Message from RI President John Germ

Meeting 25th July

This week’s meeting was a regular meeting with a couple of very interesting guest speakers, Fanny Lamouille and Jeremy Rey from Annecy, France.  Fanny and Jeremy are a young couple that left well paying jobs in Geneva, Switzerland (a short commute from their house in France) and made the big trip to Sydney to give it a whirl.  After spending several months in Sydney and not finding what they were looking for, they ended up in Ganmain and have been doing a range of jobs for John and Susan Glassford with their straw house construction business.  Fanny and Jeremy love their Australian life, but do miss the pastries, cheeses and other delicacies of their homeland.  They plan to move to Melbourne and spend another year or more down under before deciding their next move.  Leslie thanked the pair of speakers (in French!) and presented them with a kangaroo hide coin pouch (photo below). The evening was finished off with a raffle (won by Paul) and a brilliant fine session by Sargeant-At-Arms Ted Hutcheon, who really outdid himself!

Up To Date Art Exhibition

The social event of the year took place on Friday evening with the opening of the art show at the Up To Date Store.  The show continues to grow, and features some exceptional artwork created by artists from Coolamon and throughout the Riverina.  A number of Rotarians were in the crowd, including President Don Dyce, who presented the award for sculpture and ceramics, which was sponsored by Coolamon Rotary.  The winning entry was an elaborate birdhouse created by Gabby Thompson and Albert Suidgeest. Pictured in the photo below (from left to right) are Gabby, Suzanne Houghton (the artist in residence), Jean-Claude Pretorius (show judge), and President Don.  The other photo depicts Gabby & Albert’s winning birdhouse sculpture.  Other Rotarians in attendance at the show included Ian (and Marilyn) Jennings, John (and Suzie) Glassford, Alex Thompson, Wayne (and Helen) Lewis, Paul & Leslie Weston, and Mike Perrott (Narrandera Rotary).  Also in the crowd was Don’s partner, Sally Farmer, who exhibited an intricate mosaic.  As always, it was an excellent show and very enjoyable evening.  The exhibit will be on display through Sunday (31 July), so there’s still time to take in some excellent artwork.

On the lighter side

Things Dad Will Never Say

1. Well, how about that! I’m lost. Looks like we’ll have to stop and ask for directions.
2. You know, pumpkin. Now that you’re thirteen, you’ll be ready for unchaperoned car dates. Won’t that be fun?
3.  I noticed that all your friends have a certain negative attitude. I like that!
4.  Here’s a credit card and the keys to my new car. Go crazy!
5. What do you mean you want to play football? Figure skating not good enough for you, son?
6.  Your Mother and I are going away for the weekend. You might want to consider throwing a party.
7.  Well, I don’t know what’s wrong with your car. Probably one of those doo-hickey thingies. You know, that makes it run or something. Just have it towed to a mechanic and pay whatever he asks.
8. No son of mine is going to live under this roof without an earring. Now, quit your belly aching and let’s go to the mall.
9.  What do you want to go and get a job for? I make plenty of money for you to spend.
10.  Father’s Day? Ah, don’t worry about that. It’s no big deal!

The power of prayer

Little Johnny and his family were having Sunday dinner at his grandmother’s house. Everyone was seated around the table as the food was being served.

When little Johnny received his plate he started eating right away.

“Johnny, wait until we say our prayer.”

“I don’t have to,” the boy replied.

“Of course you do,” his mother insisted. “We say a prayer before eating at
our house.”

“That’s at our house,” Johnny explained, “but this is Grandma’s house, and she knows how to cook.”

The puzzler

One night, a man receives a call from the police. The police tell the man that his wife was murdered, and that he should reach the crime scene as soon as possible. The man drops the phone, shocked, and drives 20 minutes to the crime scene. As soon as he reaches the crime scene, the police arrest him and he is convicted of murder. How the police know that he committed the crime?

Answer to last week’s puzzler:

Diary Reminders

Monday, 1 August: Regular meeting*. Coolamon Sport & Rec Club. Guest speaker: Scott Norman (The pleasures of owning a Tesla!)

Monday, 8 August: Club assembly.  Coolamon Sport & Rec Club. No guests.

Thursday, 11 August: Bingo [Grahame (Capt), Daryl, Wayne and Ted]

Monday, 15 August: Regular meeting. Coolamon Sport & Rec Club.

Wednesday, 17 August: Board meeting. Don Dyce residence, 7 pm.

Thursday, 25 August: Australian Rotary Health Indigenous Australian Medical Scholarship Informational Program, Wagga Mercure, 6:30 pm start. Answer to riddle: wholesome!

Monday, 12 September: Regular meeting and visit by DG Michael Millston. Coolamon Sport & Rec Club.

Saturday, 17 September: Kindra Forest Multipurpose Trail Opening.

Saturday, 17 September: Coolamon Cheese Factory Grand Opening.

Sunday, 2 October: Gears & Beers. Stay tuned for details!

Sunday, 16 October: President’s Forum and D9700 AGM, Young.

Saturday, 26 November: Street Raffle.

*Partners and Guests Night

Apologies for Monday meetings: call Ian Jennings on 0428 492 157  BY FRIDAY 12:00 pm.

Meeting 18th July

This week’s meeting was the first club assembly of the new Rotary year.  Much of the meeting was spent tidying up loose ends, but a few announcements livened up the proceedings.  Myffy Collette announced that the first issue of the newspaper will be going to the printer this weekend, and would be distributed on the following Saturday.  To publicise the arrival of the paper, Myffy has obtained permission from the shire council to set up a table in the plaza next to the newsagency and distribute copies of the paper to passersby.  Following that, the papers will be brought to the various distribution points around the shire, where they will be available for pickup by community members.  This is a very exciting project and one that has the potential to have a very large impact on the Coolamon shire.  The newspaper committee are looking for any stories of local interest to include in the paper, so don’t hesitate to send your pieces to a member of the committee (Myffy, Bernie Milne, Grahame Miles and Paul Weston).

