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District Governor's Club visit

Wednesday 18 September we gathered at the Riverside Golf Club in Ascot Vale for the traditional

District Governor's visit. Accompanied by DGE Peter Shepheard and Alex Lapina, President of Rotary Activate, Michael was warm and friendly, inspiring us with his speech on The Magic of Rotary and how to make Rotary and clubs irresistible.

There were many highlights on this special night:
1. President Lesley announcing that Peter Cribb has been shortlisted for a Victorian Senior of the Year Award.

2. Presentation of a RI Presidents citation to PP Shraddha.
3. Welcome to new member Deborah Ryan and her induction bythe DG.

4. Welcome to prospective member Hayden Smith, a former Exchange student.

5. 4 youth participants attending - Simeon Butler and Charlotte Marshall Pearson who will attend NYSF in January, Ava {Jo's granddaughter} who is off to RYPEN in October and Sarah Alman, our Del King Scholar.

6. Duncan Hillier from MAC, Maria Silber Rotary Footscray, Chris Richardson Rotary Essendon North and Susan Robb Rotary North Melbourne.

Drew Sheehan was MC for the evening and managed a late and delayed agenda as everyone was having so much enjoyment chatting and catching up on the news. Thanks to Nicole Marshall for the Acknowledgement of Country - always reliable, it rolls off her tongue with no hesitation.

Geoff and Dulcie, Peter and Bev, Beate and Karolina had lots to discuss although we were sad to miss Len who is recovering from pneumonia.
Melina hosted an Op Shop table as we welcomed Frances Stratford, another volunteer, and Deborah's husband Kevin to share the celebrations.

Jeff hosted the youth table with Nicole and Charlotte, Duncan and Simeon and Chris.

Susan Robb provided several moments of delight as she spoke on The Big Serve, and Alex Lapina and Drew showed off their skills with te big racquets.

Ava helped Drew with the raffle - won by Chris Richardson, Deborah Ryna, Jeff Weitzel and Drew. These funds will go to our End Polio event.

PHOTO ALBUM

Welcome Deborah Ryan

Deborah Ryan, a lon

g time volunteer at the Op Shop has been inducted as a
member of Flemington Kensington Rotary.

During his annual District Governor club visit, Michael Lapina read the full
induction speech and welcome dDeborah to the family of Rotary.

Watching on, her proud husband Kevin, Op Shop Manager and Deborah's sponsor Melina Caccetta, and several Op Shop volunteers as well as members, family and friends.

Deborah is a Bayswater Road Kensington resident and has volunteered at several charitable organisations over the years.

Books have arrived in the Maldives

Peter Cribb received

the welcome news that the 10 pallets of books and stationery have arrived in Male. They have now been transported to storage and await dispersal.

David Jessup, High Commissioner for the Maldives who initiated this project with Peter and funded shipping sent through this photo.

Thanks to Robert Akeroyd for his substantial donation.

Stroke hospital support Sri Lanka

Dr Harsha has advised of dispersal of the 2 containers filled with hospital beds and assorted
medical equipment and consumables.
Goods will be sent to 9 different hospitals.

The hospitals receiving beds and assorted items are:
Hambantota
pura
Embilipi

Jaffna
Kandy
Polonnaruwa
Ragama

Nagoda
Sri Jayewardene

2024 - Djerring Hub 1st birthday

One year after the amazing opening the Djerring Hub turns 1. What a celebration and acknowledgement of the importance of such a place in our community. MVCC CEO Helen Sui addressed the large attendance and welcomed all with a Welcome to Country to indigenous elder Tony.

Nicole Marshall, Lesley McCarthy, Jo Walker and Karolina Sevcikova attended and renewed acquaintance with many local community members including Hadia, Shadia and Edem as well as Chris Richardson {Essendon North}. Cathy Connop, Boyd Maplestone, Frank Di Noto and others.

Happy
Birthday
Hub!

As well as speeches by Mayor Pierce Tyson and Cr Rose Iser, we heard from some of the amazing women who graduated from the Womens Leadership Program.

Youth Fest with EAHA

We were blessed with great weather for this year's Youth Fest run by Moonee Valley Council at Queens Park.

Collaborating with EAHA {the Eritrean Australian Humanitarian Association} to raise funds for the school in the Kassala refugee camp in Sudan, members took the opportunity for some fun and fellowship along with sausages!

Anwar and John Sklenar were organised early and were soon joined by Nicole Marshall, Jeff Weitzel and Lesley McCarthy. Then along came Peter Cribb and Jo Walker with her granddaughter Ava.
We were delighted to renew acquaintance with Louise Olliff. Sadya and Nohla from EAHA too.

Drew Sheehan brought Haruka Tanaka along and soon Shraddha Sharma joined us too.

Later in the afternoon we were fortunate to be joined by District Governor Michael Lapina with DGE Peter Shepheard and Alex Lapina who all had a turn at the BBQ.

Although the day was quieter than expected, we had lots of conversations, sold lots of food {all options catered for - Halal, vegetarian, gluten free} and shared Rotary.

Funds raised cover the costs of teacher's salaries at the school. PHOTO ALBUM

$10 for 1 day, $50 for a week.

September is Basic Education and Literacy Month

Literacy is at the heart of basic education for all, and is essential for eradicating poverty, reducing child mortality, curbing population growth, achieving gender equality and ensuring sustainable development, peace and democracy. Literacy is a significant and specific goal for Rotary. It is so important that it is one of the 7 areas of focus for The Rotary Foundation and has the month of September dedicated to it.

Everyone has the right to learn to read, write and enjoy the power, pleasures and independence of being literate. For some the journey will be easy, for others it will take much hard work and unfortunately for approximately 18 percent of today’s world population, it will never happen.

Consider these facts;
* More than 775 million people over the age of 15 are illiterate. That’s 17 percent of the world’s adult population.
* If all women completed primary education there would be 66% fewer maternal deaths,

* A child born to a mother who can read is more likely to survive after the age of five,

* If all students in low-income countries left school with basic reading skills,
171 million people would be lifted out of poverty, which would be an equivalent to a 12% cut in world poverty

Rotary International

Empower Refugee Students Through Education: Support the EAHA Mission

Imagine a classroom filled with refugee students, eager to learn but uncertain of their future; and teachers who are also refugees, relying solely on tuition fees for their livelihood. When fees can’t be paid, education stops, and both students and teachers face hardship. This is the situation at the refugee camp in Kassala, South Sudan. UN Media

Your donation can change this. By contributing, you provide a lifeline for teachers to continue their work without interruption, and for students to receive the education they deserve. This program ensures stability and hope for all involved, creating a brighter future where learning never stops. Together, we can break the cycle of uncertainty and empower a generation of refugees with knowledge and opportunity. Join us in making a lasting impact today.

Rotary is supporting fundraising with BBQ at Moonee Valley Council's Youth Fest on 7 September where all proceeds will go towards this project.

How Your Donation Will Make a Difference
By donating, you help provide a consistent source of income for these teachers and a continuous education for their students, offering them both a chance at a brighter future and the hope to rebuild their lives.

Donate now

Donate $10 (Cover Teacher's Salary for a Day)
Donate $50 (Cover Teacher's Salary for a Week)
Donate $200 (Cover a Teacher's Salary for a Month)
Donate $400 (Sponsor a Student's Tuition for a Year)

District Recognition Youth

Report on NGO Visits to Siraha and Udayapur: Back to School Program NEPAL

The visit to Siraha and Udayapur was an eye-opening experience, revealing the stark realities

faced by marginalized communities in accessing education. The resilience and dedication of local NGOs like Dalit JanaKalyan Yuba Club and the Social Transformation Network are commendable. Despite limited resources, their commitment to improving educational outcomes for Dalit and marginalized children is inspiring.

