Ange’s Chat

Our Zoom meeting last Thursday monthly to further explore ideas for the proposed monthly breakfast meetings went really well. Thanks to Lynda for hosting, to Laurelle for deputising in Andrew’s absence, and to all who participated. Previous points raised about the breakfast meetings were discussed in detail and general consensus reached on our objective and the way forward. The first breakfast meeting at Casey’s Café will be on Thursday 15 April. The next step is to form a Breakfast Committee comprising just a few members to further plan this new venture.

I was delighted to represent the Club at the official opening of the Men’s Shed on Sunday. It was a great occasion; it seemed like most of the town was there. They have built an amazing complex which is a fantastic achievement. Men’s Shed President Bernie Perrett spoke at length and emotionally about the difficulties they had to overcome over some time, especially funding and regulations, and praised the men for their passion and hard work especially during Covid. Bernie also paid tribute to three of their members who died during the last year, all from cancer, Peter Hartley being one of them. The Hartley family has donated a ‘state of the art’ greenhouse to the Men’s Shed. The men are thrilled a horticulturist has now joined their ranks. Other speakers included Member for Bega Andrew Constance and Member for Eden Monaro Kristy McBain.

I joined Bay and Moruya Rotary representatives at a meeting with Moruya Jockey Club Executive Officer Ken Brown on 16 February. The purpose was to discuss moving the Rotary Charity Race Day from the Sunday before Christmas to Saturday 3 April (which also happens to be Easter Saturday) and moving the Narooma Cup to Sunday 19 December (Sunday before Christmas). Ken expects the Easter Race Day would attract over 1,000 people on, apparently similar numbers to previous Christmas Race Days. Batemans Bay and Moruya presidents have agreed to approach local businesses for sponsorship, many of whom have supported us in the past. It was suggested the change from December to April for the Rotary Charity Race day could suit the three Clubs who might have more troops available at this time. Rotary would have buckets at the gate for both this Easter meeting and the Narooma Cup Meeting. Interestingly the proposal is for Rotary to still have the Christmas Raffle raffle at the Narooma Cup on 19 December.

It was fortuitous to have all three Rotary Club Presidents together on 16 February so we also discussed the possibility of a special combined event to celebrate the Centenary of Rotary in Australia. All are keen. At this stage, consensus seems to favour a daytime celebration in Moruya.

Don’t forget our Market this Sunday. There are still some gaps in the roster but hopefully by Thursday night we will have filled it.

THIS WEEK

We welcome Roz Hill from the RC of Young will talk about the Prostate Cancer Support Group. Please invite partners and friends along to hear about this important health issue. Numbers to Rod please by Tuesday PM.

The Week That Was

Our mighty Duo reports from PETS

PE Andrew Lawson and Treasurer Elect Mike Young attended the President Elect Training Seminar (PETS) in Temora last weekend and found it generally informative, well presented and inspiring. Andrew will report to us before dinner on Thursday night. Andrew says they both came away well aware of what is expected of them and with a long ‘to do’ list, including the following “real positives”:

• Incoming Rotary International President is Shekhar Mehta of Calcutta-Mahanagar India. His theme is ‘Serve to Change Lives’.
• Meeting incoming Batemans Bay and Moruya Presidents Nicole McDonald and Chris Manahan respectively. We will work closely together when relevant.
• Incoming DG is Leo Farrelly of RC Belconnen who impressed as being very personable.
• We sat together as Area 6, which stretches to Gerringong in the north, and to the Highlands in the west. Our Area Governor is Adam de Totth from Tuggeranong who is keen for everyone to work together as a large team. We agreed to meet monthly, alternating Zoom and face to face. Venue still to be determined. I look forward to working with Adam and the Team.
• Things to do, currently may be in hand by others, include our Insurance return, and any grant applications from the Rotary Foundation need to be submitted by 31 May.
•  Attendance at the District Conference in March at Bathurst was “very highly encouraged” by Adam de Totth. I think we need to encourage more engagement at Rotary events as new Officers and Members come on board, to enhance their Rotary education. For instance, there is Technology development training school on 21 May, aimed at website and social media skills, and the Club Assembly in Young 15-16 May for Incoming Officers

Out and About

District Conference Bathurst  March 19-21

There is still time to register through the District Website for what promises to be a very interesting weekend, with a program featuring many well-known speakers.

