Melawati Vibes_Nov 2020

Nov 2020 Issue 5

MELAWATI VIBES RC Melawati Official Monthly Newsletter

We Meet Every Wednesday | 8 PM | Rotary Melawati Community Centre Chartered on 14 June 2000

SANJIV INDRAN ON ENGINEERS WITHOUT BORDERS - PROJECTS DURING THE NEW NORMAL PAG Shanti Jayaram, Vocational Service Chair

Mr Sanjiv Indran, an avid traveller, naturalist, cinephile, bookworm, soundtrack enthusiast, life-long Star Wars geek and the founder of EWBM talked about the focus of EWBM on issues of lack of access to clean water, and the need for clean energy.

Climate change is one of the contributing factors of this pandemic. He shared how to organize projects in helping the communities during the period of new normal. He also spoke about his personal motivation and future plans.

Leadership

WHY YOU BECAME A ROTARIAN AND WHY YOU SHOULD ENCOURAGE OTHERS TO JOIN. P R E SIDENT SIVA K U M A R R A G H A V A N When one becomes a member of a Rotary Club, he or she joins for a certain reason or purpose. Some join to serve the community, foster new friendship, for business development, for leadership development, and for public speaking skills. For some, it is simply for fun, for some it could be for entertainment, for some this is a good pastime, some join for bragging rights or to add on credibility to be more influential, some think they will have monetary gain by joining a club and many more reasons.

Some are very clear as to why they join a club and some just followed their influential friend or were forced to join by their introducer.

Does it sound familiar? How about you?

Why did you join Rotary?

TOP 10 REASONS TO JOIN A ROTARY CLUB Professional Networking A founding principle of Rotary was to meet periodically to enjoy camaraderie and enlarge one’s circle of business, community and professional acquaintances. As the oldest service club in the world, Rotary club members represent a cross-section of the community’s business owners, executives, managers, political leaders, and professionals – people who make decisions and influence policy.

Service Opportunities Club members have many opportunities for humanitarian service, both locally and internationally.

Service programs address concerns such as health care, hunger, poverty, illiteracy, and the environment.

Rotarians experience the fulfillment that comes from giving back to the community.

International Awareness With more than 1.2 million members and 35,000 clubs in over 200 countries and geographical areas, Rotarians gain an understanding of humanitarian issues through international service projects and exchange programs.

One of Rotary’s highest objectives is to build goodwill and peace throughout the world.

Good Citizenship Weekly Rotary club programs keep members informed about what is taking place in the community, nation, and world and motivated to make a difference.

Friendship Rotary was founded on fellowship, an ideal that remains a major attraction of membership today. Club members enjoy the camaraderie with like-minded professionals, and club projects offer additional opportunities to NOVEMBER

2020 | ROTARY FOUNDATION MONTH

develop enduring friendships. Rotary club members who travel have friendly contacts in almost every city in the world.

Youth and Family Rotary sponsors one of the world’s largest youth exchange, educational exchange, and scholarship programs. Rotary clubs provide innovative training opportunities and mentoring for young leaders and involve family members in a wide range of social and service activities.

Entertainment Every Rotary club and district hosts parties and social activities that offer diversions from today’s demanding professional and personal schedules. Conferences, assemblies, and social events provide entertainment as well as Rotary information, education, and service.

Ethical Environment Encouraging high ethical standards in one’s profession and respect for all worthy vocations has been a hallmark of Rotary from its earliest days. In their business and professional lives, Rotarians abide by The Four-Way Test.

Leadership Development Rotary is an organization of successful professionals.

Team building, fundraising, public speaking, planning, organization, and communication are just a sampling of the leadership skills that club members can exercise and enhance. Being a Rotary leader provides further experience in learning how to motivate, inspire, and guide others. Rotary’s classification system ensures that a club’s membership represents a variety of the community’s professional men and women, including leaders in business, industry, the arts, government, sports, the military, and religion. Rotary clubs are nonpolitical, nonreligious, and open to all cultures, races, and creeds.

If you are reading this message and you are still not a Rotary member, please do not hesitate to call me at 012-2255335.

Let’s Engage and Enjoy Rotary! #RotaryOpensOpportunities. #RotaryMalaysia #RCMelawati Yours in Rotary.

