Time really flies! This is my third monthly message already and it seems like only yesterday I became president. I am really quite astonished as to how much appears to happen in just one month.
Sometimes it’s a small but wonderful thing. For example, our Australian colleagues have supplied us with more “Trekker Teddies” (right) which we have begun distributing. You can read more about them elsewhere in this newsletter, but I want to mention it as it is a very good example of how two Rotary clubs, when working together, can achieve some really worthwhile projects. We have also had the district conference, which I was unfortunately unable to attend due to other commitments, but I am sure that John or Jerry will give a short report here.
We are in the process of inducting several new members which shows that John Schorr’s membership committee is working well. The quality of these new and prospective members is outstanding.
Two of our major projects, the Mae Tao Clinic and the Children's Water Safety & Drowning Prevention Program are impressively successful. John Schorr has managed to raise a considerable sum of money which is enabling the program to be taken up by other clubs much more quickly than we originally expected. Jerry Nelson’s fundraising campaign for Mae Tao Clinic has also been exceptionally successful and I know the money will be used wisely by the clinic to enable them to continue to do their incredibly valuable work.
Understandably, for an English-speaking club, we are asked to help improve the English language capability of many different groups. The more we do, the more we seem to be asked to do. Our input varies from simple conversation groups to teaching more complex aspects of communication. This means that if someone has professional skills they can contribute at a high-level whilst those who have no particular teaching experience, but do speak English, can help many people and organisations who are desperately looking for support.
Chiang Mai International Rotary Club is not only working with other Rotary clubs, but it is actively extending its relationships with other organisations. This month has seen discussions held between both Toastmasters Chiang Mai (left) and the Chiang Mai Expats Club. In both cases we believe some considerable synergy will be created by working together. There is no doubt that the CMIRC is achieving far more than would normally be expected for a relatively small club. However, despite our undoubted success, some projects that we would like to undertake are proving difficult because of a lack of manpower and finance. The vision screening in the Tessabaan schools and the clean water project are cases in point. Both of these projects are incredibly worthwhile and will, without doubt, happen soon but we have been talking about both for some two years. The solution is simple, more members. So, if you know someone who is willing to contribute time to help others, then bring them along to a meeting or introduce them to John Schorr, our membership committee chairman.