The Siraha District is bordered with Saptari district in the east, Udayapur districting the north, Bihar state of India in the south and Dhanusa district in the west. Majority of the population here is Kushwaha(Mahato/Singh), Yadav, Tharus, Sahs(sahukar), Muslims and ethnic minorities.

It is evident that a multi-faceted approach is required to address the barriers to education in these regions. Infrastructure improvements, teacher support, and community engagement are critical components of a successful Back to School program. Collaboration with local stakeholders and continuous advocacy will be essential to create a lasting impact.

As we move forward, it is crucial to maintain the momentum and support the local NGOs in their efforts. By working together, we can ensure that every child, regardless of their background, has the opportunity to receive a quality education and build a better future.

READ MORE

Maribyrnong Valley Community Group combine for National Tree Day

National Tree Day was the perfect opportunity for the clubs of the new Maribyrnong Valley Community Group to come together.

PHOTO ALBUM

Partnering with Moonee Valley Council on the habitat and wildlife corridor development along the Maribyrnong River at Ascot Vale, Rotarians and friends joined with other community groups to plant 6,000 seedlings today.

These will provide habitat and food for the native birds, small animals and insects which call this corridor home. Leading from north of Melbourne Airport through to Royal Park and the Yarra River, the corridor provides a route for birds and insects to roam and supports the health of the river and those creatures which live there.

A display of posters developed by RCG leader David Dippie showcased the projects of Rotary focussing on the environment, youth and local club projects.

Members from Footscray and Keilor East Rotary provided the BBQ and fed the hungry planters after their work was done.

Presidents from Brunswick Tullamarine, Flemington Kensington, Keilor East and North Melbourne were joined by District Governor Michael Lapina and Alex and DGE Peter Shepheard in discussions on the day and future connections.

District Governor Changeover

Sunday 30th June was a magical event at Ultima in Keilor when District Governor Ron Payne

handed over to incoming Governor Michael Lapina.

Members of Rotary Wyndham had done an amazing job decorating the grand ballroom with all things magical including Hogwarts hats on each table, playing cards, magic tricks and streamers.

We were treated to amazing music courtesy of Eleanor Blythman and Raphael Wong - with the addition of Michael AND his family.

Flemington Kensington Rotary was awarded a District Recognition - Youth for the L2P program.

A large number of awards were made which will be listed in the next edition of Networker.
Highlights were the presence of Past RI President Iain Riseley and Juliet, and former Zone 8 Director Jessie Harman and Andrew who presented Major Donor recognitions - including to Lesley.

Club Presidents Changeover

Friday 21st June was a wonderful celebration of our club's year and the impact we have had in communities both local and international.

Drew Sheehan chaired the evening where President Shraddha Sharma celebrated our work in the presence of a number of distinguished guests including District Governor Ron Payne and Deb, Assistant Governer Tony Laycock, Danny Pearson MP, Consul General for Sri Lanka, Mr. Sandith Samarasinghe, Mr Nihal De Run and Mr Sathanantha Kirupanantha from the BEAP Foundation, Laure Fisher and Sondra, Cr Katrina Hodgson, Moonee Valley Council.

Also joining us were our ARH scholar Catherine Johnson, Yasin Farah, Puntland/Somali Association, Cathy Connop from Farnham Street Neighbourhood Learning Centre, Danni von der Borch - The Venny, Katie Hester, Live for Lily and Dr Francis Aquah MHFA.

We were delighted to welcome Rotarians David Jones and Kevin Walsh from Balwyn, David Dipppie and Deb Sloggett from Keilor East, Larry and Susan Robb from North Melbourne and Peter Boudville from Brunswick Tullamarine.

PHOTO ALBUM PRESENTATION

Books to the Maldives

We are very grateful to Robert Akeroyd for his generous donations of hundreds of books for this project.

Pictured here with Peter Cribb and John Sklenar who presented him with a Certificate of Appreciation.

The High Commissioner to the Maldives, David Jessup and his wife spoke to Peter and Bev on their recent visit and made a request for books for schools in the remote atolls. Peter grasped the opportunity and has used all his contacts to source materials.

Peter, John, Shradd, Jo, Abdi and Lesley have spent many hours collecting, sorting and repacking books. The 4 pallets are now shrink wrapped and will join 4pallets of children's books donated by Bronwyn and team in the education aisle, and a pallet of school and student stationery items.

Establishing Stroke Units in Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka has a very high incidence of people suffering a stroke yet just 74 dedicated stroke beds across 9 hospitals in the whole country. Access to a stroke unit is possible for about 14% of sufferers - in high income countries it is 91%. See report.

Dr Harsha Gunasekara, President of the National Stroke Association of Sri Lanka reached out to his contacts at the Rotary Club of Columbo, PDG Senake Ameresinghe and PDG Pubudu De Goysa who spoke with our own PP Peter Cribb for help.

Our club then adopted this as a project and Peter set about establishing just what was needed and what could be supplied.

The results part 1:
Last Saturday a team of 20 members of the Australian Sri Lanka Association of SA loaded hospital beds and a range of other equipment and consumables for shipment. Funds for shipping came from ASLA and their donors {plus a donation from Jim and Liz Alvery who supported the first playground to Sputnik. Photo gallery

Part 2:
The container was loaded at Donations in Kind, funded by our club. Shipping mid June.

Trivia Night success

There was nothing trivial about the trivia event organised by Secretary Mel Caccetta.

Held at Flem Ken Bowling Club, over 260 participants vied for the amazing prizes on offer, thanks to our very generous sponsors.

With participants from Keilor East Rotary, Rotaract, Farnham Street Neighourhood Learning Centre, Kensington Neighbourhood House, the Abbey Solo Foundation , Kensington City Soccer Club and local community, this was a truly widespread community gathering.

photoalbums/2024-trivia-night

Congratulations to the winners: "Some Mothers Do Have Them" led by Nicole Marshall. They are serious trivia nerds.

in second place were Kensington Community and

Third was the team from the Abby Solo Foundation.

This event would not have been possible without the generous support of Drew at Flem Ken Bowling Club, Liliana at Bunnings Maribyrnong, Grant at Cheaper Buy Miles, Jim at BoxCar Barbers, Leanne at Pin Oak Berr & Wine Bar, Shraddha Sharma and friends. Many thanks also to Phil - our quiz master, and our helpers on the night: Alex De Bortoli, Sarah Alman, Muna Ahmed, Sarah Briggs and Rebecca.

MHFA for cultural backgrounds

We're thrilled to wrap up an empowering 4-day, 2-week Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) Training open to our community! The energy and engagement from our cohort were truly remarkable, and we couldn't have done it without each participant's invaluable contribution.

A special shoutout and heartfelt thanks go to our dedicated members #district9800 #Rotary #rotaryflemington for their unwavering support throughout the training.

Big gratitude also goes to #SugarbeatCafe on Langs road for their delicious catering, keeping us fueled and focused, and, of course, to Dr. Francis from the #PostiveWellnessCommunityCentre for his exceptional facilitation, guiding us through essential insights and practices.

Below, we're thrilled to share individual snapshots of the participants receiving their well-deserved Certificates of Completion.

Each one represents a commitment to creating a more mentally healthy and supportive community.

Congratulations to all!