John Glassford and Dick Jennings attended the Narrandera changeover last Wednesday, where they were presented with a cheque in the amount of $1000 for RAGES (Rotary Action Group for Endangered Species, an initiative headed up by John).  It’s very gratifying to see local clubs getting behind this international program.

Last week’s bingo at Allawah Lodge was profitable, despite the relatively low turnout.  Winter weather seems to keep the bingo players at home, but more of them might show up next month when they hear that the jackpot continues to grow (now at $170, supplemented in part by Myffy’s generous donation of her raffle winnings at the bingo).  Organisers Neil Munro and Grahame Miles are encouraging all members to try their hand at bingo next month.  As usual, all profits generated by bingo are spent on enhancements to the facilities at the hospital and retirement home.

The street raffle was surprisingly profitable last Saturday, aided no doubt by the lure of a beautiful load of firewood on offer.  Proceeds were twice what the street raffle typically generates, and the members selling tickets had to work hard to keep from drooling over the gorgeous load of wood in the trailer parked in front of the newsagency. In the end, the prize was won by local resident Jean Young, who happily donated it to her daughter and son-in-law, Cathy and Mal Roberts, since Jean doesn’t have a wood fire.  Thanks to members Rod Jarrett, Daryl Breust, John Glassford, Wayne Lewis, Trevor Parkes and Paul Weston who braved the frigid temperatures to sell tickets, and to Wayne and Trevor for loading the wood on Friday.

The formal proceedings of the assembly were uneventful in the end, despite some spirited discussion about the frequency and nature of our weekly meetings.  We decided to recommend to the board that we make no change to the bylaws regarding the frequency of meetings, but several suggestions may result in some minor changes to some of the meetings (including increasing the frequency of meetings away from our traditional meeting location and shifting board meetings to weeks when bingo is not on to avoid overloading weeks with too many Rotary events).

The evening was finished off with a raffle (won by John G) and a rousing fine session by Sargeant-At-Arms Ted Hutcheon, who is secretly hoping for a win by Donald Trump in the US election in November.

District 9700 Directory Now Available

Do you have your district directory yet? In case you’ve been living under a log, the directory is no longer being printed; it’s available only as a download from the district website.  All members of the district should have received an e-mail in the past week describing how to access the directory, but in case you missed it, simply go to the district website and click on the link “2016-17  District Directory” from the home page.

On the lighter side

Riddle: What is it that when you take away the whole, you still have some left over? (answer somewhere below)

The puzzler

Here’s a visual puzzle for you:

Answer to last puzzler: There were 24 triangles of various sizes, including the whole figure itself.

Diary Reminders

Monday, July 25: Regular meeting

Monday, August 1: Regular meeting*. Coolamon Sport & Rec Club. Guest speaker: Scott Norman (The pleasures of owning a Tesla!)

Thursday, August 11: Bingo [Grahame (Capt), Daryl, Wayne and Ted]

Thursday, August 25: Australian Rotary Health Indigenous Australian Medical Scholarship Informational Program, Wagga Mercure, 6:30 pm start. Answer to riddle: wholesome!

Monday, September 12: Regular meeting and visit by DG Michael Millston. Coolamon Sport & Rec Club.

Saturday, September 17: Coolamon Cheese Factory Grand Opening!

Sunday, October 2: Gears & Beers. Stay tuned for details!

Sunday, October 16: President’s Forum and D9700 AGM, Young.

*Partners and Guests Night

Apologies for Monday meetings: call Ian Jennings on 0428 492 157  BY FRIDAY 12:00 pm.

Meeting 11th July

A regular meeting was held on 11 July at the Coolamon Sport and Rec Club, with a very healthy rollup of 32 members and guests.  We were treated to a very interesting presentation by Scott Munro, son of Trevor and Penny Munro (and nephew of our own Neil and Claire Munro).  Scott works for GeoPacific Resources, a mining company looking to develop gold and copper resources in Cambodia.  Scott spent a bit of time describing the geography and long history of Cambodia, including the devastation caused by the Khmer Rouge and the carpet bombing by the US during the Vietnam war.  Although the country is capable of producing a wide variety of horticultural crops and lots of rice, the standard of living is quite low (the GDP per capita is US$740 vs US$37,500 in Australia).  While in Cambodia, Scott got to know the inhabitats of the small village of Chhaeb, and learned of the need for basic amenities lacking at the local school (e.g. running water, electricity, toilet facilities, etc.). [When this plight was brought to the attention of our club earlier this year, we were moved to donate funds to help provide these amenities and to apply for a district grant to leverage our funds further.  We were successful in our application for district funds, and we were able to provide funds in the amount of $3,000 to the village to construct a toilet block.]

Scott, his wife, Kate, and their three kids visited Cambodia earlier this and had a life-changing experience getting to know the residents of Chhaeb and Cambodia.  The whole family joined us on Monday as Scott showed us great photos of the local terrain, villages and residents of northern Cambodia. Paul thanked Scott and presented him with a kangaroo-hide coin pouch.  Well done, Scott!

Our meeting concluded with a raffle; prizes were won by Alexander Thompson and Wayne Lewis.

IFCR – WTF?

What on earth is IFCR? You might take many guesses and still not get it right–it stands for the International Fellowship of Cricketing Rotarians. The IFCR is having its biannual festival in Wagga Wagga from 16-21 October.  If you’re interested in learning more or participating in the event, please visit their website here.

On the lighter side

What is black when you buy it, red when you use it, and grey when you throw it away? (answer somewhere below)

The puzzler

Here’s a visual puzzle for you:

Answer to last puzzler: There were 2,753 individuals going to St Ives.

