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The President's Pen

Dear Members
 
It is now Day 12 of our Alert Level 4 Covid-19 Isolation time. I truly hope you are all keeping safe in your Bubbles and finding positive ways to pass the time. Isn’t it amazing how our vocabulary has enriched (?) in such a short time with terminology like: isolation bubble, enforcement measures, physical distancing and ‘breaching the criteria’ becoming part of our everyday conversations?
 
It was heart-warming to have another great turnout for our online meeting last week. Thank you all for your perseverance, patience and humour while I learn the technical stuff. If you haven’t managed to join us online yet, please consider setting aside just one hour of your time to do so. If you are stuck on how to join in, just telephone another member to talk you through it. For our next meeting on Thursday morning, you will again need to check your Inbox for my email with a new link and password to Zoom online. Thanks to growing instances of ‘zoom bombing’ (unwanted intrusion by an individual into a video conference call, causing disruption) tighter security measures are now in place.
 
Patricia (World Vision) will join us again to finish up her presentation and answer any questions; and we also have our sponsored Outward Bounder (Tasma Fulford) keen to report back to us. 
 
Please don’t forget to share your Isolation stories and photographs with our Bulletin Editor  – ensuring we continue to publish the best Bulletin in the District.
 
Warm regards
Robyn
President – Rotary Club of St Johns
022 0200 171
Stories
Pooh knows what to do!!
Meeting in Review - Thursday April 2nd.
Last Thursday's Zoom meeting was well attended by 28 people including former members from USA (Wesley), Wellington (HM Ainie), Nelson/Marlborough (HM Alex McK, HM Mary Anne and HM Andy, in the background) plus our guest speaker, Patricia McKenzie. 
 
Patricia is an expat from the USA who works as the South Island Partnership Manager for World Vision. She joined Rotaract in 2012 and was President of her club in Raleigh North Carolina.  Her first significant exposure to Rotary was through her participation in the 2014 RYLA International Conference.  In 2015 she attended the Rotary International Convention in Brazil and at this time in her life she visited Haiti and volunteered in the Dominican Republic teaching English and she came to the realisation that all kids are the same no matter rich or poor - they have the same dreams and aspirations and it turned her life's goals away from the fashion industry, to one of service. 
 
Patricia is now a member of Rotary in Christchurch and she has contributed strongly to both the development of her club and Rotaract. Patricia is an Expatriate American, now living in Christchurch and she is the South Island World Vision Partnership Manager and, as they say, the rest is History.
 
We learned some new "Zoom" tricks.  As you can see in the picture, some members had worked out how to change their background to something more interesting such as a Rotary logo, Pacific beach scene and the golf course.  Maybe more of us try this next week just for the fun of it.

We also found out that the free Zoom is only for 40 minutes.  President Robyn will get a version for unlimited time for our next meeting.

  

Club Activities & Other Important Dates to Diary
Club activity and regular Thursday meetings are currently restricted or suspended due to the COVID-19 Virus and the associated lockdown. 
 
However, on Thursday April 9th, we will hold our third "Zoom Meeting" at 8.00 am.  Watch out for email invite from President Robyn which she will send out on Wednesday evening.
 
This week, Patricia (World Vision), who was regrettably cut short last week, will join us again to finish up her presentation and answer any questions.  We will also have Tasma Fulford, our sponsored Outward Bounder join the meeting.  Tasma is keen to thank us for our support and share with us some of the highlights of her recent experience.
Staying in Touch - Members Contributions to the Bulletin
Like Crosswords?
Miles receives a new Crossword every-day and he is happy to forward these on to any members who may be interested in receiving them.  If that's you, please contact Miles directly and he will add you to his e-mail address list.  Thanks for this offer Miles.
 
 
Looking for On-line Shopping options during Lockdown?  Please see attached website - thanks Toni:
A directory of 424 independent kiwi businesses delivering during the COVID-19 lockdown.
 
 
Lockdown with the Grandies!  (Story submitted by Aubrey)
“Tuesday before lock down – son in law Carl was rushed to hospital with Meckel's Diverticulum – google it – for emergency surgery that morning.
 
Subsequent panic to relocate daughter Gina and two grandkids to our place before lockdown Wednesday night.  No way she could cope at home with work and the kids and recuperating hubbie. Carl comes out of hospital Saturday only to be readmitted with complications on Monday.  Meanwhile Nana & Poppa are fully occupied with entertaining and coming up with creative ideas to keep the two little angels (read monsters here) occupied.  Our recently renovated pristine home is under attack!!  Feet and hand marks all over the walls, food scattered throughout and the back yard where our new deck and landscaping is taking place and a HAZARD ZONE EXTRAORDINAIRE, is their favourite playground.
 
