Tonight's speaker is President-nominee Stephanie A. Urchick
Rotary Club of McMurray, Pennsylvania
A Rotarian since 1991, Urchick first joined the home club of Past RI President Chuck Keller She has served Rotary as Rotary Foundation Trustee and RI Director. She has served RI in numerous other capacities
Hello again, Last meeting, I reminded everyone that Our District 9685 will be showcased in a feature article in the Rotary Down Under Magazine in July. Please send any item (with high resolution photos) to me by the end of April It is great to see how many of our leadership team for 2023-4 have registered for District Assembly. I thank you on behalf of all of our members who appreciate the value of this training. If you are able, I suggest you may like to take the Mental Health First Aid Course. This is being facilitated by PDG Ian Scott and District 9685. Over 2 days, 27 April and 4 May.1 in 5 Australians will experience a mental health problem in any given year. The course teaches participants about the different types of mental illness and using a practical, skills-based action plan they learn the skills to assess and respond to someone experiencing a mental health problem or mental health crisis. Please read the flyer later on in this Phoenix for details Looking forward to meeting up, face to face, with those attending District Assembly Until next time Marilyn
We’re all facing the reality that the COVID-19 pandemic has changed the world, including Rotary Youth Exchange, in unprecedented ways. Which is why examining how we support students amid the challenges of an ongoing pandemic is the key to ensuring that our exchanges are positive and successful for everyone who’s involved in them. From homesickness to mental health issues to setting expectations at the host home or school, let’s talk about emotional support strategies that help students, host families, and volunteer leaders thrive.
From an exchange, then around the world, and then sharing in a Nobel Peace Prize
Exchanges are often a seedbed for cultivating peace one student or volunteer at a time. Peacebuilding usually manifests in small ways, such as a thoughtful conversation between people of different cultures that results in better understanding and open-mindedness. But sometimes a single seed of peace grows into something more far-reaching, with direct impact on multitudes.
To read her full story click here or copy paste this link.
Three-month-old Gabriella from Fiji was treated in New Zealand for a heart condition in February 2020. Now a healthy three-year-old, Gabriella is a wonderful example of the life saving work ROMAC does.
Every day Rotarians and Friends are raising funds to cover travel, accommodation and treatment for children and their carers.
If every Rotarian in Australia and New Zealand donated $20 and every club matched with $20 for everyone of their members, we could cover the costs of all the children referred to us annually.
If every Friend donated $20 we could help even more children.
Hello to everyone who has registered for the 2023 Rotary International Convention! We look forward to gathering with you in Melbourne, Australia, 27-31 May.
Host Organizing Committee Welcome Event Experience a warm welcome to Australia at one of Melbourne’s iconic venues – the Melbourne Museum. You’ll have the chance to learn about the culture while viewing exhibits and catching up with fellow Rotary members, all while enjoying Victorian food and beverage.Purchase your tickets now.
While you’re on the Host Organizing Committee website, don’t forget to explore the many tour options available. Unique landscapes and wildlife, the vast and beautiful sea, rainforests, foods, wines, shopping, city tours and even balloon flights! There’s so much to see and we welcome you to explore.
Breakout sessions You can choose from more than 80 breakout sessions that will inspire you, improve your skills, or help you Imagine What’s Next for projects, fundraising, inclusivity, and more. Some of the topics being discussed Monday through Wednesday, 29-31 May, include: • Strengthening your club. Learn strategies to keep your members engaged, encourage greater diversity in your membership, and inspire people to get involved with Rotary. • Connecting and taking action. Meet members who are making a difference on the world’s biggest challenges and find out how you can help. • Using Rotary’s Action Plan. Join the conversation about Rotary’s future and discover how your club can make Rotary’s strategic plan a reality.
Rotary Foundation donor events Online registration for special donor events hosted by The Rotary Foundation is open through 15 May. Attendance is by invitation only, and eligible convention participants will receive their invitations by email soon. For the most current information about these events and to register, visit the Donor Events page.
Melbourne’s art scene Whether it’s the visual arts, performing arts, or music festivals, Melbourne has something for all cultural tastes. Along with impressive exhibitions and events, the city’s world-renowned street art provides an open-air gallery throughout the central business district and inner suburbs. Find out more from the Melbourne Convention Bureau: • Performing arts:Arts Centre Melbourne showcases major music, dance, and theater performances beneath its famous spire. Descend five floors below street level and discover 130 years of the area’s history on a behind-the-scenes tour. • Visual arts:The National Gallery of Victoria, Australia’s oldest art gallery, hosts exhibitions of international artists at its stunning central-city venue and features Australian art at its Federation Square location. The ACMI features moving images of all kinds: film, TV, videogames, digital culture, and video art. • Street art: Take a guided tour with Blender Studios for an insider’s perspective. Led by a local artist, the three-hour tour takes you from the iconic Federation Square through the city’s laneways, exploring some of the stories behind the images.
