Stories

Where do we go from here?

Our Bulletin Editor, Allan Vester has scarpered overseas for 10 weeks, leaving a significant void in our communications team. However, yours truly has unwittingly stepped up to fill the gap for a few weeks but certainly not permanently!

So, what's front of mind to us all at present and where do we go from here? Well in my neck of the woods, nothing is more on our minds than living costs, politics, the weather and hovering in the background, Covid 19, otherwise known as the dreaded lurgy.

As Rotarians, we are supposed to be apolitical and neutral in our public views but privately what do we think about the state of the nation. From me, no comment here, but I could share some discussion over a Guinness or two and for those not culturally accustomed to this tipple, then maybe a wine would suffice.

Anyway, we could start a Letters to the Editor process or even just provide some insights to your views, but we won't promise to publish if it is a bit confrontational or even irrational.

However, any views expressed by members and that includes the Editor, will not be the views of Pakuranga Rotary or it's members in entirety.

Graham Kearns

The Fill-in Guy.

Damian Light - Guest Speaker

At our last meeting we were appraised of the life and times of our Guest Speaker, Damian Light including the challenges (and opportunities) facing the Howick Local Board in 2023. Damian is the Chair of the Howick Local Board, responsible for decision-making on local issues, activities, and services such as libraries, parks and community programmes.

Before being elected in October 2022, Damian worked for over 15years in process improvement and business performance. He is a member of the NZ Institute of Directors and has served on a range of boards including local community groups, charitable organisations, and commercial businesses.

With over 150,000 residents to serve, the nine members of the Local Board face tough decisions this year as Auckland Council’s financial challenges mean reductions in funding - how do we do more with less?

Damian's emphasis on opportunities rather than problems, gave the members some hope in the decision-making process now confronting this local board. We look forward to his return visit sometime in the months ahead, once their budget has been finalised and he is able to explain what decisions they had to make and why.

Emergency Response Kits.

The club received an update from Gabrielle Gimblett-Martin on some wonderful work done by members from clubs across Auckland.

"I can now report to you and your members that the ERK's project is complete and the 2 containers filled with the blue boxes have arrived in Tonga and Fiji.

I would like to thank you all very much for the wonderful help you gave us to get the job done! We had so much fun, please pass on my thanks to everyone concerned.

After collecting all the data from the sign in sheets, I have attached a document showing the number of volunteers and the hours worked.

The Pakuranga Rotary Club contributed 9 volunteers and 25 hours of service. Approx 3 hours pp.

An amazing result and again I wish to thank everyone for their time. I really appreciated their support."

Kind regards

Gabby

ERK's Co-ordinator

There must be great content out there.

Ensuring that our club bulletin is interesting and relevant to members means that content generated by you is always welcome.

With the range of interests, work and hobbies that members have there will be a lot of material that others will find interesting.

By way of example:

Monday 7th of November saw me sizing up a Honda 230 CRF which was to be my ride over more than 600 kms of Otago high country gravel and four wheel drive tracks. Much different to my normal sealed road riding but a fun if challenging way to visit parts of the country few get the chance to see.

In the group I was with was a friend who I taught in my first year of teaching - he is now 64, proving I hope, that it's better to burn out than to rust.

Auckland Airport Rotary

Auckland Airport Rotary who are fundraising for Polio, are running a movie night on Tuesday Dec 6.

Tickets are $27 each which include a drink or popcorn or softop ice- cream at The Monterey, Howick.

Please click the link to buy tickets from Eventbrite.

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/rotary-movie-event-the-lost-king-tickets-455307947327

Scribes Report

The Club was joined last Monday evening by a bevy of Local Board members, guests, Maurice Williamson and District Governor Allan Smith and his wife Sue. Lesley McLagan attended after the recent success of the Highbrook Club’s Fun Run and President Mike was back on both legs following his near miss. There was wide spread support for the Meat Raffle to continue next year.

Terry Urbahn of Auckland Council gave members a history and an update of the sculpture project.

The sculpture is a major piece of engineering as its size, location and the fact that it moves in the wind requires a really robust structure.

Terry presented visuals of the elaborate sculpture being created by Dion Hitchens in West Auckland and there is every reason to believe the completed sculpture will be unique, transfix the Rotary Walkway location it inhabits and in its creativity will impact those who use the Walkway. There is still hope that the sculpture might be ready for unveiling at Carnival time.

DG Allan spoke of the DG’s visit to the 9920 Island Territories for the first time in three years because of COVID. As with their business supplying equipment for health providers, he and Sue work together on Rotary projects and Sue spoke at length about ROMAC (Rotary Oceania Medical Aid for Children). The District Governor mentioned that there is a new club in Flat Bush being chartered and emphasised the importance of the RI President Jennifer Jones’ theme of “Imagine Rotary” – Try and Visualise What We Can Do With Our Club and Rotary in the Future. The importance of this message was not lost on members, who are still without a President-Elect.

Some humour

Food Bank assistance

Following discussion between Rotarians including Peter Taylor and Peter Hawkins, Lauri set up a collection for food items to donate to a food bank using the back-boot of his car.

Laurie reported that he finished up with 100 items with around 25 people making donations.
Those items have been donated to the Salvation Army.

The model used, which other members will be encouraged to replicate, involves placing a flier in the letter boxes on your street inviting neighbours to donate items by placing them in the back-boot of car that will be parked in a designated place at a predetermined time.

A great way to support our local community and to promote Rotary.

Looking Forward

As I write what will be the last Bulletin for the year there is no doubt that Covid lockdowns have impacted on our club.

The fellowship that we enjoy as Rotarians has been one casualty

Fortunately with vaccination rates in Auckland now some of the best in the world things are looking up. There are however still restrictions in place and that has impacted on our ability to access our normal meeting venues.

Fingers are crossed that come the end of January most of those barriers will have gone and we will be able to meet in person as a group again.

It's likely that rules around vaccination and vaccination passports will still be in place so some challenges will remain.

I hope that families are able to get together over Christmas and New Year and have the sort of fun that makes it possible to forget the trials of the past months.

Covid Vaccination Status

An issue that the Board and Club Management have been looking at is covid vaccination status.

This is potentially a divisive issue but is never the less one that we will need to address.

While we are under any Covid restrictions many potential venues for meetings and visits will require proof of vaccination.

As a club we can help by assisting those members who need some technical support on setting up and downloading the vaccination passport.

However we will need to know the vaccination status of all members and a survey will be sent out shortly.

Every care will be taken to ensure that this is handled sensitively and with due regard to members privacy.

New Member Neil

At out last Zoom meeting Neil was both the inductee and guest speaker. Members were treated to a very interesting presentation on a fascinating career in the auto manufacturing industry. From a trainee position at the Ford plant in Wellington, to hi-tech alloy wheel production at the Ford plant in Auckland through to senior positions in Belarus and China, Neils career was as he described it, "learning by doing."

A move, to manage the establishment of a joint venture Ford/ Belarus vehicle manufacturing in Minsk formed the main part of Neil's presentation.

This career move starting in June 1996 and ending in August 1999 to a place most people would find difficult to locate accurately on a map, combined a distant location, Chernobyl just 400km's away, sub zero winter temperatures, establishing a new manufacturing plant in what had been the Belarus Tractor Company factory, and a set of political challenges unlike anything else he had dealt with.

Dealing with the President to sort out a currency exchange issue or assisting the Deputy PM sort out the Deputies daughters refused USA visa are not the tasks company managers normally undertake.

Neil spoke about President Alexander Lukashenko, elected in 1994 and still in power after a series of very much questioned elections. After Lukashenko came to power it became clear that he would take actions to ensure he retained a very tight hold on power and that he would increase his control over parliament and institutions of government. While "Rule by Decree" made it simple in terms of establishment of the JV in Belarus it led to increasing instability in the economy and a rapid decline in relationships with the west.

Having referred to himself as "Europe's last Dictator", President Lukashenko is still very much in the news, and continues to have ramifications beyond the borders of Belarus.

Inflation had already taken off by the time Neil started working in Belarus. In 1999 inflation in Belarus was running at 293%. Lukashenko blamed Russia and its central bank for most of these problems when Russia refused to trade the Belarussian rouble. Inflation skyrocketed under Lukashenko's policies and while 1 USD bought 12500 roubles in mid 1996 by 1999 one USD bought more than a million Belarussian Roubles.While the the business received revenue in Belarussian roubles all its imports were in hard currencies which was a huge problem.

10% of Neil's salary was paid in roubles and the pile on the desk is for one month. Belarussian tax was paid on that. He was thankful that the remainder was paid outside the country and not in Roubles.

Neils career also included a period in China bust as time precluded any detail on that, the club will look forward to a second instalment.

Fundraising

The Fundraising Committee are working hard to get the Rotary River Carnival and the Golf Tournament ready to go. In the interim we are going to run a couple of smaller fundraising events.

Christmas Puddings.

These are $20 per pudding. They can be bought for you at home or you might like to order some to give to customers or perhaps buy a pudding or two to donate to a food bank. Penelope is coordinating this and can be contacted on . Order close off at the end of the month so if you are keen you need to get orders in now.

Meat Raffle.

A reprise on the raffle we ran when we held face to face meetings will involve members buying a ticket on-line through Treasurer Kim. When we have 30 tickets sold each ticket/name will get a randomly generated number and the raffle will be drawn.

As soon as I have the final payment details sorted a further email will be sent out.

News Items.

The club AGM will be held on Monday the 6th of December.

We are planning, Covid and Traffic Lights permitting, to hold a Rotary Christmas Function on the December the 13th. While we cant give any definite about the form it will take we do know it will be different to our normal Howick Club lunch and that it will be a lot of fun.

Thinking

Lockdown has given me the opportunity to read and view a wide range of media and publications.

Some of those sources are based on great journalism and commentary where debate is measured, researched and lucid. Those publications generally offer equally well written alternative views on the same issues. The reader is left to weigh up the arguments and arrive at a conclusion.

Then there is the other. Those publications where arguments are cloaked in sophistry, inchoate accusations are made, inappropriate imagery is used and vitriol abounds. And thats the publications. Once the readers and viewers are given a voice in the comments sections or on social media it actually gets worse.

When the views, on a vaccine for example, of a cousin who failed S.C Science are believed to be more authoritative than those of people who have actually studied viruses and vaccines as part of their life work then I think we do have a problem.

Social media and the echo chambers that, that encourages is of course not helping and the ability to attack and diminish anonymously most definitely exacerbates the potential for wild and dangerous ideas to be disseminated.

"Discourse that was once self- attenuating has become self reinforcing".

Things might be looking up.

Todays announcement that Auckland will move to the Traffic Light System and be at level 3 Red means that we will once agin be able to meet face to face for meetings. Indoor venues with up to 100 participants will require that everyone attending is vaccinated.

The Management Committee will be doing the work needed to determine a venue and all of the practical arrangements and as soon as possible members will be advised.

I am sure members are looking forward to the increased freedoms we will have, come the beginning of December.

Hard to remember that the first person to get the Pfizer Covid -19 vaccine was a 90 year old UK Grandmother on the 8th of December 2020. This was a major event. Dubbing the day "V-day", Health Secretary Matt Hancock said it was "a tribute to scientific endeavour and human ingenuity and to the hard work of so many people."Today marks the start of the fightback against our common enemy, the coronavirus," he said. At that stage around 60,000 people had already died in the UK from Covid.

Rotary Trust

Letting members know that I have asked Kelvin Davies to join our Trust and that Kelvin has accepted. Being on the Trust is not an onerous position and is one that all members should at some time consider taking a turn at.

Some more great news

Faced with the risk of having me as President for a second year and after an extensive search by a dedicated team, we now have a President Elect, Mike Collins. As a long term and active member it is great that Mike has decided to accept the challenge [and not inconsiderable honour] of presidency.

In all seriousness, ensuring that we have a flow of members willing to pick up leadership roles in the club is important to our on-going ability to offer a high quality service to the community. All members have a part to play even if for some years it's simply to provide the positive support and encouragement that really encourages those people who are doing that bit extra.

Medical advancement

I know that recommending a book I have not yet read should be avoided but think that this book might be a worthwhile exception. At a time when there are ideas ranging from the sensibly cautious to the outright idiotic about the Covid Vaccine, You Bet Your Life: From Blood Transfusions to Mass Vaccination, the Long and Risky History of Medical Innovation by Paul A Offit traverses the history of many medical advancements.

The book contains a really interesting section on the development of the polio vaccine, including a testing regime that would be totally unacceptable today and included the inventor testing it on his own family prior to it being released.

Every medical decision—whether to have chemotherapy, an X-ray, or surgery—is a risk, no matter which way you choose. The author argues that, from the first blood transfusions four hundred years ago to the hunt for a COVID-19 vaccine, risk has been essential to the discovery of new treatments. More importantly, understanding the risks is crucial to whether, as a society or as individuals, we accept them.

Trap Library

Hi Team
Exciting times
We are delighted to advise that we have been awarded a grant of $15000 by Auckland Council to set up a Mustelid Trapping Line to control and help prevent any mustelids going from the mainland Howick Ward to our protected gulf islands. Many thanks to Lorelle and John Tait who prepared the application on our behalf
Work will start on ordering the traps we need and then we will need volunteers to assist with the recruitment and placement of traps on private properties as well as subsequent monitoring We will update you with details shortly but will be slowed by the current lockdowns.

Hopefully before too long we will be able to meet in person
In the meantime keep trapping

Covid and India

Rotary is strong in India in every way, membership, financially and in its relationship with State and National governments in its service. When the challenge of covid became apparent, there was a Rotary India’s Covid Task Force established and there have been many vaccination camps set up by Rotary clubs and Districts.

On Thursday October 21, the total number of vaccine doses given in India achieved one billion. It took 19 days to go from 900 million to one billion. The vaccine required is manufactured in Pune and Hyderabad.On that day the figures were that 75% of the population had received at least one dose and 31% were fully vaccinated. The estimate is that 12.2 million doses must be administered on average each day to achieve the goal of having all adults fully vaccinated by December 31.

Rotary clubs and Districts are being encouraged to keep establishing the vaccination camps and to play their part in achieving the goal. Polio was eventually eradicated in India by focussed Rotary campaigns and now they are challenging covid!

Bev Handisides

On behalf of Ian Handisides and family, it with much regret we wish to advise that Bev Handisides passed away peacefully at 6:30am this morning after a lengthy illness.

Our thoughts and prayers go to the family at this time of deep sorrow. Further details of remembrance may be issued in due course.

Bruce Kendall

At Mondays Zoom meeting, members were treated to an interesting and far ranging presentation from his very successful sailing career to the issues he is actively pursuing as a member of the Community Board.

Those include the Bucklands Beach Restoration and Upgrade Project, Graingers Reserve and the Tamaki Estuary Environmental Forum.

Protection and enhancement of our natural and built environment is vitally important to Bruce. From studying the spread of sea grass as a sign of some environmental improvement, to beach clean ups, to a healthy waters project that monitors water quality in the streams that flow into the Tamaki and not forgetting a possible annual art sculpture trail along the Rotary Walkway, Bruce is certainly a Community Board member who devotes enormous energy to the role.

Given our clubs role in the Rotary Walkway members will have been pleased to hear Bruce talk about his desire to see that walkway extended.

A link to a video presentation that Bruce supplied is attached.

https://www.facebook.com/Tamakiforum/videos/2221851574632822

Sculpture

A recent report from Terry Urbahn who is managing the Councils work with the sculpture notes that Dion is making good progress with working out the details for attaching the small birds to the large wings.
Providing Covid restrictions allow he will be ready towards the end of the month to host visitors at his workshop to take a look at the sculpture to date.

Another meeting cycle in lockdown

I am pretty confident in assuming that many members share my desire to be able to get out of lockdown and be back holding meetings in person. As we hone in on that 90% target, that possibility gets ever closer.

I have been thinking [always dangerous] about the ideas of Albert Hirschman - The Rhetoric of Reaction. I share the main points as I think in this time of increasing polarisation of ideas and positions you might recognise the points he makes in the arguments that we are often bombarded with.

Hirschman argues that debate is often stifled, in particular in areas which look to require social change, by using arguments based on three narratives:

Futility - no point making a change as it wont make any difference.

Perversity - making a change is likely to only make the problem worse.

Jeopardy - making a change will endanger some previous accomplishment.

You might recognise some combinations of those arguments in debate about the issues that confront societies? From major issues such as climate change through to more local issues such as whats the best way forward in terms of the supermarket sector in NZ.

This will be a short bulletin . Remember that your input in terms of articles, jokes or anything else you think members might like to read or view are very welcome.

Foundation

The Rotary Foundation

We had two big-name accounting firms work through the costs of grants and while there were questions on their procedures from Rotarians with vested interests, in round terms it was costing TRF around $2000 to process a grant of $4000/5000. It was much more than just the cost of staff as bank fees and currency costs and a myriad of other items added to the cost. For an organisation that regards itself as efficient, this cost was much too high not just in money but also in staff burnout. I was around in Evanston at the time and watched several excellent staff leave us as there was no sense of achievement in their work. Most of the grants were for immediate needs and had no sustainability built in.

The Trustees set up a Future Vision Committee made up of experienced Rotarians and it took a few years to develop a more effective spending model and to test it and implement it. It was worth it though as for some 14 years we have earned four star rating [the best] from Charity Navigator which rates charities and we are always well ahead in efficiency of such well known charities as Save the Children and World Vision.

When we return to normal

After 7 long weeks returning to normal including face to face Rotary meetings probably seems a little surreal.

The day will however come and with it a possible issue for clubs to deal with.

We are already seeing discussion, debate and conflict over the rights, responsibilities and obligations of people who are not vaccinated and the rights of people who are.

In one extreme case a cafe is refusing to employ people who are vaccinated [you read that right] and vaccinated customers have to sit outside. There are even reports of families saying that if a family member is not vaccinated they wont be able to attend Christmas dinner.

At this point District does not have a policy on how clubs should proceed post lockdown and given the current legislation is unlikely to in the near future.

Now is probably a good time to start thinking about how Pakuranga Rotary might proceed once we are again permitted to meet face to face.

Learning about the power of virtual platforms - virtually.

At Monday night’s meeting held via Zoom it was very appropriate that our guest speaker Stephen Handisides guided us through the potential of virtual platforms, virtually.

We are all becoming very used to the “talking head” type Zoom experience. Stephen was able to show that by using a platform his company, V-Unite has designed and sells around the world, the virtual experience can be very much more sophisticated and engaging.

V-Unite allows clients to create virtual events such as trade shows and professional summits which can include, keynote addresses, breakout rooms, product stands, competitions, and gamification. This can be done in a virtual environment that the client chooses from over 100 templates or a more customized one. Fancy running your trade show in a winery, a cruise liner or in space then that can be done.

As the platform has developed and expanded the potential uses also grow and clients are using the platform for marketing, on-boarding, training, sales, and education.

In a post Covid world Stephen is confident that virtual eco system is here to stay with hybrid events, a mix of virtual and in-person, becoming more popular.

Ensuring that setting up an event is easy for customers, making sure that V-Unite integrates seamlessly with their existing platforms and is optimised for mobile phones as well, are part of the reason why V-Unite has experienced rapid business growth with a product that meets users needs now and which will also be important in a new post Covid normal.

Almoner

Now when we don't get to meet face to face on a regular basis is a good time to remind members that

Kelvin Davies and Geoff Shapland are our club almoners.

Snippets

Rotary Snippets

Despite the covid pandemic, Rotarians have still supported our Rotary Foundation. Total giving in 2019/2020 was US$ 408m including the US$100m from the Gates Foundation and in 2020/2021 was US$ 441m. The Gates contribution is included because Gates give us the money to spend at our discretion provided it goes to polio eradication. They are comfortable for us to make the decisions.
Mid-September, there were 5 Rotary Peace Fellows still in Afghanistan. They are likely to be working for international agencies and have visas.
The latest addition to our Foundation programmes is “Programmes of Scale”. The grant is for US$2m and must give a sustainable solution to a major issue. The first grant last Rotary year was to reduce the incidence of malaria in Zambia by 80%. Rotary has contributed US$2m, World Vision has put in US$2m and the Gates Foundation has put in US$2m. A committee is currently choosing this year’s project.

Our RI President, Shekhar Mehta, has described this project in India as the biggest single project he has seen in Rotary. The Rotarians of Erode built a state of the art 401 bed hospital in 45 days at a cost of US$ 2.694m.

The Government of Erode provided the land and the builder, a Rotarian, contributed the first US$ 200 000 to start the project on time. He used precast technology so that the building could be constructed promptly. The cost includes the medical equipment and it will convert to a general hospital when the covid demand drops. The motivation to build the hospital came when Rotarians offered to donate 75 covid beds but the existing teaching hospital had nowhere to put them. India has a legal requirement for companies to give a proportion of their profits to “corporate responsibility” and three companies contributed a quarter of the cost.

While the speed of the build is now recognised as a record, the motivation came from the need. Amazing!

Rotary Foundation

I missed the last two Newsletters, sorry. We had got up to PolioPlus as we were looking at the history but I will take a jump into the late 1990s/2000s to a time when the Foundation came under considerable pressure. The problem was that we had adopted a programme that had become too popular, Matching Grants. Our club had several, most for projects in the Pacific Islands, and the grants were for relatively small amounts and matched club contributions. Most of the grants were for less than $5000, which was not over-challenging for a club but still carried a requirement for the Foundation to service and apply stewardship. We have always promised our donors that we will use their giving properly so the process had to apply to small grants as well as large.
We had two big-name accounting firms work through the costs of grants and while there were questions on their procedures from Rotarians with vested interests, in round terms it was costing TRF around $2000 to process a grant of $4000/5000. It was much more than just the cost of staff as bank fees and currency costs and a myriad of other items added to the cost. For an organisation that regards itself as efficient, this cost was much too high not just in maney but also in staff burnout. I was around in Evanston at the time and watched several excellent staff leave us as there was no sense of achievement in their work. Most of the grants were for immediate needs and had no sustainability built in.
The Trustees set up a Future Vision Committee made up of experienced Rotarians and it took a few years to develop a more effective spending model and to test it and implement it. It was worth it though as for some 14 years we have earned four star rating [the best] from Charity Navigator which rates charities and we are always well ahead in efficiency of such well known charities as Save the Children and World Vision.

Golf Day

I have now confirmed with Whitford Golf Club a new date of April 29^th for our Golf Tournament.

Could you please amend the Bulletin accordingly.

Helping others.

The really fast and generous response we had to the food bank request shows the way in which our club can respond to need.

That got some members thinking about other ways we might contribute to our community. That could include further support for food banks but I am sure that members will be aware of other causes. Remember, support does not always have to include money or goods but can also include time and expertise.

For example, while the Communicare bus is no longer running, some of our members are now driving a bus [the same one] for MECOS taking older people shopping one morning a week. If you would like to assist with that programme please let me know or alternatively let me know if you have other ideas of where support could be given.

Scribes Report

Monday’s virtual meeting was well attended, and we took the opportunity to hear from our local MP and club member, Simeon Brown. Simeon talked about three main topics: his new roles in National, the Eastern Busway and Covid 19.

Simeon is now Deputy Shadow Leader of the House. This is much more of a parliamentary role where mastering the Standing Orders becomes important. Those “orders” are the rules under which Parliament operates. For most part the Shadow Leaders work with the Leader of the House to ensure the debating chamber runs smoothly but can use the rules, [taking up time, putting up amendments etc to slow the process down when they are adamantly opposed to something the Government is wanting to advance through the House.

He is also Nationals spokesperson for Corrections, Law and Order and the Serious Fraud Office. He did note his support for rehabilitation of prisoners and the fact that the S.F.O is a very small office with an annual budget of just $13 million.

The Eastern Busway looks like being finished by November, but Simeon expressed his concern over the delay in moving to the next stage of the project, the Pakuranga to Botany link, which now won’t be finished [all going well] until 2028.

There is still hope for progress on the Reeves Road Flyover. That development is an important factor in the delay in the major developments planned for the Pakuranga Plaza site. The Singapore owners have plans for up to 1000 apartments, a hotel and retail.

With Covid 19 Simeon believes that we were slow in rolling out vaccinations but did note how dramatically vaccination rates have increased recently. He believes we should set a vaccination target, recognising that there will be 10 -15% of the eligible population who may not or will not be vaccinated. The National Party’s position is that once 70-75% of the legible population is vaccinated there should be no need for further lockdowns and at 80% plus we could start opening up. There are, he pointed out tricky conversations to be had in terms of opening up our country and opening up our borders.

In response to the question about solutions, Simeon saw the need for a purpose built MIQ facility, near Auckland and the opportunity for fully vaccinated travellers with a negative test to be able to self-isolate on their return

Presidents Comments

The general conclusion across Auckland that this latest lockdown has been the most difficult. The Delta variant of the virus has been more difficult to get under control and in-household transmission has been much greater.

Nevertheless, Auckland has largely got through it with compliance levels generally still very high. OK, there has been the odd escapee, a couple of ill-timed and ill-thought-out fast food runs [along with a large quantity of then to be confiscated cash] but we have not had the kind of scenes that Australia is having to deal with.

What the lockdown has demonstrated is that people enjoy social contact. It seems to me that Rotary is well placed to help provide those contacts and that we can do that in person and in real time when response levels allow but also virtually and via electronic means at any time. That can happen without in any way distracting from the other things that we do as members and as a club.

We will have members who are keen on such things as crosswords, number puzzles, quiz’s, political discussion, books, films, or music. Are there things we can we do as a club to encourage members with similar interests to share those? Fellowship is something Rotary values highly so if you have ideas on how we might use the electronic media to share common interests please share those and perhaps we can get some things happening.

Back in lockdown

I guess that many members will be starting to get just a little bit [or a lot] bored in the current lockdown?

The race is on to get everyone possible vaccinated as quickly as we now can so that Covid outbreaks can be better contained allowing life to continue more as normal. According to the latest information almost 90% percent of those over 60 [thats very much our club demographic] that are now vaccinated.

A great response to the project to provide some financial support to local food banks has meant that we have been able to make donations of $1250 each, to two organisations. Details on that in the bulletin.

Just prior to lockdown a Pakuranga College planting day for Trees for Survival took place and the report on that is also in this bulletin.

We will hold a Zoom meeting this coming Monday - 20th of September. Our member and local MP, Simeon Brown, will do a presentation and address issues that members are likely to be interested in.

If you have material for the Bulletin please send that through.

Misinformation in the modern age.

The spreading of misinformation, lies and conspiracy theories are not new and date back many hundreds of years. The rise of the internet has greatly increased the speed and geographical spread of information which is at best a simple misunderstanding all the way to the most egregious and dangerous falsehood. I definitely don't intend to enter into discussion or debate about any of the current conspiracy theories but am comfortable sharing a little information about books that look at how conspiracy theories and misinformation takes hold and spreads in case any of you are interested.

Liars Falsehoods and Free Speech in an Age of Deception. Cass R Sunstein.

The book examines situations of misinformation that people genuinely believe to be true through to the outright lies that have the potential to create enormous harm. Should all or some of those be protected by free speech laws? What if the lie is about a politician? Should they have more or less protection? Should there be punishment or should the solution be counter arguments? Does the Government have a role or should the social media platforms have responsibility? Very interesting and well researched but not a "read at one setting" sort of book.

