What is the Four-Way Test to you and your club? The Four-Way Test is one of the most powerful guides to ethical behavior in existence. As Rotarians, we have a responsibility to speak the truth, to do our best in all situations, to be fair, build friendships and goodwill.

The test is as relevant today as it was 75 years ago, because the issues of morality and ethical behavior that existed then still exist today, therefore we should continuously apply this to our daily lives.

 

Week of 21st. August

Tonight we held a club assembly.  We had a good turn out of 16 Rotarians and one guest Helen Lewis. Welcome back Dave McKinley!

• Raffle in Coolamon made around $550 and was won by Heavenly Bake!
• We need everyone to look at inviting guest speakers
• Henk read the minutes from the previous board meeting
• Much discussion on the revamp of our caravan and the cost of $5,500 estimation:

• Beers & Gears Roster for October 1st Daryl Breust will prepare this.
• Look to applying for the D9700 Membership Sustainability Grant
• Moo Poo what next?
• Neil Munro reported on the Peace Ceremony 25th Anniversary of the 1st Rotary Peace City in the world, Wagga Wagga, to be held on the 23rd February 2018.
• Neil Munro called for a joint religious meeting between all faiths.
• Wayne Lewis reported on the visit to The Rock for a mental health meeting.
•  Board approved the purchase of a P.A. system.

Sergeant Ted Hutcheon held a fines session and no one was spared.  Leslie Weston won the raffle a meat voucher.

All in all a good meeting and plenty of fellowship and good banter.

 

DIARY

Monday 28th August: TBA.

*Monday, 4 September: Partner’s meeting. Guest speaker: Gemma Meier from Grong Grong, who works for the Office of Environment and Heritage, will talk about renewable energies. Coolamon Sport & Rec Club, 6:30 for 7:00 pm.

Saturday 9th September: GANMAIN Trivia Night. Details to follow.

Thursday September 14th 2017, BINGO Henk Hulsman Capt, Dave McKinley, Wayne Lewis, Ivan Furner

Monday September 25th.  DG George and Carol Weston’s visit. Executive and Directors to meet with DG George before the meeting. Please bring your partners and support our District Governor. Gentlemen ties and jackets please.  Ladies smart as always.

Sunday October 1st Gears & Beers ALL Hands on Deck for Marshall duty

Thursday October 12th 2017, BINGO Neil Munro Capt, Alex Thompson, Don Dyce, Dick Jennings

Sunday October 15th D9700 AGM and President’s Forum 2017-2018 Presidents. YOUNG, 10.00am-1.00pm.

Thursday November 9th 2017, BINGO Ian Jennings Capt, Daryl Breust, Garth Perkin, John Nulty

Sunday, 12th November:  DisTec17 in Young 10.00am-4.00pm.  Internet and computer skills for bulletin editors and club web masters training.

LOG IN AND BOOK HERE

Thursday December 14th 2017, BINGO Grahame Miles Capt, Bernadette Milne, Myffy Collette, John Bond

Thursday February 8th 2018, BINGO Henk Hulsman Capt, Rod Jarrett, Dick Jennings, Alex Thompson

Saturday, 4th March and Sunday 5th March 2018 PETS.  Young.  President Elects Training Seminar.

Sunday 5th March 2018 D9700 Assembly ALL Club Board Members to attend in Young from 09:00-16:00

Thursday March 8th 2018, BINGO Neil Munro Capt, Dave McKinley, Don Dyce, Leslie Weston

Saturday 5th May to Sunday 6th May 2018 D9700 CONFERENCE in Leeton venue the Leeton ROXY Theatre.  Book accommodation early!

*Partners and Guests Night

Apologies for Monday meetings: call John Nulty on 0439 459 296 BY FRIDAY

 

A Friendly Reminder

John Nulty is looking after the apologies for our Monday meetings; could you please make sure you let John know if you are unable to attend a meeting so catering can be finalised before the meeting. John can be contacted on  or 0439 459 296.

 

ROTARY MEANS BUSINESS

If you are in Sydney on the last Tuesday of each month go along. I love this idea very much as Rotary does mean business.  Next Rotary Means Business networking event – 29th August

 

STOP PRESS

GANMAIN 20th August 2019.

