Presidents Notes

President Usha's Notes

3 March 2021

Dear fellows,

Act as if what you do makes a difference. It does.

William James, (1842-1910) "Father of American Psychology"

Yes, we understand the value of these words well and always aim to make a difference with what we do. Let us talk about Polio today.

The Rotary Award of Honour

This year, on 25th February, Rotary presented the United Nations and its agencies, the WHO and UNICEF, with its highest recognition: The Rotary Award of Honour. The Rotary Award was established in 1990 to be given to the heads of State and other dignitaries who have made a significant contribution to the international understanding and goodwill.

Receiving the award on behalf of the WHO, Director-General Dr. Tedros tweeted, "Very humbled to receive the Rotary Award of Honour. The world is on the cusp of an historic victory over polio due to the remarkable perseverance of Rotary & other partners, along with communities. Together we will travel the last mile to End Polio". And RI tweeted in reply "Thank you to @DrTedros for accepting the Rotary Award of Honour on behalf of WHO! Our partnership will continue to help to fight polio and support Mothers� and Children�s health worldwide"

Lessons learned from Polio programs are now assisting efforts to control COVID19 worldwide. An informative article (click) debunking myths related to vaccines by Rotarian Dr.Pavithra makes good reading.

D9675 Conference

D9675 Conference is coming up on 19-21st March at Sydney Masonic Conference and Function Centre, 66 Goulburn St Sydney. Booking details are on the District website. There is an urgent call for Volunteers at the Conference. If interested, you can register as a volunteer (for $75) for one or more shifts. Volunteers are needed to meet Covid19 requirements, to ensure that social distancing is maintained. For questions, please contact Cathy Mason on 0413 447 184.

District AGM

District AGM was held on Friday, 26th February followed by the Presidents meeting. PDG Di North presented her detailed report, a copy of which will be available to members. Also DG Warwick and DG-e Jeremy presented informative talks on the current and the coming year. Nominations for the District Governor Nominating Sub Committee were confirmed as follows: Region 1 - Oscar Jones RC Iron Cove; Region 2 - John Hislop RC Holroyd; and Region 3 - Julie Collareda RC Dapto.

Events coming up

MUNA is back in 2021 and will be held at Parliament House with reduced numbers due to COVID-19.
RYPEN also returns and will be held on 7-9 May.
Police Officer of the Year will return on the 5th of November 2021.
Graffiti Removal action comes up on 28th March. As it happens every year, PP Peter Smith will be co-ordinating the event with many Interactors expected to participate.
Director Jan Barrett is planning for Anzac Day Service on Sunday, 25th April accompanied by a delightful breakfast, a rare morning meeting for us.
Strathfield Youth Awards have been scheduled tentatively for the evening of 7th May at Strathfield Town Hall. More details will be available soon.
Our grand 50th Anniversary Dinner and Celebration date is now confirmed for 29th May this year. A great day for our Rotarians to catch up with the members they have not heard from for some time. In keeping with this theme, Strathfield Council has now permitted us to put our 50th Anniversary outdoor banners at strategic locations in Strathfield. However, we need more sponsors to complete the banners. Thanks to Rtn Roy Ellis for offering to be the first sponsor.
International Women's Day celebration

International Women's Day celebration is coming up on Wednesday 10th March and preparations are in full swing. We are privileged to have Ms. Lisa Moloney, Principal of MLC Burwood as our keynote speaker for the evening. We will also have an opportunity to hear from our Political leaders and Rotary District leaders. I hope by the time this bulletin reaches you, you have made the bookings. Seats are disappearing fast and for those who have not booked, registrations can be made using the Humanitix link on the flyer available on our webpage.

Thank-you

Thanks from all of us to President-elect Thaya Ponniah for the beautiful surprise Rotary's 116th Birthday Cake. Fancy singing a birthday song for Rotary, yes we did it!
A special thanks to our Program Manager, Rotarian Janelle Watson for continuously presenting a broad range of guest speakers on meaningful topics, by no means an easy feat. Club members are enjoying the talks and the feedback is very appreciative.

Last week we had the privilege of hearing from George SIOPIS, Founder & CEO, Nutigenius on the "The importance of physical activity and overall fitness to reduce the risk of adverse Covid-19 outcomes".

This week, we will have a chance to catch-up with our own Rotarian Ed Dunlop who has been very busy with his studies and career and has missed out on the meetings for a long time.

Look forward to our meeting.

Usha Garg
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