Tuesday 26 March 

Last Tuesday was another great night at of Rotary. Thankyou Catherine for your reflection on the tragic events in Christchurch. We also had the Riding for the Disabled come along and give a short presentation on what they do and thank us for our donation to them to allow them to buy 2 protection riding vests. A small donation but a very important safety one for the disabled riders.

We then enjoyed a very good presentation by Geoff Dickey of his time in the Antarctic

On Thursday Fran, Mike and Myself sorted through the Rotary Container. We did throw a bit of stuff out but mainly just sorted much of what was there into like storage boxes and dated them. If we are ever doing any catering again we do not need any disposable knives and forks or salt and pepper. Thanks Mike and Fran this has tidy up has been needed for a long time.

And on Friday  we enjoyed the hospitality of Bruce and Julie at their beautiful home for a pizza and social night. There must have been about 25 Rotarians and partners attend and we had a fantastic time. Thanks to Bruce and Julie and also Chris for organising.

A few things to note.

The administration committee and directors have decided to trial sending out the bulletin every second week from now until the end of my year as President. It will be reviewed at that stage by Debs and her directors.

The 4wd trip is happening this coming weekend and Ken will have some more info about this during the week. Mary and I are looking forward to the weekend away with other Rotarians seeing some new country.

Directors approved a donation of $1000 to the help families in Christchurch after the shootings there. It will go through Rotary in the Christchurch area.

At our Tuesday meetings when I ring the bell can we please stop talking to allow me to start the meeting. It is great to hear everyone enjoying talking to fellow Rotarians but when I ring the bell please stop.

It is also very lonely at the top table and I ask that the person introducing the speaker and the speaker please sit at the top table along with the Sergeant. I may even ask others to join me if I feel lonely.

Richard will soon be looking for volunteers to help at Wheels to Wanaka over Easter weekend so please keep that in mind. If everyone is able to help with one shift then it’s not a big job for a few.

Lastly I have had discussions with the Wanaka District Club about the meals and the cost. We have jointly agreed to put the cost of the meals up to $22 from the 2nd of April.

Look forward to seeing you on Tuesday.

Regards, President George

                             

Geoff Dickey, our guest speaker last week, en route with supplies for various stations in the Antarctic.

 

 

Geoff was brought up in Albert Town and Wanaka in a family of five boys.

On leaving the District High School in Wanaka Geoff was faced with only one job option as a mechanic with Umbers’ Garage, then at the bottom of Helwick St.  

After running his own business for twenty five years and managing machinery at Treble Cone he has spent the last four seasons in Antarctica working as a driver/mechanic pulling up to 60 tonnes of fuel and supplies to various camps

for scientific research. He reached the South Pole, viewed both Scott’s and Shackleton’s Huts and notes “it’s a spectacular continent”.

His pictures and videos were stunning illustrations of his adventures.

                

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Remember if you are aware of any Rotarian in our club who may benefit from assistance or pastoral care due to illness, or a family bereavement - please let Catherine Little know.

 

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Social Pizza Night at Bruce & Julie Steenson's  Friday 22 March 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Speaker Bio  - Alan Richardson, 26 March 

 

Alan Richardson, and wife Margaret Caldwell, have owned their Wanaka property since 1989, and were golf club members before even that – but its only since Easter last year that Alan’s been a permanent resident; Margaret since 2011.

Alan was brought up on a Southland farm (Dacre) until his secondary schooling years when he boarded; first at Waitaki Boys’ High and later at John McGlashan College.  After a very educational but academically unsuccessful year at Canterbury University (engineering) he had his first taste of the Export Meat Industry – under the management of fellow Rotarian, John Milburn.  He later returned to Otago University, graduating eventually with a Chemistry and Chemical Engineering degree.

Alan held numerous roles in the meat processing and retailing industries over a 25 year period.  In 2004 he joined New Zealand Trade and Enterprise (NZTE), the government’s export focused economic development agency, where his primary role was identifying companies with exportable products and services, then helping them connect with potential overseas customers.

 

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2nd April - Area Speech Competition run off 

Alexandra, Cromwell, Queenstown and Wanaka contestants compete  for a place at District Conference in Oamaru in April 

 

 

 

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New Member Proposals

 

The Directors have received an Application from Christopher Liggins  to join the Wanaka Rotary Club. The proposer Tony O'Regan. Club Members are invited to consider Chris's Application and may file an objection with the Secretary within 7 days of this 2nd Notice

 

The Directors have received an Application from  Warwick Duechrass to join the Wanaka Rotary Club. The proposer is Derek Howarth. Club Members are invited to consider Warwick's Application and may file an objection with the Secretary within 7 days of this 2nd Notice

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Thank-you to Fran, Mike and President George for cleaning out the Rotary storage container and taking a lot of obsolete material to the rubbish. Did you know?  We have use of the container thanks to our wonderful sponsor Wanaka Storage Solutions.

 

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Christchurch  tragedy - tribute by Catherine Little 

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SHELTERBOX IN MALAWI

Cyclone Idai has torn through Mozambique, Malawi and Zimbabwe, separating parents and children, ripping up homes and destroying livelihoods.

Thousands of families are now homeless and afraid. They urgently need your help.

Right now our response team is travelling to Malawi to assess the devastation. We're also talking to our local partners including Rotary International and Habitat for Humanity to understand how we might be able to help.

You can help send shelter and essential aid items to desperate families around the world. Together, we can help families affected by Cyclone Idai and other disasters.

ABOUT CYCLONE IDAI

• Cyclone Idai made landfall on 14 March, bringing winds of over 100mph and heavy rains.  
• Downpours have been affecting the region for weeks, causing severe floods since the beginning of March. This comes after a period of severe drought, making the conditions worse. 
• As lines of communication are cut and many areas are still heavily flooded, a picture of the number of people affected is still emerging. 
• Estimates are that almost 1 million people have been affected and at least 125,000 have been forced from their homes in Malawi alone.  
• We’re also watching other weather systems building in the region, which could cause further damage. 

Right now, there are tens of thousands of families in Malawi who desperately need support to recover. 

We have previously responded to floods in southern Malawi in 2015, where we worked closely with local Rotary clubs to support families that lost so much.

With your support, we helped families like Mary's rebuild their lives after the floods. With the security of the sturdy ShelterBox tent to protect them from the elements, Mary was able to start looking to the furture.  

WORKING WITH ROTARY INTERNATIONAL

As Rotary International’s project partner in disaster relief, we’re in contact with the District Governor of Rotary District 9210 that covers Malawi, Mozambique and Zimbabwe.

We have also reached out to the clubs we worked with in 2015 who are providing local updates, including the Rotary Club of Limbe in southern Malawi and the Rotary Club of Polana in Maputo in southern Mozambique. 

Ongoing Rotary support is instrumental in helping support more families after disaster strikes.