What a nice turnout and a lively discussion we had with our District Governor Ingrid Waugh during our “Downtown Rotary Talkshow”- hosted by Stuart Rowe.  

 

DG Ingrid first shared a short presentation on the RI theme of “Be the Inspiration” along with her sub-theme “Keep Rotary Real.” Ingrid spoke about 4 key pillars that she is focused on this year. The first is growing leaders within our Clubs and District. Ingrid advocates mentoring as a tool within and across clubs as a key way to develop our people.  The second pillar is about engaging sustainable projects and supporting our Rotary Foundation – which is our Charity of Choice. With US$2bn under management, our Foundation has credibility and also provides us with funds so that we can do more good work in our communities. The third pillar is getting better in telling our stories about Rotary. During the Q&A session, Ingrid shared with us her personal story about why she joined Rotary and why it’s important for her. The final pillar is creating an engaging membership experience.  Ingrid kindly cited our club as an example of the positive energy and friendly experience we want visitors and members to have when they come to a Rotary meeting.

 

DG Ingrid also acknowledged our club’s contribution to District through the additional roles of our following members:

 

Gill Johnston – Assistant Governor

Pam Deal – Membership Chair

Byran Theunisen- RLI Coordinator

Greg Walker – District Finance and Admin member

Lucy Chang-Lorenzi – RLI District Trainer

 

 

During the Q&A session we also learned some interesting information about the broader Rotary world:   

 

1) that there are still 13 people who have polio in Afghanistan (in an area occupied by ISIS) so we cannot say we have ended polio yet. There also needs to 3 years of no polio before we can claim polio to be fully eradicated

 

2) our District’s e-club francophone has set up a satellite club in Shanghai, China which brings an interesting cultural dimension to our Rotary family. This is an example of one club’s creativity and food for thought as we think about what else we can do to keep our clubs healthy and vibrant.

 

Speaking of creativity, a special shout out to our “Three James” (Billing, Hook, Langton) for trying out a new type of Sargent’s session – where our members had to choose between “Truth” or “PiFL” – if you want to know what James PFL’s favourite drink is, you’ll have to come to Rotary next time to find out.

 

To foster closer friendships and understanding, we have a number of informal fellowship events lined up. In lieu of our "TTT" (Third Thirsty Thursday), we are going to try a new "MMM" (Monday, Music, Mania) at a great little 1920’s NY style speak easy bar in Britomart called “Caretaker.” They have a great resident gypsy jazz band (VoxNova) on Monday nights from 9-11pm. There is no cover fee and delicious cocktails on offer. I plan to attend on Monday 24 Sept with my husband Thomas and some friends. Let me know if you’d like to join and I will try to organize a large table for us.

 

A final note, as Gill away on a well-deserved holiday, please send me any stories or photos for the website which I will update in her absence.

 

Have a wonderful week & see you next Tuesday!

 

All the best,

Lucy