I would like to thank everyone who stepped in after Geoff and I realised we were not going to get back on time from Camperdown. I know people talk about the nightmare of the Monash Freeway during peakhour, but it is not something I have had to expreience for a very long time…and not something I want to do again for the forseeable future!
On behalf of Geoff and I, I would also like to sincerely thank those of you who have sent well wishes and condolenses after the passing of Geoff’s mum. We will celebrate Dorothy’s life with Geoff’s family and Dorothy’s friends next Monday in Cobden.
We were so disapointed to miss the meeting, but I did hear that it was great.
Our visiting Rotarian, Dan, sent me a lovely message which he asked me to share:
‘Thank you very much for arranging for me to attend the Rotary Club of Berwick meeting. I received such a warm welcome from Jennifer, Andrew, Terry and all the other club members present. It was a great pleasure meeting everyone, and I thoroughly enjoyed the fellowship and the opportunity to learn more about the club and its activities.
Please pass on my sincere thanks and appreciation to everyone for making me feel so welcome. I hope we can stay connected and look forward to meeting you personally on another occasion.
Warm regards,
Dan
Treasurer
Rotary Club of Kalpitiya, Sri Lanka’
It’s so nice to hear what we have always known,that our visitors find our meetings and our members so welcoming.
Our other visitor for the evening was Rhonda O’Connor, whose presentation I have been told, was uplifting and informative.
In June this year, Rhonda completed a nine day Pilgrimage, retracing the steps taken by the St John of God Sisters, whose journey began in the late 1890s, during the height of the gold rush. At this time the Eastern Goldfields faced severe challenges, such as overcrowding, poor sanitation and inadequate water supplies, which led to outbreaks of diseases like typhoid. The Sisters of St John of God responded to these dire conditions and provided care to the sick and the poor, especially during outbreaks of disease, and supported those living in remote and often harsh conditions.
The Pilgrimage enabled participants to walk the sacred paths of the history and heritage of the Sisters, to explore the tradition of care that has been entrusted to those care giving at SJOG, and for each of them to consider how they continue this legacy into the future and their responsibility as leaders.
During the Pilgrimage participants reflected on the physical and emotional journey undertaken by the Sisters as they travelled from Perth to the goldfields. From there, Rhonda and her group travelled to Kalgoorlie, Coolgardie, back to Subiaco and then to Broome, before returning to Perth.
Rhonda’s key takeaways from the Pilgrimage is reflective of the care given at SJOG hospitals and also resonates with what we do and who we are as Rotarians:
- Resilience and perseverance is in our DNA
- We have seen so many changes and challenges, and continued to evolve and flourish
- The baton continues to be passed
- Understanding, remembering and sharing our stories
- Relationships are key
- Our impact can outlast our involvement
- Perfection is not so much in doing extraordinary actions, as in performing the ordinary exercises of each day extraordinarily well.
There have been a couple of things going on behind the scenes in the last few weeks:
- I am so excited to share with you that we have 23 Year 6 students from Tulliallan Primary School, who our Club is supporting to complete the Rotary Junior Leadership Awards.
- The Beaconsfield Community Centre was successful with their grant application through Cardinia Council, so we have a BBQ to run and also an info booth which we will need members to support in the afternoon and evening of Sunday 6th December, so please make sure you save the date.
- PP Jack and Andrew visited the Berwick Farmers’ Market last weekend and met with Geoff Rankin, the Farmers’ Market Manager, to investigate us providing the BBQ each month at the Market. We will let you know the outcome at this week’s meeting.
- Don’t forget we have a small team BBQing for the City of Casey’s tree planting day on Sunday 23rd August and that we have OUR Tree Planting Day on Sunday 30th August.
This week we have DGE Murray Wilson talking to us about Bail Justice. This will also be a great opportunity for us to get to know a bit more about District 9815’s last District Governor.
Hope to see you all on Wednesday.
