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President's Message
Trevor Pickles
President's Report No 20
It was a busy meeting last Monday what with the Annual General Meeting, the General Meeting with guest speaker Martin Duke followed by a Board Meeting, I was glad to get home to my cuppa cocoa (ok, it might have been something a tad stronger….).
The AGM went well, as usual, with Kelly’s Board all voted in unopposed for the Rotary year 2019-20. If her Board support her as well as my Board is supporting me her year will run well.
Martin Duke, wearing his ‘CFA hat’, gave a timely and passionate presentation regarding preparedness for the up-coming Summer/Fire season. I trust everyone took heed of his advice and make sure that all precautions are taken, not just for you but for your family, friends and neighbours too!!
Monday the 26th Amanda will introduce Richard and Sharen Mierzejewsk to inform us about the NBN and ‘Smarthome’ – I’m intrigued!!!!
Our Guest Speaker, Cr Martin Duke, Counsellor with the Surfcoast Shire, Volunteer with the CFA, Business owner for 21yrs, was a Member on the Surf Coast Tourism board for 15yrs, works part time for GMHBA as an optical dispenser. He also teaches optical dispensing at Deakin University. He holds qualifications in aged care and disability, optical dispensing and transport and logistics. so it goes on
On Monday night we were all reminded of some very horrific times that our town, towns surrounding and even, at times, most of Victoria with the devastation that Bushfires cause.. We were also shown a DVD of what Bushfires do to, not only our homes but the flora & fauna in our forests, on our land and anywhere where the ground is tinder dry and in a lot of cases haven't been cleared enough around us to stop the fires from rushing through. It is so obvious to us that we should be responsible for making sure that there are no opportunities for fires to reach our homes and properties, it's our responsibility to make sure we have cleared our land, tidy up our surroundings even cleaning out our gutters, anything that reduces fuel for the flames AND embers. Of course we cannot be responsible for those that deliberately start fires for some unknown reason..!!
It was obvious that Martin was very passionate and motivated about getting the message through to us on just how devastating Bushfires are. He gave us many tips on how to protect ourselves, even bought along a very informative booklet for us all to keep on how to Prepare, Act, Survive, even on how to Stay & Defend. He's Volunteered in the Torquay CFA for 30+ years so he knows his stuff and I for one was reminded of the horrific Ash Wednesday bush fires of February 1983 when I was alone at home in Wantirna, Melb and surrounded by the Fern Tree Gully fires, with no car and two babies to worry about... Rob was working 3hrs away.. it was the most frightening experience of my life just seeing the deep red glow of the sky from the mountains behind us and even seeing the height of the flames was a sight I'll never forget.
We lost friends in Cockatoo and their neighbours on either side where spared, showed just how unpredictable the fires were. We had embers from the Otway fires landing around us which started a ground fire which, if left unattended could have caused some terrible damage to surrounding properties. The Black Saturday fires were a series of Bushfires that ignited or were burning across Victoria on and around Saturday, 7th February 2009 and were Australia's all-time worst Bushfire disasters. Bushfires are caused by a series of reasons, clashing of electricity power lines , trees connecting with power lines, deliberately lit & probably other causes not identified.
The Black Saturday Bushfires killed 173 people, 120 in the Kinglake area alone. Another 414 people were injured. More than 450,000 hectares had burned and 3,500 buildings including more than 2000 houses destroyed. The RSPCA estimated that up to one million wild and domesticated animals died in the disaster.
We are heading for another Bushfire season and prediction is this year will be a big one for fires due to the conditions of the land, I for one will not be hanging around, I'll have a bag packed in the car with the Cat, heading for safety..!
We are seeking shopping bags for our Book Fair customers to put the books they purchase in.
If anyone has any shopping bags they no longer require, or would like to donate bags to be used at the book fair, please contact Rhonda. You can either bring the bags along to Rotary on a Monday, or contact Rhonda to arrange a pick up.
We have a great start --- Kelly has very kindly donated 100 bags - Thanks Kelly!!
For those who missed the presentation Monday 12th Nov by The Surf Coast Secondary College on their upcoming Kokoda Trek then here is an update from the School
Thanks to the Team who manned the BBQ at Bunnings yesterday. We also welcomed Harry who was completing his Community Service hours for school.
Please note that to avoid any confusion what was previously known as the BBQ Roster has now been rebranded as the "Events" Roster. to reflect that it includes things like Night Jar Parking, the Book Show etc.
I have also included the dates for the Cadel Evans race (we make $50 for each shift so please register under Rotary)
Note:- Next Event is Bunnings on Saturday 2nd December so please check your calendar
If you make any more swaps please let me know and I will update the roster which can be found in documents in club runner
If you do require to swap a date for any reason you will now need to find someone to do this with yourself. I would suggest that you send the request to Greg who has offered to advertise on a BBQ Roster Trading Post in the bulletin
Rotary recently learned that scammers have created multiple communication and social media accounts that impersonate RI President Barry Rassin, RI President-elect Mark Maloney, General Secretary John Hewko and perhaps other Rotary leaders. The communication accounts include or involve email, WhatsApp and Viber. The social media accounts have been on LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook.