Leslie Weston says “Frank showed really nicely for me and is gaining confidence on the grass. He was pulled out in group by Mr. G. Vernon on Friday and awarded best jr. in hound group on Saturday by Prof. Corbitt.”

President Paul Weston “We still need some work walking but Bradley showed very nicely and stood still while taking his first ribbon.”

Not to be outdone Maureen Hulsman also starred with the pomeranian puppy who took best baby in show one day too I think!”

Congratulations to Leslie, Paul and Maureen.

 

FOOTNOTE

Hoopsnakes are dangerous snakes native to Australia. Commonly found in bushland and the outback, Hoopsnakes are NOT lethal, but are still dangerous when confronted. Although usually quite timid animals, Hoopsnakes have been known to chase down and attack animals and humans during their breeding period. If bitten by the Hoopsnake, headaches, vomiting, and temporary blindness and paralysis may occur.

What makes the Hoopsnake different from other snakes in the world is their ability to to roll, in a way much like a wheel or hula-hoop (hence the name, Hoopsnake). They bite onto their tail, which is very thick and callused, and use their strengthened spines to roll into a circular shape and roll around. Using this method, the Hoopsnake can reach up to 60km/h.

Although lots is known about the Hoopsnakes, they are not not very well known as they should be. They were never featured on any of Steve Irwin’s television programs or his movies, which is quite disappointing. The Hoopsnake is a beautiful creature which deserves to be known throughout the world.

There is no definite breeding season with Hoopsnakes, as they breed year round. A female Hoopsnake will find a new mate every year. Couples only breed once a year, with the female laying around 10 to 15 eggs in a batch. On average, only 8 survive, due to the Hoopsnake being the main food source of eagles and hawks.

Hoopsnakes feed on small marsupials such as biblies, mice, rats and quolls. Baby hoopsnakes often eat crickets and other small insects. Hoopsnakes live around 8 years, and in their life time have been known to grow up to 1.5 metres long. They range from a light, olive green to a darker black in colour, depending on the age. This is why it is extremely difficult to identify the Hoopsnake, because the colours are so different.

SEE YOU NEXT WEEK

The stand in temporary bulletin editor is off to Darwin for the GETS and Zone 8 Institute our Bulletin Editor Julie will be back as soon as her computer is up to speed.  Any correspondence please contact me in Darwin!

 

Week of 14 August

 

Tonight we had the pleasure of the company of 3 members from the Wollundry Rotary Club.  Ably led by PP Phil McIntosh and supported by PP David Byfield and current Wollundry President Paul Milde.

Attendance present 16 Rotarians and 5 guests including Barry Lillywhite, Trevor Kiss and the three visiting Rotarains from Wollundry.

We had another good meeting with plenty of banter and some serious Rotary work. Our guest speaker PP Phil McIntosh from Wollundry and the prime mover for this amazing project gave a detailed account of the 2016 Gears & Beers run.

Phil went on to congratulate our club and community for the assistance in last year’s event and invited us to support the run on Sunday October 1st. Phil reminded us that daylight saving actually starts on the day of the event. We are responsible for the Dirty 130 and the 105km ride.

RAPHA are again the major sponsors with some wonderful clothing. RAPHA are an international cycle company and are seen in Tokyo, Rome, Paris, Sydney and Melbourne. Photos of last years Gears & Beers have gone around the world.

The help on the day. for 2017 is very popular with the Dirty 130 being sold out. As always Wollundry will share the proceeds with those who help on the day.

Phil said that around 850 riders will come to Coolamon on the day. So we need to have as many volunteers to make this a successful event.

Last year the event attracted over 1100 riders and 4000 people into the festival this year our target is 1500 plus riders and 4500 people to the festival. We are keen to embrace the Culture of the craft of Brewing Beers and Ciders as well as coffee, this combined with a community cycling event, a long weekend Sunday, a location right at the top of Wagga Wagga’s main street and a club that is prepared to give of its time to raise funds for great causes, I think we are onto a winner of an event.

Rides range from 9km (for the kids and mums and dads), 30km, 50km road, 50km filthy fifty (dirt roads), 105km road, and the Rapha Dirty 130.

Followed by the craft Beer and Cider festival with some of the country’s best independent craft brewers.

