LAST WEEK'S GUEST SPEAKER

Last week's guest speaker was (thankfully) not on fire, but his presentation certainly sparked our interest. Senior Fire Education presenter with the Queensland Fire Department, Rob Paterson has been an officer with the Fire Department for decades. He reminded us of important messages around fire prevention and in terms of small fires, some equipment and approaches to fighting the fire. He demonstrated the use of a fire blanket - reminding us never to ‘peek’ underneath to see if the fire has gone out. He talked about the use of extinguishers and fire alarms. 

In his report back to the Department (which his role requires), Rob spoke of our Club in these terms: 

It was a wonderful experience speaking to such a friendly group of people on fire safety. Especially exciting to have Mr Leon Robello, Federal Member for Mc Pherson, who is also a member of Burleigh Rotary and our State Member Mr Herman Vorster who presented a new flag to the Rotary Club.

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WHAT'S THE BUZZ THIS WEEK?

VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITIES

Another Bunnings BBQ is coming up (16th October), so please help out if you can! See the link or speak with Mike Shambrook. As an aside, the Girl Guides where there yesterday doing their BBQ, but unfortunately the ‘up’ escalator was broken, so not as much foot traffic heading in! 

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Meeting Information - Last Week

Last week we had a few special guests. 

In addition to our guest speaker, we enjoyed the company of Hermann Vorster MP who also presented the Club with a new Queensland State flag. In doing so, he shared some fascinating facts about the flag - not least of which, is that it was first introduced in 1876 when Queensland was a self-governing British colony with its own navy! 

While not a guest, it is always special to see member Leon Rebello MP join us.

Our exchange student too - while also not really a guest - made a quick visit before having to hit the road for Grafton. She shared that she has been very active during her recent school holidays, taking in a camping trip on the Sunshine Coast and visiting Noosa. She has been enjoying the beach and importantly, has changed host families to now be living with Club member Anthony and his family. 

But perhaps the most special guest…drum roll…was baby Lola! Krystal brought Lola to her first ever Rotary meeting and we absolutely hope to see her many more times. The word besotted comes to mind, as do all of the adjectives synonymous with cute and adorable! Congratulations again Krystal! 

President Vicki proposed the International Toast to the Rotary Club of Banchory-Ternan in Scotland. Chosen because of their incredible hospitality toward Vicki (and me) when we visited there in 2025, it is a wonderful Club chartered in 1971 and boasting as an Honorary Member, King Charles! 

After the meeting, we all gathered for a group photo.

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The Buzz Box

While Rotarians don't do what they do for recognition nor award, it is nice when that is the result. Our Club was nominated for and a finalist in, the McPherson Honours awards. At a lovely ceremony attended by several of our members on Friday (9th October), President Vicki accepted a medal and certificate as a Finalist. We should momentarily pause and allow ourselves a moment of proud reflection, before getting back to what it is we love to do - service.