Published in Rotary Down Under magazine July 2024

Thanks to Mohammed for assisting with presentations.

Peter Cribb opens playgrounds in Sri Lanka

Since 2018 Rotary Colombo has partnered with us and several clubs in Victoria Australia to receive and

install playground equipment to deserving schools around Sri Lanka.

On a recent trip to Sri Lanka, PP Peter Crib and Beverly attended and assisted at the opening ceremonies at two schools in Anuradhapura and Nikeweratiyq.

PDG Senaka has been instrumental in coordinating this project on behalf of Rotary Colombo and over the last 6 years playground equipment has been installed at around 50 schools and enjoyed by 1000s of children! Playground equipment has been currently procured to carry out the same at 10 more schools in coming months.

Banner exchange from Rotary Male'

PP Peter Cribb has just returned from a trip to Sri Lanka and took the opportunity to attend the Rotary Club of Male' in the Maldives.

He presented this club banner to our representative Alex on his return.

The President of the Rotary Club of Male' Aimon Jameel has asked for our assistance sending books to schools in the remote northern atolls.

Congratulations John Sklenar

Past President 2000-2001, Paul Harris Fellow, Jim Hosie Award recipient,
BBQ champion, DiK helper, playground removalist.

Trivia Night

DiK Supports Bellarine Farmers Group

PP Alan Bruno sent through a request for assistance for the Bellarine Agricultural Society, a group he is now working with. They needed chairs for their clubrooms and events. So off to Donations in Kind we go.

Thanks to Frank and Anyd, the chairs were ready to collect today so John Sklenar and I joined Alan.
Len Seddon also turned up to meet and it was good to catch up with Paul Perrottet again.

Another feel good story where DiK can support local community service groups.

International Womens Day at MVCC

Friday 8th May was Moonee Valley Council's International Women's Day breakfast at the Clocktower.

Our club sponsored 6 students and 2 staff members from Mount Alexander College. They were Principal Dani Angelico, teacher Sarah Radford and students - our Del King scholar Sarah, with Olivia, Justine, Kari, Elicia and Talia.

The panel speakers were excellent and discussed " Count her in" Invest in Women, Accelerate progress" and this resonated deeply with everyone in attendance. The panelists, representing a diverse range of women from various backgrounds and stages of their career and entrepreneurship journeys, truly embodied the theme.

With Karolina, Nicole and Charlotte, Shraddha and Nina, Haruka.

Harmony Day at Djerring Hub

Moonee Valley Council celebrated Harmony Day on Friday 1 March with a magnificent community event at the Djerring Hub.

With entertainment, food, coffee, community stalls and a celebratory atmosphere this was a fabulous evening.

Congratulations Sarah Ferdowski for all your effort and for gathering such a great team.

We were delighted to welcome Ms Ching Chan and 11 international students from Mount Alexander College to share our BBQ.

The students were just amazing, Jeff and I had little to do except organise!

Thanks to Marvin, Alvin, Sinhhout, Danyal, Quinn, Kitty, Tru, Regina , Levia, Aaron and James for your participation.

Moonee Valley Festival

We had a great day at the Moonee Valley Festival last week partnering with our friends at the Eritrean Australian Humanitarian Association -EAHA. They are raising funds for the school in the refugee camp at Kassala, South Sudan.
Gorgeous sunshine a clear space and a fabulous crowd made this a wonderful day.

Daga and Jo

hn were champion cooks and had the hotplate sizzling early.
Soon it was the turn of Anwar and Abdi to take over with help from Peter. Karolina and Nicole were stuck with the onions - but no tears, this was for a very good cause.

Shraddha came to the rescue with Pay ID for electronic payments, and then Mel brought along the eftpos machine - phew that was $1200 we wouldn't have had otherwise.

We were delighted to welcome Haruka Tanaka, our Global scholar and Viv from the e-Rotaract club who came along to help out.

We were also treated to delicious Eritrean food thanks to Sarah and Sophia.

Fellowship, Service, collaboration and fun - that's Rotary!

Lorry Rowe on Philippines Trip

Lorry Rowe, former manager of our Werribee Op Shop is again in the Philippines with her son Shane.

She is visiting several Rotary Clubs and participating in a number of activities to support True Manila and the street kids. Our club has again contributed to the back to school and food programs, dental health.

Lorry has so far attended several Rotary meetings and events and has donated to True Manila programs, Rotary Club of Mactan, Rotary Cabanatuan City and The Inner Wheel Cabanatuan City Club.

At 80 years young, Lorry climbed the Mount Pinatubo Trail. See the video https://m.facebook.com/watch/?v=743111081118602

and participated in a fundraising FunRun. She epitomises service above self.

Container to Puntland Somalia

The Jarriban Hospital in Puntland is in desperate need of hospital equipment and medical supplies.

Members Abdi Hassan and Mohammed Abbas Oar are leading this project to send a container to Jarriban.

Our request is in the queue at Donations in Kind with an ETD of March 2024.

The club previously sent a container in 2014 which was gratefully received and has made a huge difference to the community. However, war, famine and drought have continued to challenge people here and the need is great.

Shipping is expensive so funding is sought from donors - Jama Farah from Rotary Footscray has successfully raised funds for 3 containers using this crowdfunding site. Please share.

https://chuffed.org/donate/104753-rotary-flemington-kensington-support-for-jarriiban-university-hospital

District Governor's visit to the club

Wednesday 15th November saw District Governor Ron Payne and Deb visit the Rotary Club of Flemington Kensington.

Also joining us on this evening were our 3 RYPEN students from Mount Alexander College, Claude, Emily and Tara with Claude's father Nicholas and Tara's mother Christine.

We were also joined by Honorary Member Dulcie Heard, our Global Grant scholar Haruka Tanaka and prospective member Herve Carlos who attended our changeover. Anne Heyes brought along Cathy Connop from the Farnham Street Neighourhood Learning Centre: Cathy has been a regular visitor and Anne recently completed a workplace placement there. Op Shop Manager Melina brought a volunteer Deb who has also visited in the past.

Ron spoke to members about Create Hope in the World and the four Rotary priorities:
increasing our impact, expanding our reach, enhancing participant engagement, and increasing our ability to adapt. He also encouraged us to thinks about flexibility in membership opportunities.

He then presented President Shraddha with the Rotary International President's Citation for 2022-2023 and our Foundation Donor banner.

Paul Harris Foundation breakfast

Lesley McCarthy accompanied Global Grant Scholar Haruka Tanaka to the Rotary Club of Central Melbourne Foundation breakfast at the Savoy Hotel on 21 November.

Also at our table, Globa Grant Scholars Hikaru Sato hosted by Rotary Glenferrie, Ayase Ishizuka hosted byRotary Alberty Park and PhD scholar Guillaume Gersdorff hosted by Central Melbourne. Ayose has just finished the same course that Haruka is sudying and Hikaru is studing for a Masters in Public Health.

Guest Speaker Peter Hitchener OAM, spoke of his time at Channel 9, his work with Sir Eric Pearce and Brian Naylor, and the old Bendigo Street Richmond site. Peter is a regular visitor to Japan and greeted the scholars in very good Japanese, chatting t them for some time.

With PDG Grant Hocking and DG Ron Payne.

Royce Abbey Dinner

Lesley McCarthy, Royce Abbey Award no. 417 was delighted to attend this year's dinner where the 500th Royce Abey Award was presented.

Held at Windy Hill, the room was filled with recipients, club and district representatives and member of Essendon Rotary including the very first Royce Abbey awardee Michael Moloney.