As a global humanitarian organization, Rotary continually takes action to help communities in need. Because you are a dedicated leader in Rotary, we want you to be among the first to know that The Rotary Foundation has established two temporary funds to support immediate relief efforts in Pakistan and Ukraine. In Pakistan, a severe monsoon season has caused devastating floods and affected millions of people. In Ukraine, the ongoing war has led to a continued humanitarian crisis. We’ll begin fundraising efforts soon to finance disaster response grants from these funds.
The Pakistan Flood Response Fund will help communities recover from the disaster that displaced people and destroyed crops. It will accept contributions, including District Designated Funds, until 31 December 2023 and distribute grants until 30 June 2024 or until the funds are spent. Any unused money will be transferred to the general Disaster Response Fund.
The Ukraine Response Fund will also accept contributions, including District Designated Funds, to support grants for districts affected by the war. It will operate on the same schedule as the Pakistan fund, accepting donations until 31 December 2023 and awarding grants until 30 June 2024 or until the money is spent. Any unused funds will also be transferred to the Disaster Response Fund.
Districts affected by the flooding in Pakistan or the war in Ukraine can apply for grants from the relevant fund to provide items such as water, food, medicine, shelter, and clothing. To learn more and help these communities, you and your members can:
Donate to the Pakistan Flood Response Fund or the Ukraine Response Fund
Learn more about both funds and how to apply for disaster response grants
Fundraise among your colleagues, friends, and family using Raise for Rotary
We appreciate your assistance in supporting Rotary member-led projects to help these communities recover. Sincerely, Ian H.S. Riseley 2022-23 Trustee Chair The Rotary Foundation
Who’s making the decisions about our Energy future? How soon can we have mostly renewables? and What can you and I do? - Key questions that will be answered in the Webinar Transitioning to an Energy Superpower - next Tuesday 7th February 6pm AEDT (UTC+11) - via www.climateandpeace.com.au
Check out the panel of Industry leaders; Dr Kerry Schott – who has recently joined the AGL Board, Kobad Bhavnagri - Global Head of Strategy at BloombergNEF - and Kylie Hargreaves who heads up the Australian Alliance for Energy Productivity.
Here at last is the GREEN Games Report. I have been a bit slow getting it finished due to exhaustion on coming home from Oecusse, then Christmas and New Year! Now no excuses so here it is, hope you enjoy the read and understand some of the problems we had.
to Lucy Hobgood -Brown for another successful HandUp Congo medical mission to the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Lucy also initiated a project between the Rotary club of Blackheath Rotary E-Club of Greater Sydney and the Rotary Club of Taree, in collaboration with the Rotary club of Mbandaka.
She took with her a Rotary Peace Pole which now takes pride of place in the "village of peace", Mbandaka.
Significantly, for this country, struggling with conflict, as well as the names of the Rotary Clubs, are inscribed the words "MAY PEACE PREVAIL ON EARTH" in four languages.
1959-60 Harold T. Thomas (furniture and furnishings - retail)
Rotary Club of Auckland, New Zealand
ROTARY VISION: to vitalise, personalise and build bridges of friendship.
'One of the most impressive examples I know of international cooperation is those gardens where we find plants, shrubs and trees, flourishing side by side to perfect harmony and beauty. There is much wisdom to be learnt in a garden.and the very beginning is a realisation of the fact that all final results depend on proper preparation of the soil;....so it is with RotaryThe crop we envisage is world peace and stability , a world in which we all live together as friends and neighbours . The seed to be sown - fellowship, friendship and understanding. The soil - the minds of individual Rotarians'
. - address to the 1960 Rotary Convention in Miami, Florida USA
With the success of the 2022 Rotary International Convention in Houston, our first in-person convention since 2019, we’re more excited than ever about meeting again at the 2023 Rotary International Convention in Melbourne, Australia, 27-31 May. Join us in this beautiful city to connect with other people of action. We’ll hear from great speakers, enjoy fantastic entertainment, take part in inspirational breakout sessions, and so much more.
You won’t want to miss this opportunity to share your passion for Rotary with fellow members in Melbourne. We can’t wait to see you there!
If every Rotarian in Australia and New Zealand donated $20 and every club matched with $20 for everyone of their members, we could cover the costs of all the children referred to us annually.
