Dr Serge Macanovic gave an excellent presentation at last week’s Formal Meeting – there was a lot of great health advice for us all. Thanks to Dr Macanovic for his time and to Larry Murray for organising.
If you haven’t been to a meeting lately please make a big effort to attend next Wednesday’s morning ‘Lutzy’ Award – it is a big day for Surfers Sunrise Rotary Club. The ‘Lutzy’ is presented to a young member of Surfers Paradise Surf Lifesaving Club in memory of our Charter Member Keith Lutz, who was also a major mentor and driving force in the Surf Life Saving Movement. Thank you to Ray Higgs & Graeme Isaacson for your efforts organising and to Andy Bell & Mario Fairlie for arranging sponsorship of the Surf Rescue Board that is awarded to the winner of the ‘Lutzy’.
PDG Darrell Brown will soon be asking for volunteers for the Gold Coast Small Business Expo on Thursday October 15. We will be assisting through the event setup and by organising the car parking as we have done in previous years.
Organisation is going well for the Golf Day on Monday October 26 – expect an email this week with the invitation. This is one of our major fundraisers for the year so please get involved by either playing, sponsoring or volunteering.
We are still in the process of talking to Four South African Rotary Clubs about sending 280 Wheelchairs to Durban. Hopefully we can get this done before the ‘10,000th Wheelchair Celebration and Big Bike Sale’ which is now less than 2 months away (November 14th). The Team organising the day is working hard behind the scenes to organise an event and to get all the approvals required to run a COVID-Safe event. There will be plenty of ways to get involved so please put your hand up if you can help out.
This Friday, Rotarians from Surfers Sunrise, Broadbeach and Gold Coast Clubs will be meeting about our joint Pentecost Island Project. I look forward to updating you on the progress of this Project in a lot more detail next week.
This Wednesday we are at the Surf Club for Social Meeting. See you there from 7am.
So you buy packaged food which is marked as ‘Fat Free’ in big letters? But does that mean that it won’t have any influence on gaining weight? Well, think again! Croatian born Dr Serge Macanovic, who is the Lead GP at Our Medical Home in Oxenford, begs to differ: 'No fat' doesn’t mean no calories. And it’s the unused calories which your body automatically converts to fat. “We were not made up when we were born”, Dr Serge elaborated. “We are the product of millennia of evolution. People had to work, to hunt for their food. Often they would go hungry…”
Opening with a quote by Irish novelist Cecelia Ahern that “Age is just a number, not a state of mind or a reason for any type of particular behaviour”, he emphatically pointed out a major link between health of your body and health of your mouth. Yes… did you listen to your mother? Gum disease doesn’t just give you bad breath and causes tooth decay. It massively increases the risk of
head and neck cancer, Alzheimer’s disease, pancreatic and kidney cancer, diabetes and a broad catalogue of other common illnesses. Before you continue reading, download and view Dr Steve’s PowerPoint presentation (see Download Files on the right) and refer to slide 13 for a compelling graphic.
Other than the obvious causes of gum disease (e.g. not brushing your teeth, sugar), is smoking. Did you know that a cigarette doesn’t just contain Nicotine, but also Ammonia (yep, same stuff you use to clean the toilet), Acetone (what you use to remove nail varnish), Buthane (Lighter Fluid) just to name a few. If you still are smoking, check out slide 14! And what about alcohol? See slide 16. Does that mean we have to give up our most favourite vice? No, but aim to keep your alcohol below 12 – 14 units per week, and give your body a two day break every week. Ultimately, it all comes down to the four basics: Brush your teeth, stop smoking, reduce your alcohol and about 30 minutes a day of ‘moderate activity’. If you click on the link, you’ll find that helping your spouse to do the housework doesn’t constitute exercise. But, as mental wellbeing is equally important: it will improve your relationship. ☺
Photo: Dr Serge with the meeting's chairman, John Chirio.
On Wednesday week, on 30th September, our club will present the 'Lutzy' Award to a young emerging Surfing Club leader. Ray Higgs and Graeme Isaacson have arranged for a VERY special deal with the caterers at the Surf Club: a plated meal for just $10.00! But we need to advise your choice of 5 menu options: Acai Bowl (very healthy, gluten free, vegan), or either poached or fried eggs with either bacon or sausages and toast. Click on this link to select your choice and book on the Trybooking website I've set up:
He might be 84 years old, but as the old Aussie expression goes: No flies on John! And his dedication to the job is today just as strong, as meticulous and encompassing as it would have been some 60 years ago. Then, in 1960, just 24 years old, he started a 20 year career with The British Phosphate Commissioners on the island of Nauru (later the Nauru Phosphate Corporation). His background in his parents’ business served him well to take care of the Bulk Store. Just imagine what is required to cater for some 150 staff and about 1400 Chinese and Pacific Island labourers, with a 3 month lead time! A mere 5 years later he was appointed to be Secretary to the Island Manager.