David Abbey gave a heartfelt tribute to his mother Jean who was a staunch supporter of Royce and the program.

The guest speaker PDG Murray Verso gave a Polio update which the good news that cases are again low and mainly restricted to Afghanistan and Pakistan. Sadly he also reported on continued outbreaks of the Vaccine derived virus in a number of African countries.

The surprise of the

night was the presentation of not 1, but 2 editions of badge number 500: 500A and 500B to .....

PDG Murray Verso and PDG Dennis Shore, a trustee of the Rotary Foundation.

Two very deserving recipients.

Christmas Party

Member Behind the Badge - Peter Cribb

Peter Theodore Cribb was inducted as a member on 5 April 2006nominated by PP Allan Bruno.
He was Club President in 2009-2010 following on from Mark Ingram.

Peter has been recognized for his efforts with Paul Harris awards in 2010, 2012, 2019, and a PHF with 3 sapphires in 2021. He has contributed to the Rotary Foundation annually since 2009 and is EREY banner eligible.

During his years as a member, he has introduced 5 new members: Anwar Alishek, Anne McMahon, Barbara Champion, Abdi Hassan and Mohammed Abbas Omar.

Peter is honoured for his efforts in the Flemington Neighbourhood Renewal Project, as a Board Member of the local Bendigo Bank and for his efforts in establishing the Op Shop, the RoadStart driving Program and the Rotary Overseas Recycled Playgrounds project amongst other activity.

Paul Harris Society lunch

Haruka and Lesley attended the Paul Harris Society lunch last weekend.

The Paul Harris Society comprises Rotarians who donate $US 1000 annually to the Rotary Foundation for as long as they are able.

Members gather several times each year to hear from those who have benefitted from the Foundation through a Peace or Global Grant scholarship, a grant or through a Vocational project.

This was a wonderful opportunity for Haruka to be introduced to the Foundation and our district representatives who supported her application.

This meeting's speaker was Hannah Gandy who has recently returned from studying a masters degree in law at University College London. Hannah studi8ed her undergraduate degree in law at LaTrobe University and is now working at the Centre for Multicultural Youth. She is focussing on social justice. She shared with us the difficult and traumatic childhood she experienced and how she overcame disadvantage to reach this goal.

Past Dist

rict Governor Grant Hocking, Foundation Chair, spoke about the work of the Foundation in our district and the scholars we have sponsored.

PDG Murray Verso then gave an update on End Polio and the vital role Rotary has played in eradication through vaccines, delivery, volunteers, the partnership with the Bill Gates Foundation and financial support through the Foundation.

Haruka goes to the Royal Melbourne Show

On the public holiday, I took Haruka along to the show. She had a wonderful experience

and it was hard to identify what were going to be the best areas to introduce her to.

We started with the animals - she loved this, and was very keen to try to pick up a hen. The roller coaster looked too scary for her - it was much bigger than those she had seen in Japan, with lots more hills and twists so we went gentle. She loved the dodgem cars, tried her hand at shooting and throwing games - and won a monkey.

You cannot go to the show without show bags so we did look at those and she decided on 2.

Unfortunately, she isn't yet used to our weather, and did get sunburnt but now knows to wear a hat and sunscreen.

This was a great day out and another experience to add to her list.

Launch of the L2P car

Moonee Valley Council's Youth Fest Day was the perfect opportunity to launch the new L2P car sponsored by Flemington Kensington Rotary.

District G

overnor Ron Payne and Deb joined with members, MVCC L2P Coordinator Emma Phillips, Mayor Pierce Tyson, Cr Rose Iser and community to cut the ribbon and free the wheels.

See photo album

This project has been almost 2 years in the planning and result, impacted by COVID and legalities but is now ready to hit the ground and provide access for young people to obtain the necessary 120 hours of supervised driving practice. Additional mentors are needed to provide the supervision and all members are encouraged to spread the word.

This opportunity follows on from our club's successful RoadStart initiative led by PP Peter Cribb in 2013 and launched at Debney Park with then Minister for Transport, Terry Mulder. At that time, the program was to assist migrants, particularly women, obtain a license.

RI Presidents Citation for Flemington Kensington

Congratulations to President Shraddha Sharma and all members for their achievements and impact in the 2022-2023 Rotary year where we Imagined Rotary.

Opening of the Djerring Flemington Community Hub

The day was brilliant and had a spectacular turnout. In attendance were esteemed guests, including Maribyrnong MP Bill Shorten, Member for Essendon Danny Pearson, Sheena Watt, MLA, Moonee Valley Council Mayor Pierce Tyson, Councilors Rose Iser, Katrina Hodgson & John Sipek.

The opening of the Djerring Flemington Hub was marked by a heartwarming smoking ceremony, and heartfelt notes from Mayor Pierce Tyson, and Ministers Danny Pearson and Bill Shorten fit for such a momentous occasion.

During the inauguration, it was deeply moving to hear the reflections on the pivotal role played by our own member and former councilor, Nicole Marshall, and our supporter the late Jim Cusack, in securing funding for this remarkable hub.

In recognition of the unwavering dedication of the late Jim Cusack to our community, the foyer of the hub has been named in his honor—a fitting tribute to a true community champion.

Our team was out in full force to contribute to the festivities. Melina, Juan, Alex, Jeff, Karolina, Haruka, and Shraddha took charge of the BBQ. With the incredible turnout at the opening, we managed to serve a whopping 600 sausages to our delighted guests.

We extend our thanks to Justine, Pania, and John from the Djerring Hub team for the opportunity to serve our community. We are eagerly looking forward to leveraging this brilliant space to carry out numerous community initiatives.

National Tree Day 30 July

Rosehill Park Wetlands weas the location for this year's National Tree Day event where 3000 seedlings and 3 mature trees were planted.

Drew, Haruka, Jo, Shraddha and Samira, Lesley, Anne, Janet and Alex joined members from Rotary Keilor East, the Friends of Steele Creek, guides, scouts and members of the local community in this MVCC organised event.

Holes were pre dug and seedlings placed ready for planting by MVCC workers. There were a number of displays and supportive booths available including activities for children.

Uncle Dave gave a wonderful Welcome to Country with a traditional smoke ceremony using local leaves. He gave us a wealth of information about the basis for the welcome and what it actually means.

Volunteer lunch

In recognition of the amazing work of our Op Shop volunteers we held our annual Volunteer Week lunch at Mama Bear of 10 July.

Manager Melina Caccetta and President Shraddha Sharma welcomed all and thanked our volunteers.

Board members Lesley McCarthy, Edith Chen and Sandy Belcher also attended to acknowledge those present.

We also welcomed Global Grant scholar Haruka Tanaka from Japan who enjoyed the social opportunity.

Pillow cases for seed collection

The Op Shop assists Bili Nursery by supplying excess/lower quality pillow cases for collecting native seed.

Bili Nursery is a part of Westgate Biodiversity - an organisation focussed on regenerating inner city vegetation and community education.

We produce around 150,000 plants per year for our local council projects, as well as initiatives for
K

oala habitat restoration, climate change actions and educating local community members and school groups on environmentally friendly approaches to boost the local ecosystem.

We really appreciate the help that Rotary Flemington has offered over the past 9 months and look forward to the upcoming seed collection season of summer 2023-24 with added enthusiasm as we will be well-supplied to get out into the environment and get to work.

Project BEAP

Peter Cribb has initiated this club international project in conjunction with Rotary Club of Columbo. It is led by Nihal De Run, a previous visitor with PDG Senake Ameresinghe from Rotary Colombo.

