The meeting was brought to order in the usual way. Guests were introduced: Helen Norris from Christians Against Poverty, today's speaker; our exchange student, Victor.

 

Victor described his week in which he has been distributing flyers and doing presentations to promote the student exchange programme. He has been involved in a drive to seek donations for the local food bank. He also found time to learn to play bocce.

 

The Four Club Remembrance Day event will be held on Wednesday, November 9. Pres. Mike Molloy asked for an RSVP by the end of this week in order to arrange the catering. This event will take place instead of the regular club meeting, will cost $35, and will be from 5:30 to 8:30. It's held at the Naval Association on Industrial Road.

 

Mike Molloy has pictures of the 30th anniversary on the website.

 

Jim Brindle reminded us of the Rotary Music Festival which is only a few days away and is desperately looking for volunteers for the numerous festival events. 40 are needed. So far there are 20 people who have enrolled from our club.

 

On November 8 there will be the quarterly Four Club presidents meeting and Pres Mike Molloy has asked to be emailed on any items that might be put on the agenda.

 

Rotary Youth Exchange. Sheila Welham has been juggling 10 schools in the recruitment programme week, ably supported as ambassadors by Ron Lambert, Peter Thoem and Rene Papin. They are on the speaking circuit and were pleased to have Victor as part of this team. The programme is still looking for host families for this year and next.

 

There are three levels of the Rotary leadership Institute taking place on November 5 in Kitchener. René Papin and Mike Malloy will be attending. Participation in this Institute is encouraged.

 

There will be Foundation Training on November 26 this is also encouraged.

 

The highway cleanup will take place on Saturday morning at 9 o'clock at the Paletta circle. So far 8 people have volunteered and more are sought. If there is rain the rain check will be Sunday.

 

Randy Reeve give us an update on Frederic's run from Ottawa to Hamilton in support of his program Liberty for Youth. He is at the halfway mark and is hurting. He is an incredible workhorse who has daily to arrange schedules for speaking engagements quite apart from running 40 km! Randy will be running with him next Saturday towards the end of his run. Randy thanked his sponsors and would love to have more.

 

Rod Collard, Sgt at Arms, felt that fining people for various sartorial indiscretions was fair game and various other people were fine merely for breathing.

 

Poinsettia program for Polio Plus is in full swing and there has been at least one order for $1500 and we are reminded that this is a simple and highly effective way of making money for this invaluable programme. Please check emails for details, order forms, pictures of the products and seek every opportunity to sell at this perfect time of the year.

 

David Beckett celebrated 30 years in Rotary. 

 

Owen McElhinney and his wife Nima celebrating their 34th wedding anniversary by going to Hawaii were they will the present on the day of the American election.

 

Peter Thoem introduced the guest speaker for the day, Helen Norris representing Christians Against Poverty. 

 

 

Helen introduced herself as a good friend of Rotary to whom she's spoken over the last 13 years and is a recipient of the Paul Harris Award. She is a highly energetic person, already a grandmother, having have her first child at the age of 17. She and her husband set up the Helping Hands Street Mission in Hamilton that serves 200 people a day in one capacity or another and is situated close to the Barton Street jail.

 

20 years ago CAP was started in the United Kingdom by John Kirkby, a businessman who lost everything and became homeless with two girls to care for. He was mired in debt but was helped by a church family who helped him to budget and to get back on his feet. He recognised the desperation of those who are without jobs or any hope of digging themselves out. He started with a typewriter and a tiny room and over years developed a service that would help people to get out of debt and back into the workforce. CAP is now present in Australia, New Zealand and now in Canada for the past two years.

 

CAP does not give handouts but helps clients to find their way out through what is known as Job Clubs and Debt Centres. They have much support from a local church community which supplies volunteers and a great deal of support. They deal with people who are at or below the poverty line usually earning less than $700 a month. We help them to avoid the Money Marts of the world and she gave us an example of the area in which she works in Toronto where there are 50 Money Marts and only one bank.  The majority of the people she deals with have never even been into a bank.

 

They recognise that people make poor choices but are determined not to let this get in the way of their rehabilitation. She likened their organisation to Rotary in the desire to help others regardless of circumstances or causes for their problems.

 

The organisation fields credit calls to the people they are helping and helps to renegotiate and often to have forgiven the loans, or the interest on the loans. The goal is to get people away from using food banks and free services and to get a job.

 

The first CAP Job Club was in Watertown. There they show people how to prepare for interviews and write resumes. Most importantly they spend a lot of time discussing the people themselves and what they have to offer. Not all are successful but many end up in full-time employment. Many have had no idea what it takes to hold a job, have never been mentored, or been shown in any way how to comport themselves in order to obtain, let alone hold down a job. They're frequently called lazy but they just don't know how. 

 

CAP provide Hope as does Rotary. She reminded us that Hopelessness is killing us as can be seen in so many areas of our society. CAP provides Hope.

 

They have church funding, individual and business financing and mentorship support,  job shadowing is provided. There is no government funding. They have started in the GTA but intend to spread throughout Canada.

 

Helen was thanked and given a certificate of appreciation.

 

Anthony Ford-Jones

 

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