CMIRC October News (Sep 26, 2016)

King Bhumibol Adulyadej

Posted by Shana Kongmun on Oct 23, 2016

As a long-time resident of Thailand I learned of His Majesty King Bhumibol Adulyadej’s great work for his people, I remember being amazed at watching His Majesty every night on television in a segment I named “King news” as it was a full hour of His Majesty’s work as well as that of his wife Her Majesty Queen Sirikit, his mother Princess Mother Srinagaranda, his sister and children. He traveled to the most remote places in the country, meeting with people, listening to their problems and finding solutions.

He was a great inventor with many patents to his name and it is his Royal Rain Making that was patented in 1999 and has been used around the world. The method seeds clouds in a “super sandwich,” pilots disperse environmentally friendly chemicals to form cool and warm clouds at different altitudes. He invented a method to obtain biofuel out of palm oil and the low-cost Chaipattana aerator, a paddle wheel that is used in rivers, canals and marshes to counter water pollution.

He was a composer and musician, many of his pieces can be found online, he loved jazz and composed nearly 50 pieces, some of which made it into a musical play. You can listen to his many compositions here http://kanchanapisek.or.th/royal-music/index.en.html. One of my favorites is “Blue Day” which can be found on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qUsuhNeLCSc

His Majesty the King was thrust into a position for which he was unprepared and yet turned his hopes and dreams, his aspirations and goals from himself to his country and the people of Thailand.

His Majesty King Bhumibol Adulyadej said, “We cannot be alone and still be happy if others around us are suffering. Instead we should share their suffering and help ease their troubles according to our ability and capability.”

His selfless dedication to the people of Thailand and his tireless efforts to improve the lives of the Thai people serve as an example to us all. Although His Majesty was not a Rotarian he truly lived the Rotary ideals of service above self.

We mourn the loss of our beloved King Bhumibol Adulyadej. His Royal Highness reigned for 70 years and most Thais have known no other monarch in their lifetimes. His accomplishments, and his compassion for his people are know around the world. Often he is referred to as Beloved Father.

With Deep Respect,

Shana Kongmun

Mourners gather outside of the Grand Palace to sing for a recording of the royal anthem in honour of Thailand's late King Bhumibol Adulyadej, in Bangkok, Thailand, October 22, 2016. REUTERS/Jorge Silva

Thoughtful Quotes

"I always wondered why somebody didn't do something about that. And then I realized I was somebody."
Actress, Lilly Tomlin

A Night in the Museum Big Success

Posted by Jerry Nelson

A Night in The Museum was a very good night indeed! On Friday September 30^th, Chiang Mai International Rotary Club hosted our charity event called A Night in The Museum. Kudos to the Team of Shana Kongmun, John Schorr and Nancy Lindley for putting it all together, many thanks to Art in Paradise for allowing us exclusive use of their unique and beautiful 3d museum and to the CMIRC members who worked so hard selling tickets and then supporting the event on the night. It was a great night.

Getting ready just before the doors opened

Of course not everyone had an advanced ticket. We set up a ticket sales table for the convenience of our last minute guests. We even gave them an opportunity to adopt one of our "Change for Children" owls.

Cindy and Tom Johnson man the ticket sales table.

Little girl decides to donate!

The Duke’s provided “heavy” appetizers which were consumed with gusto.

Wine Celler by T.K. provided the beverage service which was quite popular.

Wine, beer, soft drinks and water were all available

This was an evening of fellowship and fun. People really enjoy going through the museum. Several participated in the "scavenger hunt" looking for items that were in the various paintings. Some just stopped to enjoy particular scenes.

President Shana enjoys a moment with Charter / Honorary member Colin Jarvis

Fearless over the water

Music by Doggy Band

CMIRC is the Rotary Host for a charming young woman who is studying at Chiang Mai University on a scholarship provided through a global grant Her comments do a great job of summing up the evening. Stasha wrote:

"I really enjoyed meeting new people across various parts of the community - exchange students, foreign teachers, and other Rotary members. It was a very lively event and everyone seemed to enjoy themselves with great food, drinks, and fun"!

