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PRESIDENTS REPORT
 
Eighty-eight Rotarians and partners attended the cluster meeting on Wednesday evening to hear our District Governor, Amanda Wendt, speak. Her polished presentation was well received. With her engaging style, it’s hard not to get excited about her positive outlook on the future of Rotary, particularly if we accept change and continue to “Imagine” how we can serve our community and develop our members.
 
For those who don’t know much about Amanda, I think this article is worth reading.
 
It was also fantastic to catch up with members from the other clubs in our District at this function. Sometimes we get too entrenched in our own projects and activities or too comfortable in attending our own meetings. As such, we become silos without deliberately intending to. So it was good to hear what the other clubs in our area are doing and to assess if we can work together for a common cause.
 
I had the pleasure of catching up with the other cluster presidents last week at a separate meeting. One of the items for discussion was the possibility of joining forces for an Australia Day event or function. I told them that our club used to hold a very successful community breakfast once upon a time. They were quite warm to this idea. Coincidentally, Wyndham Council is planning to hold a breakfast at Wyndham Park and they have invited service groups to participate in this event. Watch this space.
 
You may recall that I was trying to organise a night out at the movies to see a pre-release version of “The Last King” as a fund-raiser for Polio Plus. Unfortunately, negotiations with Village Cinemas have fallen through. Their prices are not as favourable as expected which meant that the funds raised would be minimal. Also, they insisted that all seats in the cinema must be paid for regardless of being occupied or not. I respectfully declined their deal. It’s a missed opportunity for us to get together for a good night out. But hopefully there will be others.  
Our Fit4Use business is purring along quite nicely but there is a general consensus that we could improve it by raising its profile in the community. Andi Barnfield has already taking the initiative by setting up Instagram and Facebook pages for the store. With regular updates of photos of some of the items on sale and some happy snaps of the staff, we think this is a great way of promoting the business. We also plan to upgrade the signage at the front of the shop to make it more visible from the road.
 
We have a wonderful group of volunteers at the store but we could always do with more. If you know of someone who might be willing to work for one day each week, or even half a day, please let us know.
The recent floods in towns like Rochester and Echuca have had a devastating effect on their respective communities. That is why the Board has agreed to donate $5000 to the flood appeal which is being managed by Rotary clubs in the area.
 
Sad to report that one of our long-term members, Ned Amezdroz, is unwell. For those who haven’t had the pleasure of meeting and knowing Ned, he has been an honorary member for the last 8 years but he was an integral part of our club for 40 years before that, including President in 1977-78. Prior to that, he was a member of the Rotary Club of Colac, including President in 1969-70. In total, he has served in Rotary for almost 60 years – a fantastic lifetime achievement. Our thoughts and prayers are with him at this moment.
Here is a flashback photo of Ned with Phil Purdy and Ross Conley at our club Christmas dinner in 2013.
 
Ian Hovey
 
 
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THIS WEEK AT ROTARY
 
DG Visit - Amanda Wendt
 
This week was a combined cluster meeting with the DG Amanda Wendt.
In previous years the DG visited each club and met with the Board to prior to the meeting, to assist clubs where needed. 
Rotary has changed and we need to move with the times, but I have no doubt that the disconnect between the clubs and district, is a contributor to getting the Rotary message to members.
 
DG Amanda used most of her talk to speak about the Rotary Growth Action Plan. The plan and lots of information can be viewed at www.growmyclub.org.
 
Amanda spoke about a recent research study that identified that the demographic who spend the most time volunteering, are the 30 to 45's, and the Over 60's. The website shows many examples of how to engage with this demographic.
 
The DG mentioned that the target for 2022/23 Rotary Foundation Fundraising is $500,000, and that she & foundation chair Grant Hocking will jump out of a plane (I presume with a parachute) if the target is reached.
 
DG Amanda encouraged all members to register early for the world conference in Melbourne in May 2022 - there are already 15,000 registrations, and the dinner at Crown Plaza with World President Jennifer Jones in June 2022.
 
President Ian gave a powerpoint presentation, highlighting the work of Werribee Rotary.
 
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Tuesday 15th November - Jennifer Anning from Werribee Mercy Hospital will talk to us about the Special Care Nursery and the impact that our baby beanies are having.

Tuesday 22nd November - This meeting has been moved to Wednesday 23rd November. It will be another joint cluster meeting at the Hotel 520 to hear Peter Cullen from RecLink speak about his new book "The Power of Football". A few decades ago, on the streets of St Kilda, a young man came up with an alternative to what was being offered to those seeking solace from the 'dark side'. That young man was Peter Cullen and the alternative he offered was playing community sport. The book is a collection of stories about these people, these communities and the army of volunteers and supporters who make RecLink's work possible.

Tuesday 29th November - We will hear from Cho Cho Win who is one of the recipients of the scholarship that we recently awarded to 2 worthy Gordon TAFE students.

Tuesday 6th December - This will be a vocational visit to Victoria University in Hoppers Lane to hear and see about the work that Professor Vasso Apostolopoulos and her team does in relation to research on various forms of cancer and other major illnesses such as diabetes, multiple sclerosis and dementia.

