Bruce's Bulletin March Edition

MARCH 2021

BRU E S BULLETIN C

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The Official Newsletter of Rotary District 9790 Inc www.rotary9790.org.au WHAT THIS ISSUE CONTAINS :(AMONG LOTS OF OTHER THINGS)

Preston turns 60!

Tracey's journey Diamond Valley Rotaract Changeover Keeping up with Sarah Cycle Dindi charity bike ride

BRUCE'S COLUMN Written by District Governor Bruce Anderson

Welcome to the latest DG’s Newsletter for 2021 Rotary Year with less than four months to go to round out our year with the theme “Rotary Opens Opportunities”. At the time of writing (March 7th) we are out of lockdown and enjoying long-awaited visits to clubs. Last week I had the Rotaract Diamond Valley changeover, the RC Preston 60th Anniversary celebration and the opening of the RC Numurkah Annual Art Show. Next weekend I will get to the rescheduled Rotary Youth Exchange Rebound Weekend at Ovens. The plan is to get to as many clubs and events as we can before my term ends on June 30th. (continued on page 4)

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Contents

Page

Calendar of Events/ District/Club Deadlines

3

District Governor's message

4

Important Message from RI President Holger Knaack regarding the International Convention

5

The Rotary Club of Preston turns 60!

6

Tracey's Journey

7

Cycle Dindi - charity cycle event

8

Australia Day Family Fun Barbecue

9

Diamond Valley Rotaract Changeover

10

RYPEN- apply for 2021

11

Keeping up with Sarah - the story of an outbound Youth Exchange Student

12-13

Mansfield Primary School

14

Youth Programs Contacts

14

Annual Calendar

15

Starward toasts Rotary's Centenary (advertisement)

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Photo credits: Cover: Phil Lusher and David Redfearn; Pages 4: Phil Lusher; Page 6: John McGrath and David Redfearn; Page 7 courtesy of Glenda Woods; Page 9 courtesy of Judy Sharp; Page 10 courtesy of Linda Gidlund; Pages 12-13 courtesy of Sarah Warren; Page 14 courtey of Linda Gidlund

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Calendar of events Location

Event

Date(s)

Contact

District Conference (page 5)

Wangaratta Performing Arts Centre, 18-21 March 2021

www.rotary9790.org.au

RYPEN (Rotary Youth Program of Enrichment) 2021 (page 11)

Lake Nillahcootie Camp, 3937 Midland Highway, Barjarg between Benalla and Mansfield about 15 km south of Swanpool.

26-28 March 2021

Malcolm Watt, 0439 158 274 or watt.malc@gmail.com

Rotary Youth Leadership Awards (RYLA)

TBA

21-27 November 2021

info@ryla9790.org.au

Sunday 30 May 2021 12.30-4.40 pm

Linda Gidlund, 0418 173 279 or lleegidlund@gmail.com

Multi-district Interact Conference

By Zoom, -hold the date

District/club deadlines Grant applications for ‘Supporting the Environment’

Projects will be accepted from 1 July 2021

Phil Clancy on philip.clancy1@gmail.com or 0428 834 162

Rotary Citation for Rotary Clubs Award nominations

30 June 2021

2020-21 Club Presidents

March 2021 Water and Sanitation Month

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District Governor's page Of course, the BIG event on the horizon is the District Conference in Wangaratta, less than 2 weeks away. The Conference Committee led by PP Peter Dunn is busy finalising arrangements for the conference and the associated events. I will be on hand with the R100 Baton to farewell the Ride to Conference participants on Thursday morning March 18th and will welcome them back around lunchtime. More details on the Conference appear on https://rotary9790.org.au/ and we will give all attendees the latest COVID instructions before the Conference opens. Because of COVID spacing limits we must finalise numbers for all events now – consider this to be your last chance to register for the Conference and the extra events.

Our R100 Baton has been to Cobram, Mansfield, Nathalia, Broadmeadows, a combined meeting with Broadmeadows, Strathmore and Craigieburn, Rotaract Diamond Valley, Preston and Numurkah – hardly a District-wide Baton Relay but at least it is getting out and about.

The District Governor Nominating Committee met last Sunday to interview three worthy candidates and selected Nate Kirby, RC Tatura, as the District Governor Nominee Designate. Should there be no challenge from the clubs who nominated the unsuccessful candidates Neta will soon be confirmed as DGND – congratulations to Neta and to all candidates who put themselves forward.

million annually for polio eradication. Rotary is committed to raising US$50 million per year, in the knowledge that the Gates Foundation will match it 2:1 for a total of US$150 million.

