Shelterbox Week 1-6 June 2013

Shelterbox week is set for 1-6 June when a number of events will be run to raise awareness and funds for this very worthwhile project.  Further info will come out over the next couple of weeks.

Awards made by D9940 at District Conference

Below is a list of the awards presented at the joint District 9920 9940 annual Rotary Conference in Rotorua on 27 April.

Award Title	Description	Awarded to
Genesis Innovative Project Trophy	A trophy awarded to the Club, which has developed the most innovative project.	Hutt City
Sir David Ewen Cup	For Club attendance at conference.	Carterton
W8 Trophy	For largest % membership increase in current Rotary year	Porirua Sundown
The Wainuiomata Cup	Awarded to the Club with the highest per capita donations to the Rotary Foundation during the preceding Rotary year.	Wellington South
Club Bulletin Award	An illustrated framed certificate for the Club, that produces the most attractive and enlightening bulletin.	Hutt River Valley
Public Image – Actions Count Award	Awarded to the Club who has been innovative in increasing the profile of Rotary and making an impact in their community.	Wellington
District Governor's Rose Bowl	Presented to the winner of the conference golf tournament.	Inglewood
District Peace Award	RI award for this 2012/13	Pahiatua
DG Special Achievement Awards	To Bob Austin and Ross Garner for their work on the conference	Bob Austin Ross Garner
Porirua Cup	Presented at each conference to the Club, which best displays, the theme of the conference Saturday night function.	Wellington Harbour City
The Friendship Shield	Awarded at each conference to the Club delegation who, have best shown the true spirit of friendship and fellowship at the conference.	Port Nicholson
The Stan Rowe Award	Awarded to a Rotarian for contribution to an outstanding Humanitarian Project.	Dave Wilson
Pushing Boundaries	2012/13 award recognizing the club that has pushed boundaries the most in the current year.	Pahiatua
Fred Hall-Jones Conference Trophy	Presented at each conference to the host Club for the next conference.	Levin

Joint District D9920 D9940 District Conference

Chris, RI Rep Garry Chen
and DG Graeme

On 26 - 28 April District 9920 and 9940 held their joint District Conference at the Events Centre in Rotorua.  With over 600 Rotarians and their partners in attendance this was a great event.  The theme of the conference was Pushing Boundaries.  RI Rep Garry Chen addressed us and reminded us of the aims of Rotary and brought wishes from the RI President Tanaka Sukuji.  DG Reps attending where John and Donna Prendergast from D9980 and Gordon and Alrita from D9970.

DG Ron and Graeme, DG Reps John and Gordon and Wives

RLI Course

On Friday a Golf tournament and Rotary Leadership Institute course were held prior to the conference beginning.  Saturday afternoon a Building Strong Clubs workshop was also held.


There was a fine line up of speakers Pushing Boundaries including Sam Johnston who talked about the student army assisting following the Christchurch Earthquake; Ben Lummis, first New Zealand Idol, speaking on his volunteer work; Nadia Lim, 2nd Masterchief winner speaking on her cooking and television experiences; and the Hon Hekia Parata speaking on her passion for excellence in child education.  Interspersed among the lineup of key note speakers we heard from International Youth Exchange students, GSE Teams, Peace and Vocational Scholars and RYLA participants.

Dave Wilson being presented with
the Stan Rowe Award by DG Graeme

PortNicholson won the
Friendship Shield

Saturday saw a roll call of clubs present and this highlighted the many projects that clubs are involved in.  As part of this District Awards were made and subsequently presented.  

Saturday night was party time with the theme of Starry Starry Night.  A great array of costumes saw a glittering event, much fun and hilarity.

A great weekend which brought together two Districts to Push Boundaries, share ideas and enjoy great company and fun together.


Our thanks to the great efforts put in by all of the organising committee to ensure that this was a great fun filled weekend.

DGs and RI Rep with President Paul, Des and Colin of eastern Hutt Rotary

Support End Polio Now

Support the End Polio Now programme by purchasing coffee and reusable cups - profits go to the Polio Plus programme.

These would make ideal gifts for clubs or buy and enjoy at home with you family and friends. 

Eastern Hutt Supports 'Lend a Leg Mine Awareness'

From Nicole Parry, Eastern Hutt Rotary

Lend a Leg for Mine Awareness

"This month we also recognise the United Nations International Day of Mine Awareness,

April 4th was International Mine Awareness Day and this year the UN and its partners are asking everyone including Rotarians to Lend a Leg and Stand with the Survivors. We are little late but maybe not too late.

Around the world, people are joining together in solidarity to take a stand, to step forward and to ‘Lend a Leg for a mine free world’, all through the simple gesture of rolling up their pants leg.

Our club did its part to bring awareness to this man-made crisis by simply taking a photo of ourselves 'lending a leg' and adding them to the group. We all stood turning up our “left trouser” leg to show solidarity with the ideal.

