RC MT ELIZA BULLETIN, 3 AUGUST 2021, Vol 51, No 3 (Aug 03, 2021)

The Rotary Club of

Mount Eliza

Chartered 1971

Service Above Self

Tuesdays at 6:00 PM

Dining Room, Toorak College

Mt Eliza
Mount Eliza, VIC 3930
Australia

Phone:

0419 386 900

Send Email to Club

Dinner Meeting at Toorak College & Zoom Meeting Conference Number 826504424487

District Site

Venue Map

Neil Heron

I acknowledge with respect and thanks the Bunurong people of the Kulin Nation, the traditional owners of the land on which our Changeover is being held, and also pay our respect to their Elders past, present and future.

Thank to Peninsula Grammar for allowing us the opportunity to use this facility during these difficult COVID times. The Harry MacDonald Pavilion is named after one of our Past Presidents and a long-standing member as you know.

We’ve made it. We are actually having a changeover: somewhat belatedly we have managed to get all the ducks in row.

When I agreed to be the president elect I warned Sue that I would not be here over the standard changeover time - and she said “well, neither will I”, so we agreed to an early changeover: but Covid had other ideas and all I can say is how lucky both Sue and I were able to get away and back. I also thank all the PPs who stepped in to assist the club during the period that we were away.

I must thank PP Sue and her Board for their dedication and determination to make a very difficult year to be a most successful and prosperous one for the Club. When Sue took over our membership was dropping due to retiring members, people moving away and the difficulty of physically getting new members during the pandemic. By the end of her tenure Sue had turned this around with the establishment also of a satellite club gaining new and enthusiastic members. I hope to continue the further development of the satellite club, as well as growth in our traditional club.

Sue embarked on the Club Visioning process to focus us on our future and set our goals for the next 5 years, and examine the directions we should progress in. She continued to modernise our processes so that the club will be well positioned to adapt to a world more suited to social media, fast communication and everchanging ways to help the community and raise funds for club projects. It makes it a lot easier for me when a pathway for future development has been established and there is framework on which to build our processes. I hope this year we can re-establish many of the fellowship activities and functions that we have been limited in participating in recently. Fellowship is a key part of Rotary as it is the glue that holds us together and enables us to enjoy our time together and fulfil all the projects we tackle. I ask you all to give PP Jim your full support as he runs the fellowship program for this year.

I’d like to thank Carolyn Such in coordinating the fundraising and organisation of running the fundraising events which are always the backbone of our projects. I think Carolyn has shown us the way, and set in place many of the successful methods by which we can fundraise. I hope we can share the load Carolyn has taken. focus on the directors’ needs.

The directors of the board are already demonstrating that they intend to broaden the scope of their programs and endeavour to assist in fundraising. There will be a strong focus on making sure our projects have a focus on community programs that are easily recognised as important. Linda has already established contacts with the Mt Eliza Community Centre and the Shire’s community centre to help identify projects that will help to lift our profile in Mt Eliza and other directors are determined to do the same.

Hopefully we will soon have more regular face to face meetings while still being flexible enough to incorporate Zoom into our program when it suits. It is fascinating to have guest speakers from other cities and even other countries. This opens opportunities for more fellowship and projects. I am hoping that we can expand the diversity of our membership by attracting new members from vocational sectors that are missing in our membership. For instance, education, trades and medical professions are common in the village. We need to attract more of these people into our club.

We wish to maintain our strong relationship with the district as it is critical that clubs all come together to ensure that 9820 remains strong. We are lucky to have one of our members as the DG elect, Linda Humphries and I congratulate PDG Mark on his efforts to ensure that district 9820 remains strong and progressive. He has arguably had the most difficult time as DG and I’m it has been very challenging for him. A job well done!

Lastly it is good to see that our Trust continues to develop and I will be continuing to encourage our members and our community to strengthen its financial position. It continues to grow in importance, so as to smooth out any bumps we have in funding projects.

Thank-you all for coming to celebrate Sue’s year and giving your support to my induction. I am pleased and excited to be the President for the year 21/22 and I’m looking forward to working with you all. I know we will have another prosperous and successful year as we head into what we hope will be a post-Covid era.

Can I thank the caters, secretary Pauline, President Sue, Linda M, Bernie and Ray for helping to set up this delayed but rushed changeover. You’d think a delay it would make easier to put together quickly: but that’s not how it works.

Neil

Change Over

Mount Eliza Rotary had a successful change over at Peninsular Grammar on Tuesday 3rd August 2021in between Melbourne's lock down(s).

President changed from Sue Voss to Neil Herron.

Paul Harris Fellowship awarded to Hanne Falkiner (Others before self), Barbara MacPherson (Environment & Community) and Ross Schweitzer (general work for the club).

Paul Harris Fellow Citation - Barbara MacPherson

PAUL HARRIS FELLOW CITATION

BARBARA MACPHERSON

The most recent addition to Rotary’s Areas of Focus is protecting the Environment. All environmental initiatives, large and small, depend on people to drive them. That is a very Rotary based view of ourselves: we are people of action.

