From the President-June, 2015
It is hard to believe that this Rotary year has passed so quickly.
The month started with a speaker; the 7th May was General Election day, but for us it was the centenary of the sinking of the Lusitania; Chris Williams took us through the process, and revealed his family connection at the close! I do like a nautical tale with a beginning, a middle, and an end.
That weekend, Joe Walker and Danny Thompson (People In Need Worldwide) loaded their van and took the Sensory Room equipment off to Barlad, along with lots of other equipment to donate to local charities there. Their Facebook page (Follow Joe) is full of photographs of the journey, the building process, the civic handover, and the commendations received by the two stalwarts concerned. This was a really excellent project – from the club’s original generosity, to District matching funds, to the installation of a facility which will bring an awakening to so many special children.
The President’s Trip to Istanbul was brilliant! Well organised by Mike Frost, with sightseeing, a trip on the Bosphorus, good food, drinks in a welcoming local bar, and a very interesting visit to Nomad’s Club – where Yogesh played the tambourine to accompany the belly dancers, and Tony attempted to join the troupe! Andy and Karen had some difficulty with the visas on entering, and passports on leaving, but apart from that, the group had a great time. Our webmaster, Peter the Bread, was photographed in the Circumcision Room at the Topkapi Palace – go to our club website for the result.
Behind the scenes a lot of work is going on to make sure that the Dry Regatta and Music In The Gardens are both successful – we understand that MITG ticket sales have now covered all the costs, so the more tickets we can sell at this point, the more money we raise for the nominated charities, and also for our club supported charities. The Dry Regatta is helping to pay for a special covered “calm down” area at Hilltop School, and needs your support to make a difference.
Reports delivered to our AGM indicated that the club had managed to achieve much of the programme outlined at last year’s Club Assembly. May I take this opportunity to thank all the members of Council for their contributions this year, Immediate Past President, Secretary, Treasurer, Assistant Secretary, Assistant Treasurer, Charity Liaison Officer/ Vice President, and Committee Chairs.
The last club meeting of the month was a speaker event – Ann Ogley relived her visit to the Jungle of Sumatra (Indonesia) from last September, when she spent several days trekking through jungle, encountering endangered wildlife, very difficult terrain, and amazing plumbing. Her generosity led to fund raising on behalf of the endangered wildlife, and on behalf of Crookstone Barn, so others can have their version of a jungle/back to nature experience. Thank you Ann for a very enlightening and entertaining talk.
I have really enjoyed being your President, and thank you all for your help and support. It has been great fun (well, most of it….), and certainly a privilege to serve what is clearly the most fun club in the area. May I wish Yogesh and his team well for the year ahead.