Julie’s Jots

Initially it was a worrying time for our market at the weekend considering the weather forecast, but after a damp start on Sunday morning it ended up being perfect market weather. There were lots of people especially with the holiday weekend. Thank you to all those extra volunteers who rallied to assist us in manning the barbecue and van with a few of us being away. Thank you everyone.

Laurelle Pacey laid our Rotary Club wreath at the town’s Anzac Day morning ceremony at Club Narooma on Friday.

Last Thursday local naturopath Sally-Anne Bertram explain to us just what a naturopath does.  We all enjoyed the night and went away with a better understanding of her role in her patients’ treatments (please see report below).

This Thursday is our May Board meeting. Please note the later time of 6.30pm to try to cater for some of our Board members’ other commitments.

Meanwhile some of our members have been hard at work preparing for the Distinguished Gentleman’s Ride in a few weeks time (the number iof registrations are steadily rising) and of course the Oyster Festival’s Big Breakfast this coming weekend. Our VP David McInnes and Ann Hegerty are major organisers of the Big Breakfast through their Chamber of Commerce involvement.

THIS WEEK

Thursday 1 May 6.30pm: Board Meeting (President Julie has changed it from 5pm to the later time to enable more people to attend)

Sunday 5 May: Our Club will assist with providing some of the breakfasts at Narooma Oyster Festival’s Big Breakfast

The Week that Was

Naturopath and Nutritionist Sally-Anne Bertram’s fascinating talk at last Thursday’s meeting focused on demystifying naturopathy. She stressed it isn’t “some hippy thing”, but based on the oldest forms of medicine.

Sally-Anne is an accredited naturopath and explained the huge range of subjects studies required to become accredited. She said naturopaths take a holistic approach that considers the physical, mental, and emotional well-being of the individual and then use natural therapies to support the body’s inherent healing abilities. These therapies include nutrition, herbal medicine, homeopathy and counselling. Sally-Anne can be contacted through Grandpa’s Garden in Narooma.

Out and About

From Pambula Rotary

It’s always interesting to see how other clubs organise their meetings. For example, Pambula Rotarians meet the 1st and 3rd Tuesdays at the CWA Rooms in Pambula. They hold meetings and social dinners on the other Tuesdays at various venues in Pambula, Eden and Merimbula, all within half an hour of Pambula.

From Batemans Bay Rotary

Batemans Bay Rotary is having a free Staying Safe Online seminar this Wednesday hosted by the CommBank Batemans Bay Branch.  Bay Rotarians will learn how to:

• Identify scams and suspicious links
• Protect themselves from scams and fraud (online and telephone)
• Create strong passwords and keep them secure
• Safely access online banking
• Stay digitally safe while travelling.

From Moruya Rotary

In the latest Moruya newsletter, with the approach of the end of the Rotary Year, Moruya President Allan Veness reflects on what their Club has been able to achieve over the year. “The Club has not only survived, but it is now in a stronger position than before. We have a net increase in membership and we have raised our profile within the local community. However, one area still causes us concern. The running of the kiosk [at the race course] is our main source of funds which finances our donations to community groups. Without this income, our club would not be able to do a lot. As our membership slowly ages, filling the work roster for each meeting is becoming more difficult.”

NEXT WEEK

Wednesday 7 May: Narooma Prostate Cancer Support Group 6.30pm Narooma Golf Club – Cancelled

Thursday 8 May: Club Dinner and Induction of our first Corporate Members – the Commonwealth Bank Narooma Branch with Naomi Brown, Julie Drummond and Victoria Wilkin. 6 for 6.30pm

Julie’s Jots

Last Thursday’s Business Networking Breakfast delivered interesting insights into the challenges faced by those working from home, remote from their work office (see below), as well as the benefits. It also attracted what was possibly a record attendance.

Last Thursday I attended the monthly meeting in Moruya of the Carer’s Accommodation committee for the new Eurobodalla Regional Hospital. The Hospital’s construction is on track and the committee is looking at new ways of raising money to fund construction of the Carers’ Accommodation.

