ROTARY BULLETIN  31 OCTOBER 2022

Next Meeting –   7th November 22

Next week’s meeting on the 7th of November, will be held at the Baptist Church Te Aute Road Havelock North. The usual time is 5:30 for a 6 pm start. Pure Catering will provide our dinner at this venue.

 Author Cristina Sanders will give a talk about writing history and the background to her most recent books Jerningham and Mrs Jewel and the wreck of the General Grant.  Jerningham is Cristina’s second book and tells a vivid account of Wellington’s colonial beginnings and the rise and fall of Edward Jerningham Wakefield. Mrs Jewel and the wreck of the General Grant has only recently been published and is a story of shipwreck, treasure, castaways and survival. The ship was bound for London laden with gold from the Australian goldfields when it was wrecked on the Auckland Islands. Cristina dramatizes what happened to the 15 survivors who lived as castaways for 18 months on a bleak and stormy sub-Antarctic Island.

Cristina Sanders is an award-winning historian and author living here in Havelock North. She has also been a regular crew member on the youth training ship Spirit of New Zealand for the past twenty years. 

Please make a special effort to attend and invite your partners, friends and potential members for what will be an interesting and memorable presentation.

POLIO PLUS. Our Foundation/International Director Peter Mayne played a video prepared for us by Michelle Turner, District Polio chair following World Polio Day 24th October. Salient points:-

-1979 Rotary involvement in the world elimination programme started.

-1984 Rotary partnership with WHO started.

-1985 Rotary launched the Polio Plus programme with USD120 million raised.

-by 1988 Rotary had raised USD247 million.

-Polio is a viral infection spread via faeces.

-Humans are the only host.

-First recognised 1400BC.

-95% of infected people have no symptoms.

-earlier infections were over 350,000 pa.

-now almost eradicated with only a recent outbreak of 19 cases in Pakistan.

-Current challenges:- resources

                                    – conflict and security

                                    – health systems

                                    – the global pandemic

                                    – mutations.

-gearing is such that every $1 that we donate results in $3 to the programme.

-eradication would result in savings of USD25 billion over 20 years.

BERNIE’S WAKA PADDLE. Guest speaker Bernie Gunn was an Outward Bound instructor from 2016-2019 and has been a passionate supporter ever since.

Bernie acknowledged Rotary as a frequent sponsor of Outward Bound, which was started in NZ in 1962. Although the outside physical exercises/challenges gain a high profile, Bernie explained that they’re just a means to the Outward Bound objective which is human development. The motto is “To serve, to strive and not to yield.”

He gave examples of just some of the multitude of benefits of the course, and in particular the Kaweka course, which has prompted him to fundraise.

The Kaweka course is for a “watch” of 14 16/17 year-olds, costing a total of $63,000 for the three-week course. Bernie is wanting to raise up to the value of a course by paddling a waka from Mahia to Napier in late summer/early autumn. He expects to be paddling for 14-16 hours.

Further details, including how to donate, are at

https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/bernie-gunn

In thanking Bernie, Peter Mayne announced that in addition to individual member donations, the club will be donating $500 towards Bernie’s challenge.

TRAILER RAFFLE. John Pollard thanked volunteers to date and advised that sales are just over 60% so far. He’ll send out a roster for the next few weeks.

EYECARE FOR AFRICA. Update

Niall has commenced his 3,000km fundraising walk from Cape Reinga to the Bluff following the Te Araroa Trail.

You can track his progress using the computer link below.  

Also included is the Give a little page link.

Currently, Niall is just south of Kaitaia and his Give a little page is standing at $5,960.

Tracker:  Device Position (mytrack.co.nz)

Give a little page:  Eye Care For Africa – Te Araroagivealittle.co.nz

CHRISTMAS BREAKUP FUNCTION. Pasquale Monachino advised that this is to be on 12th December with a 70s theme. Further details to follow.

NEXT WEEKS MEETING 7 NOVEMBER. See above.

And that’s it from me,

Cheers

Stephen

Bulletin Editor.