My last District Bulletin for 2017-18 - Rotary: Making A Difference
The last District Bulletin for this Rotary year and a very special thanks to our Communications team who keep the information flowing on Facebook - Laura Sommer, District website- Richard Stephen, and the powerhouse worker with a special thank you to the champion of the District Bulletin - Adrienne Murray. Adrienne has done herself proud with gathering and sending out in a timely fashion a monthly District Bulletin with the musing of the District Governor as well as much information that keeps us all informed. The District Bulletin is the one source for the current updates and information about what is happening in the District.
Much achieved in May 18!
As the Rotary year draws to a close we have continued to have an amazing year of Rotary: Making A Difference. This was exemplified by the road show to promote the Rarotonga Mobile Health Clinic with Rotary Club of Masterton South Project leaders David Baker and Dr Rob Irwin as they traveled with the Tranzit modified bus that has been transformed into a Mobile Health Clinic by the talented Paul Snelgrove and his team at Tranzit in Masterton! Heading through stop offs enroute to Auckland for shipping, the Mobile Health Clinic stopped of in Palmerston North, Whanganui, Stratford and Inglewood. Upon reaching the Auckland waterfront it was loaded aboard a ship bound for Rarotonga. It arrived and was unloaded in Rarotonga on May 30th and will undergo final orientation and driver training through the Ministry of Health staff, The final stage of this part of the project will be the official presentation to the Cook Islands government, Rotary District 9920 and the Rotary Club of Rarotonga on June 18th, 2018, by the Rotary Club of Masterton South and Rotary District 9940.
What a way to celebrate Rotary and Making A Difference for the 2017/18 year with RotaFEST 18 - A Festival of Rotary!
11-13 May, 2018 - Palmerston North Convention Centre, Palmerston North Square and WildBase Recovery, The Esplanade, Palmerston North
My vision for this years key Rotary District event in our Rotary annual calendar was to move away from promoting a conference as the reason to come but to encompass a range of activities and events that would ensure Rotarian's had an amazing experience and that we connected Rotary with the community!
After welcoming Rotary International Director Elect Raffy Garcia and his wife Minda, their aides for the weekend PDG Rodney and Ange Wong, we welcomed our special guests and introduced many of our Past District Governors with an evening function on Thursday 10th May at the Coachman Hotel and a dinner at Speights Ale House.
The weekend started for our RotaFEST 18 delegates with a Friday afternoon tour of the WildBase Recovery facility that showcased this world class facility. The facility will ensure that the WildBase Hospital at Massey University Veterinary Science Faculty is able to ensure the native birds and animals that are able to be returned to the wild after injury or sickness. This will be done through this amazing rehabilitation centre, nestled in the Esplanade, Palmerston North
The special event on Saturday of RotaFEST 18 was the Festival of Rotary in the Palmerston North Square. This day attracted the public with a free concert featuring high school youth jazz bands from Paraparaumu, Freyberg and Palmerston North Boys High School. The youth jazz bands made way at lunch time to the Rodger Fox Big Band with great support from Erna Ferry and kiwi legend and music icon Mark Williams. The food trucks provided a great variety of food for the lunchtime conference sessions break. With kids rides and entertainment, the Big Screen TV playing a variety of Rotary videos promoting the good we do in the world, RotaFEST 18 shared with the community and the gathered Rotarian's many Club projects and activities that Rotary is involved in supporting to support lives and communities. Three jammed packed marquees that circled the PN Square featured Rotarian's with programs and their projects that engaged with the community and promoted Service Above Self.
Pictured in Palmerston North with the Rotary Club of Masterton South leaders of the Rarotonga Mobile Health Clinic Project L-R David Baker, Claire Hynd (RC Takaro), Barb Bradnock (RC Milson) and Dr Rob Irwin.
Late President of the Rotary Club of Masterton South, Warren Carter is recognised for his leadership and part he played with the Rarotonga Mobile Health Clinic by a plaque inside the clinic .
The plaque can be seen here on the wall proudly photographed with his daughter Sarah.
And now sailing on its way to Rarotonga. The rest of the story from Rarotonga next month
Just one month to go this Rotary year so please take time to re-visit your END POLIO NOW giving program …
We received a message from senior staff if Evanston this morning reminding us that today (May 31) is the last day for Districts to donate DDF to Polio and be eligible to win a place in the Top 5 Donors in 2017/18. Remember, the USA is almost a day behind in World time .
However, we acknowledge that such lofty goals are not possible if Districts have a successful DDF program engaging in vital grant funded works at home and around the world.
We will be pleased to receive a final report on your Polio giving before the end of June.
· Whilst the request for Districts to allocate 20% of DDF to END POLIO NOW still stands, it is absolute vital that every cent of unused DDF is donated to END POLIO NOW this Rotary year. Please update us on the expect result in your District.
