Co-Presidents St. Johns Rotary, Gary Key (Ph: 021 611169), and Graham Fabian (Ph: 021 826292).
Thank you to all who made the effort to attend our breakfast meeting last Thursday, great to see you and also to the number of visitors that were present!!!
Our last invited Mayoral Candidate, Wayne Brown, was the guest speaker and his presentation will be covered by our revered Editor. So we have now heard from them all - please, please vote for your selected candidate. It is appalling that we have something like a 35% turn out for Local Body Elections!!!
Last Saturday we completed our Rotary NZ / Pacific National Day of Action by undertaking a clean up of the Omaru Stream, from Line Road to Apriana Ave. A full report and photos will be included in a separate story below.
A huge vote of thanks to Peter B, Cheri, and Margaret for organising and to members, Kevin, Miles, Patrick & Katrina, Angus, Tom, Brian, Roseanne, Michelle F. We also had Renee Swain and her 2 children who Beryl met at the Expo last week, along with Marian Knowles and Elizabeth from the Student Volunteer Army!!
Thanks also to AG Joyti Singh and District Governor Nominee Vidya Nand representing DG Allan. We were also joined by Remuera Rotary Club Sargent Jim Bradley and MP Simon O’Connor also dropped in.
What a great effort, with some 30 plus large plastic bags of trash, along with lots of other stuff!! It was amazing what was fished out of the stream with many a story to be told?
Well done and a huge thank you.
Have a great week and see you all at our meeting on Thursday.
Sergeant Patrick introduced Co-President Gary who opened the meeting with a special introduction to our guest speaker Wayne Brown. He also acknowledge other guests, (7 in total), including Desley Simpson and, of course, a warm welcome was extended to all 21 club members present.
Club Notices:
Regionalistion: Gary apologised for the amount of information that had been shared over the last 2 months surrounding this move and he thanked all members who had participated in the process which has ended up with the St. Johns vote exceeding the minimum 75% eligible voters voting in favour of the "pilot" going ahead. We will now need to wait until all votes from clubs in Zone 8 to know the final result.
Quiz Night: Now only 18 days away. To date there are only 10 tables sold and we need at least 20 to be sold. Please see separate story below and please buy your tickets now.
Presidential Citation: Gary extended the clubs congratulations to our last years Co-Presidents Penny & Lesley who have just received this award. Well done for your achievement ladies, and well deserved.
Beyond Waters founders, Sharon and Peter Crean: were also present and Sharon provided a brief update on the organisation, as well as inviting all members to attend their upcoming Dessert Meeting event to help raise further funds for their "Peddle Against Poverty" 27 day bike ride, from Cape Reianga to Bluff. The cost is only $20 pp on 18th November, at Mellons Bay. Check out Sharon's Facebook page for more details.
Guest Speaker - Wayne Brown Auckland Mayoral Candidate:
Kevin had the honor of introducing Wayne, who before commencing his talk, extended his sincere congratulations and thanks to St. Johns Rotary for the efforts they are putting in to help the environment via the numerous activities that we are involved with.
Wayne decided to run for mayor about two and half years ago after it was frequently suggested to him by many individuals and organisations who liked his style, his knowledge, and understanding of the issues facing Auckland. He also commented that another reason to stand was to help to stem the flow of the one third of Aucklander's either leaving Auckland, or considering doing so.
Wayne speaks his mind and is not slow to share his thoughts and position when he sees so many areas in Auckland that are not performing as they should be.
Some of the sound bites from his talk were;
There is an overspend in most areas of council and their activities.
The City Rail Link is way over budget and there is still no announcement on completion date.
Covid is being used as an excuse far to often - yes there has been an impact, but Covid cannot be used as an excuse for every delay and overspend.
Three Waters is a nonsense and he has had personal experience in other similar type situations to know it won't work.
Carless Housing Developments won't work, particularly in areas where there is no public transport or plans for such.
Ports of Auckland are a disgrace.
Wayne stated that he has a great track record dealing successfully with issues like Auckland is facing, as well as doing so on-time and within budget and will bring a no nonsense approach to the job.
He finished his talk stating that Auckland needs a truly independent Mayor and one that will stand up to Government in Wellington and he believes he is the only candidate who can do this.
Many thanks Wayne for your time, and for sharing your thoughts - we wish you well in your endeavours.
THURSDAY SEPTEMBER 29th. BREAKFAST MEETING - GUEST SPEAKERS: Students from De La Salle, Sacred Heart & Glendowie Colleges, sponsored by the RCSTJ, reporting back on their RYPEN experience.
THURSDAY OCTOBER 6th. DINNER MEETING - FUN & FELLOWSHIP; GOLF DRIVING RANGE & FISH & CHIP NIGHT.
See flyer below for full details.
THURSDAY OCTOBER 13th. NO CLUB MEETING DUE QUIZ NIGHT ON 13th OF OCTOBER.
FRIDAY OCTOBER 14th - QUIZ NIGHT - GLEN TAYLOR SCHOOL - See full details below.
The clock's ticking real fast now and we are now only 2 weeks away from our Quiz Night.
This is one of our few major fund raising events of the year, and as we have missed the last two years, it is essential that we make this one a winner!!
Full details are clear on the attached flyer - just click on "Read More" to see this.
All that you need to do right now is;
Book your table of 10 and invite your best mates to join you at your potential winning table, or book and be allotted a table and make new friends.
Donate Silent Auction items - these can be any item that is capable of triggering the audience to identifying the item as something that they must have, and will have them digging deep into their pockets, bidding high, thinking that they are getting a great deal, while helping us raise funds for our array of Youth Programmes.