Diary Reminders

Thursday, July 14: Bingo [Neil (Capt), John N, Don and Ian D] 

Friday, July 15th: Firewood working bee (Wayne, Dick and Trevor)

Saturday, July 16th: Street Raffle in Coolamon
6:00-8:00   – Daryl and Rod
8:00-10:00 – Paul and John G
10:00-12:00 – Wayne and Trevor

Monday, July 18th: Club Assembly

*Partners and Guests Night

Apologies for Monday meetings: call Ian Jennings on 0428 492 157  BY FRIDAY 12:00 pm.

Answer to riddle: charcoal!

Changeover 2016

Welcome to the new Rotary year!  The Rotary Club of Coolamon celebrated its 45th changeover on Monday night in the company of local dignitaries, visiting Rotarians, partners and guests.  Along with a changing of the guard, the task of composing the bulletin has changed hands as well.  I hope to keep up the high standard that John Glassford has maintained for many years.  John has stepped down from this role because of the duties associated with preparing for a much bigger role, that of District Governor of District 9700, which John will assume in 2018-19.  I know my fellow Rotarians join me in wishing John well in this venture and will assist in whatever ways we can.

As usual, the changeover was a lively affair with a healthy rollup.  Approximately 90 people were in attendance and were entertained by Caleb Richards and Ryan Farrell.  The formal proceedings, emceed by Ian Jennings, began with a welcome by Coolamon mayor John Seymour and a welcome to country by Auntie Gail Clark, a Wiradjuri elder and Coolamon resident.  A number of toasts and responses ensued, followed by an excellent four-course meal cooked up by Gilbert and Diane in the Chinese restaurant at the Coolamon Sport and Rec Club.  Outgoing president Wayne Lewis  then had his moment of glory, describing the highlights of the past year and listing the recipients of the $25,000+ in charitable donations made by the club in that time.  PDG John Egan was on hand to assist Wayne in presenting a PHF to yours truly, a humbling and personally gratifying occasion. Wayne and PDG John then inducted our president for 2016-17, Don Dyce.  After introducing the new board, newly minted President Don thanked the attendees for their participation and wished them a safe drive home.   More fellowship followed, accompanied by coffee, tea and assorted slices baked by Rotarian partners.  The first raffle prize, which consisted of a basket of locally produced goodies, was won by Bob Toose of Junee Rotary.  Second prize was a hamper of licorice items from Junee Licorice & Chocolate, and third prize was a gift basket of garlic items from Ganmain Garlic (second and third prizes were won by Narranderans Anne Dunn and Marilyn Manning).  All in all, it was a memorable evening that spawned new friendships and rekindled old ones.  We look forward to a productive and enjoyable Rotary new year.

•  Paul Weston, ed.

July is changeover month!

Coolamon is not the only place where Rotary changeover occurred; changeovers were taking place throughout the world.  Each month has a theme in the Rotary calendar, except for July, which is changeover month.  District 9700 had its changeover last weekend, and was attended by our own John and Susan Glassford as evidenced by the photo below.  Happy New Year!

On the lighter side

A politician and two of his cronies, Bill and John, were fishing when their boat capsized. Bill and John started to panic because they’d seen sharks in the area.

“No worries, mates,” said the politician and he started to swim towards the island to get help.

As he swam, John spotted the dorsal fins of two great white sharks heading straight toward the politician. Before he could yell a warning, the politician took hold of their fins and the sharks escorted him safely to shore.

When the politician returned with help, John asked him how he had managed such an amazing feat. The politician answered, “Professional courtesy.”

Puzzler

Most of us are familiar with the nursery rhyme/riddle about the person travelling to St. Ives:

“As I was going to St. Ives,

I met a man with seven wives.

Each wife had seven sacks,

each sack had seven cats,

and each cat had seven kits.”

In a twist on the original rhyme, assume that the man and the seven wives were in fact travelling in the same direction as the narrator of the rhyme.  How many individuals (people, cats and kits) were in fact travelling to St. Ives?

Diary Reminders

Monday, July 4th: President Don Dyce’s FIRST Meeting of 2016-2017

Thursday, July 14: Bingo [Neil Munro (Capt), John Nulty, Don Dyce and Ian Durham] 

Saturday, July 17th: Street Raffle in Coolamon

*Partners and Guests Night

Apologies for Monday meetings: call Ian Jennings on 0428 492 157  BY FRIDAY 12:00 pm.

Coolamon Rotary News Bulletin #45

THANK YOU WAYNE AND HELEN

I know that I express all of our members wishes here in saying thank you to President Wayne Lewis and Helen Lewis for a great Rotary year for Coolamon and District.  The only measure of a successful club is that the members keep on turning up every week.  We had a lot of fun did a lot of work and made lasting new friends this year.

Thanks also to the Board and a special thanks to PP Ian Jennings for making the meetings attractive with many many excellent guest speakers.  Also to our newer members who got stuck into projects such as Moo Poo with Dave McKinley.  Trevor Parkes for the raffles each week a good team all round,  and we look forward to the same with PE Don Dyce.

Well done Wayne and Helen.

MEETING MONDAY JUNE 20th.  2016

What a great roll up for the last meeting of 2015-2016.  Our guests included:

John Bond, Wendy and Stuart Jennings, Dr. Sumera Amir, as well as partners Marilyn Jennings, Helen Lewis and Susan Glassford.

Guest Speakers Rylarians Lyndal Jennings and Lauren Exton.

We had 18 members attend President Wayne’s last meeting as President.

Wayne welcomed all our guests and members.

Short reports made by PP Garth Perkin on the Rotary Leaders Symposium in Young and Myffy Collette spoke on the progress of the Coolamon Community Chronicle.  Myffy asked for contributions and for advertisers to kick off the paper.  The Coolamon Central School will be playing a very important role in this Rotary Coolamon publication.

