President's Report 2017

  

 

 

 

 

     David Mylan

 

The opportunity to serve as the President of the Rotary Club of Terrigal (the Club) in its 42^nd year of serving local, national and international communities has been a pleasure.  The support and encouragement from members has contributed to my personal enjoyment, sense of contribution and fulfillment that I hope each member has also experienced.

During 2016-17 some time and energy was invested in raising awareness of Rotary in our local community through innovating ways.  A Club “pop up” presence at Erina Fair, Erina and a stall at the Terrigal Beach Markets were opportunities for us to be accessible and visible by our community. 

The Club sought information on, through club meetings and meetings with community and business leaders, where the Club might apply its time, effort and resources and most importantly these conversations were contact points with people in our community.  A great practical example of the Club reaching out to the community was through the use of an online survey to the users of Terrigal Park about their interest and suggestions for enhancing the area, park facilities and infrastructure. 

 The Club hosted in May 2017 Community Awards at which six awardees were recognised for their contribution to their cause(s) and or organization(s).  In June 2017 the club recognized ten individuals from diverse business/professional/industry sectors for Vocational Excellence.  These events showcased the value, generosity and relevance of Rotary to the community and business sectors.

The Club’s support, involvement and provision of the inaugural convener, John Millhouse, of the Terrigal Lagoon Bushcare Program is a practical and innovative example of the Club serving its community.  Further demonstrating Rotary’s Motto of Service Above Self and offers an opportunity to involve the “community” in care of our local environment.  

The quality of the guest speakers at our club meetings has ensured our meetings have been interesting, informative, challenging, thought provoking and enjoyable. 

 The Club’s strength in connecting up like-minded people was highlighted through the cohosting in May 2017 with the Small Business Network Group of the Business Edge Networking event.  Over forty business and professionals attended the event. There was interest shown in Rotary and the majority of attendees have been added to our network to receive the Terrigal Times and information of upcoming events.

 

Club life has been enriched by vocational visits and social outings throughout the year in addition to District events such as District Assembly, District Changeover and participation of club members in the Rotary Leadership Institute (RLI).

The Club led Rotary Clubs here on the Central Coast in support of the Top Blokes Foundation http://www.topblokes.org.au/ . The pledge of funding of $3,000 in year 2016-17 and 2017-18 was made for the establishment of an interactive schools program here on the Coast.  The program uses peer mentoring to tackle issues that teenage boys aged 14-17 struggle with including risk-taking, peer pressure and mental health issues.

The Club is grateful to the Breakers Country Club (BCC) Board, management and staff including Chief Executive Officer Ken Pearson, Chef Arron Stewart, Functions Manager Jess McNamara, Duty Manager(s) Greg Cooper, Chris Gethen, John Norman and Dean Osborne and Catering Supervisor Kevin D’Almaida and staff member Daniel Kennedy.  The BCC team has extended personalized care and support of our meetings and events to ensure that we and our guests receive great value, professional and most of all fun and enjoyable experiences.

 

The accompanying Avenue of Service reports highlight the many varied and successful activities the Club has undertaken, initiated and planned for the future.

Yours in Rotary Service

David Mylan