Reflect on what our First Nations people have done in keeping our lands in pristine condition for 60,000+ years Respect how the First Nations people achieved…
Rotary Southbank ESG Group's central event was livestreamed across Australia on January 26th. You can view it now.
Applications for the first round of 2023 Balwyn Rotary Centenary Grants close on March 31. For more information and to download the application form, go to: www.balwynrotary.org.au/centenary-grants
Jeremy has voluntarily dedicated most of their free time for over a decade leading a hand-picked team to save lives of women and babies in remote areas of Timor Leste that have horrific maternal death rates. Funded by 2 back-to-back VTT Global Grants, very strong outcomes have been confirmed through independent reviews and participant feedback. This commitment and a lifetime of helping mothers and babies through their chosen profession in obstetrics and gynecology exemplifies service above self. Congratulations Jeremy!
Applications for District 9800 awards and recognitions are now open and close 31 March 2023.
Further information is available on the District website Club Service page.
The Polio Plus Society, a fundraising and recognition program specifically to support the worldwide effort to eradicate polio, is now open to District 9800 Rotarians.
Members pledge to donate at least US$100 annually to the PolioPlus Fund until polio is gone from the world.
The Melbourne Celtic Festival is back on St Patrick’s Day, Friday, March 17 2023 from 12pm to 11pm at Melbourne’s iconic Mission to Seafarers, 717 Flinders Street.
100% of ticket proceeds go to Rotary Foundation Australia and Australian Rotary Health Mental Health Support and Research Programs.
Tickets are Live and you are the first to know so don’t walk, JIG to book your Festival Pass. BOOK NOW: https://www.trybooking.com/events/landing?eid=1005055&
Over 1,000 mozzie candles donated to Rotary Echuca Moama via RAWCS (Rotary Australia World Community Service) will be free to the flood-affected Echuca-Moama community.
It has been a busy first 6 months of the Rotary year in the Foundation space with lots of activity. The Foundation Newsletter has a summary of these activities and an update of what is important in the coming months.
The Rotary Club of Kew invites you to Kew Gala Fundraiser 18th February 2023.
Bookings at: www.kewgala.com.au or scan QR code:
In April 2022, Rotary Club of Richmond received a call for assistance and financial support from Thomas Williams, Head of Music at Richmond High School. The request was for funds to purchase a much needed baritone saxophone for the school, an item not provided to State Schools by the Ministry of Education.
Pictured are Thomas Williams, Principal Lars Andersson, Mark Dwyer, and Maria Makris with the baritone sax.
BOOK NOW FOR THIS FREE EVENT, LIVESTREAMED 12.00-1.15pm 26th JANUARY
Reflect what our First Nations people have done in keeping our lands in pristine condition for 60,000+ years. Respect how the First Nations people achieved this, and celebrate the multi-cultural Australia we are. We are in this together!
Speakers include: Thomas Mayo, a Kaurareg Aboriginal and Kalkalgal, Erubamle Torres Strait Islander man and the National Indigenous Officer of the MUA; Costa Georgiadis, presenter of Gardening Australia; and Professor Patrick McGorry, youth mental health advocate.
In 2020 Rotary Club Chadstone/East Malvern introduced their “Sleeping out Rough Night” program, to raise not only funds, but awareness that there are people every night who only have the street to call home.
This year the ‘Sleeping Out Rough Night’ will be held in Central Park East Malvern, on the 17 March. We would love to see Rotary Clubs across District 9800 come and join us to make this year even more successful. Funds we raise this year, will go toward continuing to assist people experiencing homelessness; and also, to assist women and children escaping domestic and family violence.
Jean Abbey, the widow of Royce Abbey, Past President of Rotary International 1988/89, celebrated her 100th Birthday in Melbourne on the 13th of December 2022. A small family gathering with children, grandchildren and a few of her 12 great grandchildren helped celebrate the event. The following day Jean was also visited by two members representing the Rotary Club of Essendon, the club Royce joined in 1954 and remained a member until his passing in 2014.
URGENT APPEAL
WERN (Western Emergency Relief Network) is part of the City of Maribyrnong Flood Recovery Committee and is offering support in several ways. Many of the 400 families affected by the recent floods are struggling with financial and insurance implications of the devastation.
