Last week we had our Annual General Meeting - for the purpose of electing the club's officers for 2016-17 and beyond. Secretary Peter Morgan conducted the elections with due decorum and efficiency.  Congratulations go to the following members:

 

President 2016/17	Simon Brook
President Elect 2017/18	Larry Murray
President Elect Nominee 2018/19	Terry O'Shea (in absence, thus subject to confirmation)
Secretary	Vacant - to be determined
Treasurer	Mitch Brown
Chairman, The Rotary Foundation	Gerald East
Chairman, Membership Committee	Andy Bell
Chairman, Youth Service Committee	Chris Thurtell
Chairman, Wheelchair Trust	Daryl Sanderson
Chairman, Services Committee	John Franich
Public Relations	Mario Fairlie
Director, Club Adminstration	Larry Murray
Director, Fundraising	Tania Laird (in absence, thus subject to confirmation)

 

 

"The children are our future."  Not necessarily the most original statement, in particular if you include politician's speeches over the past 100 years. (Remember a certain leader declaring that "no child will live in poverty by 1990"?)  Not original, until you connect to John's context: he refers to the families of the perpetually unemployed. "There are families which have, for the past 4 or 5 generations, experienced total unemployment, meaning that no member of the family ever worked." John declared. Strong stuff, almost unimaginable for Rotarians who, traditionally, would come from an environment of family internal motivation, fostering of values, encouragement to make a difference, and - most importantly - ensuring that their children become professionally successful. "All it needs is for one child to break the cycle. "He/she will get a job, will be able to afford things, will gain recognition, will gain self confidence". Simple recipe, but not necessarily simple to implement!

 

ETC, a Registered Training Organization (RTO) contracts to the Government to obtain employment for - yes - the unemployed.  And unemployables. Yet, "after gaining the contract" to start on 01/07/2015, within 6 weeks they had 7,500 "clients" in employment.  Pretty impressive, huh? They research prospective employers, prior to their client obtaining an interview.  That way, they generate some 40-50 vacancies per week. Interestingly, there appears to be a shortage of potential workers for the Commonwealth Games in 2018, in particular in the area of Security.  So they conduct training in these areas - common sense really, but perhaps not for some departments.

 

"Schools are grooming students for University rather than for work" John declared.  "If their students don't perform in the NAPLAN test, the school loses out." Hmmm... interesting to hear from the "unlistened to" side, from the people who are at the coal face of the real world at the other end of the scale.  I never cease to be amazed at the breadth and width of speakers that one can listen to in Rotary!

 

You can gain much more information about ETC from their website: http://www.etcltd.com.au where you will also find information about their services for disabled people, their Community Support Fund, advice for Small Business and much more.

 

 

 

 

Simon Brook arrives at Rotary on... a skateboard! Visitor Jo Gorman: we normally don't fine visitors, but anyone who listens to Paul Seymour and believes what he says... Mark Twyford, one cannot really consider you a visitor anymore now! Geoff Croad, lovely black shirt - matches your allegiance... I had a look at Darrel Brown's head.  If you look carefully, you can see those lovely very fine blond hairs... Ian Mayberry was at the Sydney Races (car races, that is).  He went to the pub, located about 30 metres from his hotel.  But he couldn't find his hotel anymore, so he called a cab... Peter Morgan, getting a knee replacement? Wanting to be just like Mario Fairlie, huh? Larry Murray: classic immigrant tale: after living in Australia for decades, sells all up to move to England. Stays there for about 14 days, then comes all the way back again... [Larry clarified that: it was 14 days, 8 hours and 8 minutes...].  Paul Seymour: South Effriken's Cricket Team broke a record: the lowedst ever run score of any test team of any time: 4 runs in two days...  Daryl Sanderson, you need to follow the principal rule: only keep records if you need them to support YOUR case...

 

 

JUST WHAT ARE PACKAGED GRANTS?

Packaged grants are designed by Rotary and our strategic partners to help you carry out large-scale, sustainable projects. Because we've taken care of selecting partners, raising funds, and designing the project, you can focus your energy and expertise on bringing the project to life. Like global grants, packaged grants support our areas of focus and can include scholarships, humanitarian projects, and vocational training. The key difference is that the project's framework is provided for you.

We offer nursing scholarships and training for health educators with our partner Aga Khan University. With our partner UNESCO-IHE Institute for Water Education, we fund scholarships for water and sanitation professionals. Vocational training and medical service teams work with our partner Mercy Ships. These grants are funded 100% by the World Fund.

THANK YOU FOR SUPPORTING THE ROTARY FOUNDATION’S GRANT PROGRAM.
 

Duty Roster - note: subject to change - please check every week

 

Some of the best job titles ever:

Pornography Historian

Shredded Cheese Authority

Rasputin Impersonatior

Cat Behaviour Consultant

Pork Rind Expert

Freelance Sperm Donor

Cunning Linguist (note: nothing to do with the Irish national airline)

Teen Exorcist

Bride Kidnapping Expert

 

and the best one: