banner
Volume 65 Issue 37                                                       April 21st, 2021
Stories
President Murray's Musings-21 Apr 2021
Oh what a night! For those members, guests and visitors who attended our Rotary Centenary Celebration Dinner at Amora Hotel, I am sure you will agree it was a fantastic celebration of all things Rotary, both the Centenary of Rotary in Australia, but also the 2/3 Century of the Rotary Club of Camberwell.
 
The Amora Hotel provided an ideal venue for our gathering, we were welcomed with a drink at the bar followed by lots of chatter. To open the meeting I read the Ode followed by a minute's silence, to commemorate the men and women who have served our nation in all wars, conflicts and peacekeeping operations. Kerry Anne then read the Acknowledgement of Country.  After the toasts and welcomes, our DG Philip Archer spoke of the amazing Rotary R100 projects focussed on safe families, children's education, homelessness and mental health. The work done by the wider Rotary community (District and beyond) is just amazing. You can't help being a proud Rotarian hearing of such activity in these critical areas of need.
 
 After the meal, the highlight of the evening was our panel of eight senior Club members being interviewed in a "question and answer" session by five of our female members.
The panel of Peter Allen, Michael Blood, Richard Gray, Graeme Hope, Don Jago, Ron Lear, Michael Mullins and Peter Pratt represented an astonishing 264 years of Rotary membership and experience! We were privileged to hear them tell of projects and experiences in response to questions from our interviewers Anita Bejerano, Kerry Anne Frost, Brenda Innes, Kemi Shobowale and Josie Tramonte (an impressive group in their own right!). I could write 10 pages of highlights from the session, but landmark projects such as the Art Show, DIK, FoodBank, Friday Night School, Servants (especially the Les Brown House), Seeds of Peace, Hawthorn Makers Market, Myeloma Australia and ROMP stood out, as did the Club's involvement and support of The Rotary Foundation, Camp Getaway, Rotary Youth Exchange and Rotary Youth Leadership Awards.
 
Specific highlights for me: Michael Blood cast as 9yo soprano Little Bobbie Breen in a joint Club social meeting with RC Horsham; the hard manual work of the Art Show pre-computers and pre-Exponet setting up and dismantling the panels; $66 million worth of goods recycled by DIK; Kerry Anne's poem to Don Jago; the excitement in the Ugandan village when the first DIK container was unpacked; and Geoff Heath and Michael Mullins setting up what became the amazing national FoodBank organisation.
 
With such a wealth of lived experience in the Club, and amazing projects conceived, developed and grown, I realised we need to capture and preserve these memories, and to that end I will raise the need for a Club Historian at the next Board Meeting. Our new website is the ideal location to archive all these stories and photos where available - preserved forever and accessible by all. Volunteers?
 
So a huge thank you to Annie Murphy and her Fellowship Committee for organising such a wonderful event and venue, of course thanks to the panellists and interviewers, and thanks to Fabienne for the original concept. After such a wonderful, uplifting meeting, we should all be proud to be Camberwell Rotarians.
 
Just a few reminders: get your Working With Children card as soon as possible, and send the soft copy your receive to Secretary Fabienne - it's easy as new member Yvonne told us. It's required by District, and most importantly it's now a requirement by Swinburne for all volunteers working at the Art Show. And speaking of the Art Show, I don't need to remind you this is our major fund raiser for the year, it's a massive project and requires the involvement of every club member. We really need to make it a financial success this year to rebuild our almost-depleted Charity account. So please plan your holidays, trips etc so that you are available for the period 5 - 20 July.
 
That's it from me, I will be away in Bright next week so have a good two weeks in Rotary.
Read more...
We celebrated 100 years of Rotary in style
May be an image of one or more people, people standing and indoorMay be an image of 7 people
May be an image of 1 person and suitMay be an image of 4 people and indoorMay be an image of one or more people and indoorMay be an image of 2 people, suit and indoor
Read more...
Our Rotary 100 Projects Featured in the Burwood Bulletin
 Baguia Region Flood Relief - Timor Leste, April 2021
On Thursday evening the 8th April we received advice that the township of Baguia and its surrounding villages in the mountainous area of eastern Timor Leste had been very badly affected by torrential rains which had also caused major flooding in the capital, Dili.
 
Most of the population in the remote Baguia area live a subsistence lifestyle and their food crops had been very badly affected by these exceptional storms. Worse still a bridge on the only road into the Baguia region had collapsed whilst a small truck had been crossing it, resulting in the loss of a local school teacher. 
 
A food shortage had resulted in an increased demand for rice which had risen in price beyond the level of affordability of the local villagers.
 
