For six staff members from Rotary headquarters in Evanston, the fight to eradicate polio has become personal. Together, they biked the physically grueling 104-mile (167-kilometer) Tour de Tucson in Arizona, USA, collectively raising more than $20,000 for polio eradication while putting their bodies and minds through a feat of endurance.
For the tightknit group, the experience was about more than just raising money and crossing the finish line. It was about learning about each other and what Rotary members are doing to rid the world of this crippling disease. They advocated together, trained...
Two years ago, U.S. Rotary members in Maine set out to improve the education system in Bikaner, Rajasthan, an Indian city near the border of Pakistan.
The Rotary Club of Kennebunk Portside chose Bikaner because club member Rohit Mehta was originally from the area and had connections there. Mehta put the club in contact with Rotarians in India to provide desks for four government-run schools.
But when community leaders returned with a request for more desks, the Maine Rotarians decided they had to think bigger. The Rotary Foundation had rolled out its new grant model, which required that the...
Before college, business school, or their first jobs, more than 2,000 U.S. high school students are learning what it takes to become tomorrow's brightest business leaders.
Each year, nearly 25 Rotary clubs and districts conduct three-day educational retreats in a program known as Camp Enterprise. At each retreat, seasoned business professionals and entrepreneurs teach 100 or so area high school juniors how to develop, launch, and operate a successful business in a free enterprise economic system.
The intensive weekend camps, funded entirely by the clubs and offered at no cost to participants...
Rotary General Secretary John Hewko and six RI staff members bicycled 104 miles in Tucson Arizona, USA, on Saturday, for the Miles to End Polio event, raising more than $6 million for polio eradication.
The money raised by Rotary will receive a two-to-one match from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
In addition to the team from Evanston, 100 Rotary member riders took part in the ride.
The fundraising ride is part of the annual El Tour de Tucson bike event in Tucson, Arizona, USA. The race attracts more than 9,000 cyclists a year, making it one of the top cycling events in the U.S. The...
To strengthen their 69-year-old partnership, leaders from Rotary and the United Nations met this month in New York City for Rotary Day at the United Nations. The two organizations began working together with the aim of maintaining peace after World War II. Today, the relationship has evolved to include humanitarian work in areas like gender equality, child and maternal health, and disease treatment and prevention.
While the UN's Millennium Development Goals are set to expire in 2015, its leaders are preparing for an even more ambitious humanitarian agenda of eradicating extreme poverty by...
Club Information
Welcome to our Club!
Service Above Self
We meet Tuesdays at 6:15 PM
Warrnambool Football Club
Cramer Street
Warrnambool,
Victoria 3280 Australia
Community service is one of the Avenues of Service which encourages Rotarians to offer service to their communities. Every Rotary club and every Rotarian assumes a responsibility to find ways to improve the quality of life for those in their communities and to serve the public interest.
This PowerPoint presentation (below) gives you the basics about CommunityService, one of Rotary's Avenues of Service. Learn about the types of projects your club can conduct to improve your community. Find resources for assessing your community and project.
President Marie Bennett opened the meeting and welcomed all including visiting Rotarian Ray Henry from Darwin and guest speaker Andrew Chow. Marie wished everyone who had celebrated a birthday in November and December a very happy birthday and apologised for being late acknowledging the November birthday’s.
Rotary Notice Boards: Steve Giddens informed Rotarians that the Football Club Board was unable to discuss the club notice boards at the last meeting because of the large agenda and will place the item on their next agenda.
Fun Trivia Night: Andrea Sampson informed Rotarians that last week she and Astrid attended a fun trivia night at the Shanakie Hotel. The Trivia nights are weekly on a Wednesday night between 8-10 pm and all are welcome to attend.
Quilt Show - January 9-11, 2015: Andrea also explained that she had drawn up a roster for the Quilt Show to be held between the Jan 9-11, 2015. Members were asked to check the rosters and either confirm their availability or request another day or time. Andrea explained the ‘perks’ of working at the Quilt Show were (1) selling tickets (2) selling raffle tickets and (3) wearing special cotton gloves and being permitted to touch the quilts and turn them over for people to view the reverse side.
Bunnings BBQ 11 January: Friendly reminder to put this date in your diary, bearing in mind that the Quilt Show will be occurring on this weekend.
WRAD'S AGM: Anne Adams informed the group about WRAD’s AGM to be held on Friday 12 at 5.30pm - all are welcome to attend.
Christmas Brunch for Rotarians: Anne Adams advised this will be at her home (49 Henderson’s Lane, Wangoom) on Sunday 21 December starting around 10am. Everyone is welcome and Anne asked if you can let her know by Tuesday 16 December if you are attending so she will know whether to clean the house!