GUEST SPEAKERS

We sponsored these two young ladies to RYLA [Rotary Youth Leadership Awards], held at the Charles Sturt University campus in Orange recently.  RYLA 2016 was conducted by the Rotary Club of Orange Daybreak.

Lyndal Jennings and Lauren Exton were our guest speakers tonight and gave a excellent presentation on the week long camp at RYLA.

35 young adults 18-28 attended from all over our Rotary District 9700.  They made many new lifelong friends, were involved in many activities and a good line up of guest speakers.

RYLA provided them with teamwork activities both outdoors and indoors with some excellent memory challenges.  They also participated in a few hours of community service with the Salvation Army and the PCYC in Orange.

On their last night they put on a concert for and with the Orange Rotarians.

Both Lyndal and Lauren thanked Coolamon Rotary for this opportunity and they recommend that we continue to sponsor young adults to RYLA.  We look forward to the day when both Lauren and Lyndal join us as Rotarians.

The evening concluded with a vote of thanks by PP Neil Munro to Wayne and Helen Lewis for a job well done.

The raffle was won by Ian Durham and Ted Hutcheon conducted a heads and tails for 2 bottles of port.

Diary Reminders

Friday 24th June Red Nose Day Rural Style in the Ganmain Hall. 10.00 am-2.00 pm Wear Red free entry and BBQ Donations appreciated Contact Bron Hatty 0418 114 750

Saturday June 25th D9700 Change Over in Orange Hotel Conobolas.

*Monday June 27th Change Over Dinner at Coolamon. 

Monday July 4th President Don Dyce’s FIRST Meeting 2016-2017

Saturday July 17th Street Raffle in Coolamon.

*Partners and Guests Night.

Apologies for Monday meetings call Ian Jennings on 0428 492 157  BY FRIDAY 12.00 pm.

REFLECTIONS

This will be my last bulletin as your Bulletin Editor.  PP Paul Weston becomes our Bulletin Editor for 2016-2017.

It has been fun and most enjoyable preparing this bulletin on a weekly basis now for several years.  So my last bulletin will be reflecting on the past.

Coolamon Rotary is on good shape with 25 members now getting back to where we used to be when I joined in 2003.

As with any club there have been some significant moments where we have had new members join us and continue to  stay the course and work hard for our community both here and over the seas.  Slowly we are getting more women to join us and that is a great thing for our future.  Leslie Weston, Myffy Collette and Bernadette Milne make up a trio of dedicated members in our club.

Also the injection of youth into our membership with Alex Thompson joining us, is a great step forward for this club.

Our leadership under President Wayne Lewis this year has been of the highest quality and we look forward to another great year in Rotary Service with incoming President Don Dyce and his Board.

I look forward to working with you as DG in 2018-2019 and my work starts from July 1st 2016 as DG Nominee and in effect it is a 4 year stint.  It is humbling and an honour to have been selected and as the first DG for our Coolamon Rotary Club a rare event indeed.

So here are some memories to contemplate as we move forward together.  In no specific order just 150+ pics!!!

CLICK ON THE THUMB NAILS FOR A LARGER PHOTO.

John Glassford signing off!

See you all at the Change Over Next Monday Night 27th June.

Bulletin Editor and Web Site:  John Glassford

Coolamon Rotary News Bulletin #44

SEOUL RICON 2016 SPECIAL EDITION

JUNE IS ROTARY’S

FELLOWSHIP MONTH

This week we feature the Beers Rotarians Enjoy Worldwide Fellowship.  Seen at Seoul last week.

Beers Fellowship Launched at Sydney 2014

Beers Fellowship Web Site.

MEETING MONDAY JUNE 6th.  2016

We had a very good role up for a Club Assembly last night 17 members present.

It was our last assembly for President Wayne Lewis’s year and it was a raucous occasion with some business being conducted.  Many jokes were told some good some not so good.

In the upcoming retirement of John Glassford as Foundation Director the members nominated Alex Thompson as Foundation Director 2016-2017 and the Board will ratify Alex’s nomination on Wednesday night.  Alex will become the youngest Director of our club in memory.

Grahame Miles reported on Bingo and Dave McKinley on Moo Poo and also requested absence of leave as Dave is going to the Outback for some R&R.

The raffle was won by Henk and Ted conducted another amusing sometimes hilarious fines session.

There will be no meeting on Monday 13th June as it is the Queen’s Birthday holiday weekend.

John Glassford called for members to form the 2019 DISCON working committee in conjunction with the RC of Griffith.

Reminder that Bingo is on this Thursday.

We need names for our change over dinner please advise Henk Hulsman or Ian Jennings.

Diary Reminders

Wednesday June 8th Last Board Meeting for 2015-2016.

Thursday June 9th BINGO: Henk Hulsman (Capt), Trevor Parkes, Ted Hutcheon, Dick Jennings.

Monday 13th June NO Meeting Queen’s Birthday

Monday 20th June LAST Meeting for 2015-2016

Saturday June 25th D9700 Change Over in Orange Hotel Conobolas.

*Monday June 27th Change Over Dinner at Coolamon. 

*Partners and Guests Night.

Apologies for Monday meetings call Ian Jennings on 0428 492 157  BY FRIDAY 12.00 pm.

ON THE LIGHTER SIDE

This week here is the Korean interpretation of how to boil an egg in a microwave.  Seen in the breakfast room of my hotel in Seoul click on the images for a larger picture:

My hotel, The Hotel Icon Anguk, Seoul.  Hard to find but a quarter of the cost of the official hotels.

It was FUN!  Especially the shower in a basin.

HOTEL ICON WEB SITE.