Gears & Beers Web Site

 

RI President Elect 2018-2019

Barry Rassin, of the Rotary Club of East Nassau, New Providence, Bahamas, has been selected to be 2018-19 Rotary president. Rassin’s nomination follows Sam F. Owori’s death in July, just two weeks into his term as Rotary International president-elect.

RIPE Barry Rassin

RIPE Barry Rassin is our leader for 2018-2019 from the Bahamas where the sun shines on a beautiful part of our world. I look forward to working with RIPE Barry in 2018-2019 as our District Governor.

 

A Friendly Reminder

John Nulty is looking after the apologies for our Monday meetings; could you please make sure you let John know if you are unable to attend a meeting so catering can be finalised before the meeting. John can be contacted on  or 0439 459 296.

 

Diary

Wednesday, 16 August:  Board Meeting. Weston residence, 7:30 pm.

Saturday, 19 August: Street raffle. Coolamon Newsagency, 6.30 am – noon.

ROSTER:

7.00-8.00 Howard Atkinson Barry Lillywhite

8.00-9.00 John Glassford Ted Hutcheon

9.00-10.00 Wayne Lewis Steve Exton

10.00-11.00 Sally Farmer Don Dyce Henk Hulsman

11.00-12.00 John Bond Daryl Breust

Monday, 21 August:  Club Assembly. Coolamon Sport & Rec Club, 6:30 for 7:00 pm.

*Monday, 4 September: Partner’s meeting. Guest speaker: Gemma Meier from Grong Grong, who works for the Office of Environment and Heritage, will talk about renewable energies. Coolamon Sport & Rec Club, 6:30 for 7:00 pm.

Saturday 9th September: GANMAIN Trivia Night. Details to follow.

Monday September 25th.  DG George and Carol Weston’s visit. Executive and Directors to meet with DG George before the meeting. Please bring your partners and support our District Governor. Gentlemen ties and jackets please.  Ladies smart as always.

Sunday October 1st Gears & Beers ALL Hands on Deck for Marshall duty

Sunday October 15th D9700 AGM and President’s Forum 2017-2018 Presidents. YOUNG, 10.00am-1.00pm.

Sunday, 12th November:  DisTec17 in Young 10.00am-4.00pm.  Internet and computer skills for bulletin editors and club web masters training.

LOG IN AND BOOK HERE

Saturday, 4th March and Sunday 5th March 2018 PETS.  Young.  President Elects Training Seminar.

Sunday 5th March 2018 D9700 Assembly ALL Club Board Members to attend in Young from 09:00-16:00

Saturday 5th May to Sunday 6th May 2018 D9700 CONFERENCE in Leeton venue the Leeton ROXY Theatre.  Book accommodation early!

*Partners and Guests Night

Apologies for Monday meetings: call John Nulty on 0439 459 296 BY FRIDAY

 

FOOTNOTE

SEE YOU NEXT WEEK

HELP Cambodia is a local charity run by Wagga people, Wollundry Rotary Club are supporting this dinner and are doing great work in Cambodia helping families and especially kids with health and education.

We have recently built a new school in a desperately poor area of Phnom Penh and we also received RAWCS status for this project, so we decided to have a dinner to celebrate and say thanks to our supporters.

The dinner is not a “fund raiser”. There are no auctions or raffles, in fact we are giving away some great prizes (Weber BBQ, Family Photo Shoot, 2 tickets to Wicked and a 10 visit yoga pass) and of course we will be enjoying the great food and atmosphere at the Magpies Nest.

Click on the poster for full details:

Barry Rassin, of the Rotary Club of East Nassau, New Providence, Bahamas, has been selected to be 2018-19 Rotary president. Rassin’s nomination follows Sam F. Owori’s death in July, just two weeks into his term as Rotary International president-elect.

RIPE Barry Rassin

RIPE Barry Rassin is our leader for 2018-2019 from the Bahamas where the sun shines on a beautiful part of our world. I look forward to working with RIPE Barry in 2018-2019 as our District Governor.

To Rotarian Bernadette Milne from your fellow Rotarians.

