President's Desk 15-04-13

From the President's Desk

Good Morning fellow Rotarians and Friends of the e-Club,

We had the most wonderful weekend at the D9640 Conference!!! Thank you to Sandra & Sam Doumany for putting on this great event, it was inspiring, informative and I am sure everyone that went walked away with fabulous ideas and the belief that it may take baby steps but keep climbing that mountain and you'll achieve success.

The presentations and guest speakers were inspiring.

-         Noel and Betty Holyoake RI President's Personal Representative were just lovely and even bringing their own props, Noel really showed us what Rotarians can achieve. 

-         Carol Ronken Research and Policy Development Manager of Bravehearts spoke on why Hetty Johnston is so passionate about lobbying for new legislation on child abuse reforms. 

-         Our own eClub member Stuart Robert MP commanded our attention with his manner and engaging stories reminding us of August 7th (also our daughter's birthday) of the brave and determined ANZAC's. 

-         Ashley Teakle; a petite young lady World Vision's Youth Ambassador in 2011 speaking about her time in a remote Zulu Village teaching prep to year 12's at 18 years of age. 

-         Jenni Heenan reminded us how important it is to put smiles back on children's faces with Disaster Aid Boxes after a natural disaster has devastated and wiped out villages and whole communities.

-         Brian Herd BA LLB(Hons) a passionate lawyer, specialising in Elder Law, kept us engaged with his humour and light-heartedness on a serious subject of 'Doing nothing'.   I think we are all guilty of doing that sometimes!

-         Terry Wimberley, Chairman of the Board of Directors for Zarraffa's Coffee took us back where they started; and that from humble beginnings you can grow and achieve anything.

-         Bruce Allen spoke on Rotary Foundation; now I have heard a few of these before but full marks to Bruce for keeping it interesting and inspiring.

-         John Witheriff from The GC Suns Football Clubs with his 60/40 of giving more than you expect in return was awesome and can be applied to all walks of life. I was also very impressed by their Horizons Program where 46 players and 77 staff commit to 5000 hours of charity work each year.

-         Richard Royle and Dr Peter Silburn; wow what a double act! Richard's paperlite hospital really has my IT side interested and the amazing benefits like patient safety; reduction of clinical incidents; giving warnings of incorrect medications; efficiency; reducing lengths of stays and the list goes on. Dr. Peter and his ability to use deep brain stimulation for Brain and Mind Disorders was once again inspiring. Eight billion dollars goes towards Parkinson's every year.  Watching the videos, I couldn't believe how he has made a difference in so many lives.

-         Bruce and Denise Morcombe established the Daniel Morcombe Foundation and they are committed to educating and keeping kids safe through their visits to schools as well as their mobile app. It was a great link back to Bravehearts as they work together using their counsellors.

-         The last speaker was Allana Corbin. I think she had many of the Rotarians in tears with her bravery and sheer guts to achieve what she set out to do. Allana, a pilot and author of "The Sky's Not the Limit", told a truly moving, impressive and enthralling story of what she has achieved so far.

I wasn't going to spend so long talking about them, but all of the Guest Speakers were engaging and fascinating! Remember, it is free to go to our Rotary Conference (if you don't want any food). What great value, I walked away enthusiastic and ready for anything. If you were busy or unable to attend for whatever reason this year; please mark your calendars now, March 28 - 30th, 2014 in Stanthorpe for next year's conference.

Chris, Ian, Heather, Ingrid and I spent a lot of time at the Ause-safare stand promoting the safaris but also were able to achieve new Memberships to the e-Club; greater knowledge of the e-Club and how it works; a radio interview; Royal Flying Doctors Service (RDFS) support; Rotarians from all over the District doing their make-ups online with us as well as coming online for our forum on a Tuesday Night.

This week's Forum is Hannah Jones: she will cover the topic of The Pyjama Foundation - who we are, what we do and our impact on the community, and also discuss our upcoming events including Pyjama Day and Pyjama Party".

Yours in Rotary,
Rick Jewson
President