Club News

Rotary Club of Ryde has been helping the Salvos for the past 16 years to raise funds for the most needy in our society. The target for 2012 Red Shield Appeal is $90 Million. As always our collection started with a generous and kind hearted donation from PDG Les Whitcroft for the amount of $10,000.

This year the number of the JRAHS Interact students and helpers increased. We had 82 James Ruse Agricultural High School Students doorknocking houses in Denistone, West Ryde and Eastwood suburbs.

Four car dealers in the area offered us free vehicles or sponsored a bus to make the ferrying of the students easier. David Tompkins who is the owner of Ryde Toyota sponsored a 20 seater bus and offered to drive it on Sunday and Rotarian Graham Metcalfe was the navigator for him. On Saturday Mr. Richard Roebuck, a volunteer from Gladesville offered to drive the bus for free and Rotarian Bill Payne was the navigator.

Tom Kerr Auto offered us an eleven seater vehicle and Rotarian John Brown was the driver for Saturday and Sunday. Brad Garlick Auto offered a seven seater and Rotarian Kalma Mclellan was the driver for the two days.

When two Rotarians informed me that they will not be able to help, I did not stress and thought someone will help. I received a telephone call from Hunter Holden the following day informing me that there will be a ten seater bus with a driver available for Saturday and Sunday to transport the students. Mr. Des Klein from Hunter Holden was the driver of the bus and Rotarian Erdem Toner and Graham Metcalfe were the navigators for the two days.

On Sunday mid morning PP Noel Dunn turned up to make sure we are all doing a good job. Thank you Noel for your support, you have been doing this job for over ten years and you taught me a lot. It is now our turn to do the job as good as you did for the past years.

Having James Ruse Agricultural High School students and all the local car dealers, the job was made easy. Eight Rotarians (Martin Aston, John Brown, Adrian Hallett, Kalma Maclellan, Graham Metcalfe, Bill Payne, Duncan Taylor and Erdem Toner) were busy transporting students, Rotarian Ron Taffa was counting money and Rotarian Val Payne was in charge of the morning tea. This year the morning tea was sponsored by St George Bank.

Thank you to everyone. We raised a total of $16,596.00  and this includes PDG Les Whitcroft donation. We did our share to make sure the Salvos can continue the great work they do to look after the most vulnerable and needy in our community. God bless their work.

Rtn. Nora Etmekdjian

Exactly fifty years ago next Tuesday night, President Bill Stacey inducted a young Eastwood dentist, Ashley Peake, into the Rotary Club of Ryde.  Ashley’s desire to involve himself fully in Rotary saw him accept directorships in three different services before the Club appointed him as President for the 1967-68 year.

During his presidential year, Ryde sponsored the Rotary Club of Eastwood and ran the District Conference at Macquarie University.  Such was the great organisation and diligence of Ryde Rotarians that the success of the Conference brought generous praise from DG Gordon Harman and all District Clubs.

Of the many local projects undertaken that year, one stood out.  That was the Child Accident Survey, run successfully in conjunction with the Health Department and Ryde Council. Volunteers conducted a survey of accidents to children in the District, and gathered much valuable information.  This was publicised widely and created great interest.  The main international project, arranged through Community Aid Abroad, provided a water supply and irrigation for the village of Mohanpur, 120 miles from Calcutta.  Funds for this were raised from an Art Show.

In the years following, PP Ashley showed continued leadership skills in diverse areas, particularly Programs, Classification and Membership Development.  The early eighties saw him appointed as an Unattached Director because his contributions were so highly regarded.  The Board in February 1988, recognised him as a Paul Harris Fellow.

Let me use a quotation from our longest-serving Charter Member PP Ron Pacey. Ron wrote “The Rotary Club of Ryde over the years has been blessed with many fine Rotarians, but only two of them ever earned the title of ‘Mr Rotary’ because of their intimate knowledge of the ideals of Rotary, and because of their thorough understanding of the Constitution and By-Laws of Rotary International, of the Club Constitution and By-Laws, and of the ‘Bible’ of Rotary – the Manual of Procedure. The first was Eric Allars and the second Ashley Peake”.  This quotation sums up PP Ashley’s ongoing Ryde Rotary involvement.  In June 2001, the Board awarded Ashley a Sapphire Pin.

