Thanks to John Mc for chairing the meeting and for his quote. As readers know we match our quotes to the speaker on the night and this is particularly so with this quote from John
Rotary in Australia pledges to be part of the solution in the prevention of family violence to women, men, youth, children and elderly where
Australians live, learn, work and socialise.
Australians live, learn, work and socialise.
We promote Australians becoming "active" bystanders by Stopping Abuse
in Families Everywhere.”
First a note from the Pres
Warm welcome to our guests for the evening
Our speaker Marg Chipperfield
Her guests Chris and Larry
Tom Moreton
Kimmy Nugyen Thoi
Jenny Nguyen (Kimmy's mum)
Karin Simpson
and the following guests of John Mc
David Crow
Peter Berg
Ross McDonald
Dr Alan Cleary
Alison Cooper
Geoff Lambe
Leigh Thompson
Have you put up your Christmas tree yet? (ours is going up today - the Ed.)
We put ours up early when the entire family came for dinner last week. Things have changed in the last year in Jonathan and my family of three girls, all partnered, with a baby boy born, a wedding and an instant granddaughter,
Mia, who has just turned ten.
Mia, who has just turned ten.
We got out the tree, a very tall, multi-piece imitation spruce, then Mia and I began to assemble it, layer by layer, with me insisting as usual that each branch had to be opened out so the tree would look real. As more people arrived it became a hive of activity and
discussions about lights -before or after decorations (must be before) and tinsel-yes or no (Isay yes, kids say no) occurred. Then Kate, our eldest, asked loudly “ What is the colour scheme this year?” I paused then decided to let go of control, of ‘the way we always do it’
and let others decide. Mia looked at some of the decorations and the group quickly decided on an ‘under the sea theme’. Suddenly Santa and elf hats were being worn by all the adults and decorations flew onto the tree with occasional consultations about suitable colours. My
mum, 95 not out, held baby Logan so his mum could find and add her special decorations to the tree. Mia had a wonderful time discovering different shaped decorations and hearing where the unusual ones had come from. I looked around at my family, changing and
evolving to incorporate new members and was so pleased I had embraced the change instead of insisting everything had to stay the same. Seeing Mia’s happy face, and the new relationships strengthening, rather than being crushed by tradition, made seeing two baubles
the same colour right next to each other bearable! ( Ok, I moved them apart after everyone had gone home)
discussions about lights -before or after decorations (must be before) and tinsel-yes or no (Isay yes, kids say no) occurred. Then Kate, our eldest, asked loudly “ What is the colour scheme this year?” I paused then decided to let go of control, of ‘the way we always do it’
and let others decide. Mia looked at some of the decorations and the group quickly decided on an ‘under the sea theme’. Suddenly Santa and elf hats were being worn by all the adults and decorations flew onto the tree with occasional consultations about suitable colours. My
mum, 95 not out, held baby Logan so his mum could find and add her special decorations to the tree. Mia had a wonderful time discovering different shaped decorations and hearing where the unusual ones had come from. I looked around at my family, changing and
evolving to incorporate new members and was so pleased I had embraced the change instead of insisting everything had to stay the same. Seeing Mia’s happy face, and the new relationships strengthening, rather than being crushed by tradition, made seeing two baubles
the same colour right next to each other bearable! ( Ok, I moved them apart after everyone had gone home)
Our club is facing change, finding and then moving to a new venue some time next year. Let’s all embrace the change and the opportunities that may come with it. It was another packed meeting this week, with many people coming to hear Margaret
Chipperfield speak. Tom Moreton and Kimmy Nguyen Thoi also came again, with Kimmy bringing her mother Jenny. So far, they like what they see of Rotary.
Chris and Larry also came and told their stories, each different but with the same message- as long as the person truly wants to, with prolonged education, hard work, support and building on their individual skills it is possible for a perpetrator to change their thought
processes and their behaviour for the better.
Some further matters in the interest of Rotary
- FORaMEAL packing last week was two events at Carey Grammar and with one further event to come this Thursday. These have been very successful with over 21000 meals already packed.
- She thanked the Sunday market volunteers and those who have helped at Woolies with the collection of food for BCO
- Ross Merolli attended a ceremony at Camberwell last week where scholarships were awarded with funding provided by the Club.
- Next Monday 9 December will be a games night at the Canterbury Community Centre. NB NOT Bass Care
- The following week with be the Club’s Christmas gathering at Tesoro Gastronomia in Doncaster Rd Balwyn Nth. - Here is a link to make your booking https://events.humanitix.com/
canterbury-rc-christmas-party
Bring your party spirit
- perhaps this should be in Spotted then everyone can try and guess which members are shown in the photo!
What else is news
- The lunch group had their final lunch for the year on December 4th. Keep your eyes peeled for the roster for next year.
- a little more on the FORaMEAL packing events recently - note from Nora
We have had 2 successful events at the Yarra Yarra Boat shed on 21 & 28 November and another this Thursday 5 Dec.
21,000 meals were packed on both days.
On behalf of Doug and Val, thanks are extended to our team – Patrick Cunniffe, Gerry Cross, Pat Little, Marg Hamilton from RC Port Phillip, Lester Gerhard (Friend of Ant) and Tahlia and Liam (Melb Uni Rotaract Club) Ant, Alan, Rob, David, Jill, Kyle.
We just couldn’t do it without your ongoing support.
Next week we will have more information on the total packing number for the first half of the year - it has been a stellar effort