It has been an exceedingly busy week for meetings, sailings, RYLA attendance, Cuppa Conversations, guest speakers and Club visitors – below is a more detailed explanation.
Last Thursday’s dinner was jam-packed with interesting speakers. Our guest speaker was Sally Willoughby with husband Paul, who spoke on “Vision of Islands” which is a non-profit volunteer eye surgical and clinical team providing free cataract removal for all ages. This work is being performed by Paul’s brother Ophthalmologist Dr John Willoughby OAM and his team of volunteers who are working in the Pacific Islands to rectify cataracts and glaucoma related eye problems. With populations of approximately 108,00 (Tonga), 6,000 (Ha’apai), 13,700 (Vava’u) and 11,500 (Tuvalu), the Islands don’t have specialist surgical teams and would have to travel (at great expense) to New Zealand for treatment. Dr John’s team has travelled to the Pacific Islands since 1996 and the program used to be partly funded by AusAid (but this ceased in 2014). In 2023, Dr John approached Rotary through RAWCS (Rotary Australia World Community Service) for assistance to help cover the costs of transportation of equipment and supplies, accommodation, eye lenses (at $400 each lens), etc. Due to the increased UV from the Islands’ near equatorial latitude, the sun’s rays and reflected light from seawater, Islanders as young as 30yo can suffer from extreme eye disease. For instance, 1 in 30 are blind in one eye; 1 in 150 are blind in both eyes. Since 2023, surgical teams have performed about 100 surgeries each year. Sally and Paul (formerly from the Rotary Club of Mobilong) are about to transfer to the RC of Murray Bridge which has adopted this international Rotary project. Our Board will discuss this project this month.
Rob also gave a mini speech – reading out the Hansard records of Parliament about the recent Walk Against Domestic Violence.
At the same meeting, we also welcomed a visit from former AdLight member Josephine Lamshed. Josephine was a member from 2006-2009 before she left Australia for postings in her role in Immigration in Nairobi (3 years), Iran (2.5 years) and Canberra. Now busy back in Adelaide with her young son, hopefully Josephine will find some time to visit every now and then.
On Thursday 27 September, Richard Jarrett attended the RYLA (Rotary Youth Leadership Awards) Graduation Dinner to support our nominated Awardee Sammy (Shubhika) Balvally from the Rotaract Club of Adelaide City. Ex-RYLArians /Rotaractors Steph (President RCAC), Willa and Nic also attended to show their support for Rotaractor Sammy. Sammy wrote Richard a thank you letter expressing how wonderful and enriching RYLA was and thanking our Club for nominating her for attendance. Sammy will be invited to speak at a Thursday night dinner soon.
On 29 September, member Fatemeh and husband Reza waved goodbye to their son Sadra on the “One & All” Rotary Youth Sailing Challenge – a five day “Youth Adventure” voyage subsidised by AdLight. This voyage challenges young people to “learn the ropes” aboard a sailing vessel, feeling the surging waves, the noise of the wind in the sails, exploring the night sky miles away from city lights, learning to handle the sails in wind and calm, and feeling the power of the ship when at the helm. The attendees spend the time on board without electronic gadgets, getting to converse with others and build a team of “sailors” to sail the ship safely out and back home. Many thanks to Rob McLennan who organised Sadra’s on-board experience, and for being at the dock when he departed. Sadra will be invited to speak to our Club on his sail training journey soon.
Katey, Paige, Kirsti and Erfan have been busy in the past few weeks organising and spreading the word about our dinner supporting Afghan Girls’ Education which will be held at Rumi Palace on Friday 8 November. This venue holds 80 people (100 with a tight squeeze) and, even at this early stage, 85% of the tickets have already been sold. Our guest speaker is Erfan Abidi who will share his insights and experiences of the lack of girls’ education in Afghanistan due to Taliban rule and what is happening to help rectify this situation. To buy tickets ($59) or give donations towards this important cause, use https://www.trybooking.com/CVVFC
We had word from Bruce two days ago that his exceedingly fit son Lachie was ready to run the 246km Spartathlon ultra marathon in Greece – in 32 degree C weather! Bruce and one of his brothers were Lachies’ support team. We haven’t as yet heard back as to how Lachlan finished in this day and a half race.