The Misinformation Age. Cailin O'Connor and James Weatherall. The authors deal with five key questions. How do we form beliefs, especially false ones? How do they persist? Why do they spread? What are false beliefs so intransigent, even in the face of overwhelming evidence to the contrary? What can we do to change them?

Suspicious Minds. Rob Brotherton. Why so many of us are drawn to implausible, unproven and un-provable conspiracy theories. Everyone loves a good conspiracy. Yet conspiracy theories are not a recent invention. And they are not always a harmless curiosity.

Conspiracy Theories. A Primer. Joseph Uscinski. Everyone believes at least one, but given the number of conspiracy theories, it is more likely that everyone believes a few. Some people have a worldview defined by them. Conspiracy theories are just another reminder that people disagree about many things, including truth.

Trees For Survival

PLANTING DAY REPORT 2021 Pakuranga College,
Rotary Club of Pakuranga and Trent & Kate Archer. Together, we planted 782 native plants.

Well done!

A lot of growing, caring & organising has taken place by the time the plants go in the ground. Thank you very much for your effort and commitment to improving our natural environment while also growing our next generation of environmentalists!

The planting was along a waterway and is a continuation of several years of plantings by a variety of schools. It is great to see the progress of previous plantings and the difference these are making in stabilising the land and improving water quality. Trent and Kate were great hosts, as in the past, and it was great to be warm and dry in the barn for lunch.

The Rotary Club of Pakuranga, who wisely didn't join us in wet conditions on a slippery hillside, were thanked for their continued support of the programme at the College.

Foodbank Donations.

On behalf of the Mission Parish of St Mark and Saint Vincent de Paul (SVDP) - Foodbank, I would like to express my deepest gratitude and recognition of the generosity and selflessness of The Rotary Club of Pakuranga to support us in our mission to bring about food security to our sisters and brothers and families in need during this L4 lockdown because of Covid 19.

Your donation will sustain us for the coming weeks as we continue to do the work of the ministry. I have checked with our accounts and we have received the donation of $1,125. Again, many thanks.

Much blessings and prayers for the Rotary Club.

Arohanui,

Fr. Sherwin Lapaan

Trees for Survival Presentation

As part of the guest speakers Dennis Millard, General Manager for the Trees for Survival Trust visit to the club a presentation was made by Noel Holyoake, a Foundation Trustee of the Trees for Survival Trust, to past President Don Bowater. Don has retired from the club and from the TFS Trust, after a considerable period as a trustee, seeing the organisation through the difficult years of limited funds and constraints, through to its current successes.

Don was thanked by Noel for his considerable contribution to the success of the organisation and was presented with a desk mounted TFS plaque. Don responded with thanks.

Thoughts

The District Governor, in his presentation at last Mondays meeting covered a number of timely issues and initiatives that were already in our planning for the year. These are detailed in the scribes report on the meeting.

As I indicated the Board did issue members subscription notice for this Rotary year without first raising that at a meeting.The subscription that has been set was based on estimated club expenses for the year plus dues to District and International. Every attempt was made to keep that to a minimum. The big change for this year is that we have included a Foundation donation of $50. Members can choose not to pay that or to make a larger donation. A receipt will be issued for taxation purposes.I am of course hoping that members will make the donation.

The Governor also spoke highly of the anniversary sculpture project and this bulletin includes some images of our artist, hard at work on the sculpture.

He also talked about membership and included ideas that are central to the work that Peter Hawkins as the member with the membership remit is already doing.

Finally, in recognising and applauding a range of the significant projects and initiatives that this club has been responsible for he reminded us of the contributions we have made and hopefully that encourages us to keep up the good work.

You will notice that there are two scribes report in this edition. That is due to the editor being in the South Island last week. On the bright side it does ensure more reading for lockdown.

Artist at work.

Many artists who design major sculptural work have much of the heavy physical work done by others but not Dion the artist crafting our anniversary project.

Scribes Report

On the meeting of the 2nd of August, Dennis Millard, General Manager for the Trees for Survival Trust presented o the club.

The whole organisation has come through considerable change since its inception nearly 30 years ago, from a 3-school involvement in Pakuranga to now 152 schools throughout New Zealand active, with nearly 40 waiting to get involved. Demand well exceeding supply. These schools have now planted out nearly 2 million trees, which has had a huge educational and social benefit to the thousands of school children involved. Dennis explained the program as it is today covering all aspects from current funding requirements, the change to a commercially managed operation with increased cost requirements, the continued requirement for rotary support, eco seedling sourcing by district, propagation and distribution, and landowner responsibilities.

He is passionate about TFS and congratulated the Pakuranga Club for starting such a worthwhile project, thanking those who had participated through the nearly 30 years of its existence. That connection was recognised with a presentation to Noel Holyoake and Don Bowater, the details of which are also in this bulletin.

Rotary foundation Part 3

This month, PolioPlus. I was going to start with Afghanistan but events have moved too quickly. Will just comment that we have only located one case of wild polio virus in Afghanistan [and only one in Pakistan] this year and certainly up to the end of May our partnership was active. In May there were 712 739 children vaccinated using 307 permanent transit sites and 15 cross border vaccination points in Afghanistan.

Back to the beginning. In the 1970s some Rotary leaders thought that we had matured enough to undertake some “corporate” projects rather than stay with each club being totally independent.

We had an ally in UNICEF with whom Rotary had worked often so Rotary applied to WHO seeking recognition in 1985 and it was granted. The hard work was about to begin!

In the 1970s some Rotary leaders thought that we had matured enough to undertake some “corporate” projects rather than stay with each club being totally independent.

Clem Renouf, who was guest speaker at our club 50^th Celebration, was particularly vocal about Rotary’s ability to do something larger and he was criticised for it. Clem held strong and the Health, Hunger and Humanity programme was introduced. Clem asked a prominent US Pediatrician what Rotary could do and was told that a new oral vaccine would allow the eradication of polio. Smallpox has just been eradicated at a cost of around $100 000 so polio should not be overly expensive. Rotary approached the World Health Organisation to seek a partnership and we were told that while eradication was now possible, it was logistically impossible to put two drops of vaccine in the mouths of all the world’s children.

Rotary decided that we would run a polio eradication campaign to prove it was possible and the first 3H programme, to eradicate polio in the Philippines, began on September 29, 1979. It gained tremendous support. Manufacturers gave some free vaccine [we bought the rest!], airlines flew supplies into the Philippines pro bono, there was publicity internationally, and a five year programme was completed in three.

RI got excited by this and in February 1982 adopted a resolution to eradicate polio by our Centenary in 2005. WHO was still not as enthusiastic. At a social function at the World Health Assembly in 1984, the Director General of WHO was blunt. He said that volunteer organisations had approached WHO like this before but do-gooders make promises but fail to follow through. So, Rotary, we appreciate your interest but would like you to go home.

Paul Harris Presentation

Saara Yiakop was introduced by Graham Kearns giving a background to awarding her a Paul Harris Fellow.

This was for the work that she had done in support for the organising committee for the 50^th Anniversary Celebrations. She assisted in the presentation of the booklet, the organisation of the evening, and was an integral part of the success of the event.

Graham present Saara with her pin and accompanying documentation.

District Governors Visit

DG Steve Chaney, ably assisted by his wife Edith and incorporating te Reo by way of introduction and acknowledgements, presented his address to the club this week.

Elaborating on the World President Sheka Mela’s theme of Think Global, Act Local, Steve outlined the main goals for the year. In summary they are:

Increasing membership based on the mantras Each One/Bring One and Come Join Rotary, Steve called for growth in existing clubs as well as starting new ones. A ‘health check’ is advocated to find out what works for each club and building on strengths – a wide range of models is available – Cause based, e-based etc. The drop from about 2000 to 1200 members in District 9920 indicates the extent of the haemorrhaging over the last few years.

Steve informed us that District Committees on Membership, Public Image and ICT Strategy will be working in close collaboration to enhance any action in this area.

Empowering girls – four clubs in Auckland are giving support to Teen Parenting units in four schools – what other initiatives could be dreamt up?
Promoting diversity, equity and inclusion – need for continued strong support for Pacific Island communities, especially Fiji where NGOs have to work under the radar largely. To help promote these ideals, Peter Boshier, the Ombudsman, will be a guest speaker at the next District Conference at Te Papa in June next year. The Bill and Lorna Boyd Trust’s work in promoting literacy fits well into these goals. Collaborative Rotary actions are to be encouraged – joint projects with other clubs and use of Friends of Rotary.
Supporting Rotary Foundation – this branch of Rotary sets us apart from many other charities. Our club’s fees this year include an optional donation of $50 to Foundation.
Protecting the environment – many very successful projects are in train right now – wetland restoration, protecting the ‘Treasured Waters’ of the Waitemata, pest eradication, Mangere streams, Trees for Survival etc – good reason to hold heads high when faced with criticism from the new generation.
Leadership and Learning development – the effectiveness of Zoom to promote interaction and training programmes was highlighted – especially effective in training sessions for Presidents, Secretaries and Treasurers across the huge 9920 district. Clubs are encouraged to consult the District website where all club activities are to be listed.

Taliban have children to

The situation in Afghanistan has escalated since a zoom meeting of RI END POLIO NOW Coordinators last week but several messages with great impact were delivered by our senior leaders during that meeting.

Many Rotarians have expressed concern about the future of our Polio Eradication Initiative – when ultimate success is so close.

However, RI Past President and 2021/22 Chair of The Rotary Foundation, John Germ, told the meeting Rotary’s team has been working with the Taliban for some time and we need to remember ‘the Taliban have children too – and want them protected against Polio’.

Aretha Franklin and the APO

A great night had by all at the concert featuring the music of Aretha Franklin with the Auckland Philarmonic Orchestra, a jazz combo, three fantastic vocalists and the Choir.

A packed Aotea Centre rocked to the songs of an era, A Natural Woman, Think , Chain of Fools and the hits song from the first Blues Brothers movie, Respect.

With New Zealand largely closed to overseas acts the APO are running a series of concerts that are attracting full houses. Well worth checking out whats coming up.

A new year

As we head into the new Rotary year the committees are gearing up for what we hope will be an active year both in terms of committee projects and business and fellowship.

Over the next few weeks we will seek out opportunities where we might work with other clubs and possibly achieve things we could not do on our own.

For those who can tear yourself away from the Olympics on the television the Bulletin is a great place to share information.

If you have events, information, ideas, web links or things you think other members might be interested in please get those through to the editor for inclusion in future bulletins.

Scribes Report

Noel Vaughan

Noel began his hectic and all-embracing insurance life in 1960 when he joined a group of eight in Wellington to set up a branch of the National Mutual Life Association. Most of the group became actuaries and ultimately Noel became president of the New Zealand Society of Actuaries. In those early years Life Insurance was seen to be one of the best comparative investments and gaining rapid experience Noel soon found himself in Australia promoting superannuation funds and then on to South Africa doing similar work.

After setting up these funds Noel found himself looking for assets for the funds to invest in and having success, while being aware of the adage, ‘If you first don’t succeed try, try again’. Assets ranged from the norm to trawlers and mining opportunities.

In 1979 Noel came to Auckland and besides joining Rotary, he continues to assist with the setting up of superannuation schemes. In 1982 he was asked to join the Auckland District Council of the Automobile Association where eventually fourteen separate district societies became one large Association. During this period Noel joined a wave of interest in demutualization and was involved in those pertaining to Tower Corporation and Colonial Mutual Life. By this time Noel’s wide-ranging skills developed through working in the Insurance industry led to his being appointed chief executive officer of New Zealand Insurance where on the consultancy side he found himself involved in the development of software arising out of offices in New Zealand, Australia, Hong Kong and London.

In 1997 Noel and others set out to launch Pinnacle Life Insurance, the original online life insurance company. The aim was to make life insurance easier to obtain by cutting out brokers, awkward personal questions and heaps of paperwork. Noel was managing director of Pinnacle life until December 2014 but remained as a director. In short through his having been involved in building businesses, takeovers and mergers both as a consultant on strategy and actuarial issues, and as such brought to the board as a senior manager wide technical and management experience.

Noel now regards himself enjoying retirement with his wife, four children and seven grandchildren.

Noel was thanked in the usual way on behalf of the Club by Dennis Kavaanagh.

Congratulations in order

Congratulations to Mike and immediate past President Alison who were both made life members of Life Education at a ceremony in Wellington on the 10th of July.

Between them they have nearly 38 years of service.

Life Education have been providing health and well being programmes in New Zealand for over 30 years.

Today children and young people face a lot of challenges, including: obesity, substance use, mental health and well-being and bullying.

The decisions we make as young people can dramatically affect how we live our lives in the future – and this is why Life Education exists. Through education we help students to understand how decisions they make today can affect their future health and well-being.

Rotary Foundation Part 2.

Last month we had the start and will continue from there but will get to modern times quickly!

After being established as a Foundation in 1928, nothing much happened except some expansive planning and late in the 1930s there was even a suggestion that TRF be closed. RI contributed its unspent funds each year but that was the extent of the growth.

Then on January 27, 1947 Paul Harris died and the RI Board encouraged clubs and Rotarians to honour our founder by making a contribution to TRF. Over $ 100 million was given and this enabled the first permanent programme to be established. 18 Rotary Fellows from 11 countries were selected to serve as ambassadors of goodwill in another country for one academic year. New Zealand missed out that first year but in year two Peter Dempsey was selected. He was from Auckland and I understand was later involved in politics in our area. The next year another New Zealander, John Fraser from Port Chalmers, was selected.

There were no further new programmes until 1965, when we got two. One of these, Group Study Exchange, also had New Zealand connections. In 1950, a team of six young men from Yorkshire had toured NZ and their visit was a great success so it was decided to initiate a project called Rotary Overseas Travel Award and in 1955 a team of six young NZ men went on a ROTA trip for two months to the UK. The District was so pleased with the result that further teams were sent overseas and funded by a $2 levy on every Rotarian. The project was picked up by TRF in 1965 and became Group Study Exchange.

Our club has provided three GSE Team leaders, Bill Duncan, Alan Davies and the late David Oakley.
The other programme that year was Matching Grants, where TRF part funded club international projects under defined conditions.

Sommerville Fundraising

Looking Forward

It has been pleasing to see Rotarians enjoying fellowship, something that is behind the encouragement to be part of a committee.

Having fun as a group is a great precursor to working together on upcoming Rotary projects.

Tom Sawyer

Sadly Tom Sawyer aged 83, passed away suddenly last week and will be sorely missed by his three sons Daniel, Jason and myself (Todd).

After leaving the Pakuranga Rotary Club to retire in Kinloch in 1998, Tom became a big part of his new local community. He regularly offered his time to actively help out with many community programmes and worker bee events including the refurbishment of the historic water wheel, improvements to the public golf course and the creation of the world renown Whakaipo Bay to Kinloch (W2K) walking and mountain bike track (see pictures attached).

He was looking forward to attending the recent 50 year anniversary of your club however failing heath prohibited his travel arrangements. I spoke to him before the event about what it meant to him and he said he enjoyed some the most productive times of his life with Rotary! He reminisced with a smile about the time he spotted a large mound of abandoned railway sleepers in a yard whilst traveling for work. Then for a minuscule sum of money he procured the lot and arranged for them to be transported by train to Auckland. Apparently these sold rapidly for $20 each, raising a substantial amount of funds for the Rotary Club.

Anyhow I could go on and on about his calm, kind and caring character but I just thought you might be able to include a little something in your next newsletter about this wonderful gentleman to mark his passing.

Warmest regards,
Todd Sawyer
(ex 19 Sarah Place neighbour, now living in the UK)

New Rotary Year

Mana Tangata : People of Action is a well written history of the first hundred years of Rotary in NZ. Along with details of the growth of Rotary and the many contributions it has made it also contains the recognition that the continued viability of our organisation will require us to evolve. That does not mean dispensing with all of the traditions but does recognise that the range, organisation and style of clubs may well differ more than has been the case in our history.

In the introductory remarks I made at changeover I referenced a statement the D.G. of District 960, Andy Rajapakse. That statement resonated with me because I believe that while making a positive difference in our community is core to our existence our ability to do that work is enhanced when members feel part of something which is in turn developed through fellowship opportunities. It's my view that rather than diverting us from the important business of Rotary, fellowship and taking care of our members is part of the important business of Rotary.

Changeover

Approximately 65 Rotarians, partners and guests enjoyed noisy fellowship, good food and a very streamlined set of formalities to induct Allan Vester as our new President and say well done to our outgoing President Alison Gilbert at the annual Changeover Event held at the Howick Club on Monday night.

Chris Ward did the honours as M.C. and after a scrumptious meal shared by all gave Alison the opportunity to sum up her year and give thanks to the stalwarts who had supported her most during very trying circumstances.

Adaptation and Change were the essential elements in the 2020 – 2021 year with the loss of our usual meeting venue, a Top Schools change of location, a return to committees and the abolition of the sergeant’s session among other new directions. Gifts of appreciation were given to Don Lawry, Linda Agnew, Kim Collins, Silvie Wilkinson, Allan Vester, Linda Agnew, Duncan Loney and Saara Yiakop (Jubilee booklet) all of whom played vital roles in keeping the club on track for another successful year.

To top off the awards, Graham Kearns was presented with a much deserved PHF with two sapphires for his outstanding support in so many aspects of the club’s administration.
A speedy transition with far fewer formalities saw Alison and Steve surrender their baubles to Allan and Bernadine and the new Rotary year began.

After thanking Alison and the outgoing team, Allan gave notice of change ahead. The basic principle comes down to choice – evolve or dissolve – a warning to all like- minded service groups around the world. With his board in place (see below) he foreshadowed a year of features linked to the letter ‘F’ viz.

Fellowship – featuring fun-filled functions for families and friends
Fostering membership – finding the best fit for all and forgetting the idea that age is a fault – a ‘mature’ club can still contribute much.
Fundraising – finishing some and finding new intiatives – with full participation the goal and a reminder that raising funds is not the be-all and end-all of Rotary membership.
Forming closer relationships – especially looking for partnering with other clubs with falling numbers.
Four Way Test – at the forefront of our actions.

Some very apt quotes rounded up Allan’s address:
‘It’s better to burn out than rust out’; ‘If we all agree, we might all be wrong’; ‘Take the work we do as Rotary seriously, but don’t take ourselves too seriously’.
Allan made it clear that, rather than just hope it will all work out (marriage analogy!) he will be focussing on decisiveness and what really matters – and he is looking forward to the challenges ahead. Welcome Mr. President!

Auxiliary Changeover

Auxiliary Changeover was a happy and fun affair, with good food and plenty of wine.

Trish gave her annual report of the numerous projects completed by the group - truly amazing in these Covid times.

New Chair Penelope was full of smiles and plans for the coming year.

Trap Library

Last Saturday Duncan and Sylvie ran the Trap Library stall at the very busy Howick Eco Day.

Photo includes assistants from HMB and Howick R/Cs, along with Nigel, our valuable Asian Coordinator.

Branded T shirts were designed by local school girl Anne Zhang.

Sensory Room

The Johnson Trust has assisted with the funding for a "sensory room" for Anchorage Park School and recently members of the Trust attended the grand opening.

This will be a new concept to most readers. The rooms are set up so that children that find the high levels of stimulation in the brightly lit, colourful classrooms and often happy noise classrooms, have a place they can go for some time out. These children who may be feeling sad and anxious or confused and angry are always accompanied by an adult and visits are the frequency and reasons for any visits to the room are carefully monitored.

Primary school can be a wonderful and happy place for most children but for a small group it is a challenging environment and in order to ensure that those children develop and learn, schools are increasingly looking for ways to better meet their needs.

Members of the Johnson Trust were welcomed to the opening of the room by a enthusiastically sung waiata, "E Minaka Ana" with all the children from the latest new entrants through to the Year 6 students mastering both the words and the actions.

The ribbon was then cut by a young student and Vonney Johnston, daughter of Rae and Ernie Johnson.

Rotary Foundation

Allan has asked that I provide some information on our Foundation for coming Bulletins so logically I have started at the beginning!

The President of Rotary in 1917 was Arch Klumph and he put forward to an International Convention the idea that we should have an endowment fund for Rotary for the purpose of doing good in the world. The response was polite and favourable but no money materialised until the next year when a cheque was presented for $26.50, the surplus from the 1918 Convention account. Over the next four years, a total of $700 was given so the takeoff was slow.

The RI Board decided that the most efficient way to administer a fund would be by establishing a Foundation so in 1928 a Foundation was formed with five Trustees. What is significant for us was that one of the five was Charles Rhodes, a New Zealander. He was the Manager of the Waihi gold mine, which was at that time considered to be the most profitable gold mine in the world. He was a most interesting man who in 1923/1924 was a Director of Rotary International at a time when New Zealand was not even big enough to be a Rotary District and Rotary had only been introduced to New Zealand in 1921.

The Trustees were very active and over the first four years raised $50 000 and in 1937 set a goal of $2 million for the fund. The Second World War lead to that goal being abandoned and it was 1947 before our Foundation really became a significant force and the first permanent programme was established.

50 Years Membership.

Changeover

It is that time of the year again! Club changeover.

An invitation with details on registration and payment will be with you shortly.

We hope you can make it.

Membership.

It is always sad to have to farewell members. The club would like to recognise the service of two departing members:

Guy who joined May 1996 (25 years of service) and Nick who joined June 2011 (10 years of service).

Both have been actively engaged in the life of the club and will be greatly missed.

We wish them all the best.

On the bright side we have welcomed back Peter Jollands, a past member who is re-joining the fold.

Welcome back Peter.

100 Years of Rotary

The Weekend Herald on Saturday 20^th devoted a full page to an abridged extract from Mana Tangata. People of Action. While our club sold 24 copies, all members will find the Herald piece enlightening. It traverses many of the contributions that New Zealand Rotary has made nationally and internationally and presents that work in a positive light.

Much of the extract is devoted to the future of Rotary and the challenges facing the organisation. One statement stood out as a stark reminder of the challenges ahead. “The survival of Rotary in New Zealand should not be taken for granted.”

It outlines what members see as the issues facing clubs, some of the barriers to change and growth, and the form that clubs and the wider organisation might take in future years.

Past World President Bill Boyd and former Governor-General Sir Anand Satyanand are quoted,

“In just the same way as Rotary gave purpose to those lost in the social upheavals of the Great Depression or those who needed a new start after WWII, Rotary needs to move forward in the future with the same confidence, competence and commitment to make positive social change. This is our wero, our challenge to our fellow Rotarians.”

I have scanned the full article. If you would like a copy of that email me and I will attach one.

The observations of a headhunter.

At our Monday evening meeting club members were entertained by Brian Dyke.

Leaving school relatively early, Brian began work at NZ Post whereas luck would have it he was mentored and supported and soon found himself at university. By 1972, after a brief stint as Private Secretary to Roger Douglas it was into the new and growing area of merchant banking where he worked with the Chase Manhattan Bank, Broadbank and Marac Finance.

“Masters of the universe” in a finance industry and stock market, subsequently described as the wild west, leading of course to the stock market crash which as Brian explained, New Zealand suffered more than other countries.

From finance to “head hunting”, more politely described as executive personnel recruitment, was the next career move. Brian focused on three main aspects of that industry. The first was the very high fees that consulting companies could charge and how that was often reflected in premises and the trappings that go with that.

Secondly those fees aligned to the notion that “no one ever got fired for buying IBM” meant that candidate searches were expensive and often led to the appointment of overseas candidates, an approach experience has subsequently shown not always to be a wise strategy.

Thirdly Brian explained that while giving the client companies a strong shortlist, often with one candidate who was outside the brief that the company had originally proposed, it was so very important to treat all candidates with respect.

Finally, when talking about the selection of board members, Brian outlined the trend in New Zealand for people to be on many more boards than is the international benchmark. That was explained by relatively low directors’ fees and something of an old boys’ club. He gave the example of a recent board of a very large and high-profile company which had a board comprising 5 lawyers and 3 accountants and not one member with any background in the industry or associated industries the company was serving.

A book worth reading.

In the last Bulletin readers were invited to send in what they thought was a film worth watching, music worth listening to or a book worth reading.

Kim has sent in her choice.

The incredible, bestselling memoir of survival, hope and empowerment

THE AWARD-WINNING SUNDAY TIMES AND NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER

Edith Eger “The Choice”.
Even in hell, hope can flower

'I'll be forever changed by her story' - Oprah Winfrey

‘Extraordinary … will stick with you long after you read it’ - Bill Gates

'One of those rare and eternal stories you don't want to end' - Desmond Tutu

'A masterpiece of holocaust literature. Her memoir, like her life, is extraordinary, harrowing and inspiring in equal measure' - The Times Literary Supplement

‘I can’t imagine a more important message for modern times. Eger’s book is a triumph' - The New York Times

In 1944, sixteen-year-old ballerina Edith Eger was sent to Auschwitz. Separated from her parents on arrival, she endures unimaginable experiences, including being made to dance for the infamous Josef Mengele. When the camp is finally liberated, she is pulled from a pile of bodies, barely alive.

The horrors of the Holocaust didn't break Edith. In fact, they helped her learn to live again with a life-affirming strength and a truly remarkable resilience.

The Choice is her unforgettable story. It shows that hope can flower in the most unlikely places.

Did you miss getting an invoice?

On the 31st of May a copy of the book celebrating 100 years of Rotary, Mana Tangata. People of Action, was purchased but the keen reader to be forgot to leave their name and therefore has missed being invoiced.

All the invoices have been completed now, so if you have a book but don't yet have an invoice please get in touch with Kim Collins, Treasurer.

Fund Raising Committee

Fundraising Committee 14 June 2021

The fundraising committee has held its last meeting for this Rotary year.

In a difficult year, punctuated by Covid lockdowns and the on-going possibility of further disruption the Committee nevertheless had an active year.

Tambola Final figures from this fundraiser are therefore pending.

Pudding income: Raising $1,017 this year David is hopeful we can increase sales outside the club in the future

Meat raffle: A new initiative by Nick which in the short time it has been operating has raised $430.

Car Boot sale: Another fundraising venture still in its infancy for our club. With some well-established competition from the Sallies car boot sale in Howick the incoming committee will have to decide whether to continue.

Trade Me Sales: with club member donations of goods $462 was raised. This is a worthwhile and simple fundraiser and with provided more members support we can raise funds and declutter homes.

Xmas Tarts: Sales generated a profit of $1,153.

Carnival: Results discussed but final figure not yet available as calculations still underway.

Committee thanks: The members were thanked for their willingness to participate and effort to raise funds in an unprecedently difficult and changing national / global situation. A vote of thanks to the Chair was passed for “the efficient & tireless work undertaken during the year”

Gibbs Sculpture Farm: As advised, this event did not go ahead, due to the Trust closing the farm as a response to the Covid situation. All organization for this and the luncheon at the historical homestead is in place should someone want to run with it next year. Thank you Les, for your hard work and commitment.

A few pictures from a great evening

Apologies in advance.

Hundreds of photos were taken and in publishing any in the Bulletin I run the risk of offending those not chosen.