02

Leadership

ANNUAL PLAN FOR RY20-21

BOARD OF DIRECTORS RY2020-21 President Siva Kumar Raghavan cikgusiva@gmail.com

11/2020

04 14 18 25

President Elect Mahendran Jerry Daniel mahen@i-visionsb.com Immediate Past President Rajindran Irusan rajindran.irusan@gmail.com Honorary Secretary Rtn Raja Yasmin Raja Yusof ryasminy@yahoo.com Honorary Treasurer PAG Sudhaharan Nair sudhaharannair@gmail.com

12/2020

Club Administration Rtn Mark Krisnan mark_krisnan@yahoo.com (standing in with effect from 27 Sept) PP Sunthar Raj raj@bridgit.biz

01/2021

02/2021

The Rotary Foundation PAG Dr. Selva Kumar Sivapunniam selvakumar.sivapunniam@gmail.com

03/2021

VOCATIONAL SERVICE

PEACE & CONFLICT PREVENTION/RESOLUTION

WATER AND SANITATION 08 - International Women's Day 17 - Women in Business

04/2021

MATERNAL AND CHILD HEALTH 08 - Wesak Day 21 - Life of Beauty Queens

05/2021

YOUTH SERVICE 01 09 13 16 19

06/2021

-

Labor Day Mother's Day Hari Raya Aidilfitri Teacher's Day Career Wrestle from the Machines

ROTARY FELLOWSHIPS 15 14 20 TD TD

-

World Environment Day Club Anniversary Father's Day Family Day Environment Day

WEEKEND CLUB ACTIVITIES

1st Sat 2nd Sun 3rd Sat/Sun

Gotong-royong Board meeting Projects

WEEKLY CLUB ACTIVITIES

1st Wed 2nd Wed 3rd Wed 4th Wed

Sharing/learning Business meeting Speakers Fellowship

Public Image Rtn Salina Hussein salinahussein@yahoo.co.uk

NOVEMBER

DISEASE PREVENTION AND TREATMENT

TD - Rotary Day 12 - Chinese New Year

Youth Service Rtn Somphong Klop Col (R) phongevelyn@yahoo.com International Service Rtn Ooi Soo Kang oosk@cimalaysia.com.my

In Conversation with Dato' Dr Hartini Zainudin Deepavali Engineers Without Borders Business Meeting

01 - Happy New Year TD - Vocational Service Award 28 - Thaipusam

Community Service CP Dr. Navin Patel dr.navin.lablink@gmail.com Vocational Service PAG Shanti Jayaram shajay13@hotmail.com

-

TD - Medical Camp for B40 25 - Christmas

COMMITTEE CHAIRS Membership PP Surindran Ramasamy surind76@gmail.com

ROTARY FOUNDATION

2020 | ROTARY FOUNDATION MONTH

03

International

KR RAVINDRAN The Rotary Foundation Trustee Chair

In Conversation With Trustee Gulam A Vahanvaty & Trustee Geeta Manek 8 Nov 2020

PDG KESHAV KUNWAR District 3292 Nepal

PDG ROLANDO VILLANUEVA District 3790 Philippines DGN DR KRISHNA KUMAR District 3300 Malaysia

EVENT PRESENTED BY

HOSTED BY

The pride of Rotary world - KR Ravindran, The Rotary Foundation Trustee Chair together with Trustees Gulam Vahanvaty and Geeta Manek - enthralled the zoomers and others who were following the conversation live on FB, with sizzling and insightful conversation.

Also present were Rotary International Past President Rajendra Saboo; and International PolioPlus Chair, Michael MacGovern. Leadership from the host District was present and a healthy crowd of 3 District Governors, 30 Past District Governors, 8 District Governors Elect; 4 District Governors Nominee, and 1 District Governor Nominee Designate graced the occasion. They were joined by scores of presidents and members from Rotary Clubs and Rotaract Clubs from all corners of the globe.

The event garnered more than 250 participants at the Zoom session and over 400 more following via FB live from as far as Switzerland, the USA, Venezuela and Nigeria. The FB recording has since recorded almost 2,000 views and the number is increasing by the day.

President Siva Kumar Raghavan, from the host club RC Melawati delivered the opening speech and this was followed by Past District Governors Keshav Kunwar from District 3292 Nepal and Rolando “Oyan�

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Villaneuva from District 3790, The Philippines introducing the guest speakers. District Governor Nominee Dr Krishna Kumar from District 3300 Malaysia delivered the closing remarks. The event was compered by Rtn Yasmin Yusof from the host club.

Trustees Gulam Vahanvaty and Geeta Manek took their roles to the hilt by posing relevant and important questions, while the TRF Trustee Chair KR Ravindran fielded all, oozing facts and evidence with admirable composure.

The session opened with TRF Trustee Chair KR Ravindran addressing the issue on the need and relevance for PolioPlus even though polio now only exists in two countries.

He admitted that defeating Polio in Africa was a great win for humanity. "But you cannot think for a moment that when polio is eradicated from a country, that you no longer need to immunize the children. Routine immunization can only be stopped when polio is eliminated from the whole world. Thus, even while the wild polio virus circulates in only two countries, our children all over the world remain at risk because polio is just an airplane ride away."

