President Peter welcomed all members and our guest speaker, Professor Vanessa Hayes, guests Michael & Linley Cook, Jill Russell, Ian Law & Beau Villaneuva.
Toast
Peter Grinter gave a toast to the Rotary Club of Davenport, Iowa, USA.
Announcements
President Peter advised that the recent bookstall at Northbridge Plaza raised $517. He thanked Kim Wilkins and all those who volunteered on the day.
Jon Gidney announced that as of next week, club members will have the option of attending the regular club meeting without having to have the meal if they so wish. You only need to pay $5.00. The square has been set up for this, however, you will need to advise Helen Gulson by 10.30 am on the Monday prior that you do not wish to eat so correct catering numbers can be given to Doreen.
Barry Anderson reminded members of the Trivia Night for Mary’s House on 31 August, and the upcoming Nusa Tengarra donor tour. Please contact Luke Keighery if you are interested in either of these events.
Save the Date
StreetWork’s annual fundraising event, the Glam & Grunge Night, is being held on Friday,25 October. If you would like to attend, or for more information, contact Eleanor Chevor.
President's Message
August is Rotary International’s Membership month and our Director of Membership, John Turner, has provided articles to the Bulletin to support the worldwide effort.
Northbridge Rotary Club has done well over the years keeping our numbers in the 50 to 60 range. On Changeover night I said my aim was to make sure that we are having fun and fellowship and from that service to our community and those in need would follow.
I feel that we have something to tell our friends and colleagues, and for many of us, our adult children. Over the years I have encouraged friends to join and I do that by telling them they need to eat an evening meal on Tuesday so why not with friends and colleagues, with a timely finish so we are back home with our families.
I tell them about our interesting and friendly members with diverse backgrounds and experiences, how we have many partners’ nights, that we do a lot but the workload is spread so it is not too arduous. I tell them about our speakers program – informative, interesting and entertaining. And what about visits to the ABC, Thank God it’s Friday, Q&A, Masonic Temple, Westpac Rescue Service, RFS, Japan, Chicago etc. I also tell them of the enormous satisfaction we get by from our programs.
How many young people have grown up in our area with happy memories of our fireworks nights, or the many young students numbering in the thousands who have benefited by our Mock interviews, our Rostrum speakers, RYPEN, RYLA, Science programs and International Youth Exchange?
And what about the general public who get pleasure from crossing the lighted Cammeray bridge at night, the families who get presents from the Tree of Joy, the individuals whose lives are saved by the Cord Blood bank, or even just good old blood from the our initiatives with the Blood Bank. And then there is the celebration of individuals in our communities that receive our Pride of Workmanship awards.
And of course internationally our achievements have been extraordinary - heart specialist teams to Mongolia and Nepal, medical equipment to Vietnam, Cambodia, Vientiane, Fiji, Philippines, etc. Then there is Polio eradication, shelter boxes, African and Asian schools.
Above is just a snapshot and there is plenty more.
When I joined Rotary I was in my forties, as were most other members at the time, and I was an engineer working in a narrow environment. Joining Rotary accelerated my career into senior management. I was suddenly mixing with a wide range of professionals and others with different capabilities and skills and was somewhat amazed how non-engineers could get things done in ways I did not expect. I developed leadership skills by working with volunteers who were not compelled by a corporate structure to do what they were told. I learnt to speak to an audience which was quite a challenge.
I think we can all sell Rotary with conviction, let the young know that Rotary can widen their horizons and open doors. Let any new member know that we have fun and that they will develop long time friendships that will carry them through life.
Peter Antaw
Guest Speakers - Professor Vanessa Hayes
Vanessa Hayes is a Professor of Genomics at USyd where she holds the Petre Chair of Prostate Cancer Research and Heads the Laboratory for Human Comparative and Prostate Cancer Genomics at the Garvan Institute. Her research interest lies in defining and understanding how variations in the human DNA code has shaped our human origins, human evolution and disease evolution, with a focus on prostate cancer. Specifically, her team studies how DNA variation triggers, drives and ultimately defines treatment for prostate cancer.
