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The Presidents' Pen

Penny McGarry
Co-President
Rotary Club of St, Johns
Ph: 027 4935 498

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Lesley Harris

Co-President
Rotary Club of St. Johns
PH: 027 4935 408
 
Good Evening All,
 
As was said during our Changeover speech, we are indeed honoured to be entrusted the Leadership of such a wonderful group of Rotarians who comprise the Rotary Club of St Johns.
 
Thank you to everyone who came to Changeover, it was a challenge playing 'twilight bowls', but it was done in the
true St Johns spirit, and a good time was had by all.
 
It was a fun evening, but with some serious moments when we awarded Paul Harris Awards to Gary Key, Peter Walsh and Robyn Ingram – such well-deserved awards for your service to the Club and our community. Congratulations to you all.
 
It was also lovely to welcome John Cornaga back for the evening, and to see him awarded Honorary Membership for his long service to the Club. Congratulations to John and hopefully he will not be a stranger.
 
Thanks must go to our now Past President Hugh for ably steering the Club through the uncharted waters of Covid, and ensuring the Club is still in good health – no mean feat! Don’t think you can put your feet up yet Hugh as there are many projects wanting your attention in Community and International.
 
We have thought about our programme for the year and we hope it is a reflection of something for everyone as we work towards "Feeling good by doing good in our community" and enjoying some good old fashioned Rotarian Fellowship along the way.
 
Our year will only be successful if we all work as a team to achieve our outcomes. We will keep you posted as to our progress, together with reports on the Board and Trust meetings in the Bulletins, and a Membership update, perhaps monthly.
 
As Co-Presidents there will be times when you just get one of us at meetings, but there are times when we will be a double act, or double trouble - however you choose to interpret the circumstance!! We do intend to keep the irreverent St Johns tradition alive and are looking forward to a fun and productive year with you all.
 
Best Regards
Penny & Lesley
 
Stories
Message From Editor
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Change-over June 18th 2021
Where does one start when reporting on the St. Johns Rotary Club 2021 Change-over?  It's not easy with so many highlights, but we will give it a go anyway.
 
Attended by 53 people, 32 Members and 21 Guests / Partners, at the Glendowie Bowling Club, the fun commenced at 4.45pm, with a few keen wanabe bowlers out on the green trying their hand at Lawn Bowls under the watchful eye of our DG Elect Allan and Auckland Representative bowler, wife Sue.  Although there was the odd good bowl bowled, most were very, very average, except of course the "Cross Green Bowl Off", which was won by none other than aspiring bowler, Dr. Peter Buchanan.
 
The formalities commenced around 6.30pm with President, (now IPP) Hugh, thanking all Club members for their support and efforts throughout the year.  His comments were enhanced by an excellent slide-presentation put together by none other than our own Social Media Guru, Colin R.  You are able to access the slide show via this link; https://youtu.be/nmhSzKl-BfI.
 
Historically the outgoing President acknowledges the efforts of his or her Board, with a small gift of some sort.  Well, as Hugh is known to do, he treated us to something quite different, with a "Virus" themed presentation which was innovative, humorous and meaningful.  Full descriptions of the individual Virus definitions as penned by Hugh, can be seen by clicking on "Read More", at the end of this story.  
 
As each of Hugh's leadership team received their Virus based acknowledgement, they also received a delicious box full of chocolates and candy and this photo of PP Robyn speaks of the excitement felt on receipt of the gift by all the recipients!! 
 
President Hugh then introduced our newest Honorary Member, John Cornaga.  John recently resigned from the Club after a very involved 25 years as a member and the Honorary nomination was a unanimous vote by the Board.  Congratulation John, well deserved.

President Hugh then surprised three members of the club  with a Paul Harris Fellowship Award each for outstanding and substantial contribution to Rotary International and specifically to St Johns Rotary.  These went to Robyn Ingram, Peter Walsh and Gary Key.  Gary's award was his second Paul Harris Fellow making him a Sapphire recipient.  
 