Dinner Auction: Michael Boyd advised Rotarians that a date has been set for our clubs major fund raiser the 2015 Dinner Auction – it will be held on Saturday 23 May 2015. Michael asked Rotarians to start thinking about possible sources for donations to be auctioned on the night.
Money Spinners
Michael said the Club is purchasing two Money Spinner’s and negotiations are under way to have them placed outside Target and Kmart. These can also be transported to various Rotary functions.
RYLA applications are now open and the closing date is 19 December. For any information, please contact Jane Auchettl on email: janef.311@gmail.com.
or see Rachel or Terry. Information documents can also be found in the "Download Files" on the left hand side of this Bulletin.
Rotary District Conference 20-22 March 2015
Members are encouraged to attend and it is recommended to start thinking about seeking accommodation in Maryborough if you plan to attend the conference. If you need help registering, contact Rachel. The 2015 Conference Website is now up and running, There is a program, details of speakers, accommodation details and a site for booking. The site is: http://www.rotary9780conference.com.au/
If you used this site last year, you may need to refresh your screens for the new information to show.
Ian Cairns auctioned 5 gift packs of mini-home-made plum puddings, made by Svet. Naturally anything made by Svet is a hit and all went within the link of an eye for $20 each. Funds raised went to Astrid's fund raiser for providing swags for the homeless. Thank you Svet.
The Chair Michael Boyd introduced Guest Speaker, Dr Andrew Chow. Andrew was born in Warracknabeal and grew up in Maryborough with parents and 4 siblings. His father was the local General Practitioner for over 30 years. Andrew studied medicine at Melbourne University/St Vincents Hospital and graduated with a Bachelor of Medicine and Surgery in 1991. He worked at St Vincents Hospital for two years, then came to Warrnambool in 1994 where he initially worked as a Resident at the Base Hospital. He joined the Cambourne Clinic as Partner in 1995. At that stage Cambourne Clinic had 4 partner doctors and 3 administration staff. Cambourne Clinic has now expanded to 5 Partners, 11 doctors, 10 administration staff and 7 nurses. Andrew became a Fellow of the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners in 1996 and is an accredited supervisor involved in teaching junior doctors. He is an Associate Lecturer at Deakin University involved with the local Medical School. Andrew developed a special interest in skin cancer detection and treatment. He played football with Port Fairy and South Rovers Football Club and has recently completed the Gold Coast and Melbourne Marathons. He is married to Tracy and has 6 children.
Leila was his fifth child born in 2008 and passed away from a rare cancer in 2010. The Leila Rose Foundation was established in 2011 to help children and families affected by rare childhood cancer.
There is currently a gap in the system for families facing the challenge of a child with rare cancer. For families who find that their child is suffering from a rare form of cancer (approx. 40 new cases in Australia each year), not only is it an extremely emotional journey for the families, but one made even more complex due to the fragmentation of knowledge surrounding the nature of their child’s cancer. Families are often faced with:
An often uncertain or delayed diagnosis by medical practitioners, who may be required to seek alternative opinions and further validation of results;
Uncertainty and a lack of understanding of the rare cancer and its impact;
A lack of a support network of families who have children with the same or similar cancer – they feel isolated;
A lack of available treatment options for the cancer and medical practitioners relying on standard treatments for more common cancers in the absence of a detailed understanding of the rare cancer. If this fails, as it so often does, the family is left with no other options;
A public health system so overwhelmed that it cannot conduct the required global research regarding alternative treatment options or case study efficacies;
An increased travel and accommodation financial burden due to additional specialist and medical practitioner visits, perhaps for second opinions, alternative practitioners, etc.
Tracy and Dr Andrew Chow's little girl Leila Rose lost her battle with a rare form of cancer, Rhabdoid Tumor, when she was just 21 months old on September 12, 2010. Leila was just 10 months old when she was diagnosed and treated at a leading children’s hospital in Australia. Her cancer was so rare that the hospital had only seen two other cases. The cancer specialists were able to provide the initial treatment regime but when that failed they could offer no other options.
Andrew, a Warrnambool doctor, decided to seek answers from around the world and specialists from Germany, France and the US offered treatment options. Tracy and Andrew were inspired to help other families whose children were diagnosed with rare cancers to get the help they need.
