Guest Speaker: Ben Rimmer
Ben is a former CEO of Melbourne City Council, and has worked in both State and Federal Government and Public Service. He is married to Past President Marj Hamilton’s daughter and is a Rhode Scholar. Ben talked about some of the things that happen behind the scenes in Canberra at a time like this, when there has been an election. He talked about some of the duties of a principle policy advisor, and of the management and administration. They need to advise on issues of public service that will be good for the current government and for the next government. He talked about election time, and the inner workings of what goes on behind the scenes, and the support networks behind them.
Guest Speaker: Gordon Davis Greening Australia
Gordon is a famer at Glenburn who trained at Melbourne Uni as a Forrester, and has worked in a variety of roles and is now chair at Green-ing Australia. He spoke about Reef Aid, and talked about Global Warming and how it af-fects the ecological balance of the reef. Given that we cant change global temperatures, Greening Australia have been restoring 3000 Hectares of river and wetlands to improve wa-ter quality. Wetlands act as a filter. Greening Australia have been repairing at upper levels, reducing sediment, erosion and nutrient loads. The organisation has sought to engage with indigenous groups and worked in collaboration with the CSIRO and universities to reform and protect the landscape. They have needed to rely on supporters other than government and work with com-panies that wish to offset their carbon footprints.Guest Speaker: Grace McDonald. Year 11 student from Yea High School.
Grace had the opportunity to attend Rotary in Adventures Citizenship program, Grace spent a week in Canberra with a family that hosted her. She thanked Rotary for the opportunity that enabled her to make new friends, gain knowledge and create valued memories. Some of the experiences she reflected upon were her visits to the War Memorial, the Budget Speech, tours of the new and old parliament, bush-dancing and the budget reply, (which she particularly enjoyed). She became intrigued in politics and shared this fun fact: The flag at Parliament House is the size of a double decker bus.The fourth Cycle Dindi was a success and again showcased the scenic Great Victorian Rail Trail, through the Shires of Murrindindi and Mansfield.
Organised by the Rotary Clubs of Yea and Alexandra, and this year joined by the Rotary Club of Mansfield, almost 80 riders, many from Melbourne cycled all or part of the way, with most riders starting out from Yea. The morning was perfect, and riders enjoyed the flexible starting times. It was great to see some Yea scouts with their Leader Andrew Fulford take part this year. Lunch was beside the Goulburn River at Cremona and the historic John Monash designed bridge and riders enjoyed this beautiful location and the chance to relax, enjoy some food, coffee (by mobile Café Amore) and be entertained by well-known local Julian Laucius.Guest Speaker: Jeffrey Swain
Jeffrey is well know to club members and this time spoke about the theme of ‘Home Coming’. Jeff is president of the Yea/Kinglake sub branch of the RSL and was a regular soldier in 1968, did a tour of Vietnam and in 1971 did Officer training at Portsea. He worked for the Australian Defence Department at Puckapunyal for a long time. It had been a long day for Jeff, having attended the dawn service at Kinglake, where speaker Paul Bannon gave an interesting address about the importance of connections, mateship and friendships. Jeff covered a range of topics, talking about the formation of the Yea RSL, the Soldier Settlement Scheme, the formation of National Identity after the landing at Gallipoli, and some of his own person experience as being part of regular Army. He also spoke of homecoming, and how it was not always joyful; not all marriages survived and how times were tough for those who did return.Finally Jeff talked of the role of the RSL and how it has grown in the past 100 years and is now, as then, so important for the veterans and their families. He made the comment that soldiers are much more effective if their families are supported.
Pride of Workmanship
Paul Kellett spoke of the Pride of Workmanship Award, used to promote vocational service, recognise those people who have a high work ethic and allow Rotary to be involved in the business community. The theme of PoW is "do it once, do it well and build a better Australia."Paul then called on Sue Carpenter to introduce Award recipient Darren Hall. Sue spoke highly of Darren’s work ethic and said in the 10 years they have worked together, he has always given 110%. Sue’s words were "he is the best hedge trimmer you will ever see" and was very proud that he was being acknowledged with a Rotary Pride of Workmanship Award.
Sue Carpenter and Darren Hall
Guest Speaker: Sandra Hanley, RFE visit to Sri Lanka
S
andra spoke about her recent two week trip to Sri Lanka (late Jan, early Feb) with the District 9790 team, who were from Albury, Benalla and Coburg clubs, with Sally Sykes as the team leader. With lots of photos, Sandra described her two week visit. It is a beautiful island, lots of wildlife and the team were well looked after. Visited tea plantations, an elephant sanctuary and lots of beautiful places.
andra spoke about her recent two week trip to Sri Lanka (late Jan, early Feb) with the District 9790 team, who were from Albury, Benalla and Coburg clubs, with Sally Sykes as the team leader. With lots of photos, Sandra described her two week visit. It is a beautiful island, lots of wildlife and the team were well looked after. Visited tea plantations, an elephant sanctuary and lots of beautiful places. Sandra was thanked by Rotarian Ann for her insights into Sri Lanka.
Sandra and the RFE Team in Sri Lanka
