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President's Message
Philip Beasley
President’s Report 04 May 2024
Hello Members and Friends
Vale’ Ian Cairns
Yesterday (Saturday), Richard Hawker and I attended a service in Ballarat where Ian was laid to rest surrounded by mostly family and a small number of friends.
We had the opportunity to catch up with Ian’s partner Mary Bouwman, and his children Nicole, Joshua and Ali. They spoke of the wonderful service in Greensborough on Friday celebrating his life. Ian had a wide range of interests and passions where he had a number of close friendships.
Richard and I extended our sincere condolences and sympathies from the Rotary Club of Torquay.
RIP Ian Cairns
Pholklore
Thank you to Gail Chrisfield for organising another enjoyable social evening at Pholklore. Those who were able to attend enjoyed the Vietnamese and Malaysian Cuisine and of course, each other’s company.
Many members found the ordering of meals and drinks by the QR code system challenging but one of the staff members went out of her way to assist many of us in being fed and watered.
Fund Raising Distribution
Our Club Directors are in the process of calling committee meetings to consider which community and international needs we are going to support this financial year.
It is important for members to participate in these meetings to make recommendations to the Board Meeting later this month. The conversations you have now will also inform the development of our Strategic Plan early in the new Rotary Year.
Next month (May) is Domestic/Family Violence Prevention Month. In an attempt to raise awareness of this we are undertaking weekly walks in different areas of Torquay and Jan Juc.
Week 1 - 7th May - Meeting at Ginger Monkey in Baines Court at 1000 am. The walk will be around Baines Court and down to Spring Creek. On returning to Baines Court you are all welcome to finish the walk of with a well deserved coffee at the Ginger Monkey.
Week 2 - 14th May - will be along the waterfront, meeting at 1000am. The meeting point will be decided at the first walk. Maybe your favourite Coffee Shop
The District Assembly is the major leadership training event in District 9780 for 2024.
The D9780 District Assembly also coincides with PETS-2 training which provides incoming Presidents for Rotary year 2024/25 the opportunity to set their goals, refine their leadership team, develop networks and to meet your D9780 Leadership Team.
The 2024 District Assembly will be held on Sunday, 19th May 2024, commencing at 10.00am and concluding at around 3.30 pm. Morning tea and lunch will be provided on both days.
Following Amy Hunter’s inspiring presentation to the club in February, the volunteer group ‘Welcome to Barwon’ (W2B) has been flat out.
On 17 April, the group welcomed a young Syrian refugee family to permanently move to Australia, after being matched through the Community Refugee Sponsorship Australia Program (CRISP). Torquay Rotarian Gail Chrisfield was among those gathered at Melbourne International Airport that night, having joined W2B at the start of March.
In the weeks leading up to the family’s arrival, W2B’s nine members were kept busy. Preparations included securing temporary accommodation, sourcing household items, compiling the necessary paperwork for government and other agencies, and locating essential medical, educational and other services.
