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Greetings to Rotarians and Friends of Rotary Spring has sprung and we are experiencing the usual wild winds and rain, followed by those glorious sunny days that provide an opportunity to enjoy the flowers that are really blooming! Many of our members have enjoyed our winter from afar, and while some have returned, others are still enjoying their travels  Brian and Jenny looking happy and relaxed in the NT. I have just returned from a short but wonderful holiday in Sri Lanka. It is such a beautiful country and the people are warm and welcoming. The terrible state of the economy is making life incredibly hard and tourism brings much needed currency. As fuel prices continue to rise, many people are selling their cars and buying 2-stoke tuk tuks instead. These 3-wheelers seem to multiply overnight! I will not complain about driving in Melbourne's traffic again .... at least, not for a while. President's Report Only a short report this week as I’ve been on holidays for the last 10 days. I can thoroughly recommend the Great Northern Train journey from Auckland to Wellington as one of the “must do” on your travel list. Thank you to Richard and Joe for running the meeting last week and looking after our guest speaker Darren Andrew from Goodlife Gym. There is a more detailed report from our reporter Chris in this bulletin. I’m very happy to report that the Kailaki Village Water Project in PNG is now complete. There will be photos to show in the next bulletin. Our Schools Showcase on Wednesday 13 September promises to be a great display of what the students in the schools we support are currently doing. Judy S has made some valuable connections with both principals and staff to ensure that Rotary can assist in these schools wherever there is need. Pam Hall Darren Andrew and the Fountain of Youth - a report from Chris Reynolds  Darren is a 55-year-old fitness expert who spoke to last week's meeting of the Rotary Club about how to reduce the impact of aging. Interestingly the average age of this audience was well over sixty years. The 2 key factors which can delay the aging process are regular exercise and a carefully balanced diet, however exercise needs to aid the retention of muscle mass. “If we don’t use it, we lose it,” said Darren. From the late twenties until the sixties on average we lose ¼ kg of muscle per year. Aerobic exercise is important, but this activity alone will not give most adults the health benefits they need nor the body shape changes they really want.” (Industry Insider www.metabolicprecision.com) Muscle mass and cardio fitness are related to diet and metabolic rate. Diet should contain a balance of fat, protein and carbohydrate, but your plate should be full of more vegetables and fruits and nuts than it is of bread and cake and processed foods. Increasing the metabolic rate relies on exercise (17% and food 12%). Again, there needs to be a balance. Darren cited a case where a man aged 78 found he could not even lift the kettle to make tea: he could play his violin for only ten minutes at a time. Within a matter of months his programme of resistance (weight) training turned this around so that he no longer had trouble lifting the kettle full and playing his beloved fiddle for half an hour at a time. Thank you, Darren for your information and advice. Half a Century of Service Many thanks to John Parkinson for showing me ‘From Half a Century of Service – The story of the Mornington Rotary Club 1947-1997.’ I have selected just a few snippets of information from the publication to share here about our club. 1951/2 Neville Shute, the author of ‘On The Beach’ was a guest speaker. 1953/4 Members raised £70 by operating a newly opened service station for the weekend. I am assured that this did not prompt the move to self-service! 1957/58 Ugly Man competition fund raiser was held! 1959/60 Purchase and launch of The Spirit of Rotary, a trackless train, that was made available for hire at £21 a day. It brought joy to many children and raised funds for the club for 10 years before being sold in 1970. 1965/6 A proposal to have singing at club meetings was rejected - phew! The publication also highlights the incredibly hard work of the club members in and for the community. I am looking forward to seeing many of you at the Schools Showcase evening this Wednesday. At this stage we are planning for 60 members and guests. Chris Reynolds and I were fortunate enough to attend the Moorooduc Primary School Toastmasters Presentation this morning. Some of these competent and confident students will be presenting on Wednesday and will demonstrate their excellent public speaking skills to all. |