Those of us who were fortunate enough to attend our Club’s 66th Birthday Celebration recently, were privileged to hear PP Ashley propose the toast to our Club.  Every word underlined what has been already said. PP Ashley’s intimate knowledge of our Club and its history was clearly and definitely expressed.  How many of us are aware that those wise words were spoken so ably by a Rotarian in his ninety-second year?  For such long and meritorious service to the Rotary Club of Ryde, our Board wishes to honour PP Ashley Peake with a second Sapphire Pin.

PP Doug Thompson

C2S EndPolio is a group of young professionals training to compete in the City to Surf 2012

With only 4 1/2 months from our April 1st launch until the race, it’s going to be a hard slog for these incredibly unfit “Nannas” to train up and raise as much money for End Polio Now as possible.

Poliomyelitis is an acute, viral, infectious disease affecting children. It is spread from person to person, affecting the central nervous system. Polio causes paralysis, pain, fever, seizures and spastic paralysis, and leads to lifelong deformity, paralysis and pain. There is no cure.

While the current vaccine was invented in 1955 and the developed world is largely Polio-free today, Polio was still endemic in the developing world due to limited access, funding, administration and regional conflicts.

In 1988, Rotary World President Royce Abbey (Melbourne, Australia) announced a global effort in conjunction with the World Health Organisation and UNICEF to eradicate Polio. Already the program has overcome obstacles of distance, access, co-ordination, religion, politics and booming populations to eradicate Polio in the Americas, Europe and the West Pacific. The number of annual diagnosed cases have been reduced by 99%; from an estimated 350,000 cases in 1988 to around 1,000 per year now.

After 3 years with no new cases, a country can be officially declared Polio-free. This means the vaccination and follow up boosters of all children under the age of 10. With a global birthrate of 252 children per minute, this is an exponentially challenging administrative and volunteer effort to maintain. Despite being certified Polio-free in 2001, an outbreak was confirmed in China in September 2011 involving a strain of Poliomyelitis prevalent in neighbouring Pakistan.

The push to finally eradicate Polio must be amplified. The last 3 countries with a total 650 new cases of Polio every year are Nigeria, Pakistan and Afghanistan. With increasing travel and globalisation, if Polio is not eradicated now, the virus will become globally endemic again within our lifetimes.

C2S EndPolio is a Rotary Foundation project of Ryde Rotary Club.

Last year Australian Rotary Health launched an exciting new fundraising and mental health research awareness event called Hat Day which raised over $100,000 for mental health research. This event provided an excellent platform to raise the profile of Rotary in the community while supporting a very worthy cause.

This year, Hat Day is returning on the 18 May ...Ryde Rotary's meeting on Tuesday 15 May will be a hat themed event and promises to be a big one. Go to our events page for details and contact us to RSVP.

Mental illness affects one in five Australian’s every year. Suicide, a tragic consequence of mental illness such as depression, claims over 2,000 lives each year in Australia. Steps need to be taken to halt this tragic loss of life.

Australian Rotary Health supports finding a solution to Australia’s mental health crisis through research. Last year we funded more than 40 studies into various areas of mental health but to continue supporting this vital research we need your help.  

Last year Australian Rotary Health launched an exciting new fundraising and mental health research awareness event called Hat Day which raised over $100,000 for mental health research. This event provided an excellent platform to raise the profile of Rotary in the community while supporting a very worthy cause.

This year, Hat Day is returning on the 18 May, however your Club is free to wear a hat and donate to Hat Day at any day that suits you. We would like your help in promoting Hat Day in your community as one of your clubs PR, membership and service projects to help us support more research into this vital field of health.

Hat Day is a fun day for everyone to find out more about mental health and help raise funds to aid mental health research.

If you would like to know more, please see your Club President, call 1800 781 878 or email info@hatday.com.au for more information.

On Saturday 14th April four members of the Club completed their three day ‘Rotary Leadership Institute‘ course and graduated with certificates to show successful completion of the course.  There have been a number of groups doing the Course on different days to allow for the volume of applicants for training. 

The other groups have also completed their training and have been presented with certificates as well. 

The course covered many aspects of Rotary administration and procedures and will equip those who have participated well for their coming duties on our Club’s Board.  District Governor David Rands sacrificed more of his time to come and present certificates to our four candidates which clearly reflects the high regard District places in this new and valuable addition to Rotary training.

