Welcome everyone to the 6th edition of “STAYING CONNECTED”.
A lot has continued to happen in the last two weeks.
With the easing of restrictions, we are seeing cafes and restaurants now open, schools back for all children, Rotary Op Shops and Rotary Farmers Markets starting to open as well. Rotary Clubs are having conversations with their members to determine how they will meet once all restrictions have been lifted.
We need to remember that everyone has been impacted by the COVID 19 restrictions differently. Most importantly people’s health and safety, both physical and mental, is paramount and we need to always adhere to the Victorian Government regulations when determining what our decisions will be based on.
Even though restrictions have eased, social/physical distancing and all the sanitising and hand washing precautions remain. Victoria is still seeing cases of COVID-19 so we cannot get too complacent as we start to resume various activities.
District Assembly
A big shout out to everyone that made the District Assembly possible. I hope that everyone found it a rewarding experience. Congratulations to Alma and Tony in conducting the first on-line District 9810 Assembly. All the details are available at:
You should all have received an invite to this years District Changeover. If you have yet to register your intent to attend, there is still time to do so. DGE Alma and I are looking forward to seeing you all for what will be a celebration of the “year that was” and an introduction to the “year ahead”.
Your Rotary | Shaping the next 100 years of Rotary
This is a unique opportunity for all Rotarians across Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific Islands to have a say in regards to how Rotary in our region will look for the next 100 years.
The link below will take you to directly to the site where you can leave your comments to questions which will form the basis of discussions for the Working Groups who are working in five key areas of Governance, Communications and Technology, Culture and membership, Public Image and Leadership and Development.
Thank you to all the clubs who have submitted applications. It was great to read all the amazing work which has been done during the year. Even though most Rotary activities shut down from March, the amount achieved by Rotarians in D9810 has been outstanding, and you all should be congratulated.
RI Citation
Those clubs who have yet to update their Goals and Achievements on the Goal Centre in My Rotary, still have time to do so. Thank you to those clubs who have updated their goals and achievements. As a District we do an amazing amount of good works and it is great that we can showcase it to RI how wonderful a District we are.
Registrations Open for Rotary International's Free Virtual Event
“Now More than Ever, Rotary Connects the World: The 2020 Rotary Virtual Convention"
When: 20-26 June 2020. On Sat 20 and Sun 21 June, there will be a general session of about 60 min each starting at, 8:00am Chicago time.
Mon 22 – Fri 26 June 2020. There will be 15 breakout sessions, each of them will be 1 hour in duration, with 3 on each day commencing at 8:00am, 12:00pm and 6:00pm Chicago time.
Join in every Tuesday in June for a casual chat and catch up with a wide-ranging discussion about Rotary in our District and beyond.
No need to RSVP, no need to send apologies - be part of it if you want to and can. See you there.
Topic: Morning Tea with the DGE
Time: Jun 9, 2020 10:30 AM Canberra, Melbourne, Sydney
Every week on Tue, until Jun 30, 2020, 4 occurrence(s)
Jun 9, 2020 10:30 AM
Jun 16, 2020 10:30 AM
Jun 23, 2020 10:30 AM
Jun 30, 2020 10:30 AM
Registrations are now open for the District 9810 - Zoom Changeover
DG Shia and DGE Alma invite you all to attend the District Zoom Changeover on Saturday 20th June 2020 which will mark the start of the new Rotary year.
They are both looking forward to seeing as many Rotarians, Rotaractors and friends of Rotary there on the night, for this very different but still very fun changeover celebration night.
There will be two parts to the Changeover evening - both parts will be virtual events on Zoom.
Firstly, the formal changeover of District Governor from Shia Smart to Alma Reynolds. This will start at 7:00 pm.
Then, for a bit of fun, from 8:00 pm each member will join a second meeting of clubs in their cluster, to be chaired by an Assistant District Governor. Both (now) PDG Shia and (DG) Alma will join each meeting in turn to allow them to chat to members.
It is important that everyone register as soon as possible for these events, so we know how many will be tuning in. There is no charge and you can participate from the comfort of your home. Enrolments will close at 5:00 pm Friday June 19.
This year’s District Training Assembly was replaced by a “virtual” Assembly, with workshops delivered online. Members were encouraged to undertake pre-work - undertaking courses on Rotary International’s Learning Centre. Recordings of most of the workshops can be viewed via the links below, however we do encourage you to view them in conjunction with the relevantRI Learning Centre modules (details on the page). Having completed the Assembly, we further encourage you to visit the Learning Centre periodically and build a personal learning plan, to address those areas of Rotary, you’d like to learn more about.