These are not authentic Rotary communications. They are phishing and spoofing attempts to obtain money and personal information. The perpetrators may attempt to convince Rotary members to send funds to support alleged Rotary causes.
Rotary monitors for and responds to these attempts as part of an ongoing effort to keep member, program participant, and staff data safe. We also work with LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, and WhatsApp to remove imposter accounts.
Neither President Rassin’s, President-elect Maloney’s, nor General Secretary Hewko’s authentic accounts have been compromised.
Rotary members should continue to exercise caution:
Disregard any suspicious message that offers money, requests money, or asks for your personal information.
Avoid opening attachments or following links in suspicious messages.
Pay close attention to the details of the email address and signature block to verify the sender.
If you receive what you believe to be a suspicious message from the president, general secretary, or another Rotary leader, please forward it to fraudreport@rotary.org and then delete it immediately.
which will be held on Australia Day Weekend, 24-27 January 2019 and we would love your support to raise some much valued funds for our Club!
What better way to enjoy the long weekend and fundraising for the Rotary Club of Torquay whilst watching one of Torquay's iconic sporting events up close?
Every session that you volunteer will earn $50 for The Rotary Club of Torquay
Volunteering opportunities exist for course marshalling:
Course Marshalling
Athlete Services
Venue Operations
Media Operations
General Workforce Duties
All volunteers are welcome to volunteer for one day or multiple days.
Plus all volunteers receive an event T-shirt and cap as well as food and water for your shifts.
Join Rotary President Barry Rassin at the 110th Rotary International Convention in Hamburg, Germany, 1-5 June 2019. The historic port city of Hamburg offers something for everyone. Germans call it “The Gateway to the World” — and the 2019 convention will be your gateway to the world of Rotary. At the convention, you’ll connect with people of action from across the globe while learning the latest news and strategies for keeping clubs strong.
As a past convention attendee, you know that every convention is an opportunity to learn. Not only will you be inspired by the energy and enthusiasm that surrounds you, you’ll also make new, unforgettable memories that can last a lifetime.
Join your Rotary friends in Hamburg at the 2019 Rotary Convention where together, we’ll Capture the Moment.
In Australia, farmers are the lifeblood of our country and they are in crisis. Record breaking heat and lack of rain means farmers are struggling to feed sheep and cattle, and keep crops alive. Families on the land are suffering and they need our help. Channel 9 and Rotary Australia have partnered with the National Farmers' Federation, launching an appeal to big business and everyday Australians, so we can provide some emergency relief. 100% of donations goes to the farmers and is tax deductible via Rotary and RAWCS. Every dollar counts.
The link for the donation page for the project is:
We are now fully operational with our new system for registering for our weekly dinner meetings. Called Whoozin, this program is used by other local Rotary Clubs with great success.
To make it easy for everyone I have prepared a Whoozin User Manual which is stored on Clubrunner under "Club Documents" that you will be able to print off if you wish.
In Summary the way it will work is:-
You will receive an initial email invitation each Monday for the following week's meeting.
You can immediately accept or decline, leave until later.
You will receive a reminder email on the Friday Prior
You will have until Midnight Sunday to register your RSVP and can change your decision right up until the closing time.
You can register up to 5 guests
You can specify any Special Dietary requirements
Please Note that if you do not register your intentions you will be charged for the dinner fee.
If you have any problems please free to contact myself Greg Plumridge 0418521321 or Michael Reed 0418524315 for details on how to work the program.
If you cannot meet one of your assigned duties, Please contact Bruce Smith to advise.
The duty team should arrive no later than 6:00 p.m. Besides the below duties, the assigned team is responsible for Room Setup, Greeting Members and Guests, and Room Tidy at the end of our meeting - see checklist in storeroom or click here .
Notifying someone about changes to your meeting attendance is your responsibility!
Our meetings have catered dinners, so if you are unable to attend a meeting, or if your partner is unable
to attend a designated Partner's Night, YOU MUST ADVISE us of your or your partner’s absence.
This also applies if you are attending the meeting but not dining.
How to Book in for our Dinner Meeting?
For Members, Partners and guests of Members
you will receive email invitations to each meeting via Whoozin.
It will be your responsibility to RSVP using Whoozin by Midnight on the day prior to the meeting.
The only exception to this will be if you are expecting to be out of internet connectivity for an extended period.
In this instance you can notify Richard Mierzejewski at LET Surfcoast on03-5261 2777 by 4.00pm on the Saturday prior to the Monday Meeting.
Please Note there is NO Answering Service on this number.
Remember if you are bringing guests or your partner (to a non-partner night) you need to RSVP for the extra number of person/s who will be attending.
If no RSVP is registered as per the above process, the absentee member will be issued with an invoice to pay the Club the usual dinner fee of $25 for your non-attendance, and/or that of your partner if it is an official Partner's Night.
For Visitors to the Club
Any Visitors not being registered as a guest of a Member must call Richard Mierzejewski at LET Surfcoast on03-5261 2777 to Book in. RSVP's must be made no later than 4.00PM on the Saturday prior to the Meeting
Please Note there is NO Answering Service on this number.