MODERN FACE OF ROTARY

MODERN FACE OF ROTARY

The following article appeared in the Wanganui Chronicle by

 Merania Karauria

8th Mar 2013 6:56 AM

 Rotarians celebrating International Women's Day today are Ann Petherick (Wanganui), Sue Gardner (Wanganui North president), Sharon Duff (Wanganui), Helen Craig (Wanganui), Kate Smith (Wanganui president) and Eileen Ng (Daybreak president).

PICTURE STUART MUNRO

Today is International Women's Day and Rotary clubs in Wanganui are on a drive to enlist more women.  Three of the four Rotary presidents in Wanganui are women, which has given the usually male domain a modern, inclusive face.  Pharmacist Sue Gardner is Wanganui North president, UCOL lecturer Kate Smith is Wanganui president, and businesswoman Eileen Ng is Daybreak president. 

The Rotarians are a mix of retired, business and professional women and men, all sharing their skills in the community.  When Rotary started 108 years ago, it was strictly a male domain.  And so it remained for over 80 years. But 25 years ago a few clubs started accepting women as members, and now 16 per cent of the 1.2 million Rotary members around the world are women. 

In Wanganui, Ann Petherick, Marion Davenport, Liz McPherson and Jill Stegmann take the Reading in Schools programme at Wanganui East School.  "We assist the children with one-on-one reading and it gives them confidence to read in a relaxed atmosphere," Mrs Petherick said.  The programme, which was coordinated by Rotarian Jack Kale, has now been picked up by other areas. 

The list of community projects by Rotarians continues to grow.  They help students with scholarships to travel; Rebecca O'Leary is one lucky student who was sponsored by the Wanganui club and has just returned from an exchange to France.  They sold the bricks with names on the Majestic Square forecourt and the Westmere Walkway is still being worked on by the Wanganui club.

The club also started the River Walkway from the Cobham Bridge, which was taken over by the council.  Businesswoman Lei Graham of Wanganui is one who works quietly in the background.  In 2007 she took resources to the Children's Centre for Happiness orphanage in Cambodia then cycled 600km with 19 others to raise funds for Oxfam. Mrs Graham also teaches literacy and numeracy at the Whanganui Prison, and in May she will chaperone a group of exchange students to Wanganui's sister city in Japan, Nagaizumi. 

Other Rotary projects in the city are the 1.5km planting of trees around Springvale Park and heritage fruit trees near the former St Georges School.