In the last couple of years Rotary has been perilously close to not making its US$50 million commitment so it is absolutely essential that Districts, Clubs and individual Rotarians increase the current funding level to Rotary’s Polio eradication program to avoid jeopardising the agreement that we have with the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

RI President Holger Knaack requested all Clubs to strive for a donation of US$1500.00 to END POLIO NOW as one of his goals for the year, it is acknowledged that not all Clubs will be able to reach that goal but it is very important that all Club’s support the END POLIO NOW program as best they possibly can. Individual Rotarians can help by contributing $10.00 per year to join the “Clem Renouf Club” in honour of one of our greatest leaders. Simply use the following link to make a contribution to Rotary’s priority project and help maintain the arrangement with the Gates Foundation. https://www.endpolio.org/donate Stay safe! DG Bruce, March 7, 2021

The four Victorian-based Districts have organised a Multi-District Conference “Virtual Victoria” to be conducted for two hours on each of Saturday May 1st and Sunday May 2nd and I have agreed that D9790 will participate actively. “Virtual Victoria’ will be a great opportunity to celebrate 100 years of Rotary in Victoria and is open to all members, free of charge, and I urge you to “save the dates”.

Registration details will be available soon and will be circulated.

Polio Eradication: Rotary International and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation have a long-term fundraising partnership, which generates US$150

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Important Message from RI President Holger Knaack regarding the International Convention Holger Knaack President, 2020-21 T +1.847.866.3467 F +1.847.866.3390 holger.knaack@rotary.org Dear Rotarians, Rotaractors, and friends, By now we have sadly grown accustomed to hearing of the need to shift major public events to being held virtually rather than face to face. Unfortunately, the Rotary Board of Directors was compelled to again make the difficult decision to celebrate this year’s International Convention as a virtual event. While this may not be an unexpected decision, it is still a deeply disappointing one — for us and for our friends in Taiwan who have been planning an exceptional event. I want to thank the Host Committee for the admirable job they did building support for what surely would have been one of Rotary’s finest events.

We had hoped that a combination of vaccine uptake and public health measures would have brought the COVID-19 pandemic under control. We all know that in many parts of the world the pandemic is still raging and we must maintain our vigilance and patience before resuming major public gatherings. Taiwan has done an admirable job managing the pandemic — and local Rotarians were still eager to host and celebrate with us. Under the guidance of the World Health Organization and the local public health organization in Taiwan, it became clear that an event of this scale would be impossible to host safely.mm While we are disappointed that we could not have a traditional convention, we are excited about the virtual event being planned for all Rotarians worldwide. Last year’s convention attracted significant viewership during its weeklong program. This year, we will channel all we have learned about staging the very best in virtual events into a program that promises to open new opportunities for you to be entertained, enlightened and energized. We will share more details about the 2021 Virtual Convention soon.

Convention, pre-convention, and ticket refunds We will automatically cancel and refund all existing registrations. This includes purchases made for the Rotaract and Youth Exchange and the Intercountry Committees preconvention events, and ticketed meal events. We kindly ask that you do not contact RI Registration to inquire about your registration, ticket, or housing cancellations as we work diligently to inform all attendees and process cancellations and refunds. For those who had already canceled prior to today, you will also receive a refund of the $50 processing fee.

Host Organization Committee (HOC) ticketed event registrations The HOC event ticket fees will be refunded by the Taipei HOC. For more information, please visit rotarytaipei2021.org.

Hotel rooms If you have secured accommodations within Rotary’s official housing block, no action will be required on your end. Maritz, Rotary’s official housing partner, will contact you with the details of your cancelation.

If you have secured a group room block and made a full or partial payment, you will receive a follow-up communication and instructions on receiving a refund.

I want to thank all Rotarians and Rotaractors around the world for your understanding and your continued willingness to learn and adapt. We are becoming a stronger, more nimble organization because of this, and our Virtual Convention will be a reflection of this new Rotary.

Please be safe and take care of each other.

Kindest regards, Holger Knaack President, Rotary International, 2020-21 ONE ROTARY CENTER 1560 SHERMAN AVENUE EVANSTON, ILLINOIS 60201-3698 USA ROTARY.ORG

l e tua d i r i v ro he v p t l il or e e w m f enc it .

W ra er ely le b f g t a n o a l pr co edi vai e a m s th im me co be

The Rotary Club of Preston turns 60!

“WE ARE HERE” (President) and “FUNDAMENTAL TO THE PERSON I AM TODAY” (Exchange Student). These two statements summed up a great night of reflecting over the past 60 years of Preston Rotary Club service. All left the dinner- evening with great anticipation for what lies ahead.

