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Club Members trained in CPR could mean saving a life

Last Saturday’s Morning Tea with the DG was once again well attended and the presentations from PDG Julie Mason AM on the Rotary Leadership Institute, Robert Pradolin from Housing All Australians, and Tony Walker from Ambulance Victoria, were excellent. Tony reminded us that this month is Shocktober, a month-long campaign being run by Ambulance Victoria to highlight the importance of knowing where Automated External Defibrillators (AEDs) are located and to ensure that all AEDs are made publicly accessible and registered through Ambulance Victoria. PDG Grant Hocking ASM also spoke about the importance of clubs ensuring at least one or two of their members receive first-aid and CPR training. I too would like to encourage clubs take this into consideration and make contact with Ambulance Victoria…it could mean saving a life! There are also educational videos on Ambulance Victoria’s website: https://www.ambulance.vic.gov.au/community/education/restart-a-heart/

Of course October is Rotary’s Economic and Community Development month and there are many Rotary Action Groups with experts to assist clubs start a local project, or support an international one. These include:

Rotary Action Group for Community Economic Development works to alleviate poverty through sustainable microfinance and community development.
Disaster Network of Assistance Rotary Action Group focuses on disaster preparedness, communication, and recovery worldwide.
Rotary Action Group for Endangered Species brings attention to endangered species and supports action to preserve and protect them.
Environmental Sustainability Rotary Action Group helps clubs and districts plan, implement, and evaluate projects related to environmental sustainability and climate change.
Food Plant Solutions Rotary Action Group works to alleviate hunger by teaching people, particularly in developing countries, how to grow the local foods that best fill their nutritional needs.
Rotary Action Group Against Slavery raises awareness that slavery still exists in some places and supports programs, campaigns, and projects to end it.

Please reach out to District Chairs or your Assistant Governor to help with your next community economic development project.

24^th October is World Polio Day…we are so close! As at 21^st October, we have raised, approximately $85,000 through the Rotary Walk with Us campaign. Let’s amplify our message by wearing End Polio Now T-shirts, hats, badges, or something red whilst out and about, and see if we can hit $100,000 by the end of the month.

Have a great week everyone…Rotary’s global reach and impact is extraordinary.

Rotary District 9800 Governor Philip Archer

When Words Are Enough

By Kerry Anderson

When COVID-19 struck, Rotary Castlemaine was keen to help alleviate community stress, particularly following Castlemaine Health’s decision to lock down its residential care facilities to protect its 143 residents. After consulting with senior staff, Rotary Castlemaine launched its Pen Pal Project, inviting community members to write to residents without expectation of a reply.

The project’s aim was to keep aged care residents connected with the community during this uncertain time. As the project progressed, it became apparent that there were benefits for everyone involved.

Club Teamwork—a bigger footprint

By Rowan McClean

Networker has featured several stories this year involving different clubs co-operating on meaningful projects, and there is no doubt that we can achieve much more through co-operation than by going it alone.

Currently there are impressive multi-club projects throughout our District, two of which involve projects in Timor-Leste and Vietnam.

Honoured Rotarian—Jill Forsyth, OAM, focused on creating jobs

Whilst her parents were active Rotarians, Jill’s involvement in Rotary came about through her children's school, which was sending aid to East Timor through Donations in Kind where she had become an active volunteer. This led to her being invited to join Rotary Kew and run the Maternity Pack project with the Alola Foundation, supporting women and children of Timor-Leste to build a better future.

Through Rotary Kew’s International Director, Jill discovered the hidden secret for anyone with a passion for philanthropy—Rotary Australia World Community Service (RAWCS), through which tax-deductible donations can be made to local and International projects.

New Rotarian, Rhys Williams, has a passion for changing lives through education

By Jaqui O’Donohoe

Having immigrated to Melbourne from China in the ‘60s, Rhys has enjoyed most of his life here apart from brief stints living in Singapore and India whilst working. Rhys’ career in transnational education has seen him involved with providing international education programs in other countries on behalf of Australian universities and higher education institutes such as RMIT, Box Hill Institute and Victoria University. Currently working part-time, Rhys runs the Melbourne-based Australian campus of a Chinese education group.

Rhys has been involved with KOTO (Know One, Teach One), a not-for-profit organisation in Vietnam that provides hospitality programs for disadvantaged youth. He has also been involved with the Spina Bifida Foundation over the past thirty years, assisting with fundraising and services; and, he has assisted Stephanie Woollard with gaining accreditation for the training programs that are part of the ‘Seven Women’ project in Nepal.

WHO declares polio eliminated in Africa – I helped to do that!

By David Dippie

I saw this announced as a ribbon on TV as I had breakfast. Later while cleaning my teeth, I smiled and thought: I helped to do that! My ego is not that big…1.2 million mates helped. On reflection, there are a lot more than this, as many great contributors are no longer with us. Rotary also has some wonderful partners in the struggle, so we can’t claim that Rotary eliminated Polio, but we can rightly claim that we caused it to happen.

The Rotary Chadstone/East Malvern Story

By Frank Warner

When the Rotary Club of Chadstone celebrated its Charter Night in October 1975, it was the culmination of many months of effort by the District Governor’s Special Representative, Ern Turner of the Rotary Club of Malvern. He chose Col Cameron as our first President, having been a Past President at Malvern and possessing much Rotary knowledge and experience.

Why a new club to the east of Malvern? At the time, Rotary Malvern had amongst its members many of the retail business owners around the area who met around lunchtime. In contrast the 27 new members of Rotary Chadstone, of whom only two had previous Rotary experience, preferred an evening meeting. The first eight months saw these new members get to know each other and define how they would bring ‘Service above Self’ to a growing and developing part of Melbourne’s east. The subsequent adoption of the name Chadstone/East-Malvern beyond the first ten years of Club history reflects the emerging and broader involvement in community service.

Beyond the Backyard—International Fellowship of Cricket Loving Rotarians

By Rowan McClean

It was at the Rotary International Assembly held in Nashville in 1986 that the idea of an exchange of parties of cricket-playing Rotarians between districts in the United Kingdom and India was discussed. For several years, exchanges between India, South Africa and the West Indies took place, but it became clear that a new Rotary Vocational Fellowship would succeed. On 25th May 1993, the formal launching of the International Fellowship of Cricket Loving Rotarians took place in the Long Room of the Melbourne Cricket Club, courtesy of the Australian Cricket Board.