Don’t forget we have the Market this week. Our new market banner is now on show at the roundabout. Thank you Rachel for the design and Laurence for the donation. Looks good!

THIS WEEK

This Thursday 24 April

Our Dinner Speaker this week is local naturopath Sally-Anne Bertram who will ‘Demystify Naturopathy’. Hopefully we will get a few extra people along to hear her.

Sally Anne has practised as a naturopath at Grandpa’s Garden since 2021. She is a general practitioner treating men, women and children with asthma, allergies, women’s health issues, men’s prostate, autoimmune etc. She uses herbal medicine, nutrition, diet and homeopathy. Sally-Anne has been a lecturer in herbal medicine, nutrition and clinical studies and was Head of Natural Therapies at the then well respected Nature Care College, and a clinical supervisor for over 10 years.

This Sunday 27 April

Narooma Rotary Markets – all hands on deck please. A few of our members are away so we will need all the help we can get.

The Week that Was

Last Thursday’s Business Networking breakfast, with a panel on Hybrid Working and Working Remotely, gave us all greater insight into what is becoming quite a normal way of working post Covid. While technology enabled it and Covid showed the way, it was the realisation that it’s possible to combine lifestyle without sacrificing careers that has seen this way of working flourish. Online Teams meetings are key. Cat Leach of Catfish Creative has summarised the meeting succinctly with a wonderful ‘live scribe’ done during the meeting.

Here are some highlights.

Françoise Cleret is Director of Cyber Security with the Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water in Canberra. She spends about a week a month in Canberra; the rest working from home. Her skills are particularly in project management. She manages a team of 24 people who she has organised in four teams. Her biggest challenge is getting the right teams together that are able to work from home because it’s not for everyone. Another challenge is managing personalities.

Meredith Macpherson is Water and Regional Development Manager with the Central NSW Joint Organisation (CNSWJO), an organisation of 11 Councils and 1 water county council. Reliable internet is possibly her biggest challenge. She’s one of a team of nine, six of whom work remotely; she has a staff of one. Her office is in Bathurst. They meet online for an hour twice a week. Regular face-to-face meetings have fallen by the wayside replaced with frequent Teams meetings; over time Teams meetings have become more productive and meaningful. She travels to her region every 4-6 weeks and tries to coordinate all face-to-face meetings for that time.

Oliver Batten works with Destination Store a small team of seven destination specialists all of whom work remotely. Remote working allows him to juggle family life with work and noted the need for transparency. They do have an office in Surry Hills and they physically get together every quarter. Oliver works all over Australia in destination strategy, branding and managing online content. He uses the Fish Tank co-working space in Narooma.  

Graham Martin‑Dye is a Grain Broker with Delta Grain Marketing, working miles from any grain producing area. Regular communication with his grain producers and buyers is key. Reckons it was his 10 years working in the Harden area and his strong work ethic recognised by Delta that convinced the company he could work remotely and maintain the trust of his producers and buyers.  Graham also uses the Fish Tank one or two days a week.

David McInnes is a self-employed Consultant Geophysicist operating across Australia and overseas. Many of his clients are physically very remote in mines etc. His challenges are having the computer and internet capacity to handle up to 60GB of data. One of his biggest challenges is the lack of other geophysicists in the local area.

Out and About

Narooma Oyster Festival Big Breakfast

This is on the Sunday of the Oyster Festival 4th May, being organised by the Chamber of Commerce. Rotary is one of a number of organisations charged with delivering the breakfasts to several hundreds of Festival goers. If you can help, please contact David McInnes or Ann Hegerty if you haven’t already done so.

The Distinguished Gentleman’s Ride

Plans are coming together, the number of registered riders are slowly growing as are donations. So here’s hoping for a great weekend 17-18 May. It will be a busy month with the Market the following Sunday.

NEXT THURSDAY 1 May

Board Meeting 5pm TBC – Julie is reviewing – may not have a quorum for this date.