Following dinner a very relieved President Hugh introduced Penny and Lesley, (The Twins), as our new Co-Presidents, and thanked them both for stepping up to the challenge.   He then presented them with the Chain of Office which they will share throughout the year.
 
In response. in their inaugural speech, they thanked Hugh for his leadership over the past 12 months and acknowledged that the club is in very good spirits and as first time "Co-Presidents", they are looking forward to carrying on the good work. 

The new presidents reminded the members of the Rotary International motto for the year, "We Serve to Change Lives", and that locally we need to be mindful of this, and being Rotarians comes with some inherent commitments and we need to feel good by doing good in our community".  The new leadership team were then introduced - see next story for details.
 
Prior to letting Hugh sit down and "relax" the Twins final duty of the night was to present Hugh with his Presidential Caricature. 
 
Courtesy of our celebrated photographer Candid Kev, there were many photos taken of the evening and some of these can be seen by clicking on "Read More" below, following the "Virus" descriptions. 
 
Read more...
Meet the 2021 / 2022 Board

The St. Johns Rotary Board & Support Team 2021 / 2022

Last Friday at Change-over, our new Presidents', Penny and Lesley, or better known as “The Twins”, announced their Board and Support team for the new Rotary year, and what a great looking team they are!

To remind you, the following are the position;

Co-President: Penny McGarry

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Co-President: Leslie Harris

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

IPP and Co-Director Community: Hugh Scott-Russell

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Co-Director Community: John Lewisham

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Director Club Services: Robyn Ingram

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Director Foundation: Gary Key

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Treasurer & Secretary: Alex Gatt

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Director Science, Technology & Education: Peter Buchanan

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Director Youth: Tom Street

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Co-President Elect: Graham Fabian

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Co-President Elect: Gary Key

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Supporting the Presidents and their Board will be;

Bulletin Editor: Peter Walsh

Membership: Beryl Robinson

Photographer: Kevin Kevany

Sergeants and Club Fellowship Team: Michelle Foreman, Angus McPhee and Cheri Jolliffe.

The 2021 2022 Leadership Team:

Can You Match the Board Members?? 
Now for a little bit of fun - can you name each of these youngsters and the Board Position they hold?  Simply list the names in order of the pictures below and send your entry via e-mail to the Bulletin Ed; walshp@xtra.co.nz,  before 7.00pm Wednesday 23rd June.  A great prize awaits the winner!  Note: There are 11 Board portfolios, but we are only looking for 9 names in the correct order.  (Board Members are not permitted to enter competition).
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Club Meetings and Other Important Dates
THURSDAY JUNE 24th - Breakfast Meeting - Guest Speakers:  Andrew Bowie, Julie Cullen & Alex Muntz.  "Sensible Screen Use"
The evidence is clear that excessive screen use in young children is harmful to development causing issues down the line like myopia, obesity, social anxiety and even resulting in regressing learning outcomes. Scarily NZ is leading the way with device adoption in schools which is likely only fuelling the issue.  IT guru Andrew Bowie, Paediatric Physio Julie Cullen and Dry Eye Specialist Alex Muntz (Auckland University) have started an organisation called Sensible Screen Use to get the message out there and drive a little more awareness around this alarming topic.
 
 
THURSDAY JULY 1st - Dinner Meeting.  Guest Speaker - James Palmer BA, LLB:
James is Chief Executive, Community Finance and Christian Savings and he will provide us with an overview of the real stats and state of housing in New Zealand, and a discussion on some of the solutions needed to tackle New Zealand’s greatest social crisis since the Great Depression.

Christian Savings is New Zealand’s only registered charity that is also licensed by the Reserve Bank of New Zealand as a non-bank deposit taker.  Christian Savings manages over $225m, with over $180m in loans to a range of not-for-profits and Community Housing Providers.    

