At Thursdays meeting we discussed the current project expenditure vs budget in each committee. At the start of the year we budgeted to spend $64,050 during the year, and YTD we have only spent $24011. The purpose of this review is to ensure that we do spend the budgeted amount, so that we reduce our surplus funds by about $15000 over the year. As we are three quarters of the way through the year, we must review all current and planned expenditure so that any surplus can be used for worthy projects.
Our review showed that we will have at least $7000 that can be applied to new projects this year due to budgeted items not eventuating. Can all members please forward ideas for worthy projects to your Service Directors so that we can evaluate the projects against the matrix and apply the funds before year end.
As club members will be aware, we annually sponsor the Junior Leadership Seminar which will be held on Friday May 1st at the Geelong Football Club. This Seminar is an opportunity for Rotary to discuss the leadership role of Rotary in our community and throughout the world. We are involved because we support development of young leaders. The Seminar focuses on the student
leadership group who are about to make the transition from primary school to secondary school. The Seminar focusses on the challenges ahead for these young people and how leadership skills are required in students and citizens of the future. The Seminar will involve 70 students from the leadership teams of 17 Geelong primary schools and 4 secondary school leadership teams who will discuss the challenges ahead for students making the primary-secondary transition . This is a golden opportunity to see leadership development in action. Club members interested in young people are encouraged to attend. The session runs from 10am to 2:15pm in the Alex Popescu room at Kardinia Park.
I wish also to put on record the fine work done by Linda Kelly in organizing students for the Rotary Youth Leadership Award camp over the week following Easter. Linda transported 6 attendees from Geelong and was instrumental in encouraging via the District RYLA committee, some 15 Geelong young people to attend this life changing event. Well done Linda.
Next Thursday we have a very special Anzac meeting. Bart Ziino is a Deakin historian who will give us a new perspective on the massive impact on the home front in Australia from the Anzac sacrifice. See you all there.
To commemorate the Gallipoli landing we had a simultaneous service at all of our Christian College Campuses. I attended the one at Middle school service and I noticed several things. Firstly, the students all seemed genuinely interested, respectful, well-behaved and quiet. Hardly something which would be expected of those in years 5 to 9. Whether respect for the occasion (which is what I think it was) or respect for the visitors (mostly from the RSL) I don't know.
When it came time to sing the hymn "Abide with me" it seemed only the staff were singing - and that wasn't because the students didn't want to - they just didn't know it. That made feel old and somewhat irrelevant in the world which is being shaped by these youngsters.
The guest speaker at Middle campus was Andrew Grills - and he brought a completely different view of Anzac Day from that I have ever heard before. Firstly a bit of background. He was resplendent in his Army Captain's uniform. We heard that he was The Defence Force Academy dux-turned-infantry officer-turned-intelligence analyst and had an almost certainly glittering career ahead of him. But had then taken a different path, reinventing himself as an army chaplain. He is now in the reserves as a chaplain and working as a pastor at "The City On A Hill" which meets at Kardinia Park every week. He spoke in such a way that his message was easily understood by and meaningful to all there - from youngest to oldest. He asked why we should be celebrating an occasion which was basically a disaster - why not celebrate a successful campaign ? Why celebrate the ANZAC contribution when there were far more British, French and other forces involved in the same action ?
He answered these questions by saying that this was the first occasion when Australian and New Zealand troops had joined together as a unit - on all previous occasions the tended to be individual units from Victoria, NSW and so on. It was also true that because of the number of casualties, everyone "pulled together" in helping their companions to survive wherever possible. In celebrating Anzac Day we recognise the comradeship which epitomises what we like to think is still the "Aussie spirit". What is that Aussie Spirit ? McCrindle research says it can be summarised in 5 words, Pride (in our country), Fun, Teamwork, Community, Freedom - and those characteristics were pretty much echoed in Andrew's presentation. He wasn't glorifying war - in fact the opposite. And of course that phrase from the Bible "Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends" comes to mind although he emphasised that it is not necessary to physically die to achieve this - although those at Gallipoli actually did.
We now have sufficient members who have volunteered to be hosts for the Guess Who's Coming to Dinner event to enable it to proceed; it will be held on Sat 23rd May from 6.30 pm (Geelong play on the Friday night.)
Note that this will be in place of our normal meeting so it is important that you notify me whether or not you are attending.
It is a partners' night but that does not preclude members from attending on their own. Please notify me of any dietary requirements that you may have, so that the hosts can be alerted in plenty of time.
Attendance should be notified at least two weeks before the event so that we can work out who will travel to which host's place.
For those who have not attended one of these events before it is usually great fun and gives you a chance to meet other Rotarians in a convivial atmosphere. Guests pay the host the normal Rotary dinner amount, $30/head to cover the cost of the meal.
As you know, on May 7th we have a very special meeting with two outstanding guests - Lord Mayor of Melbourne Robert Doyle & Mayor of Geelong Darryn Lyons, with Ian Cover acting as Moderator.
All the Rotary Clubs of Geelong & District have been invited to attend, together with the Geelong Lions. This is also a joint meeting with RC Corio Bay. District Governor Elect Jane Cox and Assistant Governor Ross Taylor with his wife Elizabeth will also be attending.
The absolute maximum capacity of Lyndon Grove is 180 people and whilst that seems like a big number, from the bookings that we have already, we may fill the room with guests.