The first round of the 7th Annual Ryde Rotary Junior School Public Speaking Competition was held last Wednesday night at Eastwood Heights Public School. Allen Horrell, the convenor of this year's event, welcomed Parents, Teachers and most importantly, the children for attending the competition.

 Mr Lawrence Van Ryn, Principal of Eastwood Heights Public School was thanked for hosting the event again this year. Eastwood Heights has hosted this event for the last 5 years, saving Ryde Rotary from having to charge an entry fee for the competition venue.  

Ryde Rotary runs this competition to give junior school students from the Ryde District the opportunity to demonstrate their speaking skills in a public forum. It also allows local schools to showcase the hidden talent that is within our schools in the Ryde District. 

 27 Students gave 3 minute speeches on a variety of topics ranging from "Living in my Suburb" to "Dear Madam Prime Minister", but the most popular was "Turn Off that TV!" to the discomfort of Channel 10 employee, Rtn David Johnston. He brightened up when one child not only changed the speech to "Turn On that TV!", but also gave Master Chef a plug!

The adjudicators who volunteered their time on the night, Donna Fernandez, Vanessa Thorp and Michele Hilder, had a tough job to select the three finalists to go forward to the final competition to be held at the Ryde Rotary meeting on Tuesday 27th March, but they were up to the challenge. The finalist schools, students and topics are:

Hunters Hill Public School – Conan O'Connell – Reach for the Stars

St Kevins Primary School – Joanna Crawford – Our Country

St Michaels Primary School – Natalia Reale-Bryant – Turn Off that TV!

The Rotary Club of Ryde thanks the main sponsor, the Ryde-Eastwood Leagues club for sponsoring all prizes for the contestants, the finalists and their schools. 

Other sponsors were Woolworths West Ryde, Fondue2you, Stylesetter International and Channel 10.
Allen thanked the committee who had worked so hard to put this event together, Rotarians Maureen Mulheron, Kalma McLellan, Geoff Nix, Erdem Toner, Jan Cutler and David Johnson, and photographer Duncan Taylor. 

The School of St Jude 10th Anniversary 2012 Appeal has been launched on our website – Click here for details of our 2012 Appeal

Bonus! Every donation and new sponsorship until June 30th is being MATCHED DOLLAR FOR DOLLAR!!

A very generous supporter has offered up to $200,000 towards our construction plans if we can raise that much in donations and new sponsorships.

Our 2012 Appeal will help us to continue to provide a free quality education for over 1600 students (and growing!) and employment to over 400 Tanzanian staff (and growing!)

 We also have 450 Student and Boarding Packages that require sponsorship Link. With a growing student population the demand has increased 
and we need to ensure each and every student at St Jude’s knows that somebody cares enough to provide them with a comfortable room to sleep in, 
nourishing meals and facilities for study and recreation.

Collectively our St Jude’s family is MAKING A DIFFERENCE!!

What a team we are!

Gemma
http://www.schoolofstjude.org/

Hello to all our NSW and ACT Supporters!
 
I’m very excited to be heading your way in a week and extremely honoured to be representing Gemma and everyone at St Jude’s during our 10th Anniversary promotional tour. Gemma’s disappointment at not being able to do this trip herself is quelled by the fact she is looking forward to the arrival of her fourth child later in the year and I’m pleased to say she is looking very well and happy!
 
So, what qualifies me to step into Gemma’s shoes at this time? Well, in early 2002 I joined Gemma and Angela Bailey, the very first volunteer, in Arusha to help out for a few months painting classrooms or digging a veggie garden – whatever was needed. I’m still here. And now as Deputy Director of the school I have the great privilege of spending every day mentoring staff, solving problems and generally being involved in some way with every aspect of school life. I love my job! And I would love to share with you some of the stories of the past 10 years, explain our hopes for the future and answer any questions you may have.
 
More importantly, I would love to have the opportunity to thank as many of our supporters as possible, personally, for their loyalty and dedication to our staff and students over the last 10 years – you are the people who have made St Jude’s possible and will help us to keep it going well into the future.
 
Below is list of events that anyone may attend (with family and friends!) around the state during March and April 2012. For more information please visit our website.
 
