This Week - The First Business Meeting of the new Rotary Year

 It will be interesting to hear what our new president, Lauwrence Vosloo, has planned for the coming year.  As we don't really know as yet we'll have a cartoon.

As secretary I send out a provisional agenda to the president and president elect every week.  They then add what they wish to discuss, I amend it and send it out to members and invitees.

This week the draft will be pretty blank other than the obvious!

Last Week

After much discussion it was decided that we should go ahead with a golf day jointly with the Scottish Constitution of Free Masons in October.

It was also agreed that we continue with Burns Night in January, 2026. The Free Masons supported us this year and will no doubt increase their participation next year.

There was some discussion on projects but there was not enough time to discuss issues in depth.

Next Week

Advocate Andrew Campbell, District Commissioner for North Rand District of Scouts SA, will be our speaker.  As most of us live within his District it promises to be an interesting talk.

International - Taiwan

Millions of children around the world lack access to digital tools for learning. At the same time, millions of electronic devices end up as waste every year. But in southern Taiwan, a broken computer is no longer at the end of its life. Thanks to a Rotary-led project, it can become part of someone’s future.

The initiative, called Digital Waste to Digital Hope, addresses the dual challenges of e-waste and digital inequality. Guided by university mentors and teachers, students at Shoushan Middle School in Kaohsiung, Taiwan, disassemble, clean, repair, and reassemble used computers. The refurbished machines are then donated to elementary school students in rural areas, many of whom have never had a device in their homes.

“In Taiwan, like in many countries, electronics are being discarded at an alarming rate,” says Jackie Shih, a member of the Rotary Club of Kaohsiung, Taiwan. “This project tackles that waste while empowering our youth to take action through knowledge and service.”

The programme is funded by a Rotary Foundation global grant and sponsored by the Rotary Club of Pingtung Feng-Huang, 11 other Taiwanese clubs, a Korean club, and National Sun Yat-sen University in Sizihwan, Kaohsiung, Taiwan.

Hands-on learning is at the heart of the programme.

“I learned how to clean the CPU and install memory sticks,” said Kyuri Park, one of the student refurbishers. “I now understand that the Earth’s resources aren’t infinite. Every repair we do helps protect the planet, and it helps someone else.”

The project has fixed up and delivered more than 100 computers. For students like Jojo, who received a refurbished computer, the impact is tangible.

“I remember being nervous when we first brought it home,” she says. “It became the centre of our home. I use it to study and play games, my sister uses it for homework, and my parents use it to watch videos.”

The global grant funded two dedicated labs, the “Zero Waste Aesthetic Lab” and the “Clean Creation Workshop,” where the students work on the computers and learn about environmental issues. Rotary members have helped secure donations, transported equipment, mentored participants, and celebrated each delivery alongside the students. The project also engages community partners, including local businesses and government offices, which donate used equipment and provide ongoing support.

“Rotary members showed up at schools, at repair labs, and at community events,” Shih says. “We were teachers, mentors, and collaborators. We got our hands dirty. We helped bridge the digital divide with compassion and action.”

This Week - Quo Vadis Fundraising and Golf Day

 

It's an important meeting this week for two main reasons.  First of all we have to look at our existing ongoing charities that we support on a regular basis, simply because of the lack of government subsidies they have previously received and the affect on them and our continuing support.Gerald Fitzpatrick Home is a classic example.  We put in a high tech solar system to handle the Frail Care wing and also to ensure that that the laundry could cope when there was no electricity and that was with assistance from other Rotary Clubs   Now Frail Care is closing owing to the lack of subsidy and they are generally down scaling.

We have just put in an upgraded water supply system to Bethany Home.  What will be the affect of the loss of subsidy there?

Are we able, or should we, continue to supply vegetables on a monthly basis to organisations when our fundraising capabilities have declined?  Should we merely be concerned with once off projects?

These are the decisions  we are faced with as well as looking at our traditional fundraising methods such as the Golf Day and Burns Night.  Bill Brunjes will be giving us the latest news on this as well as leading the discussion.

Last Week

Peter Beart's talk on Bees and Beekeeping was fascinating and well illustrated.  The big surprise to me was how destructive honey badgers can be and how they totally destroy commercial hives, even smashing the wooden louvres quite apart from the loss of honey and grubs.  

For me the information that really stood out was that it takes the lives of 1 200 bees to produce one teaspoon of honey.  That means it cost the lives of 120 000 bees to fill the jar I have!