Thank goodness for the Mt Wellington War Memorial Reserve out our back gate and the Panmure Estuary a mere 200m away.  Inspiration!! Seeing I’m on the Environment committee – what about a beach clean up?  The troops agree and off we go.  With a plethora of other projects accomplished we’re running out of steam.
Thursday 2 April – Carl comes home from hospital – thank the higher power!!
 
Only 3 more weeks to go!!!!!!!!”
 
 
Suggested Reading:  (Thanks Allan and Colin)
No doubt all members have already read the latest Distrct Newsletter.  However, in the unlikely event that you haven't yet, IPP Allan recommends this story;
 

It is time for good news- while we are needing more good stories the latest issue of Rotary Down Under magazine will be a welcome relief.

The emphasis of the magazine around innovation is also very timely as our club seeks new ways of doing things to keep our members engaged and to plan for future engagement with our community. Hopefully, this issue will encourage our club and our committees to continue the quest for a future done better.

The magazine is online at http://epubs.media/rotarydownunder/ezine/2020/626/ - please note that most of you get your magazine by mail but very few, if any, are receiving mail at present and may not for some time to come.

ONJA Update
The report from Sam below was received this past week.  In this update he covers off; the status of the latest Global Grant request, the current Coding Course, COVID-19 in Madagascar and the opportunity for members to become a "Writing Mentor" for one of the students.  Read on!
 
Global Grant

Thank you to the following key Rotarians, Districts and Clubs that have contributed to the crucial Rotary Global Grant that will fund operations for this year and push the project into the self-funding stage. 
  • Nick Curry and DG Ros Kelly from D9630 - $10,000.00
  • David Campbell and DG Peter Maxwell form D9930 - $10,000.00
  • President Robyn Ingram and members from The Rotary club of St Johns - $5,000.00
  • PDG Trish Boyle and DG Tania Lowery form D9980 - $5,000.00
  • PDG Jennie Herring and DG Gary Langford from D9920 - $5,000.00
  • DG Ronald Degenhart and Allan Church from D9550 - $1,000.00
  • DG Jacqui Molyneux and Catherine Bush from D1030 - $1,000.00
  • And our crucial central committee from the Rotary Club of St Johns; Simon Jones, Gary Key and Kevin Kevany. They are the team who have made this happen and who we would be very lost without.
We are just so grateful to you all for your support and backing. 

The application now sits with the Rotary Foundation for approval. It seems that the Covid-19 pandemic may increase the turnaround time however are hoping it wont be much longer now. 

Become a writing mentor!

I am very excited to announce a super cool way for you to connect with and assist students:

Students are looking forward to becoming qualified web developers and slipping into distributed teams. With future colleagues dotted around the globe students will call heavily on their verbal and written English skills. 

We are now looking for writing mentors to help students hone their literary abilities. 

As a writing mentor you can assist by:
  • Correcting one or two written passages each week, typically just a couple of paragraphs. Mitantsoa, our English coordinator, will guide you on how to do this.
  • It would be great if you could also act as a penpal, sharing stories / interacting with your mentee too. 
Note that you don't need to be a gifted writer yourself. So long as you have a native (or close) control of the English language, we would love to have your help. Ideally this will last until the end of this year.

Please contact Mitantsoa (mitantsoa@onja.org) if you would like to become a writing mentor or have any questions. 
 
Become a writing mentor for a student!
Coding Course

As always, students are learning at a rapid rate. Sitting in class now, it's almost unthinkable that just a few months ago many couldn't use a computer: to the untrained eye they already look like pros, zipping between windows of code, forums, and website designs. 

Students recently completed a project which involved building an instructional site to help others learn HTML. HTML is the backbone of the internet. It's nothing showy (hence the skeletal looking pages) but a strong understanding is key to becoming a web developer. Some example projects are linked below: 
The class has now moved on to CSS, which adds colour and design to web pages.

It's also very encouraging to see that students become more and more comfortable with English and are starting to speak very well. 

Covid-19

Any kind of communication would not be complete without a mention to this pandemic. As for so many, it is making things difficult for us but fortunately we can continue and believe this is the best option all around. 

We are fortunate to have such a committed team. Spare a thought appreciation for Loïc and Shaun, our talented coding lecturers, from New Zealand and Belguim, who chose to stay on amid the tough times. 

The pandemic is in it's early stages in Madagascar, however we expect that the nation faces some tough months ahead. 
 
Just a few meters from Onja ... I can think of worse places to be stuck!
 
A Holiday

In February I travelled to India to see a good friend of mine get married. It was the first time in years that I really felt free from my work (I love it but also great to get a break sometimes!). A big thanks to my friends for getting me there and providing such good company! 