The CT scanner installed at Batticaloa requires a major software upgrade {US$35,000} and due to the economic disaster currently being experienced in Sri Lanka, funds are not available.

A lift is also needed to support disabled patients and goods to travel from the ground floor up.

Club Changeover Dinner

There was a palpable sense of fun, fellowship and exhilaration in the room as we gathered for the 2023 club changeover.

President Shraddha was delighted to welcome District Governor Amanda Wendt, Assistant Governor Tony Laycock and Rotarians from Keilor East and West Footscray.

Additionally we were delighted to have Moonee Valley Councillors Katrina Hodgson and Rose Iser, and L2P Coordinator Emma Phillips as well as representatives from JobFind, The Wish Group, the Abbey Solo Foundation, PolyGlot Theatre, Unison Housing and Retro Entertainment.

The following awards were presented:
Pau Harris Sapphire to President Shraddha
Vance Hilton Community Leadership Award to West Welcome Wagon's Fay Salem

Jim Hosie Trophy to Yvonne Farquharson
10 year Service Award to Edith Chen

Rotary International Service Awards to Peter Cribb, Melina Caccetta and Yvonne Farquharson
Certificates of Appreciation to Sandy Belcher, Job Find, Abbey Solo Foundation, Deb and Jereny from MHFA.

Photo album The year in review presentation

RETRO Christmas in July

RORP Nepal

The first of the playgrounds sent to Nepal last year has been installed. This project required significant organisation and logistical and geographical challenges.

First the 20' container was shipped to Haldia then to Kolkata then overland to Kathmandu via the Bhairawa customs office. Due to the terrain and geography, elements of the playgrounds were carried by manpower rather than on trucks.

With many thanks to PP Santosh Sharma and the Rotary Club of Tripureswor, this installation was completed at the Gram Sudar School, Gokarneswor.

Thank you to Bob Allardice, Rotary Nunawading and RORP Chair for his efforts in collecting and transporting the playgrounds.

This project was funded by our club.

VALE Jim Cusack

Members of the Rotary Club of Flemington Kensington are saddened by the passing of long term Moonee Valley Councillor Jim Cusa

ck after a long illness.

Jim was a great friend to our club and dedicated supported of the Flemington Community.
He was involved in all aspects of community from Farnham Street Neighbourhood Learning Centre to the Residents Association, Rotary and the traders as well as the local schools and community groups. Our sympathies are extended to his family.

The funeral will be held at St Brendan's Catholic Church Wellington Street Flemington on Friday 9 June at 11am.

RICON Hospitality evening

The Clocktower was filled with excited voices with accents and languages from everywhere as nearly 300 people came together for an evening of entertainment hosted by our club supported by Essendon, Footscray and Keilor East. There were guests from the USA, Nepal, South Africa, Japan, India, France, New Zealand, the Philippines and the UK.

Colin Scobie from Moreton Bay led a team of 22 from the Recreational Vehicle Fellowship Association and Rotarians from country Victoria came along too.

Silvie Paladino was outstanding and well supported by Wendy Stapleton and the Australian Womens Choir. Georgia Byrne was an energetic MC.

Solid Rock and We are Australian were toe tapping items to get the audience ready and then Silvie burst into song. There were tears in many eyes as her astounding voice presented Memories.

This was a fun filled and joyful event enjoyed by all. Many thanks to the event manager Sandy Belcher who pulled the musical and technical components together so well.

Thank you to all those who volunteered on the evening particularly the 6 Bus Chaperones: Paul, Deb, Peter, Helen, Nola who gave a potted history of Melbourne, Moonee Valley and the route as participants wound their way from MCEC to the event.

Special thanks to local artists Parul, Ursula and Jax who contributed to the evening.

Thank you also to the Marika and the Clocktower staff, Yvonne Osborn for photographs and the Rotary presidents for their support.

Rotary International Convention

This year's RICON held at the Melbourne Convention Centre and Rod Laver Arena was another bringing together of Rotarians fr

om across the world.
Our members; President Shraddha Sharma, Peter Cribb, Abdi Hassan, Yvonne Farquharson and Lesley McCarthy were in attendance and assisting on the RORP, Caring for Kidneys and ESRAG booths as
well as enjoying the plenary and breakout sessions, the House of Friendship and catching up with friends from near and far.

It was a delight to meet up with our former Royce Abbey Scholar Jimmy Musiime from Uganda, Shraddha's parents Santosh and Kanchan Sharma from Nepal, Maduri and her team {Nepal} PDG Ajith and Madura from Negombo, PDG Pubudu De Zoysa and PDG Senake Ameresinghe and others.

VALE Dr Theong Low, PHF

Dr Theong Ho Low, PHF was a Charter member of the Rotary Club of Flemington in 1987.
He was a long serving GP in Pin Oak Crescent Flemington and was renowned for his care and compassion, especially in assisting with medical aid to south east Asia.

Theong was an early member of ROMAC - the Rotary Overseas Medical Aid program for children and he encouraged the club to support this work bringing children from Vietnam and the Philippines to Melbourne.

In 1996 together with PP Allan Bruno and the club was instrumental in bringing the Boisin conjoined twins from Papua New Guinea to Melbourne for life saving surgery.The Bosin Twins | Rotary Club of Flemington Kensington (rotaryflemington.org.au)

Theong is survived by his wife, childhood sweetheart Sue and our sympathies are extended to her and the family.

The funeral will be held on Saturday 13thMay at 10am at Le Pine, Gen Waverley.

VALE Peter Michael Donnellan LLB, PHF

Peter Michael Donnellan, a resident of Ormond Street, Kensington and esteemed long term lawyer in Flemington has died after a long illness. He is survived by his wife Kien and daughter Susan.

Peter was a member of the Rotary Club of Flemington Kensington from 2008 until his retirement in 2021. During those years he held the positions of Secretary for 3 years and of Treasurer for 3 years. He also provided significant financial, legal and administrative advice to the club and was valued for his strong sense of social justice.

At Rotary, he could always be found at a BBQ or in the Op Shop, was a regular careers adviser at the MAC Careers Days and much enjoyed the social side of life including the dinners, Art Shows and gardening events. Peter was recognised for his efforts with the Jim Hosie Trophy in 2014 and with a Paul Harris Fellow in 2019.

RICON23 Club Hospitality event

Book here

Tour of Duty

The many attendees were treated to an afternoon of fun, entertaining music followed by afternoon tea. Hosted by Marbyrnong Park Bowling Club {thanks to Geoff and Dulcie} this was an afternoon to enjoy with good company, socialisation and foot tapping fun.As well as members from a number of Rotary clubs, Geoff and Dulcie brought along 20 members of PROBUS and many of Sandy's regular followers came too.

Mental Health First Aid Program

Funded partly by a Community Grant from the Federal Government, our club has managed the provision of Teen Mental Health First Aid to 15 members of the wider community presented over 2 days at Kensington Neighbourhood House.

Led by Deb Penglase from The Wish Group, who has presented programs for Central Melbourne Rotary, attendees came away with a much greater understanding of mental health problems in teenagers and young people and how best to support those.

Amongst attendees were Melina and 4 Op Shop volunteers, 4 members of The Venny and 2 representatives from Jobs Victoria MVCC.

Filter Fun Park The Musical

Flemington Kensington Rotary are proud to support the production of Filter Fun Park The Musical.

Sunday7 May at 2pm at the Floridia Club, Wellington Street Flemington.

A production by Filter Your Future, and Yvonne Farquharson.

