OK, it was 1st April, but this was not an April Fools joke; this was very real [can a virtual meeting can be described as real??]. At 07:30 this morning, some 18 members logged on and, while not quite as good as meeting in person at the Surf Club (my suggestion to my better half to put on a buffet of bacon, eggs, sausages and baked beanz fell on deaf ears...), certainly much better than not meeting at all! Some 18 members logged on - that much for the mistaken view that elderly gentlemen would be severely challenged by technology! The only one who seemed to have some issues was one of the "young 'uns", Simon Brook, whose Audio was all garbled up... ☺ We had apologies from Ray Higgs and Karen Holland, both already on building sites at 07:00. Some key points:President Mario Fairlie welcomed all. He briefly elaborated on the Vanuatu X-Ray building:
- A big thank you to Geoff Croad for arranging the donation of trusses by Premier Timbers & Trusses. So, if you need timber, please get in touch with them.
- Ben Illes has been very active in organising building materials, most of which he reckons we can obtain by donations or at real 'mates rates'
- The project is, however, on hold until the Covid-19 situation has abated and we are back to normal. We also need to consider the time of the year when it will be implemented on site, due to seasonal weather and temperature.
Treasurer Doug Lipp presented the account balances of the General and Wheelchairs accounts. He also confirmed that a firm assessment has been done in relation to insurance cover at the Project Shed, both for the buildings as well as its contents.
Youth Services Director Darrell Brown advised that, in essence, all Youth Programs in the district had been suspended indefinitely, including the upcoming RYLA camp (we had a candidate lined up for it). Spare a thought for our beleaguered District Chairman for International Youth Exchange, Chris Thurtell: Not only do our currently residing Overseas students want to come back early, the Japanese students who are with us at present (including our Ayana) don't want to return for the time being!
On a much more pleasant note: District Treasurer Mark Twyford advised that he has become a Grandfather! Baby Charlotte May Rix and mum are all well. Congratulations! (Picture left)
Keeping up the club's finances: In "normal" times, we have a contribution of $10.00 per person, per meeting, plus any fines etc. Since, due to the general lock-down and social distancing rules, we are unable to conduct any fundraising events, not even the Bunnings Sausage Sizzles. Yet, we still have our obligations, including our obligation to contribute $100 per annum / per member to The Rotary Foundation. Therefore, it was decided that for each member, for each week's meeting, a contribution of $15.00 will be raised. This is made up of $10.00 being the usual meeting fee, plus $5.00 to contribute to a monster raffle, to be drawn at a time to be advised. President Mario indicated that he, for one, will donate a major prize towards this (do I feel a bottle of Grange Hermitage coming up??) You can pay directly into the club's bank account - look out for an email in your Inbox.
The meeting concluded at 08:05 am due to the 40 minute limit for the free of charge Zoom subscription. We have now subscribed to the Pro version, which provides for unlimited time of up to 24 hours per meeting.