2016 January 14 - Rotary bulletin.
We’ve had a few weeks with low attendance, what with Christmas and all that, but this morning we were back. It was a cold start with fresh snow on the ground, yet we still manage to draw in members (and guests) from afar. Allan Ramsay schleps in from Moffatt, and Jim Brindle from Virgil; these are long treks. At least the car warms up nicely. I set my alarm for 06:18, but at what time, do you suppose Allan and Jim have to get up to be at Rotary for seven? Anyway there we were; a nearly full house.
Guests and visiting Rotarians were: Mike Foley (R.C Stoney Creek), Elliot Vine (prospective member) Augustina Perez Saucedo (our inbound exchange student) and Camilla Izquierdo (our outbound exchange student).
Wayne Gowans was entrusted with the honour of leading us in the National Anthem, a demanding role I’ll admit. Without putting too fine a point on it, playing a choral lead is not Wayne’s strongest point; still he does the toast to the Queen and Canada passably well.
Mike Foley (from RC Stoney Creek – another early riser) was quick to seize the first available micro-second pause in the proceedings to promote his club’s sale of raffle tickets. A $20 buys you a shot on a Harley Davidson. Hmmm.
Our guest speakers were Rotarians Janet Lucas and Eva Quijano from RC Burlington Lakeshore. They came to share their plans and hopes for a project to provide potable water for an indigenous community in Nayarit, Mexico. But first they showed us some of the Rotary projects they’ve been involved in Agua Prieta, close to the U.S border (the one Donald Trump says he’s going to wall- off, at Mexico’s expense.) There they have refurbished a school and provided it with a playground: swings, slides that sort of thing. They also installed a new drinking fountain and provided some computers. Perhaps most touching was the background to one of the photos, of a child carrying a new, donated blanket and overheard saying excitedly to his mother, “Mom, now I’m going to be warm.” In Spanish of course.
The above mentioned Nayarit project is about drilling a well which will provide clean, potable water. Hitherto the remote village has relied on local river water for all domestic purposes but it is far from clean and rapid tooth decay, skin diseases and intestinal disorders have afflicted the population. The well will provide 5 litres/second of safe water at a cost of about USD25,000. Funding is planned to come from Rotary clubs in Mexico, Burlington, District 7080 and the Rotary Foundation. Ahh the magic of matching grants.
Having just a few minutes left, President Bryce sprung a twenty-question general knowledge quiz on us; he’s done this before. It was a challenge to be sure. The top score was Owen McElhinney’s 11.5/20. I may be wrong about this but I think that although Owen scored best someone else scooped the prize.
P.Scribe