However at some point members will be able to access the photo gallery.

Until then here are a few.

Image

Scribes Report

Diplomacy is the art of letting someone else have your way. On Monday evening Kurt Meyer outlined the highlights of his 32 years in New Zealand’s Diplomatic Corps promoting the Kiwi way.

After an initial stint in the Cook Islands assisting with the establishment of a Department of Human resources as the Cooks moved from an agrarian economy, Kurt was posted to our Embassy in Washington DC as Consul General under Ambassador Bill Rowling. The fall-out from New Zealand’s anti-nuclear stance meant that Invitations to the White House at that time were non-existent. However, it was not unusual for representatives of other countries to quietly signify their support of the New Zealand position.

Returning to the Pacific, Kurt was assigned to Nuie as High Commissioner just at a time that Air Nauru had cancelled the only regular jet service to the Island. The Island continues to be heavily reliant on NZ Aid and struggles with de-population.

After a posting as Consul General in Brisbane, Kurt accepted an invitation to return as Consul-General to the Cook Islands with a focus on assisting the economic development of the outer islands.

During question time, Kurt had some interesting insights about the effectiveness of diplomats who had become politicians and of politicians who, on retirement, had attempted to become diplomats. His experience in the Pacific also enabled him to answer a question from Ron French by outlining his concerns at the increasing influence of China in both Samoa and the Cook islands.
Kurt was introduced and thanked by Dennis Kavanagh.

A chance to help

The Communicare bus that a number of us drove on a Monday is no longer being used for that purpose.

However each Thursday the same bus is being used on a Thursday to do a shopping run for older people who need assistance.Many of them are the same people we drove on a Monday.They are picked up from their homes at around 9.00 am and taken to Pakuranga Plaza one week and to the Botany Town Centre every alternative week.

The organisation which provides this service is looking for people who are willing to drive or to be the companion who assists them on and off the bus.

If you are able to help get back to me. With plenty of helpers you are only rostered on once a month or less.

During Covid Lockdown

During the first and longest Covid lockdown I used the Bulletin as a vehicle for sharing between members and hopefully maintaining a sense of social connection in those unusual times. One thing that we did was to share our "best album ever recorded" and "best book ever written" selections.

With a subscriber base of almost 200 I would be happy to use the bulletin to continue to share.

Rather than the best book and best album how about sharing a brief review of some music you have recently discovered or a book you recently enjoyed?Your experience with that film, book, television series, podcast or music might lead another reader to try it out and benefit from your enthusiasm for it.

A membership organisation

During the final President Elect training session, District Governor of District 9640, Andy Rajapakse stated that "We are not just a charity, we are also a membership organisation."

I took that to mean, placing some focus on your members and meeting their needs is a valid and valuable thing to do.

With that in mind the Bulletin contains a couple of items that have nothing to do with raising money or supporting the local community and everything to do with members sharing experiences and hopefully having fun doing so.

I am no expert at this aspect of club life so when you read the bulletin and have a "light-bulb" moment about something else you think members could share, please get that idea back to me.

Council on Resolutions

Hello Club Presidents and Secretaries, and District Leaders.

Re: Council on Resolutions (CoR)

Each year there is an opportunity for clubs and districts to put forward proposed resolutions to RI. These are considered by district representatives by way of on-line voting. These are not to change RI constitutional documents (as is the case with the three-yearly Council on Legislation (CoL)), but rather if passed become recommendations to the RI Board or Foundation Trustees.

RI is currently calling for submission of proposed Resolutions that will be voted on in Oct/Nov this year. There is a procedure to be followed for submitting Resolutions. A copy is attached.

To meet the RI timetable it is necessary proposed Resolutions be adopted by Club members and forwarded to myself by 15^th June. A process is then required for District endorsement.

Please contact me if you would like assistance on any matter. It will be helpful if you can let me know in advance if your club is planning to put forward a proposed Resolution.

As an aside I note proposed enactments (that deal with the RI constitutional documents) for the 2022 CoL were required to be submitted by 31 Dec 2020.

Regards

PDG Alan Eyes

D9920 Representative for CoR & CoL 2021-2023.

Email: alan.eyes.nz@gmail.com

Phone: 0274 987364

A Musical opportunity.

Music lovers here is a chance to get together to attend what promises to be a stunning musical event.

Saturday 24th of July

Ticket price $72 - $83

If you are interested get back to me. Bernardine is a great APO fan and is keen to have some of you join her for this event.

50th Gala Evening

Our club, the Pakuranga Rotary Club, is noted for its contributions to community over the last 50 years. The club celebrated a very proud history on Saturday night at the Howick Club.

Guests to the gala dinner entered to the stirring sound of the pipes, courtesy of past students of St Kentigern College, one of the three colleges closely associated with the club.

The banner of the evening, 50 Not Out, is not quite accurate: thanks to a Covid forced delay, the club is actually now in its 51^st year. But that did nothing to dim the enthusiasm of the 180 attendees.

Rotarian and cricket commentary legend, Bryan Waddle kept the evening flowing. Guests were treated to a stirring Maori Mihimihi by Terry Davis and Ani Black.

Two foundation members who are still active members, Bill Duncan and Bob Ritchie shared memories of the work that the club had done, including such projects as the Rotary Walkway, building schools and hurricane proof housing in Fiji, the establishment of Trees For Survival, and as well as the enjoyment and satisfaction they had got from both the opportunity to serve the community and the fellowship that comes with being a member.

The club is honoured to have a past President of Rotary International as a member. Bill Boyd, President of Rotary International in 2006/2007, is one of only two New Zealanders to have held that position in Rotary’s 116 years. Bill reflected on the honour that he had had to represent New Zealand and Pakuranga on the international stage. He recalled that the Conference in Salt Lake City while President involved fifteen thousand attendees, including 54 from Pakuranga Rotary. Bill was quick to acknowledge the tremendous support he had received from the club over his two years based in Chicago. That support included the establishment of a trust which with the support of other Rotary clubs in New Zealand has given over 200,000 full colour dictionaries worth over $6 million to children across New Zealand.

Attendees were treated to a preview of the Club’s latest community contribution, a public work of art that will celebrate 50 years of service. This will be located on the Rotary Walkway later this year.

The evening included great food, courtesy of the Howick club, wonderful entertainment by Tracey Collins and the opportunity of current and past members to catch up and share stories. This made the dinner highly enjoyable and something those present will remember.

Those reading this will know that there were a great number of photos taken. Those will be made available to members at some point in the near future.

Editorial

After over two years of planning with dates and venues arranged and then having to be reset because of Covid 19, along with all of the other challenges the virus threw up, our 50th Anniversary Gala dinner finally occurred.

The well attended event bought together past and current Rotarians for a night of food, fun and fellowship as promised by lead organiser Ian.

In an always changing world, 50 years continuous service is something that all those who have been involved with our club can look back on with pride.

Of course the future will always bring challenges but it's great to know that what ever occurs in the future the local and national initiatives the club has been responsible for and the work it has done locally, nationally and internationally will remain.

Flying Adventure in Africa

Take five NZ couples, including five pilots, add five Cessna 180 4-seater planes, a South African Safety Pilot and a well-thought out flight plan covering 5,500 kilometres and you have the makings of African safaris with a difference!

In 2011, tonight’s speaker Marlene Masters with husband Ray and the other flying Rotarians experienced all the excitement and drama of an expedition through parts of Botswana, Zimbabwe and Zambia over three weeks. The audience was treated to an array of photos supporting her address and giving some idea of the terrain, the airports, the encampments, the food (and sundowners), the locals and of course the animals encountered.

Though some of the camps could be described as borderline, most were in the luxury category especially in regard to the services provided and the quality of the meals, while attendant experiences such as the provision of a ‘bedroom’ under the stars made for unforgettable moments. Marlene described some of the flying legs as being very close to the largely dry terrain (apart from the Okavango Delta region and Lake Kariba) which enabled close up viewing of animal life, even the movement of cattle believed to have been rustled from one country and moved to another!

Close encounters with every African animal you’ve ever heard of, including elusive leopards and lions, meercats, elephants, hippos, crocs and hyenas made for very special and exciting moments but at no time did the group feel endangered as safari guides were well prepared for any eventuality.

One could not help but be envious of Marlene and her party having this opportunity to see and experience so much in such a short time but in Covid times, such adventures may well be the stuff dreams are made of.
As a fellow Flying Rotarian, Peter Armstrong thanked Marlene on behalf of our club for her interesting, informative presentation.

Packers Needed

Salvation Army Rotary packers needed.

Wednesday 26 May.

18 Allright Pl, Mt Wellington (off Waipuna end of Carbine Rd)

9.30 till noon. No lifting required.

Text Sylvie 0274847335 if you can help.

Knitting For Good.

Happy Communicare knitters with Penelope who is the in-coming President of the Satellite Club, delivering new wool for the group.

50 Not Out - Gala Event

The Pakuranga Rotary Club is noted for its contributions to community over the last 50 years. The club celebrated a very proud history on Saturday night at the Howick Rotary Club.

Guests to the gala dinner entered to the stirring sound of the pipes, courtesy of past students of St Kentigern College, one of the three colleges closely associated with the club.

Rotarian and cricket commentary legend, Bryan Waddle kept the evening flowing. Guests were treated to a stirring Maori welcome by Terry Davis and Ani Black.

The winner of husband of the year.

Editorial

By the time members get this it will be, in Ian's words, "just two sleeps" from our 50/51st Gala evening.

Attendees will be searching for that dinner suit or worrying if they have worn that lovely outfit to a previous Rotary event.

With 170 guests registered, it will be the largest gathering our club has hosted for many years and will be a wonderful opportunity to catch up with old friends.

A special mention must go to the organising group and especially Ian who has worked so tirelessly to make sure this an event to remembered and to be proud of.

Support via a coffee

Just a reminder that if you are in the Pakuranga Plaza are and are feeling like a coffee Te Tuhi are hosting a cafe that is set up to support people with disabilities into the workforce.

The staff are always happy to see new and regular customers and the coffee is great.

Support for a business that is supporting us.

The meat from our meat raffle is being supplied by Howick Meats.

Proprietor Michael Raines.

A great response on Monday night.

Sallies Ask For Help.

Rotary has been asked by the Salvation Army for help packing food boxes at their Distribution Centre in Mt Wellington.

Dates: Wednesday the 12 and 26 May. Time: 9.15 till noon.

Address: 18 Allright Pl (off Waipuna end of Carbine)

There is no lifting involved and morning tea is supplied. A great chance to chat with other Clubs. If you can help please text Sylvie (0274847335) or Alan Hayward (0211079978)

Photos show part of last week’s team and Kiri packing flour.

Scribes Report

Our new Honorary Member Adele White provided the Club on Monday evening with an outline of the function of Local Boards, gave a summary of some of the significant projects underway in the Howick-Pakuranga area and fielded some stirring questions from members about “harebrained” Auckland Council and AT schemes affecting residents on a daily basis.

Adele of course is Chair of the Howick Local Board, is Howick born and bred and has spent 33 years as a Police Officer and 18 years as a local body politician. Local boards have a significant and wide-ranging role that spans many council services and activities. They make decisions on local matters, provide local leadership and are designed to enable strong local communities. The local board has non-regulatory decision making authority and also acts as a listening post for local concerns and communicates those to Council

The Club’s annual carnival has been supported by our local Board for some time and Adele raised the possibility of the Club becoming involved in other community projects such as Men’s Sheds.

In a spirited question time, it was made plain that we were stuck with the Unitary Plan although Adele obviously felt for some Sunnyhills residents affected by intensification. It is apparent that Auckland Transport continues to take people in directions which make little sense to the majority of residents.

Graham Kearns introduced and thanked our guest speaker and President Alison presented her with her Honorary Member Badge.

As an added bonus, Adele drew her own winning ticket for the meat raffle and went home with a superb meat pack from Howick Meats in Vincent Sreet.

Save the date

By the time you read this the bookings will be closed and the hall will be filled with happy diners next Monday evening, in order to celebrate another year of Community Service by Pakuranga Rotary.

STOP PRESS:

You guessed it, we have reached the maximum reservation numbers, so apologies to those that delayed registering with mine Host, Ian Handisides. It appears it will be a night to remember on the Pakuranga Rotary social calendar for 2023.

A message from the USA

At a time that Rotary initiatives such as the Rotary Exchange programme are unable to occur its timely to remind ourselves just how important those programmes have been.

I have just received an email from Richard Molitor who was a Rotary Exchange Student 1975-1976. [Bothell (Seattle), WA, USA.]

“Thank you for the ongoing updates from the PRC! In this rather unusual era it's great to follow a group of individuals that continue to function and thrive despite the additional challenges this pandemic has produced.

But more importantly, I would like to congratulate (on behalf of all past exchange students) the Pakuranga Rotary Club for its 50+ years of service not only to the community but to those of us who learned from their experiences in Pakuranga and turned themselves into movers and shakers around the world. The inspirations and life skills I received 45 years ago have never left me and have definitely served me well. Being able to stop by and say g'day a few years ago was one of the most special moments of my adult life.

I wish The Club and its members many more years of successful programming, community leadership, and a continued commitment to the students of the world. I look forward to coming back to my second home when this pandemic is history and life gets back to normal.

Cheers,

Richard.”

The day it all started for me. Auckland International Airport. The Frank Brown family (my first hosts), Ron Bird (from the exchange committee) and Bob Ritchie (ultimately, my third kiwi "dad"). I was escorted to the Lance Brighouse home in Whitford for a week while the Browns hosted and participated in the Auckland Competitions.

You might recognize the Edgewater College summer uniform (yeah, I know, where's the tie?).

Well, I learned how to tie the neckwear and developed my great study habits in the 7th Form Common Room.

More Sommerville Fun

At the invitation of Bini Homavazir from the Rotary Club of Somerville, the Loseby’s, the McLagan’s and the Kearns’ attended the evening of fun and games at their meeting at The Howick Club on Wednesday 14^th April.

The games started with a marble in a spoon race, between two teams of members and guests present, followed by a donut eating contest ably performed by Leslie McLagan with great gusto and amusement for the onlookers.

We were also entertained with some young Indian dancers.

Following the normal excellent meal provided by the Howick Club, an attempt to line-dance by most of those present resulted in some hilarity, especially for those

with no rhythm and moving the wrong way or using the wrong steps!

A most enjoyable departure from the normal Rotary meetings and all left before 8:30pm with smiles on their faces following the opportunity to do silly games with Rotary friends.

Gala Evening

As the magic date of 8th of May draws nearer numbers are looking good for our 50th anniversary gala dinner.

There are still tickets available and if you haven't yet bought yours Ian, who putting the finishing touches on the event, would appreciate you doing so as soon as possible.

Join us for a fun night at this is a once in 50 year event.

Not to be missed.

Dangers for Polio Workers.

Terrible news from Afghanistan …

Three female polio workers were shot in Jalalabad whilst working in the field.

In addition, an explosion took place at the entrance to the cold chain office in Nangarthar province. No one was injured but there was damage to property.

As is our custom, immediate payments of US$2,500 were arranged to assist families in the short term.

Such tragedies show the importance of working with all parties to finish the job of eradicating polio in endemic countries as soon as possible.

On a positive topic, Bill and Melinda Gates recently shared a photograph on their Foundation web site of children crossing the border from Pakistan to Afghanistan with the message … ‘Children crossing the border from Pakistan to Afghanistan receive oral polio vaccine through a program implemented by Rotary International’. Thanks to Bill and Melinda for the positive promotion of Rotary – and their web site contains much more information and praise for Rotary and out battle against Polio.

In a small plane across South Africa

The speaker at the upcoming meeting [17th May] will be Marlene Marsden. Following her husband Roy's involvement in rebuilding a plane that was salvaged from Lake Taupo and subsequent gaining of a private pilots licence Marlene and Roy set out regular flying adventures in many countries. In her talk Marlene will give the details of the trip that was the highlight- the trip with a group of fellow flying Rotarians across South Africa.

A Changing world

Latter in the Bulletin is reference to a fun night run by the Rotary Club of Sommerville.

That got me thinking.

The invitation came very late which made it less likely that many members of our club could attend. Nevertheless less the fact that some did attend and had a great time showed that there is real potential for more inter club sharing. Certainly in the past we have invited other clubs to join us for combined meetings but I wonder if there is not an opportunity for more combined activities.

When Governor Craig met with us he made the point that club amalgamations have not generally gone as well as hoped. Different club cultures can make bringing two clubs together difficult.

However as clubs change, often going though a form of lifecycle, their capacity to undertake fund raising activities and to run larger social events also changes.

Working with other clubs to undertake activities too large for one or joining together in fellowship opportunities that benefit from larger numbers seems to me to offer promise for the future.

In effect since all clubs are working towards the same ends can we do more together?

Is this something members would like the incoming Board to put some energy into?

Sommerville Fun Night

The Rotary Club of Sommerville held a "Fun Night" which a number of our members attended.

A great time was had by all.

Scribes report.

Two smorgasbord treats this week – the usual Howick Club meal and the line-up of speakers that followed.

First course were the two students from Pakuranga College who had attended the Science and technology Forum held over the summer break in mid January.

Lucy and Luchien made a dual presentation with the help of mercifully succinct power point detail and a few photos, extolling the programme and revealing its impact on their thinking about the future. Three universities – Auckland, Massey and AUT provided the basic modules of science-based career options while guest speakers, Dr. Malvinder Singh (Kiwibank Local Hero medallist) and Dr. Michelle Dickinson (Nanogirl) added their expertise and enthusiasm to the mix.

The modules comprised Biomedical, Robotics and Physics with sample experiments, hands on involvement and mind-blowing possibilities. For Lucy, the Biomedical field captured her interest to the point where she feels a strong motivation to pursue related subjects in her future planning. For Luchien eyes were opened into what Physics could offer outside the basic school curriculum – perhaps even astrophysics. Visits to technical operations e.g. Environmental Science Research exposed participants to the ‘CSI’ world of forensics, drug detection and DNA analysis, all giving fascinating new insights into science-based career options. Clearly the whole purpose of the Forum hit its mark with these two participants.

Of course it’s not all hard graft – the social programme of Day Out, beach visit, disco, quiz night and sport provided opportunities to widen social contacts with like-minded peers as well as push the comfort boundaries and try new experiences. For Lucy, the availability of scholarships in the science field, especially for female applicants, was a revelation while both spoke of their increased confidence in social settings e.g. volunteer work and the boost in motivation to set achievable goals.

Philip Tse, who had introduced Lucy and Luchien, was moved to comment that their presentation was the best ever! The audience would be inclined to agree.

Second course, equally appetising, was a presentation by Lincoln Jefferson, CEO of the Life Education Trust (Manukau) outlining the work of this charity

with which our Rotary Club has had direct

involvement for yonks. In fact President Alison’s personal connection has reached the 20 year milestone and mike Collins, 16 years. Both are to be given formal recognition for this commitment.

Lincoln gave details of how the Trust worked with committed teachers in participating schools, starting a year in advance of the visit by the mobile classroom and targeting the specific health or social issues pertinent to each school. The unit could spend from two to eight weeks in a school depending on size, focussing on strategies for children to cope with daily living in an increasingly complex world. The Covid situation is just one of the pressures leading to anxieties and evidence of greatly increased depression among young people (23% of under 18 year olds in a recent survey, with 20% being sad or stressed). The effects of binge drinking, vaping and tobacco use are all covered by modules delivered by the trust.

In a non-Covid year, up to 28,000 young people are impacted by the programmes but 2020 saw this number drop by 10,000 so some catch-up is needed.

Fund-raising is obviously a constant need for this organisation. It costs $26.92 to serve one child with the programme, primary schools contributing $6 and secondary $8 per child. Quite a gap! Check the website for ways to assist but mark Sunday 17 October in calendars when our club’s assistance in selling raffle tickets at the Great Auckland Duck Race event would be welcomed.

In the meantime – Go Harold!

Carnival

With a Covid delayed start to planning and on-going uncertainty about having to deal with a possible Covid lockdown there were certain stresses in the lead up to what proved to be a highly successful day. Great weather, large crowds and a good turnout from Rotarians and Interactors saw the six hours fly by.

As with all such events there were aspects of the day that need fine tuning. If numbers continue to grow, then additional attractions will be required. The unavailability of the scout group that normally provides the kayaks meant that we were not able to offer any water-based activities and thought is already being given as to how we can make sure that future carnivals incorporate more on the water.

Of course, more people and more activities will require more Rotarians on the day and a willing team of members to plan the day. My thanks to all those who were actively involved in the planning and lead up to the carnival, to those who walked many kilometers delivering fliers and to those who assisted on the day

The continued support of Wayne Barnes and the Pakuranga Sailing club, the hugely subsidised provision of the generators by Aggreko, the free use of both the BBQ and the cold store truck from On-Site Caterers, waste control by Farm Cove Intermediate, this year’s involvement by the Auckland Tamal Association, the ongoing involvement of Inner Wheel and the financial support of the Community Board all need to be acknowledged and thanked.

Leading up to the award.

Like many of you here tonight, I have lived over a quarter of a century as a Rotarian. During those years there have been numerous occasions when I have felt great pride, witnessing and celebrating the contribution our people make to the community. Tonight is one of those occasions. It has been my great pleasure, pride and indeed privilege to have spent the past four months involved with information gathering and research to celebrate such contribution.

Before we go any further, I would like to acknowledged the help I have had from DG Craig, Vick Soar, District Secretary, Angela Stavogiannopoulos, RI’s PR Officer for the Sth Pacific, along with Bill Boyd and President Alison for their trust and support. The award that will be presented tonight is not from our Club, it is not even from our District, but from RI and to the very best of our combined knowledge and research, it has never before been presented to a member of the Pakuranga Club.

Sylvie Willkinson

Top Schools

About 500 local primary school children were treated to the Top Schools experience after a Covid-enforced cancellation last year. Did they love it? Oh, YES!

Basic organisation of school entries and infrastructure was handled by a team from Elm Park School headed by Alicia Howard and the Principal Trish Plowright (an Auxiliary Rotarian). Our participation as a club, orchestrated by Peter Woodcock, involved delivery of the gear (trucks organised by Malcolm aided by Noel Holyoake and a loading team of 7), setting up and directing the games on the day (a team of about 12), providing the medals (Malcolm and Lesley McLagan), officially opening the games (President Alison) and negotiating with Tip Top to deliver popsicles on the day (Ken Worsley).

The day saw our team load the truck at 7.00 a.m., get the games set up from about 8.00 to 9.45 then look after the pupils in their teams of 10 over 16 rounds. Very tiring under the brilliant sun but a lovely breeze made it bearable. So too did the wonderful support of an Interact team of about 20 students from Pakuranga College – given the day off by a benevolent principal. The games finished at 1.15 p.m. with the distribution of medals and popsicles to the exhausted but excited participants. Elm Park students then did the tidy-up, taking the gear to the school hall for use the following week.

Feedback from participating schools has been very complimentary, sincere thanks being expressed on behalf of the kids who, on the day, showed their enjoyment and appreciation by participating so enthusiastically in even the most demanding games.

All in all, a great day - but there is a question mark over whether we can continue to provide the organisation of the event given the difficulty in supplying the ‘manpower this year. Watch this space!

50th Anniversary Art Installation.

The process of fabricating the full scale “prototypes” is underway. The stainless steel that is part of the art work came from Germany and supply lines for that were disrupted by Covid.

As a large but mobile art work the prototypes are required to meet the building consent application but because they are full size will become part of the finished work. After the prototypes are complete we will then develop full design documentation for a building consent application.

Currently one of Dion's works, [Te Haa, the breath] commissioned by Te Tuhi in 2020 is on display at the gallery.

It is a stunning piece and well worth visiting [entry free] when next passing the Te Tuhi Gallery opposite the Plaza.

Award to Bill Duncan

At Monday night District Governor Craig, Bills wife Lynn and son John were on hand when a noticeably moved Bill Duncan was presented with the Five Avenues of Service Award. This award is one of the highest recognitions a Rotarian can receive and can only be issued by Rotary International. Bill is the Club’s first recipient of such recognition.

Why Bill? Listening to his list of both achievements and Rotary involvement made that answer very clear.

Financial support of Clubs across the District, GSE leader, WCS Chair, RYLA Chair, arranging RAF mercy flights to the Pacific, established the local Senior Citizens Club, established numerous Trusts including those supporting the visually impaired, local youth, post graduate studies for women in law, medicine and politics. These trusts have disbursed many hundreds of thousands of dollars to the community. In addition Bill is an active church leader, chairs the Saint Andrews Village Residents’ Association and is a hospital chaplain.

Fifty one years a member of Rotary, Bill has served as President, Past President, Bulletin Editor and on the Board of Directors multiple times. He has been Almoner, spent many years on District Committees, had a strong involvement with the Rotary Walkway, Trees for Survival, Top Schools, Dictionaries in Schools and Carnival.

Bill has the reputation for being a quiet, humble gentleman who is acutely aware of the needs and feelings of others. He demonstrates a strong commitment to the ideals of Rotary and the importance of "service above self values. He is an outstanding citizen who has our utmost respect. Sadly, with Covid related international delivery delays and Rotary shut downs in the States, the official crystal award and pin had not arrived and in fact may not get here for several months, so DG Craig, very kindly, had a simple version created here in Auckland, as it was important we celebrate this occasion now.

To Do

Baby Photos for Sylvie.

Photos of you aged between 0 and 5 years old are still required for an upcoming fun competition.

Registering for the 50th Gala Celebration.

Ian handed out Easter eggs to help remind us to go home and register for the Gala night. Invitations have gone out.

Rotarians were also asked to contact and encourage past members to join the celebration.

Golf Tournament. Alan Davies outlined the state of play with the planning and asked members to think about possible sponsors and communicate the names of any to him or Dennis.

This fund raising event has the potential to be a long term and very valuable addition to our fund-raising efforts and hence our ability to do great work in the community.

Scribes Report

Fittingly, on Monday night, in the 100^th Year of Rotary our club was host to the 100^th District Governor – Craig. The evening turned out to be an auspicious one for another reason as well but more about that later.

Craig talked about how Covid 19, while severely disrupting Rotary activities did serve to focus us on one aspect of our core business – the eradication of communicable diseases. Our long term and finely honed experience with polio and other diseases means that Rotary is well placed to offer support in the worldwide vaccination programme and discussions have already begun.

A recent outbreak of polio in Liberia and the recent hard caused by an outbreak of measles in Samoa serves to reinforce that Covid will not be something which is eradicated but rather an endemic problem that will require long term planning and careful management.

Covid has also shown large organisations the danger of litigation and class lawsuits should all health and safety precautions not be taken. If we needed any confirmation of that, a recent class action against Boy Scouts has effectively placed that organisation in a state of bankruptcy. This type of organisational risk was a key reason that R.I. moved so quickly to issue an edict banning all face-to-face meetings until later this year, the irony of which had not escaped Craig.

In question time Craig addressed the issue of district “redistricting”, the term favoured over merging or amalgamation and membership. Whatever the term chosen, District 9910 has until 2025 to get club numbers and membership up to the required levels. Club merging has not proven to be a success, largely in Craigs view, because of the sometimes very different cultures of clubs. Instead, he favoured targeting new members who would be a good fit for a club “by getting out of the office” and directly approaching the target audience. Likewise trying to attract much younger members into a more traditional and established club setting was not seen as something likely to be very successful. Some ideas for our club to ponder.

