Hello to my fellow Rotary Club of Stirling members (and any spouses / partners who may also read this bulletin).
First of all. It was so good to see so many attendees on our Zoom meeting on Monday 11th May, seventeen in all at the peak!
Security is now much stronger on Zoom and we have changed settings to ensure that it will now only use an Australia-based server. Zoom has further enhanced security to prevent unauthorised "Zoom bombers" from crashing a meeting to which they have not been specifically invited. So be assured about that online safety!
I would love to see even more of you join in when next we meet online on Monday next week since meeting online is our only option at the moment...
Nic Kentish gave an extremely interesting talk about ways in which farming has changed, how it needs to change and why.
He talked about how he personally has greatly changed and adapted in his own techniques on his family farm. Nick is now an Adviser who works with many farmers across Australia, including those in indigenous communities.
This Monday the 18th, the Board had an IN-PERSON board meeting at the home of Pauline Annear and Ken Jeffery. There were seven of us, all socially distanced! It was lovely to look upon people in person and be all in the same room. It was also a very productive meeting.
At Monday night's club meeting, the Directors will be able to give you a short summary of what they are doing.
Also on the agenda was a discussion about how to tackle Changeover because we cannot meet at the Golf Club. Keep Friday the 26 June free anyway because a small committee has been formed to work out how we can celebrate this year's sucesses and formally hand over the reins to the incoming Executive in an alternative, appropriate, ceremonial fashion. Stay tuned as we would love as many of you as possible to participate!
I am delighted to inform you that Nick Ditter has agreed to be Youth Director and Malcolm Horton to be President Nominee for the Rotary Year 2022-23. . We have a full board complement but do still need a President Elect to follow Neil’s term as President. Please consider it. Other new board members as elected in December are Michelle Lesiw (secretary) and Ken Patterson (International) Pauline A and John O will continue as will I. More of that at changeover.
During the current situation many people continue to do work behind the scenes. I would like particularly to mention that Neil W, Colin F, Robert K, Ken Jeffery and Nic Kentish have been giving support to The Hut in helping to transport food from the Food Bank. Well done!
John Illingworth from Blakiston RC has been splitting and delivering free bags of kindling and firewood to those in need. I believe he did several hundred bags and has hand delivered most now. Well done. I am sure there have been many other things that members have been doing to support the community. I would love to have them drawn to my attention.
Last but definitely not least, I am very excited to tell you that we have a celebrity guest speaker for Monday night’s meeting!
Dan Edmonds' daughter, Tiffany Lyndall-Knight, has many film and TV roles to her credit in Australia and Canada, is lecturing at all three SA universities in drama, speech and public speaking, has achieved her PhD through Flinders and is now heading up the SA branch of the Media, Entertainment and Arts Alliance. Her PhD thesis was on the challenges married women in the arts face in balancing career and family and also on the Me Too! movement.
Tiffany will be an engaging and interesting guest speaker and I hope we will have many to hear her speak. It is a Partner's Night so please invite your spouses / partners to attend on Zoom with you.
You will get the usual invitation and instructions on how to join in from Dan over the weekend. Mark your calendars NOW for Monday, 25 May at 5:00pm but you you can log anytime after 4.50pm. Be ready with your drinks and nibbles!
A doctor, lawyer, and a Rotarian in charge of fundraising all die and arrive at the Pearly Gates about the same time.
St. Peter tells them they may each have one thing to take with them to Heaven.
The doctor is first, and asks for $1 million. This is given and proceeds to enter Heaven. The lawyer, not to be outdone, asks for $2 million. "Very well," say St. Peter and opens the gate to Heaven for the lawyer.
Finally it is time for the Rotarian, who had just finished a fundraising project for The Rotary Foundation. St. Peter asks him what he would like to take to Heaven. The fundraiser moves up very close to St. Peter, and in a soft voice asks, "It it's not too much trouble, could I just have the names of those two people who were ahead of me in line?"
With thanks to the RC of Morphett Vale Newsletter
We're going to beat Coronavirus!
In a rallying speech after an early victory at Alamein in 1942, Winston Churchill famously reminded the British people that
"Now this is not the end.
It is not even the beginning of the end.
But it is, perhaps,
the end of the beginning."