The lovely spring weather was a draw-card for our Cuppa Conversation migrant friends at the Adelaide Botanic Garden’s Fibonacci Café with lots of our regulars and a couple of people who hadn’t been for many months. Great conversational English and networking was the order of the day. The Botanic Park provided even more entertainment with the beautiful glass sculptures throughout the Park – especially the hanging “chandelier” in the historic Palm House.
This coming Thursday is Coffee Catchup at the White Picket Cafe.
Best wishes and have a great week. Yvette, President.
We are excited to invite you, together with your friends and family, to a special fundraising dinner -Empowering Futures: Supporting Afghan Girls' Education, at Rumi Palace on Friday, 8 November, starting at 6pm.
This event is not just about enjoying a delicious meal; it’s about making a difference in the lives of girls in Afghanistan who have lost their right to education under the Taliban regime. We'll be raising funds to support the education of girls in Afghanistan through the Circle of Friends Empowerment Network, established by our very own club member, Erfan Abidi.
Tickets: $59 per person (includes entrée, main, soft drinks, and free corkage); $15 kid's meal
Special Features: Enjoy our Wine Wall and exciting raffle prizes! (we're also gladly accepting donations of wine and raffle prizes)
Guest Speaker: We are honored to have Erfan Abidi sharing his insights and experiences about the situation for women in Afghanistan with us, and the impact our fundraising will have in supporting education for girls.
Thank you for your support, and we hope to see you there!
I've also just updated the trybooking page so you can make a donation without buying a ticket. Here's the trybooking link again - https://www.trybooking.com/CVVFC
When you click on 'book now', add '1' to the 'donation only' ticket type, then add in your donation amount in the 'make a donation' field below it.
If you would like a tax deductible receipt, you can donate directly through the Circle of Friends give now platform. Just make sure you select 'Empowerment Network (Circle 132)' when asked which circle you wish to contribute to.
Of course, we can also take cash if that's preferred. And the wine could be donated to Kirsti, Paige or I, as described by Yvette.
Warm regards, Katey Halliday
on behalf of the Community Service Committee Rotary Club of Adelaide Light
Mitchell’s three key Clare Valley vineyards range in altitude from 300 to 450 metres; the Sevenhill Vineyard, Alcatraz Vineyard and Growers Vineyard.
Their Alcatraz Vineyard in the heart of Clare Valley was planted in 1962 on an exposed easterly facing slope and nicknamed "Alcatraz" as there was no escaping the cold, wet winter days spent working the vines.
Its old vines are grown on red loam over limestone soils with an east-facing slope that receives the gentle morning sun, but is sheltered from the direct sun in the heat of the afternoon.
The dry grown vines are hand pruned and handpicked with no artificial fertilisers, pesticides or herbicides used in growing these grapes. This largely explains why the vineyard produces award-winning quality wines year-on-year.
This medium bodied, dry white wine is a delicious Riesling with generous flavour and refreshing acidity. It’s a crisp, mouth-watering wine that’s ready to drink now, comparing well to much more expensive wines.
United in the spirit of Service we value truth, fairness and friendship; and we welcome the opportunity that Rotary gives us to contribute our talents and resources in support of others.
Rotary Club of Adelaide Light Mission Statement
To have fun and engage interest from new members and friends as we use our strengths for a better world here and abroad - a welcoming, flexible group having fun doing hands-on activities for positive impact.
I had moved to a different state, and at that time a vehicle inspection was required to register my car. I was nervous; my car was in rough shape. I thought of the state's rigorous inspections. Any number of problems might turn up that would be expensive to fix.
I drove down a country road and found a garage that had an inspection sign.
When I told the mechanic what I needed, he circled the car, turned on the lights and honked the horn. Then he attached a new sticker and asked me for the three-dollar fee.
I was shocked. "Is that all you have to do?" I asked.
He answered, "Well, you drove it here, didn't you?"
