District Governor Induction for 2024 - 2025
The Rotary activities year got off to resounding start with the induction of Torquay Rotarian Lesley Shedden as the new district Governor for the rotary District 9780. The sprawling of 50 Rotary Clubs in our district extends from Lara across to Millicent and Naracoorte Rotary Clubs in South Australia. A large group of Rotary luminaries and local Torquay Rotary members gathered at the Sands Resort to celebrate Lesley’s induction into this important Rotary role.
Rotary District Conference March 21 - 23 2025
One key event in her role will be to host a Rotary District Conference from March 21-23 beginning at the 13th Beach Golf Club and culminating at The Sands Resort in Torquay. The conference program will include a social golf event at 13th Beach course, nationally regarded Keynote speakers, and explore a range of topics of concern to Rotarians including the environment and sustainability, disease prevention, especially polio and malaria, health and wellbeing, especially mental health and saying no to family violence.
Torquay Rotary Club President 2024 - 2025
The large District event was followed early in July by the changeover dinners at which Rotarian Bruce Turner assumed his role as Torquay Rotary Club president for the 2024-25 rotary year. This will be a busy and challenging year as Torquay club plays its part in supporting District Governor Lesley with her wider District activities as well as maintaining the regular calendar of events and fundraising and community support activities. Major events will include the Rotary car show in February, a Book Fare and sale and a regular schedule of BBQs at Cowrie market and Bunnings.
Please click on
link here for more photos of this event.
Torquay Rotary Business Awards
Also, in July Torquay Rotary had partnered with Commerce Torquay and the Surf Coast Times to conduct the Torquay Business awards 2024. These awards began as a Torquay Rotary Vocational Service project in 2022 and this year have grown into a larger and more ambitious event with awards celebrating excellence across seven categories and a gala awards night to be held at the Sands Resort on 18 November 2024.
Torquay Community House Afghan Lunch Feast
Among these higher profile projects Rotarians are pleased to participate in smaller “feel good’ Projects in our community. One of these was when a group of Rotarians were able to attend a lunch at the Community house to enjoy a scrumptious meal of Afghan food grown and prepared by the recent immigrants from Afghanistan in conjunction with the Common Ground Project at Freshwater Creek and skilfully served by students from Surf Coast Secondary College. It was a privilege to be part of this function and to meet such interesting people from within our community.
Please click on link
here for more photos of this event.
Torquay Landcare Volunteers Lake Modewarre BBQ
Another community event of interest will be to take our Rotary BBQ trailer to a site near lake Modewarre to support Torquay Landcare volunteers who will supervise two groups of students to plant trees in a council reserve area as part of the environmental awareness program. The first group will be a group of 60 students from Bellbrae primary school and the second a group of 30 students from Moriac Primary School. Rotary will cook sausages for the student’s lunch as a reward for their work to combat effects of Climate change. It is a wonderful thing to see these young people out in the fresh air, getting some healthy exercise. Congratulations and thanks to the Landcare volunteers who manage this project so effectively.
Please click on
link here for more photos of this event.
Torquay Rotarian PNG Project
While all this good stuff has been happening in our local district, a group of Torquay Rotarians and volunteers has been working on a project to upgrade a school, Lese Oalia p-3, in a village in The Gulf province of Papua New Guinea. This project, funded largely by Rotary project grants negotiated by an experienced Torquay Rotarian will radically change the educational opportunities and health circumstances of children in the village associated with this school. Local PNG contact Lucy Loko and volunteer builder Ned McLarnon have been on site for the completion of the repair and upgrading of toilet facilities for the school and the village. Ned has played an important role in his capacity as builder and mentor to ensure skills transfer to local builders working on this project.
Container Deposit Scheme (CDS)
Rotary is now registered with the Container Deposit Scheme. Bruce wrote about this initiative in his President's message last week, please see the photos by clicking
on this link in regards to this story.
So being a Rotarian can be busy and a bit hectic at times, giving a chance to contribute in some way to global or national impact projects or to focus energy on projects to benefit local Surf Coast people.