Kim
 
St Jude’s 10th Anniversary Promotional Tour - Events around NSW and ACT
 
Multi-Club Rotary Meeting – Chatswood, St Ives, Lane Cove & Berowra
Date: Wednesday 7th March 2012
Time: 6.30pm for 7pm
Venue: Pymble Golf Club
Venue Address: Cowan Road, St Ives, Sydney
Booking Contact: Michael MacQuillan – Michael_QX@bigpond.com or 0406 926 713
Cost: $35 (Dinner)
 
Zonta Club of Sydney West celebrating International Women’s Day
Date: Thursday 8th March 2012
Time: 6:30am
Venue: Greyhound Club
Venue Address: Rookwood Road, Yagoona, Sydney
RSVP: Friday 16th February 2012
Booking Contact: Diana Humphries – 0407 886 215
Cost: Adults $30 and Students $20 (Breakfast)

 ** Payment. All payments are requested prior to the function. Payment can be made either by Cheque – made out to the ‘Zonta Club of Sydney West’ and sent to 1 Lincoln Rd, Georges Hall NSW 2198
or
Direct Deposit
Account Name: Zonta Club of Sydney West
BSB: 032-182
Account Number: 99-1357
Identify payment by adding your name and number of Adults and/or Student tickets e.g. PBrown A2 S4
 
Women on Boards - Sydney
Date: Thursday 8th March 2012
Time: 5.30pm
Venue: The Tea Room QVB, George Street, Sydney
Venue Address: Level 3, North End, Queen Victoria Building, 455
Booking Contact: Louise Krause – louise@womenonboards.org.au  
Booking Details: To register for the event please go to http://www.womenonboards.org.au/my/events/
Cost: $77 WOB subscriber/$88 non-WOB subscriber (Cocktail Function – drinks and canapés)
 
Soroptimist International of the Hawkesbury
Date: Saturday 10th March 2012
Time: 7.30am
Venue: Hawkesbury Race Course at Clarendon
Venue Address: Race Course Road, Clarendon
Booking Contact: Mrs Pam Stoneman – (02) 4572 3027 (evenings) or 0438 344 072
Cost: $30 – Full Buffet Breakfast
 
Our Lady of Fatima Peakhurst - Mass
Date: Saturday 10th March 2012
Time: 5pm Mass
Venue: Our Lady of Fatima Peakhurst
Venue Address: 825 Forest Road, Peakhurst
Cost: Gold Coin Donation

Rotary Club of Como-Jannali
Date: Tuesday 27th March 2012
Time: 6.30pm for 7pm start
Venue: Como Hotel – 2nd Floor
Venue Address: 35 Creona Street, Como, Sydney
Booking Contact: Lyn Bates (0408 284 082)
Cost: $35 (Dinner)
 
Trivia Night - Wollongong
Date: Friday 30th March 2012
Time: 6.45pm for 7.15pm
Venue: Towradgi Surf Life Saving Club
Venue Address: 1 Murranar Road, Towradgi
Booking Contact: Cameron Brown (Explore Discover Act) – explorediscoveract@gmail.com
Cost: $25 per person (10 per table)
** Guests are able to bring drinks and snacks for their table. Soft drinks available to buy at the venue.
 
St Therese Catholic Church – Dover Heights Mass
Date: Saturday 31st March 2012
Time: 5pm Mass
Venue: St Therese Catholic Church – Dover Heights
Venue Address: Cnr Napier and Dover Rd, Dover Heights, Sydney
 
St Mary Magdalene – Rose Bay Mass
Date: Sunday 1st April 2012
Time: 8am Mass and 10am Mass
Venue: St Mary Magdalene
Venue Address: 835 News South Head Rd, Rose Bay, Sydney
 
Canberra – St Edmunds School
Date: Monday 2nd April 2012
Time: 8.55am
Venue: Treacy House, St Edmunds School
Venue Address: 110 Canberra Ave, Manuka
Booking Contact: Leanne Gair LGair@stedmunds.act.edu.au or Jason Moore jmoore@stedmunds.act.edu.au
Cost: Free
 
