Welcome to the Rotary Club of Redcliffe Sunrise

Dementia is an umbrella term for a collection of symptoms caused by changes or damage to the brain, affecting memory, thinking, communication, problem-solving, mood and behaviour. Although more commonly diagnosed in older people, it can affect anyone; young-onset dementia, diagnosed before 65, particularly impacts those still working, raising families or managing finances.

More than 100 conditions can cause dementia, with five major types commonly recognised. Alzheimer's disease is the most common, accounting for at least 60 per cent of diagnoses, with early symptoms including gradual short-term memory loss, difficulty learning new information and confusion about time or place. Vascular dementia, the second most common, results from reduced or interrupted blood flow to the brain, often after a stroke, with risk factors including high blood pressure, high cholesterol, diabetes, obesity, smoking and heart disease. Lewy body dementia can affect alertness, sleep and movement, causing fluctuating awareness, visual hallucinations and stiffness. Frontotemporal dementia often develops between 40 and 65, with personality, behaviour or language changes appearing before memory problems.

Every person's experience differs, so understanding the particular type matters when planning treatment, support and future care. Greater community awareness makes a significant difference to people living with dementia and their families.

The crowd at The Bel spreads itself across the Public Bar, the Bistro, the lounge bars and the café tables outside, including the pet-friendly area and the children's playground. People come for lunch, old-school catch-ups, anniversaries, birthdays, baby showers, ladies' lunches, hen's days, quality bro-time — or one of the big days like St Patrick's, Christmas, Christmas in July or Halloween. Some just say, "We are the occasion."

Whatever brings you in, the raffle is “worth a punt”. 

For more than thirty years, the Rotary Club at Redcliffe has run raffles at The Bel — The Belvedere Hotel at Woody Point. Same pub, same friendly faces. 

Only the prizes have changed, and eighteen months ago they changed for the better. Better prizes, more choice, no carrying meat trays, no rushing.

 Same pub, same Rotary club, same good cause!

Jesse had one question left on his Grade 9 science project sheet: "Talk to someone in your community who runs a sustainable business."

His Pop was a craft distiller, a small local outfit making gins and vodkas. So on Friday afternoon after school, Jesse sat down with his notebook.

"So how did it start?"

"Two of us — me and your Uncle Piers, " Pop said. "We wanted good spirits and a business that didn't chew through the planet. Gin and vodka now; rum and whisky later."

"What does sustainable actually mean here?"

"Power, process and waste. We put a solar array on the roof — the sun runs the whole place during daylight. And we don't use electric pumps. The mixing tank starts on the floor, where we blend molasses, yeast and water. Then we lift it to the mezzanine, where it ferments about ten days. After that, the liquid runs downhill into the still. Gravity does the work for free — no fuel, no power bill."

Celebrating Excellence and Community Spirit at Redcliffe State High School

Redcliffe State High School celebrated the academic achievements and outstanding contributions of its students at the Annual  Academic Awards Ceremony on Wednesday, 21 October 2026. The ceremony was held at the school's Western Campus Hall, with light refreshments in The Bird’s Nest from 5:00 pm before the formal proceedings commence at 6:00 pm. Among the awards recognising student achievement and community spirit are two special honours supported by Rotary: 

• Rotary Best All Rounder Award — Amie Ito 

• Interact Community Service Award — Michael Robinson

These awards recognise the importance of looking beyond academic results to celebrate the qualities that help build strong, caring and connected communities.  All-round achievement, service to others, leadership and a willingness to contribute are values that benefit not only individual students but the wider community.

99.7 Bridge FM is synonymous with excitement, energy, a mix of classic rock, popular music and community conversation.

Sandii  hosts a monthly Tuesday-morning segment and one of her regular guests is Colin Scobie, environmentalist and President of Rotary Redcliffe Sunrise.

TUESDAY MORNING, 13 OCTOBER 2026

At 9.30 am Colin settled in at the “Bridge”.  This week's conversation had a specific purpose. Kel Sanson — erosion and sediment subject matter expert — was presenting at the club's eco-forum nine days later, and Colin wanted the room full.