Music to my ears.

At our last meeting there was general acclaim when Bill Duncan was award the Five Avenues of Service award.

In the citation that followed I am sure members were impressed by the breadth and depth of Bills service to both Rotary and the community.

In his acceptance of the award Bill talked about the fact that he had been inspired by others.

He also said "If you are asked to do a job for Rotary, you should do it."

I hope that all members were inspired by that.

I know that not all members are able to contribute in the way that they once were and that some are apprehensive about taking on new roles.That apprehension can be the result of work pressures, of other family plans or of wanting to help but wanting to avoid the public facing nature of some roles.

It is my opinion that all of us as Rotarians have a duty to make it possible for every member to feel they can step up and take a role.

For some it will be in a mentoring capacity, for others it will be picking up part of the load and for all of us it will be by providing positive support and encouragement for those people who do put their hand up when asked.

To quote that well known philosopher, John Lennon, "I get by with a little help from my friends." Or from the less well known "unknown" “I wondered why somebody didn’t do something. Then I realised, I am somebody.”

Introduction by Sylvie

Tonight is one of those occasions. It has been my great pleasure, pride and indeed privilege to have spent the past four months involved with information gathering and research to celebrate such contribution. Before we go any further, I would like to acknowledged the help I have had from DG Craig, Vick Soar, District Secretary, Angela Stavogiannopoulos, RI’s PR Officer for the Sth Pacific, along with Bill Boyd and President Alison for their trust and support. The award that will be presented tonight is not from our Club, it is not even from our District, but from RI and to the very best of our combined knowledge and research, it has never before been presented to a member of the Pakuranga Club.

Support for carnival

On-Site Catering

Rotary Foundation

At the leadership seminar there was a lot of emphasis on the Rotary Foundation.

The work that the foundation does around the world as well as more locally was recognised.

The esteem that the Foundation is held in terms of its extremely high rating as a charity was recognised and celebrated.

The multitude of ways individual Rotarians can contribute was outlined.

Clubs shared how they addressed their contribution to Foundation and there was considerable variation. Clubs talked about running a raffle every month with the proceeds going to the Foundation. Others ran two social events a year with the express purpose of raising funds either for the Foundation or for the Ending Polio project.

Many clubs automatically put a percentage of every fundraiser into Foundation and of course some simply levy each member.

Leadership Seminar.

Over the weekend I attended a number of plenary and breakout sessions as part of the national President Elect Development Seminar.

From the perspective of the role and the challenges as I seem them for our club there was a thought provoking presentation that challenged participants to consider where they were personally and where their club was in the Rotary Life Cycle. Where do you see our club? We are definitely not new, and I think well past the “Early Years” but in our prime? If you see us slipping round to the left and towards the Hospice what might we as a club and you as an individual do to rejuvenate the club?

While the mantra is often to “get more young members” one presenter argued with some conviction that clubs should definitely not look past attracting members who might well be near or in retirement but will still bring active service to the club. It might be that we can no longer wheel lots of concrete or spend a long day in the sun running activities for children but that does not mean we can’t provide a valuable service to our community and the wider world in other ways.

That of course leads into Rotary Foundation and the valuable contribution we can make to that but more about that later in the bulletin.

Chris Luxon, well known to our club, delivered a thoughtful, polished and very well received presentation, much of which will be familiar with our members who have heard Chris speak.

One thing that he did say that particularly resonated with me as I look ahead to the next Rotary year was, and paraphrasing, "when setting out on a leadership challenge, we always need to respect the past while also aiming to stimulate progress and change."

Carnival

The date draws ever closer. Sunday March 21st.

The possibility of a further Covid lockdown [or a continuation at level2] is never far from the organisers minds. Similarly there is the ever possible threat of inclement weather. Now there is nothing we can do to prevent those two but never the less there is still plenty that we do control to ensure the Carnival is a great event, to say nothing of being a great fundraising activity.

Here is where you, the member comes in!

It would be great if we had such a great turn out of volunteers to deliver pamphlets that each person had a small area to cover. Likewise, lots of volunteers on the day means shorter shifts and the opportunity of having time for a break from duties.

If we have not yet heard from you, help us make this a great community event and ensure we continue to have the opportunity to host such a well attended Rotary branded event by, if at all possible, volunteering.

Govind Pani govindpani@gmail.com. Allan Vester. allanvester@eduplus.co.nz

Anniversary Gala Dinner

As you will already be aware our planned gala dinner celebrating the Rotary Club of Pakuranga’s 50 years of service to the community, had to be postponed last year due to the Covid-19 Alert Level and the unavailability of our regular venue. This facility is continuing this year as a Government controlled MIQ (Managed Isolation & Quarantine) hotel and thus is not available again.

The good news is that the Anniversary Team have organised an alternative venue for the 8^th May 2021, for us to celebrate 51 years as a Rotary Club in Pakuranga. The Howick Club is a venue of distinction and conviviality designed for evenings such as ours and thus we believe the night we have organised will be one to remember for the years to come.

The organising committee have already sent out official invitations.

They ask you to consider this once in a Rotary lifetime, must attend event and forward your commitment to be there as soon as possible.

There is a limit to the numbers that can be accommodated so be in early to secure your seat(s) by depositing $75pp into our bank account as soon as possible (02-0223-0017811-05 - Code: “Your Surname”; Ref: Gala)

Also using the email below, please advise the First Name and Surname you wish to appear on your name tag including any partners and/or guests.

Thanks & best regards

The 50th Anniversary Committee

Rotary Club of Pakuranga Inc.

Email: pakrot50th@gmail.com

Zoe on Exchange.

The move back into Level 3 meant it was back to Zoom meetings and on Monday evening our most recent on-bound student, Zoe Lit, reported back to members on her year in Germany.

A group of 28 out-bound students set off in high spirits stopping first in Los Angeles where the group had a great time visiting Disneyland, Universal Studios and an American school. Then it was off to Germany to be met almost immediately by the first of the Covid -19 lockdowns.

This of course greatly impacted on Zoe’s year. There were less opportunities to travel, the get much anticipated exchange student tour ended up being a day trip with two other students, there was only time to do two presentations to her host club, [one of which was by Zoom], time at school was reduced and especially in the first homestay almost all the time was spent at home with the family.

Many exchange students elected to leave the exchange when Covid hit but Zoe elected to stay. Once things were more in control some students returned so as well as out-bound and in-bound students we now have a new category, re-bound.

Despite the disruption Zoe made the very best of her time away and had a great year. Her host families were all supportive and looked to make the experience the best possible. By focusing on the positives and learning to deal with the disappointments and issues that Covid caused Zoe’s report reflected a year well spent.

We often judge an exchange by the number of places students go and the people they meet but the ability to adapt to a new language and culture during an extended lockdown takes real grit and ultimately can be life changing.

Congratulations Zoe.

District Conference

BREAKING NEWS

District Conference will be held on SATURDAY, MAY 19^th, 2021.

AUCKLAND UNIVERSITY.

The Conference will only be 1 day and include a Gala evening event.

Keep the date free and when more detail is available, you will be informed.

Let's have a strong contingent from Pakuranga and enjoy fellowship at its best.

Ian Handisides (Conference Promoter)

Anniversary Dinner

ROTARY CLUB OF PAKURANGA 51^st ANNIVERSARY DINNER

SATURDAY, MAY 8^th, 2021 for a Gala Night not to miss.

This much anticipated event is now only 3 Months away.

The Venue is now at The Howick Club,107 Botany Road, Botany Downs.

Please mention this auspicious occasion to any past Rotarian Members as the event will be a wonderful opportunity for a reunion.

Formal Invitations will be sent out in a week or two.

Committee news

For the current year, President Alison, following requests from members, made the decision to reinstate the committee system. Those committees are up and running and making great progress.

In each Bulletin, where there is new material to report we will include brief highlights of committee activity.

Tamaki River Rotary Auxillary.

Top Schools. Friday 26th of March. This is now on a school day to meet the needs of the schools. That will mean far more teachers are available but the organisers will still be looking for Rotarian assistance where any of us are available to help.

The group continue to look for and support new initiatives including their contributions of knitted goods to Plunket, a planned beach cleanup, and possible school garden cleanup.

Club Management.

Our largest committee has had its hands full dealing with the loss of our long term venue and arranging venues, speakers and meetings which might well then need to be cancelled in response to a sudden lockdown. They have now negotiated a contract with the Howick Club to hold our meetings there for the next six months while Waipuna is unavailable.

More details on this arrangement, meal cost etc will be provided to all members very shortly.

Fundraising.

Despite the problems caused by Covid -19 the group were able to report success with the Xmas pudding sales, tart sales, and Tambola.

They are also progressing with new initiatives including a Gibbs's Farm sculpture list , a regular car boot sale and are organising to be involved in the Bus Lane Bridge opening.

They have another in-club fun fund raising plan and would like help from within the club to arrange a suitable prize - dinner for two being one possibility. Anyone with a suitable contact?

Youth.

RYPEN for 2021 is largely locked in, as the committee have those participants chosen for the 2020 event which did not go ahead.

However members are encouraged to think about potential candidates for future years for what is a wonderful opportunity for personal growth and fellowship.

Community.

The big work on for this committee is the planning for the carnival. This requires a great deal of pre-planning and will also require as many Rotary volunteers as possible for assistance on the day.

It is also hoped that Rotarians might encourage family members to volunteers so they can be part of Rotary in action and hopefully finish the day with some refreshments and fellowship.

Requests falling on deaf ears?

One of the great things about being Bulletin editor is that it gives me easy access to members.

In the last edition I included an impassioned plea for members to put up their hands to take on leadership roles in the club. As the title says that invitation didn't result in a whole lot of responses. Well none at all to be honest.

Our ability to continue to do the great work we have been known for does rest on the energy of the whole club. Leaving the substantive work to a few ends up burning out those people and is far less productive than lots of us doing a bit.

I know that it has not been common practice in our club but the co-chairing, i.e sharing of roles, is working well in other clubs and some of you who would be apprehensive taking on the whole role might consider sharing it with a Rotary colleague. Done well that also can provide continuity ensuring that institutional knowledge is not lost.

If you have any questions about what positions are needing filling for the next year or want to discuss how you might be part of that and how we might ensure the task does not become overwhelming please get back in touch.

Trap Library.

Trap Library.

The project to rid the east of pests continues.

There will be a Pestival at Cockle Bay School on the Tuesday the 9th of March and a Trap Swap Day on Saturday the 27th of March.

District Conference

BREAKING NEWS
                                                                 ___________________________
                                District Conference will be held on SATURDAY, MAY 19^th, 2021 at AUCKLAND UNIVERSITY.
                                The Conference will only be 1 Day including a Gala Night.
                                Keep the date free and when more detail is available, you will be informed.
                                Lets have a strong contingent from Pakuranga and enjoy Fellowship at its best.
                                Ian Handisides (Conference Promoter)

A History of Rotary

Mana Tangata. People of Action .

The just completed book of the 100 year history of Rotary in New Zealand.

This richly illustrated and lively history shares the story of Rotary’s prolific first century in New Zealand and the Pacific and looks towards the future and a continuing drive to bring about lasting change. An expansive and engaging read, Mana Tangata People of Action shines a light on an iconic but perhaps overlooked champion of service above self.

Past World President Bill Boyd has an advance copy of the professionally written history and recommends it highly.

Advance copies will be sold to clubs in boxes of 12 at a cost of $45 per copy. You can of course wait to buy a copy but after this initial offer the price goes up to $65.

We will be back soon to tell you how to secure a copy.

Reunion.

ROTARY CLUB OF PAKURANGA 51^st ANNIVERSARY is now only 3 Months away.

SATURDAY, MAY 8^th, 2021 for a Gala Night not to miss.

The Venue is now at The Howick Club,107 Botany Road, Botany Downs.

Please mention this auspicious occasion to any past Rotarian Members that have left us for whatever reason.

This Event will be an amazing Reunion.

Formal Invitations will be sent out in a week or two.

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Scribes Report.

At our last full meeting of they are our own Govind was the presenter. Govind was born and raised in India and came from a family of bankers, his father holding the position of managing director of the State Bank of Travancore, a bank with about 1500 branches across India.

He did his schooling in Delhi in Delhi Public school followed by a B Com from Loyola College a part of the University of Madras.

Govind enjoyed rapid advancement in his career moving from an assistant audit manager, via finance manager positions to CFO positions in a wide range of companies, industries and countries.

By the late 1980's he was working as CFO for the Park Group a company that engaged in very large scale building developments including but certainly not limited to, 14 high rise condominium towers.

In his role with the group he spearheaded the public listing effort which was halted by the Asian crash of 97. That setback required bringing in strategic investors including the Government Investment Corporation of Singapore as 13.3% shareholders and successfully restructuring the companies debt.

In 1998 Govind and family moved to NZ where he joined Wireplus and Steelplus as a financial controller, a very different scale and nature of business.

In 2003 it was back to India, joining Best & Crompton as head of finance 2003-2005 a position that saw him actively involved in the restructuring and reinvigorating of a company that had fallen on troubled times.

ERK's

The Volunteer Coordinator for the Emergency Response Kit Rotary project sent their thanks to the Inner Wheel members for the wonderful effort that they all made in helping achieve such a successful project for the Emergency Response Kits.

Our very positive comparison compared to there clubs was noted.

This year over 1000 boxes were packed compared to 750 in the previous year.

Fundraising

Fund raising has been made very difficult this year with Covid 19 limiting opportunities but there has been some hard work done with Xmas Tarts raising $1,147.00 and Xmas Puddings raising $3,180.00 giving a total of $4,327.00.

Thanks to all those who did the work and those who purchased the tarts and puddings.

In preparation for the Carnival in March we have received a grant of $30,000 from the Local Board and planning is now well underway for that event. We are paid to run this event and so members can expect [look forward even] to be given plenty of opportunities to assist in the lead up and on the day. There will be jobs for all level of skill and ability!

Next Club Meeting

Come join us at the Elm Park School for a brief AGM and our own Govind Pani, whose subject is his experience in international construction and development.

Govind is currently the CEO of a property development company based in Melbourne and has been in the role since March 2012. With a career spanning businesses in Dubai, India and Auckland and with a Masters in taxation it will be talk of interest to members.

As is the new norm we will need to know numbers attending. The link you use to register for the meeting will follow. We look forward to seeing you there.

Event:	Pakuranga Rotary Meeting
Date:	Dec 07, 2020 5.30 PM - Dec 07, 2020 7.00 PM
Fee:	$15.00
Location:	Elm Park School Gossamer Drive Pakuranga Auckland, New Zealand 2010

More Fellowship

The Friends of Rotary Group held a Friendship Dinner on Saturday 21 November.

This was the third the group has held in the past two years. To date the dinners have been held in Dannemora Gardens and the chefs excelled themselves with a beautifully presented quality meal.

There were 20 in attendance and those present look forward to many such happy occasions.

Volunteering in a Volunteer Organisation.

It wont be all that long before I move from President Elect to President. That's not because I am planning a coup but rather because the Rotary year is rushing by.

There are now two important things to be done.

1. The first is extracting some volunteers to take on the roles of chairing our committees for the next Rotary year. Fortunately I have had some interest expressed but there are still plenty of roles to fill. You could wait until I managed to corner you and ask you to take on a role but I would prefer that anyone who is willing and able, to approach me. There will be those who are very happy in the committee they are currently leading or are on and who would like to continue doing that. That would be great news so I look forward to hearing from you.

2. We also need to choose a President Elect for the year I am President.

If you want to be considered for that role or have a good idea of a member who you think should be considered please get in contact with our Floor Member, Mike Collins. I huge thanks from me Mike for agreeing to take on this role. The intention is to make the role of President as doable and enjoyable as is possible. All members have a role in doing that. Remember we are a volunteer service club that needs volunteers to be able to have the sort of club people want to be members of.

Dictionaries

A recent presentation to St Patricks School, Panmure of the Illustrated Dictionaries by Carol Noble & Maureen Kearns from the Howick Inner Wheel on behalf of our Club.

The Dictionaries were again well received and much appreciated by the Staff and pupils of this small but enthusiastic school.

50th Anniversary Project Up-date 2

The 50th Anniversary sculpture project is under the control of Terry Urbahn, Project manager Arts and Culture for the Auckland City Council.

Terry reports they have just completed the contracting process with Dion and now processing his first progress payment to allow him to start sourcing and purchasing materials for the proto-type fabrication

The Resource Consent has been submitted.

Terry has also updated the Howick Local Board and presented Dion's adjustments to the design. Their response was very positive and they also look forward to the point where we can show progress with fabrication.

Club Assembly

ASSEMBLY-piecing together a fractured year

A well-attended and lively Club assembly on Monday evening provided members with a broad outline of activities and projects scheduled for the rest of Pres. Alison’s year and the funding choices available in a year disrupted by Covid 19.

Just the regular programmes funded by the Club each year would require fundraising of approximately $22,000 (which includes $5k for the 50^th anniversary project). The support of each member is therefore vital to ensure that our support for initiatives such as dictionaries, Duffy Books in Homes, ERKs, Pest Free, Top Schools and Trees for Survival can continue. Fundraising is obviously more effective by tapping funds outside our Rotary community. Amongst fundraiser, our annual community Carnival is on track and other smaller fundraising projects are also underway.

In a wide ranging general discussion, the importance of the role and social advantage of committees was emphasised. Members who are not currently part of a committee are encouraged to join in and enjoy the vibrancy and bonhomie they offer.

Allan Vester noted the willingness of parents to get involved in helping out with Rotary projects which may involve their children without initially wanting to commit to any ongoing Rotary participation. Harnessing that support can make a big difference in meeting our goals during trying times like these

Club Christmas Lunch

The annual Christmas function is a Pakuranga Rotary tradition. To really keep up this tradition we need people to register.

Event:	Pakuranga Rotary Christmas Lunch
Date:	Dec 13, 2020 12:00 PM - Dec 13, 2020 3:00 PM
Fee:	$35.00
Location:	The Howick Club 107 Botany Road

Dennis, who is hard behind the scenes to ensure the club event event is a success will again send out the registration details and the instructions on how you should pay.

Remember to ensure this is an event to be proud of your club needs you!

Fellowship

In a world of change Rotary has also needed to change. Our club has been no exception and over the past years we have looked to adjust things such as meeting schedules and the role of committees in order to meet the new reality and in order to try to better meet the needs of current and potential members.

An unintended consequence has been a gradual reduction in the amount of socialising and fellowship. The disruption caused by Covid 19 threw into sharp focus the importance of fellowship as part of a fully functioning Rotary club and there is hopefully going to be a groundswell of support for social activities and fellowship. The notion of arranging club meetings in a way that ensures that pre-meeting food and refreshments are enjoyed as a group was discussed at the recent club assembly. These kinds of discussions are never easy, as past traditions rub up against new possibilities, but ensuring that there is respectful and well informed debate and discussion is of course what all Rotarians would expect.

The above is of course a rather long winded introduction to a very brief report on the Community Committee social get together at Gorkha a Nepalese and Indian restaurant at Eastern Beach. A fine time was had by all in an evening which raised the spirits of all who attended. Certainly that event plus some very cordial Community Committee meetings has served to show newer Rotarians just what fun being a Rotarian can be.

I wait in anticipation for a flood of social reports from the other Committees.

City of Auckland Singers

See and hear what you missed!

The City of Auckland Singers of which Peter Woodcock is a member, were to be the main act at the Christmas fundraiser which has unfortunately had to be cancelled.

Come and enjoy their concert ( with much the same programme as scheduled for 5 December) at the Glendowie Presbyterian Church, 197 Riddell Road on Sunday week 29^th November at 2.00 p.m.

Adults $18; Seniors $15; Door sale but no EFTPOS. Afternoon tea. Also CDs and raffles being offered.

Satisfaction guaranteed!

Te Reo and New Zealand.

The headline in the Herald following the election was "Now The Mahi Begins ". What made that headline standout was that it used Maori but didn't see the need to translate . The idea that mahi is now recognised pretty widely as meaning work serves to show that as well as Te Reo Maori night classes overflowing, we non attenders at those classes are slowly adopting Maori words and phrases. Mokopuna, mana, whanau, Aotearoa, Tamaki Makaurau, korero, and kaupapa, haere mai are increasingly used and more widely understood. Every primary age child can confidently belt out the National Anthem in Maori [even if the tune continue to challenge] and the seven stars of Matariki hold no fear.

While there is still a long way to go, President Alison stepped up to the lectern and did her bit. As for many of us, speaking in public in a second language is a daunting prospect so congratulations Alison. Kia ora Alison.

Alisons musings.

It has been a busy few weeks with Rotary;

Steve and I were guests at Inner Wheel’s Spring celebration
I, with other club members, attended the opening of the playground at Stanhope school of the Rae and Ernie Johnston tepee playground
The Pakuranga Rotary Club Trophy for Community Spirit and Leadership was at the Edgewater prizegiving awarded to Connor Magatogia.
The Board has agreed to sponsor students for both RYPEN and RYLA – great to see these programmes up and running. If you know of potential RYLA students contact Trish Plowright
The Board has also agreed to sponsor Sunnyhills School for Trees for Survival
Top School plans are progressing – Trish and Nick will be looking for helpers, with past experience for this programme.
The Carnival plans are in hand – Save the Date - Sunday 21 March. Linda Agnew and her team are looking for help for the organisation.
We had our first induction of a member to our club for the 2020/ 2021 Rotary year – Sojung Yoon, who is a teacher at Farm Cove Intermediate.

Ngā mihi,

Alison.

The artist behind our 50th Anniversary Project.

There has been lots of interest in the 50th Anniversary artwork project and the artist so in upcoming bulletins I will add some detail, explain more about the artwork itself and keep members updated with photos as it is fabricated and assembled.

The artist, Dion Hitchens has a Bachelor of Fine Arts from Elam School of Fine Arts at The University of Auckland and a Postgraduate Diploma from AUT University.

Dion is a self employed artist which includes working on commissioned pieces but has also held a variety of academic and teaching roles across New Zealand including MIT, Te Wananga o Aoteoroa and Unitech Institute of Technology

His work is in the collections of Te Papa Tongarewa The Museum of New Zealand, Waikato Museum, Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki, and on public display around New Zealand including large pieces commissioned by the Auckland, Hamilton and Rotorua Councils.

A Rotary and Fundraising Event.

Upcoming events

The Club is planning an evening at Howick Little Theatre to see the play "Ä Christmas Carol" during late November to early December.

It is proposed to try to book a group on Saturday night 28/11/2020 but because pre-bookings without payment is no longer an option a notice will be released shortly for members and partners to note their attendance and make payment into the Club account

Advance notice for the Club Xmas Function.

This will be held on Sunday 13/12/2020 at the Howick Club commencing at 12noon.

A request for members and partners who wish to attend will be sent out closer to the date.In the meantime please reserve this date and time.

Dennis Kavanagh
Club Services Committee
027 3022377.

Environmental sustainability

As our club settles into a much more normal system of meetings, on Monday we welcomed Cate Jessop , Enviroschools and Sustainable schools advisor for Auckland City Council and two students, Jessie and Ashley from Farm Cove Intermediate to address members and guests.

Cate began with a poll covering some of our beliefs about environmental change and future needs. While we were far from being unanimous there was a general understanding that it takes many years to effect real change to attitudes about the environment, that its going to take a long time to effect actual environmental improvement and the sooner and younger we start people thinking about the environment the better.

Enviroschools which started twenty years ago is based on the whakatauki - “success is not the work of an individual but the work of many” a sentiment that is closely mirrored in Rotary’s own ideals. With 1000 New Zealand schools now signed up and active members [39% of all schools] the notion of building a more sustainable future is the key focus of this initiative.

For Farm Cove the guiding ideal is “to foster a generation of people who instinctively think and act sustainably.”

The Enviroschools model is based on four pillars, each of which is on display at Farm Cove Intermediate:

Place – Wahi. Ecological design and action in the natural and built environment. E.g. edible gardens, beehives, solar panels and the local environment.

Practices – Tikanga. Sustainable practices in the day to day running of the school.e.g. being a Wastewise school, a worm farm and the use of eco-friendly products in the school.

Programmes – Kaupapa Ako. A living curriculum with sustainability integrated into learning and action. E.g inquiry learning, Te Whare Ako lessons, student well-being surveys.

People and participation – Tangata. E.g. local beach clean ups, moth plant eradication, Pestival, Zero waste Rotary Carnival.

While we often think that the natural order of things is to educate the parents who will then pass that knowledge and those attitudes through to their children, but research has shown in areas such as diet and the environment, children can often be powerful catalysts for change in their families. That enthusiasm for a more sustainable future was evident in Jessie and Ashley’s presentation and in Cates obvious belief in, and passion for, the work she does with schools.

Trap library

On Sunday morning the Community committee became involved in the combined Club’s Trap Library East Auckland’s programme that was established by our Club in 2019.

At the request of Biosecurity, the Rotary walkway is currently their target area. A purpose built and appropriately decorated trailer arrived at Bramley Reserve with a huge assortment of traps, the locals, (being advised by a pamphlet drop and social media) turned up in numbers and took away around 80 possum, stoat and rat traps. Even with six helpers, (from three Clubs) we were busy the whole morning.

Many locals congratulated and thanked us for such a worthwhile community service and we have since had one contact us wanting to either join our Club or become a volunteer. We went away energised and with a feeling of pride at being involved with such a great programme.

Stanhope Road

What a wonderful morning we had at Stanhope!! The outdoor education area was outstanding and far exceed expectations.

Ellerslie Sunrise and the school were lavish in their praise of our contribution. We each got a gift from the children and a huge thank you card.

Vonney was very proud and thanked us for our stewardship of the Trust. A member of Ellerslie Sunrise can remember the big oak being planted !!

It was a magical morning.

Up and Running

Members will be pleased that we are now back to our normal two week meeting schedule and have started with some really excellent speakers.

Committees are also back in action as we start the process of raising the money and resources we need to support our local and wider communities.

In the last bulletin I published an opinion piece on membership and invited members to feedback any thoughts and ideas they had.

I have received two very thoughtful responses from younger women whose connection with our club is through current or past members. The intention is to create a summary response from everyone who sends in their thoughts rather than ascribe thoughts to individuals -i.e. your thoughts can be anonymous.

If however, you would like to draft up a more publishable piece that can be published in full. Share your thoughts as it is by the sharing of the widest possible range of ideas that we can ensure the best outcomes possible for our club.

A daring rescue of 12 boys trapped in a cave.

At a very convivial joint meeting with the Auckland east Rotary Club, our members were treated to an extremely interesting and moving talk by Professor Simon Mitchell, one of an intrepid group of people who enjoy diving deep into the oceans and exploring large caves.

Simon gave a very detailed account of the challenges faced and steps taken to rescue twelve soccer team boys and their coach from caves in the Tham Luang Forest Park in the far north of Thailand in July 201 Though not directly involved in the rescue he is a close friend of Richard Harris (Anaesthesist) and Craig Challen (Veterinary surgeon), two Australian divers who both received recognition as Australians of the year (2019) for their crucial part in the dramatic events.