· As reported in our email of May 15, please remind your clubs of the END POLIO NOW goal of $1,500 per club before the end of June – along with the ongoing search for major donors at US$10k each.
A project undertaken by The Levin Rotary club to build a transportable house that could be completed by trades people and sold at Auction to raise money for an appropriate charity has finally come to fruition!
The house project was approved in 2015 by the club, plans were drawn up to build a 103 square metre, three bedroom house, with en-suite. A vacant section in the centre of Levin was made available as a building site and local businesses were canvassed for their support. The response from the community was amazing with offers of building materials at cost or donated, free labour provided by tradesmen and money from fundraisers organised by various business houses, even the local council came to the party waiving the usual fees required for such a development.
Graeme Titcombe, President of the Rotary Club of Karori, has been made an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit (ONZM) in the Queen’s Birthday Honours for services to the home support sector and the community.
Graeme had an extensive career in the electrical and electronic manufacturing and service industries in New Zealand and Australia before becoming CEO of Access Home Health, now Access Community Health. ACH is a provider of homer-based health and disability services owned by Rural Women New Zealand. Graeme was CEO from 1999 until 2015 during which time he led the consolidation of a range of rural support services into a national service and oversaw significant growth in those services in New Zealand. He was President of the New Zealand Home Health Association from 2001-2006.
Within the Karori community in Wellington Graeme was a charter member of the Rotary Club of Karori in 1982, he has been President twice, and is a PHF with sapphire. He has been Treasurer of the Rotary Karori Sanctuary Discovery Area, Chair of the Karori Community Bus since 2007, a founding Trustee of the Karori Community Hall Trust, and provides accounting services for the Marsden Day Care Trust.
(Information provided by David Watt)
Marie Baker, President of the Rotary Club of Whanganui Daybreak has been made an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit in this year's Queen's Birthday Honours for services to lifesaving and swimming. This honour comes on the back of more than five decades of service. She has held roles as an instructor, field officer, education officer, secretary, chief examiner and has travelled the country teaching the discipline to others over the course of her career. Marie has also spent more than a quarter of a century as a swimming teacher and has been a tutor for Swimming New Zealand since 1994. Her decades of service have earned her numerous awards including the Commonwealth Council Service Cross and the Kiwibank New Zealander of the Year Local Hero Award in 2016. She was made an Honorary Vice President of the Commonwealth Life Saving Society in 2014, and is the current president of Royal Life Saving Society New Zealand (RLSSNZ), a role she took on after heading up the Whanganui branch.
After the destruction of the RLSSNZ's national headquarters in the 2011 Christchurch earthquake she undertook the challenge of rebuilding the society, forming a new Board of experienced personnel in late 2011.
She has led RLSSNZ's partnerships with Swimming New Zealand, Surf Lifesaving New Zealand, and Water Safety New Zealand (WSNZ).
As the Society's delegate to WSNZ from 2012 she contributed to the development of WSNZ's integrated sector plan to reduce drowning nationally
.(Information provided by an article from the Whanganui Chronicle)
The Eureka! Trust seeks to grow the the Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) knowledge and develop the communication skills of young New Zealanders. To do this we have created a pathway that starts with Junior Eureka! in years four to six, continues with the Eureka! Video Awards in years seven to thirteen and flows into the Sir Paul Callaghan Eureka! Awards in years eleven to undergraduate. After completing the programme contestants can become part of the Eureka! Alumni
The RCW Eureka! Trust is looking for a National Manager and a National Administrator to work with the trustees to take the Eureka! Programme to the next level.
Job Descriptions for both these roles are available from Francis Weaver convenor@eureka.org.nz
Both positions are part-time and would suit a person who has recently retired or is looking to develop a portfolio of employment.
.Could Rotarians share this message with friends and/or colleagues they feel may be interested in either or both of these positions
At a recent South Wairarapa Rotary Club meeting, five Wairarapa youths reported back about their experiences at Rotary-sponsored courses.
Freya Lewington was sponsored to the Fiji Swimming Championships. The event incorporated team building and personal development workshops which Freya found both challenging and exciting. She managed to achieve some personal best times in her races and in the process, was awarded three bronze medals for her part in the 13-16-year-olds’ relay events.
The Rotary Club of Karori mourns the loss of Bob Murdoch who was a member of the Club for over 25 years. Bob passed away on 10 May aged 76. He provided outstanding leadership in the local Karori community on many projects, namely the redevelopment of Karori Park, with new play areas and seating, the planting of trees at the Park through the Rotary programme of Trees for Survival, and the installing of paver bricks near the Karori Library, a project in which school children and their families donated bricks for the walkway, commemorating the first settlement in Karori and the centenary of the transition of the Borough of Karori to the Wellington City Council 1891-1991. Bob was also a member of the committee leading out on the mural project on the wall by Marsden School.