Stasha, Jerry and a Starry Night

There were three categories of raffle tickets giving the attendees the option to buy tickets for the things they prefer. The prizes ranged from two bottles of wine to a 2 night stay in the Executive Suite at the Le Meridien Chiang Mai, valued at around 20,000 THB! We would like to thank all of our sponsors who so generously provided our raffle prizes; Anantara, Bangkok Air,Dukes,Holiday Inn Katilia, Le Crystal, Perns, Rimping and Wine Celler by K.T.

Carol Beardmore won the stay at the Le Meridian. Shana, John and Nancy are the sterling Rotarians who put this event together

Our President posts a frequent message on our website. Thie current one is the best possible closing article for this little report. Shana wrote:

Last week we held our successful Night at the Museum event at Art in Paradise and it was great to see the community turn out and have a great time – and support Chiang Mai International Rotary’s projects for kids. Everyone in the club who was in town pitched in to help and make sure that the event ran smoothly and was a huge success. The teamwork from club members reminded me of the importance of fellowship and friendship in Rotary. I know that they will be here to help the club when its needed and it’s friendships I’ve made and the help we offer to our community that make Rotary so much more than just a club.

One World Play Project

Posted by Jerry Nelson

Background: Chiang Mai International Rotary Club (CMIRC) has been chosen by One World Play Project to distribute their almost indestructible footballs (soccer) to poor schools, orphanages and other groups. This is actually a "value added" project in conjunction with our Children's Water Safety, Children's Sight, Mae Tao Clinic, Child Protection and Burma Children's Medical Fund Projects. As we serve our other projects, we distribute the footballs for use by the children. We try to allocate around 1 football per 30 children. Major funding for this protect by Chevrolet. In fact all of the balls we have distributed thus far have been “Chevrolet Balls”. The rules are simple:

Organization head must agree that the balls remain on campus for the children's use.
Balls are NEVER to be sold.

We offer these balls to other Rotary Clubs in district 3360 and to other organizations such as Toys for Thailand. We require an abbreviated Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) which requires a report of when and where balls were distributed with supporting photographs. Since we first became involved with One World Play Project we have distributed some 75 balls to various schools throughout Northern Thailand. As of this writing we have another 80 balls which are earmarked for our projects and approximately 45 which are available. To further appreciate these marvelous balls please see http://www.oneworldplayproject.com/

Deliveries:

In each case the children have balls that can be used on playgrounds and in streets without having to worry about puncture. Each child is equally important and deserves the opportunity to play. Some of the locations to which we have distributed balls include:

The Burma Children’s Medical Fund Patient House in Chiang Mai provides lodging for children who have medical issues so serious that treatment is beyond the capability of the Mae Tao Clinic or the Mae Sot Hospital. These children are transported to Chiang Mai where they are administered to by the Suan Dok, Chiang Mai University, hospital. The children stay at the house while they are in Chiang Mai.

One of the children in the photo above is undergoing chemo-therapy, one suffering from crippling burns and one has a badly damaged hip.

Our Children’s Sight Program provides examinations, spectacles and referrals to children from poor rural schools. By providing balls to these schools we add value to the Children’s Sight Program. The children are always delighted and the staff is always most appreciative of our additional support.

Photo by Benjie F. Cogswell at one of our Children's Sight Project schools

Children at Pajee Wang Dang Vitaya School waiting to go and play

Our Children’s Water Safety (Drown Proofing) program teaches children water survival skills. We also provide OWPP balls to the schools whose children participate. The children are very happy to have balls that are durable and the staff sees the positive affect we are making on the lives of the children they serve.

Balls being presented at a Water Safety Program Graduation.

Several balls have been distributed to the migrant learning centers along the Thai / Myanmar border. These schools are desperately poor; they are not eligible for any government funding and survive from year to year on contributions.

Agape School in Mae Sot

Occasionally our members will take OWPP balls to areas we do not normally serve. Such is the case with PP Joe Evans who supports poor schools in the North East.

Kham To Kla School

The Future: Our hope is to be able to facilitate the giving of OWPP balls to as many poor schools as possible. We would do this mostly through our network of other Rotary Clubs.

A Visit to Burma Children's Medical Fund House

Posted by Jerry Nelson

On Thursday CMIRC members, led by “Team Wells,” visited the Burma Children’s Medical Fund Patient House. We delivered a "One World Play" indestructible football, and Jeannie Wells also arranged for students from a hair cutting school to visit and give haircuts to the residents. Raelene and David Haines brought Pam Manning, a potential Rotarian, along to see our activities.