Check out all the details on You Tube but there is nothing like hearing the story first hand from such an enthusiast and knowledgeable presenter.

Some highlights:

An appreciation of just how murky the water was in the cave sumps and how convoluted the passages through which the boys, anaesthetised and hanging from their diver rescuers, had to be negotiated.
How easy it was to ‘lose the line’ which had been set by the first search divers. The loss of a Thai diver was attributed to this.
An appreciation of how this became a world event with experts from the UK (Rick Stanton in particular) the USA and Thai authorities and multi-national divers involved (about 100 in total).
How frightening it must have been for the team, in total darkness, without food and with limited water trickling down the cave walls (the water below was too polluted for safe use), in putrid surroundings with no sense of time and no realistic expectation of rescue until the appearance of the first divers after 9 days!
The total underwater distance the boys had to be brought through – 1.2 km. with the longest section being 350 metres. The total ‘journey’ was close to 4 km.
The risks taken in using anaesthetics as the only viable way of keeping the boys calm during the procedure and the need to re-inject (even under water) at the first signs of body movement – other that expired air bubbles. There were no precedents to follow so no guarantee of success
The effectiveness of the full face Interspiro Divator masks which ensured constant positive airway pressure (CPAP) during the whole time.
The selection of the first two boys to go, on the basis that they would have the furthest distance to ride their bikes home once out of the cave!

All who heard this talk could not have but been moved by the whole account – in times of Covid, such uplifting stories need to be more widely known.

Alisons Musings for October.

Auckland is back at Level 1, so hopefully our Rotary year can return to something akin to normal.

A couple of our big projects are running next year: Top Schools and the Rotary Community Carnival and Water Festival.

With fewer club members some members are taking on multiple roles.

For the Club to succeed we do need all members to be involved.

The Community Committee needs help with a couple of projects, including delivering flyers for the Trap Library project. Please contact Linda Agnew aggi04@gmail.com

President’s Quiz

At last week’s meeting we debuted the new fundraiser for the Sunshine Fund. A true/ False quiz. Incorrect answer, you pay.

The questions will be sourced from my general knowledge (with some assistance from my family). $40 was raised last week.

Science School

We have put forward 2 excellent candidates for the John Yolland Memorial Prize.

Madeline will be involved when the students present to us next year.

Thanks Phillip Tse, for yet again, interviewing students and putting forward the applications.

Membership thoughts.

The issue of membership is a perennial one and we continue to lose members more quickly than we can attract new members. This is of course not peculiar to our club.

From my perspective there are a number of contributing factors:

While younger people get involved in individual causes and projects, they seem much less likely or willing to join service clubs. Rotary has in fact held up quite well in terms of membership compared to organisations such as Lions, Kiwanis and Jaycees.
Rotary was seen as a somewhat elite organisation which along with the good work it did also generated business contacts and encouraged business networking. That type of networking is now done differently and is therefore less likely to be a reason why people might become members. That notion of being something of an elite organisation may also be part of the public perception of the organisation.
Families are now much more likely to involve two fully employed adults and a regular meeting along with other commitments makes being an active member more difficult.
Clubs have struggled to move with the times and the age, gender and cultural profile of many clubs does not reflect that of the wider population. We are of course all lovely people but it’s hard to see how we might be an attractive club for younger people and especially younger women.
The structure of the organisation places a significant weighting on the regular meeting. That is often not what those people who want to roll up their sleeves and get involved in a project or cause are looking for. That is the ratio of meeting to actual action may not fit the needs of at least some.
Meetings are still relatively formal and are less likely to mirror the type of meetings many prospective members now engage in.

Over the years we have tried a variety of approaches and we have individual members who have been very active and innovative in trying to attract new members. .

One very obvious trend is that very few of us [my self included] have our own children as members. Why not? The reason for asking the question is twofold. Firstly, what are the barriers to membership? Once we know those perhaps it will inform our next step. Secondly, and a more sobering outcome might be the response that shows increasing membership by any approach will be difficult. Finally there are past members who have gone on to become really active in other organisations, and it would be instructive to know why they have made that transition.

There is another aspect to membership and that involves retaining, in some capacity, as many members as we can. Is there any way in which people can retain an association with the club without being full members? Alternatively, would it be possible to have some form of “non-member active”, which are people who have never been members but who will support us in some capacity? That might include working bees, supporting an activity such as the Carnival, Top Schools or the Quiz night. This would mean that while actual membership remains low our capacity to do work in the community would be increased.

If what we have been doing has not had the desired effect then it makes sense to look at what other things we could do. In my view, addressing the situation requires the best ideas from across the club so your thoughts are sought. Let Alison or your committee chair know hat you think. Alternatively write a piece for the Bulletin that we can share with all members.

Buckley Systems

While Bill Buckley himself was left stranded in New Plymouth due to a fault with his plane, his very capable physicist,

Tobin Jones gave us a very intensive address on just what Buckley Systems is about.The company manufactures precision electromagnets, vacuum chambers, accelerator systems and components coupled with design and physics.

The products manufactured appear to be finding their way around the world where they are comprised in other manufactured systems.

Of particular interest were the semiconductor devices used in computers, phones, and flat screen TV’s, automobiles and personal computers.

Buckley’s high-precision electro-magnets are being used in both medical diagnostic treatments and medical therapeutic treatments. Of particular interest were the use of

particle accelerators used in medical therapy for cancer. Charged particle beams can be accelerated and directed at a patient’s tumour in a controlled manner for a specific amount of time. The high precision magnets with specific and challenging magnetic field requirements are also manufactured by the company. Several different modes of treatment of cancer cells are utilized, for example: electrons, protons, gamma rays and neutrons can be used for treating cancer.

Buckley’s is another example of the ingenuity with which New Zealand organisations are able to invent systems and use their productions around the world to enable enhancement with other products and organisations. Thank you Bill and Tobin for making us aware of a company New Zealanders can be proud of.

A Short Bulletin

After successive lockdowns punctuated by the occasional chance to meet in person as a club members were pleased to be able to again meet and welcome a guest speaker. The report from the scribe that details the activities of a very successful and innovative New Zealand company can be found below.

Membership will be something that is on many of your minds. I have added a few thoughts in the bulletin [the benefit of being the editor]. If you have any thoughts feel free, encouraged even, to share those with Alison or the chair of the committee you belong to.

President Alison has volunteered to co-ordinate the Rotary Community Carnival and Water Festival to be held in February 2021. The Howick Local Board has committed to funding this again. It showcases Pakuranga Rotary in the community and is a welcome source off fundraising but does require a sizeable workforce from our club so look forward to a day in the sun early in 2021.

Alison’s Musings for September

This Rotary year has been challenging.

Until it is safe for us all, we are back to Zoom meetings, but that is no barrier for Rotary. In the last month, among other things, the Club has:

a. Learnt that the 50^th anniversary sculpture project is continuing – thanks to this team;

b. Facilitated planting days for our Trees for Survival Schools – thanks Peter Taylor (Community Committee);

c. The Rotary Raffle has been launched – thanks Fund raising under Sylvie Wilkinson’s leadership;

d. The Auxiliary club helped with ERKs packing – thanks Trish Plowright and her team;

e. Learnt that Tamaki River Festival, with slightly reduced funding, will happen next year (Community Committee under Linda Agnew’s leadership) ;

f. Started planning for Top Schools in March next year – Youth Committee under Trish Plowright’s leadership.

This year we have reintroduced committees. This is where the work of the club happens. Not everyone has joined a committee. There are vacancies in:

Youth contact either,

Trish Plowright trish@elmpark.school.nz the committee chair or

Nick Loseby her deputy nick.loseby@gmail.com

Community contact Linda Agnew linda aggi04@gmail.com

Finally, a special thanks to Don Lawry and the Club Management Committee for their rapid responses to the lockdown changes.

Keep safe.

Lottery

Savings in a Covid world.

The loss of face to face meeting has meant that we no longer have sergeant sessions. A saving to you.

Fewer meetings means no costly food and beverages. More savings.

We are now offering you the chance to invest some of that saved money.

For just $100 you can secure your own numbered lottery ball that lasts the rest of the Rotary year.

Provided 100 balls are sold, you will have 20 chances of actually making money. As a club full of the titans on commerce and industry we are sure this investment will be high on your list of priorities.

Call to Action! Be in with a chance to win by depositing $100 in our club account number is 02 0223 0017811 02.

Make sure you include your name and the reference is Tambola.

Swift, no-obligation requests for more information to Sylvie please on sylviecalling@gmail.com or 5277035 or 0274847335.

Christmas Party

Christmas Party.

Our Father Christmas missed out on using his costume last year and so to keep him happy we are looking at running the children/ grandchildren/ great grandchildren Rotary Christmas party again in December.

If you have one or more of the above – providing they are 10 years or younger and you think they would like to come to a party – can you get back to kim@ajetservices.co.nz.

Joining a Committee

Joining a Committee.

Over the past two years there have been regular requests from members to re-establish committees. They were seen as the engine rooms and key fellowship hubs of a highly functioning club.

The good news is that committees have been established. The bad news is that we still have a lack of members in some committees.

There will be any number of good reasons why members have not been able to commit to a committee but for the rest of us it would be great to either join a committee or if you can’t manage the extra meeting, get hold of a chairperson and commit to supporting some or all of the work that the committee will be undertaking in this Rotary year.

Whats the story with our Auxiliary

What’s the story with our Auxiliary ?

Our Auxiliary is a first for Pakuranga Rotary and as with lots of new initiatives, details are not always well understood. In the interests of clarity some key points are outlined below.

Members of the Auxiliary are full members of Pakuranga Rotary. They pay the same annual fees as others and that fee goes straight into our club accounts.
As members know, most Rotary clubs in New Zealand are struggling to maintain, let alone grow their membership. Our Auxiliary encourages younger people to join Rotary and contribute to the community in a way that better meets their circumstances.
The Auxiliary makes up around 20% of our membership and very significantly improves our gender balance. Without them our numbers would total just 42.
Right now, despite Covid, our Auxiliary have contributed: Communicare knitting group, clothing for Plunket babies, reading programme, supporting Women’s refuge and spent 30 hours packing ERKS boxes.
Their meetings are business focused, akin to our Committees.

Lock Down 2

Just as we were getting back in the swing of regular physical meeting the tricky virus has disrupted what we hoped was the new normal. Despite President Trump declaring he did not want to be like New Zealand we are still in pretty good shape and will hopefully be back out of level 3 soon.

The level which we will move to will of course impact on the type of meetings we can hold. Club Management will be working behind the scenes to plan for that and once we get some direction on Monday the final planning will be able to occur.

District Changeover Recognition.

Graham Kearns was awarded a sapphire for his PHF, in recognition of his work as ADG. Congratulations Graham!

Pakuranga Rotary was awarded the Rangitoto Trophy for “the club project that has achieved the greatest environmental impact in the District.” Duncan, Sylvie and Joe were the Club’s key movers.

Health Issues and Club Support

If anyone would like to share in confidence (or for publication) any health or welfare issues or you could do with some help from the Club please contact Chris Ward or Geoff Shapland.

Wool you help?

Could members and partners please have a peep in cupboards for any part balls of wool (any type) They are needed so Communicare, Margaret A and Mary Benjamin of Anchorage Park can continue making items like these beautiful blankets for Plunket and needy families in our area.

Thank You Pakuranga Rotary.

“On behalf of St Marks Church in Pakuranga, we thank you and Pakuranga Rotary for the donation of plum puddings for our foodbank. Our recipients will definitely enjoy the sumptuous taste of this treat. God Bless!” Mannix Lopez, Pastoral Coordinator.

Boy do we have a deal for you.

Expressions of interest please!

Covid has changed most things in our lives (plus we are all getting older) so no surprise that the club must take a different approach to everything, including fundraising. We are offering an opportunity to passively generate funds while having a wee bit of fun along the way.

Remember all that money we saved by not being able to attend Rotary? Just $100 (three Waipuna meals) of that will secure you one numbered lottery ball that lasts the rest of the Rotary year. Provided 100 balls are sold, you will have 20 chances of doing nicely thanks! We have 15 takers already! Balls are not limited to Rotarians, so please ask friends to join in.

Swift no- obligation requests for more information to Sylvie please on sylviecalling@gmail.com or 5277035 or 0274847335.

Next Meetings Guest Speaker

Next meetings guest speaker is Cate Jessop.

Cate is Auckland City Councils Environmental Advisor, working in 75 schools across the Howick and Papatoetoe Wards, empowering youth towards a sustainable future.

Hear about this programme, which sits so beautifully with our own TfS initiative.

Assisting Cate will be Saralee and Ashlee, Enviro-school leaders speaking of the initiatives Farm Cove Intermediate has taken to develop a sustainable school.

Communicare

Established in 1959, Communicare is a not for profit association, serving the elderly, lonely and disabled within the Auckland Community for over 55 years.

It has as its mission statement

“To actively improve the quality of life for the elderly, lonely and disabled by providing recreation, support and advocacy in Friendship Centres.”

If you have some spare time you might be willing to volunteer as a driver for Commuicare.

Generally, its only once or twice a month and in our area on a Monday or a Tuesday morning. Interested? Contact bulletin editor – allanvester@eduplus.co.nz.

Life Education Trust

The Life Education Trust has two great fundraising events coming up that Rotarians might like to support. That support will enable Life Education Trust Counties Manukau to continue to teach 28,000 children aged 5-13 our health and well-being programme annually across Counties Manukau and Franklin including to thousands of children in the Pakuranga Rotary Club area.

Harold's Disco:

Papakura Netball Centre - Bruce Pulman Park, Takanini
Sat Aug 29th
Tickets $10 and include glowsticks
three different age group sessions to make sure everyone has the best time: 4.45pm - 8.45pm
sausage sizzle, snacks and Harold merchandise to buy
chill out room for parents
have your photo taken with Harold!

The Great Auckland Duck Race
Vector Wero Whitewater Park. Sat Oct 17th 2020. 9am - midday

Life Education Trust Counties Manukau and Harold the Giraffe are in the throes of organizing the fifth year of this fantastic community event:

three exciting duck races down the white-water rapids, including a Business Race, School Race and Everybody Race with 5,000 little ducks
FREE photo-booth, bouncy castle and face-painting
$2 games including 'soccer darts' and Hook-a-Duck where everyone wins a prize
food carts, music and entertainment

Business ducks are available to buy for $200 (inc GST) at: https://thegreataucklandduckrace.com/product/business-duck/

https://thegreataucklandduckrace.com/

Chris Luxon

Preferring to be known for who he is, rather than what he does (or has done), Chris Luxton, National Party candidate for the Botany seat in the imminent election addressed an attentive gathering of about 60 local Rotary Club members, partners and friends at this week’s meeting.

Chris’s lengthy CV was used by Del Johnson to introduce a man who has made a huge impact already in the international and New Zealand business world. A snapshot of his education (much in the Howick area) and university achievements provided background to his extremely valuable experiences as a leading executive in the global multi-national company Unilever where he honed his strategic thinking and actions to enhance the company’s position in world markets. With these well prepared tools in his pouch he accepted the position of CEO of Air New Zealand, an 80 year old company, with which he stayed for seven years.

Most Kiwis would be aware of the incredible record of this airline under his leadership with the upgrading of systems, opening new markets, forming strategic alliances with other airlines, Air Points, modern aircraft and recruitment of top executives and workers to the point where it was elected the top Corporate Reputation and Trust Company in NZ (2015 – 19) AND in Australia (1017 – 19). Listening to his underlying philosophies and strategies in the bulk of his address one can understand how this success story was attained.

The three basic components for company success were outlined as being Enhanced Consumer Experience < High Performance and Engaged Culture > Superior Commercial results. Profit, while important for shareholders, was seen as a pleasing end result of nurturing and supporting exceptional leaders. The popularity of the company as a place to work is shown in the fact that 58,000 people applied for 1000 jobs in recent times.

Chris recommended the book ‘Good to be Great’ by Jim Collins as a starting point to understanding his strategies and goals. Why settle for ‘good; when ‘great’ is achievable? Even a summary of the strategies outlined by Chris would just about provide another book but in essences they were based on four ‘plans’, all involving discipline:

Disciplined people – Chris wanted Level 5 people with him – humble but professional, prepared to set and achieve defined goals and having potential to go even further – his expectation was that at least 70% of those leaving the company would go to higher levels in new undertakings. Close reviewing and mentoring aided this personal development.
Disciplined thought – focussing on what can be controlled rather than finding excuses for things not working e.g. fuel prices, exchange rates, weather etc. etc. Confronting reality but thinking outside the square, finding what one can be passionate about but still focussing on the core and doing it well.
Disciplined action – removing the ‘pain points’ from customer experiences e.g queues, lounges, cabin service, booking systems etc. (15 listed). The operational model had to focus on safety, reliability, service and profitability – in that order.
Building to last – developing a competitive advantage and then holding it against all competition. Becoming the world’s best – almost there, currently ranked 3^rd!

In question time Chris fielded questions relating to his move into the political arena, one in which he admits to having to learn a lot but not afraid to start at the bottom and learn to ‘unlearn’ what might impede his future. He made it clear that his desire was for public service rather than politics per se. Electorate first, party second and country third was his mantra – perhaps a foresight into his political future (?) In reference to NZ/China relations he used the expression – ‘we can disagree without being disagreeable’ – wise counsel in the current climate.

All attendees, I am sure, could not help but t be impressed by Chris’s openness, humility, depth of knowledge and thought, articulateness, sense of humour and, yes, charisma. Botany could be the winner next month and if that is the case, so will the quality of our parliamentary representation.

Headline

Keen on Politics?

It's election season and there will be promises.

This candidates hoarding was spotted heading into Wanaka.

It will be interesting to see how many votes he gets.

Perhaps honesty will have it's reward?

A great community initiative at Te Tuhi.

Te Tuhi has partnered with Rescare Homes Trust and The University of Auckland to establish Aotearoa’s New Zealand’s first training café for people with intellectual disabilities The new café, located at Te Tuhi, provides in-house training and paid employment for people with intellectual disabilities, through a community-based programme.

The initiative launched on 20 July 2020 and will be open Monday to Saturday 9am-2pm serving barista-made coffee and a range of freshly baked cabinet food.

Rescare Homes Trust provides supported residential accommodation and vocational support for adults with intellectual disabilities, to enable more independent living. Tracey Lanigan, CEO of Rescare, says, “The training café is an excellent stepping stone to learn new skills in a supportive environment, and we are excited to be partnering with Te Tuhi and The University of Auckland in creating equal learning, training and employment opportunities for people with disabilities.”

Pakuranga Rotary supported the establishment of the Te Tuhi Community centre and Art gallery and an added bonus of supporting the café is easy access to nationally significant art exhibitions.

The café project is a non-profit enterprise and they are currently seeking support to cover wages of trainers, trainees and other café staff.

Covid 19 puddings.

Through the generosity of our members and the Club coffers, we were able to donate 14 boxes of NZ made high end plum puddings to foodbanks in our local area. The idea was to allow needy families to enjoy a hot luxury treat in the middle of Winter, not only filling tummies, but lifting spirits along the way. An added bonus is that they have our logo on each one!!

Photo shows Major Allister Irwin, his wife Anne , Sylvie and Romona Lolohea, the Sallies Community Ministries Manager.

Back to real meetings.

Large numbers attended our last club meeting and people enjoyed the opportunity.

This is another reminder to all members that you do need to respond to the invitation sent to you before each meeting either accepting or declining.

That enables club management to ensure that we have the correct amount of food and liquid refreshments and ensure that we do not run meetings at a cost to the club.

Thanks in advance.

Scribes Report

At our second physical meeting post Covid 19 lock down the club was pleased to have Dr Diva Cohen join us by Zoom. Diva, an ex Pakuranga College student who the club supported to attend RYLA and the Model United Nations in the Hague, and who went on to become a “Young New Zealander of the Year" introduced the club to the Neuroscience of Flow.

Diva who is now employed by Google to lead the “hyper-local problem” which deals with issues around accurate location for such services as ride sharing.

If you have ever felt completely immersed in an activity, really creative, with high levels of energy and with time seeming to just disappear then you are likely to be in a state that psychologists refer to as flow. It can result in a 500% increase in productivity, 200% increase in creativity including lateral thinking and a reduction of 50% in the time it takes to learn.

Flow is a concept that societies have recognised for thousands of years, but it is only in the past one hundred years that science has started to provide more understanding of what it actually involves. There are three key characteristics of situations of flow. The task needs to involve a stretch goal with a reasonable chance of completion. The goal will feel very clear and as you perform an action towards the goal there is feedback as to progress.

While it might be logical to expect that our brains are more active during flow, Diva explained that exactly the opposite occurs. Our neurons move increasingly from beta waves to alpha and gamma waves. Those parts which are involved with ego and sense of self, and act as a brake on us taking intellectual risks shut down. All five of the neurochemicals that stimulate the brain fire at once giving us a burst of energy and an intellectual high. Meditation and “mindfulness” can help us achieve a sense of flow, but the research also has implications in employment where the tasks that are set and environment provided can increase the chance that people will be in the flow.

Diva finished with some comments on life in the USA where she is based.

Recently married life is great, but she is also aware of the increase in social tension resulting from Covid -19 and the Black Lives Matter movement.

With an increased sale of guns and the concern that many people have about how they might fare in any interaction with the police, Diva noted, we are lucky to live in New Zealand.

More From Changeover.

Committees for New Rotary Year.

Joining a committee enables you to:

get to know other members of the club;
Participate in projects to help/ serve our community. Remember this year’s theme is Rotary Opens Doors – so let’s help others open the door to future opportunity;
Socialise with Rotary members;
Have a forum to raise any issues about the Club.

If you haven’t already joined a committee can I suggest you contact one of the above to find out where the committees will be meeting. Note, you can still be involved in projects outside of your chosen committee.

Fundraising - Sylvie Wilkinson

Club Management – Don Lawry

Youth - Trish Plowright/ Nick Loseby

Community - Linda Agnew

Note, you can still be involved in projects outside of your chosen committee.

At their first meeting committees will be discussing planned projects for the year. Come along and be involved in deciding what the Club will be doing in 2020/21.

Projects for 2020/21 will be discussed at the Board meeting on 27 July. The Board will be then report back to the Club.

The Bulletin for 2020

Assuming there is not a long line of people wanting to be the bulletin editor, it looks like it might be me for a while yet.

I am of course happy to fill it with my musings on politics and the world in general but many of you might like to avoid that.

The solution is easy - if you want items published, get those through to me as they become ready.

allanvester@eduplus.co.nz

Images are a welcome addition.

End of Life Referendum Presentation

Newmarket Rotary are holding and evening meeting which might be of interest members.

Kiwi journalist Caralese Trayes who has written a book called The Final Choice- End of life suffering: Is assisted dying the answer?

Remuera Golf Club.

Tues 11 Aug 6.30pm (for 7.00pm)

The cost is $40 per person, and includes dinner.

Caralese will tell us about her journey and hunt for the truth about assisted dying and the End of Life Choice Act. She has many stories to tell of her interviews with lawyers, doctors, ethicists, clerics and many others from around New Zealand and across the world.

If you are interested in attending, contact Scott Burridge 021 684 733

Trees for Survival

Trees for Survival

We have been advised that the next planting day for Pakuranga Intermediate School is to be on Thursday 6 August 2020 out a Clevedon.

We are looking for someone to be the Club’s TFS co-ordinator. If you are interested please contact Linda Agnew 021843804 and aggi04@gmail.com

Elise Arrives Home.

“It was hard to say goodbye to everyone at the airport and I still can’t believe I am back in France and that I am not going back to New Zealand.”

Changeover with a difference

This year Covid forced us into rethinking Changeover.

We opted for a mid-Winter Xmas theme, with five homes becoming Xmas Bubbles with up to 12 guests around the dinner table. Half way through the evening, all locations logged into Zoom, beamed from Alison’s home, and witnessed Bart give his end of year report.

Certificates were awarded to his Board members as well as Nick, Del and Joe d’Ambrosio (of the Auxiliary) Bill Duncan and Bob Ritchie received Charter Member pins. Then came the PHFs. (all the awards had been secretly delivered to Bubbles and were presented personally, by the host… a lovely touch). [More details in the Bulletin.]

Following the handing over of the Chain, Alison briefly outlined her plans for the year… service to the community, and introduced her Board. Our thanks to our hosts Allan Vester, Alison Gilbert, Don Lawry, Kelvin Davies and Peter Armstrong. A very pleasant and inclusive Changeover.

Club Awards

Don Lawry PHF Sapphire Pin

Is a valued trustee of the Johnston Memorial Trust, where he adopts a clear, measured and logical approach to funding applications.

He volunteered for the Taveuni building project in Fiji.

Don did an excellent job as chair of the 2020 Carnival Committee, where he demonstrated strong leadership and excellent organisational skills. He is well organised, easy to work with, hardworking, reliable, approachable, likeable and has an enviable ability to get the best out of people. Don is a fine Rotarian who exemplifies all aspects of both the four way test and our principal motto of service above self. Pakuranga Rotary is fortunate to have such a person as a member.

Duncan Loney PHF Sapphire Pin

Duncan stepped up as President when the Club was in a difficult situation. He secured the attachment of the Satellite Club securing 18 new members for Pakuranga. He gave financial support and became a Rotary Grandpa to a uni student, assisting her to become a Rotarian. He brought a jolly and professional touch to meetings and was very active in fundraising efforts for the Club. He co- established the biggest environmental project this club has seen, since Trees for Survival, engaging with six other service clubs, Council, Enviroschools and Bio Security to establish the Trap Library across the Howick Ward. Always cheerful, energetic, pleasant and positive.

President’s Cup

Penelope Franca, from our Auxiliary club, initiated and ran the Plunket programme, supplying hundreds of garments for needy children. She led the Communicare Knitters programme, providing donated wool to the group who in turn, produced baby clothes. She was a member of the Carnival Committee redesigning and printing flyers and street signs and collecting field data at the event. She also worked at editing Membership material. Penelope is a hard working, pleasant, cheerful and positive Rotarian.. all this while working full time as a successful real estate agent and a young baby at home.

Joe D’Ambrosio

Is part of our Auxiliary and a very valued member the Pest Free committee where he played a major part in establishing and running the electronic registration system, keeping track of hundreds of traps and trappers across the whole Howick Ward. This was ground breaking work, without which, the programme could not have proceeded.

Elise's Farewell

Posted on Jun 15, 2020

2020 Virtual Convention

Posted on Jun 15, 2020

Join us during the 2020 Rotary Virtual Convention, 20-26 June, for activities beyond the general sessions that will get you moving, help you get involved, and connect you with members from around the world.

You can:

Stay active with the Rotary Walking Challenge. Track your progress on a leaderboard, enjoy some friendly competition, and have the chance to win great prizes – including two tickets for next year’s convention!
Explore the Virtual House of Friendship to discover Rotary Fellowships, Rotary Action Groups, potential partners, projects, and other valuable resources.
Join our Featured Breakouts to learn new skills and engage with fellow members. These take place daily, 22-26 June, with more breakout sessions throughout July.
Share how you’re participating by posting a selfie or other photos on our event pageon Facebook.
Use our Aloha Rotary GIFs and augmented reality filters to engage with your friends and family on social media. Add a GIF to your Facebook or Instagram stories. Snap a selfie or record a video while virtually wearing sunglasses or face paint. Learn how.

