Welcome back to our weekly bulletin! Find out who our upcoming speakers are, events happening within the club, the RCOB Community and District 7020, and learn more about our members.
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The Rotary Club of Old Fort and Rotary Club of New Providence Medical Marijuana Symposium came to a close on September 13th.
The Rotary Club of Old Fort and Rotary Club of New Providence Medical Marijuana Symposium came to a close on September 13th with a thought provoking, audience engaging and educational panel discussion. Hosted by Andrew Knowles, panelists Dr. Marvin Smith, Mr. Elliott Marshall, Mr. Krisha Wignaraja and Dr. Lynwood Brown were challenged with in depth questions that brought key issues to the surface relating to a potential Medical Marijuana industry here in our back yard. Special thanks to Poop Deck West for hosting and to our panelists for taking time out to speak at this joint club initiative!
RI President Barry Rassin in his September 2018 message emphasized that Rotaractors are our partners and encouraged Rotarians to team up with them on projects, ask them to speak at events, and invite them to join our clubs. The New Generations Committee is excited to carry out the charge and has embarked on a misson to visit every Rotaract Club in the Bahamas to share our unique story in the hopes of encouraging younger members to transition to Rotary. President Shanley and IPP Deidree kicked off the initiative by visiting the Rotaract Club of Nassau Sunset. By the end of the meeting, RCOF had found a service partner for our exciting STEM Saturdays project.
The New Generations Committee under the leadership of PE Derek invites all RCOF members to join us as we continue to be the inspiration for the next generation of Rotarians. Please contact PE Derek for details on our next Rotaract Club visit.
Our featured speaker this week is Minister Jeffrey Lloyd, the current Minister of Education and Member of Parliament for South Beach. Minister Lloyd's professional life spans the fields of Media, Communications, Education, Religion and Business. He is a former educator, prominent national radio and talk show host, a diaconal minister of the Roman Catholic Church, Founder and first Executive Director of the YEAST programme the country's first residential alternative educational program for academically and vocationally challenged young men, which helped transform the lives of over 1000 young men.
Simultaneously, he obtained a Law Degree and was admitted as Counsel & Attorney to the Bahamas Bar. In 2014/15 Minister Lloyd impacted the development of over 1,000 young people as he served at the Baha Mar Leadership Development Institute.
He has played an important role in the Rotary Organization in The Bahamas, twice being honoured with Rotary’s highest recognition, the A. Paul Harris Fellow Award.
We invite you to join us for an informative session. Fellowship starts at 6:30 and club meeting will commence at 7 PM.
Presidential message| September, 2018 - Basic Education and Literacy Month
Imagine if we could take a snapshot capturing all of the work Rotary does on a given day. No one – except Rotarians – would believe that a single organization was capable of accomplishing so much. In that snapshot you would see dedicated volunteers working to eradicate polio, setting up microloans, providing clean water, mentoring youth, and countless other actions.
We can do all this thanks both to our geographic reach and to the fact that our clubs are made up of people who are engaged in their communities. As a part of the community that you serve, you know the needs, you have the connections, and you're able to take immediate action. That's why every Rotary club's membership should reflect the diversity of its community.
We've made great strides in this. In Egypt, Indonesia, and Kenya, Rotary is approaching 50 percent female membership. We're also expanding the age diversity of our clubs. In each of our communities, young professionals are eager to contribute their talents, give back, and learn from mentors. Let's share with them what Rotary is all about. The Engaging Younger Professionals Toolkit at Rotary.org has an action plan to help you reach young leaders and Rotary alumni in your area.
Another resource that can help us better reflect our communities – one that is global like us, is a quarter-million members strong, and already shares our values of service and leadership – is Rotaract. Rotaractors are our partners: Team up with them on projects, ask them to speak at your events, and invite them to join your club. Dedicated Rotaractors worldwide are becoming members of Rotary and even starting new Rotary clubs while still serving as members of Rotaract.
The world needs Rotary, and Rotary needs strong clubs and engaged members in order to do more good. It is our responsibility – yours and mine – to make sure everyone who shows an interest in joining Rotary gets an invitation. Make use of the Membership Leads tool at Rotary.org, which helps people who are interested in joining Rotary connect with a club that's right for them. And let's ensure that every member has a reason to stay. By building strong clubs that engage in meaningful projects and have fun along the way, we provide value to our club members that they cannot find anywhere else.
Let's not keep Rotary's story – the story captured in those snapshots of service – to ourselves. I challenge you to invite leaders of all ages, men and women, who are looking for a way to give back. By doing so, you will Be the Inspiration in your community and help Rotary continue to do good in the world.
Please note that our regular weekly meetings have resumed at the Old Fort Bay Clubhouse beginning Wednesday 19th September 2018 at 6:30pm!
WINE OF THE MONTH
The Club Admin team is happy to introduce our new Wine of the Month special beginning this week with Pinelli's sparkling wine, proudly sponsored by Flying Dutchman. See you at the meeting for more details!
More than 775 million people over the age of 15 are illiterate. That’s 17 percent of the world’s adult population.
Our goal is to strengthen the capacity of communities to support basic education and literacy, reduce gender disparity in education, and increase adult literacy. We support education for all children and literacy for children and adults.