In conjunction with Wyndham City Council, we will be conducting a Community Tree Planting day on Sunday 19th May. A total of 1454 trees will be planted. So it is a bigger exercise than our previous project where we planted 700 trees. That's why we are advertising it as a community event where we are asking for support from the people of Wyndham.
Click here to see the poster which will be displayed on various street notice boards.
Pictured above is our club member Phil Purdy (right) and fellow-rider Dennis O'Brien (Rotary Club of West Footscray) who are two very tired and relieved bike riders after recently completing the 1000 kilometre bike ride from Sydney to Melbourne to raise funds for ROCAN (Rotary Ovarian Cancer Research).
Phil and Dennis admit they are not the fastest riders. They usually bring up the rear on each day's ride. But they are respected by the other riders for their determination and spirit. Despite the tough times on their 8-day journey including hot weather, high winds and big hills, they managed to reach their destination safely.
Special mention should also be made of the fantastic efforts of the support crew which included club member Geoff Smith and also our friends Lexie Smith and Barbara Purdy.
This year's ride raised about $100,000. Over the last 20 years, it has been successful in raising a total of $1.5 million for ROCAN. Congratulations to everyone.
On 14th March, charter member Ian Knight and his wife Genny celebrate their 60th wedding anniversary. This is a monumental milestone which deserves the heartiest of congratulations. They plan to celebrate the occasion with a dinner with family and then they will board the Queen Elizabeth ship for a cruise around New Zealand.
Not only is their anniversary a major achievement, they also share a rather unique coincidence. Genny Knight (nee McIntosh) was born in Melbourne on 11th October 1936 and Ian Knight was born 4 days later, also in Melbourne. Their birth notices appeared beneath each other in The Argus newspaper on the same day in October 1936. They were obviously made for each other.
Twenty-three years later they walked down the aisle at St Cuthbert's Church, Brighton, having met through family friends at 16 years of age.
This unusual coincidence attracted the attention of Ross and John on Radio 3AW who rang Ian and Genny to talk about it. Click here to listen to the interview.
Ian has been a member of the club since its inception in 1968 which means that he and Genny have been involved in Rotary for a significant part of their marriage. Ian explained that, when the club was started, he became the Charter Secretary and Genny wrote up all the minutes of the Board meetings for the next 3 years. What a team!
The couple has also hosted 9 Rotary exchange students in that time which, Genny says, has enriched their lives as well as those of their children. In fact, the program had such a profound impact on their daughter Sue that she eventually became an exchange student to Japan in 1981.
Here is a copy of Ian and Genny's birth notices.
It was so hot you could fry an egg on the putting green. But that didn't stop a big group of die-hard golfers including our President Graham Roper (pictured above) from playing in the hot afternoon sun to support the annual Werribee Rotary Golf Day.
Despite the gruelling day, most golfers got through unscathed, thanks to the efforts of the drink crews who continually ventured around the course to quench the thirst of parched players.
At the end of the day, we sat down in air-conditioned comfort for dinner and the presentation of prizes. Congratulations to Marty Vaina and his team for winning first prize.
We have realised a profit of $29,000 which is a fantastic result thanks to the generosity of the players and numerous sponsors. Most of the proceeds will go towards the refurbishment of the Dementia Unit at Manor Court Aged Care.
Everyone was extremely grateful for the hard work of chief organiser Ross Conley and his team for making this event our biggest fund-raiser.
Click here to see photos of the day.
One of the club's most respected and longest serving members, Peter Ross, was the recipient of the Order of Australia award (OAM) in the 2019 Australia Day Honours list. The award was a recognition for his service to the Wyndham community over many years.
Some of the major achievements during his life include:
President Graham congratulated Peter on behalf of all members and partners of the club. Peter said he was honoured by the recognition and thanked everyone for their well wishes. He also paid tribute to his lovely wife Elizabeth for her support over the years.
Congratulations Peter. Well deserved.
Based on the picture above, you would be excused for thinking that there is more giggle in the Cut, Giggle and Sew sessions than cutting and sewing. But nothing could be further from the truth.