In her presentation Vanessa talked about the Genome revolution. DNA sequencing started in 1970, studying the link between disease & genes from 1980-1990, personalised genome by 2007, sequencing of African genome in 2010 with all leading to the mapping of the human genome variation. Vanessa said that studying the genomes of two Africans – that of Desmond Tutu and that of a Kalahari bushman – took them back to the earliest origins of man. These two people carried the largest number of genome variations, especially compared to Asians and Westerners.
One of the questions that she and her researchers want to answer in the lab is what makes for a healthy life in order to prevent the development of diseases. Unfortunately funding for this kind of research is not as forthcoming as looking for cures for diseases!
Like all cancers, prostate cancer is a genetic disease caused by mutations. One in six men in NSW has prostate cancer. However, the likelihood is that those men will die WITH prostate cancer rather than OF prostate cancer. With the increased knowledge about the individual genome, treatment is able to be targeted according to each patient’s human micro-nome.
John Turner
Paul Sullivan recently emailed us an update on his current trip to the northern parts of Australia:
13 August:
We finally set off on Aug 1 and have traversed many varied landscapes via Dubbo, Bourke,
Tibooburra, Cameron Corner, Innamincka, Birdsville, Mount Isa, Camooweal, Tennant Creek, and now at Mataranka where we are resting up before the jaunt into Arnhem Land. So we have traversed 4 States and have had plenty of variety but probably the most memorable is the water around Birdsville which was teeming with bird life.
This is in stark contrast to our previous trips where we just saw dust. Even coming up through Qld the country was quite green but the majority still remains in drought. So far we have covered 3900 kms and we’re still talking so the future looks bright!
20 August:
We arrived at Kakadu last Wednesday and although we have been here previously, we have found it just as fascinating. However, we have been totally overwhelmed by the beauty and history of Arnhem. What an amazing landscape with the equally amazing rock art! This is a place of mystery with new and different surprises around every corner and we have had an amazing experience staying at a lodge within the area which specialises in local guided tours, so we have done extensive walks, cruises and fishing, staying for 4 days. The lodge was really very good with experienced and friendly guides who make sure that you get the full experience.
We are now moving on to the northern Kimberley and I will give you another update later.
Paul Sullivan
Some amusing words of wisdom...
Accept that some days you’re the pigeon, and some days you’re the statue.
Always keep your words soft and sweet, just in case you have to eat them.
Always read stuff that will make you look good if you die in the middle of it.
If you can’t be kind, at least have the decency to be vague.
If you lend someone $20 and never see that person again, it was probably worth it.
It may be that your sole purpose in life is simply to serve as a warning to others.
Never put both feet in your mouth at the same time. You won’t have a leg to stand on!
Nobody cares if you can’t dance well. Just get up and dance.
Since it’s the early worm that gets eaten by the bird, it’s better to sleep late.
Whenever everything is coming your way, you’re in the wrong lane.
Birthdays are good for you. The more you have, the longer you live.
You may be only one person in the world, but you may also be the world to one person.
Some mistakes are too much fun to only make once.
We could learn from crayons. Some are sharp, some are pretty and some are dull. Some have weird names, and all are different colours, but they all have to live in the same box.
A truly happy person is one who can enjoy the scenery on a detour.
DID YOU KNOW
At the behest of the Rotary Club of Endeavour Hills our Club became interested in the work of ShelterBox in 2007 and subsequently ShelterBox Australia. In the period from then until now our Club has donated to that charity sufficient funds to purchase a total of 61 boxes initially costing $1,200 each, but in recent years $1,000 each.
The Northbridge Rotary Club held its Changeover Dinner recently at the Gunners Barracks in Mosman. The Presidential chains of office were handed over to Peter Antaw who will serve as President for the next 4 months. This is an unusual year where the presidential role will be shared by three people.
Peter Antaw was President of the Club in 2002-3 and, at that time, there were just 2 females amongst the 58 members. In the article below titled ‘Peter takes over’, he expressed the need for more women in the Club. This has certainly been achieved. There are now 13 female members and they were captured on film relaxing and having fun at the dinner.
Later in the evening, Paul Harris Awards were presented to Rob Coote, Kevin Tattrie and Liz Grey for their exceptional contribution to the Club over the past 3+ years.
The Rotary Club of Northbridge is one of the largest and most dynamic Clubs and new members and guests are always welcome. For more details, please contact email: secretary@northbridgerotary.com.au