Probus invitation to 30^th dinner

Bermagui Probus Club has invited representatives from our Club to their 30th Anniversary Dinner on Monday 15 March. Is anyone available to go? Our Club sponsored their Club’s formation. Bermagui Probus’ Lorraine Courtis said they realise it is highly unlikely any of the Rotary members from 30 years ago are still active in Rotary, but if possible they would like to have a representative from our Club to join them to present the Certificate sent from Probus South Pacific Ltd to mark the occasion. Four Narooma Probus members will also be going. Please let Ange and Rod know if you can go.

Fred Fawke Recovers and Reuses

Our old friend Fred Fawke of RC Belconnen is currently coordinating the sourcing of roofing to replace roofing damaged in hail storms and its redistribution (Recover, Rehabilitate and Reuse). His team is sourcing supply in Canberra and coordinating recovery through localised contacts for recipients. Fred says to date supply has gone to locals in Tumburumba, Wagga, Temora, Dalton, Bumbalong, Bugendore, Braidwood, Nerriga, Mogo, Moruya and Nerrigundah. Fred recently had a call from Tilba Dairy owners on behalf of a local farmer for sheets of corrugated sheet metal roofing. They, as do others involved in distribution process, trade at Epic Farmers Market in Canberra. Fred will keep us posted.

World sock record for Centenary 

Rotary clubs in District 9650 have embarked on an ambitious project to mark the centenary of Rotary in Australia by constructing the world’s longest washing line of socks. The RC of Taree North has already kicked off a sock collection drive in the Manning ahead of the world record attempt in Port Macquarie; odd socks, old socks, new socks but no surgical socks.

The Clubs aim to build a washing line 10km long with more than 100,000 socks pegged to it, challenging the 2014 world record set by a German group who constructed a 6km washing line with 69,152 socks. Construction of the washing line starts in June. About 1,000 people will then work in small teams to orderly peg the socks using up to 150,000 stainless steel pegs lent by Melbourne business Activated Eco. The challenge will raise funds for Rotary programs in the Port Macquarie area, Australian Rotary Health, Rotary International Foundation and Lifeline.

NEXT WEEK

Cinders Moruya Tuesday 2nd

Please note our Club is off to Moruya on Tuesday for our annual Cinders Trivia Challenge. It’s 6.30 for 7pm at Moruya Golf Club. So far we have at least 13 members and friends going, but we are always keen for more particularly any who are great with ‘trivia’. We will enjoy the Golf Club’s Pizzas with a bottle of wine per table.

Please note there will be no Club meeting on Thursday 4 March.

Ange’s Chat

Narooma-Moruya Rotary and friends Valentine’s Day Car Rally was fantastic with about 40 participants geared up to go. True to form, our El Supremo rally organiser David McInnes tested our wits and directional abilities navigating the streets of Tuross and solving challenging cryptic clues which tested us to the max. The questions over seven pages were highly detailed e.g. ‘find the house number with  fish on the wall’, ‘Go tigers’ was especially cryptic with the answer being a house named ‘Richmond’, and ‘turn left at the Uni’ ( the clue being Monash St). David throws himself into any venture with great gusto, so we really appreciated the huge effort he and Rachel put into this fun event.

The day was aimed at lightening up Rotary after the weird 2020 year and sharing the love with fellow Rotarians and friends as we move through the new year. How lucky were we to have brilliant sunshine to brighten the day. We all appreciated the barbecue Rachel and David put on in their lovely garden and the live music by our wonderful local musicians which all helped make the day wonderful. Prizes were presented to those teams who scored highly on the clues (Narooma’s ‘Santa team’ won overall) and even for the limerick about the rally (Sharlie Young won). Derek Anderson’s team from Moruya won the equivalent of the wooden spoon.

It was great to see Frank and Iris again who were able to get special Council transport to Potato Point.

The last rally car with Chris, Pamela and Rhonda turned up at 5.30pm (!) much to our surprise. They doggedly persevered and finished hungry but happy and were thrilled to win some prizes for their sheer determination.