REPORT FROM JOHN GLASSFORD COOLAMON & RAGES DELEGATE TO SEOUL RICON 2016

Be a Gift to the World – Mahātria Rā, Spiritualist

This is one of the sessions that I missed however you and I can watch him here.

Happiness is the way I saw the whole convention and my first visit to Seoul.

The best part for me was meeting every day Koreans on the metro every day.  Finding small eating places with wonderful food.  The Koreans’ happy faces, no policemen with guns, only one baton.  The efficient and super clean metro trains, zero graffiti.  So many happy memories that reminds me what the Object Rotary is all about, friendship through acquaintance!

I do not have enough space here ot convey all of my memories however here are some photos in thumb nail format.

PRESIDENT K.R. RAVINDRAN “RAVI”

RI President K.R. Ravindran closed the convention in Korea on Wednesday, 1 June, with a poignant story about his mother’s fight to survive polio at age 30.

When Ravindran was 11 years old in his native Sri Lanka, his mother awoke one day feeling weak and short of breath. Sitting down to rest, she found herself unable to move. The polio virus had quickly invaded her nervous system, resulting in paralysis.

She was placed in an iron lung at the hospital to enable her to breathe, and was told that her chances of walking, or even surviving without a ventilator, were slim. But most Sri Lankan hospitals were not equipped with ventilators in 1963.

Ravindran’s grandfather, a Rotary member, hosted a club committee meeting in his living room the evening after his daughter was rushed to the hospital. Rather than simply offer consolation, his fellow members went to work, using their business acumen and professional connections to find a ventilator.

One of the members was a bank manager who called a government minister to facilitate a quick international transfer of funds. Another member, a manager at Swiss Air, arranged to have a ventilator flown in. The next day, it arrived at the hospital.

FULL STORY HERE.

Find out how Rotary members are improving the lives of mothers and children in Nigeria and Pakistan. http://on.rotary.org/1QXrPQj

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon

United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon joined us at the Rotary Convention and shared that “Rotary’s Polio Plus has helped to avert massive suffering. Some 16 million people who otherwise would have been paralyzed by polio can walk now. Around a million and a half children are alive today thanks to Polio Plus. I thank you for such a great contribution.”

District 9700 Web Site

ROTARY INFORMATION

This week we concentrate on the Rotary International Convention Seoul 2016.

Here is a summary of the event from PP Ron  Ron Nethercutt RC of Mabalacat, The Philippines and  D 3790 Information Chair & Fellowship Director.  Ron is also Past Chair of ROTI and a great friend.  (Rotarians On The Internet Fellowship).  You can down load the report below in pdf, this was published in the Korea Joongang daily newspaper.

This is a very good report and worth reading.

RICON 16

Members of Rotary and Rotaract, wearing traditional Korean attire, get ready for the Walk for Peace in Seoul Plaza on Saturday, 28 May. Photo Credit: S.J. Cho

Korean Pop Icon PSY set the hall on fire with his electrifying performance. His internationally acclaimed ‘Gangnam Style’ had the audience up and dancing, and ended up with some amazing performers from around the world BUT that is a  story for another time.

RAGES NEWS

This week we look at the RAGES booth at the Seoul Rotary International Convention 2016.

Our booth was just behind but hidden by the RI Resource centre.  We were located with all the other Action Groups.

I attended the Action Groups Chair meeting run by Marion Bunch.

We had plenty of material for our RAGES booth and did not run out of forms or cards.  I had my lap top with a power point presentation on loop at all times.

If I may make a comment; we in the Action Groups area had one or two unmanned booths.  We were located behind the RI area right at the back end of the massive hall.  We experienced a very low visitor rate.  No Korean no Japanese Rotarians stopped at our booth and only a few I am told stopped at the other Action Groups.

My observations indicated that the Koreans and Japanese only came for one day and the opening ceremony.  I maybe wrong but I do not think so.  However the visitors that came to our end where genuine and most sought us out.  So quality v quantity in Seoul.  The RI staff also wrote to a couple of the Action Group booths to say that they must stay until closing time and not leave early.  Fair enough.

I have no complaints even though I missed every plenary as I wanted to be at the RAGES booth.  My sincere thanks to PDG Barbara Shayeb-Helou for all the help on our booth which gave me time to go do some souvenir shopping and have a break.

Our break out session was very well attended and our Moderator PRIVP Anne L. Matthews did a very professional job and thanks so much Anne for being there.  On the panel was Moderator Anne with PDG Barbara Shayeb-Helou and PE RIBI Eve Conway.  Plenty of genuine questions from the floor and we finished on time and in time to get to the closing ceremony.  That was something special for another day.

The organising committee are to be congratulated.

The RAGES booth before the opening all ready to go!

The RAGES shirt with Tears of the Rhino got a lot of attention!

Above Rotaractor Oyumaa Davaajav from the Rotaract Club of Nairamdal Mongolia.  Oyumaa wants to save the remaining 22 Mazaalai bears from extinction in her country Mongolia.  Oyumaa also made us aware of the plight of the White Tiger in Mongolia.

Nairamdal Rotaract Club Facebook Page

Mazaalai – this simple mongolian world means Gobi Bear who inhabits in the Gobi desert of Mongolia. No other place on the entire Earth is home for this rare specie of Bear. Its scientific name is Ursus Arctos Gobiensis. It’s listed in the Red Book of Mongolia with a status of VERY RARE. They were found in the Desert of Aj Bogdo of West Altai mountain ranges in early 1920s. Mazaalai is near extinction & globally threatened bear.

The last 22 members of this brown bear subspecies (known in Mongolian as mazaalai) live near three oases in the Gobi Desert, where the golden-coloured animals subsist on a mostly vegetarian diet of hardy desert roots and other plants.

But rising temperatures appear to have already started reducing the available water in the Gobi, making those plants harder to find and threatening the future of the bear.