International

TRF Trustee Chair KR Ravindran continued that in 2019 alone nearly 400 million children were routinely immunized against polio in 40 countries. Such activities require not only money, but also advocacy. He reiterated that, "We need to be extremely vigilant and we need to carry out unabated surveillance activities, as we are now doing in over 70 countries."

KR Ravindran also shared that as Rotary is nearing its goal to achieve a polio free world, it has also been documenting the lessons learnt from the PolioPlus program. In considering the next possible corporate project, he emphasised that leaders and members must be laser focused in finishing the job of polio eradication before taking on another major project.

He said, "There are many ideas being discussed but my personal choice, which is consistent with one of WHO's major strategies, would be to accelerate the elimination of cervical cancer as a public health problem. Human papillomavirus (HPV) is the primary cause of cervical cancer. It is the only cancer which has a safe and effective vaccine to protect women against infection from the HPV. Each year we have 300,000 to 400,000 women succumb to this cancer. This is a cancer that can be prevented. And that means there is a possibility of eliminating it completely."

When asked how has Covid-19 impacted TRF, KR Ravindran said, "The pandemic has truly been a baptism in crisis management. And also an exercise for leadership in making hard choices, staying calm and providing comfort, knowing that we are in unchartered waters. Yet we leaders have the obligation to take decisive actions to ensure that our organization stays resilient. " He shared that TRF has not only reacted very quickly, but more importantly, they have acted with great impact when the pandemic hit the world. "We paid out 319 Covid grants for USD7.2 million; together with more than 330-340 global grants for a total of nearly USD30 million."

The conversation that was adroitly navigated by Trustees Gulam Vahanvaty and Geeta Manek also touched on the new area of focus - Environment.

KR Ravindran punctuated the conversation on a high note that TRF remains Rotary's conduit to affecting meaningful changes when so many regular services are being disrupted.

ABOUT SYNERGY Synergy is a Rotary friendship alliance of 12 Rotary Clubs from 10 Districts representing 10 countries in South and Southeast Asia.

Synergy aims to: 1. foster strong friendship among clubs across nations 2. organise joint meetings on a scale that a single club or country cannot do 3. progress later to international exchange programs and global Grants 4. harness the power of the internationality of Rotary

NOVEMBER

RI DISTRICT 3201/3202 RC Kalamassery | RC Cochin Harbour | RC Udumalpet Central RI DISTRICT 3220 RC Ampara

RI DISTRICT 3292 RC Dhulikel

RI DISTRICT 3271 RC Karachi

RI DISTRICT 3300 RC Melawati

RI DISTRICT 3272 RC Jalalabad

RI DISTRICT 3420 RC Semarang Kunthi

RI DISTRICT 3281 RC Dhaka Mavericks

RI DISTRICT 3790 RC Baguio Summer Capital

Routine immunization can only be stopped when polio is eliminated from the whole world.

RI DISTRICT 3292 RC Thimpu

2020 | ROTARY FOUNDATION MONTH

05

International

BEHIND THE SCENE OF "TRF TRUSTEE CHAIR KR RAVINDRAN IN CONVERSATION WITH TRUSTEES GULAM VAHANVATY & GEETA MANEK"

HOSTING EXPERIENCE OF AN INTERNATIONAL EVENT Yes! It was indeed a great success organising an international event gathering participants from more than 20 countries and hosting top guns of Rotary International!

And this was an amazing reflection of a fantastic team effort by not only our Rotary Club of Melawati team members but also our friends in Synergy Rotary Friendship Alliance under the gentle, yet firm hand of PDG Sunil Zachariah.

Work started a month before the event, but we mobilised our team in full gear two weeks before the event.

We had the previous hosting Club, RC Ampara from Sri Lanka to share their experience and postevent review notes so that we could be better in organising this edition.

Our electronic direct mail (EDM) poster went through several phases of amendments, to ensure needs of every club in every district and country were met i.e. time zones, flags, etc.

We then drew up the programme and did an event-run, down to the precise minutes. During the rehearsals, the PDGs and DGN who were designated the important roles to introduce and thank our speakers were there. That was how dedicated everyone was in making sure that the event was glitch free and flawless.

Closer at home, the pressure was reaching the boiling point. But we had our cool and collected Tech Team PE Mahen, PP Surin and PAG Shan who were committed to take care and iron-out all eventualities with their tip-top preparedness.

We learnt from our past experience that technology can be a doubleedged sword - and this time, we made it subservient to us!