The RC of Camberwell in conjunction with Consortiums of other Rotary Clubs has been engaged in WASH Projects in the Baguia region for several years, constructing School Toilets and installing Water Tanks.
 
During these projects we have worked from time to time with another group of Rotarians from Western Australian lead by Max Bird from the RC o Kwinana (D9465).
 
Over many years Max has developed a very close working relationship with the Don Bosco Organisation in Laga on the north cost of Timor Leste and we knew that he had 2 utility vehicles which he garages with them. 
 
Max readily agreed to make use of his contacts in Timor Leste and we each agreed to contribute $2,000 toward a $4,000 Food Rescue package.
 
He confirmed the situation in Baguia with Ms Leo Guterres, our local Coordinator in Baguia, who is also the principal of St Josephs High School, a Community Leader and a member of the Rotary Passport Club of Melbourne.
 
Despite difficulties due to electricity, mobile phone and internet outages, Leo was able to provide a list of required Foodstuffs and other necessities to Brother Tomas, the manager of the Don Bosco owned Timor Roofing Co in Baucau who offered to purchase the required Aide Items on our behalf in Baucau.
 
Father Rui at the Don Bosco Centre in Laga made their tip Truck and driver available to transport these Relief Goods to Baguia, where they were unloaded into the Community Centre in Baguia next to the Sub-District Administrator's office and the Police Post, ready for distribution to those in most need by Ms Leopoldina and the Sub-District Administrator, Snr Antonio dos Ramos
 
The very bad condition of the road into Baguia and the weight of the rice and other goods necessitated splitting the goods into two truck loads with the first being delivered on Thursdays the 15th April and the second being delivered the following day.
 
The total cost the of Relief Goods which included the 3 tons of bagged rice and many other items, ended up costing USD $4,926 which is to be shared equally between our two Rotary Clubs. 
 
We did not wish to use any of the "2020 Timor Rotary Consortium" funds in this Relief Effort and the RC of Sydney Cove has very generously offered to contribute $1,000 to our share of this agreement.
 
Enclosed are some photos of the overturned truck & collapsed bridge and of the Relief Goods being unloaded in to the distribution centre in Baguia.
 
Speed was of the essence in dealing with this matter and we wish to thank Max Bird and the RC of Kwinana for making the best use of their contacts as well as Father Rui and Brother Tomas from the Don Boso Organisation and Ms Leopoldina Guterres for her tireless work on behalf of her community.
 
 
Read more...
2021 R I Virtual convention - save the date
 
NOTICE!!!!!
 Rotary Canterbury club  have Katie Allen, the Federal member for Higgins as their guest speaker next Monday.  All welcome.
Read more...
Upcoming Events
Weekly Dinner Meeting
Conochie Hall
Apr 28, 2021
6:00 PM – 7:30 PM
 
Multi-District Conference 2021
on Zoom
May 01, 2021 9:00 AM –
May 02, 2021 1:00 PM
 
Camberwell Sunday Market
Market Place
May 02, 2021
6:50 AM – 1:00 PM
 
Weekly Dinner Meeting
Conochie Hall
May 05, 2021
6:00 PM – 7:30 PM
 
Camberwell Sunday Market
Market Place
May 09, 2021
6:50 AM – 1:00 PM
 
Weekly Dinner Meeting
Conochie Hall
May 12, 2021
6:00 PM – 7:30 PM
 
View entire list
Speakers
Apr 28, 2021
ROMAC - Rotary Oceania Medical Aid for Children
May 05, 2021
Recollections from a 1963 USA Exchange Student with RC Camberwell (Zoom from USA)
May 12, 2021
Telling Tales
May 19, 2021
The Camberwell Sunday Market
View entire list
ClubRunner Mobile
Birthdays & Anniversaries
Member Birthdays
Maria Wiechers
April 17
 
David Troon
April 30
 
Spouse Birthdays
Liz Heil
April 10
 
Margret Baker
April 17
 
Anniversaries
Murray Anderson
Lindy Anderson
April 8
 
Brenda Innes
John Innes
April 14
 
Join Date
Gordon Duxbury
April 1, 1988
33 years
 
Richard Gray
April 1, 1978
43 years
 
Peter Allen
April 3, 1991
30 years
 
Ron Lear
April 3, 1985
36 years
 
Jim O'Hara
April 4, 2001
20 years
 
Murray Anderson
April 11, 2012
9 years
 
Geoff McCormick
April 23, 2003
18 years
 
Teresa Molella
April 24, 2013
8 years
 
Please send your contributions or any general feedback to your 2020-2021 RCC Bulletin Editor Josie Tramonte (lulutramonte2011@gmail.com) or Co-Editor Kemi Shombowale (oluwakemi20shombowale@gmail.com)