 This photo will go on the Mine Awareness website".

http://www.un.org/en/events/mineawarenessday/lendyourleg.shtml

http://www.un.org/en/events/mineawarenessday/

Thanks Nicole

DG Graeme

DG Update - Preparing for Conference

This past week has been a quite week where we have focused on preparing for our joint District conference in Rotorua.  Plans are now complete and we are counting down to a great conference.  We are looking forward to a great turnout and exciting event.

See you there.

The life of Rotary founder Paul Harris

The life of Rotary founder Paul Harris

By Lauren Kalal and Stephanie Giordano 
Rotary News -- 19 April 2013  

Born in Racine, Wisconsin, USA, on 19 April 1868, Paul P. Harris was the second of six children of George N. and Cornelia Bryan Harris.

Harris as a young lawyer in
Chicago, 1896    

At age three, he moved to Wallingford, Vermont, where he grew up in the care of his paternal grandparents, Howard and Pamela Harris. He attended the University of Vermont and Princeton University and received his law degree from the University of Iowa in 1891.

While he was in school, both of Harris's grandparents died, and he spent the five years after graduation traveling around the country and working odd jobs. After arriving penniless in San Francisco in 1891, he worked as a reporter for the San Francisco Chronicle and then as a ranch hand, grape picker, actor, and cowboy. He was also a hotel night clerk in Jacksonville, Florida, and a traveling marble and granite salesman.

In 1896, he settled in Chicago and opened a law practice. Along with Gustavus Loehr, Silvester Schiele, and Hiram Shorey, he founded the Rotary Club of Chicago in 1905 and was elected its president in 1907.

Club membership grew rapidly. Many members were originally from small towns and found an opportunity for fellowship in the Chicago club. Harris was convinced that the club could be expanded into a service movement and strove to extend Rotary to other communities.

In 1910, he met Jean Thomson during an outing with the Prairie Club, a Chicago-based organization for wilderness enthusiasts. Harris and Thomson married three months later and settled on Chicago's South Side.

In the same year, the National Association of Rotary Clubs was formed, and Harris was elected its first president. He held the office for two years and afterward became president emeritus, serving as the public face of the organization and promoting membership extension and service around the world.

Harris in his office at Rotary headquarters 

in 1945. He served as the public face

 of the organization after his presidency.

  

He wrote several books about Rotary and his life and travels, including The Founder of Rotary and This Rotarian Age.

In addition to his work with Rotary, Harris was involved in other civic organizations, including the Chicago Association of Commerce and Industry, City Club of Chicago, Chicago Bar Association, Prairie Club, and Easter Seals. He was also recognized by the Boy Scouts of America and honored by the governments of Brazil, Chile, the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, and Peru.

Harris died on 27 January 1947, leaving a rich legacy of fellowship, professionalism, service, and friendship. His passing also sparked an outpouring of donations to The Rotary Foundation from all over the world, allowing the Foundation to greatly expand its programs and services. 

• In honor of Paul Harris's birthday, listen to an excerpt of his address to the 1933 convention and read a quote on Rotary Voices
• Learn more about Rotary's founder in the Life and times of Paul Harris.
• For more information about Rotary history, visit Rotary History and Archives or the Rotary Global History Fellowship.

If you are interested in golf and travel this might interest you!

Rotary Billboards

A new Rotary Billboard appears in our District - North City Mall, Titahi Bay Road Porirua 

DG Weekly Update - Club Visits

With only 2 weeks until conference the conference committees have been putting the final touches on the conference details.  For Chris and I it has also been another busy week.  On Monday we visited the Wellington Club lunch meeting where I presented a Rotary Vocational Award to Geoff Bascand in recognition of his work chairing the vocational committee and establishing the annual Wellington Rotary Forum which has significantly raised the profile of Rotary and the Wellington Club in the Wellington Region.




In the evening we attended a joint Johnsonville - Tawa Robbie Burns night where we had the opportunity to present a Centurion Club Award to the Johnsonville Rotary.  This was a great fun filled night with many Kilts evident.

Tuesday was one of those too rare Tuesday nights where I was able to attend my home Club Plimmerton.  As time permits it is always great to get along to Plimmerton and catch up on goings on.  On Wednesday night we were at Harbour City Rotary where we gave one of our Antarctic Presentations to club members.  Thursday was a meeting of our conference committee.  All plans are in place for a great conference and we are just down to sorting out the final details.  Friday was a chance to catch up with some friends from Australia and the weekend to finalise some speeches and details for conference.  And so another week goes by.  The coming week will will focus on finalising all of those small details for conference.

Regards
DG Graeme

Two Weeks To District 9920/9940 Conference

Camp Quality New Zealand

Dear Rotarian

I am writing on behalf of Camp Quality New Zealand to seek your support for our unique national awareness and fundraising event - Odd Shoe Day.

We are asking Rotarians to join with other service and like-minded organisations to embrace the spirit of the event by wearing mismatched shoes either on Friday 13^th September or at a club meeting or District function around that date and to make a donation to Camp Quality in recognition.