Our International Service SubCommittee comprising PP Doris, PP Sree, Rtn Lai, IPP Rajindran and Rtn Zul; and led by Rtn Ooi Soo Kang, did an excellent promotion by engaging and reaching out to Rotarians and Rotaractors beyond the shores of our District. They ensured maximum participation for the event. PP Doris called almost all our members to encourage them to attend since we were the host, and the rest were assigned to follow up with other Synergy partner clubs to encourage them to increase their respective participation.

It was heartening to see the result in the numbers of attendees and viewers during and after the event.

President Siva Kumar Raghavan raised the curtain with succinct yet informative opening address, and our DGN Dr Krishna Kumar did us proud with his closing remarks, reiterating the takeaway points from the conversation and thanking our guest speakers for their invaluable sharing. The speech points were not only all well-thought of but also perfectly timed to synch with the event momentum.

In retrospect, it was an honor to host such a prestigious and international event. We were glad we took up the challenge!

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2020 | ROTARY FOUNDATION MONTH

06

International

Up Close and Personal with

The Pillar of Synergy Rotary Friendship Alliance.

PAST DISTRICT GOVERNOR SUNIL ZACHARIAH RC KALAMASSERY, RID 3201, INDIA Cheerleader. Storyteller. Rotarian. Master of PR & Communication.

Sunil Zachariah's illustrious journey in Rotary started since he was a Rotaractor at 16. He served as DRR and Chairman of All India Council of DRRs. In 1986, Sunil became a member of the Rotary Club of Kalamassery. He has served in various committees at Rotary International. He served as the International Chairman of Rotarians on the Internet (ROTI). He was Rotary Governor of combined District 3200 in 1998-99. Currently he serves in the Health MGI International Committee of The Rotary Foundation. He has been honoured with awards by Rotary International and The Rotary Foundation. Sunil edits the popular Rotary news service called eFlash Rotary which is read by 50,000 Rotarians from 100 countries. On the professional front, Sunil is the Managing Director of Futuristic Consultancies and has served in Executive Committee of All India Management Association. He is the Past President of Kerala Management Association and serves as Independent Director on the Boards of several companies. Sunil is happily married to Asha Zachariah, an active member of Inner Wheel Club of Kalamassery

WHAT TRIGGERED YOU TO INITIATE SYNERGY? In mid-July 2020, Rotary Clubs of Kochi United, Kalamassery, Udumalpet Central (India) and Ampara (Sri Lanka) requested me to address their clubs about Rotary Theme. Instead of doing 4 different meetings on the same topic, I suggested that they do a joint meeting on Zoom. This event which was held on 21 July attracted large participation from several parts of the world.

Several senior PDGs also attended the event. This was the trigger that the power of the internet can be harnessed to bring together Rotary Clubs and Rotarians from many countries together.

HOW DID YOU MOBILISE THE TEAM? On 18 August 2020, all the four clubs which met in July came together along with new ones like Rotary Clubs of Cochin Harbour (India), Karachi (Pakistan), Semarang Kunthi (Indonesia), Dhaka Mavericks (Bangladesh) and Melawati (Malaysia) to host PDG Chehab Elawar of USA who spoke about “Engaging Young Professionals – The Future of Rotary”. This meeting was hosted by my home club, the Rotary Club of Kalamassery.

The second meeting held on 12 September saw 3 more clubs being added – Rotary Clubs of Baguio Summer Capital (Philipines), Dhulikhel (Nepal) and Thimpu (Bhutan). This meeting was hosted by Rotary Club of Udumalpet Central with Evan Burrel from Australia as the guest speaker with the topic “Telling Rotary Stories”. We attract attention from many clubs as we engage with them through our events.

NOVEMBER

2020 | ROTARY FOUNDATION MONTH

The tenth country, Rotary Club of Jalalabad (Afghanistan) was added last month. On 18 October 2020, RC Ampara, Sri Lanka hosted Prelude to Polio Day event.

Each club will take a turn in hosting the monthly event.

CONSIDERATION WHEN LOOKING FOR/ENGAGING PARTNERS We were mindful of the different time zones when we first initiated the idea. For this reason, we prioritise clubs from countries in South Asia and South East Asia.

Rotary Club of Ampara has recently suggested that we need not be geographically-based and that membership should be opened to interested clubs.

CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES Opportunities are many – we can progress from joint meetings to joint projects and more. The challenges are to manage the expectations and cultural differences of all countries.

YOU MANAGED TO ROPE IN ILLUSTRIOUS SPEAKERS. HOW DID YOU DO IT? Since 1999, I have been editing an electronic news flash on Rotary called eFlash Rotary. It has more than 50,000 members now from more than 100 countries.

It was through this connection and through my work in Rotary that I manage to establish the needed connection.