“Bernadette; President Paul Weston, the members and partners of the Rotary Club of Coolamon extend our sincere condolences to you and your family on the passing of your husband Russell.  We are indebted to you for all the hard work that you have put in for our community.  Please be assured that we are all thinking of you and your family at this time.  Russell was a good man and those that came to know him will miss his humour and love of all things footy.”

 

Last Week

President Paul Weston inducted Howard Atkinson as a member of our club.

Rotarian Howard Atkinson and Ann Atkinson with President Paul Weston.

Ann and Howard are renovating the Old Convent in Coolamon and it will become a function centre.  Welcome to Coolamon and Coolamon Rotary Club Howard and Ann.

Thursday August 3rd saw the visit of the Wagga Men’s Rugby Choir and Murrumbidgee Magic, it was a wonderful night of good music thank you to the organisers especially Don Dyce.  Net proceeds for Mental Health as around $630.

 

 

Week of 7 August

Tonight we had the pleasure of the company of 3 students from The Riverina Anglican College, namely Mikaela Foster, Mitchell Foster and Henry Yates with Teacher and Mother to two of the students present, Fiona Foster.  They came to talk on their trip along the Kokoda Track recently.

Attendance present 12 Rotarians and 8 guests including Helen Lewis, Sally Farmer and Barry Lillywhite.  Several apologies due to the flu including our President Paul Weston. President Elect Daryl Breust took the Chair and we had an excellent meeting.

 

The Kokoda Trail was a path that linked Ower’s Corner and the small village of Wairopi on the northern side of the Owen Stanley mountain range.

Its name was derived from the village of Kokoda on the southern side of the main range, the site of the only airfield between Port Moresby and the north coast.

The Japanese saw the Kokoda Trail as a means by which to capture Port Moresby overland.

Mikaela and Henry gave the presentation of this journey of 9 days following the Kokoda Track.  It was a tough one for them and they experienced some harsh conditions.  Mikaela and Henry took turns explaining the various highlights of the trek.

Both students were very respectful of the part the Diggers who defended Port Moresby and hence the gateway to Australia for the Japanese Army.   They also showed great respect for their porters and the villagers they met along the way.  There were some very emotional times and the students had their own Dawn Service at Isurava.

They ended their visit to Papua New Guinea at the war cemetery at Bomana

Here are some of their photos please click on the thumbnails:

President Elect Daryl thanked the team from TRAC and as Daryl has trekked Kokoda the talk brought back many memories for Daryl.  L-R Henry Yates, PE Daryl Breust, Mikaela Foster, Mitchell Foster and Fiona Foster.

 

A Friendly Reminder

John Nulty is looking after the apologies for our Monday meetings; could you please make sure you let John know if you are unable to attend a meeting so catering can be finalised before the meeting. John can be contacted on  or 0439 459 296.

 

Diary

Thursday, 10 August: Bingo. Allawah Lodge, 6.45 for 7.30 pm. Roster: with Grahame Miles

Monday, 14 August: Regular meeting. Coolamon Sport & Rec Club, 6.30 for 7 pm.

Saturday, 19 August: Street raffle. Coolamon Newsagency, 6.30 am – noon.

*Monday, 4th September Gemma Meier

Monday September 25th.  DG George and Carol Weston’s visit. Executive and Directors to meet with DG George before the meeting. Please bring your partners and support our District Governor. Gentlemen ties and jackets please.  Ladies smart as always.

Sunday, 12th November:  DisTec17 in Young 10.00am-4.00pm.  Internet and computer skills for bulletin editors and club web masters training.

LOG IN AND BOOK HERE

 

*Partners and Guests Night

Apologies for Monday meetings: call John Nulty on 0439 459 296 BY FRIDAY

 

One should always wear one’s Rotary pin as shown here by the Prince of Wales.

 

FOOTNOTE

Story here on Australian Endangered Species in our own Rotary Down Under

 

RAGES in RDU

This month RDU Or the Rotary Down Under magazine features animal conservation and there is a great story on RAGES this month.

View the RDU online here:

RDU August Edition

 

Week of 31 July

This week’s meeting started of with President Paul informing us of the meetings he has recently attended. Paul attended the Community Drug Action Team meeting last week, where it was decided to put an application together to form a local Local Drug Action Team taking in Coolamon, West Wyalong and Temora.  At the Group 5 Presidents meeting,  which took place on Sunday, a number of issues of relevance to Rotary clubs in our area, including planning for  peace celebrations in September and  also in April, 2018 in Wagga Wagga and Coolamon, were discussed. Plans are under way for some joint activities between the clubs in Junee and Coolamon.