We see ‘Odd Shoe Day’ as an easy, inexpensive and enjoyable way to introduce people to the work of Camp Quality NZ, an organisation which provides fun, hope and happiness for children battling the scourge of cancer.  Camp Quality was established in New Zealand more than 27 years ago to provide a range of support programmes for children aged 5-16 living with cancer, as well as providing year-round support to their families.

Each year during the school holiday break we organise five annual regional summer camps, at a cost of more than $600,000.  Upwards of 300 youngsters receive a week of fun in a stress-free environment, supported by hundreds of trained companions, volunteers and nursing staff providing one-on-one care in a safe environment.

These camps provide an opportunity for children who are fighting the battle with cancer a chance to recapture their childhood in a caring and supportive environment.  More than that, they offer parents and caregivers of these youngsters a brief week of normality and an opportunity to devote rare quality time to their other children.

The chairman of CQNZ, Gary Troup, is someone many Rotarians will be familiar with.  Gary represented Auckland and New Zealand at cricket during the 1970s playing around 40 Tests and ODIs for NZ, and has just stepped down as President of Auckland Cricket.  He has been an independent Trustee of Camp Quality since 2005.

You can find out more about the wonderful work of our organisation at www.campquality.org.nz

In return for your club’s support both Gary and I would be prepared to speak at clubs about Camp Quality and Odd Shoe Day.

I would be grateful if you could promote this cause through your newsletters or during your club visits and am happy to provide your members with more information/promotional material on request.  They can register their interest here: Register

DG Weekly Update - the GSE Team Arrives

It was great to see the GSE team arrive last Monday in Wellington.  On Tuesday a District welcoming function was held at the Wellington City Council Chambers attended by the Mayor of Wellington Celia Wade-Brown and the Honorable Hekia Parata, Minister of Education - see earlier BLOG story.  The first host Club was Wellington Harbor City and the GSE team gave their first formal presentation at the Clubs Wednesday meeting.  From here the team transferred to the Rotary Club of Plimmerton and Chris and I were able to catch up with them all over an informal dinner where we heard their presentation.

We have also selected to candidates to attend the Peace Forum in Hiroshima in May, Faye Elliott sponsored by District and from the Takaro Club and Samuel Stevens sponsored by and from the Wellington Clubs.  Our congratulations to Faye and Samuel and we look forward to hearing from them on their return.





Chris and I also had a speedy trip up to New Plymouth where we addressed the Taranaki 1 Cluster and New Zealand Institute of Surveyors on experiences in Antarctica.  It is always pleasurable to return to clubs at a more relaxed meeting.  We have also been busy preparing for our Joint District conference which is now only 3 weeks away.

All the best for the coming week.
DG Graeme

District Assembly - 19 May 2013

Rotarians Honored

Update on Polio Cases this Year

Officially reported wild polio virus cases on 26 Mar 2013

Total global cases in 2013: 16 (compared with 36 for the same period in 2012)

Total in endemic countries in 2013: 16 (compared with 33 for the same period  in 2012)

Total in non-endemic countries in 2013: 0 (compared with 3 for the same  period in 2012)

Nigeria: 10 cases in 2013 (compared with 13 for the same period in 2012),  onset of paralysis of most recent case: 24-Feb-13

Pakistan: 5 cases in 2013 (compared with 15 for the same period in 2012),  onset of paralysis of most recent case: 12-Feb-13

Afghanistan: 1 case in 2013 (compared with 5 for the same period in 2012),  onset of paralysis of most recent case: 31-Jan-13

Niger: 0 case in 2013 (compared with 0 for the same period in 2012), onset  of paralysis of most recent case: 15-Nov-12

Chad: 0 case in 2013 (compared with 3 for the same period in 2012), onset  of paralysis of most recent case: 14-Jun-12

· Total global cases in 2012: 223

· Total in endemic countries in: 217

· Total in non-endemic countries in: 6

We Are This Close

The Honorable Hekia Parata with DG Graeme and PDG Howard  acknowledging the Rotary Polio Plus programme at tonights GSE Welcome ceremony in Wellington.

'We are this close!'

Welcome Function for GSE Team

Tonight a welcome function was hosted by the Mayor of Wellington Celia Wade-Brown at the Wellington City Council Chambers.  The function was also attended by the Honorable Hekia Parata, Minister of Education, and Ms Chantal Hickey representing the Canadian High Commission to New Zealand.  

Following a traditional Maori Powhiri,  Mayor Celia and Hekia welcomed those present and spoke of the importance of Rotary and the GSE programme.  DG Graeme then welcomed Mary and the Team to New Zealand and those attending to the ceremony and spoke of his pleasure in District working with District 5370 to host the exchange.  Team Leader Mary, Shannon, Laura and Nathalie then introduced themselves and responded to the Powhiri by singing a wonderful rendition of the Canadian National Anthem.  GSE Chair Andy Watson then thanked those for making the exchange possible.  A great evening enjoyed by all and a great start to the GSE visit.

My thanks to all those present for making this such a special night.

DG Graeme