Our next meeting will be 6:00pm for 6:30pm Wednesday 24 July 2024
at the Graphic Arts Club, 182 Coward Street Mascot 2018
Visitors very welcome
President's Message
Welcome to this Newsletter of the Rotary Club of Botany Randwick Inc. Our club has been serving the local and international community since 1948.
Rotary promotes the ideal of service through fellowship. Attending our meetings allows members to enjoy the fellowship of other club members, enrich their professional and personal knowledge, and meet other business leaders in their community.
As a Club we support a wide range of projects. As well as having a broad range of local and international community projects, we are particularly focused on the Rotary projects, Australian Rotary Health, Rotary Australia World Community Service (RAWCS) and Rotary Oceania Medical Aid for Children (ROMAC) together with The Rotary Foundation.
We welcome everyone to come along to any of our meetings to join in the fellowship and to learn more about what we do.
This will be our first meeting of the new Rotary year.
We will not have a guest speaker, but new President Simon will use the opportunity to talk about his vision for the Club over the coming year.
Visitors very welcome.
Our last meeting
Our last meeting was the Annual Changeover, with the Christine handing over the baton to incoming President Simon.
Member Aunty Barb gave a very special "Welcome to Country" to the many visitors, including Past District Governors Tonia Barnes and Jeremy Wright AM.
Christine's presented her report on her last four years as President of our Club, with two years as President of the former Botany Rotary Club before that. Her full report is presented in the News section under.
Two community members were also recognised for their service to Rotary, with the award of Paul Harris Fellow:
Dr Michael Plaister, a senior Paediatrician at the Sydney Children's Hospital for his support for children treated at the hospital under the ROMAC program.
Grant Olufson, Director of AWS Signs, for his support of our Airport fundraising activities
Two members, Philip Paraggio and Mark Swain, both made considerable personal contributions to the Rotary Foundation and received Sapphire pins to the original PHFs.
Full details of the background to these awards are in the News section under.
Following the induction of President Simon, he presented an outline of his vision for the year ahead.
The meeting then adjourned to the Graphic Arts Club Dining Room downstairs for a very convivial dinner.
Proudly Partnered with Sydney Airports Corporation
2nd and 4th Wednesdays of the month at the Graphic Arts Club,
182 Coward Street,
Mascot.
6pm for pre-meeting drinks and chat. The meeting, with dinner, starts at 6:30pm and normally concludes by 8:30pm.
Before I start I’d like to acknowledge three past Rotarians who were members of this club. Alan Segal, who was sometimes controversial, but what lawyer isn’t? Andrew Daniels, Mark's dad, who by the time I joined was unable to make regular meetings due to his health, but was a great contributor and generous of his time to Rotary and Ray Atiken, who joined our club with the numerous ex Kings Cross members. All three were great Rotarians and are surely missed.
We all meet here today thanks to Alan, he had left it to me to decide - either continuing the Botany club or closing it? With my background in the not-for profit sector, I thought and felt “it was a moral injustice to close a “charity/club” that has a great ability raise funds for good causes. How many organisations are so lucky? It was wrong to close something that can do a lot of good and help many. So I said let’s keep going and try.
That lead to the merger of two clubs, Rotary Club of Botany and the Rotary Club of Randwick. Each brought a uniqueness. With the great expertise, commitment and the hard work of our treasurer Richard, and our Secretary Greg, who have helped me put in the groundwork, with the strong foundations and they have greatly contributed to the success of our merged club.
I have been president since 2019, as the outgoing president of Botany and the incoming president of Botany Randwick – that’s over 5 years, my achievements have been many. However, I don’t see it as an individual personal success because it has been a team effort that has made our club a great success.
The Paul Harris Fellow is named for Paul Harris, who founded Rotary with three business associates in Chicago in 1905. Paul Harris Fellow recognition was established in his honour to express appreciation to those who support the humanitarian and educational programs of the Rotary Foundation. Those programs include an array of projects that save and invigorate the lives of people around the world and enhance international friendship and understanding.
Rotarians often designate a Paul Harris Fellow as a tribute to a person whose life demonstrates a shared purpose with the objectives of The Rotary Foundation, and to build world understanding and peace.
Dr Michael Plaister and Grant Olufson were both recognised for their support of our Club and Rotary - see details under. It is because of gifts like the one made in their honour by this Club that The Rotary Foundation can carry out an array of programs that achieve beneficial changes in our world; improved living conditions, increased food production, better education, wider availability of treatment and rehabilitation for the sick and disabled, new channels for the flow of international understanding, and bright hopes for peace.
Members of our Club, Mark Swain and Phillip Paraggio, received Paul Harris Sapphire Pins to recognise their substantial personal contributions to The Rotary Foundation of Rotary International.
Win a great holiday in Fiji and support the local and international projects of the Rotary Club of Botany Randwick.
5 night’s accommodation in a Beachfront Hotel Room
Full buffet breakfast daily
Return Malolo Cat transfers
Complimentary use of non-motorised water sports equipment
2 kids under 12 stay and eat free
1 night in a Deluxe Room at Fiji Gateway Hotel, across from Nadi Airport
Plus AUD1000 cash toward travel or spend as you wish. The prize is valid for 18 months. The prize is transferable to friends - your receipt will have a gift certificate to share.
Rotary International President for 2024-25 Stephanie Urchick announced that the 2024-25 presidential theme is The Magic of Rotary and called on members to recognize and amplify the organization’s power to save lives.
“Don’t misunderstand me – we are not going to end polio or bring peace to the world by waving a wand and saying some funny words,” Urchick told incoming district governors at the Rotary International Assembly on 8 January. “It’s up to you. You create the magic with every project completed, every dollar donated, and every new member.”
Urchick, a member of the Rotary Club of McMurray, Pennsylvania, USA, said she saw the magic of Rotary on display when she was helping install water filters in the Dominican Republic. Two boys were watching as dirty water entered the filter, then ran out clean at the other end.
“One of the boys grabbed my sleeve and said, ‘Show me the magic again,’” she said. “Obviously, the water filter wasn’t magic. We worked hard to transport those filters, install them, and work with community leaders in the area to maintain them. But those boys knew that easy access to clean water would change their lives. Knowing that I played a small part in that certainly changed my life.”
The Four Way Test
The Four-Way Test is a non-partisan, non-sectarian ethical guide for Rotarians to use for their personal and professional relationships.
Of the things we think, say or do:
Is it the TRUTH?
Is it FAIR to all concerned?
Will it build GOODWILL and BETTER FRIENDSHIPS?
Will it be BENEFICIAL to all concerned?
To contact the Club, please email info@botanyrandwickrotary.org.au
Our last meeting was the Annual Changeover, with the Christine handing over the baton to incoming President Simon.
Two community members were also recognised for their service to Rotary, with the award of Paul Harris Fellow:
We all meet here today thanks to Alan, he had left it to me to decide - either continuing the Botany club or closing it? With my background in the not-for profit sector, I thought and felt “it was a moral injustice to close a “charity/club” that has a great ability raise funds for good causes. How many organisations are so lucky? It was wrong to close something that can do a lot of good and help many. So I said let’s keep going and try.