Rotary is  aiming for each club to plant 10 trees per member this year; Grahame volunteered to be the club’s Tree Co-ordinator. Ian Jennings has a plan to develop a bike trail between Coolamon and Ganmain, which will be an ideal community project and an excellent opportunity for trees to be planted.

The Choirs at the Club performance for Thursday night looks like it will be well supported; thank you to everyone who put their names down to help with setting up and serving the finger food.

Paul presented Neil and Myffy with their director’s pins since they were unable to attend the changeover, where the new board was introduced.

Myffy proudly informed us that The Coolamon Community Chronicle celebrated its 1st birthday with a coloured front and back page and 24 pages of reading in the Chronicle. The newspaper is going well financially, which is very good to hear.

Henk informed the meeting that a copy of the phone book will be ready for proof reading this week and the books should be printed in about a month.

 

Christmas in July

Christmas in July was very well attended and featured a delicious Christmas dinner prepared by Gilbert. There was a lot of laughing and banter as the Yankee Christmas present exchange got underway. The gifts certainly made for some interesting interaction amongst those present. Some gifts were highly sought after, especially the honey and pink scarf; the hungry shark was another story. I’m sure Christmas in July will be on the social calendar every year.

Introducing our Exchange Student!

Christmas in July was also the 1st event that Lucia Bohnsack,  Coolamon’s Rotary exchange student, attended since arriving here on the weekend. Lucia introduced herself, telling us  it feels like she has come to a large town; her home town has a population of 300 people! Lucia has been shopping for school uniforms, something that is a bit different as she doesn’t have to wear a uniform at home. Lucia presented the club with a banner from her host club in Germany, the Rotary Club of Einbeck Northheim, which Paul was happy to accept.

 

A Friendly Reminder

John Nulty is looking after the apologies for our Monday meetings; could you please make sure you let John know if you are unable to attend a meeting so catering can be finalised before the meeting. John can be contacted on  or 0439 459 296.

 

Diary

Thursday, 3 August*: Choirs at the Club.  Wagga Men’s Rugby Choir and Murrumbidgee Magic will perform.  Admission $15 (includes finger foods). RSVP by 31 July to Don Dyce (0427 981 456) or Dick Jennings (0427 273 079).  All proceeds to benefit mental health education.  Coolamon Sport & Rec Club, 7:00 for 7:30 pm.

Monday, 7 August*: Regular meeting. Guest speakers: Several TRAC students will talk about their recent trek on the Kakoda Track.  Coolamon Sport & Rec Club, 6.30 for 7 pm.

Thursday, 10 August: Bingo. Allawah Lodge, 6.45 for 7.30 pm. Roster: Paul (Captain), Rod, Myffy, Bernie.

Monday, 14 August: Regular meeting. Coolamon Sport & Rec Club, 6.30 for 7 pm.

Saturday, 19 August: Street raffle. Coolamon Newsagency, 6.30 am – noon.

Sunday, 12th November:  DisTec17 in Young 10.00am-4.00pm.  Internet and computer skills for bulletin editors and club web masters training.

 

*Partners and Guests Night

Apologies for Monday meetings: call John Nulty on0439 459 296 BY FRIDAY

Week of 24 July

This week’s meeting featured a special event, the induction of our newest member, Howard Atkinson! Howard and his wife Ann moved to Coolamon fairly recently and have been making extensive renovations to the old convent, in which they reside and will be using to host weddings and other functions. Howard is originally from Finley, NSW, and recently moved to Coolamon to be near his wife’s family after living for a number of years in Queensland. Howard was gracious enough to share his life story with us after the induction and will be an excellent addition to the club. Following Howard’s presentation, Professor Paul quizzed those present on some acronyms we often see but may not know; we won’t reveal how many answered the questions correctly, but you might want to have a crack at these yourself and see if you know what these acronyms stand for: NAIDOC, RADAR and TWAIN (no fair using Goggle!). John Bond won an extra raffle ticket for correctly identifying the words that make up RADAR, which is all the boost he needed to eventually win the raffle. Ted led an entertaining fine session, as usual, but for some reason has the mistaken impression that President Paul was responsible for the cold bug that has stricken most of the members of the club since our changeover.