The group of ladies have been congregating at the home of Mary Macaulay and working hard to make little gift bags from colourful scrap fabric and filling them with soap, make-up, lip gloss or lip balm. They have completed 100 bags and have donated them to Werribee Support and Housing to support their Santa Drive.
But wait. That's not all. The group has been collecting other recyclable items such as bottle tops, mobile phones, eye glasses and doing something useful with the collections to support Rotary projects and, at the same time, helping to reduce land fill. For example, the bottle tops will be donated to a local Werribee community project called Helping Hands to enable them to melt the tops to make prosthetic limbs for kids in disadvantaged communities throughout Cambodia.
Chief organiser Lyn Fava is proud of the work done to date by the Cut Giggle and Sew team and is hopeful that they will go from strength to strength. Lyn said that each session contains a good balance of skills, teamwork, companionship, fun and a sense of community spirit.
Thanks to Mary Macaulay for hosting the sessions and for the wonderful work of Therese and Charlotte Daddy, Micki Hovey, Marilyn Jeffries, Glenyce Denys, Anne Smith, Barbara Purdy and Lyn Fava.
And, of course, all who donated materials, and products.
Werribee Rotary member Michael Redding recently completed a visit to Uganda to catch up with Chris Ochaya and his family. Chris was the 2018 Royce and Jean Abbey Scholarship recipient. He was in Australia in 2018 to learn good farming techniques that he could use on his return to his country.
Michael said it was fantastic experience to see how Chris has utilised his new-found skills and knowledge and has started to transform the Tamarind community farm into a first-class sustainable agricultural showpiece that will support the local population.
Click here to read Michael's story.
This is the third year that Werribee Rotary has conducted the Year 10 Creative Expression Competition at Wyndham Central College.
There were ten students who submitted entries on the theme: 'How can you make a difference and help strengthen our community?'
The Year 10 students had to interpret this in a creative way, and entries included: painting, drawing, photo series, comic book, photo essay and 3D painted model presentation.
The judging panel comprised Kim and Glenyce Deneys and Michael Redding who selected the following winners:
Most Creative Entry (Prize $250) to Hayley Scott - essay/photo. Click here to view Hayley's entry.
Runner-Up (Prize $150) to Nathnael Haile - drawing. Click here to view Nathnael's entry.
Runner-Up (Prize $150) to Bizawit Mokenen - comic book. Click here to view Bizawit's entry.
School Principal Leanne Gagatsis-Halge expressed her thanks to the club on behalf of the school. She said the competition was a valuable opportunity for the students to express themselves about how they could help the community.
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Pictured above - Past RI President Ian Riseley and PDG Juliette Riseley with President Graham Roper.
Werribee Rotary Club celebrated its 50th anniversary in fine style on Saturday 18th August at the Werribee Racecourse Function Centre. The evening was a good mix of fun, fellowship, formality, nostalgia and self-indulgence, all appropriate ingredients to make the night something to enjoy and remember. Guests even had a chance to dance in between meals and speeches.
Some of the highlights of the evening included:
Click here to view some photos of the evening. There will be more photos available in next week's edition of The Bulletin.
Click here if you would like to view or print a copy of the menu.
Special thanks to Lexie Smith, Ann Smith, Micki Hovey, Geoff Smith, Phil Purdy, Ross Smith, Roland Wade, Rob Fava and President Graham for all their hard work to make the function a great success.
LETTER OF CONGRATULATIONS FROM RI PRESIDENT
Barry Rassin, the RI President for 2018-19, has sent the club a letter of congratulations for reaching 50 years.
In the letter, he said "Since your club was founded, you have had the opportunity to make a significant difference in our local and global communities. I know that you have devoted your time and effort to your club because you have felt what I have felt since I joined my own club in 1980: a true sense of fellowship and purpose. Your dedication to our organization has made all the difference...."
Click here to read the whole letter.
Thanks to everyone who attended and for making it a function to remember for the next 50 years.
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