Thank you again David and Rachel for the superb event you arranged so expertly. You truly are our Dream Team for 2021.

A reminder that our annual Cinders Trivia Challenge with Rotary Moruya is on Tuesday 2 March, 6.30 for 7pm at Moruya Golf Club, $20pp. Please ensure you let Rod know if you are going. We need all the brain power we can muster!

A special request from Bob: can someone please take over responsibility for the markets roster from March through to June.

THIS WEEK

Lynda Ord and Andrew Lawson will co-host a Zoom meeting this Thursday opening at 6.15 for a 6.30pm start to further discuss the planned monthly breakfast meetings at Casey’s Café now scheduled to start 15 April. Members should have received draft notes from last Thursday’s meeting.

Out and About

PETS this Weekend

PE Andrew Lawson and Mike Young are off to Temora this weekend for the President Elect Training Seminar. This will help Andrew prepare for his year as President. It is a requirement by Rotary International and all clubs’ constitutions that Presidents Elect attend PETS. Safe travels Andrew and Mike.

Moruya Rotary newsletter on Centenary

The Moruya Rotary newsletter reports that planning is already underway for an event in May for the three Eurobodalla clubs to recognise and celebrate 100 years of Rotary in Australia.

The first four Rotary Clubs in our Oceania Region – Melbourne, Sydney, Wellington and Auckland – were established almost simultaneously with the arrival in Australia of two Canadians J Layton Ralston and James Davidson, who were charged with getting Rotary started in this part of the world. No doubt the strong and binding ANZAC tradition in 1921 would have been significant with the inclusion of the two New Zealand Capital cities. Their journey to Australia was particularly commendable, taking into consideration the fact that WW1 was still being wound up and the Spanish Flu was still raging in parts of the world.

Moruya Rotarians have now started ‘the gears turning’ towards put our minds towards initiating a function to celebrate what is no doubt the most significant Rotary occasion we will see and experience in our lifetimes. There are a number of ideas floating around and I believe that with the high level of interest in the occasion, we will definitely require a Sub -Committee to focus on producing an extravaganza that will be remembered for years to come.

NEXT WEEK Thursday 25^th

Roz Hill from the RC of Young will talk about the ‘Prostate Cancer Support Group. Please invite partners and friends along to hear about this important health issue. Numbers to Rod please by Tuesday PM.

Ange’s Chat

It was wonderful to hear from our President Elect Andrew Lawson last Thursday as our guest speaker. Andrew entertained us with a fascinating talk in which he unraveled some of the many threads of his life.

Andrew was born in London in 1950 and his family moved to Essex at an early age. He said being a student of the Humanities fashioned him. He attended London Metropolitan Uni where he read Accounting and Law.

Andrew is passionate about many things especially Rugby Union, having started to play 1^st team footie in Year 10. He said he was very fortunate to have been approached by the Harlequin Football Club, the most prestigious Rugby club in England where he played 2^nd and 3^rd grade. An equal love is Folk Music and he spoke with great fondness of a folk club in Essex where Paul Simon was a regular as well as various pop stars. Needless to say he’s a regular at the Cobargo Folk Festival.

Andrew’s long, varied and high level career has spanned the continents.  He started with a chartered accountancy firm. He then dropped tax and audit to work on special projects such as with TNT on acquisition searches, “an enthralling exciting time”. Having then decided public accounting was not for him, he became the Chief Financial Officer for a major UK conglomerate which included, among other things, the UK’s largest bottler of edible oils.

Then he was in the United States for three years sorting out efficiency issues at the company’s Nuclear Maintenance Operations in Virginia. He returned to the UK in 1987 when he started a consulting business with his second wife Maggie which continued until 2007. Finally, he is chairman of a UK company that manufactures ophthalmic equipment in China with an office in Hong Kong, both of which are extremely successful in the current climate.

Family is a vital part of Andrew’s life. He has two children and grandchildren in the UK, so with Covid he has obviously not seen them for a year. He has a daughter supervising bull breeding on a cattle station in Theodore, Queensland and a son (ex ANU) who is an immigration lawyer with Home Affairs in Canberra.