And just to prove that he was not just all about work: at the time there were just 3 single (Caucasian) women on the island. One of them, a young lady named Vana, was the manager’s stenographer. Anyway… they married… the wedding was organised by the company, right there in Nauru! [Knowing John’s commitment to his work, it is not known whether he took a honeymoon holiday or not… Ed. 😊]. One of their children was born on Nauru, the other in Melbourne. Among other duties, Vana was in charge of maintaining the Land Schedule, what appears to be somewhat similar to our Titles Registry Office. Except that on Nauru a piece of land can have as many as 100 male owners. So the register is in the name of the women. There is a complete separate story in there!
Comfortably retired now, other than volunteering at our Project Shed, John enjoys reading good novels (Jeffrey Archer, Wilbur Smith, Lee Childs etc), listening to traditional Jazz and Rock 'n' Roll and studying World War 2 History. Ah, did I mention that, for 3 years in his youth, he also was a Cadet Midshipman? And heavily involved with the Sea Scouts movement?
It's been decided: this year's Golf Day will be held on Monday, 26th October 2020. Projected to be held at the same location as last year, the Surfers Paradise Golf Club on Fairway Drive. We'll need both volunteers to man the course, and of course we need participating teams. Check out the flyer in the Download section on the right.
"And where is Battaramulla?" I hear you ask; sounds like a small outback town west of the black stump... No! It's in Sri Lanka, actually it is a suburb of the capital Colombo. Here is a post by President Elect John Chirio:
Last Saturday, Ajit (known as AJ) Abeyewardene from the RC of Jindalee took 13 wheel chairs to ship to Sri Lanka to be accepted and distributed by Mr Susil Chandrapala of the Rotary club of Battaramulla. Click here to learn more about this club.
AJ said some of the wheel chairs will be modified to add a head rest for children that have problems such as cerebral palsy and need head support.
On another tack he also had a discussion with Des re the possibility of us helping with a project to manufacture prefabricated, flat pack toilet blocks for use in schools. He needs to do more work on the design first and I suggested a sketch would do as Des could finalise the details.
Ajit regularly organises shipment to Sri Lanka with the help of the Sri Lankan expat community and the Rotary Clubs of Sri Lanka - so he should be able to take more chairs from time to time.
John Chirio was Chairman and Ian Mayberry was Sergeant. We had apologies from Paul Jaffar, Adrian Crowe, Al Sirovs, Richard Smith and Ashleigh Symes.
President Charles Thomasson welcomed all members and visitor Steve Hamilton (guest of Doug Lipp). Charles forecast "a rather busy few months" coming up (you can say that again, Mr President! Ed.): The Lutzy Award presentation at the end of this month (see separate article), Small Business Expo on 15th October, Golf Day on 26th October (flyers have been finalised - see Downloads section), 10,000th Wheelchair celebration, combined with Big Bike Sale on 14th November, a Bunnings Sausage Sizzle on 19th December. Add to that our regular meetings with some outstanding guest speakers coming on (see Events section).
After Dr Serge Macanovic's presentation, Graeme Isaacson and Ray Higgs expanded on the upcoming Lutzy Award (see separate section). You need to book! Paul Smith proudly announced the birth of his grandchild and duly donated the customary $100.00 to the Wheelchair Trust in recognition. Larry Murray reminded all that the Project Shed is now open on Wednesdays as well as on Saturday. Doug Lipp brought us up to date on the upcoming Golf Day: we aim for 72 players. We are looking for raffle prizes! Mario Fairlie outlined just how important our X-Ray and Pathology Unit project for Vanuatu is: it will go to one of Vanuatu's remote island with a population of some 18,000 people. Their hospital has no X-Ray facilities - if somebody breaks a bone, they have to be transported to Vila for X-Rays. Ray Higgs brought us up to date on Vandy Kamara's aim to be a Rotary Peace and Conflict Resolution scholar.