Sign up for our free convention today and encourage friends in your network, club, and community to join you. Don’t miss out!

http://msgfocus.rotary.org/c/1aIQox1g1QQ60QqgLVfeHmQeuDp

Rotary Peace Scholarships

Posted by Bill Boyd on Jun 15, 2020

Each year, Rotary funds up to 130 fully funded Peace scholarships. We now have over 1300 qualified Fellows.

The Master’s programme consists of approximately 21 months of study and Fellows graduate with a degree, generally in Peace and Conflict Resolution. Midway through the course Rotary funds around six weeks for the Fellows to individually gain practical experience and some go to very interesting and dangerous places! The universities that provide these programmes are Duke/University of North Carolina, Bradford, Uppsala, International Christian University in Tokyo and Queensland. These universities are inspected every three years and over the years three have been dropped and replaced and the competition to be selected is intense. On the last occasion we had over 100 universities apply.

The Certificate course was altered last year to include three months live-in at the University, nine months of on-line support, and then back for a one week residential refresh of the experience. In this course, Fellows go together for a one week practical experience. Often for the Fellows at Chulalonghorn in Bangkok they travel to Laos to gain an understanding of the causes of the notorious Pol Phot genocide and from Makerere in Kampala they will visit countries such as Rwanda. This is the first year in operation of Makerere and it was selected in a very competitive process. Rotary wanted a Peace course in Africa and several countries wanted to be the host.

In general, applicants with a study background tend towards a Master’s programme and individuals who have been working for some years in peace related activities gravitate towards the Certificate course as it requires less time off work.Of the graduates, most reside in the US as so many international organisation are centred there but 9% of the total [116] reside in Australia and Oceania. Almost 40% of the graduates work for NGOs or other peace related organisations and many are teachers/professors, in research positions or working for governments. 71 work for UN agencies and 9 for the World Bank.

Our Peace programmes are very attractive to Rotarians and over $170 million has been given to the Peace Endowment Fund.

Zoe Litt report from Germany

Posted by Zoe Lit on Jun 15, 2020

Hi all,

Hope you are well. I heard New Zealand is corona free! Lucky you. Germany is a lot better now with under 10,000 cases. Despite new cases we have been on the decline which is amazing news. Things are slowly starting to return to normal!

My monthly report for this month is a mix of quarantine and life starting again. I’m so grateful that things are coming back to normal and that my new host family is so welcoming and amazing. This would not have been possible without the Rotary and my clubs Saalburg-Taunus and Pakuranga.

Zoe.

Guinness Down Under

Monday night saw the club host its first guest [non club member] speaker by Zoom. Given the ability to have speakers who are not in Auckland, or possibly even in New Zealand, its very likely we will have more such occasions in the future.

Rod Smith, author of Guinness Down Under, took members through the history of what is an iconic company and brew. Started by Richard Guinness in 1757 the company moved to its current site at St James Gate, Dublin in 1759, brewing ale which given general town water supply quality was a safer drink than water. The recipe for the porter that the company is now world famous for came from London.

Production was limited by heavy excise tax and tariffs on exports to England and by the time Richard Guinness died in 1766 around 22,479 barrels were being produced per year. The removal of those restraints and good management by successive generations of the Guinness family saw that production rise to over 2 million barrels. Brewed in fifty countries under license, that has continued to grow and over 9 million glasses of Guinness are poured around the world every day using the “double gas” method first developed in the 1960s and replacing the cask conditioned method used previously.

The company was expanded by a strong export policy. Guinness first came to Hobart in 1824 and by 1851 was being imported into Nelson. The company also entered into a range of bottling arrangements where the brew was bottled in the importing countries often under the name of the bottler rather than the brewer. New Zealand first brewed the beer to bottle here in 1960 but it was only in the 1990’s when we started brewing draught Guinness that the brand really took off.

While the first four generation of the Guinness family were directly involved in the production of the beer, as is often the way management and ownership of the company has passed out of family hands with only 5% of shares now held by the family.

In New Zealand production of the draught product is based at the Lion facilities in East Tamaki. Bottles and cans continue to be imported from Dublin.

If anybody who would like to buy a copy of Guinness Down Under – please email Rod at guinnessdu@xtra.co.nz and he will arrange. Cost is $30 (which includes postage) payable by internet banking. He’ll advise the bank account number.

President Elect - Alison

Posted by Allan Vester on May 27, 2020

Beginning with the statement of the objective to “make the club relevant to current members and inviting to prospective members”, Alison outlined some proposed changes for the coming Rotary year recognising that to some extent it was "going forward to the past".

To have the club and the ancillary club working in tandem rather in parallel.
To reintroduce committees. These committees become a “home” for members, act as a conduit to the Board and allow for more, smaller scale social events. Rather than allocate members to committees Alison is aiming for members to volunteer to join a committee that especially interests them.
To set up project teams which all members can contribute to for those larger, one off events.

The Committees that will run in the coming years are:

Community	Linda Agnew
Aiming to work with both the local community and the business community.
Fundraising	Sylvie Wilkinson
With almost certain limits on donations and grants the committee will need to to be innovative and think outside the square.
Youth	Trish Plowright assisted by Nick Loseb
Post Covid 19, some traditional programmes may not run in the coming year.
Club Management	Don Lawry
Treasurer	Kim Collins
Secretary	Duncan Loney and Sarah Gilbert

Changeover

Posted by Don Lawry on May 27, 2020

Changeover July 4^th 2020
Opportunity to enjoy some Rotary Hospitality to start the new Rotary Year.

Due to Covid19 restrictions Changeover will be celebrated in small groups& Home Hosting mid-winter Xmas style this year.
All Rotary Club members will be invited to register for Changeover on Saturday July 4th.
We will need a number to register as hosts and will endeavour to work with them to allocate their guests from those who register.
The meal can be potluck or catered by the host at the host’s discretion and a bottle of your favourite tipple will be appreciated.
Dessert will be NZ made Rotary Xmas Pudding
The Formal Changeover will be done via Zoom so that all members can participate.
Watch for an invitation to register on Club Runner

50 Years as a Club

Posted by Bill Duncan on May 27, 2020

Bill as the second half of our charter member duo presented some reminisces of his 50 years as a member of Pakuranga Rotary. As Bill noted, 50 years is a long time and a lot of water has flowed under the bridge and while some things have remained the same most has changed.

The Panmure club, now no longer in existence but once with a membership of over a hundred members, was our mother club. After a few weeks at an alternative venue our club started what has proven to be a very long-term relationship with Waipuna, the initial attraction being the poor standard of food at the initial venue. In those early days members had the responsibility for serving the food and then tidying up.

As a charter member at only thirty years old Bill had to wait until the advanced age of forty to get the opportunity to lead a group exchange team to Kentucky, an opportunity Bill said he will always be grateful for.

A ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court making it illegal to restrict membership on the basis of gender saw the beginning of women being able to join Rotary. This did not change things quickly and Bill could well remember the impact of our first female member. Now thirty-three years later Pakuranga Rotary has elected its first female president.

Rotary Peace Fellowships Program

Posted by Bill Boyd on May 25, 2020

Many Rotarians support the concept of Peace [though there is no clear definition of what Peace is]. While the decision to establish a Peace Endowment was made in 2005, it was 2008 before work to fund the endowment began and by 2017 the gifts as at 30 September 2017 are in excess of $156 million.

When we first established our Peace scholarship program 15 years ago we were almost unique. Now there are some 600 scholarships and we have no point of difference.although our scholarships remain amongst the most generous.

The funding comes from Foundation funds and there is no requirement for districts which nominate scholars to contribute to the cost, though some districts give DDF.

The cost per student varies from University to University and in addition we provide an administration stipend to each University. The current cost per student and source of funding are outlined below.

My Mum used to cut chicken

Posted by Alan Davies on May 25, 2020

My mum used to cut chicken, chop eggs. And spread butter on bread on the same cutting board with the same knife and no bleach, but we didn't seem to get food poisoning. Our school sandwiches were wrapped in wax paper in a brown paper bag, not in ice pack coolers, but I can't remember getting e. coli

Almost all of us would have rather gone swimming in creek, the lake or at the beach instead of a pristine chlorinated pool (talk about boring), no beach closures then either? We all took PE ..... and risked permanent injury with a pair of Dunlop sandshoes bare feet if you couldn’t afford the runners instead of having cross-training athletic shoes with air cushion soles and built in light reflectors that cost as much as a small car. I can't recall any injuries, but they must have happened because they tell us how much safer we are now.

We got the cane or the strap for doing something wrong at school, they used to call it discipline yet we all grew up to accept the rules and to honour & respect those older than us. We had at least 40 kids in our class and somehow, we all learned to read and write, do maths and spell almost all the words needed to write a grammatically correct letter......., FUNNY THAT!! Read on below.

Classifications

Posted by Bill Boyd on May 25, 2020

The classification principle goes back to the start of Rotary in 1905 when Paul Harris and his friends decided that members should come from different classifications so as to represent a cross section of society and not become another focused self-interest group. Classifications were so important that Rotary International established a committee in 1923/24 to review and to make a list of acceptable classifications and clubs were advised that a list of members and their classifications be sent regularly to the General Secretary.

A publication was produced and regularly updated and it is interesting to read of some of the classifications in the 1937 edition. In today’s world it would be a challenge to find a stoker, with the choice of industrial or locomotive, and while some may wear a toupee, there must be a limited number of toupee manufacturers. Anyone use whisk brooms unless you are in the middle of Africa, and it would be the ultimate in political incorrectness to have as a classification “Insane Asylums”. While ship building is still current, ship delivery sounds rather limited.

Not sure if we have autographic registers and the probable alternative name for check writer is parent but only for another year or two.

All joking aside, classification lists have been an important membership tool for Rotary and could be even now. Clubs would compile a list of classifications within their area and ask members to suggest names that would then go the Membership Committee of the club to follow up. The list would be very different to that of 1937 but it certainly connects the club with the community!

The return of the rats and Covid

Posted by Duncan Loney on May 25, 2020

Autumn is upon us and while this means the humidity has gone, it also means the return of the rats!
As we experience cooler weather and longer nights, under cover of the extended darkness, the little guys come closer to dwellings in search of both food and warmth. Nows a good time to increase your trapping efforts? What a great way to make an additional contribution to our community. Let’s get trapping and when Spring arrives, we will see increased bird numbers in our gardens.

A message from the Trap Library Chair, Duncan, who is continuing to have success on his own property.. (photo of a large rat in a mustelid trap!) “ Breaking news!… staying home in our bubbles, we have been given special powers to eliminate all pests breaking the country’s isolation rules and encroaching on to our properties. Best of luck to you all and I look forward to hearing your stories”

What we did in Lockdown 2

Not long before Lockdown, members of the Club and their partners answered the call for help and donated spare knitting wool so it could be turned into something useful.

When each day became an enforced home-stay, Margaret Armstrong got busy with the crochet hook and knitting needles to create these fantastic garments for the little ones. She has produced several cosy beanies and 23 pairs of strong warm slippers for cold little feet.Margaret has asked that these be donated to needy families around our area and we will be using the Auxiliary educators to identify these children. What a wonderful and valuable use of our enforced isolation.

Best Ever Book

One of my all time favourite books is Caribbean by James A Mitchener. It's a large fictional book based on fact, giving an account of the settlement of the Caribbean Islands from the the days of the Caribs and Arawaks, through the pirate era, European settlement, the slave trade, up to the time and after we lived in Barbados. It was quite absorbing in many ways to Maureen & me having visited most of the islands while we lived there.

I Knew I was Right 2

As we all contemplate a move to Level 2 and then the even more exciting Level 1 we will all look back on the weeks since the Covid 19 crisis began. How did it go? Should we have acted sooner, more aggressively, less aggressively, given more support or less support, allowed more exceptions by business or region or population cohort? Did we trust the experts too much or not enough? Can pandemic modelling be trusted? All these questions and many more.

Did anyone write down their analysis down, their views on what should or should not have been done, their predictions on the impact on health or the economy? Probably not and as it turns out that will be really helpful in helping us all conclude that what we thought was really accurate and that we are remarkably prescient.

To help us in that quest for affirmation, there are well over 100 documented biases and tendencies at our disposal. Here are a few to watch out for when thinking about our own recollection of events and the statements of the many commentators who have spoken or written so confidently [with special reference to Mike Hosking and Duncan Garner.]

Confirmation bias - searching for and focusing on information that confirms our own views.
Egocentric bias - recalling the past in a self-serving manner.
False consensus effect - a tendency to overestimate the degree to which others agree with us.
Expectation bias - where research agrees with our own expectations it is more likely to be published.
Hindsight bias - “I knew it all along.”
Subjective validation - the perception that something must be true if an important belief which we hold requires it to be true.
Self-serving bias - a tendency to claim more responsibility for successes than failures.

Meeting by Zoom

Posted on May 07, 2020

Our second meeting by Zoom attracted 20 members. Let's aim for a 50% increase for Monday 11th.

District Governor, Gary, joined us and presented the club [virtually] a certificate of 50 Years of membership.

Of the 31 charter members two are still active and one, Bob Ritchie was able to present some the history and his recollections. A highlight for Bob was the start of the Rotary Walkway during his presidency and his Paul Harris Fellowship, presented in 1992. Bill Duncan, the other charter member, was thwarted from offering his recollections by the technology but we are hopeful of that Bill will be able to do that at an upcoming meeting.

Best song, book and film

Posted by Allan Vester on May 07, 2020

	Yesterday. The Beatles. Dennis Kavanagh. It reminds me of my youth but still stands as a great in today’s world. While the song is credited to Lennon /McCartney it was written entirely by Paul and he was the only Beatle to play on the recording of it. The melody was written a long time before the lyrics and its title was Scrambled Eggs until Paul worked out the lyrics.
	Pride and Prejudice. Jane Austen. Alison Gilbert. I have read this book at least once every year since I was 16. Every time I read it I am staggered by the sheer beauty of the language and how Austen’s commentary on human nature is still relevant today . I find something new to think upon every time I read this book.
	We Are the Champions. Queen. Gary Langford. Written by Freddie Mercury, who was thinking about football [soccer] when he wrote it. A great participation song the fans could sing. He did wonder if it could be construed as his version of I Did It My Way. "No bed of roses but we have made it."

District Foundation News

Posted on May 07, 2020

Smile

Posted on May 07, 2020

A woman reports her husband’s disappearance to the police.

They ask her for a description, and she says, “He’s six feet three inches tall, well built with thick curly hair.”

Her friend says, “What are you talking about! Your husband is five feet four, bald and has a huge belly.”

And she says, “Who wants that one back?”

50th Anniversary Gala Dinner

Posted by Ian Handisides on May 01, 2020

Gala Dinner.

Saturday 2nd of May the night the Rotary Club Of Pakuranga was to have staged their 50^th Anniversary Gala Night at Waipuna, a Night not to have missed.

But yes we are missing the night, thanks to COVID-19. A huge disappointment due to the hours and hours of planning and I would like to thank my Committee.

However, The Gala Night must go on, certainly won’t be Take-Away! A future date to be decided.

WATCH THIS SPACE.

Report from Zoe, our outbound student

Posted by Zoe Lit on May 01, 2020

We have been in lock down for a long time now. I don’t exactly know which day of lockdown it is anymore. Some years in school have gone back to school. Sadly, not my year but hopefully it means that I’ll be back to school soon enough. A lot of shops are now open but it’s weird because you have to have a mask to enter and most shops ask you to take a basket, trolley or chip to make sure that the shop isn’t overcrowded. There's also a new rule in my district now. Everyone has to wear masks in shops or public transports. If not you could get a fine of 50 euros which is almost as much as not having your transport card on public transport.

Smile 2

Posted by Alan Davies on May 01, 2020

Smile 3

Posted on May 01, 2020

Best Song [and book and film] Ever

	Graham Kearns. *Bob Dylan. The House of the Rising Sun* Bob Dylan included this on his first album in 1962, using a folk arrangement he picked up from hearing Dave Van Ronk perform it and singing it as "it's been the ruin of many a poor girl." When The Animals recorded it two years later, it was transformative listening for Dylan, who learned he could put apply a rock rhythm to a folk song. He bought an electric guitar and started to use it, famously at the 1965 Newport Folk Festival where he did an electric set for the first time.
	Peter Woodcock. *A-round the Corner - The Weavers* - late 1940s. As a kid, this song really took my fancy and led me into the world of Folk Music in which I had many years of involvement. Coincided with getting my first (plastic) ukulele. *Blowing in the Wind - Bob Dylan but Peter Paul and Mary's* version mid 60's A folk-singing group I was in (West Side Four) sang this song in the finals of 'Have a Shot' at the Auckland Town Hall - and won!! Big time win which led to a couple of years doing gigs around Auckland and even Brooklyn Bowl in New Plymouth. Good times.
	Adrianne Skiffington *All Wrapped Up [Album] The Undertones*. An Irish "Punk" band, with the cover showing a lady in a meat dress which was later made famous by Lady Gaga. The Undertones song, Teenage Kicks was mixed with Blondies One Way or Another by One Direction in 2013 as a fund raiser for Comic Relief, their video starred Tony Blair.
	Joy Ward. *Choral finale from Symphony No ) Beethoven - Ode to Joy* I sang it in German for a concert in the Sydney Opera House, with about 800 other choristers, last year.
	Chris Ward - *Film .The Big Chill.* A 1983 American comedy-drama that was the forerunner of many moviesof the modern era where friends hang out and strive to find intellectual meaning within stifling middle-class banalities. The movie has a sound track featuring soul, rhythm and blues and pop including tracks by Creedence Clearwater Revival, Aretha Franklin, Marvin Gaye, the Rolling Stones and Three Dog Night.
	Jeanette Roberts. *Best book and movie. “Pride and Prejudice” Jane Austin*. Published in 1815. The film version I like best is the 1940 MGM version, starring Laurence Olivier and Greer Garson, but the 1980 BBC TV Presentation starring Elizabeth Garvie and David Rintoul was very good and to my mind better acting and more honest than the later versions - 1995 with Colin Firth and Jennifer Ehle and the 2005 one with Matthew Macfadyen and Keira Knightley. I have the 1940, 1990 and 1995 ones on video.
	Nick Loseby. *Film. The Italian Job*. Best of British actors along with beautiful British and Italian cars, humour and of course the unforgettable line “You were only supposed to blow the bloody doors off” This is one film where you wanted the “baddies” to get away with it.

Rotary Merchandise

ROTARY CLUB OF PAKURANGA APPAREL

With all the spare time on your hands these days, this would be a great time

to check on your wardrobe, for any replacements that you may want.

Polo Shirts (Men’s and Ladies) $30.00

Caps ( “ ) $13.00

Floppy Hats( “ ) $21.00

Paua Ties $20.00

Paua Bow Ties $15.00

Only On Line Orders Taken!!

Please contact Ian Handisides, Email : ibhandi@xtra.co.nz

Merchandise Manager

Thirty Years With Interact

In 1990, with just one year Rotary membership under my belt, I was approached by a fellow Rotarian Bob Benzie with a suggestion that I do something about getting an Interact Club under way at Pakuranga College. I had moved there from Edgewater College in 1987 and was still fairly much under pressure finding my way with new systems and relationships so wasn’t too chuffed about taking on new responsibilities. But many of you will remember Bob – he was persistent if nothing else and finally wore me down. As a result, after clearing it with the principal Pamela Stone, our Paskuranga College Interact Club was assembled and chartered at a special evening on 14 March 1990 where Bruce Robinson (DG), Noel Holyoake, (past DG) and Dennis Waller (Pakuranga Rotary President), gave us the all go.

Production in lockdown

Posted by Sylvie Wilkinson on Apr 24, 2020

Rotarians don’t let something like a lockdown prevent them from doing something useful for the community. Seems the Council does not view graffiti removal as an essential service, so sugar soap and scrubber in hand… job done!

Next, moth plant infestations and their “almost ready to burst” pods along the Rotary walkway were dealt to and poison spread on the roots. One hundred and five pods were collected, and with each pod producing around 1,000 seeds, that is a lot of potential pest plants gone from the Riverlea Ave stretch of the walkway.

Smile

Best Song Ever Part 1

Posted on Apr 23, 2020

Here are the first tranche of musical masterpieces. Hopefully this will prompt more of you to share your best song ever and be included in parts 2 or 3. Don’t worry if you don’t have any interesting details about your choice. That’s a job I love doing. Might even be useful for our next trivia evening.

	Allan Vester. *Whiter Shade of Pale by Procol Harum* This song has its main melodic line based on J.S.Bach’s “Air on the G string”. It was a forerunner to what became known as progressive rock.
	Nick Loseby. *American Pie by Don Maclean* According to Nick this has got to be the best sing along song for young and old. The song was originally inspired by the death of Buddy Holly. Maclean who was young at the time of the plane crash that killed Buddy along with Ritchie Valens and the Big Bopper wrote the song from his memory of the event.
	Del Johnson. *Ave Maria by Schubert and performed by Celine Dion* There are actually a number of Ave Maria’s by other composers including J S Bach. Schubert did not write the song as a hymn but as a setting of a song from Walters Scott’s epic poem. The Lady of the Lake.
	Ian Holmes. *Imagine by John Lennon* Lennon is credited as the songwriter but later said that it should have been a Lennon/Ono song because a lot of the lyric came from Yoko. In 2000 George Michael paid over $2 million for the upright piano the song was recorded on and donated it to the Beatles museum in Liverpool.
	Bill Duncan. *Bridge Over Troubled Water by Simon and Garfunkel* This was the title track of the last album the duo recorded before they split up. Elvis Presley released a version of the song that helped win over many critics who doubted his ability as a vocalist.
	Geoff Roberts. *My Way by Frank Sinatra* It was 5^th on the UK charts for 124 weeks and was released by Sinatra 40 years ago this week. Originally Paul Anchor wrote the English words from originally a French composer. Also our own Pakuranga Rotarian Graeme Houston has sung a great version on his CD.
	Chris Ward. *San Francisco by Scott McKenzie* It was the only hit Scott ever had. He found his sudden fame overwhelming, and abruptly dropped out of the music business - only to resurface decades later, as a replacement singer in the Mamas and the Papas' nostalgia tours.
	Jeanette Roberts. *Stars Fell on Alabama* An oldies song, composed in 1934 following the spectacular occurrence of the ‘Leonid Meteor Shower’, or ‘the night the stars fell over Alabama’.Composed by Frank Perkins, lyrics by Mitchell Parish. Was sung by Guy Lombardo, Ella Fitzgerald, Bing Crosby, Louis Armstrong, Billie Halliday, Dean Martin and Frank Sinatra and others. Written in G, it is lovely to play, smooth and enjoyable. During the mid 1950’s, the NZ Tourist Bureau ran tours to the Chateau for winter skiing breaks. Left Auckland Railway Station after work on Friday night, arrived at National Park at midnight and bussed to the Chateau. Many great nights were had in the lounge playing on the lovely grand piano there and singing this particular song time and time again. Great weekends, great skiing and great music. My memory tells me the cost for the weekend was six pounds.
	Graham Kearns. *I Did it My Way performed by The Three Tenors* They first performed it at packed Los Angeles Dodger Stadium to coincide with the Italy-Brazil World Cup final being held the next day. The audience included one Frank Sinatra. It was broadcast in 100 countries to an estimated audience of one billion people.

Elise in Lockdown

Hi everyone, I hope you and your family are all safe and well. As all of you probably, I am now in lockdown due to the COVID-19. Of course, I wasn't expecting that to happen during my exchange year but I can't change anything and I am now adapting to this situation. I am still enjoying my time in New Zealand but in a different way now.

I am still with my 3rd host family the Pleiss’s whose daughter Madita went on exchange to France and returned in January. I have 3 host sisters, which is really nice during the lockdown because most of the time, I have something to do with someone! We play a lot of board games all together, I play the piano, do some work for France, call a lot of my friends to keep in touch and lately Madita started to teach me how to play the ukulele. I am keeping busy during this lockdown which is quite fun!

The situation back in Europe and France is concerning since the virus is spreading way quicker there than here, but people can't do anything else than staying home. In France, there are more than 100,000 cases but the daily amount of new cases has been going down a bit. Fortunately, my family is safe, they've all been in lockdown for about a month now. My parents are working from home during the day and my brother and my sister are doing some school work. All my grandparents are safe, which makes me very happy! I keep regular contact with them to see how they are during those difficult times.

Stay safe everyone!

The Carnival Is Over

Posted by Don Lawry on Apr 20, 2020

The Carnival Is Over and so goes the line from a famous song by the Seekers. What a successful Carnival it was, with the biggest attendance ever. 35 Rotarians and Auxiliary helped on the day along with Inner Wheel, and members of the Interact Club of Pakuranga College and 15 environmental students from Farm Cove Intermediate school who managed the waste steam and ensured the waste was separated into the correct bins

There was all the fun of the fair with a clown, bouncy castles, sausage sizzle and mussle fritters, animal rides, an animal farm with pets and ponies, face painting, a fire engine, coconut shie and much more. Mr Whippy. Coffee Guy and Snowiez shaved Ice all did a brisk business as the ques of people never seemed to get any shorter. We were entertained by a trio from Howick College who were very good.

Kayaks, and sail boats also added to the spectacle and made best use of the location of Farm Cove Reserve and the Pakuranga Sailing Club

A strong breeze was welcome as the weather was hot and sunny during the afternoon.

Interviews done on the day showed an overwhelming positive response and the marketing, and organisation of the Carnival was a great success.

Wisdom

Posted by Allan Vester on Apr 19, 2020

The current Covid 19 crisis has got me thinking about what I see as worrying forms of wisdom.

The first is wisdom when there is no consequence for being wrong. The second relates to the “bob either way” form of wisdom. The third is wisdom in hindsight.

Like many of you I follow the news on Covid-19 with great interest. A wide array including the NZ Herald, New Statesman, Project Syndicate, local TV channels, Radio NZ, CNN, BBC, Al Jazeera, Fox, Sky News Australia and RT along with a variety of pod casts. A heady combination of sometimes factual reporting and often opinion that has me at various times, better informed, concerned and bewildered

RI Issues

Posted by Bill Boyd on Apr 19, 2020

I saw a comment the other day that a Rotarian was querying what was happening at Rotary International level. RI staff are working from home till at least 30 April and there will be no funded RI travel before May 31. The April meetings of the RI Board and the Foundation Trustees were both held virtually. Not simple because of time zones! All Peace Fellows were asked to return home if possible and somewhere in excess of a 1000 Rotary Youth Exchangees returned home early.

Rotary’s worldwide membership at March 31 was 1 216 706, up 27 240 since July 1 2019. Over that period the total membership in New Zealand fell by 70. District 9910 dropped 22 to 998 and our District, 9920 dropped 28 to 1355. One of the significances of these figures is the RI considers the minimum number of Rotarians needs to be 1100 for a District to be effective and D9910 is falling further below this figure. The leadership of that District proposed a merger of the two Districts but this has not been accepted at this time. Inevitably there will need to be some action unless that District can find a way to grow.