 

RAGES WEB SITE       JOIN RAGES HERE.

ONLY IN AFRICA KOREA

FOOTNOTE

Coolamon Rotary News Bulletin #43

MEETING MONDAY MAY 30, 2016

We had another good rollup on Monday, which included 20 members and 3 guests.  One of the guests was Shane Bullock, Coolamon resident and manager of Jindalee Feedlot (located near Stockinbingal).  For those that don’t remember, Shane was instrumental in providing the processed cattle byproduct that we sold as “Moo Poo” last year.  Shane explained how the feedlot fits in with the beef production system run by Teys (they also have large feedlots in Condamine, Queensland and Charlton, Victoria).   Thousands of cattle pass through the feedlot each year, ending up in grocery stores throughout Australia and other countries as well.  It was amazing to hear the high-tech approach taken in managing the weight-gain of the cattle, and the precision in managing the inputs and monitoring the results.  Dave McKinley thanked Shane for his very informative talk, and presented him with a kangaroo coin pouch as a token of appreciation.  In addition, Dave presented certificates of appreciation to Shane, Dan Fisher (manager of Delta Ag who provided bags for packaging the Moo Poo last year) and Wayne and Helen Lewis of Lewis Transport (which transported the manure last year from Jindalee to Coolamon).  Shane has agreed to provide product for our fund-raiser again this year.  Thanks for your contribution, Shane!  Pictured below is Dave giving thanks to our guest speaker (left) and presenting certificates of appreciation to Dan Fisher and Wayne & Helen Lewis.

Myffy Collette gave an update on the Coolamon Newspaper project, which is proceeding apace.  The shire is very supportive of the project and has offered the services of Jess Inch, a shire employee who works at the library, to assist wherever possible with the project.  Myffy announced that we’re on track to have our first issue ready for distribution in August.

Mark Reardon and Ted Hutcheon provided a rundown on the Red Shield Appeal that our club collected for over the weekend.  Between the footy games in Coolamon and Gainmain and Foodworks on Saturday and Sunday, we raised close to $1800 for the Salvos.  Thanks to all who assisted (Dick, Trevor, Wayne, Daryl, Ian J, Steve, Myffy, Bern, Garth) and especially to Mark for organising the event and Ted, who went above and beyond (manning the table at Foodworks both days and the footy afterwards on Saturday).  Pictured below are Ted & Daryl; Trevor & Wayne; Garth, Dick & Mark; and Steve.

Our intrepid globetrotter and champion of endangered animals, John Glassford, is attending the RI convention in Seoul, South Korea and has sent some photos of the sights.  John will be providing a full report on his return.  Below are a few random pics from the convention.

Diary Reminders

Monday, June 6th – Club Assembly (Coolamon Sport & Rec)

Wednesday, June 8th – Last Board Meeting for 2015-2016 preceded by a Newspaper committee meeting (7 pm, Coolamon Sport & Rec – no meal)

Thursday, June 9th – BINGO: Henk Hulsman (Capt), Trevor Parkes, Ted Hutcheon, Dick Jennings.

Saturday, June 25th – D9700 Changeover in Orange, Hotel Conobolas.

*Monday June 27th Changeover Dinner at Coolamon. 

*Partners and Guests Night.

Apologies for Monday meetings call Ian Jennings on 0428 492 157  BY FRIDAY 12.00 pm.

Coolamon Rotary News Bulletin #42

MAY IS ROTARY’S

YOUTH SERVICE MONTH

 MUNA MODEL UNITED NATIONS ASSEMBLY

MUNA is underway at NSW Parliament

 

MEETING MONDAY MAY 23rd. 2016

Well this club continues to surprise.  Last night with no guest speaker, no club assembly or special meeting 19 of our 25 members attended.  Great effort all round followed by a moist enjoyable meeting with plenty of banter, some jokes and a very entertaining fines session carried out by Ted Hutcheon.

We did discuss a few subjects including:

The Bike Track Henk Hulsman reported on the finances of this project and together with two grants we will be up for $600.  Some discussion on endangered species however no one seems to understand how a plant can grow on a used track.

John Glassford talked briefly about the upcoming Convention in Seoul as he leaves on Wednesday for Korea and the Seoul 2016 RICON.

Dave McKinley spoke on the next Moo Poo campaign and thanked Ted Hutcheon for offering up his shed and space to take delivery of the next truck load  of steaming weed free feedlot Moo Poo.  Members are reminded that next Monday night our guest speaker will be Shane Bullock Manager of the Jindalee Feedlot.  As well Dan Fisher and Nicole  will be joining us from Delta Ag.  Delta Ag provided the printed Moo Poo bags for the project.

Dave McKinley also spoke on his progress with getting the Rotary signs at 5 entrances to Coolamon.  Daryl Breust has offered to do the designs which will include space for three other signs e.g. Lions.  These signs will be professionally done and probably powder coated for longevity.  The committee to oversee this project will include, Wayne, Dave, Daryl, Don and Dick.

Myffy Collette spoke on the Coolamon Community Newspaper.  Myffy and Bern have been working hard on this project and it is looking very promising for the first issue coming out in August.  Myffy reported that the Coolamon Central School is very keen to work on this publication.  The early proofs are of excellent quality.  This project is one to watch and help where and when needed.  Regular stories will be required.

Mark Reardon outlined the upcoming Salvation Army Red Shield Appeal set for this Saturday and Sunday in Coolamon and Ganmain.  Mark will have the books and lanyards.  Here is the roster:

Saturday May 28th Coolamon.