Join Brian Brain and his organ employees as they navigate the natural, everyday process of digestion.

This is a free event - bookings here

Op Shop opens a Food Pantry

The Rotary Club of Flemington has opened a Food Pantry for those in need based at the Op Shop.

President Shraddha Sharma and Op Shop Manager Melina Caccetta formally launched this project on Wednesday 15th March.

Funded by the club with support from Kensington Market, Cheaper-Buy-Miles and FoodBank, the pantry will provide staples and basic necessities for those in our community struggling with food supply. Melina and the volunteers will manage the pantry and ensure stocks and distribution.

Donations from members of the community are welcome.

The club will continue to support the food pantries operating at Kensington Neighbourhood House and Ascot Vale.

New member inductions

At this week's meeting, President Shraddha Sharma had the pleasure of inducting 3 new members to our club.
She asked for the assistance of members Peter Cribb, Josie Magri and Karolina Sevcikova with the badges.

Welcome to Dr Abdi Hassan, Mr Mohammed Abbas Omar and Ms Nina Farmer.

We look forward to hearing their Member Behind the Badge stories.

International Women's Day breakfast

It was an amazing event at the 12th Annual Moonee Valley Council Mayoral breakfast organised for international Women's Day. Today's event theme focused on celebration and promotion of gender equity and technology.

We had a students from MAC join us, including Habon and Nasteho, our Del King Scholars, along with 4 year 9 leaders, teacher Maddy and principal Danni. We also had members and volunteers from the Op Shop attending.

This was a great opportunity for networking, connecting with students and other like-minded individuals. The panelists discussed the increasing importance of technology in our daily lives and the rapid pace of digital transformation which provides for wonderful opportunities to transform our world. However, as the world becomes more digital, it is important to ensure that everyone has access to and can benefit from the opportunities that technology presents.
The speakers were:

1. Micaela Muscat, who participated in STEM curriculum and was involved in the NASA Coding Program for Women

2. Creator of digital membership and online community, Women Thriving Together, Natalie Moore,will also be joining our panel

3. Presenter and Producer for Radio 3RRR’s Byte Into IT show, Rowena Murray, will chat to us about her platform

4. Product Analyst for Allens’ Legal Product Lab,Shervie Maramot joins us. Her daily activities are centered in the legal-side of the digital space

RORP January Update

PP Peter Cribb has shared the latest images and stories from playground installations.

1. Spend It Well - Timor Leste. This is a small charity focussed on funding, constructing and resourcing schools. Between 2009-2014 they worked with Kirsty Sword Gusmao to build 9 schools, and since then work independently under an MoU with the Government. As well as infrastructure, they establish school gardens, provide desks and chairs {Donations in Kind} and playgrounds. Some members may remember Ian Femby, a former member. His son Simon is an advisor to the Prime Minister and is a Director.

2. Cape Town - South Africa.

3 of the 13 playgrounds in the container sent from Mt Martha in September 2022 are now installed.
These playgrounds came from Casey shire and Dandenong Council.

Members Behind the Badge - Geoff and Dulcie

Members Behind the Badge - Geoff Cawsey and Dulcie Heard

Meeting this warm couple at the Sugarbeat cafe on Langs road and walking down their memory lane was an absolute treat. Here’s the conversation with our charter member Geoff and his wonderful life partner, Dulcie.

1. Brief bio:

Geoff: I was born in 1942, in East Melbourne. I changed many schools in early years as my family moved around a bit. I lived early years in Albury in Brighton and went to Bentleigh West, circa 1952. My father was a foundry supplier and also managed scrap metals, my mother was home maker. As an only child found, on reflection now I appreciate the privilege I had of growing up with both parents’ attention, while I do remember during childhood being desirous of the kind of relationship my friends shared with their siblings.

After I finished year 11, my father got sick and during this time was offered a position at W. Brown and Sons, when he couldn’t take the job, the company owner gave me the opportunity to be trained in the same role. I stayed with them for 7 years and learned a lot, after few years, I then decided to form my own company, and GM Causey Metals and Alloys came to being.

Dulcie: I am the middle child, and I think being in that position really taught me to stick up for myself. I was born in Western Australia, my parents had a wheat and sheep farm. I came to Melbourne to attend my friend’s wedding and landed up staying in Melbourne after marrying the best man. My husband passed away young due to complication after blood clot.

Geoff and I met in 1984 at Geoff’s cousins’ place. We were both independent and working at the time.

Geoff has a son from his first wedding who’s now in Army and I had 2 sons. At the young age of 20, I lost my older son to an accident.

My younger son and family live close to us in Footscray, and between us we enjoy the pleasure of having 4 grandchildren. On the work front, I remember working at Coles in Moonee Ponds and to this day it was the best job, I held, the people, the friendships were all very special.

Polio Plus Society

The Polio Plus Society, a fundraising and recognition program specifically to support the worldwide effort to eradicate polio, is now open to District 9800 Rotarians. Members pledge to donate at least US$100 annually to the PolioPlus Fund until polio is gone from the world. To become part of this exciting venture, simply complete the Commitment Form and continue to donate to this vital program until polio is only a memory. You will receive a certificate and pin; and your contribution will count towards Paul Harris Fellow recognition and Major Donor status.

Inaugural members of the District 9800 Polio Plus Society will receive their recognitions at a launch event is planned for 15 April.

The Polio Plus Society brochure and commitment form are here: https://www.rotarydistrict9800.org.au/sitepage/foundation/polio-plus-society

If you have any questions or would like more information please contact Polio Plus Co-ordinator,
Jane Pennington. Email: Jane.Pennington@rotary9800.org

Defibrillators for our community

December is Disease Prevention and Treatment Month in Rotary.

The Board have approved a project to provide AEDs or defibrillators to our local schools and community groups.

The 1st order has arrived and devices will be presented to recipients in coming weeks.

The first presentat

ion was to Mount Alexander College today. Past President Lesley McCarthy presented to device to Stephanie Balaburov at assembly today. She also spoke to students and teachers, telling them of the value of such devices, and how they are saving lives.

Lorry Rowe visits Manila

From the 1st day of arriving in Manila we were overwhelmed! Michael Redding from Werribee Rotary was with me as well as my family.

Edwin Nombre, whom you know of from the True Manila Street Children feeding program which he started many year ago had arranged for us to travel with him to one of the biggest wholesale markets in Manila. There we bought T-shirts and were so excited to see such a huge shopping complex. We got lost and Michael was not impressed! Edwin thankfully found us and we were on time.

You will remember my request for no presents on my retirement, just money for the Street feeding program. So I had $590.

When I was in Manila in June with my son Shane, Edwin was in America and his family arranged a small program for my Shane and friends, but I only spent $100 on that feed, but that fed 60 children. Spaghetti, hamburgers and fruits.

The traffic is unbelievable! bumper to bumper AND you need to give yourself at least 3 hours travelling time to just go a few kilometres. Seriously, and the Filipinos take it in their stride, it’s just how it is!

After a quick shower and freshen up at our hotel. Edwin took us to go and collect the food. My granddaughter, her daughter and mother and Shane's girlfriend and Micheal.

We all had survived the market situation and were excited to be involved with the feeding program. It was a lot different with Edwin conducting it, a lot more excited children, they just love him, he's like the Pied Piper. Not just because of the food, they totally look up to him as a father figure I'm sure. It’s wonderful to see how Edwin's family help and support him too.

That first night, we fed almost 300 children and gave them T-shirts. It was simply overwhelming.

Michael's Report.