07

Events & Programmes

NOVEMBER 2020 DIARY

01

GOTONG-ROYONG AT RIVER THREE

04

CLUB WEEKLY MEETING In Conversation with Dato' Dr Hartini Zainudin

08

SYNERGY ROTARY FRIENDSHIP ALLIANCE TRF Trustee Chair KR Ravindran In Conversation with Trustees Gulam A Vahanvaty & Geeta Manek

11 14

BOARD MEETING #6

18

CLUB WEEKLY MEETING Engineers without Borders Malaysia by Mr Sanjiv Indran

22

COMMUNITY SERVICE Groceries Distribution at SJKT Taman Melawati

25

CLUB WEEKLY MEETING Business Meeting

DEEPAVALI

RTN SURESH & SUGUNA ANNIVERSARY

SAVE THE

Dates DECEMBER 2020

26 27 28

@RCMelawati @Synergy Friendship Alliance-Rotary

29

PP RAMESH & SUNITA ANNIVERSARY RTN MARK KRISNAN'S BIRTHDAY RTN SALINA'S BIRTHDAY COMMUNITY SERVICE Groceries Distribution at SJKT Segambut and Rawang Temple Hall

@rotary3300

NOVEMBER

2020 | ROTARY FOUNDATION MONTH

08

Club Highlights

In Conversation with 04 Nov 2020 | 8 PM

A Social Justice Warrior.

DATO' DR HARTINI ZAINUDIN CHILD ACTIVIST, CO-FOUNDER OF YAYASAN CHOW KIT & UNITED NATIONS CONSULTANT

Dato' Dr Hartini is a social justice warrior who tirelessly performs advocacy work, law and policy reforms and training on children’s issues.

Dato' Dr Hartini Zainudin, the co-founder of Yayasan Chow Kit, a 24-hour crisis and drop-in centre that provides meals, activities, therapy, case management and educational programmes for at-risk children of Chow Kit, cares for children who are the naughtiest, the most vulnerable, the most marginalised and the most misunderstood.

She added softly: “I cannot bear a child being hurt.”

“It is muddled when it comes to child marriage and rape, trafficking of children for prostitution, child pornography and in cases of incest,” she said.

“We need sex education and a safe space for children to report sexual abuse,” she said. “And we need volunteers who will believe victims.”

On matters pertaining to stateless children, Dato' Dr Hartini said that in Malaysia, the citizenship status of a child generally follows the citizenship of the biological mother. In cases where the child is born out of wedlock and the biological mother isn’t a citizen of Malaysia, the child will automatically be rendered stateless.

“Stateless children are invisible children because according to the law, they don’t exist and are therefore not recognised as being citizens of Malaysia,” explained Dato' Dr Hartini who herself is mother to two stateless children — Khairy and Zara.

During her talk there were many zoomers especially those who worked with children. Dato' Dr Musa Mohd Nordin, Paediatric Consultant, KPJ Damansara Specialist Hospital and members of the Malaysian Paediatric Association were also present.

There was also the discussion on the dilemma faced by refugees. The key barriers to healthcare access were generally linked to poor health literacy and the lack of awareness on one’s right to healthcare; language and cultural differences; protection issues resulting from a lack of legal status; and an inability to afford healthcare due to inadequate livelihoods.

DGN Dr Krishna Kumar, and PAG Dr Selva Kumar shared their experiences and the practices at the government hospitals when dealing with refugees.

NOVEMBER

2020 | ROTARY FOUNDATION MONTH

09

Creative Expression

THE DEEPAVALI ANCIENT TALE NARRATED BY PP DR DHILEEPAN NAIR A heart warming picture and a wonderful story behind it that resonates with the Festival of Lights.

The ancient Deepavali story. There are many different stories behind this festival but one goes like this. An evil king wants to kill every first born male in his kingdom as one of them is prophesied to eventually kill the king. Remember Moses and Jesus. Same story.

Different sub-continent. Three different faiths evolved from these events. The despotic Kings were Ramses II, Herod and Kamsa.

Kamsa wanted to kill his baby nephew named Krishna but the baby child was rescued and raised by his foster mother Yasodha. He eventually grew up to be a teenage cowherd not unlike Moses and Jesus who were shepherds.

The three eventually went on to lay the foundations for three different religions, Judaism, Christianity and Hinduism and provided the words and inspiration for the Torah, Bible and Bhagavad Gita.

The nephew Krishna kills his uncle Kamsa and darkness was lifted in the kingdom and this was celebrated with oil lamps lighted everywhere in the kingdom. The festival celebrates victory over evil, light over darkness and enlightenment over ignorance.