1.  Coolamon Food Works

9.30-11 am Sharon Reardon and Paul Weston

11.00-12 pm Wayne Lewis and Trevor Parkes

12.30-2 pm Dick Jennings and Garth Perkin

2.  Coolamon Rovers Football Club Gate

9.30 am-11 am Ian Jennings and Steve Exton

11.00-12.30 Ted Hutcheon and Mark Reardon

Sunday May 29th Ganmain

3. Ganmain Grong Grong Matong Lions Football Club

9.30 am-11.00 Bern Milne and Mark Reardon

11.00 am-12.30 Daryl Breust and Garth Perkin

P.S.  Friends of Rotary Quilt Display at the Up-to-Date Store this Saturday and Sunday.  Following the great success of the quilt project of Marilyn Roberts this Rotary year you are all encouraged to go along this weekend and support this very worthwhile effort and to say thanks.

Are you keeping snug as a bug in a rug this chilly season?

Featuring a fine collection of patchwork quilts and embroidery, teapots, cosies, vintage sewing machines and more, the Coolamon Patchwork and Craft Display will take place on Sat 28th and Sun 29th of May. Will we see you there? | Pictured: Ganmain Craft Cottage.

Diary Reminders

Saturday 28th May 2016 – Wednesday June 1st Seoul RICON South Korea  

Saturday 28th May Red Shield Appeal Coolamon.

Sunday 29th May Red Shield Appeal Ganmain.

*Monday 30th May Guest Speaker is Shane Bullock on “The Beef Feedlot Industry”.  Shane is The Manager of the Jindalee Feedlot at Stockinbingal.  All members are asked to attend to say a big thank you to Shane for his generous donation of Moo Poo.

Wednesday June 8th Last Board Meeting for 2015-2016.

Thursday June 9th BINGO: Henk Hulsman (Capt), Trevor Parkes, Ted Hutcheon, Dick Jennings.

Saturday June 25th D9700 Change Over in Orange Hotel Conobolas.

*Monday June 27th Change Over Dinner at Coolamon. 

*Partners and Guests Night.

Apologies for Monday meetings call Ian Jennings on 0428 492 157  BY FRIDAY 12.00 pm.

ON THE LIGHTER SIDE

Dame Edna’s Ute or Looute.  This is a real ute.  Click on the pic.

PRESIDENT K.R. RAVINDRAN “RAVI”

More than 42,000 Rotary members from over 100 countries will come together in Korea to celebrate Rotary.  Photo Credit: Photo by Rotary International/Alyce Henson

We have made good friends in Rotary especially with the Collins family from Perth.  This family is all about Rotary and Ken is a Past RI Director and Di is a dynamo in Rotary.   Members of the RC of Freshwater Bay in Perth.

A very full bench of friends on the Buddy Bench on its presentation to North Cottesloe Primary this morning. The vibrant colours are proving to be very popular!

Another Buddy Bench presentation this morning – this time to North Cottesloe Primary School. Seen here trying out the bench is Kath and her daughter.

Look up their microscope project for schools; an excellent enterprise.

Rotary Club of Freshwater Bay Web Site

District 9700 Web Site

ROTARY INFORMATION

THE OBJECT OF ROTARY

The Object of Rotary is to encourage and foster the ideal of service as a basis of worthy enterprise and, in particular, to encourage and foster the development of acquaintance as an opportunity for service; in business, professions and community life; with the advancement of international understanding, goodwill, and peace through a world fellowship.

ROTARY MEANS BUSINESS

The worldwide network of Rotarians adopt the ideal of service in their personal, business and community lives.

The Rotary Network’s purpose and objective are really elementary and put simply is the greatest benefit of being a Rotarian developing friendships with other Rotarians and staying in touch to maintain these friendships regardless of the means.

Rotary International has only one purpose: to create and support Rotary clubs throughout the world.  Rotary clubs have only one purpose: to create Rotarians.

Most people join local Rotary clubs because they want to establish additional friendships with like-minded people and to make an impact, first in their local community and then internationally.

It maybe for business reasons, social reasons or service reasons, but it’s still networking and developing friendships

RAGES NEWS

This week a new Rotarian just joined in London, Trica Burgess, is passionate about pangolins.  Trica has started a campaign called:

SCALE OF THE TRADE

Here a couple of photos from Trica’s campaign:

 

RAGES WEB SITE       JOIN RAGES HERE.

ONLY IN AFRICA

 

FOOTNOTE

Sharon and Grahame Miles in Japan 23 May 2016

We have experienced some of the best of Japanese cuisine in some highly rated restaurants from Tokyo, to Kyoto, to Okayama, to Kochi, to Takamatsu, to Hiroshama.

Bulletin Editor and Web Site:  John Glassford

Coolamon Rotary News Bulletin #41

MAY IS ROTARY’S

YOUTH SERVICE MONTH

MEMBERS ABROAD

Don and Sally Write:

Grahame and Sharon write:

MEETING MONDAY MAY 16th. 2016

Last night we had a normal meeting but far from normal.  Plenty of robust discussion on a variety of subjects!

We had one guest Helen Lewis and 15 members present.  We had fun, did some work and enjoyed the fellowship before, during and after the meeting.

Change Over season is almost here and invites are starting to arrive.  Wagga Wagga Kooringal 15th June, Griffith Avanti 18th June with a bush band and Wagga Wagga 23rd June.

Planning for our change over dinner for the 27th June is well under way.

President Wayne Lewis advised all members of the upcoming Leadership Workshop Training to be held in Young over two days on the 18th and 19th June.  Other information included invitations to go to South Dakota as part of the D9700 to D5610 friendship exchange visit.

Paul Weston read the last Board meeting minutes.

Neil Munro offered the services of his nephew Scott Munro and his partner Kate to talk on Cambodia regarding water for a school project they are involved in.

Bingo showed a profit of $188 with 14 players.

Mark Reardon gave us a run down on the upcoming Red Shield Appeal set for Saturday 28th May in Ganmain and Sunday 29th May in Coolamon, both days coincide with the home footy games.  Volunteers needed please contact Mark Reardon.