The fight for Leila’s life showed Tracy and Andrew Chow the pain and frustration experienced by families when their kids are diagnosed with rare and incurable diseases. For the Chow’s, there was a thirst for knowledge, a burning drive to make sure that no stone was unturned and that every possible treatment option was considered. Being from the country was difficult, and walking the fine line of being at home with her family and in Melbourne where her treatment was needed was always a difficult decision. Unfortunately these needs were unmet by the health system and the lack of funding by the health system meant that excellent practitioners did not have the capacity or resources to meet their needs. After the passing of Leila, the Chow’s wondered how many other families have experienced the same problems and how many are currently going through it.
The Chow’s established the Leila Rose Foundation in 2011, in memory of their daughter. The Leila Rose Foundation was launched on December 4, 2011, which would have been Leila's third birthday. The Leila Rose foundation is dedicated to assisting families affected by Rare Childhood Cancer. The foundation offers support and guidance to families when faced with the painful reality that little may be known about the cancer affecting their child. With possibly no known cure available, the foundation assists families to ensure that they have a complete understanding of their child’s cancer, the treatment process and available treatment options so that they feel empowered to make informed choices about their child’s health.
Assistance offered by the Leila Rose Foundation is diverse and ranges from supporting families with the practical responsibilities associated with tackling a rare disease to seeking secondary or specialist intervention and researching global treatment efficacies for like cancers. The Leila Rose Foundation focuses solely on rare childhood cancers and makes the journey for families less unfamiliar. It deems to eliminate any barriers that may exist in the search for the best possible support and treatment for their child.
The Chair, Michael Boyd, thanked Dr Chow for his interesting speech and presented him with a certificate for a mosquito net to be donated to a needy family in New Guinea.
Following the general meeting the Board agreed to donate $1,000 to the foundation.
On November 8, I went to my good friends' birthday party.
From 14 to 16 November, I was at the Outbound briefing. it was super nice to see all the other exchange students again. And I met the two from our District to be exchange students in Denmark, so I gave them some tips about the weird Danes ;)
On 19 November, I was at the other Danish exchange student Cecilie's country presentation.
And I have finally tried to celebrate Thanksgiving!!!
And as Svet told Rotarians last week, I have been on the Girl Guides camp. It was super fun and I learned a lot of new things, and met all the other girls.
John Hunt and I went out to buy an Advent calendar, we ended up with three and the day after I also received one from my mum in Denmark.
I have also attended my first Rotaract meeting which I enjoyed. When I first heard about it two weeks ago, I checked it on Google which showed only about 5 clubs in Denmark, which is not really enough right ;)
And I finally my summer vacation starts on Friday :D
Rotary Club of Warrnambool Joined in Sponsorship Team For An Alternative Schoolies Work Party to Philippines. An update from their team leader Geraldine Edar-Ralph.
Dec 8 2014
What a day we have had. I am so proud of each and everyone of my kids - they packed 500 relief supplies, distributed these to people and brave enough to face the fact that we can't help everyone - not one had a dried eyes in the end. We've visited an orphanage which was very interesting. A sincere thanks to all who had contributed to our relief supplies drive. Rest assured that your money had gone to the most deserving families in the City. And our kids had first hand experience of seeing people in desperation which I hope they will remember forever.
Russ and Sam, two friends, very old and frail, met in the park every day to feed the birds, watch the squirrels and discuss world problems. One day Russ didn’t show up.
Sam didn’t think much about it and figured maybe he had a cold or something.
But after Russ hadn’t shown up for a week or so, Sam really got worried. However, since the only time they ever got together was at the park, Sam didn’t know where Russ lived, so he was unable to find out what had happened to him.
A month had passed, and Sam figured he had seen the last of Russ, but one day, Sam approached the park and — lo and behold! — there sat Russ!
Sam was very excited and happy to see him and told him so. Then he said, “For crying out loud Russ, what in the world happened to you?” Russ replied, “I was in jail.”
“Jail?” cried Sam. “What in the world for?”
“Well,” Russ said, “you know Sue, that cute little blonde waitress at the coffee shop where I sometimes go?”
“Yeah,” said Sam, “I remember her. What about her?”
“Well, one day she filed rape charges against me; and, at 89 years old, I was so proud that when I got into court, I pleaded ‘guilty’.”
“The damn judge gave me 30 days for lying under oath.”
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Community service is one of the Avenues of Service which encourages Rotarians to offer service to their communities. Every Rotary club and every Rotarian assumes a responsibility to find ways to improve the quality of life for those in their communities and to serve the public interest.
Ian Cairns auctioned 5 gift packs of mini-home-made plum puddings, made by Svet. Naturally anything made by Svet is a hit and all went within the link of an eye for $20 each. Funds raised went to Astrid's fund raiser for providing swags for the homeless. Thank you Svet.
On November 8, I went to my good friends' birthday party.
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