Tuesday 13th December - The final gathering for 2022 will be at Chirnsides by the River function room at the Werribee Football Club for our Christmas Dinner. We would like to see everyone at this special night. Make sure you save the date.

 
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Alphabet Racing   

I

After the final day of the Spring Carnival, Randall's Candles is now so far in front that she has decided to pitch a tent, light the campfire and settle down in a hammock for a few weeks until the others try to catch up. She is 23 lengths ahead and, even though there are 8 race meetings to go, she is in no danger of losing the 2022 Alphabet Cup. The bookmakers are already paying out to the lucky punters who backed her at 50 to 1.

She picked up another 11 points on the weekend including 8 at Flemington where she shared the weekly prize of $20 with the Italian stallion, Rudolph Ballantino. He is finally starting to move up the field and, at this rate, he may feature in the placings as they pass the post.

There was more excitement at Rosehill Gardens. The jolly juvenile Just Jess jumped out of the blocks and took out the $20 award with a convincing 11 points but there were some fine performances from a few others including Dizzie Lizzie, Bend De Knees and Sticky Micki. Each of them still stay in contention as the field heads along the back and prepares to straighten up for the run home.

 

 

OTHER BUSINESS

Guest Speakers

Everyone knows someone with an interesting story to tell. Please pass their details on to Jess so we can follow them up to speak to us in person or on Zoom at a later date.

 

BABY BEANIES

We are about to purchase many balls of knitting yarn to be made into baby beanies for the Werribee Mercy Hospital. This is a call out to anyone who might like to assist in knitting the beanies. Apparently, they are quick and easy to knit. A knitting or crochet pattern is available. If you or someone you know would like to assist, please send an email to Micki Hovey.

 

ROYCE ABBEY AWARDEE NORBRETO

Norbreto from Timor has completed his time in Australia studying agricultural & farming techniques.

His report on his visit is available on the link below.

Link to Norbreto Report

 

 

BREAKFAST CLUB

Tues 15/11 - Norm & Margaret Johnson

Wed 16/11 - Alison Taverner & Kathryn Williams

Thurs 17/11 - Kim & Glenyce Deneys

Tued 22/11 - Jane Larkin & Nusrat Islam

Wed 22/11 - Ross Smith & Graham Roper

Thurs 24/11 - Nils & Trish Vejby

 

BUNNINGS BBQ
The next Bunning's BBQ is Thursday 17/11.
Andi has a couple of spots left on the roster to fill, so give her a call if you can assist.
 
BINGO

The Bingo Roster is:

Nov 14th - Robyn Ballan & Roland Wade

Nov 21st - Kim Deneys & Rob Fava

Bingo last night 07/11 was another big one with 93 players & $1,100 profit.

 

FIT4USE STORE

We have a lovely group of dedicated volunteers at the Fit4Use store. But we could always do with a few more. If you know of someone who would like to help out as a regular volunteer or to be on standby for when people are unavailable, please contact Graham Roper on 0403 434 537.

 

International Convention

The Rotary International World Convention, will be held in Melbourne in May 2023. It is being organised by a committee formed from the Aust Rotary Districts.

 

Click this link to view the flyer.

 

The committee is also asking for interested Rotarians to register for the opportunity to home host several overseas guests for dinner during the convention. There is also an option for Rotary clubs to host a larger group of guests.

Click here to view the home hosting flyer.

 

Imagine Rotary Newsletter
The District Newsletter has arrived.
Clink the link below to view.
 
 
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          ANNIVERSARIES           
Member Birthdays
Wendy Roper
November 25
 
Ian Hovey
December 2
 
Ned Amezdroz
December 29
 
Andi Barnfield
December 30
 
Paula Kudi
December 30
 
Spouse Birthdays
Lyn Fava
November 14
 
Wendy Roper
November 25
 
Glenyce Deneys
November 26
 
Micki Hovey
December 30
 
Anniversaries
Geoff Smith
Lexie Smith
November 10
 
James Randall
Anne Randall
November 26
 
Join Date
Jeff Garfield
November 1, 1978
44 years
 
Peter Ross OAM
November 1, 1977
45 years
 
Steve Evans
December 1, 1994
28 years
 
Geoff Smith
December 31, 1999
23 years
 
          CLUB DIRECTORS          
President
Ian Hovey
 
President Elect
Kim Deneys
 
Immediate Past President
Graham Roper
 
Secretary
Ross Smith
 
Club Service
Ian Hovey
 
Youth Service
Ross Smith
 
Bulletin
Ross Smith
 
Other
Peter Sandlant
 
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     UPCOMING MEETINGS
Nov 15, 2022
Jennifer Anning
Special Care Nursery at Werribee Mercy Hospital
Special Care Nursery at Werribee Mercy Hospital

Jenny is the Nurse Unit Manager of the Special Care Nursery at Werribee Mercy Hospital. She will talk to us about how her unit operates. She will also tell us about the impact that our baby beanies have had on new-born babies.
Nov 23, 2022
Peter Cullen
The Power of Football
View entire list