 

Don’t forget about Christmas in July!

Next week’s meeting (31 July) will be another meeting not to miss, when the club hosts its first Christmas in July in recent memory. Diane and Gilbert will be serving up a Christmas feast of roast ham and turkey with all the trimmings and, if rumour is correct, Christmas pudding for desert. The cost will be only $23 pp, and all are asked to bring a wrapped gift to the amount of no more than $10 (or you can bring a homemade treasure). The gifts will be distributed via a Yankee Swap (see Wikipedia for a description). Partners are certainly welcome for this primarily social event.  We will also introduce our Rotary exchange student from Germany, Lucia Bohnsack, on the night.  Please be there!

 

And Choirs at the Club!

As if we didn’t have enough going on next week, don’t forget about Choirs at the Club, to be held at the Coolamon Sport & Rec Club on Thursday, 3 August.  This special event will feature two fabulous choirs from Wagga Wagga, the Wagga Men’s Rugby Choir and Murrumbidgee Magic, a female choir from Wagga.  The festivities will kick off at 7:00 f0r 7:30 pm, and the $15 admission will include finger food as well as the choir performances.  RSVP by 31 July to Don Dyce (0427 981 456) or Dick Jennings (0427 273 074).  All proceeds will benefit mental health education.

 

Diary

Monday, 31 July*: Christmas in July. Bring a gift to the value of $10. Coolamon Sport & Rec Club, 6.30 pm for 7 pm. Welcome to German Rotary exchange student Lucia Bohnsack.

Thursday, 3 August*: Choirs at the Club. Wagga Men’s Rugby Choir and Murrumbidgee Magic will perform. Admission $15 (includes finger foods). RSVP by 31 July to Don Dyce 0427 981 456 OR Dick Jennings 0427 273 074. All proceeds to benefit mental health education. Coolamon Sports & Rec Club, 7 pm for 7.30 pm start.

Monday, 7 August*: Regular meeting. Guest speaker: TRAC students will talk about their recent trek on the Kakoda Track.  Coolamon Sport & Rec Club, 6.30 for 7 pm.

Thursday,10 August: Bingo. Allawah Lodge, 6.45 for 7.30 pm. Roster: Paul (Captain), Rod, Myffy, Bernie.

Monday, 14 August: Regular meeting. Coolamon Sport & Rec Club, 6.30 for 7 pm.

Saturday, 19 August: Street raffle. Coolamon Newsagency, 6.30 am – noon.

Monday, 21 August: Regular meeting. Coolamon Sport & Rec Club, 6.30 for 7 pm.

Thursday, 14 September: Bingo. Allawah Lodge, 6.45 for 7.30 pm. Roster: Henk (Captain) Wayne, Dave, Ivan.

Sunday, 12 November: DisTec17 in Young 10.00 am-4.00 pm. Internet and computer skills for bulletin editors and club webmasters.

*Partners and Guests Night

Apologies for Monday meetings: call Ian Jennings on 0428 492 157 BY FRIDAY

 

Evening

It is not often that we get the chance to listen to and enjoy not ONE but TWO Choirs from Wagga.  All for a good cause to raise funds for mental health education.

TWO FOR THE PRICE OF ONE!

Thursday, 3 August 2 Choirs at the Club. 

Wagga Men’s Rugby Choir and Murrumbidgee Magic will perform.  Admission $15 (includes finger foods). RSVP by 31 July to Don Dyce (0427 981 456) or Dick Jennings (0427 273 074).  All proceeds to benefit mental health education.  Coolamon Sport & Rec Club, 7:00 for 7:30 pm.

Based in Wagga Wagga, New South Wales, Murrumbidgee Magic Chorus is a dynamic fusion of energetic, fun loving women who sing and perform a cappella harmony. Our repertoire has something for everyone, from hits of the 20th century to popular Australian songs. 

Under the direction of our Musical Director Judy Ferguson, we sing at a wide range of community and charity events and concerts, and are available for hire. We also compete at regional contests which are held every year at various locations around Australia.