Fireworks, exotic costumes, Bollywood dances etc came much later. Murukku, by the way, is not traditional Diwali food. Millions of North Indians have never tasted murukku in their life. They have a hundred other tasty treats for Diwali. In South India too, so many different snack and food varieties for Deepavali.

Back to our Deepavali picture of this year. In early 2016, Dr Premela is inspired by a light - morning sunlight at her apartment in Kota Damansara to take a bold step to give a new life, a new hope and a brighter future for a baby girl whom she named Anamithra. We are not sure if the light first came to her in Periche while on the Everest Base Camp trek in year 2015 but the seeds of light were sown then we believe from the trek through the Himalayan mountains. This Rotarian and medical doctor has given new life to a baby girl, bringing her up at a pivotal point in her medical career and life. Like the mothers who brought up Moses, Jesus and Krishna and inspired them, we pray and hope for a sun-filled future for little Anamithra and all the blessings for her lovely mother Dr Premela.

NOVEMBER

2020 | ROTARY FOUNDATION MONTH

The name Anamithra means the sun. This little sunshine has been sent to light up my life. She found me when I needed her the most.

She’s my saviour not the other way around. Everyday I learn so much from her. And I can only hope that I do her proud .

- Dr Premela

10

Club Highlights

T U I T I O N F O R S T U D E N T S Cikgu Sree and Col. (R) Somphong had lunch with HM Chandran and Cikgu Prem (Teacher Advisor) of SJK (T) Fletcher Road on 16 November 2020. A discussion ensued on running English and Maths Tuition which was proposed by PP Shan.

They welcomed the idea with the proposals: Tuition only for Std 4 & 5, twice per week after 7 pm, max 1 hr per session, 20 students per class and only involves English since Math was taught in Tamil. The HM was also interested to run BM Tuition for the students.

Next, the team will approach SJK ( T) Taman Melawati with the same proposal.

GOVERNORS-NOMINEE TRAINING SEMINAR (GNTS)AT SINGAPORE INSTITUTE Congratulations DGN Dr Krishna Kumar for successfully completing the GovernorsNominee Training Seminar (GNTS). The GNTS helps governors-nominee learn about their district as they begin preparing for their roles as Governors-Elect and as Governors. At this regional meeting, Governors-Nominee discuss effective planning strategies and best practices on topics related to membership, finance, communication, district calendar, and other governor-nominee responsibilities.

GROCERIES FOR 30 B40 DESTITUTE MOTHERS & OKU FAMILY Members of RC Melawati distributed groceries to 30 B40 families comprising destitute mothers and OKU families.

The distribution was done at three locations: on 22 November 2020 at SJK(T) Taman Melawati; and on 29 November 2020 at SJK(T) Segambut and Rawang Temple Hall.

Rtn Rajes Ratnam helped in coordinating the purchase of the groceries with Mydin Stores. PE Mahen coordinated the distribution in Rawang. President Siva Kumar took charge of the logistics. Other members who joined the troop included PP Surin, CP Dr Navin, Col. Somphong, PP Raj, PP Sree and Rtn Mark.

Special thanks to Mdm Amarjit who coordinated the B40 families. All members strictly adhered to CMCO SOP while distributing the goodies.

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2020 | ROTARY FOUNDATION MONTH

11

#MyRotaryStory

carving my destiny with rotary.

PP SURINDRAN RAMASAMY

My first introduction to Rotary was back in mid 2005 when I was invited

by Rotary Club of Melawati to receive the Vocational Service Award on behalf of my father who was serving with the International Red Cross in Sudan.

It was at the old Melawati KKlub that I first met a few good men and women of RC Melawati. After a few meetings and the usual fellowship that followed at the convenient Sports Bar, I decided to join the Rotary Club of Melawati during the Presidency of PP Doris Chang. I was 29 years of old then.

It's been a fulfilling 15 years journey with RC Melawati and looking back, the experience has certainly enriched my mind and soul. Although I was the youngest member then, I had no problems mingling with rest of the members who were at least a decade older than me and we quickly became like a family.

I still remember vividly my wedding preparation in 2006. It was almost like a Club event. I had much help from the Club members right from venue selection, food tasting, dinner and entertainment program, song selection and even for my dinner suit, PP Lachu offered his expertise.

In fact PP Shanti and PDG Darul even performed a few songs that night.

Years went by and the Club kept growing in strength while I was happy to play a supporting role along the way. To some extent, I got frightened of Rotary Club commitment when I saw my brother eating, drinking and sleeping Rotary! Those were the days when I was only able to see my brother at club meetings or events.

While the inner workings of Rotary was not really my cup of tea, I was soon thrust into the role of becoming Club emcee and membership integration roles, relieving my brother, who then started serving at the District level, of some duties. That's how I started becoming a regular emcee and now a regular host of zoom meetings.