The segment wears a light-hearted title — "Talking About Dirt — Surely a Little Dirt Can't Hurt" — but carries a serious message. Soil erosion and sediment runoff can carry pollutants (excessive nutrients and toxicants) into waterways and the Bay, affecting freshwater and marine aquatic environments. Community radio brings that into people's homes, and asks listeners to think about the effects of everyday activities on the environment. 

Behind the microphone, it was routine business: updates, events, community projects. On the other side of it, someone was listening.

Clontarf Beach State high School (CBSHS) has a new native garden. In partnership with Rotary. CBSHS has created a sustainable and enduring educational asset that enriches learning, promotes environmental stewardship and strengthens connections to community and Country.  The gardens behind the Eco-Centre (Q Block) were run down. Staff and students wanted to bring them back to life and turn the area into a working outdoor classroom that any subject area can use for lessons, learning and community events.

Students would learn to recognise local coastal plants and see how sand dunes change into coastal heath. They'd watch living things, collect and study data, and learn about looking after the environment. They'd also grow food, including native bush tucker, and use the garden as inspiration for art projects. 

The garden will become a permanent part of the school, not a one-off project — built into everyday planning and lessons so it survives changes in leadership, staff or volunteers. 

The Head of Science will oversee the gardens and the teaching direction. Science technicians, teachers, groundskeepers and students will share the day-to-day upkeep. Small jobs — replanting, watering, mowing, edging — come out of the Science budget, with students helping as part of lessons. Big jobs, like pruning or removing large trees, will be paid for by the school and done by qualified contractors. Lessons using the garden will be built into the curriculum, and the garden's condition and impact will be reviewed each year.

Picture: Australian Pepper Vine (Piper hederaceum)

Noel Cox became Australia's newest Rotarian at Rotary Redcliffe Sunrise's Wednesday breakfast meeting on September 2.

Noel is in good company. Yuvraj Khatiwada (Rotary Club of Kathmandu Circle) and Eric Allen and Peter Alexander (Rotary Club of Greenwich) were inducted the same day.

However, Noel is arguably the newest Rotarian in the world given the sun rises earlier in Redcliffe than it does in London or the foothills of the Himalayas.

Incoming President for the 2026–2027 Rotary year, Colin Scobie endorsed Rotary International's theme, "Create Lasting Impact," during his address at the Rotary Club's annual Changeover Luncheon held at the Moreton Bay Boat Club 0n Thursday, July16.

The event was attended by distinguished guests including the State member for Redcliffe, Kerri-Anne Dooley, the Federal member for Petrie, Emma Comer MP, Rotary District 9620 Governor Ian Hope, Assistant District Governor Monica Fraser, club members and representatives from Rotary clubs across the region.

Ava stepped off the foreshore and into the hush of the mangrove forest, where the world felt half land, half sea, and entirely magic.

The trees stood on tangled roots like dancers balanced on their toes, rising from the mud in twisting loops and arches. Around them, thin breathing spikes poked up from the ground like thousands of little pencils, and Ava imagined the forest whispering through them.

The air smelled of salt and wet earth. Sunlight slipped through the leaves in golden pieces, landing on pools that shimmered with tiny fish. 

A crab, with a claw as bright as a fire-lit topaz, darted sideways into a hole. Ava gasped and crouched low, her knees muddy, watching the hole as if it were a doorway to another world.

Above her, birds called from hidden branches - sharp cries, soft whistles, fluttering wings. She spotted one blue-grey bird lifting into the sky, its reflection wobbling in the water below. Everything seemed alive in more than one way: the mud wriggled, the roots reached, the water glittered with secret movement.

Her Pop pointed out how the mangroves held the shoreline together and sheltered baby fish from bigger hunters. Ava listened, but mostly she felt it. This forest was not just a place. It was a home, a nursery, a fortress, a feast.

When the tide began to creep in, the water slowly wrapped the roots in silver. Ava stood very still, as if the forest had invited her in for a moment and she must not break the spell. Then she smiled, knowing she would carry its wonder long after her shoes were clean again.