Andrew and Lynn have known each other since teenage years and their paths crossed many times. Lynn moved to Australia in the 1980s. They finally married in 2007 when Andrew moved to Australia; they initially lived in Brisbane. They moved to Wandella five years ago. Their house fortunately survived the bushfires, but not some of their outbuildings. It was during their evacuation to Narooma during the fires that we first met Andrew.

Andrew says he is honoured to be a member of our Rotary Club, as are we to have him join us.

A postscript – Andrew’s Harlequin jumper still fits! He also follows Tottenham Soccer Club, “it’s in the blood”. ­

THIS WEEK

This Thursday

We’re at the Golf Club for a dinner meeting 6 for 6.30pm. Organise next Thursday’s breakfast meeting

This Sunday (14 February)

This is our Valentine’s Day Car Rally when we will be joined by our Moruya Rotary friends. It is being organised by our car rally supremo David McInnes, so it promises to be a fun day.

Time: meet 11.45 above Tuross boatshed/café at corner of Trafalgar Rd and Nelson Pde Tuross Head to scrutineer and head off at noon.

Cost: $20/car (money is pooled for fabulous prizes). David suggests four people per car (driver, navigator and cryptic riddle solvers).

Lunch is a barbecue at Chez McInnes, 88 Long Point St, Potato Point (beef or chicken burgers with salad, some veg) along with live music. Cost $10. Please bring your own chairs, plates, cutlery, glasses and drinks.

If you do get lost (unlikely!), please call David on 0419 863 303.

The Week that Was

From last week’s Board meeting

The board made some major decisions, one prompted by the cost now in using a room at the Golf Club. Many thanks to Bob Aston for providing us with background papers on two major issues for the Board’s consideration. The following decisions were made after considerable discussion, to last until the end of this Rotary year.

Meeting venues and times:

• Meet at the Golf Club each month only on the second and fourth Thursdays. The cost is $27 rather than $22 per person to cover the extra cost.
• Have a Zoom meeting on the first Thursday of the month. That way Frank Eden and Iris can join us as well as David McInnes and PE Andrew if they’re away, and Gordon Bentley if he is home in Dubbo. It also allows us to more readily access some more remote speakers, such as former tertiary scholars and exchange students
• Have Board meetings on the second Thursday
• Trial a breakfast meeting at Casey’s Café on the third Thursday in March (18th), April (15^th) and May (20^th). More details to come
• Any fifth Thursday will be a ‘day of rest’ so no meeting 29 April.

The 2021-2022 Board will review these arrangements.

The Food Van

Bob highlighted the significant issues with our van, such as its age and general neglect. Many Board members are reluctant to do away with the van so it got down to the cost of fixing it compared with the cost of replacement versus alternatives. Various board members undertook to make inquiries re fixing various components while Bob will look at possible replacement cost. They will report back to the next Board meeting.

Out and About

From Bega Rotary

Bega Rotary were finally able to hold their Book Fair last weekend at Bega Showgrounds.  Bega has run the book fair for 12 years and typically holds it twice a year in January and July. It’s the Club’s major fundraiser. The bushfires in January 2020 and then Covid in July postponed the fair until January, but then that was rescheduled for February due to the border closure with Victoria.

Bega Rotarians had all measures in place to respect COVID-19 regulations. The Showground Pavilion was set up with fewer tables and spaced apart to respect the 1.5 metres ruling. Donated books for sale were deemed safe from the virus having been in storage since March 2020.Interestingly, Bega only accepts quality books.

Treasurer of Bega Rotary Charlie Blomfield said the most popular genre in the non-fiction books is cookery and gardening while the most popular genre overall is children’s books. They encourage children’s reading by making the first five books free.

Celebrating 100 years of Rotary in Australia

Batemans Bay and Moruya Clubs are considering geetti g together , possibly somet time in May, to celebrate 100 years of Rotary in Australia. More discussion to come, possibly including with Narooma….

NEXT WEEK

Thursday 18 February: no meeting

The following week, Thursday 25^th: Roz Hill from the RC of Tumut will talk about the ‘Prostate Cancer Support Group. Please invite partners and friends along to hear about this important health issue.