Indigenous support and Endtrachoma2020 Video event
An informative and thought provoking feature length documentary : "Homeland Story" covers the struggles of the Donydji people of Arhnem land over 50 years .
This professional production was in part funded by Melbourne Rotary Club , and also documents their long term support of Donydji and Vietnam veterans grappling with the black dog.
From the $10, half goes to the Dondji people and half to Rotary's Endtrachoma2020 project. The video goes for about 90 minutes and there is time for some Q & A at the end.
Southern Region Fundraising for The Vanuatu Malaria Elimination Program
Rotarians Against Malaria (RAM) is a network established in Australia in the mid-1990s. RAM continues its work in developing countries, working with governments to eliminate malaria.
*Worldwide:
In 2018, 228 million cases occurred world wide
In 2018, Malaria caused 405,000 deaths (67% of deaths are children under 5 years)
Pregnant women and children are most vulnerable to malaria
*Statistics taken from the current WHO World Malaria Report 2019
In Vanuatu incidence of malaria in some areas is increasing and gains in other areas are fragile. Action must continue to reduce and prevent the re-establishment of transmission.
Rotarians Against Malaria (RAM) in Southern Region, Australia, is raising funds to support “End Malaria in Vanuatu - for Good” program.
Purchase and distribution of Long-Lasting Insecticidal Nets (LLIN)
Indoor Residual Spraying (IRS)
Surveillance-tracking the disease and taking appropriate action.
HOW is Rotarians Against Malaria (RAM) supporting the Vanuatu Malaria Program?
A Two-District (9810 & 9820) Rotary Australia World Community Service (RAWCS) Overseas Aid Fund (RAOAF) Registered Project has been set up where all contributions to the Vanuatu Project will be deposited. (RAWCS Project 104-2019-20)
Along with New Zealand RAM D9910, RAM D9810 & 9820 will later this year apply for a Rotary Global Grant for approximately $400,000 for implementation of the “End Malaria in Vanuatu - for Good” program, over a 3-year time frame.
HOW can you and/or your club support the Vanuatu Malaria Program?
RAM asks Rotarian clubs and individuals to consider contributing to our RAWCS Fundraising Project to “End Malaria in Vanuatu - for Good” program. Your investment will help save lives.
When social distancing rules took effect in our area, we shifted to virtual meetings without missing a single meeting. We knew we needed to keep club members engaged and happy in these uncertain times. So even though some of our planned events could not proceed, we knew one event was just too important to let go.
Taking the art show online
The Rotary Club of Bayswater has run the Knox Art Show for the past 45 years. This year, the event was run as a collaboration between the Rotary clubs of Rowville-Lysterfield and Bayswater. The show normally has two components; a physical art gallery and an opportunity to view art online through www.Gallery247.com.au. When it became clear that we could not move forward with our physical exhibition, our combined boards met and discovered that Gallery 247 is well equipped and capable of running the art show 100% online.
We had already received all the artwork in a digital format from our artists. Our judge was willing to do his judging online. We discussed the idea with our sponsors and artists, and they were delighted that the show was still proceeding.
To promote the change, we:
Produced stickers advertising the Virtual Art Show and placed them on the physical signs that were around town
Created new posters
Updated our website
Extended the duration of the show to two weeks (instead of two days)
Sent out newsletters to artists, sponsors, art lovers, family and friends
It was not difficult to set up. Gallery 247 offered both technical and implementation support, and one of our Rotarians was able to set up the virtual gallery without any programming skills.
In this, our 46th year of holding the Knox Art show, we had over 300 artists participate. We had more than 5,100 visitors to the online gallery, five times as many visitors as we typically get during the previous five years. People were able to purchase both paintings and photos of the artwork online.
We learned a lot in a limited amount of time and are keen to have both a virtual and in-person art show next year.
Virtual ANZAC service
We recently conducted a virtual ANZAC service (25 April) to honour and to pay tribute to all those who have served our nation in times of war, conflicts and peacekeeping operations. We had 95 people register, and the service was even put on a big screen in a retirement village. It was well received. We are now keen to conduct this service every year and make it available to wider groups including other retirement villages.
