Another month gone in the year and what a month it has been.
To begin the month we had a presentation from So They Can an organisation that started in Northbridge in 2009 and is now a worldwide NGO supported by many governments including the Australian Government. They told us of a new project in Kenya where they are looking to build new toilets at a school for the privacy of the students. The existing toilets are nothing more that logs and tree branches and provide no privacy. We are looking to support this project with a donation of $5,000.
We ran a very successful Membership Drive night where many ideas were put forward by our members on how we can make our Club a more vibrant Club and attractive to potential members. The membership committee will be looking at some new initiatives to be introduced in the months ahead in co-operation with Club Service and Public Relations. I urge all members to support the initiatives fully.
We followed this with an interesting talk by local residents trying to have an Aquamarine Reserve mandated by the State Government from Balmoral Beach to the Spit Bridge to have an exclusion zone for fishing to help regenerate some of the species close to extinction – this helps preserve the Food Chain that we and many fish are so dependent on. They are simply looking for support from us in their endeavours.
For our last meeting in August we focussed on Kenya once again with a guest speaker from Maasai Mamma’s. A very passionate person looking to help people in small villages in Amboseli with a project to build a Water Bore to bring fresh water to local villages saving the women and young girls the task of spending 2-3 hours daily travelling to a water source through elephant territory just to get fresh water we all take for granted. Sharlene is where So They Can was 12-14 years ago and seeking our support. I would like us to consider a donation of $10,000 which finalises the fundraising for the project and enables it to commence in late October.
On the disaster front we woke to news of devastating flooding in Nepal and Tibet with many thousands missing and death toll rising – includes many Australian who were on pilgrimages and treks in the area. We managed to urgently arrange a bucket appeal at the Plaza for 2nd and 3rd of September and to date have raised some $7,990. I encourage all members to talk to their friends and family re the need for donations to help the re-build for those who have lost everything. The proceeds of the BBQ will be contributed to the Appeal and the Club will look at a donation recommended at $5,000.
On a new fundraising initiative by the First Nations Committee we partnered with Northbridge Public School during Literacy Week to raise money for Books in Homes which raised $785.00 for next year’s Books. More importantly it initiated a contact with our local primary school as well as an introduction to the P & C.
The Grant to the Northbridge Golf Club for access to their Digital Screen and internal screens, sponsorship of the Community Hub was finalised last Friday. We should see the screens in place in next month and we will have available 40% of the screen time to put up our messages about events, projects, meetings and the results of our activities – very exciting but we must now ensure that those entrusted with putting up the material for inclusion on the screens is provided with detailed information to tailor to the times available and this responsibility falls on the Directors and their Committees. This also needs to be done on a timely basis to maximise impact of our stories.
Finally on the social front we had a new initiative from Sally and Sam who organised a dinner at a local restaurant to let members try different cuisines at restaurants they had not been to before. 10 of us enjoyed a pleasant night of good food, good fellowship and good banter and reminiscences on a range of topics. This will become a regular social event in our calendar together with our theatre nights and our pub nights. Well done Sally and Sam and Mama Mulan is highly recommended for a modern Asian cuisine.