Then came 2017 and after much persuasion by quite a few senior Rotarians at our Club, I decided to take up the Presidency. Although it was a tall order to manage a big Club like ours, I received tremendous support from everyone and it was gratifying to see our members coming together to make this Club great. We had some extremely memorable events like the Organ Donation Campaign, Prosthetic Limb project in India and all the unforgettable fellowships that were ever so often.

My journey with RC Melawati has been tremendously enriching and the friendship I've built here will surely be lifelong. I personally feel RC Melawati has a place for every member. You can carve your own role and contribute in your own way. You don't have to be a SuperRotarian, I certainly wasn't one.

Members Lounge Siva Kumar | Dr Navin | Sudha | Mahen | Surin | Shanti | Somphong | Ooi | Dr. Krishna | Raja Renno | Pushpa | Rema Paul | Shanmugam | Ramesh | Dr. Dhileepan | Nithiananthan | Shuseela | Sunthar Raj | Mark | Sreetharan | Suresh | Doris | Akshay | Anita | Dr. Premela | Kumanan | Lai | Ratnam | Rajes | Rajoo | Salina | Rajindran | Salmah | Dr Selva Kumar | Asha | Dr Indigo | Apsara | Zulkifli | Sreeganesh | Soundararajan | Yasmin

MEMBERS ARE TO CONTACT PAG PUSHPA FOR ANY MAKE-UPS.

DR INDIGO > DR KRISHNA KUMAR > MAHENDRAN DANIEL > DR NAVIN PATEL > PUSHPA KRISHNA > DR SELVA KUMAR > SHANTI JAYARAM > SIVA KUMAR RAGHAVAN > COL (R) SOMPHONG > SREEGANESH > SUDHAHARAN NAIR > SUNTHAR RAJ > SURINDRAN RAMASAMY > YASMIN YUSOF >

SHOWING RTN SALMAH THAT WE CARE & LOVE HER

By PAG Shanti Jayaram percenter and attended all our meetings and projects without fail, come rain or shine, putting many of us who were younger to her and more able bodied, to shame, with her commitment.

The Covid -19 pandemic undeniably, has affected everyone in different ways. Families were split, and cases of depression saw new highs. Yet to many, this pandemic opened their eyes to what was really important and meaningful in one’s life. It became a time for self-reflection, taking stock of your priorities and having the courage to let go of things you once thought were the most important things to have in life, without which one cannot function.

For us in Rotary Club of Melawati, not being able to have physical meetings has been a big challenge in this new norm. While almost all of us have learnt the wonders of online meetings and words like ZOOM, WEBEX & MS TEAMS becoming new staple in our daily vocabulary, there were still some members who either refused to embrace technology and join the online meetings or simply couldn’t do so, because of personal challenges.

One such member is the darling of our club, Rtn Salmah. At 86 and challenged with a hearing problem, her life very much revolved around Rotary and our weekly meetings. She was a hundred

Though she lived in another part of the town, she would drive herself to our night meetings at that age, just to be with us. To her, RCM was the extended family that she held close to her heart and she loved the interaction and bonding with each one of us.

Having enjoyed that for the last 20 years as a Rotarian, needless to say, she was the one who was most badly affected when we had to stop our physical meetings due to the pandemic. Life without her weekly Rotary meetings was never the same for her.

Not only did she miss her favourite weekly outing with people she loved, it also created a deep void in her, often leaving her feeling sad and depressed.

Recognizing and acknowledging her predicament, PP Doris and I took matters into our own hands and decided to surprise her with a visit. Armed with goodies like murukku, tarts, pies and fruits, we turned up at her doorstep one Sunday morning not too long ago.

As expected, she was super happy and excitedly welcomed us into her home and amidst the chatter, she continued to feed us with her own goodies that she had prepared. In the 2 hours that we were there, we updated her with our club happenings and delighted her with the many caring messages from our fellow members that were posted in our chat group.

PP Doris and I left her place that day feeling really glad that we had decided on this visit. It reaffirms my belief that it doesn’t take a lot to make someone happy. You don’t need loads of money or to be in a position of power to help someone. Very often, all it takes is a little bit of time and effort to make someone happy and show that someone, just how much you care.

#babychallenge MONTHLY PRIZES TO BE WON

Starting this month, MELAWATI VIBES will be sharing a childhood photo of RC Melawati's member. This Challenge is open (except for family members) and not limited to only Rotarians. Take up the challenge by sending your answer to the Editor @ +6016.4174570.

Type: RCM#babychallenge (answer_#MVNov).