While new situations like the COVID-19 pandemic pose challenges, they also offer opportunities. And as Rotarians, we need to be ready to seize these. Some of the opportunities we found through having an online format were:
Being able to easily invite Rotarians from other clubs, regardless of physical distance.
Inviting speakers from anywhere in the world, raising the bar on our speaker presentations.
Engaging vulnerable communities and sections of our society who may be feeling isolated and unable to connect in-person through their usual support networks.
During these challenging times, I encourage all Rotary clubs to meet online, support members through ongoing fellowship, and look for the new opportunities that are emerging.
We’ve discovered the motto “When life throws lemons at you, make lemonade,” I hope you do too.
By Rajeev Wadhwa, President, Rotary Club of Rowville-Lysterfield
Broadcast from studios at the Box Hill Town Hall, The Rotary & Community Service Radio Show helps promote Rotary by showcasing inspirational and uplifting Rotary and community stories.
Be inspired by those who have made a difference, those triumphing over adversity, and those creating new horizons.
The show features superb music and is broadcast live every Friday night between 6pm and 8pm from the studios of 94.1FM 3WBC.
The program can be heard on the airwaves, via the TuneIn app, or streamed from the 3WBC website www.3wbc.org.au. Podcasts can be also be found at www.canterburyrotary.org and via iTunes podcasts - search for "Doing good in Victoria".
Regular Broadcasters include our own PDG Russell Gurney, and a team of D9800 Rotarians consisting Ian Salek, Jonathan Sheppard, Suzi Cole and many others.
Rotarians, and community partners, interested in promoting their Club activities, sharing their inspirational stories, or even becoming involved in community radio, can contact Russell on 0407 212 406 or rjgurney9810@gmail.com.
“Rotary in Action” (RiA) can be heard on north-eastern community radio station 96.5 InnerFM and goes to air live every Tuesday afternoon between 3 o’clock and 4 o’clock.
RiA has been broadcast every week of the year since July 4, 1995, and has amassed over 1250 programs. The “Rotary in Action” broadcast team claims their program is “the world’s longest running weekly hour-long radio program totally dedicated to Rotary news and information!” This statement has the approval of the Rotary International Media Department.
RiA is a truly multi-District endeavour with Rotarians from D9810, D9800 and D9790 continuing the long standing tradition, with the continuing support of 96.5 InnerFM. The presenters from our District are Brian Tyedin, Russell Gurney and Greg King.
“Rotary in Action” is a vibrant, magazine style format, aimed specifically at the general listening audience, with studio guests and Rotary community announcements, mixed in with some great music. Listeners enjoy the interaction between presenter and guest (effectively the program’s co-host) as they share the wonderful story of Rotary, via the FM radio band, on the internet and via social media and smartphone.
The website reference is www.innerfm.org.au and click on “listen live” or you can download the “TuneIn” app on your smartphone (just ensure you select the correct 96.5 InnerFM – we’re in Heidelberg). A Facebook page and a Twitter feed are planned to be in operation in the next few months.
Expressions of interest in becoming a guest on the show, or providing announcements to share with listeners, can be directed to Greg King on mobile 0416 045 157 or via email on gregking.rotary@gmail.com
Using the platform of its Community Connections program on Wednesday at 12 noon, 99.1 Yarra Valley FM provides three Rotary clubs in the region an opportunity to discuss their projects, fundraisers and other items of interest.
Host, Alan Collier, is a Rotarian himself and is adept at ensuring the guest Rotarians cover all the aspects of each topic and show Rotary to its best advantage.
A range of D99810 Rotarians appear on the show from the Rotary Clubs of Lilydale, Healesville and Wandin.
Rotarians talks about local clubs' current projects and those coming up in the near future. The show also gives clubs the opportunity to promote their fundraisers and promote the advantages of joining Rotary to potential members.
It has become clear during the COVID-19 pandemic that looking after our health – particularly our mental health – is more important than ever.
With social distancing rules in place, many of our supporters across Australia who would normally raise thousands of dollars towards mental health research, have been forced to postpone and cancel their fundraising events.
We can see that this virus is affecting our mental health tremendously. Therefore, continuing to support mental health research to learn how to best support our communities when unexpected events like these occur, is crucial.
We ask that you please consider donating to mental health research today to help Australian Rotary Health #Liftthelidonmentalillness in these uncertain times and ultimately improve the health and wellbeing of all Australians.
We have set a target to raise $200,000. Any dollars towards this will be greatly appreciated.
Please share this link with your family, friends and social networks.