John Glassford held a short survey on how our members use the D9700 and Coolamon social media outlets.  Results in the Footnote at the end of the bulletin.  Summary we have a long way to go!

Trevor Parkes conducted the meat tray raffle which was won by Henk Hulsman.

Dick Jennings was Sargent and had us all laughing with the fine session.

All in all an excellent meeting.

See you all next week.

Diary Reminders

Monday May 23rd T.B.A.

Saturday 28th May 2016 – Wednesday June 1st Seoul RICON South Korea  

*Monday 30th May Guest Speaker is Shane Bullock on “The Beef Feedlot Industry”.  Shane is The Manager of the Jindalee Feedlot at Stockinbingal.  All members are asked to attend to say a big thank you to Shane for his generous donation of Moo Poo.

Wednesday June 8th Last Board Meeting for 2015-2016.

Thursday June 9th BINGO: Henk Hulsman (Capt), Trevor Parkes, Ted Hutcheon, Dick Jennings.

Saturday June 25th D9700 Change Over in Orange Hotel Conobolas.

*Monday June 27th Change Over Dinner at Coolamon. DEFINITE.

*Partners and Guests Night.

Apologies for Monday meetings call Ian Jennings on 0428 492 157  BY FRIDAY 12.00 pm.

ON THE LIGHTER SIDE

PRESIDENT K.R. RAVINDRAN “RAVI”

ROTARACT OUTSTANDING PROJECT AWARD RECOGNIZES INNOVATIVE PROGRAMS

FULL STORY HERE

DISTRICT GOVERNOR GARY ROBERTS D 9700

The 1918 Rotary Convention was held in Kansas City, Missouri, USA. How much do you know about#Rotary Conventions? Take the quiz:http://on.rotary.org/ConventionQuiz

The Win the War Convention

Attendance rose by over 50% at the Convention with 4,034 individuals registered for the Convention and 367 clubs represented. Membership growth had risen by over 6,200 in the last year. The largest attendance in Kansas City occurred when Sir Harry Lauder entertained potential new Rotarians in a crowd of some 13,000.

President Leslie Pidgeon, the first non-U. S. President, in a wonderfully crafted speech addressed the convention on “Rotary as a living force”.

Paul Harris did not attend but (yet again) sent his message. Almost always, secretary Chesley Perry read it out to the Convention. Harris told delegates that there were 3 very available ways for Rotary to project its influence out into the non-Rotarian world. Firstly, by the elimination of all except general interest matter from the columns of ‘The Rotarian’, making of it a messenger of service and by the adoption of the usual means of increasing its circulation among magazine readers in general. Secondly, by the development of the vocational section plan to a point of real efficiency. Thirdly, by holding club meetings to which the public are invited.

Harris concluded his address by writing, “If it is to be the part of Rotary to educate the individual, then in very truth it may be said that Rotarians shall be leaders of men”.

District 9700 Web Site

ROTARY INFORMATION

Goyang City will be hosting the Rotary’s 107th annual international convention, which is expected to attract more than 50,000 Rotary club members from more than 160 countries including Korea, making it the most multicultural nonprofit gathering in Korea.

The convention is scheduled to be held at the Kintex convention center in Gyeonggi Province from May 28 to June 1 and it is estimated to host roughly 25,000 foreign nationals. The Rotary is a global network of volunteer leaders dedicated to tackling the world’s pressing humanitarian challenges.

“In two weeks’ time, Kintex will host the Rotary International Convention, which will not be exclusive to Rotarians, and it is an event that I believe will contribute to Korean society in many ways,” said Rotary Host Organizing Committee chair Yun Sang-koo at a press conference in Press Center Seoul on Wednesday.

Korea Tourism Organization CEO Jung Chang-soo speaks at a press conference in Press Center Seoul on Wednesday for the upcoming Rotary International Convention. (Rotary International)

FULL STORY HERE

RAGES NEWS

About Jane Goodall’s Roots & Shoots from the Jane Goodall Institute on Vimeo.

PROPOSED PARTNERSHIP WITH THE JANE GOODALL INSTITUTE KENYA AND RAGES.

We feel that the potential now exists for RAGES and JGI Kenya to launch a significant community project out of Kenya and by the 4th quarter 2016.  Reaching the JGI East Africa region including Tanzania. Uganda, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

JGI Kenya Jamey Email March 2016

CONSERVATION LIBRARIES

• We start with the most basic level CONSERVATION BOX LIBRARY – simple wooden/metal box table that will house 50 or so books. Then it grows to:

• A CONSERVATION CORNER LIBRARY – 200/300 book version of above but more traditional bookshelves for the corner of any community structure. Which in turn becomes:

• A CONSERVATION WORKING LIBRARY – a structure that serves as library and educational outreach of a variety materials and workshops.

 

 

RAGES WEB SITE       JOIN RAGES HERE.

ONLY IN AFRICA

 

FOOTNOTE

INTERNET SURVEY COOLAMON ROTARY CLUB MONDAY 16TH MAY.

Last night we conducted a quick Internet survey of our members present 15.

THE INTERNET

1.   D9700 Web Site:

How many times do you access D9700 web site?

Daily     0% Weekly   13%  Rarely  40%  Never  47%

Log on with password Yes 34% /No  66%

2.   D9700 Facebook Page:

Have you been on the D9700 Facebook Page?

Yes  13% /No  87%

3.   Coolamon Web Site:

Do you use the Club web site apart from the Weekly Bulletin?

Yes  47% /No  53%

4.   Facebook

Are you on Facebook?

Yes  60%  /No  40%

5.  Do you use the Club Facebook page?

Yes  27% /No  73%

P.S. 100% use the Coolamon web site for our weekly bulletin.

Bulletin Editor and Web Site:  John Glassford