Julie’s Jots

Last Tuesday was another great day when Ange, Chris and I attended the annual Rotary Youth Driver Awareness programme in Moruya.  We accompanied the 140 Narooma High and Bateman’s Bay High Year 11 students on Tuesday.  It’s always a learning experience for both the students, teachers and volunteers.   This was my third year volunteering and I always come away knowing something I didn’t know before.

Planning for the Distinguished Gentleman’s Ride is coming along well, thanks to Françoise and her team. I have put up posters in Bermagui this week and others are doing the local area.

We only had a small number at our Club Dinner last Thursday because quite a few members are away.

This Thursday is our Business Breakfast with an amazing 43 people booked to hear a panel five people speaking about the challenges of working remotely. We have such a great regular Rotary team who sets up and packs away each month; it’s a well-oiled operation. Thanks everyone.

THIS WEEK

Thursday 17^th 7am: Our Rotary Business Networking Breakfast with a panel on the challenges of working in this area remote from the office . Surf Club 7am sharp.

Saturday 19^th: Rotary Easter Saturday Races at Moruya – all proceeds to CAERH.

The Week that Was

RYDA again a great success

Over 300 Year 11 students from the five Eurobodalla high schools attended the two-day Rotary Youth Driver Awareness (RYDA) programme last week at Moruya Jockey Club, the first organised by new coordinator Pam Williams of Batemans Bay Rotary.  

The three Rotary Clubs in Eurobodalla Shire collaborate on this wonderful service program with Moruya providing a wonderful lunch, Batemans By morning tea, and all Clubs providing volunteers and student transport.  This was the 17th year of delivering RYDA in Eurobodalla, with 3,500 students benefitting from the programme in this time.

Out and About

Encouraging DG Riders to make a weekend of it

We’re encouraging anyone coming to Narooma for the Distinguished Gentleman’s Ride (DGR) on Sunday 18 May to think about making a weekend of it. Our DGR coordinator Françoise Cleret says speakers on Saturday night will talk about ‘Looking After Blokes’, showing how physiotherapy and pharmacy can work together to support men with prostate cancer, and in turn, their carers. Everyone’s invited, not just motorcyclists.

Pharmacist Brad Butt and physiotherapist Jamie Boulding from Canberra have expert knowledge, experience and training in men’s urological health.They’ll explore how early intervention, the right tools and a team approach can make a big difference. Please spread the word.

Special accommodation discounts on early bird bookings have also been organised for that weekend with Easts Holiday Park, Surf Beach Holiday Park, Whale Coast Realty and Ben Bate Real Estate.

Bega Rotarians and ANU students dance

Some neighbouring Rotary Clubs have a long and productive association with ANU Medical students training at our local hospitals. Last month Bega Rotary organised a very lively and enjoyable evening for ANU first year medical and psychology students at an old-fashioned bush dance at Kameruka Hall, part of their annual program of student experience in Bega. Twenty-three students spent four days in the Bega Valley gaining firsthand experience of a rural lifestyle; the idea was too encourage them to consider employment in the area once they are qualified.

This event was also for GPs new to the area, local medical staff, fourth year medical students and students on longer placements in the area. Bega Rotary supported the event by providing the BBQ for a total of 100 people ably assisted by hospitality students from the Sapphire Coast Anglican College. The next day Bega Rotary also supported medical students who were offering free blood pressure tests in Bega.

NEXT Thursday 24^th April

Our Dinner Speaker will be local naturopath Sally-Anne Bertram who will ‘Demystify Naturopathy’.

Sally Anne has practised as a naturopath at Grandpa’s Garden since 2021. She is a general practitioner treating men, women and children with asthma, allergies, women’s health issues, men’s prostate, autoimmune – you name it. She uses herbal medicine, nutrition, diet and homeopathy. Sally-Anne has been a lecturer in herbal medicine, nutrition and clinical studies and was Head of Natural Therapies at the then well respected Nature Care College, and a clinical supervisor for over 10 years.

Julie’s Jots

Last week’s Board meeting decided to donate $1,000 to ShelterBox for the earthquake affected areas of Myanmar. International disaster relief charity ShelterBox provides emergency shelter to those left homeless due to some disaster.