Do you have vocational skills with an insurance background that could help?
There is now a major mosquito danger within flood impacted communities. In order to provide some relief to affected communities, RAWCS (Rotary Australia World Community Service Inc.) has acquired thousands of mosquito repellent candles.
RAWCS has taken the initiative and so far distributed over 16,000 candles in Shepparton (VIC), Lismore (NSW), Parkes (NSW) and Gympie (QLD) with great effect. There are plans to distribute up to a further 25,000 candles in coming weeks.
For donations to the appeal for Victoria and Border areas: https://lnkd.in/gWj863GV
After the Regionalisation Pilot vote in September, we announced that 90% of clubs voted yes to proceed with the pilot and 20 of 21 districts met the two thirds of clubs voting Yes threshold. The 21st district had a simple majority in favour but not the two thirds majority.
The results were reported to the Rotary International Board and it was approved that we proceed with 20 districts. We will continue to work with the last district during this period and give them the opportunity to have another vote at a later time.
DIK is desperately in need of your help!
The DIK warehouse is overflowing, and there is an ongoing need for more club to become members; and more hands to assist with collections and packing.
Some time ago, Dr Neil Browning learned of the plight of 200,000 displaced persons in a refugee camp on the border of Uganda and South Sudan. Staggeringly, this is the same population as Geelong. The closest town with a hospital is Moyo, which has a population of 4,000. The hospital had decent midwifery services but not a lot else. Neil and his wife decided to relocate from their cosy home in England to Moyo and help.
Welcome to a special bumper-issue, chock full of news and updates! 
Check out the Dec / Jan edition of Rotary Down Under for a special District 9800 feature.
Rotary Members are invited to register for the next Rotary Leadership Institute (RLI) program in March 2023.
Octo
ber 8th was a chilly but clear Saturday morning for the opening of the new playground at Victoria Park Kew, and the spirits of club members in attendance for were high. Finally, they got to dedicate the fabulous new BBQ donated to the project as the club’s contribution to all the other projects undertaken by Rotary clubs around Australia to mark the centenary of Rotary in Australia in 2021.
Did you hear about the two blood cells that fell in love? Alas, it was all in vein!
Did You Know? Over 8.3 million Australians will need blood in their lifetime. Your family, grandchild, close friends?
In July 2022, a shipm
ent of FORaMEAL packs containing 100,000 meals was dispatched to the Philippines. When the shipment arrived, the packs were distributed to five strategically placed Rotary Clubs in the Philippines ready for when they would be needed following disasters such as floods and fire. It wasn’t long before that aid was needed.
Rotary’s Council on Resolutions (COR) and Council on Legislation (COL) give us a voice in how our organisation is governed.
The Council on Resolutions of Rotary International meets online every year to vote on resolutions proposed by clubs, districts, and the RI Board. Resolutions are requests to the Board or the Foundation Trustees to take an action that is outside the purview of the RI constitutional documents.
Around 30 Rotarians joined together to pack over 4000 meals in one hour as part of the official DG Batman cluster visit. Held in the foyer outside Red Emperor restaurant, it took only moments for 5 random pedestrians to stop, enquire about who we are, what we were doing, pull on gloves and get involved! Hands-on volunteering sells itself and what a wonderful, impactiful introduction to Rotary for these new volunteers!
At the official DG Cluster visit with Calder, Martin and Di Taurins did what they’ve always done, champion the fight against MS. Whilst their incredible donation of $36,000 to Australian Rotary Health was an incredible highlight, it was such an honour to see their work recognised with Royce Abbey awards. A truly inspiring couple, congratulations again Martin and Di!
It only took members of Essendon, Essendon North, Flemington Kensington, Footscray and West Footscray a record 13 mins 41 secs to pack 100 food parcels which were delivered to local food banks, feeding 500 people in need. Gateway East showed what was possible with a strategic production line and a determination to beat the previous record held by Westside at 15 mins.
Rotary’s number one priority remains the worldwide eradication of polio. 
One of our District’s best success stories, For-A-Meal has provided well over 500,000 emergency relief meals for free to for those impacted by natural disasters. It was only natural that we hold a special volunteer with the DG day to support their mission.