So, in order to make sure that no Highton Rotarians and guests miss out on a seat, could you please advise Ross Lamont of your attendance by no later than April 27, and earlier if you can. Ross' email is bandrlamont@bigpond.com, or phone 0409 232 630.
I just wanted to let you know that we have completed our tallies for this year’s Red Cross Calling. The members of the Highton Rotary Club once again made a valuable and much appreciated contribution by collecting $1,125.45 out of a total of $6,705.00 for the Highton area.
Unfortunately this total was quite a bit short of the totals of previous years. Perhaps just a sign of the times!
Many thanks for your help, I hope that we can call on your support in 2016.
As we near the end of the Rotary year it is now time to call for nominations to make Paul Harris Fellow recognition to a member or members for 2014/15.
The nomination can be for either a Paul Harris Fellow or a sapphire as an addition to a PHF previously awarded.
Nominations should be forwarded to Paul Brewster who will head up this year's committee. Any nominations should have a covering letter spelling out what the nominated member has been involved in and why the nomination is being made.
Nominations should be forwarded by the end of this month to enable sufficient time for the Secretary to receive the relevant medallion etc before the changeover dinner at the end of June.
In accordance with the Bylaws of Rotary International and in particular Article 13 , Section 13.020.2 the candidate named below was nominated , and in the selection process conducted on Saturday 11th April 2015 was selected by the District 9780 Governor Nominating Committee as nominee for District Governor 2017 - 2018.
PAST PRESIDENT RAY HERBERT OF THE ROTARY CLUB OF MOUNT GAMBIER WEST INC
Any objections must be lodged in accordance with the protocols set down in the Manual of Procedure and be done so within 14 (fourteen ) days of the date of this message (April 12th 2015) addressed to Past District Governor Chris Sims.
If there are no objections received by this deadline, then as District Governor, I will declare the unchallenged nominee to be the official District 9780 nominee for District Governor 2017 - 2108.
12 April marked 60 years since Jonas Salk’s inactivated polio vaccine (IPV) was launched, enabling children to be protected against polio for the first time.
The Strategic Advisory Group of Experts on Immunization (SAGE) is meeting this week in Geneva, and will review the current epidemiological situation for polio and provide updates on readiness for oral polio vaccine withdrawal.
A 5-day nationwide polio immunization campaign targeting 5.8 million children began in Iraq on 12 April. It is over a year since the last case of polio had onset of paralysis in Iraq, and the new campaign aims to vaccinate every child under 5 throughout the country.
National Immunization Days are planned in Madagascar on 27 April to 1 May.
Wild poliovirus type 1 and Circulating vaccine-derived poliovirus cases
Total cases
Year-to-date 2015
Year-to-date 2014
Total in 2014
WPV
cVDPV
WPV
cVDPV
WPV
cVDPV
Globally
22
0
61
8
359
54
- in endemic countries
22
0
52
8
340
51
- in non-endemic countries
0
0
9
0
19
3
- See more at: http://www.polioeradication.org/Dataandmonitoring/Poliothisweek.aspx#sthash.s40H6Qkc.dpuf
Experience does not err; only your judgments err by expecting from her what is not in her power. - Leonardo da Vinci, 1452-1519
Courage is the first of human qualities because it is the quality which guarantees all others. - Winston Churchill, 1874-1965
Each day I look for a kernel of excitement. In the morning, I say: "What is my exciting thing for today?" Then I do the day. - Barbara Jordan, 1936-1996
Ian MacDonald - our honorary member - has a birthday on 17th. Happy Birthday Ian.
Malcolm John joins the birthday greetings with a birthday on 19th, and Audrey Hunt on 22nd.
Then we move on to wedding anniversaries with Linda & Glenn Kelly celebrating on 21st and David & Marta Sinclair on 23rd.
With Anzac Day coming up, here are a few Aussie Jokes to test your sense of humour.
What do you call a boomerang that won’t come back? A stick.
Why do momma kangaroos hate when it rains? Their joeys have to play inside.
What animal can jump higher than the Sydney Harbour Bridge? All of them, bridges can’t jump.
Why did the crocodile cross the road? He was following the chicken.
Why did the emu cross the road? To prove he wasn’t chicken.
What do you call a platypus trapped under a rock? A flatypus.
How many Australians does it take to screw in a light bulb? 16. One to change the bulb and 15 to say “Good on yer, mate!”
What do you call a bunch of Barbies standing in a row? A Bar B Queue.
A Texan farmer goes to Australia for a vacation. There he meets an Aussie farmer and gets talking. The Aussie shows off his big wheat field and the Texan says, “Oh! We have wheat fields that are at least twice as large”.
Then they walk around the ranch a little, and the Aussie shows off his herd of cattle. The Texan immediately says, ” We have longhorns that are at least twice as large as your cows”.
The conversation has, meanwhile, almost died when the Texan sees a herd of kangaroos hopping through the field. He asked, “And what are those”?
The Aussie replies with an incredulous look, “Don’t you have any grasshoppers in Texas”?
Ride the Bellarine - an outstanding success - and a personal triumph for some !!!!
As you know, on May 7th we have a very special meeting with two outstanding guests - Lord Mayor of Melbourne Robert Doyle & Mayor of Geelong Darryn Lyons, with Ian Cover acting as Moderator.
.jpg)