60 years strong would be a very apt description of the Preston Rotary Club as it celebrates a milestone and enters its seventh decade.

To celebrate, many of us gathered at the Olympic Hotel in East Preston for a wonderful dinner in the presence of the District Governor and many other Rotary officials and Rotarians to reflect on this great milestone.

Anyone who attends a meeting of the club would be amazed at the energy and the camaraderie experienced there. A strong membership, a strong dedication to community service and a strong revenue base are the essential ingredients for any club and, at 60, Preston shows no signs of flagging.

It was particularly compelling to hear from those who were beneficiaries of youth programs such as former exchange students Marilyn McIlvenna (Japan,1969) and Mark Jenkinson (Finland,1995), National Youth Science Forum participant Tess Devine-Hercus (now a science communicator), former RYLA participant Sue Tanck (now a senior administrator in Customs now Border Force) and Khoi Cao-Lam who attended Cambridge University and is now Director Capability and Impact at Oxfam. All said that the support shown to them by Preston Rotary had been critical in changing the course of their lives and had defined their careers.

The club was chartered in December 1960 and its first regular meeting was in March 1961. In the last 20 years it has donated an average of $100,000 each year to local community projects and humanitarian causes, a quite remarkable achievement.

The list of causes that the club has supported is truly mind boggling but a few of these are worth highlighting. These include the Children First Foundation, The Next Step Spinal Cord Injury, North East Region Life Education and the Croxton Special School.

Club members also showcased some of the premier projects that the club had been involved with all of which demonstrated a remarkable record of achievement.

Preston has also engaged robustly with Rotary Youth programs such as Rotary Youth Leadership Award (RYLA) and Rotary Youth Exchange and even supported a young community leader with his studies at Cambridge University after he approached the club for support.

Congratulations to President Peter Gilbert and the Preston crew for a great effort. Well done!!

David Redfearn, Moreland.Rotary Club with material provoded by John McGrath, Preston Rotary Club

President Peter Gilbert and D.G.Bruce Anderson holding the baton celebrating the first 100 years of Rotary service in Australia and New Zealand

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Tracey's journey The Rotary Club of Yea was pleased to reinduct former member Tracey Ukosich into the club in February. Tracey resigned at the end of 2020 as she was about to begin a journey of self discovery in 2021 and had taken leave of absence from her workplace to do so. With finances tight, Tracey reluctantly gave up her Rotary membership. However, due to a generous and anonymous member, Tracey’s subs have now been paid for the year.

Why did Tracey take leave for a year? To embark on a journey around Australia, aiming to ride as many Rail Trails as possible, but specifically to ride her bicycle across the Nullabor. You see Tracey has Multiple Sclerosis, a condition she has been dealing with for 13 years and feels that now is the right time to do something to give back. Tracey spoke about Multiple Sclerosis and how it affects her health. Symptoms of this condition, which is an auto-immune disease that impacts the central nervous system can vary according to the individual, but typically might include extreme fatigue, blurred vision, loss of balance and muscle coordination.

and assist others. ‘Giving is Living’ is a thought that is guiding Tracey’s actions.

Tracey has just returned from a month’s training in Tasmania, riding the various Rail Trails. Whilst in Hobart in early February, Tracey had her bicycles stolen from the back of her vehicle whilst she was sleeping. Despite this major setback, Tracey has discovered that so many people are kind, generous and supportive and she had a bike within days to allow her to continue. Tracey received a lot of media coverage following a radio interview and out of the negative of stolen bikes, so many positives have flowed. Her mantra is ‘Stay Strong, Powerful and Unstoppable!’

Tracey’s diagnosis came after 18 months of various symptoms and since then, Tracey has received treatment to stabilise her condition.

The treatment is free to Tracey, but costs about $70,000 annually. About the only form of exercise that Tracey can do pain free is riding a bike, hench the idea to do lots of riding and at the same time raise awareness of Multiple Sclerosis.

Good luck Tracey on your incredible undertaking. 1200 kms of cycling will certainly be a challenge but you have the will to succeed.

The club wishes you every success. If you wish to support Tracey, you can do so by going to www.doitforms.org.au/fundraisers/tracey ukosich or just like and follow her adventures on FaceBook.

Tracey is documenting her amazing journey in a Facebook blog titled ‘The Long Road to Me’ and links are available on that site to Tracey’s fundraising page which has been set up by the Multiple Sclerosis association. The Rotary Club donated $1000 as everyone in the club is fully supportive of Tracey andproud of her determination to challenge herself

Glenda Woods, Rotary Club of Yea.

