8th June, 2011
Notice for the meeting at Club Grove, Tuesday 14th June, 6.00 for 6.30
Subject The prostate Enigma Speaker Mr Richard Grills [Geelong urologist & surgeon]
Chairman John Dodgshun Assistant Cashier & Thanker Colin Brown
Greeter & Assistant Sergeant Coral Barker Birthdays 14th Marion Walton 16th Geoff Ford, Jan Brentnall
We will be joined for this meeting by the members of RC Queensciffe. If you plan to bring guests, please register on our hotline by mid-day Monday. President Noel has advised that there are still members who do not attend and have not apologised. They will be expected to reimburse the club for the price of their meal. This is a long-standing requirement! Due purely to space logistics, this is not a partners’ night!!
On a poster at Kencom: “Are you an adult that cannot read? If so, we can help.”
Notice for the meeting at Club Grove, Tuesday 21st June, 6.00 for 6.30
Subject 4th/19th Prince of Wales Light Horse Speaker Dr. David Holloway, author of the definitive history of the Brigade – ‘Endure and Fight’ Chairman Phil Edwards
Assistant Cashier & Thanker Rod Birrell Greeter & Assistant Sergeant Rod Bush
Birthdays 22nd Geoffrey Cummins
In a city restaurant: ‘Open seven days a week and weekends’.
President Noel has made an earnest attempt to enthuse us with his concept of FROGS. Have we truly supported him?
The answer to that question is probably NO. Your editor is one of the ‘unsupporters’ and my excuse that in my eightieth year, I am not equipped to enthuse young people about Rotary, is rubbish, and I am not proud of it! Megan Ferringer wrote an article for ‘Rotary International News’ in April this year, and some preliminary comments were reprinted in this bulletin a few weeks ago. Here are some examples of what other clubs are doing;
- Michelle Wilkinson wrote, “ I was talking to the president of Yarrawonga and they have 2 meetings and 2 network community projects per month. I am glad to see we are looking towards the future.”
- Karl Anne wrote – “Rotaract clubs are a great way to help raise membership in a district. Sponsoring Rotaract clubs allows young adults who are not ready to join Rotary get a head start. Many Rotaractors go on to be Rotarians, so by boosting Rotaract clubs in your district, you can also boost Rotary membership.”
In a cemetery: ‘Persons are prohibited from picking flowers from any but their own graves.’
Some Australian graingrowers have planted crops in the expectation of harvesting better-than-average crops without any further rain!!
That does seem extraordinary, but we have recorded 370mm at 29 Ocean Throughway in the first 5 months of this year. Better than the total for several of the recent years. That’s an average for 2011 of 74mm per month. At almost 3 inches monthly average on the old scale, and only summer and autumn in that period, it looks like being a very wet year!
Tokyo hotels rules and regulations: ‘Guests are requested not to smoke or do other disgusting behaviours in bed.’
Community Service was the first service activity of Rotary
When the members of the two-year-old Rotary club of Chicago provided a public convenience in the City Hall in 1907, though almost certainly unaware of it at the time, they changed the original concept of their little Rotary club from a fellowship and mutual benefit society to a service club and established a tradition of community service that was to be followed by thousands of service clubs into the next century.
Also, it is almost certain that they ensured the future of Rotary; for it seems highly improbable that, in its original form, the movement could have survived to become an international association, attracting business and professional leaders to its ranks.
On the menu of a Swiss restaurant. ‘Our wines leave you nothing to hope for.’
An example of good business
An Irish priest offered ten cents to the boy who could tell him who was ‘the greatest man in history.
‘Columbus’, said one. ‘George Washington’, said another. ‘St. Patrick’, shouted a third.
“The ten cents is yours” said the priest to the third boy, “But as the only Jewish boy in class, why did you choose St. Patrick?” “Right down in my heart I knew it was Moses”, he replied, “but business is business”.
Notice in a hotel, Yugoslavia: ‘The flattening of underwear with pleasure is the job of the chambermaid.’
No president in the history of our club ever had this level of influence!
The first Rotary meeting ever held in Australia was the organisation meeting of the Rotary Club of Melbourne at Scott’s Hotel at 1.00p.m. on Thursday, April 21, 1921. A preliminary meeting had been held two weeks earlier at which an organising committee had been appointed, but that informal meeting does not qualify. The first regular meeting was held on Wednesday, April 27, also at Scott’s Hotel: the Wednesday having been chosen to suit the convenience of the president, Professor Osborne. It was the only day on which he was free of university commitments during lunch hour. Fair dinkum!. That is an extract from the book ,’Seventy Five Years of Service, ‘Rotary in Australia, 1921-1996’.
In a Tokyo bar; ‘Special cocktails for the ladies with nuts.’
Press release from the 2012/13 Conference committee
Members Helen Trigg, John Calnin, Dick Clay, Gordon King, Judy Greer, John Paton, John Flett & Gary Golding have met on several occasions recently and are working on venue determination, program, social activities and marquee hire. A further report will be published in July. Amongst the ideas considered is the possibility of a pre-conference sports or recreation day on the Thursday prior. Your comments and suggestions should be e-mailed or otherwise conveyed to Gary on marjgary@bigpond.com
Last night’s meeting
- President Noel reported an improved attendance at last Wednesdays breakfast but seeks more support on 6th July.
- RAWCS stickers for your dinner plaque are selling fast and are available from Geoff Brentnall.
- Art Show promotions are hotting up, the website is open and 300 e-mails have hit the air-waves. Entry forms will be available after 1st July.
- Club Public Officer Tony Haines forecasts amended Constitution & Bye-laws. The conny is a cynch, but prominent district lawyers are working on the bye-laws.
- Market OC John Paton seeks volunteers for the trio of winter monthly markets commencing 1st Sunday July.
The ‘looking back and forward’ session
President-elect Marg. Campbell led us in discussions which included PLUSES – Car raffle, market, social events, programs and Anzac Day, MINUSES – No new ‘hands-on’ projects, being ‘hog-tied’ by regulations if Municipal Councils are involved [viz.the boardwalk on the Barwon idea], and participation limitations due to aging. The reference to a community Coastcare project by Gary Golding was augmented by an overnight e-mail from the Bellarine Landcare Group. Joint fundraising and/or projects with Lions was muted.
There were positive and negative comments on the future of the Senior Citizens Xmas dinner, and I think the ‘ayes’ have it, but it has been booked for 2011!. Club Grove was criticised for its rigidity with dinner numbers. The Board is requested to be more communicative to members following monthly meetings, including basic cash flows. Coral Barker proposed that we arrange to sell our own products at future markets, and we should more actively promote shelterboxes.
Ed. Comment – We all appeared to be enthused at the apparent success of the evening’s discussions…………..or was it basically just a mutual back-slapping exercise?
0945, 8th June. John Fox