Basil's story is a story by numbers: two continents, four Rotary Clubs, 50 Years of Rotary Service - are all an integral part of the Basil Ornellas story
PDG Bronwyn Stephens, District Service Director Lili Teichman and myself were joined by Peter Mercer from Diversity Works and PDG Edith Chaney (D9920) to discuss what DEI means in the context of Rotary. 
Will your club offer a Year 11-12 scholarship to your local High School this year? If so, Rotary Foundation Year 11-12 Scholarship Grants will again be available to support you.
Applications for grants opened 1st October 2022 and close on 12th November.
Brighton, Brighton North and Caulfield clubs had a very successful night building new friendships, sharing project wins and discovering ways to collaborate at the official DG Beachside Cluster visit. It was the first time the three clubs have met together and to quote many of the members, 'Let's make sure its's not the last time'!
The passing of Lawrence Atley OAM was a sad milestone for the Rotary Club of Footscray. Lawrence was a dedicated and passionate Rotarian who enjoyed and valued his time in Rotary and the friends he made there.
As soon as the Hobson Bay cluster members saw a table of soup kits waiting to be packed they jumped straight in - we didn’t have to ask! Before the meeting had officially started, 100 food packs were done waiting to be taken by the various clubs to local charities and food banks. It was so much fun to join members in a meaningful, hands-on and convenient project that everyone could get involved in.
DG Amanda Wendt recently joined Woodend Rotarians and friends to celebrate the opening of the club’s Rotary centenary project, Rotary Rocks on Five Mile Creek. The project is the culmination of two years’ work supported by the Rotary Foundation.
Organisers were pleased with the turnout for the End Polio Now Walk following the November Zone 8 Conference in Canberra. 87 registered walkers, including RI President Elect, Gordon McInally (holding the baton) and RI Director, Jessie Harman, enjoyed the walk in the pleasant surrounds of Lake Burley Griffin. To date, $55,000 has been raised, but further donations would be very welcome.
In October, under the direction of PDG Ross Butterworth, volunteers rolled up their sleeves for some Hands-on Volunteering with the DG at Western Emergency Relief Network (WERN).
This month's featured speakers are:
Prof. Janet McCalman, AC, a teacher and researcher in interdisciplinary history at the University of Melbourne
Richard Harrison, Australian author, speaker and cricket umpire.
If you have an interesting speaker at your club that you would recommend to other clubs, please contact Speaker Bank Chair, Jill Weeks (Hawthorn) via the Speakers Bank page: https://rotarydistrict9800.org.au/sitepage/speaker-bank (Available only to members logged on to the District website)
The two-day Global Congress Against Malaria brings respected malaria experts, governments, NGO's, corporates, Rotarians and non-Rotarians together in Melbourne, Australia, to share, educate and discuss how to Finish the Fight Against Malaria.
For the earlybird rate, available to 23rd February 2023: https://www.globalmalariacongress2023.org/registration
Bees and other pollinators are essential to maintain production of our food crops and are responsible for one in every three mouthfuls of food we eat! Over recent years there has been an alarming reduction in pollinator populations worldwide. Thanks to this enthusiastic group of bee champions, many more Rotary clubs and communities are actively engaged in fighting the decline of pollinator populations worldwide.
Now in its fourth year, Rotarians for Bees, a project of the Rotary Club of Canterbury, Victoria, is expanding into New South Wales and Australian Capital Territory as a project of the Rotary Club of Castle Hill, NSW.
The Water for Education Project, providing four schools in Siem Reap with water filtration systems, has successfully installed a water filtration system providing one school with delicious clean, clear water. The water is available to both students and the wider community. Rotarians and friends from Australia, Cambodia and Singapore joined together to celebrate this project in action.
The Hush Foundation's Gathering of Kindness for 2022 is a 'gathering with a difference' - for healthcare workers, patients, carers and supporters.
REGISTRATIONS NOW OPEN!
The 17th International Tennis Fellowship of Rotarians (ITFR) World Championship will take place in Melbourne Park “The Home of Tennis”, over 4 days from 23-26 May 2023, in the lead up to the RI Convention.
Don’t be put off by the “World Championships” tag, it’s an event for tennis players of all ages and abilities.