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cycle dindi 2021 poster.jpg

AUSTRALIA DAY FAMILY FUN BBQ Five Clubs from Clusters 1 and 2 combined to put on a family fun day BBQ at Eltham Lower Park on Australia Day 26 January 2021. More than 60 people braved the cold and drizzly conditions to enjoy free miniature train rides, entertainment and food.

Held in a discrete picnic area in the park, the site ensured that we were able to deliver an enjoyable COVID safe event utilising funds from a grant from the National Australia Day Council.T The 10 minute miniature train ride on the Diamond Valley Railways winds its way through picturesque native bushland and through several tunnels, rail crossings and stations and over multiple bridges. One three year old enjoyed the ride so much that he had 4 turns around the circuit!

The Rotary Club of Eltham provided the delicious sausage and vegieburger BBQ and vouchers were also given to participants to enjoy free ice creams and coffee from local food vans. A face painter and henna hands artist were also on hand to add to the entertainment.

A large screen and sound system ensured that participants were able to enjoy the live streamed Rotary celebration from Nossal High School.

Many thanks to the Rotarians from the Rotary Clubs of Heidelberg, Rosanna, Greensborough Central, Diamond Creek and Eltham who combined to organise and deliver the event. We all enjoyed the opportunity for members from different clubs to work together and get to know one another a little better.

Judy Sharp, Assistant Governor, Cluster 1

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Youth News

Diamond Valley Rotaract Changeover

DG Bruce inducting co-presidents Rachael Peck and Rigan Tytherleigh with Linda Gidlund, Youth Chair, guiding the ceremony.

DG Bruce with co-presidents Rachael Peck and Rigan Tytherleigh and the 100 years of Rotary in Australia and New Zealand baton

DG Bruce after inducting co-presidents Rachael Peck and Rigan Tytherleigh with Linda Gidlund, Youth Chair.

From left to right: Linda Gidlund, Areeya Phrompradit, Rigan Tytherleigh, Rachael Peck, Alex Trakula, Nicola Gates and Chris White

Frank Lynch, Rotary Eltham, President, Brett Linsell, Rotary Eltham Youth Chair with Co-presidents Rachael Peck and Rigan Tytherleigh and Nicola Gates, Vice-president.

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Youth News

Keeping up with Sarah - the story of an outbound Youth Exchange Student The LAST 3 months

Good friends are hard to find, harder to leave and impossible to forget I never thought this moment would come, but here we are…seeminly too quickly. Enjoy my last report…it should be packed! (pardon the pun)

Moving family

On the darker side of bright Going into exchange I saw myself as a resilient, strong minded girl with big dreams. I prided myself on my ‘go get it attitude’ and motivation. If I am going to do something, I am going to give it 100%. And that’s just what I planned to do with my exchange year. We’ve now made it to the finish line and it’s time to look back and reflect.

From the moment I began to imagine what my exchange would be, I was never skeptical that I couldn’t solve any problems thrown my way. Over the year, it was shown to me that yes, indeed, being an exchange student has its challenges. Every challenged I faced over my year, I was able to overcome and grow from.

However, not everything is sunshine and rainbows… some days were harder than others, situations that preexchange me would have breezed through with a smile, seemed harder than normal.

Finally, but oh so quickly, we are back. It’s safe to say the pre-exchange Sarah still exists, with a little extra spice and life experience to share.

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Before I knew it, the 1st of October rolled around and I was moving families again. My new house was close to both of my schools, which allowed me to bike to school every day. I was the 7th exchange student this family had hosted, I stayed with them in their company penthouse and got to live life as a princess for 3 months.

Both my host parents were successful businesspeople and were very involved with Rotary.

Every night I would eat dinner with my grandma and aunt whom also stayed in the house with us. I had 3 older host sisters who all study and work in Canada.

During my time staying with this family I thoroughly missed the running track from my last host family, so I decided to focus new efforts on my upcoming language exam. My host parents encouraged me to speak Chinese and always listened to what I had to say.

Youth News

Keeping up with Sarah (continued) Chinese

School

After taking a pilot test in mid-October at Taiwan’s National Normal University, it gave me a good gauge at my Chinese ability and showed me where I needed to improve before my final exam in one month. From my pilot test results I was able to set goals; I began working hard studying so I could get the score I was aiming for. I took practice tests almost daily, read newspaper articles, memorised hundreds of new vocabulary, made Q-cards and re-wrote my textbooks, on top of my usual studies for my Chinese university class.

This semester at school has been one of the best. I can finally understand what my teachers are saying to me.

My favorite class is industrial cooking, we do 4-hour practices, learning to cook traditional Taiwanese foods.

My classmates have been amazing, and we have done lots of class activities this semester.