Of course, we shouldn’t ever be so smug that we believe that Rotarians are the only people that care about the environment, and take action to protect it. About thirteen years ago, local resident Barbara MacPherson identified that the waterway near where she lived was in desperate need of love and attention. The land that ran along the side of the waterway had become overgrown, and presented a fire risk, as well as a poor reflection on the care of the residents.

Barbara was the driving force for the formation of a local land-care group that over ten years has transformed an overgrown, wild blackberry ridden firebreak, into a lush, kilometre long walking track, celebrating the Australian flora of the Millbank Creek Reserve in the Mt Eliza Woodland.

I am sure that she would be the first to acknowledge the support she has had from her husband Wayne and the other members of her group. She advertises and manages regular working bees for residents to get involved. They are happy productive gatherings. Over the years she has remained the driving force liaising with Melbourne Water, Mornington Shire and other entities. The task of securing grants to support the work is led by Barbara. Today the walking track along the waterway is a well-used and interesting experience for dogs as well as people.

Barbara is not large in size, but she is certainly large in spirit. I see her most days walking to where the work is being carried out. If no working bee is on the immediate horizon, but something needs to be done, then Barbara will do it herself. She has an amazing capacity to carry out heavy physical work and climb up steel embankments.

I have it on good authority that no-one who attends a working bee can leave without a hug and thanks from Barbara.

She is the epitome of Rotary spirit – a person of action. Long may she continue!

Congratulations Barbara MacPherson, Paul Harris Fellow.

PP Carolyn Such, PHF.

From President Shekhar Mehta

Dear change-makers,

Welcome to the new Rotary year — a year when you will be called upon to Serve to Change Lives and achieve big dreams. Because of your passion for achieving great things, we will grow more and do more.

Our Action Plan, Rotary’s strategic road map, sets our course and strengthens us for the future by focusing on four priorities: increasing our impact, expanding our reach, enhancing participant engagement, and increasing our ability to adapt. This year, I am honored to move these priorities forward by leading with vision and implementing several initiatives that I believe will result in positive growth during 2021-22 and beyond.

Expanding our reach through Each One, Bring One

Rotary is a vibrant organization that has spread to nearly 200 countries and geographical areas and has a rich legacy of fighting to end polio. Don’t you think we could have a greater impact on the world if more people were practicing Service Above Self?

Members like you are our greatest asset. But for the last 20 years, Rotary membership has remained stagnant. Through a program I am calling Each One, Bring One, I ask each of you to commit to welcoming one new person into Rotary or Rotaract in the next 12 months. This one act of growing Rotary will make you true change-makers, because you will have helped us achieve in just 12 months what we could not do in 20 years. Of course, you will need to engage and retain these members as well. Member engagement is equally important for our organization’s growth.

As we welcome new members, let us continue to ensure that diversity, equity, and inclusion are ingrained into all aspects of Rotary. We believe that anyone who gets involved with Rotary — whether as a member, partner, or participant — must feel valued, respected, and welcomed. It is only by embracing the full diversity of the world that we will be able to grow and to achieve our goals.

I am thrilled that Rotaract membership continues to grow. This year, we are taking further steps to reaffirm and promote Rotaract as a distinct membership type in Rotary. I encourage Rotary and Rotaract clubs to find ways to connect with one another, perhaps by creating a mentorship program or partnering on a club-based initiative, district grant, or global grant. We achieve more when we work together!

Serve to change lives

Service is at the heart of my own connection to Rotary, which is why I want all of us to showcase Rotary’s good work by hosting Rotary Days of Service. Invite your members, neighboring clubs, local civic organizations, program alumni, friends, family, and the public to join you for a community service event. Let Rotary Days of Service be a celebration of our passion for doing good.

As your club decides which causes to support this year, please consider projects that focus on empowering girls and creating equity for them. Whether it’s through a global grant project or a local program that your club supports, we can all contribute to the important work being done all over the world to expand access to education, improve sanitation, and fight gender discrimination and inequality. Girls are equal stakeholders in this world, and they should have equal rights.

We also need to let others know about all the wonderful work Rotary does. Each of you is a Rotary brand ambassador, so use social media, local media, and your club’s website to show your community — and the world — how you and your fellow Rotary members are people of action.

Increasing our impact

My friends, you are resilient, and you are doing amazing things to fight COVID-19. We adapted quickly to support our communities at the start of this pandemic, and we are committed until the very end. Let’s work to ensure that vaccines are made available equitably worldwide and that people get vaccinated as quickly as possible.

We recently awarded our first $2 million Programs of Scale grant to Partners for a Malaria-Free Zambia and will name our second Programs of Scale grant recipient this year. This award and our efforts to eradicate polio and fight COVID-19 are examples of how Rotary addresses significant needs on a large scale. These programs serve as models for how we can demonstrate our measurable and sustainable impact.

We have so much to look forward to in the year ahead, and together, we will do so much. Nothing is impossible for Rotarians and Rotaractors!

I am so honored to be on this journey with you.

Sincerely,

Shekhar Mehta
Rotary International President, 2021-22