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Welcome to The Rotary Club of Northbridge
Northbridge
We meet Tuesdays at 6:00 PM
Northbridge Golf Club
Sailors Bay Road,
Northbridge, NSW  2063
Australia
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Please send apologies to Helen Gulson before 10:30am each Monday at helen.gulson@ozemail.com.au
Club Service Duty Roster
Club Service Duty Roster
Speakers
Dec 17, 2019
Meeting at Wild Sage Restaurant, Cammeray
Dec 24, 2019
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Upcoming Events
Club Recess (No Meetings)
Dec 24, 2019 – Jan 14, 2020
 
Welcome to 2020 Dinner
Jan 21, 2020
 
Club Commitee Evening
Feb 18, 2020
6:30 PM – 8:00 PM
 
Nrthbridge Golf Club Rotary Charity Fund Raiser
Feb 22, 2020
 
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October - Community Development Month
 
Sponsors
Birthdays & Anniversaries
Member Birthdays
Jon Gidney
December 9
 
Helen Gulson
December 19
 
Malcolm Lye
December 23
 
Spouse Birthdays
Faye McIntosh
December 11
 
Penny
December 11
 
Anniversaries
John Garrett
Fran Garrett
December 19
 
Join Date
Don Landers
December 5, 1983
36 years
 
Peter Hodgson
December 5, 1983
36 years
 
Peter Fehon
December 12, 2017
2 years
 
Masa Ohtani
December 19, 1995
24 years
 
Kim Wilkins
December 20, 2011
8 years
 
ClubRunner Mobile
Club Meeting News
 
Welcome
 
President Peter welcomed all members and guest speaker Kingsley Edwards.
 
Toast
 
Amy Brittain gave a toast to the Rotary Club of Wroclaw, Poland.
 
Announcements
John Garrett thanked all those people who volunteered for the Bushfire Bucket Appeal on 16/17 November. It was wonderful that so many members volunteered, to the point there was a waiting list! Thanks to Karin Eurell and the Plaza for the great signage and to Don Landers for the receipt forms. All in all, the efforts of everyone raised an amazing $15,400 over the weekend. Malcolm Lye also collected $880 at the Probus Club meeting during the week. In due course the funds will be directed to those bushfire victims on the north coast.
 
Kim Wilkins announced the next Rotary Bookstall will be held on Sunday 1 December. There is a full roster and Kim thanked all those who have volunteered. He asked everyone to remind their friends and neighbours that the bookstall is on at the Plaza - the last one before Christmas.
 
Rob Coote reminded members that the Tree of Joy is up at the Plaza for those who would like to contribute a present for a child who might otherwise miss out on receiving one this Christmas.
 
President Peter congratulated Ian Burnet on the launch during the week of his new book, The Tasman Map.
President's Message
Peter Grinter
member photo
 
Another action packed evening with many reports by our club members in relation to the various projects we have on the go.
 
We had a very interesting presentation by Osteopath Dr Rati Howley, and many members were speaking to her after the meeting. Dr Howley forgot to bring her business cards with her and therefore asked that I publish her contact details, which are as follows:
 
Dr Rati Howley
Phone: 0400 841 553
Email: rati.osteo@gmail.com
 
Everything is shaping up for a very enjoyable Christmas Party at Helen's home, and I would urge as many of you as possible to attend.
 
The Club has paid $15,000 being the majority of the funds collected at the recent Bucket Appeal at the Plaza, to the Rotary Club of Nambucca Heads to be distributed amongst the most deserving members of their community. Details will be provided to us once these individuals have been identified.
Peter Grinter

 

Guest Speaker - Kingsley Edwards, Donor Development Manager at Mercy Works
 
Mercy Works is a charity which addresses the education and development of less advantaged folks through programs to promote justice, self-reliance and support to people and communities who are denied access to basic resources such as education, healthcare and social welfare. Its areas of focus are in PNG, Timor Leste & Australia.
 
The program has its roots in Ireland and was started by Catherine McAuley, who founded the Sisters of Mercy in 1824. Her goal was to provide a refuge for young, single mothers and women in distress, with the idea of giving these women a ‘hand up’ in their lives and to give them the tools to empower and succeed.
 
Programs focus on taking street kids into the main stream, a cervical cancer clinic & a tertiary scholarship program. Two thirds of their funds are dedicated to remote areas in PNG, where skills-training is undertaken for women, children and men alike, teaching sewing & baking. There is a program for prisoner repatriation – skills to achieve self-esteem and a value to the community. A program of basic first aid and maternal health has proved essential to these communities.
 
In Timor Leste, Mercy Works has a program to supply women with eggs during pregnancy and following childbirth to provide them with essential protein. This is followed up with a supply of chickens, providing a continual source of eggs.
 
In Australia, Mercy Works has a focus on refugees to provide a raised image of self-esteem, and mentorship to achieve a role in the mainstream.
 
Kingsley reminded us of the famous quote from Nelson Mandela, “Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.” He also cited a number of examples of individuals who have benefitted from their interventions.
 