The students needed to practice cutting hair and the BCMFH residents needed haircuts - a perfect match!

These children have medical challenges that require the talents of the big Thai Government hospital in Chiang Mai. Spending time with them has much improved my spirit. In the photo below the three angels are playing with each other and having a great time. The little girl in the blue and pink has cancer and is undergoing chemo-therapy. The little boy has had some horrible injury to his right arm and the little girl in the red has a very serious injury to her leg. Rejoice in their childlike ability to deal with life. As an aging adult, I learn much from these marvelous children. These children come from different areas and are of different ethnicities, although they are all from Burma and all have very serious medical challenges. During our visit Thursday afternoon, we noticed a little boy too shy to come out and play. Angel (my nickname for the girl with cancer), and Smiley (the little boy) managed to encourage him to join them. The boy's father was absolutely delighted, as were we.

The taller boy was drawn out by the other children.

In the West our culture dictates that we must not interact with other people's children without their specific permission, and unfortunately for good reason. Our members are vetted and we have a very strict policy that no adult is allowed to be alone with children. Here we are dealing with people who love us because we care for their children.

Proud parents looking on. The man in the green is the dad of the little boy who was too shy to play.

As time goes on CMIRC members will enjoy supporting this patient house and the people they serve, patients and family members.

Jeannie, three of the children and Karl

You can learn more about Burma Children's Medical Fund on their website. Their financial statements are available for all to see. The work they do is badly needed. This is one really great organizaiton

Mike Lake
(If you have any comments or questions, please contact the editor)

Subscribe to Bulletin

Subscribe to our eBulletin and stay up to date on the latest news and events.

Click here to sign up!

Five years since its debut, Rotary Club Central is getting a big upgrade
When we introduced Rotary Club Central in 2012, it revolutionized goal tracking and planning for clubs and districts — no more filling out paper club-planning forms or passing along boxes of historical club information every time a new leader took office. Rotary Club Central offered clubs and districts a quantifiable way to begin measuring local and global impact, specifically membership initiatives, service activities, and Rotary Foundation giving. But as with any technological advancement, in a few short years, Rotary Club Central began to show its age, and Rotarians took notice. They...

Rotary International Board adopts new zone structure
At its January 2017 meeting, the Rotary International Board of Directors adopted a new zone structure for Rotary clubs. Rotary bylaws require the Board to complete a comprehensive review of the 34 Rotary zones no less often than every eight years to ensure that each zone has an approximately equal number of Rotarians. The Board’s previous review of the zones occurred in 2008. The Board earlier approved the creation of three regional workgroups to develop rezoning proposals for Asia, Europe/Africa, and the Americas. These workgroups comprised one representative (either a current director,...

Centennial celebration honors 20 noteworthy global grant projects
Through The Rotary Foundation, Rotary members have supported thousands of projects that promote peace, fight disease, provide clean water, save mothers and children, support education, and grow local economies. We’ve also led the fight to eradicate polio worldwide. As part of our celebration of the Foundation’s centennial, we’re honoring 20 global grant projects with special recognition. Learn more about the projects using our interactive map.

Convention: Southern hospitality
The Atlanta Host Organization Committee is offering some good old-fashioned Southern hospitality at the Rotary International Convention from 10 to 14 June. It has planned a wide range of activities featuring everything from good food and music to inspiring tours of local landmarks. If it’s your first convention, these events are chances to meet fellow Rotarians from around the world, and if you’re an experienced convention goer, you can catch up with old friends. Hall of Fame baseball player Hank Aaron will host Rotarians for a “Strike Out Polio” night at the new SunTrust Park, where you’ll...

Member spotlight: The power of the press
When Teguest Yilma helped found the Rotary Club of Addis Ababa Entoto in 2002, she thought polio had already been eradicated from most of the world. But while Ethiopia had been free of the disease, Yilma was shocked to learn that new cases had started cropping up in surrounding countries such as Somalia. “I was thinking, it’s not possible, we can’t be free if the countries around us are not free,” she says. Yilma, the managing editor of Capital, Ethiopia’s largest English weekly newspaper, has brought a journalist’s skills to the fight against polio. She became vice chair of the Ethiopia...

Interested in being a sponsor?

Download the website sponsorship guide