Coolamon Rotary News Bulletin #47
NEW WEB SITE FOR MOUNT KENYA 2015
JUNE IS ROTARY FELLOWSHIP MONTH.
IMFR is the shortcut for “International Marathon Fellowship of Rotarians“. The idea of founding this organisation is based on the marathon of Paris in 2005, where a group of enthusiastic running Rotarian friends from Toulouse with Jean-Claude Brocart and Christophe Cruzel as the leaders were invited to run in occasion of the 100 year jubilee of Rotary.
The charter party of this international fellowship was celebrated in 2006 during the marathon in Berlin. The main idea of this fellowship is to organize one Rotarian event a year during an international marathon, where you can find new Rotarian friends and run for a beneficent purpose.
Other big events were organized in Amsterdam 2007, New York 2008, Médoc 2009, Vienna Marathon 2010, Great Barrier Reef Marathon 2011 in Townsville, Graz Marthon 2012 and the London Marathon in April 2013.
MEETING JUNE 23rd. 2014
We heard a very interesting talk by Dr Jeff Weidenhamer, a visiting chemist from the US, who reported on some studies he’s done in the US looking at the prevalence of lead and other toxic heavy metals in children’s jewelry coming from China and India. Jeff had students in his class “Lead and Society” conduct tests for lead in cheap jewelry being sold in the US and found frightening high levels of lead in many of the pendants in this jewelry, in some cases as high as 100%!
This is astonishing because when the study was started, the legal limit for lead in these pieces was 0.06% because of the known health hazards associated with ingestion of lead (not that jewelry is intended to be consumed, but since children often put lots of things in their mouths, including jewelry, there is a high risk of lead poisoning with jewelry containing high lead content, which came to national prominence after an 8-year-old boy swallowed a pendant on a bracelet distributed by Reebok and died a week later).
Jeff has traced the high lead content in some cases to backyard smelting of old car batteries and discarded computer circuit boards, which is a good source of income for the unemployed in China and India but a source of cheap metal alloys containing very high content of lead (and cadmium, another very toxic metal) that ends up in cheap jewelry that ends up on the shelves in discount stores in the US (and likely Australia, although no one has yet tested such jewelry in Australia for heavy metals).
As a result of what started as a student project, Jeff’s research has resulted in US Congressional investigations into the lead content of jewelry and other items targeted for children in the US, and in major retailers such as Wal Mart instituting policies that prohibit any lead in all children’s jewelry that they sell. Paul thanked Dr Weidenhamer for a very interesting and thought-provoking presentation.
Dr Weidenhamer and PP Dr. Paul Weston.
Diary Reminders
Monday June 30th Regular Meeting AT THE BOTTOM PUB N.B.!
*Monday July 7th 2015 ANNUAL CHANGE OVER DINNER
Thursday 10th July 2014 BINGO Ian Jennings (Captain), Wayne Lewis, Rod Jarrett, Garth Perkin
Sunday July 13th Rotary Club of Junee Change Over lunch midday in Junee.
Saturday 9th August Coolamon Street Raffle
*Partners and Guests Night.
Apologies for Monday meetings call Christine Atkinson on 0427 880 158 or 6927 3521 BY FRIDAY 12.00 pm.
ROTARY INTERNATIONAL PRESIDENT RON BURTON:
Join #Rotary President Ron Burton in posting a social media profile photo of yourself at age 5 for 5th Birthday and Beyond (#5thbday), which celebrates that in 2014 six million fewer children will die before their fifth birthday than was the case 25 years ago and the role the U.S. and other governments play in improving children’s health worldwide.
Read more in Rotary General Secretary John Hewko‘s#RotaryVoices blog post athttp://blog.rotary.org/2014/06/20/fifthbirthday/#more-4255
ON THE LIGHTER SIDE
Golf
A golfer is in a competitive match with a friend, who is ahead by a couple of strokes. The golfer says to himself, “I’d give anything to sink this next putt.”
A stranger walks up to him and whispers, “Would you give up a fourth of your sex life?”
The golfer thinks the man is crazy and that his answer will be meaningless but also that perhaps this is a good omen and will put him in the right frame of mind to make the difficult putt and says, “OK.”
And sinks the putt.
Two holes later he mumbles to himself, “Boy, if I could only get an
eagle on this hole.”
The same stranger moves to his side and says, “Would it be worth
another fourth of your sex life?”
The golfer shrugs and says, “Sure.” And he makes an eagle. Down to the final hole. The golfer needs yet another eagle to win. Though he says nothing, the stranger moves to his side and says, “Would you be willing to give up the rest of your sex life to win this match?”
The golfer says, “Certainly.” And makes the eagle.
As the golfer walks to the club house, the stranger walks alongside and says,” You know, I’ve really not been fair with you because you don’t know who I am. I’m the devil and from now on you will have no sex life.”
“Nice to meet you,” says the golfer. “My name’s Father O’Malley.”
ROTARY INFORMATION
Top 10 things you should know about the new Rotary Foundation funding model
By Ian Riseley, Rotary Foundation Trustee, Foundation Finance Committee chair
I’ve been very involved in the development of our Foundation’s new funding model and have closely followed the questions being raised about it in social media and elsewhere. The new funding model for The Rotary Foundation was developed because our ability to continue “doing good in the world” depends heavily on the Foundation having long-term financial stability. In the interests of improved communication and understanding of the changes, here are 10 important things to know about the new model, which becomes effective on 1 July 2015.
FULL STORY HERE.
Editor’s Note: You maybe surprised at what you will learn about the Foundation and how it proposes to work in the future starting in July 2015.
ONLY IN AFRICA
Ear Phone!
OUT OF AFRICA
Multi-tasking!
MOUNT KENYA 2015 ANZAC DAY CLIMB
This will be a permanent section for the next 12 months in our weekly bulletin and I will update stories to this article as and when we get them. The Australian Commonwealth Department of Veterans Affairs have approved our application to be part of the Centenary for ANZAC and we are allowed to use the logo below with some rules on it’s use:
The Mount Kenya 2015 web site can be found here on clicking the banner below:
Mount Kenya Safari Club today June 26th 2014.
FOOT NOTE
Couple of items of interest
Yours in Rotary John Glassford Chair 2013 -2014
RAGES WEB SITE
Bulletin Editor and Web Site: John Glassford
Rotary International President Ron Burton
Governor of District 9700 Geoff Tancred
Coolamon Club President Dick Jennings
Coolamon Club Secretary Paul Weston
Club Treasurer Henk Hulsman
Coolamon Rotary Club Inc. P.O. Box 23 COOLAMON N.S.W. 2701
Websites of Interest
Coolamon Rotary Club: http://coolamonrotary.com
Road MAPS to Africa a Coolamon Rotary Project: http://www.mountainsofthemoon.org/
Rotary Down Under on line: http://flipflashpages.uniflip.com/2/26587/49598/pub
Mount Kenya 2015 Web Site incorporating the ORK: http://theork.com/
Our Rotary Centennial Twin Club Hout Bay, Cape Town, South Africa: http://www.rotaryhoutbay.org
Proposed Rotarian Action Group for Endangered Species RAGES: http://www.endangeredrag.org/#