Visit to Rotary

Carols in Queens Park

Thank you to everyone who helped out on the day. Special thanks to John Sklenar who was there from start to finish and cooked all day!

Many thanks to Mel for organizing assistance from the Kensington Soccer Club - Alex and Campa were there with John from early on until the end and we also had Susan and 2 of the young players helping out. Thanks to Edith Chen, Peter Cribb, Yvonne & Bob Farquharson, Shraddha & Rakesh, Lesley, Mel and Marty.

Ascot Vale Heights School Scholarship Presentation

President Shraddha attended the awards evening for Ascot Vale Heights School [formerly Ascot Vale Special School} on Monday 5 December.

The recipient of the club's year 12 scholarship was Sebastian Timpano who was nominated by staff for his outstanding efforts this year.

The senior school team have agreed that Sebastian’s growth academically, socially and personally has been outstanding this year.

Sebastian’s efforts to achieve success with his year 12 studies should be applauded. He has demonstrated a high level of commitment towards school, learning and personal growth. Sebastian attendance is excellent, and we are very proud that he has completed both his VCAL certificate and VET course in Food Processing.

Sebastian has a curious mind and is always willing to take on any tasks and new challenges. He has a kind and caring nature and his ability to positively connect with his peers, makes him a good friend and positive role model in our school community.Sebastian will be moving onto a pre-employment training program in 2023. The funding provided by this motivational grant will really boost the potential to support him with the costs of training, travel and increasing his links to the community. Funding will help to create pathways for Sebastian longer term that will support him in achieving his employment goals.

RORP December Update

RYLA Success

Congratulations to Jules Borghouts and Sarah Briggs who have just finished the 10 day long RYLA camp.

Their experiences in learning, leadership and challenge by choice have opened their eyes to possibilities for the future.

We look forward to hearing about the adventures you had in the new year.

Thank you to Zoe Borghouts who again attended as a leader and to all the RYLA crew for their dedication, support and encouragement.

Mount Alexander College Awards Night

Past President Lesley McCarthy attended this year's awards evening at the Clocktower. It was wonderful to be able to celebrate and acknowledge the hard work and determination of the graduating students after the past 2 and a half years.

As well as the awards, there were a number of musical performances which were just outstanding.

Several of the students whom we have supported or sponsored in the past received awards including Zoe He {NYSF 2022} who was Dux of Year 12; Inas Adil Ahmed {School Captain and MC}, Flynn {Op Shop Work Experience student}, Jacinta Klassen {MUNA], Salma Salaat {NYSF}

Lesley presented the Del King Award to Nasteho Salaat and the inaugural Ted Frank Vocational Award to Anh Tran.

Nasteho is the sister of Salma Salaat who attended NYSF this year with Zoe.

Anh Tran is a Vietnamese student who has been accepted to study Business Analysis at Swinburne University next year.

Below left - Zoe He {NYSF, Dux} with Lesley and Inas Adel Ahmed {Del King Award, School Captain}.
Below right - Ching Chan, Lesley, Zoe and Graeme {a long serving teacher.

Christmas Celebration

A large group gathered at the Maribyrnong Park Bowls Club on Wednesday 30 November to acknowledge and celebrate the year.

Several people tried their hand at lawn bowls or croquet before dinner. Rakesh and Bob showed a good eye for bowls, while Beate, Anthony, and Bill, and Samara and friends were excellent at Croquet.

Many thanks to Dulcie Heard, Geoff Cawsey and friend Lesley for the fabulous catering. This was very much appreciated as was the effort they out into making the room look festive for us all.

President Shraddha addressed the group and thanked everyone for their work this year.
She then made presentations to:
Peter Cribb - acknowledging his efforts as a Mentor to her when she first joined the club.
Edith Chen - as a mentor to Melina Caccetta in her role as the new Op Shop Manager.

She also acknowledged Lesley McCarthy who was Mentor to Yvonne Farquharson.

The Mentor/Mentoree awards are an initiative of DG Amanda and were introduced as part of her DG Cluster visits.

Shraddha together with PP Lesley McCarthy then made a special presentation to Dulcie. She was recognised as an Honorary Member for her 35 years of dedicated service to the club in so many different ways. Lesley then presented her with a Paul Harris Sapphire pin.

We then heard from Ching Chan, Teacher of Chinese and Japanese at MAC who attended with 2 of h

er students. She brought along 2 Temari Balls, created by a friend of hers, Keiko Atcheson, also a Chinese teacher. The balls are for sale.

Melina then presented 'Thank You cards" to the shop volunteers. She thanked them and spoke of their dedication, friendship and community service.

She then gave an overview of the Silent Auction of a range of jewellery. The jewellery has all been donated to the Op Shop and has been authenticated and valued by a Rotarian Jeweller.

Rotary supporting the Food Pantries

Our members are helping feed people in our community through the Food Pantries at Kensington Neighbourhood House, Ascot Vale and at Flemington Mission. Each week one or more of our members provides donations, and at the last weekly meeting several members contributed significant donations of necessities.

Edith, Shraddha, Anne and Lesley take turns to fill KNH and AV while Yvonne volunteers weekly at FM.

The club has made a donation to Flemington Mission to assist with extra supplies in the Christmas period.

Members are encouraged to assist as they can - groceries can be dropped into Melina at the Op Shop too.

Kensington City Soccer Club Awards Night

President Shraddha, Geoff Cawsey and Dulcie Heard attended the presentation evening on 12 November.

They witnessed the great camaraderie, wonderful display of strength, passion and energy among the girls, 2 special coaches, parents, guardians, and the whole community of people behind making this sport accessible and fun for the girls.

Our charter member Geoff felt a sense of pride and happiness in presenting the awards to the outstanding players on the night.
The Rotary Club of Flemington Kensington feels very privileged to be able to extend our ongoing sponsorship support to this wonderful club.

Congratulations to Katherine James, Mia Devine, Jessica Dutton, Mavis Chan and Elizabeth Giovannitti Nowak on your awards.
Good luck to the whole team for another year of playing.

Special shout out to Mel Rotary Op Shop - Flemington for all her unconditional effort!

Playgrounds to Port Blair

After 12 months in the planning, first inspired by President Shraddha's visit in August 2021, the container is now packed and on its way.

Thanks to the incredible effort by Bob Allardice and a team of people, 15 playgrounds plus 2 extra swing sets were loaded - a new RORP record. John Arena is very pleased as he has most of his yard free again - but that won't last.

Those who helped out during the loading were Peter Cribb, John Sklenar and Sam Nicol from Flemington-Kensington.

Rotarians from other clubs were Ian Armstrong, Jerzy Ordega, Des Shiels, Isiah Lahai, Gerry van Horick, Matthew Gibney, Roger Wilson, Cheryl McKay, Peter Peyton, and Scott Allardice.

Thanks to Gerry who contacted the Lilydale Star news resulting in the excellent article below.

Rhys Williams visits RC Tripureshwor

Following his visit to our club and further discussions with President Shraddha, Rotary Central Melbourne's Rhys Williams attended a meeting at the Rotary Club of Tripureshwor while in Nepal recently. Rhys has worked in international education in Asia for many years, and with Stephanie Woollard of 7 Women fame in the past.

Rhys is pictured 3rd from the left.

Intergenerational Maps

This project is based around drawing together older, longer-term residents with younger, newer residents

in a local area they share.
Prior to the COVID pandemic, Gallery Sunshine Everywhere acquired funding from Brimbank Council and implemented the project in Sunshine, a suburb in Melbourne’s west. A report is available in the Projects section of www.gallerysunshine.com .
In 2019, Gallery Sunshine Everywhere joined with the Public Pedagogies Institute in a successful grant application to Moonee Valley Council to run a similar program in Flemington.
The program ran at Debney Meadows Primary School in early November.