Ange’s Chat

What a delightful Youth Night we had last week, our first formal meeting for 2021. It was a celebration of our youth from Narooma High and their educational endeavours.

Our Tertiary Scholars were our guest speakers and included Elise Dixon (2021), Rory Spurgeon (2020), and Tahlia Arnold. We also heard from one current and one former Scholar who couldn’t make it – Cassidy Kerr (2019) and Carl McEvoy (2015) – who emailed us with an update. More details from our scholars are in the Week that Was.

I was also very impressed to hear from Narooma High Principal Fiona Jackson and the two School Captains Abbey Dawson and Patrick Sly. Fiona gave us a riveting glimpse into the challenging events of 2020 starting with bushfires and then Covid.  Both had a huge impact on the entire school community. Fiona guided students and teachers through it all with the physical, mental and emotional health and safety of them and their families paramount. With Covid came the need to provide school education online which was a mammoth task. She praised her executive, superb staff and students who worked together to adapt to this change.

Abbey and Patrick impressed us with their wonderful student initiatives such as a Diversity Program to address issues such as racism, sexuality and body image at the school. Patrick also mentioned their move to encourage more students to understand Aboriginal culture and for everyone to accept and appreciate each other’s differences. Another key focus of the leadership group is on building greater team spirit across the school.

They were all so inspiring. Makes me realise how appropriate Narooma High’s motto is – ‘Together we soar’.

THIS WEEK Thursday 4 February

This Thursday we’re at the Golfie again.

5pm: our Board will meet to discuss important proposals regarding future Club meetings and the Rotary Van. Vice President Bob Aston will chair this meeting.

6pm: Dinner meeting with guest speaker our very own PE Andrew Lawson who will talk about his life to date. Should be quite fascinating. Please let Secretary Rod know if you will be there and if you are bringing guests.

The Week that Was

Our Scholars star at Youth night

Last Thursday our annual Youth night was unlike previous years being almost completely focussed on our Tertiary Scholars. That was because none of our other Rotary youth programmes ran last year because of Covid.

Bob Aston gave us an excellent summary of the status of our Rotary Tertiary Scholarship scheme which started with a $108,000 bequest from the late Alexander Birch in 1989/1990 to help Narooma High students pursue tertiary studies. This year’s scholar is the 31st student assisted by this scholarship, assistance that has totalled $267,000 so far. Bob pointed out the scheme’s days are numbered because we are now eating well into the capital. He estimates we have enough funds for probably another four scholarships.

We met our 2021 Rotary Tertiary Scholar Elise Dixon. Elise will study for a Bachelor of Medical Science at the Australian National University (ANU). She thanked the Club for this “amazing opportunity”. Elise’s counsellor (club contact) is Lynn Hastings.

Our 2020 Scholar Rory Spurgeon also joined us. Rory is doing a Bachelor of Science Honours degree at ANU. He said the first four weeks of uni were wonderful but then the lockdown hit and he spent two months back in Narooma. Last year was all done on line, except for Chemistry practicals.  He is doing a major in Physics but is enjoying Chemistry so much he may do a Chemistry major.  His other subjects are Maths and Computer Science.  His results were again excellent.  Rory has secured a job as coordinator of his college (Fenner Hall) sports.

Our 2019 Scholar Cassidy Kerr was unable to join us but her counsellor Rod Walker read a short note from her. Cassidy is doing a double degree in Law and Psychology at the University of Wollongong.  She was very pleased with her results last semester, her best to date, achieving two Distinctions and two Credits despite the challenges of online learning. She thanked the Club for its ongoing support.

Tahlia Arnold also joined us and was introduced by her Counsellor, Lynda Ord. Tahlia was awarded a partial scholarship in 2018 and 2019 for her Bachelor of Arts studies majoring in psychology, so impressed was the scholarship panel with her attitude and commitment. She has now completed her degree.

