I was pondering the ‘Service Above Self’ which is provided by Rotarians. People who turn up week after week to work, providing personpower, goods, knowledge, and ideas. People who see a need and work out a way (a project) to meet that need.
It is mind boggling to consider the magnitude of this service when we have members who have been Rotarians for nearly forty years! Congratulations to Bill Granger and John McCaskill who have just clocked up 30 years membership of Canterbury Rotary!
While we have great combined experience and skills, the newer members are bringing vibrancy, new ideas and perspectives with them and are helping to invigorate our club.
Don’t forget to collect items from the ‘Pantry List’(our newest project) and bring them to the 1 September meeting so they can be delivered to the pantry at Surrey Hills Neighbourhood Centre.
I look forward to seeing you next week at the Lido cinema for our combined social night with Kew Rotary.
Being part of a sports team is all about winning, losing and teamwork, but for some youth, being part of a sports team is not an option.
Low income welfare dependent families need a lot of help. These connections are established in local team sports. Volunteers and staff through the Team Sports for All program support these students and it is applied in the quietest way possible. It is all about physical health, mental health and self-esteem. Becoming part of a sports team often leads to improved school attendance.
The story began in an oval in Bluff Road, when some people financially supported students from across the way in public housing opposite that oval, to participate in sports teams. Jo Kwok, a member of the Rotary Club of Brighton, obtained a grant for the Bayside area. The story of Julietta, who has used the leverage of Team Sports 4 All, gained confidence and resilience through her participation in volleyball. She is now undertaking a sports science degree at Victoria University and is paying it forward by coaching local community teams.
Volunteers alone cannot solve all family problems. It is a big job to stay connected with the sports clubs. Mike's ultimate goal is to continue scaling upwards, thus expanding the initiative on the national stage.
R4B's were very excited to receive an invitation to speak to the Mont Albert Probus Club about Rotarians for Bees and the current threat to our bee population due to the incursion of the Varroa destructor mite but also to the pesticides used to control it.
On Friday 8August, I spoke to a very engaged and well informed audience of almost 100 Probus members at the Box Hill Golf Club. We were fortunate to have with us Kris Fricke, the Senior Varroa Development Officer from the Department of Energy, Environment and Climate Action who provided an update on Varroa infestation, the risks, challenges and steps being taken to protect the Bee Industry. Unfortunately the pesticides, whilst necessary to control varroa in affected hives, when used improperly, pose significant risks to bees as well as other beneficial insects.
We very much appreciated the opportunity to share information on this serious and important subject but for a little levity, concluded the afternoon with a fun quiz to test the audience's knowledge of bees. This was embraced by all, the knowledge was excellent but there could only be one winner of 'The 3 BEES' jar of Pure Raw Yellow Box Honey.
We had a successful event at Camberwell Grammar School on Wednesday 20 August 2025.
The students from Camberwell Grammar School and the Presbyterian Ladies’ College packed 14,000 meals. These meals will be sent to Somaliland later this year.
Thanks to the team of Ant, Bianca, Lester, David, Kyle, Rachele, Kylie, Jules, Pat and Helen. Your contributions are always appreciated. Our pack up time was greatly reduced, thanks to the contribution and efforts of the Interact Club members.
Jill, Doug and Nora
Below is a photo of the results of recent packing events with pallets being loaded on a Food Bank truck with 100,000 FORaMEAL meals.
Surrey Hills Neighbourhood Centre (SHNC) run a pantry to supplement the needs of a small group of local folks struggling to afford enough food. The pantry includes fresh fruit, vegetables and bread which are picked up from Coles’ waste room by volunteers. These are supplemented with donated pantry staples such as rice, pasta, tuna and cooking oils. Clients are mainly single mums and pensioners. Food sources are Coles and donations from the Centre’s members.
The purpose of this new project is for Rotary Club of Canterbury (RCC) to supplement the supply of foodstuffs. members are asked to donate items at nominated meetings and these will be transported onto the SHNC.
The first collection will be at the Club meeting on Monday 1 September.
The type of products that would be useful include:
The Canterbury Rotary Club lunch usually meets bi-weekly at 12.30 for a meal and some fun.
David Zrna looks after the reservations for the lunch group. Please contact David at david.zrna@canterburyrotary.org or on 0467033092 to advise that you will be coming to a lunch.
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