Kindly, 
Sam
 
Lachlan in Chile - March Report
Emailed from Lachlan...
Buenas Tardes Rotary, espero ustedes esta bien y saludable!
 
This month has been a real rollercoaster, most significantly impacted by COVID-19 and the quarantine that we find ourselves in now. Although, despite this rather negative end to the month, March has been pretty great!
 
My month started while I was in Santiago for another band rehearsal.  I spent the night with Roberto Silvia, the district governor here in Chile, and accompanied him to a rotary dinner in a golf club somewhere south of Santiago.  I became good friends with his daughter 'Lulu' and spend most of the night talking with Rotarians and breaking it down on the dance floor.  Just your standard Chilean club celebration! I also started school this month and had a really great time.  I was a little nervous, naturally, but I ended up making some great friends and became really comfortable in my class. I had plenty of time to get to know everyone since here in Chile instead of students changing classrooms your classroom changes teachers. Spending all day in one room gives you plenty of time to meet people.
 
Another big event of this month was that my host brother Diego, who was on exchange in Germany, returned home. Because he was quarantined at home on arrival,  I ended up staying at my councillor Analia's house for a few days.  I became good friends with Analia's daughter Cami and ended up having another very hectic Santiago adventure that involved driving past Plaza Italia, hunting down the district governor's house for an hour and being a special guest at a rotary club meeting.  The last part was the most fun since I ended up meeting a lot of other exchange students and catching up with some that I knew earlier. All the exchange students were surprised to see me and it was, all in all, a great night.
 
Other than that: I also had my first meeting with my host club, a few delicious Asados with my host family and spent some quality time practicing my Spanish during the quarantine. This month has definitely been a bumpy one, with many of my exchange friends having to return home and the quarantine cancelling a lot of my future trips and plans. Despite all that though, I'm still optimistic about the future and have lots of plans on how to stay productive during this quarantine!
 
Thank you rotary for your continued support during this rough patch! 
I wouldn't trade this time here on exchange for the world and I'm grateful for all the time and experiences I get here. If I can help in any way back home, I'm only a message away!
 
Un abrazo y hablar pronto
Lachlan
Simple Quiz
  Have a go at this simple Rotary cross word:
Read more...
The Rotary Four Way Test
Read more...
Time for a Smile!
As many of us missed celebrating St Patrick's Day this year, here’s a couple of Irish stories to start off with.  To protect the true identity of the two gentlemen in the stories, the names have been changed to protect their identities - Ed. is sure Paddy and Murphy won't object.
 
Two Irishmen are hammering floorboards down in a house.  Mile's picks up a nail, realises it's upside down and throws it away.   He carries on doing this until Aubrey says:
            “Why are you throwing those nails away Mile's?”
            “Because they’re upside down,” replies Mile's
            “You daft twat, “scolds Aubrey. “Save ‘em for the ceiling.”
 
Miles and Aubrey are working on a building site when a slate tile falls off and slices Mile's ear off.
Aubrey finds it.
            ”Is this yours, Mile's?” Aubrey asks.
            “ No,” says Mile's. “Mine had a pencil behind it”
 
Video's of the Week  -
A UK Family’s Covid Take on Les Mis
 
A little online ”Zoom” co-ordination from an Ozzie Pops orchestra.
 
You can’t calm the storm … so stop trying.  What you can do is calm yourself. The storm will pass.
 
 
 
 
Have a wonderful week with many *smiles*. image

Club Contacts

PresidentRobyn Ingram 022 0200 171 
Secretary, Treasurer, Apologies:  Alex Gatt 021 571 722
President ElectHugh Scott-Russell
Sergeant:  Miles Cain 027 446 9225
Club Services Director:  Allan Smith 021 959 397 
Bulletin EditorPete Walsh 021 747 858
Membership DirectorsDonald Bowie & Rosemary Such 
Our Meetings
 
We meet Thursday for breakfast at 7 am for 7.15 am start,
except for the first Thursday of the month,
when we meet in the evening at 6 pm for dinner.
 
Remuera Golf Club
120 Abbotts Way, Remuera, Auckland, 1072
New Zealand 
 
All Rotarian's are welcome including family members.
 
Others wanting to visit are most welcome to contact:
Donald Bowie donald.bowie.dbc@gmail.com
Next Meeting:
Via "Zoom" at 8 am
Thursday 9 April.
Check emails for invite link.
 
The Club Bulletin will continue to be published on a Monday evening each week and will update the meeting schedule as required.
BE  AN  ACTIVE  PARTICIPANT  IN  OUR  VIBRANT  CLUB
Did you join Rotary to do good things in the community?
You can help or join in all projects (whatever the committee), just contact the committee director and/or project team leader.  In most cases, you can include family and friends.   Enjoy your Rotary:  Be an active Rotarian
 
Small Acts - Big Impact!