I’m lucky that I was sent to a vocational school, I had so many opportunities to participate in a large variety of activities and events. This semester I took part in school athletics and cross country, English club, taught the special education class, filmed a video about Australia, trained with the baseball team for a day, made a book about my exchange, took a boat with my classmates, went on school excursions to gold museums, Taiwan’s “Bali”, a chicken factory and explored some popular ‘old streets’. Over Christmas we threw a Christmas party in my class and played lots of games and exchanged gifts.

One month later, the big test day rolled around and I was very nervous, I would be taking a nationally recognized Test of Chinese as a Foreign Language (TOCFL) testing my listening comprehension and reading capability. I was sat at computer number 8 (my lucky number) and began my test. I knew at the end of the test I had done a good job when I finished 15 minutes early, giving me time to go over my answers.

One of my biggest goals I set for myself after my pilot test, was to increase my reading speed. I spent hours working on this one skill and I felt it had payed off.

Still feeling nervous I clicked ‘submit’ on my test, as soon as I did, my results flashed on the screen. I was so relieved, I did it! Seeing that my score was on the higher end of the band I had aimed for, was such a relief. Needless to say, we had a celebration afterwards.

In January I graduated from my university class and we had a small farewell/graduation party where we received our certificates. I finished high school about 4 days before leaving to come back home. I gave and received presents and cards from my classmates. We had a farewell party for my English club where I gave a short speech and congratulated everyone on their improvements over the year.

English club was such a great opportunity for me, not only was I able to help the students improve their English, I was able to grow and gain confidence in public speaking along with my classmates. I made new friends and also had chances to practice my Chinese as well as my teaching skills.

(Continued in the April Edition)

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Youth News

Mansfield Primary School Expo

Youth Progams Contacts International University Student Rotary Home Hosting – Philip Clancy, M 0428 834 162, Email – philip.clancy1@gmail.com Interact – Linda Gidlund, M 0418 173 279, Email – lleegidlund@gmail.com District Rotaract Committee – Chris White, M 0420574978, Email chriswhite77@hotmail.com National Youth Science Forum (NYSF) – Nigel Liggins, M 0400 694 618, nigelliggins@bigpond.com

L-R Denise Skinner, Robyn Bassenalli and Andrew Howie

Mansfield Rotarians participated in an Expo with the Mansfield Primary School after being invited by the Grade 3/4 Team. Community group representatives from the area were invited to set up a stall on Thursday, 4 March in the morning. The students were introduced to EarlyAct and other Rotary youth programs.

The main purpose of the Expo was for students to inquire into: How groups support and enhance the community.

The purpose of different community groups.

The benefits of belonging to a group.

Ways groups take action to support others.

Thank you Mansfield Primary School for inviting us.

We enjoyed spending time with you.

Rotary Youth Exchange (RYE) – Bruce McIntyre, M 0427 623 142, Email – bruce.mcintyre1@bigpond.com Rotary Youth Leadership Award (RYLA) – Kerry Jones, Secretary M 0414 861 557, Email info@ryla9790.org.au Rotary Youth Program of Enrichment – Contact Malcolm Watt, M 0439 158 274, Email watt.malc@gmail.com Rotex – Contact Rotex by email rotex9790@gmail.com Rotary Builds a Play Ground – David Earle, Email – davide124@gmail.com

If you would like further information please contact Linda Gidlund on 0418 173 279 or lleegidlund@gmail.com

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Calendar Visit this calendar throughout the year to find award nomination due dates and convention and event information. Develop meeting agendas, projects, or public image campaigns based on these special occasions. All dates are subject to change.

March 2021 Water and Sanitation Month 8-14 March — World Rotaract Week 31 March — Preregistration discount ends for the Rotary International Convention April 2021 Maternal and Child Health Month 30 April — Rotary International Convention registrations and ticket cancellations are due May 2021 Youth Service Month June 2021 Rotary Fellowships Month

Source: https://my.rotary.org/en/news-media/calendar

Bruce's Bulletin is the official newsletter of Rotary District 9790 Inc. www.rotary9790.org.au Publisher/Editor: David Redfearn Art Director: David Redfearn Advertising: David Redfearn Other duties as required: David Redfearn NOTE: All photographs/images submitted must include detailed captions i.e. names of people, event locations etc. It is presumed that the supplier of the photograph/image has approval of the owner of said copyright to reproduce the photograph/image Closing date is by 20 April 2021 Note: The views expressed in this publication represent those of the contributor/s and are not necessarily those of or shared by the District, the Committee, any Club, the Members or the magazine This bulletin is designed on Canva (www.canva.com)

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