The greatest growth by any District in Australia and New Zealand is in District 9640, which has added 90 members this year. That district is partly in Queensland and partly in NSW, which must creating challenges as Queensland has closed its border. Pity the District Governor!

Women in Rotary

Posted by Bill Duncan on Apr 19, 2020

“My fellow delegates, I would like to remind you that the world of 1989 is very different to the world of 1905. I sincerely believe that Rotary has to adapt itself to a changing world,” Frank J. Devlyn, who would go on to become RI president in 2000-01.

As a charter member of a club nearing 50 years of service I have been asked by some of my Rotary friends why we have so few female members sharing Rotary in the Pakuranga Club.

There is a lot about Rotary that has changed since 1970; the year we were chartered. Elements of chauvinism still existed. Even many female partners still regarded Rotary as the domain of the top male executives, most of the gatherings of which still had that look of gender inequality.

The work of a JP

Posted by Del Johnston on Apr 19, 2020

Justice of the Peace is the oldest legalistic position in New Zealand. Joseph Kendall was appointed NZs first JP in 1814, based at the mission settlement in the Bay of Islands, Northland. JPs have been serving their community for more than 200 years. The duties of the early Justices were many and onerous, and included supervising the accuracy of weights and measures, the seizing of wine sold for excessive prices, and assisting those whose homes were burned. Justices had great authority over the lives and liberties of those brought before them

Today, thank goodness it is different.

Report from the USA

Posted on Apr 17, 2020

Covid- 19 Report from the Rotary Club (2175) D5960 of Winona,

Minnesota USA

By Rotarian Carrie McGhee

Good Morning from a snowy Winona, Minnesota. It is April, the daffodils are blooming and we have five inches of snow on the ground. Looking out the window, the sky is blue with a warm sun, you can hear the birds singing their songs. The picture is perfect, perfectly eerie due to Covid-19. There are no people out and about. No sound of children playing. No sirens, no traffic only the sound of birds and silence.

Since March 16, 2020, the state of Minnesota has been “shelter in”, “safe at home”, “involuntarily nesting”, all meaning that unless you are an essential worker you are expected to stay home and stay indoors. We can go outside for exercise, go buy groceries, gas, and other essentials. We can attend religious services, weddings and funerals if there are no more than 10 people present and each person is practicing social distancing (six feet of separation). The stores that are open are grocery, liquor (their business has seen a 250% increase in the past month), hardware and gas. Restaurants can only serve carry away. Schools, bars, movie theatres, retail shops, playgrounds, automobile dealerships, malls, barber and hairdressing salons, dentist and any non-essential health clinics are all closed.

Governor Tim Walz has stated that he will reassess the “shelter in” executive order on May 4. He is relying on a team of health experts and scientist to track the progression of the corona virus. All the models show that staying in has slowed the spread of the virus/flattened the curve.

The worry is that our world will open back up too soon and there will be a round two of the disease, worse than the first round. Fortunately for Minnesotans, we are the world headquarters of companies like the Mayo Clinic, 3M, Medtronic, the University of Minnesota. These institutions are on the forefront of coming up with test tools and equipment that will assist us in battling and ultimately winning the war on this disease.

This period in history will show that the American way of life has been forever changed. People have proven they can work at home. Parents have successfully home-schooled their children. Families have bonded over being together twenty four- seven. In the past month we have used technology in ways we never thought possible by having virtual happy hours, talent shows, Rotary Noon meetings, funerals, weddings and other social get-togethers. We have stayed connected and stayed in touch.

Polio Update

Posted by Bill Boyd

As at 8 April, Afghanistan had 3 cases this year as again 29 for the full year last year. In the month of February there were 6.7 million children vaccinated but 1.9 million children were missed as they were in areas that were inaccessible. They have 19 cross border posts which vaccinated 1.8 million children as the amount of movement between Afghanistan and Pakistan is considerable. In their country they have 2926 social mobilisers, who organise and vaccinate.

Pakistan is a much bigger problem. In January there were 18.3 million children vaccinated which is an amazing achievement but many were still missed. The population is so dense, particularly in the slum areas, that it a very difficult to ensure all children are seen. They have 376 permanent transit points, which includes bus stops, railway stations and highways and they vaccinate many children in these but much of the work is a hard slog through slums. In Pakistan as at 8 April this year there were 37 cases as against 149 for the full year last year.

One of the surveillance techniques used in many countries to check that polio is not circulating is to take and analyse environmental samples, which is a polite way of saying that samples are taken from sewage and then laboratory tested, and in Pakistan this means taking samples from ditches and creeks. Not a very desirable job! In January they found 27 positive samples.

Covid19 has now changed the landscape as it was necessary to stop vaccination activity everywhere in mid-March with a target resumption of July 1. The polio workforce has now transferred its activities to covid19. Sadly, it is accepted that this will mean more cases of polio. Not all activity has ceased however as surveillance, planning and training continues and new more effective vaccine, mOPV2, will become available in August/September.

In India, during the successful polio eradication, Rotary formed an alliance with the Ulema Council which is made up of some of the most senior Muslim clerics in India and that alliance has been rekindled to fight covid19. Yet another example of our polio campaign building health structures that will fight other health issues.

An ongoing challenge in the background is the amount of vaccine derived polio in Africa and this is a problem that will only be beaten when the wild polio virus is eradicated. Clearing vaccine derived polio cannot occur until we can stop vaccinating and then it will be just a matter of money and time.

As a final comment, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation will stay in the polio effort with Rotary and will again next year provide the subsidy of US$100 million if we raise US$50 million.

Nicks Soup

Posted by Nick Loseby

NICKS SPECIALTY PUMPKIN SOUP

Ingredients:

Half a pumpkin

Two Kumara

One red onion

Carton of vegetable stock

Tbl spoon of peanut butter

Tbl spoon of crushed garlic

Half teaspoon of paprika

Half teaspoon salt

Two chopped carrots (optional)

Wash pumpkin and take seeds out. Chop into small cubes (Skin on)

Wash and chop kumara (Peeled)

Chop up onion and carrots

Put all ingredients into a large pan.

Top up with water to about two inches from top.

Boil up until Veges are soft.

Allow to cool slightly and then put into blender.

Serve with garlic bread and sour cream.

Nick at Grimsby

Posted by Grimsby Rotary Club

Nick began with a brief overview of his early years growing up and working in Grimsby with reference to the the many establishments that are now no-longer. After emigrating to Aukland, New Zealand, Nick became an active member of the Pakuranga Rotary Club.
Pakuranga Rotary Club
The club has several female members and Nick claims that these give much of the driving force behind the Club. Membership features multiple ethnic groups representing the extent of the geographical region which includes Pacific islands such as Fiji. Young people and local businesses play a big part in supporting the Club's activities.
Charitable Activities
Help in providing dictionaries, atlases and reading books plus the provision of a prefabricated mothers' and children's (Whanau) room has benefitted the local schools and the club also provides Christmas presents for refugee children. The club has also provided emergency response kits (ERKS) in response to situations that have occured on the nearly islands.
Community
From time to time the Club engages their 'Working Bee' team to clear derelict land and plant trees for the benefit of the local people. An annual fishing event using 'commandeered' boats in the sheltered waters of Auckland raises the majority of the charity funds and is enjoyed by all.

Social Distancing

Posted by Bill Duncan

For those of us who have been Rotarians for a good many years, one of the great joys of being a Rotarian was, and remains, the ability to make up at another Rotary Club’s regular meeting, anywhere in the world. This was by way of assisting you with attaining your required percentage yearly attendance which, if my memory serves me correctly, was 60% of your own clubs regular meetings in any one year. In fact, many of us retained an updated Rotary International Directory for this very purpose.

Social Distancing reminds me of the time I decided to make up at a club in Rotorua. The only Rotarians I came into contact with were the gentleman who took my meal money and two or three other visiting Rotarians who with me had been guided to a roped off area especially ordained for visiting Rotarians. I do recall some whimsical remarks made by my companions for the meeting but I can’t recall whether we were given any form of introduction or indeed whether were visited by the sergeant.

In recent years we have become familiar with ‘E’ clubs and now in this time of Coronavirus we learn that at least two of the clubs in our District, Remuera and Downtown, are meeting via ZOOM. Members in the Downtown Club regularly meet in the late afternoon, if only to address the topic DRINKS” on the Agenda.

So might we have a member who, unlike some of us, is not technology challenged, who might be able to organize such meetings, possibly with a view to using such technology for smaller group meetings in the future.

Rotarians in Lock Down

Our daily lives are Different

Posted by Bart Signal on Apr 08, 2020

Our daily lives look very different right now as we hunker down to get on top of Covid-19. In our house online classes, telecommuting, family dog walks, video calls and virtual family dinners are the new norm. How many of you have started a new project or connected with friends differently?

Looking after ourselves and each other in a COVID-19 world is more important than ever. While Pakuranga Rotary has ceased face-to-face meetings until further notice – you can still stay in-touch and show you care with a telephone call or text message. Perhaps you’ve tried video calling using FaceTime or WhatsApp and had a virtual coffee or wine with friends – a smile makes a difference.

My thoughts go out to those dealing with Covid-19 work challenges or health concerns – Please reach out to someone for help. If you know someone that is working for an essential service, then please pass on our thanks and gratitude.

We recommend taking time to

Understand what New Zealand’s response to at Covid-19 (covid19.govt.nz)
Check out campaigns such as Getting Through Together allright.org.nz which shares ways that New Zealanders can cope with the stress of COVID-19.

The health, safety and well-being our community is our top priority. Above all else keep safe, reach out to friends and family and be kind.

Kind Regards

Bart Signal
President
Pakuranga Rotary

2021 Rotary Youth Exchange

Brett Meale – Police Sergeant based at Howick

Brett’s brief was to enlighten his listeners with the state of play relative to policing the Pakuranga area. We were certainly enlightened!

Howick station is part of the Counties Manukau East district, the main HQ of which is based in Ormiston. The district polices about 200,000 people comprising a huge range of ethnicities and a very large youth component. The Howick station has only 5 of the 137 sworn staff in the district, this low number reflecting the relatively small number of incidents requiring attention compared with areas further east and south. Brett made it clear though that it was no cake walk and the work load in each of the sub-areas under his supervision is still huge.

Community River Carnival

Gary Barzilay

Though he could have given us all sorts of advice and insights into the running of small businesses and coping with all that this entails, Gary Barzilay chose to give details of family and life experiences which shaped an underlying philosophy instilled in his being.

With words and graphic actions Gary revealed the pain endured in the botched process of ex-foliation of leg hair, designed to reduce drag as a keen cyclist. As if one leg was not bad enough, he knew he had to endure the agony of a second.

In similar vein he told of his ambitions to be a cowboy, his life as a horse trainer designed to meet this end. Being tossed to the ground, not once but twice by a reluctant and rampant filly he was urged to get back in the saddle knowing full well the likely consequences. Third time lucky, the horse accepted the load and became compliant.

The Alison Gilbert File

Posted by Kelvin Davies on Dec 12, 2019

We were delighted to catch up with Alison’s life history at our last meeting. Overall Alison is an extremely busy person who has worked hard to become a Partner in the Brookfield’s management team.

Alison spoke about her life and the influences that have impacted on where she is now and focussed under four headings. In reading her story one should also bear in mind she has made her way in times when women had to prove their worth many times over.

1/ Alison is the second eldest of six children. As a child she was shy and retiring. She is related to the late Les Hammond, who was a Past President of our Club. When it came time for Alison to head off to University at the end of the seventh form year her parents were reluctant to allow her to move to Auckland to study law.

Instead she studied for a Bachelor of Social Science at Waikato University. This course of study did not interest her that much so she went to work for the Public Service.

Within six months she was promoted and then travelled to Wellington to work for the Department of Education. She attended the Outward Bound course and this enhanced her confidence.

Elise

Posted on Dec 11, 2019

Essential French for Tourists

Posted by Graham Rea on Dec 11, 2019

A Decade of Dictionaries

Posted by Bill Duncan on Nov 26, 2019

The Bill and Lorna Boyd Charitable Trust, formed to commemorate Bill’s appointment to the office of Rotary World President in 2006, has been heavily involved in the supply of Usborne Illustrated English dictionaries to year 4 decile 1 schools since 2009. The Usborne books are supplied to their New Zealand agents Harper Collins Limited. To date the Trust has distributed through Rotary Clubs throughout New Zealand, close to 200,000 books estimated to have a retail value of approximately NZ$6m. Recently the Trust has added to its literacy library of books available, a book with flashcards for new entrants to primary schools called Rhyming around the Alphabet. The books were published by Wendy Pye Publishing Ltd and the Trust was assisted in this initial purchase by the Trillion Trust.

On 12 November we had the privilege to attend a presentation of 280 dictionaries to Students at Finlayson Park Primary School, in Manurewa, the largest decile 1 school in the country. We witnessed smiles all round and was made aware again of the great effort this Trust and the Pakuranga Club and its Auxiliary team are making to improve our literacy standards.

Recently with the help of Kiri Kirkpatrick, we presented the Rhyming around the Alphabet books to Year 1 students at Panmure Bridge School with great success.

Induction - Dennis Kavanagh

Posted by Kelvin Davies on Nov 11, 2019

Dennis Kavanagh was inducted in to The Rotary Club of Pakuranga on Monday 7 Oct 2019.

Dennis is a Past President of the Sunnyhills Friendship (ex Probus) Club which was set up by the Rotary Club of Pakuranga about 11 years ago and is an active committee member.

He was also a team member of the Taveuni building team at Bouma School in November 2018.

His Classification is Aluminium Joinery Manufacture having owned a Nulook aluminium joinery franchise, but is now retired.

Dennis enjoys golf, DIY building and travel, is married to Raewyn and has two children, Rachael and Shane and 4 grandchildren.

I believe that Dennis will bring experience and be an asset to the club.

Philippa Loseby

Posted by Kelvin Davies on Nov 11, 2019

Philippa Loseby’s Monday nights presentation was a great reminder of the variety and talent that we have within our members families.

As part of a Masters in Health Psychology, Philippa investigated the link between physical health and mental health as it applies when people are faced with a major medical issue. The specific issue that formed the focus of the thesis was type 1 diabetes which usually begins to affect people aged under 20 but which can strike at any age. While the exact cause of type 1 diabetes is unknown, usually, the body's own immune system — which normally fights harmful bacteria and viruses — mistakenly destroys the insulin-producing cells in the pancreas.

The physical impact of the disease on sufferers and the need for ongoing testing and treatment can have a significant phycological impact which in turn impacts on the efficacy of treatment and ongoing health outcomes.

Philippa used 113 participants with type 1 diabetes and by using a series of questionnaires was able to establish the link between how people responded psychologically to longer term health outcomes. Because poorly controlled diabetes has a serious impact on other aspects of a person’s health managing the disease is vital. Those respondents who showed more positive optimism and a higher degree of self-compassion also demonstrated a higher degree of self-care. That translated into more careful monitoring of blood sugar levels and better control of insulin levels which in turn led to well managed diabetes and better health outcomes.

While the link might now seem self-evident it was not one which had been explored previously and Philippa was invited to present at a conference in Melbourne. She thanked Sylvie Wilkinson and Bill Duncan for their support with the costs associated with that event.

The Rise and Rise of Rocket Lab

Posted by Les Divers on Nov 11, 2019

Rocket Lab Production Director Jamie France attracted such numbers to our meeting on Monday evening that space became a challenge. More than 100 people crammed into the Banquet Room at Waipuna to hear an enthralling account from Jamie of the launch and rise of Rocket Lab.

Jamie had a design engineer background with Team New Zealand, Fisher & Paykel and Air New Zealand. From just 12 people when Jamie joined Rocket Lab in 2014, Rocket Lab now employs over 500 people. 300 of those work in the Rocket Lab facility just a stones’ throw from Waipuna, building 17-metre-tall Electron Rockets at the rate of 1 per week. The rockets are then transported to Mahia and the world’s only private launch site. The firm has a 100% mission success rate with customer product, putting in low earth orbit satellites for a variety of customers, most of whom are American. The company is presently building a second launch site in Virginia to solidify its American customer base. The next stage is to complete an end to end delivery system with its own network tracking stations. The company builds everything – all hardware, software, avionics and electronics.

Tag Off Polio

Posted by Graham Kearns on Oct 07, 2019

Stirring Doomsday debate

Posted by Les Divers on Oct 07, 2019

Every year since 1987 Pakuranga Rotary has hosted teams from local schools for a fiercely contested debate with the Holyoake Trophy as the prize.

Sponsored by PDG Noel Holyoake, the debate involves senior students from the three colleges in the district – Edgewater College, Pakuranga College and St. Kentigern College with teams alternating to challenge the winner from the previous year. Since 2018 the trophy had been held by St. Kentigern College but the holders were hotly challenged by Pakuranga College at our last meeting.

The debate is conducted under the rules used in secondary schools with the greatest test being the limited time for preparation. Teams do not receive the moot for the debate until noon on the day of the contest. With the support of school management they are given the afternoon to set up their strategies and arguments. Recent debates under these rules have been of very high quality and attest to the initiative and clever cramming of content undertaken by the talented students.

The 2019 topic had echoes of Stephen Hawking’s warning to the world in his last book-if robots don’t get us, climate change will. The moot was “That AI presents a greater threat to mankind’s future than climate change”. The Pakuranga College team consisting of Khusrav Bhajiwalla, Jaxon Gear, Helen Lam and Chris Matthews (Teacher i/c) which argued for the affirmative, wove a picture of a world dominated by Artificial Intelligence which didn’t share human values, caused massive unemployment and anarchy and which posed a more serious threat long term to the world than the climate change issue which was solvable. Ben Shepherd, William Feng, Ben Fraser and Chris Hodder (Teacher i/c) representing St. Kentigern College and arguing in the negative, countered that the portrayal of the risks posed by AI was overhyped and unrealistic and that extreme weather will overwhelm us before cell phones overpower us.

The debate was coordinated by Peter Woodcock and adjudicated by Jeanette Roberts, with years of experience, Desiré Truter, Acting Head of English and teacher in charge of the debating team at Edgewater College and Simeon Brown MP. In awarding the debate (and retention of the Holyoake Trophy) to St. Kentigern College, Simeon made reference to the quality of the debate and the passion exhibited by both teams. There was certainly nothing artificial about the intelligence on display from our local College debating teams.

Ride Like a Girl

Posted by Bart Signal on Sep 25, 2019

On Thursday, 24 October - we are joining forces with Somerville and Highbrook Rotary at a charity movie night in support of PolioPlus - Rotary's world project to eradicate polio.

Ride Like A Girl is the incredible true story of Michelle Payne. As a little girl, Michelle (Teresa Palmer) dreams of the impossible: winning the Melbourne Cup - horse-racing's toughest two-mile race. The youngest of 10 children, Michelle is raised by single father Paddy (Sam Neill). After her own near fatal horse fall all but ends the dream. But with the love of her dad and her brother Stevie, Michelle will not give up. Against all the medical advice, and the protests of her siblings, she rides on, and meets the Prince of Penzance. Together they overcome impossible odds for a shot at the dream: a ride in the 2015 Melbourne Cup, at odds of 100 to 1.

Rocket Lab Coming to Pakuranga Rotary

Posted on Sep 23, 2019

On Monday, 21 October - Jamie France a former Team NZ engineer and now Production Director at Rocket Lab is enlightening us on how a design engineer with the yachting syndicate from 1997 through to 2013 is now building $7m rockets that are launched into space on New Zealand's east coast.

Rotary Youth Exchange on a Summer Holiday

Posted by Mia Kidston on Aug 08, 2019

It’s weird to think I’ve been here on exchange for over 6 months now. That I’ve already spent half a year away from my family and friends. It’s also a little weird to have summer in the middle of the year, but hey! I’m not gonna complain about three months off school. This summer has been chock-a-block. This month especially.

One of the highlights of this month was getting to see my friend Oscar! He visited Lille for the day and it was amazing! We had some coffee and a good yarn, went to watch Toy Story 4, and then he met one of the Australians Sara. We had so much fun that day, mucking around in shops, having a picnic in the park and wandering endlessly through Lille. We even bought matching toy rabbits for our blazers. It was so nice to see a familiar face.

The last of my oldies left on the 6^th. After that, trips to Lille were a little boring and didn’t feel right. Us newbies, uh oldies now, have been hanging out as much as possible, but it’s a little difficult since all of us are going on holiday with our host families. We’re all really excited for our newbies to arrive, there’s about 30 arriving. The integration weekend is on the 30^th but sadly, I can’t go for the nights. There may be a chance I’ll go for the last day.

It’s because my host family is taking me down south for a week which I’m really excited for! It’s really generous of them. I spent the last 10 days in Saint-Florent, Corsica! I stayed with very generous and kind Rotarian family. They took me out on the boat most days, the others were chill days where we made food at home and then I would explore a little. They even took me to Bastia for dinner one night! It was so much fun getting to know Georges and Emilie and their little girl, Rose. One night, I made Bacon & Egg Pie as a thank you for hosting me, they loved it. I’m super grateful for the opportunity and hopefully will be able to see them again as they live in Bethune.

Wearable Arts Pakuranga Trivia Night and Auction - 7 September

Posted by Nick Loseby on Aug 01, 2019

Tickets On Sale Now

With well-known NZ actor Shane Cortese as auctioneer, teams will compete in a fun night putting their trivia knowledge to the test to win great prize and auction to support Life Education Trust and Pakuranga Rotary projects.

Come in your outlandish and creative wearable art.

07 Sep 2019
		Sep 07, 2019 6:30 PM – 10:00 PM
		Edgewater College 32 Edgewater Dr Pakuranga Auckland, 2010 New Zealand
		Alan Davies 021 535 556 abdavies@xtra.co.nz

Sanctuary Sculpture Support

Posted by Les Divers on Aug 01, 2019

Public Art adds uniqueness to our communities, improves the image and identity of the local environment we inhabit and directly influences how people see and connect with a place. It delights, welcomes, challenges and inspires. It asks questions, tells stories and impacts different people in different ways. It celebrates richness and creativity. It transfixes public places and can have a utilitarian effect.

Richard McWha is the Auckland Council arts and culture manager and on Monday evening he demonstrated the impact various pieces of public art around Auckland have had. Richard and Nichola Waugh, an arts and culture project manager at Auckland Council, are both involved in the Pakuranga Rotary's 50^th anniversary project to commission a work to install along the Rotary walkway at Sanctuary Point.

Rotary Foundation receives highest rating for 11th year

Posted by Rotary International

For the 11th consecutive year, The Rotary Foundation has received the highest rating — four stars — from Charity Navigator, an independent evaluator of charities in the U.S.

The Foundation earned the recognition for demonstrating both strong financial health and commitment to accountability and transparency.

“We are extremely honored to be recognized,” says Foundation Trustee Chair Ron Burton. “It represents the hard work and dedication of countless Rotarians throughout the world. They know their gifts will be used for the purpose for which they were given and that they will, indeed, make a real difference.”

The rating reflects Charity Navigator's assessment of how the Foundation uses donations, sustains its programs and services, and practices good governance and openness.

Rotarians descended on Hamburg

Posted by Kelvin Davies on Jul 19, 2019

More than 24,000 Rotarians from 170 countries descended on Hamburg in June to Capture the Moment, make new connections, renew old ones at the 110th annual Rotary International Convention.

During the convention, they were part of the conversation on pressing world issues like polio eradication, pollution, refugee migration, disease prevention, and literacy. They inspired to enhance thier skills in areas that Rotarians value, like fellowship, integrity, diversity, service, and fellowship.

Attendees - Past RI President Bill Boyd and Rotarian Del Johnston enlightened Pakuranga Rotary about the Hamburg Convention.

WAP Trivia Night - 7 September

Posted by Nick Loseby on Jul 16, 2019

Tickets On Sale Now

07 Sep 2019
		Sep 07, 2019 6:30 PM – 10:00 PM
		Edgewater College 32 Edgewater Dr Pakuranga Auckland, 2010 New Zealand
		Alan Davies 021 535 556 abdavies@xtra.co.nz

Rotary Leadership Institute

Posted by Bart Signal on Jul 15, 2019

50th Anniversary Gala Dinner

Posted by Ian Handisides on Jul 12, 2019

A Salute to International Rotarian - Bill Boyd

Posted by Bill Duncan on Jul 11, 2019

Bill Boyd was President of Rotary International in 2006/2007, only the second New Zealander to hold that position.

On 30 June 2019, Bill finally drew closure to his stellar 30 years of International service to Rotary and returns to be 'Bill Boyd - Magazine Distribution and member of Pakuranga Rotary.

Always by his side during his years service has been his much adored wife Lorna, who herself played her part in Convention break-out sessions and became a fountain of Rotary knowledge which she graciously shared with whomever and whenever the appropriate occasion rose.

The members of the Pakuranga Rotary salute Bill's work for Rotary and its many endeavours.

Georgie Chalmers & Viktoria Melber

Posted by Allan Vester on Jul 01, 2019

Pakuranga Rotary was treated to reports by two very enthusiastic Rotary exchange students. Georgie Chalmers who has returned from a year in Denmark and Victoria Melber our exchange student from Austria. The Rotary Youth Exchange [fittingly initiated by the Copenhagen Club in Denmark in 1927] now gives around 9000 students a year the opportunity to live and study in another country.

The messages from Georgie and Viktoria mirrored those given by successive students and reinforces just how valuable this exchange is.

Both Georgie and Viktoria were given and took the many opportunities offered, to see and experience new cultures while on exchange. For Georgie this included trips to many parts of Europe on the Europe tour and Cologne in Germany on a school trip and Majorca [part of the Spanish Balearic Isles] on a family holiday. For Viktoria it involved the South Island trip and visits to places all over the North Island. She recounted all of the many activities she took part in ranging from the school ball, Marae visit, Challenge Camp, Tongariro crossing, school sports teams and many Rotary activities.

Newest Rotarians

Posted by Sylvie Wilkinson on Jun 14, 2019

On Monday the 27 the of May, the Board arranged a special meeting to welcome three new members into the Auxiliary branch of our Rotary Club. This particular evening was the only time one of our new people was available for Induction, as he was off overseas the following week. During the mix and mingle, a 40 slide PowerPoint of the Auxiliary members community involvement was running. This gave a clear insight of both the impact and the fun they have been having… a very fresh approach to Rotary.

Before the formal induction, we heard from three younger members, introducing themselves and telling us a little about that makes them tick.

First up was Crystal Leung, our 20 year old Engineering Student, with a rather witty PowerPoint that gave us a good insight into her family, her interests and how much she appreciated Rotary Grandpa Duncan’s financial support the enabled her to become a Rotarian.

Next we had Rachel Wong, a 19 year old Health Science student who had prepared a comprehensive electronic display of her achievements during her last year at Pakuranga College. Se too, was gracious in her thanks to Rotary Grandpa Peter Armstrong, for his generous support of her.

Lastly, Joe D’Ambrosio, from the USA and the Hard Materials teacher at Farm Cove Intermediate, told of his decision to settle in NZ with his Kiwi wife and his pride in her achievements.