Bob joined the Rotary Club of Karori in the 1990-91 year and in 2005 he was made a Paul Harris Fellow by the Club for his outstanding community work. In 2009 he was invested with the Insignia of an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit for his services to manufacturing and to the community in the Queen’s Birthday Honours that year.
Bob receiving the ONZM from Governor General, Sir Anand Satyanand, in the Queen’s Birthday Honours 2009.
Prior to his retirement in 2013, Bob worked for the Industry Capability Network (ICN)working across New Zealand and Australia to give suppliers and purchasers access to a range of project opportunities and industry expertise.
Bob was a strong supporter of the Karori Rotary/ANZ business breakfast programme and worked with the Club in its establishment and continuation.
We extend our love and deepest sympathy to Christine and all her family on the passing of Bob.
The International Fellowship of Rotarian Educators is one of RI's newer "professional" fellowships. The website address is www.rotarianeducators.org. As you can see from the website, one does NOT have to be an educator or work in the field of education to become a member - just have an interest in or a passion for education. Membership is available for one year ($20 USD), three years ($50 USD), or a lifetime membership for $100 USD.
Rotarians, family members of Rotarians, Rotaractors, and Rotary Foundation Alumni members are eligible for membership. You can join online from the website by using a credit card or by PayPal.
This has been my final Bulletin after 2 years of sorting, rewriting, checking information, asking if you want an article in or out, asking if we should advertise an event for you, and if not why. And then spending upwards of 5 - 6 hours putting the bulletin together and making sure it looks the best I can make it. Thank you for your support, your contributions and your patience when I didn't get it quite right.
I am signing over to Freya Kerr in Masterton South who will, I am sure do an excellent job and take this bulletin to greater heights.
As the Rotary year draws to a close we have continued to have an amazing year of Rotary: Making A Difference. This was exemplified by the road show to promote the Rarotonga Mobile Health Clinic with Rotary Club of Masterton South Project leaders David Baker and Dr Rob Irwin as they traveled with the Tranzit modified bus that has been transformed into a Mobile Health Clinic by the talented Paul Snelgrove and his team at Tranzit in Masterton! Heading through stop offs enroute to Auckland for shipping, the Mobile Health Clinic stopped of in Palmerston North, Whanganui, Stratford and Inglewood. Upon reaching the Auckland waterfront it was loaded aboard a ship bound for Rarotonga. It arrived and was unloaded in Rarotonga on May 30th and will undergo final orientation and driver training through the Ministry of Health staff, The final stage of this part of the project will be the official presentation to the Cook Islands government, Rotary District 9920 and the Rotary Club of Rarotonga on June 18th, 2018, by the Rotary Club of Masterton South and Rotary District 9940.
My vision for this years key Rotary District event in our Rotary annual calendar was to move away from promoting a conference as the reason to come but to encompass a range of activities and events that would ensure Rotarian's had an amazing experience and that we connected Rotary with the community!
The weekend started for our RotaFEST 18 delegates with a Friday afternoon tour of the WildBase Recovery facility that showcased this world class facility. The facility will ensure that the WildBase Hospital at Massey University Veterinary Science Faculty is able to ensure the native birds and animals that are able to be returned to the wild after injury or sickness. This will be done through this amazing rehabilitation centre, nestled in the Esplanade, Palmerston North
Pictured in Palmerston North with the Rotary Club of Masterton South leaders of the Rarotonga Mobile Health Clinic Project L-R David Baker, Claire Hynd (RC Takaro), Barb Bradnock (RC Milson) and Dr Rob Irwin.
Late President of the Rotary Club of Masterton South, Warren Carter is recognised for his leadership and part he played with the Rarotonga Mobile Health Clinic by a plaque inside the clinic .
sailing on its way to Rarotonga. The rest of the story from Rarotonga next month
Greetings friends,
A project undertaken by The Levin Rotary club to build a transportable house that could be completed by trades people and sold at Auction to raise money for an appropriate charity has finally come to fruition!
Marie Baker
Dear Rotarians
Bob receiving the ONZM from Governor General, Sir Anand Satyanand, in the Queen’s Birthday Honours 2009.
The International Fellowship of Rotarian Educators is one of RI's newer "professional" fellowships. The website address is .jpg)
This has been my final Bulletin after 2 years of sorting, rewriting, checking information, asking if you want an article in or out, asking if we should advertise an event for you, and if not why. And then spending upwards of 5 - 6 hours putting the bulletin together and making sure it looks the best I can make it. Thank you for your support, your contributions and your patience when I didn't get it quite right.