The Charity’s funds are derived from corporate bequests and through Mercy institutions. They have no government funding. Presently funds raised are of the order of $2 mil per annum.
 
The Sisters of Mercy founded the Mater Hospitals in 1906, which has since been privatised.
 
John Turner
 
 
 
 
DID YOU KNOW
 

In the Rotary year 2005-2006 under the presidency of Freya Luick the Club joined forces with the Rotary Club of North Sydney in the running of the Middle Harbour Sailability program at the Middle Harbour Yacht Club at The Spit, Mosman. This organisation is a branch of Sailability NSW which in turn is part of the worldwide Sailability program. This program is designed to allow disabled persons to experience the thrill of sailing. The participants learn to sail with an experienced volunteer in specially designed Hansa Dinghies which can accommodate wheelchair bound people who are lowered into the dinghies. Very early in the Club’s association with Sailability funds were provided to purchase one of the dinghies. It was to be named in honour of the Club’s Charter President, Frank Perriman but there was some cause for embarrassment on the official handing over of the dinghy as it was then discovered that the name of the craft had been painted on as ‘Frank PerrYman’ instead of the correct spelling of his surname. The Club has continued to support Sailability over the years with cash donations but more importantly with the service of Club members volunteering to participate in the program on each of the 2 sailing days each month, and particularly Sally O’Neill in the administration of the program.

YOU CAN READ MORE IN THE CLUB HISTORY https://tinyurl.com/rcnclubhistory

 
 
 

And for a little levity….

 

Girl’s versus Boy’s Diary.....
 
A Girl’s diary - Monday 17 November 2003
Saw John in the evening and he was acting really strangely. I went shopping in the afternoon with the girls and I did turn up a bit late so I thought it might be that.
The bar was really crowded and loud so I suggested we go somewhere quieter to talk. He was still very subdued and distracted so I suggested we go somewhere nice to eat. All through dinner he just didn't seem himself; he hardly laughed, and didn't seem to be paying any attention to me or to what I was saying. I just knew that something was wrong.
He dropped me back home. I wondered if he was going to come in; he hesitated, but followed. I asked him again if there was something the matter but he just half shook his head and turned the television on. After about 10 minutes of silence, I said I was going upstairs to bed. I put my arms around him and told him that I loved him deeply. He just gave a sigh, and a sad sort of smile. He didn't follow me up, but later he did, and I was surprised when we made love. He still seemed distant and a bit cold, and I started to think that he was going to leave me, and that he had found someone else. I cried myself to sleep....
                                                                   
The Boy’s diary - Monday 17 November 2003
Wallabies lost to New Zealand.
Had sex though.
 
 
 
 
If anyone has any jokes or funny stories, feel free to send them to me for the humour section of the Bulletin! Email them to helen.gulson@ozemail.com.au
 
 

 

 
Stories
Rotary Treats 744 School Kids to a Day at the Zoo
The Rotary Clubs of Northbridge (Sydney) and Wellington (NSW) have embarked on a joint project to support the families of drought-affected communities in Western NSW.  There are 744 primary school kids from the Wellington District and they are all being treated to a day at the Taronga Western Plains Zoo in Dubbo including a BBQ lunch. 
 
The project is being run over a 7-week period. Rotarians from Northbridge are driving there to connect with their fellow Rotarians in Wellington and to jointly run the BBQ. Northbridge President, Peter Antaw, said that of the families: “The children are suffering as well, most of them don’t understand the financial and extreme pressures that their parents are going through.”  The families are anxious about their future but there is also much determination to keep their communities alive.
 
Australia is experiencing one of its most severe droughts on record, with areas in NSW facing the prospect of running out of water by mid-2020.
The Burrendong dam is now at 4.5% capacity and dwindling rapidly.
The crisis is severely impacting the Wellington area and so special treats like a visit to the zoo is just not possible for many locals and their families.
 
3000 muesli bars, supplied free by Nestles, as well as 744 sausage sandwiches and a cold drink will be given to the children of the district which includes regional small towns such as Geurie, Mumbil, Stuart Town and Euchareena.
 
The joint project was launched on 11th September and Channel 7 Prime TV attended the Zoo to film the event. ABC Morning Radio interviewed the Presidents.  The kids thoroughly enjoyed their day with most of them citing  the Cheetahs and Meer Cats as their favorites.
 
   
 
Ben Shields (Mayor of Dubbo Regional) and Daryl Thompson (Headmaster of Wellington Primary) also attended the launch. They both congratulated the Rotary Clubs for identifying children as the hidden victims of the drought.  President Greg Hart of Wellington Rotary also thanked Northbridge Rotary and the Rotary Australia Benevolent Society for their very generous contributions to the project, and for driving up from Sydney to help at the BBQ’s. Without Northbridge, Wellington would not have taken on this project.
THE 4 - WAY TEST of the things we say or do

1). Is it the TRUTH?

2). Is it FAIR to all concerned?

3). Will it build GOODWILL & BETTER FRIENDSHIPS?

4). Will it be BENEFICIAL to all concerned?