Unfortunately no input from our President this week as he is under considerable pressure at work. We can, however, look forward to seeing and hearing from him at our last meeting of the year this Thursday morning.
Accordingly the President and Board look forward to seeing a good turnout on Thursday.
Don't forget to bring items for our guest speakers Foodbank.
At our last Dinner Meeting of the year, 24 members and 15 guests enjoyed a full, interesting and entertaining agenda. Below are more detailed comments, but first a summary of club notices as shared by President Hugh.
Club Notices:
Our last meeting of the year will be a breakfast meeting this week on December the 10th. A great speaker has been arranged, (more details below) and please note RSVP's are required.
The collection of items for the Glen Innes Foodbank is all set to run on December the 12th at New World Lunn Ave and thanks to Penny's persuasive efforts all volunteer duty slots are now full.
David H. announced that a new sponsor for the annual St. Johns Rotary Golf Tournament has been found - New World Lunn Ave & New World East Ridge have joined forces, with the possibility of New World Remuera also joining. The Tournament will be held at the Whitford Golf Club on April 9th. To make this event the huge success it needs to be, we will need a field of 25 teams plus other sponsors. All members are asked to start thinking of possibilities and to feed any leads on to David H. as soon as possible.
Last weekends club visit to Rotoroa was a great success - a separate story follows below.
David Stone:
We were delighted to welcome Honorary member David Stone to the meeting. David was a key initiator of the Water Testing project under-taken by Glendowie College so it was great that he could be present for the students' presentation.
David and his wife Jill recently lost their home in the Ohau Lake fire, loosing everything except the clothes they were wearing at 3.10am when they were woken by a neighbour of the impending disaster. We wish David and Jill our very best wishes as they begin the rebuilding of both their lives and their home.
Water Testing Project, Glendowie College:
This project was launched 4 years ago when the RCSTJ purchased a water testing kit allowing for water samples of streams in our district to be collected analised and measured. The club would like to thank the School, Science Teacher Thais Nafissi and students Mai, Zoe and Lulu for completing the project and for sharing their story with us. We look forward to expanding this work based on their findings in the future.
Guest Speaker Holly Suitch:
Holly shared with us her journey, with her partner Brad, of conceiving an idea for a natural, clean alternative energy drink (Phoric) through to its current status as a rapidly expanding start-up business. This was a truly inspiring story which began nearly a year ago when they were witnessing first-hand thousands of university students consuming countless, artificial energy drinks. This motivated them to begin their own mission to create a natural, clean alternative. Promoted as a natural energy drink for the new generation.
The pair were the Overall Supreme Winner, and Winner of the Social Enterprise category, at the AUT X-Challenge, winning a $35,000 investment to develop their idea.
The drink is now available in 130 stores and supermarkets throughout the country, and growing, as they continue to introduce their very strategic growth plans. There were many questions from the floor, all answered in detail highlighting the research and planning that had been undertaken. Holly was kind enough to bring along some samples for members to try and the reactions to the tasting were very positive. A refreshing new taste.
We wish Holly and Phoric best wishes as they continue to develop and grow their distribution.
David H. celebrating the new Golf Tournament Sponsorship announcement - and so he should - well done David, and a huge thanks again to Graham Fabian and New World.
Andy & Avi - don't forget to smile as our photographer is continuously on the move looking for that perfect picture.
Watch out Tony, Robyn's puckering up!
Apparently Michele is looking for the alcohol percentage.
THURSDAY December 10th - Breakfast Meeting. Venue - Remuera Golf Club. Time 7.00am for 7.15am.
Guest Speaker Brown Buttabean AKA David Letele.
He is known in the Auckland community as the Brown Buttabean, a fitness motivator and life coach for many Pacific people struggling with their weight and fitness. Samoan, David is also a boxer who changed his life by shedding 100 kilos.
He has been motivating hundreds of others to follow his lead and as a result is changing people's lives via health and fitness boot camps known as Buttabean Motivation.
Mr Letele says he just wants to reverse the alarming statistics among Pacific people suffering from high blood pressure and facing a higher risk of stroke, diabetes and heart disease. He has thousands of followers on social media and he is motivated to give people a second chance to get healthier and live longer. His organisation is currently working with our member Chris Herlihy (Headmaster of Glen Taylor School), on a two-day programme to be offered to other local primary schools.
Come and join us for our final meeting of the year to hear this great speaker and find out how we can help support our local primary schools with another great initiative.