Saturday saw our breakfast at Grumpy's Cafe and there were roughly a dozen there.  It really was an extremely pleasant place to visit.  I am sure we will return.

Next Week

It's the first Business Meeting, preceded by the first Board Meeting of the new Rotary Year.

International - Canada

Drawn by national curling and youth baseball contests, crowds of athletes flock to the small town of Summerside on Prince Edward Island. Townspeople, however, aren’t content merely to be spectators. Each winter, local curlers contend in a tournament that’s been sponsored by the Rotary Club of Summerside for nearly 20 of the event’s 36 years. In March, 36 teams vied in a friendly meetup that raised about CA$40,000 for Strive, a programme that provides scholarships and Rotarian mentoring to high school students. “In curling, [a tournament] is a bonspiel,” explains Paul Power, a past president of the club. “We call ours a ‘funspiel.’” Participants, including about a dozen club members, “love their curling,” says Power. “It’s not competitive whatsoever,” unless you count the points awarded to the best-dressed Mardi Gras-themed team. “It’s basically all hands on deck” — and on the granite stones players slide across the ice once the games begin.

This Week - Peter Beart, Chairman of the Eastern Highveld Beekeepers Association

Peter Beart in action.

 In my early teens I kept bees but unfortunately became allergic to bee stings so had to give it up but I have retained my interest in it, so when Ron McCormick suggested Peter Beart speak to us on beekeeping I was pleased.  Especially because of the threat to honey bees existence through out the world and what can be done about it.

I am sure Peter will also talk about honey and the different types of honey as well as it's health giving properties.  It promises to be an interesting talk.

I thought it important to include this picture of a bee hive with thanks to Brigitte Bardot.

Don't forget the Social Breakfast on Saturday 21st June @ Grumpy's.

An appropriate name!

Last Week was a disaster.

I can at least blame our crumbling infrastructure on the lack of signal for both myself and our guest speaker as neither of us were able to access the meeting for any length of time.

I had been without electricity for a couple of days at least and in such circumstances I rely on my mobile modum for internet via Vodacom.  What I didn't realise, until Jim Rankin enlightened me, was that if the electricity has been off for a considerable time the batteries that power the Vodacom tower will have run out so that signal will no longer function and there was I blaming the modum.

I will find another date for the speaker.

Next Week

You will remember that some weeks ago we nearly got bogged down in a discussion on funding both the club and our historic beneficiaries.  It was decided that this particular Wednesday should be set aside for an initial discussion that would obviously include whether we should have a golf day and the ramifications of that.  Also should we continue to supply such things as groceries on a regular basis etc.

International - Rotary

Francesco Arezzo, a member of the Rotary Club of Ragusa, Italy, has been selected by the Board of Directors to become Rotary International’s president for 2025-26. Arezzo will become president on 1 July.

The Board conducted a special session following the unexpected resignation of RI President-elect Mário César Martins de Camargo on 8 June. Guided by the RI code and policies, the Board selected the new president-elect from a pool of candidates who were considered by the Nominating Committee for President of Rotary International in August 2023.

The 2025-26 presidential message, announced at the 2025 Rotary International Assembly in February, will remain Unite for Good, which calls on Rotary members to be a force for unity in a world increasingly divided by politics, geography, and ideology. Through service projects, Rotary brings together people of every background — across races, religions, and professions — in a shared mission to do good in their communities.

Arezzo is an orthodontist in private practice. He is active internationally as a member of the Italian, European, and American orthodontics associations. He is vice president of the National Association of Italian Dentists for the province of Ragusa and was the founder and head for seven years of the delegation for Ragusa of the National Trust for Italy. He is a Knight of Honour and Devotion in Obedience within the Sovereign Order of Malta.

A Rotary member for more than 30 years, Arezzo has served as vice chair of the Joint Strategic Planning Committee and as RI director, learning facilitator, and as district conference presidential representative.

Arezzo is a Benefactor of The Rotary Foundation. He is married to Anna Maria Criscione, an entrepreneur in the tourism field. They have two children.

This Week - Kimmel & Kumkani Clothing

 I met Kimmel selling his men's clothing at the market in Morningside Shopping Centre and I bought a jacket.  He told me about how he had started and found manufacturers for his clothing and it was a fascinating story which would interest us.

What is unusual  is the market he is selling into because many of his products would appeal to us.  The jacket I bought is a corduroy zip up casual jacket which is beautifully lined.  I am really looking forward to his talk.