He then handed Bart a “cheque” for $1,131.00 which was money raised by a couple of Auxiliary members, selling household surplus donated by two Pakuranga Rotary members.

Melissa Chan-Brown

Posted by Kelvin Davies on Jun 14, 2019

Last Monday we welcomed Melissa Chan-Brown, Newshub presenter and reporter, to our meeting and we were delighted to tune in to her presentation.

Do you recall Melissa visiting our Pakuranga Rotary some 20 years ago as a member of the Pakuranga College debating team? I am sure Peter Woodcock does.

Melissa joined TV3 12 years ago and was based in London for 5 years reporting on Royal activities, terror attacks in Paris and no two days were the same but there was always the challenge to be first with developments then write up the story and edit it for the news that night. She is now filing stories for radio and various news slots.

John Taylor - The cloud Application and Cost benefits

Posted by Peter Woodcock on Jun 11, 2019

For a computer and internet bunny, what a challenge to provide some sort of summary of what John Taylor told us about the cloud this week!

However, what I think I learned (E&OE) was:

The cloud provides the ability to access high speed computing over the internet.
What makes this possible is the provision of multiple data centres all over the world, always available and durable and, most importantly, totally secure. Currently 20 centres are in service with another 4 on the way,
Sydney is our closest centre. N.Z. lacks security of power supply to be viable for this purpose.
Amazon Company, in 2006, decided to sell infrastructure as a service (iaas) based on its own development of massive systems of racks to handle its world-wide sales of books then other products.
Amazon Web Services (AWS) floated at $US18 per share – now worth about $1900!
The data centres provide at least 160 services to customers e.g. app. creation, A.I., web applications, internet of things etc. etc.
Economy of scale has greatly reduced the cost of maintaining storage of data for customers whilst giving fastest performance, highest availability and reliability, the largest and most flexible global footprint and the strongest security.
You don’t buy a package, you just pay for what is used, when and where.
All data inputted is owned by the provider and can only be accessed by the provider’s personal system.

Ahead of the Curve

Posted by Les Divers on May 14, 2019

When Noel Holyoake joined Rotary in 1963 he had been in business in Rongotai for 10 years. Rotary clubs in that era were defined by a commercial area and classifications were important. Noel was in the oil heating and air conditioning business and his firm manufactured sheet metal piping. What it needed to develop was the ability to incorporate bends in that piping.

After being shown the door by one potential contact in Los Angeles who might have assisted, Noel attended a meeting the next day at the Wiltshire Boulevard Rotary. When he explained his predicament to a member at the club he was quickly referred to another Rotarian who had already solved the puzzle and who was delighted to make a movie of the process for Noel. By the end of his visit, that fellow Rotarian had sourced the necessary manufacturing machinery in Salt Lake City which promptly ended up in New Zealand. One good turn deserved another and Noel was able to acquire a 1930 Rolls Royce Silver Ghost in the neighbourhood which was shipped back to the club in Los Angeles which had a particular use for it. When another product which could bend was subsequently developed by Noel’s team, a Rotarian happened to be President of a sheetmetal association and it was that contact which lead to the patents for the new process being sold to that association, all made possible and achieved through Rotary connections.

While commenting about the intermix of Rotary and Business, Noel also took time to laud the achievements of the Pakuranga Rotary including the introduction of RYLA, the emergency box scheme and trees for survival. While Noel maintains he owes much to Rotary, Pakurang Rotary and community clearly owe much to Noel.

Who is Penelope Franca

Posted by Les Divers on May 14, 2019

Pakuranga Rotary had the privilege of hearing from Penelope and learning of her background. She has been in New Zealand for 12 years and vividly recalls the Rainbow which greeted her when she first arrived. Having worked in hospitality for 5 years locally, she has set out to pursue a career that will satisfy her for a lifetime and is now in real estate. She joined Rotary to make a difference in her Community, and for the joy of contributing to Humanitarian causes. She has worked in both the United States and Brazil and is proficient in both Portugese and Spanish and has a young family. It is a delight to welcome Penelope.

Pakuranga Rotary and Public Work of Art

Posted by Les Divers on May 14, 2019

Initial conceptions of 3 Artists have been selected to go to the development design phase for this 50^th Anniversary project. It is intended that there will be a presentation to the club in July at which details of the 3 outstanding entries will be provided and input sought from club members. An initial site has been identified at Sanctuary Point and the art work is intended to be a visible enduring attribute to the community which references the Clubs long term commitment to Pakuranga.

Panmure Bridge School Reading Programme

Posted by Les Divers on May 14, 2019

Anna Salmon is a Reading Recovery Teacher at Panmure and has put out a call for more Volunteers for the Reading Recovery Programme at Panmure Bridge School. If you know of anybody interested in helping in this very gentle way the advancement of children, please contact Guy Clapshaw or Carol Holmes of the Auxilliary Club.

Pestival

Posted by Duncan Loney on May 14, 2019

Howick Local Board citizen Awards 2019

Posted by Duncan Loney on May 14, 2019

Curtain Call

Posted by Duncan Loney on May 14, 2019

Rotary Peace Centres

Posted by Duncan Loney on May 14, 2019

Rotary Peace Centers

Dear Rotarian,

We have a little over one month left to recruit qualified candidates for the 2020-21 Rotary Peace Fellowship and we need your help!

As club president, you play a critical role in communicating information about Rotary Peace Centers programs to potential candidates in your network. Clubs also play an important role in coaching candidates and helping them connect to districts for endorsement. We encourage you to use and share these resources:

Send personalized emails with the fellowship announcement to contacts within your network.
Do you know someone who could benefit from our program? Submit their name and email in our referral form and we’ll follow up with them.

Candidates have until 31 May to submit applications to their district. Districts must submit endorsed applications to The Rotary Foundation by 1 July. General inquiries regarding the fellowship program may be sent to rotarypeacecenters@rotary.org.

We thank you for your dedication to the Rotary Peace Centers and your continuous support in educating the Rotary network about the fellowships!

Sincerely,
Rotary Peace Centers
Rotary Peace Centers – your investment in action

ONE ROTARY CENTER

1560 SHERMAN AVENUE

EVANSTON, ILLINOIS 60201-3698 USA

ROTARY.ORG

Wellbeing Day Out

Posted by Graham Kearns on May 14, 2019

Bringing in the Big Ships to the Port of Auckland

Posted by Kelvin Davies on Apr 24, 2019

Our guest speaker last week was Peter Willyams an experienced Ports of Auckland Pilot .

Peter was born in the Cook Islands but grew up in Howick and attended Cockle Bay Primary, Howick Intermediate and Kings College where he specialised in Science and Mathematics . He commenced sailing by joining Sea Scouts and eventually the family purchased a Sunburst yacht. He was sponsored on to the Spirit of Adventure and then decided on a maritime career. He went to sea in Y1981 as a cadet with the China Navigation Company and studied at the Auckland Maritime School. Peter then joined Gearbulk/KGIS then Saga Forest Carriers and served on the same ship for 11 years .

Mt Eden Rotary & Epsom Rotary Invite You to ROCKETMAN Movie Night @ Lido Cinema (Thu 30 May)

Posted by Graham Kearns on Apr 24, 2019

Geoffrey Amos

Posted by Del Johnston on Apr 24, 2019

Geoffrey passed away Friday 12 April in Auckland, after an extended period of illness.

He leaves a huge legacy of helping communities in Fiji, in particular on Taveuni Island.

Geoffrey initiated the Rotary Club of Taveuni and led significant Rotary projects over many years, to improve Fiji’s health, education and housing- working extensively with the Rotary Organisation, and other partners.

His legacy will be the many lives he changed for the better. He has been an inspiration

We send our condolences to his family and his community

The following is taken from Geoff’s own recent writing.

“The Rotary Club of Taveuni Island is made up of 11 active members who represent the cultural mix of Taveuni and we do anything that benefits the health and education in rural communities. For twelve years we have run the largest totally free South Pacific cataract surgery program. From the time the patient leaves home and returns, irrespective of their location anywhere in the Fiji Islands, we cover all costs, providing meals, accommodation, sunglasses, post-op medication, laundry, tooth brushes etc. My wife Joey runs Patient Services with her team of volunteers and they produce about 400 meals plus a day for four different cultures on 2 x two burner gas stoves. We own over 100 single mattresses and pillows, plus all the required bed linen for the patients and the theatre. Our surgical equipment is worth over $500,000 and now with two new Stryker operating beds it has increased to $550,000.

Gavin Trethewey

Posted by Peter Woodcock on Apr 04, 2019

What kid (male) in the 50s or 60s didn’t take delight in assembling and flying an Airfix balsa wood Mustang or Hudson plane using heady glue, hard-backed razor blades and a lump of plasticine? Such fun! As it must be for those in the Warbirds Association of New Zealand who have the pleasure and challenge of assembling, maintaining, displaying and in many cases flying such magnificent machines in order to preserve an important aspect of our past.

Our speaker this week was Gavin Trethewey who has had many years flying experience both in the Royal NZ Air Force and as a commercial pilot. In an interesting address, illustrated with photos and video clips, he opened up the world of iconic planes dating from the First World War BE2 and Fokker Triplane, through the twenties and thirties (Percival Gull, De Haviland Foxmouth with folding wings and the trusty DC3) through WW2 (Kittyhawk, Mustang, Mosquito and Spitfire - $4000 will get you a spin in this!) to the more recent Catalina, F86 Sabre and BAC 167 Strikemaster. These a just a few of the planes mentioned.

Rotary Youth Exchange

Posted by Graham Kearns on Apr 04, 2019

Dawn Johnston Koru Award Nominations Wanted

Posted by Adrienne Davies on Apr 04, 2019

Do you know someone in the local community who has overcome adversity to live a life of serving others?

The Inner Wheel Club of Howick is looking for such a person to present a Dawn Johnston Koru Award to. The inaugural presentation of this award was made last year to Alan Breslau of Half Moon Bay who survived a horrific plane crash 56 years ago followed by many years in hospital. The award was based on the Inner Wheel theme for 2017/2018 ‘Leave a Legacy’

The spiral shape of the koru, the emblem of the award, signifies new life, positive change, personal growth, harmony, and above all, hope for the future.

Awardees need to have demonstrated self-awareness, resilience, compassion, and a desire to assist others becoming a full contributor to the community.

This is an Annual Award and the successful recipient needs to be a New Zealand citizen residing in the Pakuranga or Botany electorate area. The award is a Koru Trophy to keep and the book ‘Leaving a Legacy’.

If someone in your wider Rotary community knows a person who fits the above criteria and would like to nominate that person could you please email my Secretary, Julia Castles at iwhowicksecretary@gmail.com with details.

Adrienne Davies

President

Howick Inner Wheel Club

Rotary Youth Exchange - Apply Now

Posted by Bart Signal on Mar 21, 2019

Have you thought about a Student Exchange?

Every year Rotary International offers students the chance to go on a 12 month exchange in countries like France, Germany, Holland, Argentina, plus more.

It is not as hard as it might sound because Rotary gives you a lot of support and you will have your own support person in your exchange country while you are away. You don’t have to know the language before you go. One of the highlights is a summer trip around Europe or your host country.

"It’s amazing I’ve come this far, I never would have guessed this is where I would be right now. Looking back on the year I’ve had so many once in a lifetime opportunities and it’s the mind set of being willing to say yes to anything offered that really makes a great year. You learn to be part of a different culture and end up with friends all over the world."

Students that have been on exchange tell Rotary that it is the best thing they have ever done and hey come back with great confidence and independence and really ready to get on with university or whatever they are doing next.

Applications close 30 April

Join them to find out more

	Thursday 28 March
	Remuera Golf Club 12 Abbots Way Remuera

Apply Now

Make a Difference from the Backbenches

Posted by Les Divers on Mar 21, 2019

Guest speaker on Monday was our very own Simeon Brown on how he has found ways to make a difference from the backbenches. His week is taken up with constituent meetings Monday and Friday, interspersed with Wellington on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays and community events on weekends. He very much enjoys his constituent meetings on Monday with interesting people and interesting stories – a contrast from dealing with bureaucrats for the next 3 days. Simeon has been at the forefront of raising awareness with local issues, including the about to commence Ameti project. He is also dealing with the current concern in many of the education circles in our community about the government proposals to fast forward the governance of schools back to the 1950s.

His Private Members Bill dealing with synthetic cannabis was drawn on the first ballot out of a biscuit tin and has precipitated a government bill attempting to deal with the problem. Simeon has also recently been designated as a contact person for National in the Botany electorate. As Ken Worsley, who introduced Simeon, says, it is always a pleasure to hear from him.

Remuera and St Johns - Quiz Night

Posted by Graham Kearns on Mar 19, 2019

Tip Top Schools Fun Day Out Coming Soon

Posted by Peter Woodcock on Mar 19, 2019

30 Years of Women in Rotary

Posted by Sarah Gilbert on Mar 19, 2019

Rotary Club of South Auckland Cultural & Charity Night 2019

Posted by Duncan Loney on Mar 19, 2019

Rotary National Science and Technology Forum Inspires

Posted by Les Divers on Mar 18, 2019

Rotary National Science and Technology Forum attendee Ann Li thanked Pakuranga Rotary for its sponsorship of her to the forum during the holidays.

She outlined the amazing overview of subjects she was able to receive and the awareness she now had of the advanced fields to which she can aspire. Her particular interest in medical science was well catered for and she came away from the course with precious memories and lifelong friends.

Rotary in action!

Meeting Highlights

Posted by Les Divers on Mar 18, 2019

Members present paid tribute to the victims of the Christchurch attack with a minute’s silence. The Sergeants’ collection was also devoted to help in Christchurch.

Tribute was also paid to Les Hammond.

Russell and Wendy Clark joined us for Russ’s last meeting as a member. He has resigned to be able to provide further care for Wendy. President Duncan outlined Russ’s long and abundant service to the cause of Rotary and Russ and Wendy were thanked by all members.

Reece Andrews (son of David and Elizabeth) was inducted as Pakuranga Rotary’s second corporate member representing Access One Scaffolding Limited. Reece is the General Manager at Access One Scaffolding and was provided with our traditional Rotary welcome.

District Conference is only 2 months away

Posted by John Fothergill on Mar 17, 2019

We are now only 2 months out from the District 9920 conference in Napier.

Already more than 200 of you have registered for the conference, but there is still plenty of time for those who have not.

Pakistan's female vaccination team moves from polio to measles

Posted by Bart Signal

The network of female vaccinating teams credited with bringing polio to the brink of extinction in Pakistan will next month be brought to bear on measles in the country's first nationwide blitz against the virus in five years.

Health officials believe the community teams credited with turning around Pakistan's campaign against polio in some of its most stubborn haunts can have a similar effect on other health problems.

Pakistan has used millions of dollars of polio donor funding to build a network of dedicated operations centres and health workers. Polio cases have fallen from 306 in 2014 to only four so far in 2018.

While Pakistan still has the polio virus circulating in the environment and has some time to go before it is declared polio free, health officials are starting to look at other potential uses of the network they have put in place.

One of the most successful parts of the anti-polio campaign has been the recruitment of tens of thousands of largely female community-based volunteers who vaccinate children in their own neighbourhoods.

Crossing Thru the Clouds

Posted by Viki Melber on Mar 05, 2019

The Tongariro crossing has been great fun!

We got up at 5am in the morning and drove to the start of the Crossing. It was raining when we finally started walking at around 8am making it a hard walk all the way up to the top but it was nevertheless a great feeling, even if the view wasn’t further than 30 metres. All of us were completely wet at the top, because the rain jackets couldn’t hold the water anymore and I was freezing even if I wore 4 layers.

The view cleared up at the lake at the top and it got really hot so I walked down with shorts. We had quite a few stops - Jazmin and I were the first people down the mountain. It was a great experience and I would definitely do it again.

More about Rotary Youth Exchange...

Rotary Youth Exchange Information Evenings

Posted by Bart Signal on Feb 22, 2019

Have you thought about a Student Exchange?

Every year Rotary International offers students the chance to go on a 12 month exchange in countries like France, Germany, Holland, Argentina, plus more.

Join them to find out more

	Monday 18 March		Wednesday 20 March		Thursday 28 March
	Papakura RSA 40 Elliot St Papakura		Te Tuhi Centre 13 Reeves Rd Pakuranga		Remuera Golf Club 12 Abbots Way Remuera

More about Rotary Youth Exchange...

Eels, eats and eco- entertainment at Pirongia

Posted by Sylvie Wilkinson on Feb 21, 2019

How lucky were the 33 people who were hosted by Pres. Duncan at his forest retreat in Pirongia. His extensive piece of bush clad land, complete with swift flowing stream, was a surprise to all. (not to mention the mansion) Duncan’s family had travelled to prepare refreshments for us, hiding them in little secret locations around the property.

We enjoyed the most delicious BBQ mini lamb burgers in a leafy glade by the river as well as ice cold drinks and canapes dotted around the property. The bold and brave tried out the huge zip line, much to the enjoyment of onlookers with their cameras at the ready. In keeping with the conservation theme, we were sent on a competition walk to identify native trees.

Turns out, many of us did not know our rimu from our rewa rewa, but fun (and a few arguments) we did have. One highlight was the feeding of the dozens of enormous endangered long finned eels. Did you know they can swallow a whole sausage in one audible suck? Thank you Duncan and family for a very different, fresh and invigorating fellowship adventure. When can we come back?

Help Support Te Whakaora Tangata

Posted by Duncan Loney on Feb 21, 2019

On Wednesday 27 February from 12noon to 1.30pm, the Rotary Club of Auckland is having a special lunch meeting, supporting the South Auckland charity Te Whakaora Tangata and will also include a performance from Dave Dobbyn. This charity provides a holistic, long-term mentoring programme for those most at risk, with an average restorative cost of about $24,000 per person, far less than most other organisations can provide. The aim is to successfully break the perpetual cycle of dysfunction and disadvantage in broken families and the results to date are impressive. The panellists for this event, who have been through this programme, will include a woman who became a mother at 12 and a man in and out of prison for 35 years.

Date & Time: Wednesday 27 February, 12noon to 1.30pm

Venue: EMA Conference Rooms, 145 Khyber Pass Rd, Grafton

Paid Parking: Available in the EMA parking building on Auburn St

Cost: $60.00 per person

RSVP: clicking here or contacting Jacqui - (09) 486 6010 or office@aucklandrotary.org.nz

Pestival - East Auckland Schools Green Jam

Posted by Duncan Loney on Feb 21, 2019

A Colourful Time

Posted by Viki Melber on Feb 19, 2019

School started and I got really busy in school. I joined the tennis team and went to the tryouts for the volleyball seniors team, where I finally made it in the team.  For subjects in school I chose English, Chemistry, Calculus, Physics applied and Outdoor Education.

On the 10th February I went together with some of the other Rotary Exchange students and my friends from school to the Hare Krishna Holi festival, which took place at the Hare Krishna Temple in Riverhead. We all came home with the colour everywhere and were looking forward to our rainbow shower.

It was so much fun.

More about Rotary Youth Exchange...

Dental Clinic to Multipurpose Room

Posted by Sylvie Wilkinson on Feb 14, 2019

Following funding from the Johnston Trust, Trustee Alan Vester and a small team have been busy washing, scraping and painting at Anchorage Park School. They were snapped with three members of the Club, along with class teacher, Rotarian Lorraine. Alan has worked very hard and deserves our thanks.

Fiji Oxygen Project Fundraising

Posted by Sylvie Wilkinson on Feb 14, 2019

Last Saturday, eight members of the Auxiliary supported Auckland South R/C at the ASB Showgrounds to raise funds for this important District project. The crowds were HUGE, the noise deafening and the colour dazzling as this Chinese New Year celebration welcomed in the Year of the Pig. We sold raffle tickets, received donations and encouraged groups to try the Oxygen Ball game. Auckland South’s Secretary Madison, sent us this message.

“Please enjoy our fun images to share with Pakuranga Rotary members and accept our thanks a trillion for your support through donations, volunteers and friendship. We hope for a chance to meet and work with you on more projects"

Atlas Presentation

Posted by Sylvie Wilkinson on Feb 14, 2019

Last week, on behalf of Pakuranga Rotary, Elizabeth and Crystal from our Auxiliary Club visited Anchorage Park School to present a Rotary atlas to each year four child. The two young ladies designed their own brand of presentation, which was not only fresh and lively, but a huge hit with the children. The photos show them explaining the function of an atlas, playing their ”under and over, find the page” game, and with a grateful recipient. Well done Crystal and Elizabeth and thank you for a very different and delightful presentation.

Viki's Travels

Posted by Viki Melber on Feb 07, 2019

December and January were probably my busiest months in New Zealand. I have seen so many different locations and have done so much.

I was in Whangarei, spent New Years on Waihi Beach, was in the Bay of Islands and did a day trip to Cape Reinga. I also watched some movies with Bart, Adrianne and Cameron.

On my last weekend before school was about to start, my host family took me to Rotorua where we did the luge, a walk in the redwood forest and visited the Wai-o-tapu thermal wonderland, what I found amazing.

Now school has started again and it is nice to see all my friends again.

More about Rotary Youth Exchange...

RYPEN needs Your Help

Posted by Ainie Kwok, RYPEN Chair on Feb 05, 2019

The Rotary Youth Program of Enrichment (RYPEN) is a Youth Leadership over a weekend long camp for Year 12 and 13 students, aged between 14 - 17 years old, designed at developing young people’s potential through a mixture of lecture style sessions and adventure-based learning.

This year RYPEN will be held on Friday 29 to 31 March 2019 at Kokako Lodge, Falls Road, Hunua, Auckland.

The RYPEN 2019 team us made up of Rotaract Club of Auckland and Rotaract Club of Auckland University, plus members of other Rotary Clubs. They have been hard at work over the holidays and would like your help to deliver the RYPEN programme in March 2019.

They are looking for assistance for the camp.

Camp mum and dad - From Friday 29 March 5pm onwards until Sunday 31 March 2019
Transport Chaperone - Friday 29 March, Ellerslie Carpark x minimum 2 volunteer members
Registration from Friday 29 March 2019 from 4pm - Hilary Prior (Auckland) + 2 volunteers required
Clean-up team on Sunday 1pm onwards - 4 x volunteers required

Team Leaders will be Rotaractors and RYLA awardees 2018.

Please contact Ainie Kwork (ainiekwok@gmail.com) if you want to be involved in this year's RYPEN 2019 programme.

Keeping an Eye on Punters

Posted by Peter Woodcock on Feb 05, 2019

There was some reassurance, mixed with worrying reminders of what gambling can do in the lives of many of our fellow citizens in the address given by Rob Burrell at the meeting this week.

Rob has a team of ten whose responsibility on behalf of Sky City Casino is to keep an eye out for potential or actual gambling addicts as well as anyone breaking the strict rules of casino use. With 400,000 customers per month and 1 in 25 likely to have a ‘gambling problem’ there is no shortage of potential ‘clients’ in this job which Rob admits is not easy.

Auckland Brit and Euro Classic Car Show

Posted by Duncan Loney on Feb 05, 2019

Rotary Community River Carnival

Posted by Chris Ward on Feb 04, 2019

Gary Braid - From Otumoetai to Slovenia

Posted by Les Divers on Jan 29, 2019

Gary Braid was happily playing soccer at Otumoetai College when he succumbed to peer pressure and tried out for the First Fifteen. The rest is history, as the former All Black outlined to our first meeting of the year on Monday evening. Gary represented New Zealand in 1983 and his sons Luke and Daniel have kept the Braid name well recognised in rugby circles since.

Gary confessed he found the drudgery of training a relief at a time when he had three young children in the house. The motivation of playing for your mates and country was and remains as powerful as ever for our national side. There is no free ride and the All Black legacy imbues humbleness. He has enjoyed a wide and varied career since his playing days which includes coaching stints in Croatia and Slovenia, National Sales Manager for DB Breweries, property investing, software development and being a Publican.

Question time elicited the observation that rugby players in all European countries (except France) do not have the intuitive skills of players in countries such as New Zealand where the game is played from a young age and coaching therefore involves breaking the component parts of the game down and having to teach those skills.

Highbrook Rotary Fun Run Walk

Posted by Bart Signal on Jan 09, 2019

Can you help Highbrook Rotary?

Run or Walk - Register by 6 February and be in to win a prize!
Volunteer - It takes many people to run the event including set up, pack down, registration, traffic wardens, marshal etc.

If you can help, then contact Highbrook Rotary

Email: highbrookrotary@gmail.com
Mobile: 0211588801

“Chippies” of Action

Posted by Chris Ward on Jan 07, 2019

A Rotary team consisting of three members of the Pakuranga Rotary , Peter Armstrong, Don Lawry, Chris Ward, and his ex-classmate Howard Scott and Dennis Kavanagh (Don’s friend), has just returned from 12 days in Fiji on the island of Taveuni.

The team had a very successful time there assisting a group of local builders, by helping to construct a 2-classroom block in the village of Bouma. While the local builders laid the concrete slab and started laying the blockwork forming the walls of the classroom, the Rotary boys constructed the roof trusses. They then painted these with two coats of undercoat and continued by painting the 75 sheets of ceiling panels. In total, Don worked out that we painted 810 square meters, the equivalent of 4 full sized tennis courts.

Rotarian Geoffrey Amos and his team of locals wonderfully looked after the Rotary boys. We were proud to help support the Rotary Club of Taveuni Island.

This project is a great example of Rotary In Action, and we all felt privileged to represent Pakuranga Rotary in assisting in an international project.

Wonderful Community Projects

Posted by Kelvin Davies on Dec 31, 2018

Pakuranga Rotary has initiated some wonderful community projects. Beginning all those years ago when Rotarians started the famed Rotary Walkway and over recent times, the joint projects with the Howick Local Board at Bramley Reserve.

Included in those projects is the Snakes and Ladders Playground which was showcased on the front cover of the Howick Local Board’s recent report. Rotary projects can have a wider use in terms of projecting our image into the community than we ever thought possible.

Charter members - Bill Duncan and Bob Ritchie have been reflecting on the impact that Pakuranga Rotary has made in the community for nearly 50 years. I wonder what Pakuranga Rotary is envisaging for 2019 and future community projects?

Another one bites the dust!

Posted by Sylvie Wilkinson on Dec 24, 2018

Pakuranga Rotary now has 16 Council registered rat catchers! Don, Sylvie and Ron have all had good results and between them, have eradicated 5 rats.

Please remember to log your catches on the CatchIt database (you all have your access codes). Even if you do not yet have a trap, you can still visit www.catchit.co.nz and see what has been caught in your street.

Congratulations to Pakuranga Rotary and special thanks to President Duncan for this new and very worthwhile environmental community service!

New Christmas Addition

Posted by Sylvie Wilkinson on Dec 24, 2018

Christmas is all about a very special baby...

We want to share our own special Rotary baby with you all... some beautiful shots of Mahina Louise, Penelope's wee girl now just 6 weeks old.

Touring the South

Posted by Viki Melber on Dec 24, 2018

During November and early December Viki toured the South Island with Rotary Exchange Students - Getting to know more of what New Zealand has to offer and making life-long friends.

Click on the link below to see more