In lieu of a $10 Secret Santa, we challenge all members to bring along a Christmas donation of non-perishable foodbank items, which will be given to our speaker to use in his foodbank service (another initiative offered through his BBM Program).
Peter Ross will also join us for breakfast and provide us with a quick update on the revamped programme for RYLA 2021.
The following story has been submitted by Peter Buchanan. Having read the story a couple of times, the Editor is still not convinced that it was a "working weekend', but we can pretend to believe. If there is another trip planned in the future no doubt others will be keen to go - the pictures taken and submitted by IPP Robyn and PP Peter B are great!
“Working Weekend” on Rotoroa Trip – the “Serenity 12”
Chilly bins, bags, and kegs in hand, 11 members/partners and Isi (our Rotary exchange student from Chile), caught the Fullers ferry on Friday evening, 27th Nov. – bound for Rotoroa Is., off the east coast of Waiheke Is. Most of us were on our best behaviour, especially considering the alcohol rehabilitation history of the island when run by Salvation Army. Nevertheless, Aubrey wound up in jail, and Alex came close to occupying the other jail cell after ignoring Ranger Glen’s instructions and enticing an inquisitive weka inside our very comfortable accommodation – aptly named the “Serenity Home”.
Robyn aspired to lead a yoga session each morning for willing participants, but this was not entirely successful due to sleep deprivation suffered by the non-snorers. We were there to work, and work we did, all together as the photo shows. But we still had a little time to explore to each end of the beautiful island, admiring the predator-free restoration in progress and wonderful views to surrounding islands (Ponui, Pakatoa, and Waiheke), along with swimming at Ladies Bay and Mens Bay (segregated of course) and spying the reintroduced saddlebacks, whitehead, and pateke. Kiwi and takahe, though present, proved elusive as did the two species of native skinks.
We are very grateful to Michelle for promoting Rotoroa as a great destination, and also for encouraging at least two of us with her evening quiz questions, a contest fought out between Murray and Aubrey for a most sought-after prize. The rest of us drowned our disappointing ignorance with an early night, despite radio-only commentary of the All Blacks/Argentina test.
I think we’d all love to go back. There’s lots to see and do, if you wish, or simply relax seemingly far removed from Auckland, but only 1.5 hours on a comfortable boat, complete with coffee and toasted sandwiches.
Two 70 something-year-old men had been friends all of their lives. When it was clear that Frank was dying, Leonard visited him every day.
One day Leonard said, "Frank, we both loved playing golf all our lives, and we started playing soon after high school. Please do me one favour: when you get to heaven, somehow you must let me know if there's golf there."
Frank looked up at Leonard from his deathbed and said, "Leonard, you've been my best friend for many years. If it's at all possible, I'll do this favour for you."
Shortly after that, Frank died.
A few weeks later, Leonard was awakened from a sound sleep by a blinding flash of white light and a voice calling out to him, "Leonard!"
"Who is it?" asked Leonard, sitting up suddenly. "Who is it?"
"Leonard -- it's me, Frank."
"You're not Frank. Frank just died."
"I'm telling you, it's me, Frank," insisted the voice.
"Frank! Where are you?"
"In heaven," replied Frank. "I have some really good news and a little bad news."
"Tell me the good news first," said Leonard
"The good news," Frank said with joy and enthusiasm, "is that there is golf in heaven. Better yet, all of our old buddies who died before me are here too. Even better than that, we're all young again. Better still, it's always Summertime and it never rains. And best of all, we can play golf all we want, and we never get tired. And we get to play with all the Greats of the past."
"That's fantastic," said Leonard. "It's beyond my wildest dreams! So what's the bad news?"
At our last Dinner Meeting of the year, 24 members and 15 guests enjoyed a full, interesting and entertaining agenda. Below are more detailed comments, but first a summary of club notices as shared by President Hugh.
David H. celebrating the new Golf Tournament Sponsorship announcement - and so he should - well done David, and a huge thanks again to Graham Fabian and New World.
Andy & Avi - don't forget to smile as our photographer is continuously on the move looking for that perfect picture.
Apparently Michele is looking for the alcohol percentage. 
It was worth coming just for the meal!
Going once, going twice...sold!
THURSDAY December 10th - Breakfast Meeting. Venue - Remuera Golf Club. Time 7.00am for 7.15am.
Peter Ross will also join us for breakfast and provide us with a quick update on the revamped programme for RYLA 2021.