This week, (September 29th), our Snap Chatterer of the day will be John Lewisham. Be sure that you are in attendance to hear what's old and new in John's life.
Success at last! Now I just need to find the other 3.42 million cones around Auckland and destroy them and I'll be a happy man!!
The first stage of the Omaru Creek clean-up and the evaluation of the task to open-up this historic stream to the Tamaki Community took place on Saturday 24th of September.
Two supermarket trolleys, an office chair and a skateboard were amongst the rubble blocking the flow of the Omaru Creek between Apirana Road and Line Road.
Two dozen St Johns Rotary members, Friends of St Johns Rotary and other Rotary clubs encountered this when they joined forces to get some insight of the task of opening-up this historic stream, which starts on the slopes behind Sunhill Nursery, twisting and turning through Glen Innes, before entering the Tamaki Estuary, near Tamaki College.
In recent years the St Johns Rotary Club had joined forces with the pioneering group, the Friends of Apirana Reserve to plant, weed and maintain that formerly abandoned section of land behind houses on Apirana Road and the Eastern Railway line.
Trees for Survival, a hugely successful Rotary Project which introduces school students to the concepts of rearing seedlings before planting and maintaining them in public areas, has indicated it will join forces with St Johns and mobilise schools in the area to support the vision of a revitalised Omaru Creek and other areas.
Gary Key, Co-President of St Johns Rotary and a Trees for Survival board member, described the first step as “tentative, as you’d expect”.
“We have an enormous task ahead of us, which is going to require an alignment of many social, political and economic interests, without stepping on other initiatives which might be running in this environment.
“We see ourselves as facilitators and motivators to capture the attention of what a fabulous asset the Omaru Creek could become again for the local community, and even for people living in Auckland. We don’t pretend to know all the answers and want to ensure, through working with the schools along the stream’s course, what the community would value.
“Obviously, Ngati Pao, Auckland Council, the local Councillor, Local Board, and our friends in the Tamaki Regenerate Company, Manaiakalani Schools and other Rotary clubs and community organisations will need to be involved and supportive, if this project is to succeed,” said Key.
Asked what he felt the Rotarians had learned from the first outing away from Apirana Reserve, he said: “A pleasant surprise was the eels several of us encountered. That was somewhat reassuring that we aren’t starting with a toxic stream.
“A major task will be the removal of tens of tons of diseased willow trees choking the stream. This is a huge challenge which we will try to get the AC to tackle. We will be approaching the new mayor as soon as he has had time to settle into that task.
“I expect we might be able to get commercial support or funding from companies in the area too.
“We have already got excellent support from KiwiRail, up at Apirana Reserve. They showed us what having the right equipment and goodwill could contribute in a matter of hours.”
Many thanks to Kevin Kevany for the story above. For further information: Gary Key or Dr Peter Buchanan.
Pictures of the clean-up activity and the faces of the many volunteers can be seen by clicking the “Read More” link below.
Not only do we have District 9920 Conference to look forward to, get ready to Imagine what’s next with Rotary!
With the success of the 2022 Rotary International Convention in Houston, our first in-person convention since 2019, we’re more excited than ever about meeting again at the 2023 Rotary International Convention in Melbourne, Australia, 27-31 May. Join us in this beautiful city to connect with other people of action. We’ll hear from great speakers, enjoy fantastic entertainment, take part in inspirational breakout sessions, and so much more.
Did you know that if you register today you’ll receive the reduced rate? Don’t wait — pay in full by 15 December, when this rate expires.
You won’t want to miss this opportunity to share your passion for Rotary with fellow members in Melbourne. We can’t wait to see you there!
One of the favourite Fun & Fellowship events on the St. Johns calendar is our Golf Night at the Remuera Golf Club Driving range, followed by the Remuera Golf Clubs, World Famous in Remuera, Fish & Chip dinners.
Full details in the flyer below. Please RSVP asap - now would be good!
With Golf now still top of mind following on from the previous story, we can advise that the date has been set for the annual St Johns Rotary Club / New World Golf Tournament.
Last year due to Covid, the tournament was cancelled, so we will be expecting much interest in this next tournament.
The Date is: Friday March 10th 2023.
There will be lots more information shared as the weeks roll on, but be sure to get this date in your diary now as the club will be looking for all members to either be playing golf and or volunteering for one of the many jobs that will need to be undertaken as we build up to the event, and of course on the day itself.
Sergeant Patrick introduced Co-President Gary who opened the meeting with a special introduction to our guest speaker Wayne Brown. He also acknowledge other guests, (7 in total), including Desley Simpson and, of course, a warm welcome was extended to all 21 club members present.
Kevin had the honor of introducing Wayne, who before commencing his talk, extended his sincere congratulations and thanks to St. Johns Rotary for the efforts they are putting in to help the environment via the numerous activities that we are involved with.
Wayne speaks his mind and is not slow to share his thoughts and position when he sees so many areas in Auckland that are not performing as they should be. 
THURSDAY SEPTEMBER 29th. BREAKFAST MEETING - GUEST SPEAKERS: Students from De La Salle, Sacred Heart & Glendowie Colleges, sponsored by the RCSTJ, reporting back on their RYPEN experience. 
THURSDAY OCTOBER 6th. DINNER MEETING - FUN & FELLOWSHIP; GOLF DRIVING RANGE & FISH & CHIP NIGHT.
The clock's ticking real fast now and we are 
Success at last! Now I just need to find the other 3.42 million cones around Auckland and destroy them and I'll be a happy man!!
