the last week of March next year.  

He asked for some assistance and support from our club in its planning, etc. Club members are asked to give some thought as to how we could help out, even if it is to attend the district conference and man the Coolamon Rotary tent at the conference.   

John also spoke on the planning and the route for the cycling event, the Polio Plus bike relay, which is aimed to make people aware of Rotary and to raise funds to eradicate polio in the world and how we could help out in the cycle leg from Wagga to Coolamon. Once again he would like to form a committee of 5 members, so we can make it a successful event.   

Because John has spent so much time with planning the distribution of the funds given to our district for drought relief, which also generated much discussion from the floor, he has decided to put off to the following year his plans for the time capsule, which was to support Legacy.

 

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

Which famous person made this quote? 

“I won’t be a rock star. I will be a legend”.

John Glassford correctly answered the quote of the week from 2 weeks ago, which was Barry Gibb.

 

DIARY

Monday, 12th November – Regular meeting.  Coolamon Sport & Rec Club, 6:30 for 7:00 pm.

Wednesday, 14th November – Board meeting.  Coolamon Sport & Rec Club, 7:00 pm.

Monday, 19th November – AGM. Coolamon Sport & Rec Club, 6:30 for 7:00 pm.

Saturday,  1st December –  Clearing Sale at Steve Exton’s.  Details to be announced

Thursday,  December 13th – Bingo.  Community Centre Hall, 6.45 – 10:00.      Grahame (Captain), Bern M,, Myffy C &  Alex T

* Saturday, 15th December – Christmas Party. Residence of Daryl & Jan Breust. Details to be finalised.

 

* denotes partner & guest night

COMMUNITY EVENTS

REMINDERS

Annual subscription fees are due.

Please get your working with children check completed and give the number and expiry date to the secretary ASAP. Failure to do so may mean you are not covered insurance wise when you volunteer at events.

 

 

November is Rotary Foundation month

 

Meeting of 8th October, 2018

The fellowship meeting on Monday evening was attended by 19 members and guests. A fantastic meal and evening of companionship was  enjoyed by all in attendance. Issues discussed on the evening were:

• Gears and Beers was a great success with approximately 1200 riders passing through Coolamon and 2514 riders in total. Big thank you to all those that helped on the day. Wollundry Rotary reported that they made over $100,000 dollars on the day, which is a massive effort. Some issues to think about for next year included:
  •  The signs needed to be clearer, especially for those traveling different routes. The riders couldn’t hear the marshals very well when riding. Signs for different groups would be a big help here.
  • Spare tire tubes, sunscreen and greater access to toilet facilities will be a must for next year.
• The fire engine muster was on the same day. Rotary was asked to bring out our food van but as the Lions club was serving similar items and the club would also be quite busy that morning with Gears & Beers, Daryl and other board members decided it would be best to decline.
• The Rotary club will be selling bacon and egg rolls on the 27 October for the whole town garage sale. Howard and Ann are opening the convent for the garage sale for Rotarians out of town who may have items to sell. So, if you have items that are lying around and you are prepared to donate them for the sale, drop them off at the convent and help raise some money for the club. Howard and Ann would welcome some help with the sale as well.
•  We are still looking for nominations for RYLA. Nominees must be 18-25 year old youth with leadership potential.
• The board has decided to keep Bingo at the community hall until next year.
• Wayne reminded people to remain active in inviting people to our dinner meetings. Ask them to enjoy a free meal with us and see how it goes.
• The ROC Matekeepers evening had 25 people in attendance, comprised of Rotarians and community members.  A number of those in attendance indicated interest in doing the QPR training to become a Matekeeper. Every mate could save a life.
• The wood still needs cutting up outside Wayne’s place. The club will be organising a working bee to get the job done soon.
• It’s also time to start thinking about the Christmas party. Howard has offered to host the event at the convent.

ON THE LIGHTER SIDE

To all our friends

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

Which famous person made this quote? 

“If everything seems under control, you’re not going fast enough.”

Source of last week’s quote: Willie Nelson (American songwriter & musician)

 

DIARY

Monday,  15th October – Regular meeting. Coolamon Sport & Rec Club, 6:30 for 7:00 pm.

Saturday,  20th October – District 9700 President’s Forum & AGM. Young Golf Club, Young. President’s forum: 10:00 am – 12:30; AGM: 1:00 – 1:45 pm.

* Monday,  22nd October – Guest speaker: Leo De Kroo on his  life in the 60’s – De Kroo Brothers  up until now. Coolamon Sport & Rec Club, 6:30 for 7:00 pm.

Monday, 29th October – AGM

* denotes partner & guest night

COMMUNITY EVENTS

27th October, Gamain Twilight Markets

REMINDERS

Annual subscription fees are due.

Please get your working with children check completed and give the number and expiry date to the secretary ASAP. Failure to do so may mean you are not covered insurance wise when you volunteer at events.

 

 

September is Economic and Community Development month

 

District Governor: John Glassford {Membership Retention} Coolamon

District Governor-Elect: John McKenzie {Service Projects} Orange North

District Governor Nominee {New District}: Michael Moore

Immediate Past District Governor: George Weston {Youth} Leeton

Foundation Director: PDG David Kennedy {Foundation} Blayney

Secretary: PP David Benn {Administration} Wollundry Wagga Wagga

Treasurer Finance & Audit: PP Doug Conkey {Budget} Wollundry Wagga Wagga

Communications Director: PP Paul Murray {Public Image} Wollundry

Millennials Director: PP Clare Lawlor {Membership Millennials} Wagga CSU Rotaract

Associate Member: AG Julie Poplin {Assistant Governors}

Other District Appointments

Executive Secretary and Web Master: PP Paul Murray Wollundry Wagga Wagga

District Trainer: PP Geraldine Rurenga Wagga Wagga Murrumbidgee

PETS Facilitator: PDG Tony Monley D9810

Public Officer: PDG Ian Tooke Blayney

2019 Griffith D9700 Conference Chair: PP Ross Grillo Griffith

DIO Insurance/Risk Management: PP Sam Catanzariti Griffith

COL 2019 Representative: PDG Gary Roberts

Assistant Governor (Area 6): Paul Weston

We are also looking at the structure of all the Standing Committees and the Special Committees.

We will post all further news on D9700 2018-2019 on my DGJG Blog:

DG JG 9700 2018-2019

 

ROTARY INTERNATIONAL 2018-2019

President: Barry Rassin, RC of East Nassau The Bahamas

District 9700 Governor: John Glassford, RC of Coolamon

District 9700 Governor Elect: John McKenzie RC of Orange North