Geoff Croad, did you get your Bundy Rum while you were in Bundaberg? Mark Twyford, I see your holidays must have gone well: no new bandages apparent... Gerald East, though shalt not talk while the Sergeant is talking... Mario Fairlie, how was your Kingscliff trip [quoting Banjo Paterson from 'The Man from Ironbark: "A grunt was all reply he got"... Ed.☺]Karen Holland, last one in... VERY last one... Charles Thomasson, THAT new seating arrangement... Larry Murray celebrated 52 years of marriage: How many wives is that with? Wow! Just the one...! Andy Bell, some time ago, got rid of his SUV and spent $40,000 to buy "a more economical car". Now he's spent another $40,000 to buy another SUV... Paul Seymour, listening to Dr Serge's presentation on lifestyle, weight control etc: when is your funeral... ?
Duty Roster - note: subject to change - please check every week. Note: Fellowship duty also is expected to be at the Project Shed on the Saturday following the meeting
Following Dr Serge's presentation last week and his strong emphasis on the importance of staying hydrated...
In the Amnesia Clinic:
Doctor: "I'm very sorry sir, but our computer crashed. We don't know who you are either..."
Nurse, bringing in the patient on a guernsey: "The ambo said something like he suffers from 'Pholenfrometry'.
Doctor: Looks more like he has fallen from a tree!
Food for thought:
For there is now a class of person today who not only finds meaning in the guise of political and identity “struggles”, but finds advancement and (at this stage) full-time employment in such claims. All those people now hired by our governments, universities and large multinationals as “Human Resources” or “Diversity” officers would be out of work if they did not have things to complain about. Douglas Murray, Author of 'The Madness of Crowds - Gender, Race and Identity'
Gerald East sent me a list of the Laws of Life. Here are a few:
Law of the Result- When you try to prove to someone that a machine won't work, IT WILL!!! [Confirmed! When I still was in IT support, I've had operators in tears because they couldn't make it fail again. Then, 20 minutes later, on the way back to the office... Ed.]
Law of Close Encounters- The probability of meeting someone you know INCREASES dramatically when you are with someone you don't want to be seen with.
Law of the Theater & Hockey Arena - At any event, the people whose seats are furthest from the aisle, always arrive last. They are the ones who will leave their seats several times to go for food, beer, or the toilet and who leave early before the end of the performance or the game is over. The folks in the aisle seats come early, never move once, have long gangly legs or big bellies and stay to the bitter end of the performance. The aisle people also are very surly folk.
Doctors' Law- If you don't feel well, make an appointment to go to the doctor, by the time you get there, you'll feel better. But don't make an appointment and you'll stay sick.
Diesel Services Queensland and AB Crane Hire recently provided a truck and a huge mobile crane at no charge to lift a 40' container into our Project Shed area at Arundel. Thank you! Click on the links to go to their website.
This coming Wednesday 23rd September we'll have a social meeting at the Surfers Paradise Surf Club. Meeting at 07:00 am, downstairs bistro.
So you buy packaged food which is marked as ‘Fat Free’ in big letters? But does that mean that it won’t have any influence on gaining weight? Well, think again! Croatian born Dr Serge Macanovic, who is the Lead GP at 
On Wednesday week, on 30th September, our club will present the 'Lutzy' Award to a young emerging Surfing Club leader. Ray Higgs and Graeme Isaacson have arranged for a VERY special deal with the caterers at the Surf Club: a plated meal for just $10.00! But we need to advise your choice of 5 menu options: Acai Bowl (very healthy, gluten free, vegan), or either poached or fried eggs with either bacon or sausages and toast. Click on this link to select your choice and book on the Trybooking website I've set up:
It's been decided: this year's Golf Day will be held on Monday, 26th October 2020. Projected to be held at the same location as last year, the Surfers Paradise Golf Club on Fairway Drive. We'll need both volunteers to man the course, and of course we need participating teams. Check out the flyer in the Download section on the right.
Last Saturday, Ajit (known as AJ) Abeyewardene from the RC of Jindalee took 13 wheel chairs to ship to Sri Lanka to be accepted and distributed by Mr Susil Chandrapala of the Rotary club of Battaramulla. 
Geoff Croad, did you get your Bundy Rum while you were in Bundaberg? Mark Twyford, I see your holidays must have gone well: no new bandages apparent... Gerald East, though shalt not talk while the Sergeant is talking... Mario Fairlie, how was your Kingscliff trip 