Last Week

The Business Meeting was in many ways a look at what we must take into consideration for the next Rotary Year.  Are some of our ongoing NGO's that we support have to close down owing to the loss of government support?  They are obviously cutting down on the people they can either house or support.  Are we throwing money away?  Our ability to raise money is also shrinking.  These are some of the issues we have confront very soon.

Next Week

Peter Beart, Chairman of the Eastern Highveld Beekeepers Association  will be talking to us
about honey and also bees but not in bonnets.

International - Canada

Drawn by national curling and youth baseball contests, crowds of athletes flock to the small town of Summerside on Prince Edward Island. Townspeople, however, aren’t content merely to be spectators. Each winter, local curlers contend in a tournament that’s been sponsored by the Rotary Club of Summerside for nearly 20 of the event’s 36 years. In March, 36 teams vied in a friendly meetup that raised about CA$40,000 for Strive, a programme that provides scholarships and Rotarian mentoring to high school students. “In curling, [a tournament] is a bonspiel,” explains Paul Power, a past president of the club. “We call ours a ‘funspiel.’” Participants, including about a dozen club members, “love their curling,” says Power. “It’s not competitive whatsoever,” unless you count the points awarded to the best-dressed Mardi Gras-themed team. “It’s basically all hands on deck” — and on the granite stones players slide across the ice once the games begin.

This Week - Business Meeting

 The Board Meeting prior to the Business Meeting will include members of the new board so it's not such a serious affair as a regular Board Meeting and in many ways that will also apply to the Business Meeting as it's the end of the Rotary Year this month and we await our new President's plans in a month's time.

I think that deserves a cartoon.

Last Week

Nora Thiel of Delheim Estate primarily talked about their conservation initiatives over the years. It was a fascinating talk because the achievements are quite amazing.  She also said that she wanted to encourage birders to visit as one of the results of their fynbos initiative  has been the explosion of bird life
. She invited the club to visit the estate and I am sure many members will make a point of it.

Next Week

Kimmel will be talking about his business Kumkani Clothing and how he established it..  Not only does he produce beautifully made clothing items for men but they are also clothes that many of us would wear.

 

International - Australia

Athletes with disabilities can enjoy all the beamers, googlies, and dibbly-dobblies through the cricket-themed activities organised by Australian Rotarians and Dream Cricket Australia. “The programme’s core mission is to foster inclusion and promote physical activity” in a supportive environment, says Ankit Agarwal, a member of the Rotary Club of Adelaide and a board member of the cricket organisation. In November the club capped a series of athletics outings with its first Dream Cricket Gala. Agarwal was among club members who organised the day and mentored participants. The club supported the activity with a grant of more than $3,000 and recruited volunteers from high schools.

This Week - Nora Thiel

 Delheim Estate on the slopes of the Simonsberg have always been pioneers. "Spatz" Sperling really put the estate on the map by being first in so many ways.  He was the first person to really market the estate as well as its wines and the first to establish a restaurant where you could have lunch.  I remember vividly how exciting it was to go there long before I had any relationship with the wine industry.  It's hard to imagine how different the wine industry was in the 60's and 70's

The estate is now run by two of "Spatz" Sperlings children, Victor Sperling and Nora Thiel.  It was at least 15 or 16 years ago that Nora was telling me about the importance of conservation practices on Delheim and I admit I was a bit cynical.  How wrong I was because what she has achieved is remarkable.

Delheim is a founding member of the Greater Simonsberg Conservancy and is also a WWF Conservation Champion, recognised for their commitment to conservation and dedication to responsible production and farming practices. Delheim are also recipients of the Sustainable Wine Tourism Practices Award in 2008, the Nedbank Green Award and the Best of Wine Tourism Conservation Pioneer Award in 2024.

I hope she does talk a bit about the wine as well.

Last Week

Lynne Barrow spoke to us about her job as a resident social worker in a retirement environment.  Obviously she is very busy and it's quite stressful, particularly when she has established a close relationship with some people.  It was an interesting insight into that type of work and also into aspects of retirement villages from an insider, non-retiree, view.

Next Week

It's the last Board and Business Meeting of the Rotary Year.

International - Environmentally Sustainability Rotary Action Group in Oceania

The Environmentally Sustainability Rotary Action Group aims to empower members of the Rotary family worldwide to take actions to protect our environment for a sustainable future.

Wildlife conservation is not just the responsibility of scientists and activists – it is a shared duty that requires collective action from communities, businesses and individuals alike.