The Board also agreed to sponsor two Year 9 students from Narooma High to this year’s Rotary Youth Programme of Enrichment (RYPEN); this year it’s in Sutton, ACT. Should that all go ahead, we can look forward to hearing reports from these students in late May.

Françoise also brought the Board up to speed on the DGR – see above poster and the report below.

This Tuesday Ange Ulrichsen, Chris O’Brien and I will join Narooma High Year 11 students to help out with Rotary Youth Driver Awareness (RYDA) at Moruya Jockey Club. Our Club is paying for the two buses to transport students using funds raised from cooking breakfasts for the recent Honda Goldwing bike gathering.

I invite all Club members to a planning day for the new 2025-2026 Rotary year on Saturday 31 May at 2pm at Club Narooma. All Club members are encouraged to attend and have their say in what they would like to see our Club achieve.   If you are unable to attend, please write something down and submit it so that you don’t miss this opportunity 

THIS WEEK

Tuesday 8 April: Narooma High Year 11 students will attend the Rotary Youth Driver Awareness programme at Moruya Jockey Club, accompanied by three Narooma Rotarians.

Thursday 10 April 6 for 6.30pm: Club Dinner at Narooma Golf Club

The Week that was

Club ramps up for DGR next month

Françoise Cleret brought the Board up to date last week with plans for this year’s Narooma’s Distinguished Gentleman’s Ride (DGR) for Prostate Cancer and Men’s Mental Health (Sunday 18th May). It’s our second and is shaping up to be even bigger and better than last year’s.

Last year 73 riders from Batemans Bay to Merimbula (many on classic or vintage styled motorbikes), ‘dressed dapper’, and raised $10,967 for these great causes. This year we’re expecting more.

Our DGR will be one of over 900 DGRs across 104 countries held that day. Francoise said they bring people together to celebrate these bikes and the ‘gentlefolk’ who ride them, men and women, while celebrating the power of community and making a lasting impact on men’s health worldwide.

All riders must register online before 18^th May to take part and ‘dress dapper’. www.gentlemansride.com/rides/australia/narooma.  Should you wish to donate to the Narooma DGR, please also go online and support one or more registered Narooma riders or pillions. 

We’re also encouraging riders to come for the whole weekend with special accommodation deals, and we have special speakers organised for the Saturday night. More in the next Beacon

Recent District PETS and Club Development Day

Laurelle reported on some highlights for her at the recent District Day at Broulee, particularly the Membership session. DGE Rob Shore said on several occasions through the day: “Make sure every Rotarian in your Club is happy and proud to be a Rotarian. Get that right and our membership will grow.”

The membership session was presented by Simon Bernhard Yass Rotary President, up to that week the fastest growing club in the District. “ A couple of ‘memorables’ from Simon – “Membership is a marathon not a sprint.” “Membership doesn’t end with someone signing up… The total number of engaged members is what is most important.”

Laurelle also did a presentation on our Business Networking Breakfasts.

Out and About

After much negotiation, Moruya Rotary PP Shirl Cornish is off to the Philippines with two other Rotarians this week to finalise a Rotary Global Grant. This will be to support Roots of Health, a second generation US NGO with 44 staff, whose USAID funds were recently cut. Their programme has reduced the pregnancy rate in Puerto Princesa by 60%.

NEXT THURSDAY 17 April 7am

Our Business Networking Breakfast on the 17th will explore the challenges of remote and hybrid working from our area. Being able to work from home remote from the office has been a huge life-changer for many people, giving them the flexibility of combining their desired lifestyle with good jobs. It’s increasingly evident in our area. We will have a panel of five speakers.

1.  Meredith Macpherson, Manager of the Water Utilities Alliance with Central NSW Joint Organisation (CNSWJO) – an organisation of 11 Councils + 1 water county council

2. Graham Martin‑Dye, Grain Broker with Delta Grain Marketing

3. Françoise Cleret, Director of Cyber Security with the Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water in Canberra.