Canberra Wine & Cheese Night for St Jude’s
Date: Monday 2nd April 2012
Time: 4.30pm
Venue: Australian Catholic Bishops Conference Secretariat
Venue Address: 63 Currong St North, Braddon, ACT
Booking Contact: Beth Doherty – RSVP essential - media@catholic.org.au or 0407 081 256
Cost: $20 suggested donation, more welcome
 
Armidale Public Presentation
Date: Wednesday 4th April 2012
Time: 6.30pm
Venue: NECOM Auditorium
Venue Address: Cnr Mossman & Faulkner Street, Armidale
Booking Contact: Lynda Lynch (0413 084 567)
Cost: Free
 
Kim Saville
Deputy Director
School of St Jude
www.schoolofstjude.co.tz

Dear Teachers,

Once again this year, the Rotary Club of Ryde is hosting the 7th Annual Junior School Public Speaking Competition, the finals to be held on Tuesday, 27th March, 2012, 6pm for 6:30 at our Rotary meeting held at the Next Generation Club (next to the Ryde Aquatic Centre) Victoria Road, Ryde.  In the first instance, we are calling for your expression of interest and would appreciate you registering your intent by return email to Allen.Horrell@Bluescopesteel.com 

This competition gives Junior School students from the Ryde district the opportunity to demonstrate their speaking skills in a public forum and prizes are awarded to the winning competitors.

Each registered school may nominate two of their students from Grades 5 or 6 to enter the preliminary competition which will be held 6pm, Wednesday 14th March, at the Eastwood Heights Primary School Hall.  Three finalists will be chosen from the competing schools, progressing to the final.  Parents, friends and school staff are invited to attend.

Below are the five topics from which your nominated public speaking competitor may choose. The speech should be 3 minutes in length:

1. Our Country
2. Reach for the Stars
3. Living in my suburb
4. Turn off that TV!
5. Dear Madam Prime Minister...

The three finalists will be asked to repeat the speech given at the preliminaries to our Rotary meeting. They will then be allotted ten minutes to prepare and present a one minute impromptu speech to conclude the judging.

Please do not hesitate to contact me if you would like any further information.
I look forward to hearing from you.


Regards,

Allen Horrell
Public Speaking Convener, 
The Rotary Club of Ryde, Inc.
M: 0406360204

Rotarians have significant reasons to celebrate Rotary’s 107th anniversary on 23 February.

Major gains have been made in the fight to eradicate polio, Rotary’s top priority. In January, India reached a historic milestone by marking a full year without recording a new case of polio. The country has been an epicenter of the crippling childhood disease.

Worldwide, fewer than 650 polio cases were confirmed for 2011, less than half the 1,352 infections reported in 2010. Overall, the annual number of polio cases has plummeted by more than 99 percent since the initiative was launched in 1988, when polio infected about 350,000 children a year. More than 2 billion children have been immunized in 122 countries, preventing 5 million cases of paralysis and 250,000 deaths.

Also in January, Rotary leaders announced that Rotary clubs raised more than US$200 million in response to a $355 million challenge grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. In recognition of Rotary’s commitment, the Gates Foundation contributed an additional $50 million. All of the resulting $605 million will be spent in support of immunization activities in polio-affected countries.  

 “We’ll celebrate this milestone, but it doesn’t mean that we’ll stop raising money or spreading the word about polio eradication,” Rotary Foundation Trustee John F. Germ told Rotary leaders at the International Assembly in San Diego, California, USA. “We can’t stop until our entire world is certified as polio-free.” 

End Polio Now lightings
In what has become a Rotary anniversary tradition, Rotary clubs around the world are illuminating iconic structures with the End Polio Now message.

This year, light displays center on Pakistan, where Rotary clubs will illuminate Frere Hall in Karachi and the WAPDA House in Lahore. Other lighting sites include the Tower of London; City Government Building in Taipei, Taiwan; Roppongi Hills Mori Tower, Tokyo’s fifth tallest building; Federation Square, one of southern Australia’s top tourist draws; and two famous landmarks in Brazil -- the historic Sitio Arqueológico de São Miguel das Missões in Rio Grande do Sul, and the Palácio Garibaldi, a neo-classical architectural treasure in Curitiba.

 The lightings “carry Rotary’s pledge to end polio,” says RI President Kalyan Banerjee, a native of India. “But we are not there yet. Rotary and our partners will continue to immunize children until our goal of a polio-free world is achieved. ”