Cluster event - District Governor's visit

Please book and pay through Humanitix:
https://events.humanitix.com/gateway-east-cluster-event

District Governor Cluster visit

The Yarraville Club was packed as Rotarians and partners from the clubs in the Gateway Custer came together on 10 November to welcome District Governor Amanda Wendt. Together with DGEN Michael Lapina and Alex, AGs Tony Laycock and Peter Shepheard and Club Service Chair Lilli Teichman the room was abuzz.

Australian Rotary Health PhD Scholarship

Equipping Teachers to Respond to Mental Health Problems in the Classroom – Australian Rotary Health

A new PhD research project funded by Australian Rotary Health and the /Rotary Club of Flemington Kensington PhD Scholarship. is aiming to equip schoolteachers with evidence-based strategies to tackle mental health problems in the classroom.

Former teacher and hD candidate Catherine Johnson knows first-hand about the impact a student’s sense of wellbeing has on their ability to learn and reach their potential.

“When I started in the classroom, my training did not prepare me for the complexity of student concerns and needs that arose, which led me to want to explore how to best provide training to teachers in supporting student mental health,” Ms Johnson said.

Live For Lily

Wednesday 19th October we met at Cucina il Divo. As well s enjoying a lovely evening of fun, fellowship and chat, we heard from our

Guest Speakers Katie and Aaron Hester on Live for Lily - Liver Cancer fundraising and research.

Live For Lily | to cure childhood cancer-: Home Shraddha presented Katie and Aaron with a donation of $2000 from the club.

Filling sandbags for flood affected Ascot Vale residents

Thanks to everyone who helped out at the Essendon SES on Saturday. Filling sandbags for flood affected residents.

Big shout out to President Shraddha and Essendon Rotarians.

Playgrounds to Port Blair India

Almost ready to ship .... Costs have skyrocketed due to COVID, now approx $12,280.
Thank you Bob Allardice.

President Shraddha's Food Pantry Project

We all know people who are struggling to put food on the table at the moment. The 3 local food pantries: Ascot Vale Little Pantry, Flemington Mission and Kensington Neighborhood House are supporting hundreds of local families weekly.

Shraddha's request is that we who a

re fortunate support where we can by bringing a grocery item to each meeting. Each month, we will donate these groceries to one of the pantries.

This week, Edith and Lesley took in our donations to Kensington Neighourhood House.

Lesley recognised in Hansard

Danny Pearson MP for Essendon has recognized Past President Lesley McCarthy with a Member's speech in Parliament.
This was recorded in Hansard on 4 August.

Lesley was presented with a framed memento at the breakfast meeting this week by Nicole Marshall.

RIMERN helps one of our Somali families

PP Peter Cribb received a phone call from one of our Somali contacts, Ibrahim Hussein from OzSomCare seeking assistance for a family whose house had been destroyed by fire.

RIMERN quickly came to the rescue and yesterday Ibrahim and Rashid collected furniture, mattresses and household goods for the family of 6. They had been sleeping on the floor! So, free of charge - mattresses and bases, fridge, washing machine and microwave, bed linen, bedside tables, sofa, armchairs, coffee table and kitchen goods. All donated to RIMERN from our wonderful volunteers.

Thank you to Sue Robb who picked and packed and made this happen so quickly!

Another fantastic help to community - circular economy saving landfill.

City of Melbourne Awards

Earlier this year Lesley applied to the Awards for the op Shop under the category of Sustainability. The submission was well received and we were shortlisted for an interview. Lesley presented against the criteria at interview last week. See presentation here.

The award winners will be announced later this month.

Our Op Shop is a hub for the circular economy and sustainability through our many connections - almost octopus like with our tentacles. Did yo know how many partnerships and connections we have made?

Connecting to your community

Are you someone who wants to make positive changes in your community and the world? Our members are a dedicated group of local people who share a passion for service - in our local community, Australia and worldwide.

Rotary's 7 focus areas include:

* Disease prevention and treatment - we are well known for our leadership and work in ending Polio worldwide.
* Supporting the environment
* Basic education and literacy

* Peacebuilding and conflict resolution
* Maternal and child health
* Community economic development
* Water, hygiene and sanitation

Does this sound like you? Come along to one of our meetings and learn more
about us and our work. Or call in and see Mel at the op Shop.

2021-2022 RI Citation

Congratulations! Your club has earned the Rotary Citation,

the most significant award a Rotary club can achieve, for 2021-22.

This past year, your club demonstrated a commitment to achieve its goals, which ultimately helps strengthen Rotary and shape our future.

Rotary and UNICEF Sri Lanka partnership

Rotary International and UNICEF are partnering to deliver lifesaving medicines, clean drinking water, education materials and other critical supplies to children and families.

The partnership will capitalize on Rotary International ‘s global network along with the alumni of Sri Lanka’s leading schools to raise funds from the Sri Lankan community living overseas.

Donors can also donate through the online platform www.lifelinesrilanka.rotary.unicef.org.au to give a lifeline to Sri Lankans during the current crisis.

UNICEF will use the collected funds to procure essential medicines, medical equipment, water purification tablets, and school stationery to support vulnerable communities facing severe shortages across the country.

The partnership was launched ON 22nd August in Colombo by UNICEF Regional Director for South Asia, Mr. George Laryea-Adjei and UNICEF Sri Lanka Representative, Mr. Christian Skoog together with Zone Director of Rotary International, Mr. A S Venkatesh, and Sri Lanka Rotary District Governor Ms. Pubudu de Zoysa.

Donations can also be made by direct deposit to: UNICEF Sri Lanka through the bank details below. Please note ‘Lifeline Sri Lanka’ in the description. Please also email notification of the deposit to: donatesl@unicef.org

Account name: UNITED NATIONS CHILDREN’S FUND
Bank name: Sampath Bank PLC Account number: 002960004747
Account currency: LKR Branch name: Headquarters’ branch
Branch address: 110, Sir James Pieris Mawatha, Colombo, Postal code 00200 SWIFT BIC: BSAMLKLX

Member Behind the Badge - Len Seddon

On Wedn

esday, 24th August, Leonard and Shraddha met for breakfast at Sugarbeat cafe close to their homes, and what followed was an interesting & insightful walk down a memory lane of Len's life which was lived on the philosophy of hard work, friendship and care for his family, friends and community.

Len was born 11 April 1933 in a small town in Victoria called Murtoa. We moved when I was still young to Linga, situated between Ouyen and the South Australian border in the Sunraysia region. There I went to Linga state school. My father was a Bank Manager, and my mother managed the Post Office until we moved to Melbourne in 1940, after my fathers' passing in 1937.

Len still remembers the 14 room house they had when his mother managed the Post Office in Linga, it brings back very fond memories of the place. It was getting difficult for my mother alone with two kids, so along with aunty Flo, her daughter Bev, mum, uncle Alan and I moved to Melbourne.

We lived initially in Fitzroy and eventually mum found work to manage a tennis court and milk bar in Union road. Alan & I joined Ascot Vale West Primary school.

Len was introduced to Rotary by another of my school mate Ron King in 1991. He was the President at North Melbourne Rotary and we used to go to their Rotary dinners. Over one such dinner he introduced me to the president Ross Bradfield of Rotary Club of Flemington & soon after I joined.