Rotary is [in not more than 5 words.]

The winner will be announced in the following month's edition. Members may also send your childhood photos to +6016.4174570.

#babychallenge #MVNov

Rotary Malaysia

PREVIEW TO RY2021-2022

the renaissance team On 17 November 2020, DGE Dato' Bindi Rajasegaran unveiled her Renaissance Team who will be the changemakers for RY 2021-22. This team was selected 18 months ago to be exact and they have a moral obligation to continue in their responsibilities for another 19 months till 30th June 2022 by which time they would have served just over 3 years.

They have been diligently planning and carrying out their duties in preparation for RY 21/22. A dedicated District Secretariat is the foundation of any Rotary year.

GIVING AND DOING GOOD IN THE WORLD The District had in its last Rotary

IPDG Lioh has also pledged for

year recorded an unprecedented

another TRF contribution of

and historic achievement of USD

USD100,000 this year.

963,009.16 in donations and givings to The Rotary Foundation,

Still in connection with giving,

attributed primarily to the very

the Top Three (3) Highest Per

generous givings by

Capita Annual Giving Clubs are

Immediate Past District Governor

RC Tampin, RC Damansara and

Lioh Cheng Lim (USD700,000+),

RC Sri Petaling. There are 26

making himself the first Arch

clubs that have earned the Every

Klumph Society Chair Circle

Rotarian, Every Year Club

member from District 3300.

Recognition; and 27 clubs are 100% Foundation Giving Clubs.

DISTRICT 3300 CROSSING THE 2,000 MEMBERSHIP MARK! Rotary District 3300 has created

The existing clubs brought in 81

history by crossing the 2,000

new members while the 4 new

psychological and elusive

clubs contributed 133 or

membership mark in the first

62% of the net increase, bringing

5 months of the Rotary year. It has

the total to 2,018 members as of

chartered 4 new clubs and formed 2

30 Nov 2020.

satellite clubs, one of which is a cause-based (badminton) club with

Let us continue to grow the

its focus primarily on badminton as

District by placing membership

a channel to provide a life

development and retention as

transformation training

the top priority of our club. The

programme for youths from

District is now one step closer to

families with financial challenges.

reaching the goal of 2,500 members.

NOVEMBER

2020 | ROTARY FOUNDATION MONTH

Source: DG's Newsletter 14

Rotary Information

ABOUT ROTARY

transform your gifts into service projects that change lives.

The Rotary Foundation transforms your gifts into service projects that change lives both close to home and around the world.Since it was founded more than 100 years ago, the Foundation has spent more than $4 billion on life-changing, sustainable projects.With your help, we can make lives better in your community and around the world.

our mission.

The mission of The Rotary Foundation of Rotary International is to enable Rotarians to advance world understanding, goodwill, and peace through the improvement of health, the support of education, and the alleviation of poverty.

what impact can one donation have?

For as little as 60 cents, a child can be protected from polio. $50 can provide clean water to help fight waterborne illness. $500 can launch an antibullying campaign and create a safe environment for children.

A FOUNDATION TO BUILD ON The Rotary Foundation is recognized as one of the most effective and wellmanaged charitable organizations in the world, with 12 consecutive four-star ratings from Charity Navigator and an Aplus rating from CharityWatch. The mission of The Rotary Foundation is to enable Rotarians to advance world understanding, goodwill, and peace through the improvement of health, the support of education, and the alleviation of poverty. https://www.rotary.org/en/foundation-build

For more information: www.rotary.org www.rotary3300.org

NOVEMBER

2020 | ROTARY FOUNDATION MONTH

15

This poster was one of the 3 Top Winners for District 3300 People of Action poster competition. The Top 3 Winners won RM500.00 cash each and qualified to compete in Region 12 for the grand prize of USD$1,500.00.

EDITORIAL BOARD

CONTACT US

Advisors

PRESIDENT SIVA KUMAR RAGHAVAN DISTRICT GOVERNOR NOMINEE DR KRISHNA KUMAR Contributors

PAG SHANTI JAYARAM PAG PUSHPA KRISHNA PP DR DHILEEPAN NAIR PP SURINDRAN RAMASAMY RTN DR PREMELA RTN COL (R) SOMPHONG KLOP

Editor

RTN YASMIN YUSOF

Rotary Melawati Community Centre 311-A, Lorong Kedah, Melawati Square Taman Melawati 53100, Kuala Lumpur

PUBLIC IMAGE COMMITTEE Rtn Salina Hussein Chair: Members: President Siva Kumar Raghavan President Elect Mahendran J Daniel PAG Dr. Selva Kumar Sivapunniam Rtn Asha Sandhia Singaram Rtn Yasmin Yusof