Carl McEvoy, our 2015 Scholarship winner, had hoped to join us but couldn’t because of work commitments but sent a lovely email to President Ange who had been his counsellor. Carl completed a Bachelor of Communications (Media, Arts & Production) at UTS. Carl was employed last year on TV productions Big Brother and The Farmer wants a Wife, but Covid forced the shows to close. Through lockdown he and mates put together a film called ‘Unexpected Guests’ showing at some mini film festivals. Carl is currently employed on another reality show called ‘Australia’s Ninja Warrior’. He is also awaiting the result of an international script writing competition where he advanced to the semi-finals from a field of 2000 competitors.

More on Narooma High Principal Fiona Jackson and the Captains…

Fiona emphasised that communications was key to getting through 2020, particularly through the bushfires, with good information based on experience crucial. The school maintained close contact with bushfire affected families and organised counselling when needed. A lot of procedures Narooma High implemented under Fiona’s leadership have now been adopted by other schools.

She is proud of both staff and students for their resilience and the way they quickly adjusted to teaching under Covid restrictions. Students who had no computer at home were provided with laptops. Years 11 and 12 had four days of face-to-face teaching at a time when most other schools had much less, thanks to a tremendous effort by staff and students.

Current year 12 School Captains Abbey Dawson and Patrick Sly spoke about how the school’s leadership team has been encouraged to implement their own programmes. Abbey described the student initiated Diversity Program within the school to address major issues including racism, sexuality and body image. Patrick spoke of the need for more involvement in Aboriginal learning by getting participating groups to celebrate their history and stories. The team has also initiated a senior school uniform, while Year 12 now has their own designated area with coloured tables to brighten up the place.

(with some contributions from Mike Young)

Out and About

Narooma-Moruya Valentine’s Day Car Rally

Rally organiser David McInnes is planning a great day for us on Sunday 14 February. This will be in conjunction with Moruya Rotarians; it looks like maybe 20 might join us.

Test your wits and directional ability. Navigate the streets of Tuross Head meandering to Potato Point for a BBQ and live music. Along the way find the answers to questions that have not really been asked. Solve riddles that have no answer. Hopefully, you do not get lost!

When: Sunday 14th of February 2021. 11:45am scrutineering, 12pm start

Where: At the meeting of Trafalgar Rd & Nelson Parade Tuross Head, near the public toilets, above Tuross Boatshed and Cafe.

Rally Costs: $20 per car (minimum two people per car, maximum – the number of seat belts!)

BBQ: $10/head BYO refreshments To book: Please email numbers and dietary requirements to davidjmcinnes@gmail.com. Also open to non-members.

News from Philippines Global Grant Project

The Rotary Clubs of Batemans Bay and Intramuros (Manila) are joint partners in a Global Grant Project in the Philippines under the WASH (Water Sanitation and Hygiene) category of the Rotary Foundation. Narooma, along with Yass and Moruya Clubs have provided financial support. Vere Gray of Batemans Bay Club sent this update.

At long last, the project to provide a gravity-fed water supply and toilets to two villages in Barangay Inararo, four hours drive north of Manila, is finally underway.  Visits by Intramuros Rotarians to start the project were delayed because of Covid. However one member who lives in the area has been working hard with various officials to secure the necessary Certificates of Compliance to enable the project to commence, as well as securing the services of a drill team.  From the well, water will be pumped to a storage tank and then gravity fed via a pipeline through the villages.  A toilet will be provided at each outlet point (10 of them). Attached are a couple of photos of the initial visit on 26 January. This is the second Global Grant Project Batemans Bay has done with Intramuros. 

            The Bay’s first joint Project provided 52 toilets in three villages (which Vere visited with Bronwyn Geppert in February 2020 before lockdowns) has won their District 8310 ‘Champion of Champions Award’ for 2019-2020.  A video taken during their visit is on the RC Batemans Bay website.  It’s also been used in the Philippines’ Foundation Training Seminars.  Narooma and Moruya Rotary Clubs are mentioned in the video as financial supporters.

Presidents-Elect Training Seminar (PETS)

President Elect Andrew Lawson and Mike Young are off to Temora 20-21 February for PETS. This will help Andrew prepare for his year as President. It is a requirement by Rotary International and all clubs’ constitutions that Presidents Elect attend PETS.

NEXT WEEK

The format for next week’s meeting will be determined by the Board this Thursday. Details at this Thursday’s meeting. Details will also be in the next newsletter and on our webpage.