Across Australia and beyond, the Environmental Sustainability Rotary Action Group (ESRAG) is making significant strides in protecting wildlife and promoting environmental awareness. From migratory birds to marine ecosystems and urban biodiversity, their work highlights the urgent need for sustainable practices and public participation. Now, it is time for all of us to step up and contribute to the cause.

One of ESRAG’s key initiatives in 2024 was Wings Over the World, a campaign raising awareness about the plight of the Eastern Curlew.

This remarkable migratory bird embarks on an epic journey each year from the Arctic tundra to the Moreton Bay region, facing numerous threats along the way, including habitat loss and climate change.

The survival of the Eastern Curlew depends on the preservation of crucial wetlands and coastal areas, making it imperative for policymakers and citizens to support conservation efforts.

Another pressing issue addressed by ESRAG is the impact of plastic pollution on marine life.

During the annual turtle awareness event in Scarborough, Qld, the organisation shines a light on the devastating effects of plastic debris on sea turtles and other ocean inhabitants. Each year, countless marine animals suffer from ingestion and entanglement in plastic waste, a crisis that can only be alleviated through responsible waste management and stricter regulations on

Similarly, ESRAG has been at the forefront of Dugong Awareness Day, emphasising the importance of healthy coastal ecosystems. Dugongs, gentle marine mammals that rely on seagrass meadows for sustenance, are increasingly threatened by sedimentation caused by watershed pollution.

By raising awareness about land-use practices and advocating for the protection of catchments, ESRAG is working to safeguard the fragile habitats upon which these unique creatures depend.

Beyond advocacy, ESRAG actively participates in hands-on conservation efforts. One such project involves the collection and recycling of used oyster shells from local restaurants.

Every year, an estimated 12 tonnes of shells are repurposed through OzFish, an initiative that explores the role of oyster reefs in improving marine ecology. Oyster reefs act as natural water filters and provide critical habitats for various marine species, underscoring the need to restore these vital ecosystems.

Conservation is not limited to marine environments. ESRAG is also leading urban verge projects in Melbourne’s suburbs, restoring native plant species to align with regional ecosystems. Inspired by the documentary The Forest, these projects help reintegrate indigenous flora and fauna into urban landscapes, enhancing biodiversity and fostering a greater connection between city dwellers and nature.

Pollinators, particularly bees, are another crucial focus. Clubs throughout Oceania are actively supporting bee populations, recognising their vital role in maintaining ecosystems and food production.

By planting pollinator-friendly gardens and reducing pesticide use, individuals and communities can play an essential role in ensuring the survival of these indispensable creatures.

Wildlife protection is a cause that belongs to all of us. If you have a passion for environmental conservation and a project that aligns with Rotary’s seventh area of focus – environmental sustainability – consider reaching out to ESRAG.

The time to act is now. Our wildlife depends on it.

This Week - Lynne Barrow

 Owing to load shedding and Lynne Barrow having to cancel at the last minute she will be talking this week.  She has also made arrangements just in case load shedding raises its ugly head again.

Kumkani has been moved to the 11th June.

Last Week

It ended up being an entertaining meeting with members talking about various things that  they felt were worth sharing;  so much so that the general consensus was that we should do something like that again.

It's probably because we seldom have a purely social evening and when it is an open Zoom meeting we usually discuss projects and not much else.

And talking of Social Meetings, the breakfast at La Scala Cafe was well attended and a great success.

Next Week

Nora Thiel will be talking to us about Delheim and conservation as well as the Greater Simonsberg Conservancy.

International - South Sudan

More than 100,000 books shipped to South Sudan have been unloaded and are in the hands of students. The materials, received in 2024 by the Rotary Club of Juba, include legal, pharmaceutical, and other science textbooks, along with 11 computers loaded with an additional 33,000 textbooks. The shipment had a value of over $1.5 million. “The books are of great value to the students because not all of them could access online information owing to internet issues,” says Simon Yongo, a past president of the Juba club. The shipment was coordinated by Books for Africa, a Minnesota nonprofit supported in part by Rotarians. Charles Cogan, a member of the Rotary Club of Northfield, Minnesota, who led the project, says senior Rotary leaders helped the project coordinators connect with UNESCO and the humanitarian arm of the U.S. Defence Department. “The partnerships were the key here and turned a smaller project of one container into five containers with 100,000-plus books,” Cogan says. The project was supported by the Juba club as well as 14 clubs in Minnesota and Wisconsin and a District 5960 matching grant.