OoZoO
Bulletin of the
July 21,
2009
Literacy Month
V50, No. 1
PRESIDENT’S REPORT:
Unexpected?
Surprised? Yes I was during the Changeover when I was asked to leave the room
and change into a "real" Frenchman. Well that is why I decided to play the game
and grabbed a bottle of French wine to go
with my baguette! Thanks to all of you for having made this Changeover a great
evening.
The board had a meeting on Monday 14th. A few dates have been set.
Our Club Assembly will be held at the RSL on Thursday 6th August at
7:30
In the next few days we will firm up the following dates:
Dine Out: Thursday, 20th August (with partners)
D.G Visit normal meeting: Tuesday, 8th September
Vocational Awards Night: 21st October (with partners)
Melbourne cup Day: 3rd November (with partners)
During December: Christmas dinner (with partners and friends)
New Year BBQ: 5th January (with partners)
or the following week.
This
year we would also like to have a Christmas Raffle. We will need volunteers to
sell raffle tickets on the 4 Saturdays
before Christmas. We will only plan a raffle if we
get a minimum of 15 members putting their names down. The decision will be made
as to whether we have a raffle or not at the August board meeting following the
Club Assembly, depending on members’ response.
The Community Service
Committee is also working on different fundraising projects that I will inform
you about as soon as we have more information.
Last
week Charlie Barnett visited the Rotary Club of Yea. Charlie gave them $2,500
from our Club to cover the costs of a year’s membership for 100 plus members to
the Yea Business and Traders’ Association. I received the following letter from
Julie Lynch, secretary of the RC of Yea.
“Hello
Dom,
Attached is a photo of Past President Sandra Hanley accepting the RC of Mosman
cheque from Charlie Barnett yesterday morning. Sandra and I met with Charlie for
a coffee and chat in Yea before Charlie headed off to Flowerdale to meet up with
our club’s Chairman of the Bushfire Recovery Committee, David Long, and have a
look around some of the devastated areas (grassland areas
now
very green after recent rain, house sites have been cleared but forested areas
still showing the impact of the fires, with many stands of trees probably never
to regenerate) and also I believe to view the temporary village set up in
Flowerdale. No doubt Charlie will have taken lots of photos during his visit to
Flowerdale which he will be able to share with you on his return.
Please pass on to your club’s members our grateful thanks for their generosity
and compassion.
The photo of Charlie and Sandra has also been forwarded to the local paper for
publication this week with an acknowledgement of your club’s generosity of
spirit.
Regards, Julie Lynch,
RC of Yea
Dominique Rabu
This week –
Horizons Restaurant, Mosman RS Club. Military Rd. Mosman.
COULD THOSE
MEMBERS WITH SPECIAL DIETARY NEEDS PLEASE ADVISE ERNIE AT THE RS CLUB ON ARRIVAL.
Special diets: Salads either Prawn Caesar or Smoked Salmon or Chicken with
Balsamic dressing.
If you are
an Apology or are bringing Guests, please advise
DOMINIQUE RABU by Monday Voicemail on 0434053052
Guest Speaker: - Matasaki
Moroe, YEP student from Japan.
COMING EVENTS
July 28th |
Catriona Dixon (nee Thornton) – a former YE student to the UK from Mosman years ago |
Aug. 4th |
TBA |
Aug. 6th |
Club Assembly @ Mosman R S Club, 7:30 pm |
Aug. 11th |
Liz McDougall: Rotahome Village in Lautoka, Fiji. |
Aug. 18th |
Returning World Peace Fellow Luke Fletcher |
HAPPY BIRTHDAY
23rd Danny Low
ATTENDANCE TABLE ROSTER
2009
July – Fay Duncan, Philip
Perkins
August – Dieter Beck, Barry Starr
September – Derek Andrew, Bruce McAteer
October – Ian Freeman, Don West
November – Ken Burke, John Melville
December – Danny Low, Terry Orman
2010
January – Seymour Major,
Jim Reid
February – Blair Leslie, Peter Schramko
*
If you cannot attend when rostered, please arrange a substitute.*
* David Waldl has arrived safely
back in Vienna.
* Lianna Fuller-Byrne is on summer holidays from school and has spent a week
in New York City with her host mother and sister and is staying at her host
family’s summer cottage enjoying water sports.
* Nick Kunz has moved to
his third host family in Kanazawa, Japan.
* Malte Alberts is arriving from Germany early on July 25th.
CHANGEOVER
Friday
night, at a black tie dinner in the Grand Hall of Mosman Art Gallery, 77
Rotarians, family, and friends gathered to bid farewell to outgoing President
Jim Reid and to welcome new President Dominique Rabu. For the occasion,
Dominique dressed as a Frenchman wearing a beret and wielding a baguette. For
the coming year, Dominique, who was previously President of the club in Noumea,
is focusing on Fellowship and Fundraising for the many projects which the Club
undertakes both locally and internationally. Special guests included new DG
John and Margaret Cameron, DGN David and Anne Rands, AG Lynn Moore, Mosman Mayor
Dom Lopez and Judy Hinde, and Drs. Bruce and Joyce Conolly and Dr. Peter and
Cassie Scougall who head our hand teams to Vietnam and Myanmar. Many Rotarians
and their partners joined us and it was also lovely to welcome Judy Carroll,
Marion Harding, Peter Schramko’s daughter Sally, and Don and Lynette Campbell.