4. Oliver Batten, Lead Destination Strategy & Impact with Destination Store. (DS is a small team of destination specialists)

5.  David McInnes, self-employed Consultant Geophysicist with Montana GIS, operating across Australia and overseas.

Our Business Breakfasts start at 7am sharp at Narooma Surf Club (upstairs – finishes at 8). We will start the panel at about 7.15 to allow time for questions at the end. Bookings by COB Monday 11 April via Laurelle are essential (Breakfast $10). If you know someone who works remotely in our area, please invite them but make sure they book in (to ensure both breakfast and a chair!!)

Julie’s Jots

March has been a busy but very successful month in every sense. My thanks to our wonderful team for all their hard work. It’s wonderful to see Ann driving again after her recent surgery and relishing her return to independence. We all wish Gordon and Di Bentley a quick recovery from Covid, and Gordon also a full recovery from his recent surgery. We’re all thinking of you.

Last week sounds like it was a fascinating night with a focus on Cobargo moving forward post fires. Thank you to Ronnie Ayliffe for her talk on the new Cobargo Resilience Centre currently under construction.

Our Business Networking Breakfast on 17 April promises to be really interesting when a panel of five business people will talk about the challenges of remote and hybrid working from our area.

Also this month we’re ramping up for the Distinguished Gentleman’s Ride (DGR) on Sunday 18 May, thanks to Françoise Cleret and her team. It promises to be even more successful than our first DGR last year. Hope you can help on the day.

THIS WEEK

Wednesday 2^nd April 6.30pm at Narooma Golf Club: Prostate Cancer Support Group

Thursday 3^rd April 5pm at Narooma Golf Club: Board Meeting

The Week that Was

Last Thursday Ronnie Ayliffe spoke passionately about the new Cobargo Resilience Centre (CRC) currently under construction on the western side of Cobargo’s main street. Ronnie is Vice Chair of the CRC Committee which is the primary recovery project for Cobargo’s main street. The buildings previously on this site were destroyed in the bushfire five years ago.

Construction is funded by a grant from the Bushfire Local Economic Recovery Fund. The architect is TAKT Studio. The CRC will include a small exhibition space, a commemorative courtyard, a retail outlet for work by local artisans with the themes of resilience and hope, and a theatrette with capacity for 30. There were many questions; discussion continued after the meeting including about how the community could come together to make best use of the new centre.

Out and About

On RYDA next week

Our wonderful Rotary Youth Driver Awareness (RYDA) programme is on next Monday and Tuesday at Moruya. Narooma High Year 11 students will attend on the Tuesday; Narooma Rotary is funding the two buses to transport them to and from the venue, and 3 of our Rotarians will be volunteers on the day. Batemans Bay Rotary provides morning tea; Moruya Rotary lunches.

Moruya Rotary’s newsletter explained RYDA rather well. It aims to reduce the number of teenagers killed and injured on our roads each year. The RYDA programme is a one day school excursion which involves six interactive sessions presented by professional facilitators.

The sessions include practical demonstrations of speed and stopping and hazards and distractions; discussions about rights and responsibilities and personality and its effect on decision making, as well as a powerful presentation by a speaker about the crash that changed their life. The programme provides students with the knowledge, skills and attitudes that will contribute to their safe and responsible behaviour as drivers and passengers.

ShelterBox to Myanmar

International disaster relief charity ShelterBox is responding to Friday’s 7.7 magnitude earthquake in Myanmar which has also affected Thailand, China, Bangladesh, India and Laos. Buildings collapsed and homes destroyed leaving many people homeless and isolated. A rare plea for international humanitarian aid has been made by Myanmar authorities.

ShelterBox is sending an assessment team to Bangkok but its focus would be on Myanmar. They will look at what’s been happening, where the needs are, and how they could get aid to the affected population.

ShelterBox CEO Sanj Srikanthan said the charity had “a lot of work ahead” but it was “absolutely essential” to provide emergency shelter to keep people safe. ShelterBox has launched an emergency appeal as support was “crucial in making this response possible”.

NEXT WEEK

Tuesday 8 April: Narooma High Year 11 students will attend the Rotary Youth Driver Awareness programme at Moruya

Thursday 10 April: Club Dinner