The lovely table decorations
were done by Colleen Rabu. Thanks to Rotarians Derek Andrew, Norm Brunskill,
and Barry Starr who donated raffle prizes. Our Exchange student Otavio Toretta
(Brasil) and Peter Scougall helped Barry
Starr sell raffle tickets. Prize winners were Derek Andrew, Murray Block,
Colleen Mathews and Clare Stockdale. Catering was by Deb Ainsley.
Our new President Dominique
introduced his new board which includes Yvonne Hazell who not only was our first
lady President but also our first lady Secretary and is now our first lady
Sergeant-at-arms. She did her first fine session of the year. L to R: PP
Barry Starr, PP John Dean, PP Yvonne Hazell, PPC Derek Andrew, Monsieur le
Président, Tony Larnach-Jones, PE Peter Court, Ken Burke and Dieter Beck. The
evening was Magnifique!
SPEAKER REPORT
from July 7th -
Alan Smith
has been working in community development projects overseas since 1961, starting
with Community Aid Abroad and then Freedom from Hunger. He has been involved
with AusAID, World Bank and the Asian Development Bank. Alan has been a Project
Manager and Team Leader of AusAID, ADB and NGO projects for over 40 years,
working in S. and SE Asia. His involvement in community water supply and
sanitation projects started in 1985 when he was the Team Leader of the Rural
Water Supply and Sanitation (WS and S) Project in Lombok, Indonesia, which was
the first AIDAB-funded project in Indonesia to trial participatory methodologies
for delivery of WS and S facilities and environmental health activities at the
community level, working with local NGOs. Since then he has worked in community
WS and S projects in Myanmar and the Solomon Islands, and has recently retired
after 9 years as Team Leader of the Australia-East Timor Rural WS and S Program
(RWSSP), which is also funded by AusAID. By 2015, the target is to supply clean
water to 80% of the country. At the moment, the figure is about 40%.
He told us how the Indonesians, who took over Timor for 25 years, did more in that period in terms of building infrastructure and developing the country than the Portuguese did in about 400 years of occupation. However, during the troubles in the post-independence struggle in 1999, many areas, including Fohorem sub district, had most of their buildings and infrastructure destroyed. We have been helping restore a reticulated water supply to that area. Through the RWSSP, Mr. Smith has been supporting this project.
Alan says there is a lot of scope for more projects which will require funding
from Rotary as well as Rotarians with engineering and building expertise. The
East Timorese government is trying to properly manage their own (oil/gas) money
which will last about 25 years.
East Timor has about 18 universities but none yet produces degree programs that
are internationally recognized. The goal is to have 3 or 4 which will be of a
standard that is acceptable overseas. Students are being sent to places like
Cuba so that they will eventually have 500 trained doctors. There are problems
with nepotism, etc. but the country is still a thriving democracy.
Alan said he was happy to have been part of the Timor-Leste development process
to date. Although retired now, he has been asked to spend a couple of weeks in
Myanmar where AusAID is planning to spend $4 million on water, sanitation and
hygiene (WASH) projects. He would be happy to go to Myanmar, where the needs of rural communities are still
great, particularly in the areas recently devastated by cyclone Nargis.
Vale Bill Carroll
The Rotary Club of Mosman has lost its last
charter member with the death of Past President Bill Carroll last Thursday,
aged 83. Not only was Bill a charter member, but the first interest meeting
was held in his office in his landmark building at the corner of Military and
Avenue Roads. Bill was, of course, a principal of P. Leahy Real Estate, a firm
which has operated continuously under the ownership of Bill’s forebears, Bill
himself, and two of his children since 1890 - older than the Municipality
itself.
Bill was the charter Secretary of the Club and was the last of the charter
members to take up the Presidency, in 1970-71, a year in which the first and
only Rotary International Conference was held in Sydney and our dearly beloved
first Rotaract Club was formed. Until his recent years of poor health, Bill’s
attendance at Club meetings and functions was exemplary. His continuing
involvement was shown when, 30 years after joining the Club, he again became
Secretary to the then President and recently re-inducted member, Peter
Schramko.
As members age and, in some cases their health declines and their involvement
becomes less, it should never be forgotten the service they rendered to the
Club and the community in former years. Bill will be sadly missed. Our
heartfelt sympathy goes out to Judy, a long time friend and supporter of our
Club.
Vale Miriam Butler
Miriam was born in Arding, NSW. Her father
had a property in Arding and her mother was a schoolteacher, devoted to
helping people in the community.
Miriam rode horses to school daily with her sister. She then went to Sydney
University and studied pharmacy. She had a successful business as a
pharmacist in the AMP Building in the City for many years where she worked
with David her husband.
She was inducted into our Club on 25/09/07.
During her recent illness, Miriam showed great strength and courage as she was
confronted with the challenges associated with her illness.
May she rest in peace.
DISTRICT CONFERENCE
Our District Conference in 2010 will be held in Port Macquarie from Thursday, 18
March to Sunday, 21 March 2010
Why talk about it so soon? The hotels/motels and apartments are starting to
fill up rapidly because of the Iron Man competition being held over the same
weekend. It is therefore essential to secure our Club's accommodation as soon
as possible, even though this means having to pay for one night's accommodation
per room/apartment at this early stage, the balance being payable by 19
February2010
To view the accommodation online, visit
www.portmacquarieinfo.com.au
Do not book directly, contact our Club
Conference Chair: Blair Leslie.
You will find attached the hotels, motels and rates so as to be able to give
your preference.
We could even think of sharing apartments. It would cut the cost and we would
have more room.
I hope you can join Colleen and myself and have a good time.
Dominique
mosman@rotarnet.com.au
Ph: 0401563088