James identified a need to grow impact investing to help meet New Zealand’s significant housing crisis.  He founded and launched Community Finance in 2019.  Community Finance is now New Zealand’s largest open impact investment intermediary established to facilitate investment into affordable housing.  The core focus is on permanent solutions delivered by reputable organisations who are equipped to take care of our most vulnerable New Zealanders. Community Finance has already advanced over $50 million to Community Housing Providers such as The Salvation Army and Community of Refuge Trust.  In 2021, Community Finance launched the Aotearoa Pledge to raise an additional $100m for impact investing through the housing sector.  By April 2021, $71m had already been pledged from a range of fund managers, KiwiSaver providers and community trusts and foundations.

At the Institute of Financial Professionals of New Zealand Gala event in May, James won the coveted Emerging Leader Award for 2021.

 

THURSDAY JULY 8th - Breakfast Meeting - Guest Speaker Gordon Robertson, Glendowie College:
Gordon was appointed as the seventh Principal of Glendowie College in August 2020 and has been a member of this school community since 1986.  We look forward to hearing his update on the college, his educational philosophy and what goals GDC has for the near future.
Basketball Leadership Camp
Members will recall Director Muriel recently provided an update on the St. Johns Rotary sponsorship of the "Manaiakalani Years 7 & 8 Basketball Leadership Camp".
 
Club Member Chris Herlihy, who is involved in the Camp, has advised that the camp is now underway with 30 students participating from 10 different schools from our area, and it is great to see that most are schools whom we have supported in the past in a variety of ways.
 
Glen Taylor, Glen Innes, Point England, Glenbrae, Panmure Bridge, Stonefields, St Pius X, St Patricks, Ruapotaka and Tamaki Primary.  
Time For A Smile

More  Murphy’s Laws

  • Law of the Bath - When the body is fully immersed in water, the telephone will ring.
  • Law of Close Encounters - The probability of meeting someone you know INCREASES dramatically when you are with someone you don't want to be seen with.
  • Law of the Result - When you try to prove to someone that a machine won't work, IT WILL!!!
  • Law of Biomechanics - The severity of the itch is inversely proportional to the reach.
  • Law of the Theatre & Football Stadium -  At any event, the people whose seats are farthest from the aisle, always arrive last. 
    They are the ones who will leave their seats several times to go for food, beer, or the toilet and who leave early before the end of the performance or the game is over. The people in the aisle seats come early, never move once, have long gangly legs or big bellies and stay to the bitter end of the performance.  The aisle people are very surly folk.

 

Rotary Four Way Test
 
Next Meeting:
Breakfast Meeting
 
Thursday June 24th,
7.00am for 7.15am.
 
Venue - Remuera Golf Club
Lunn Ave.
 
Contents:
  • The Presidents' Pen
  • Meeting in Review - 18th June 2021 -  Change-over 
  • Message From Editor
  • Meet the Board
  • Board Naming Competition
  • Club Meetings & Other Important Dates
  • Basketball Leadership Camp
  • Time for a Smile
Speakers
Jun 24, 2021
Sensible Screen Use
Jul 01, 2021 6:00 PM
New Zealand’s Housing Crisis: An overview of the real stats and state of housing in NZ
Jul 08, 2021
Update on Glendowie College
Aug 05, 2021 6:00 PM
RYLA 2021
View entire list
Upcoming Events
Other clubs - open to all
Jun 05, 2021 – Dec 31, 2021
 
View entire list
Meeting Responsibilities
Thursday 24 June
 
Set-Up
Leyland, Penny
 
Attendance
Hillman, Mark
 
Greeter
Kevany, Kevin
 
Speaker Host
Cain, Miles
 
Speaker Thanks & Close
Hutchinson, Murray
 
Set-Down
Ingram, Robyn
 
Thursday 1 July EVENING
 
Set-Up
Lewisham, John
 
Attendance
Figueiredo, Avinash
 
Greeter
Gatt, Alex
 
Speaker Host
McGarry, Penny
 
Speaker Thanks & Close
Gunn, Liz
 
Set-Down
Gilmer, Gavin
 

Club Contacts

Presidents': 
Penny Mc Garry 021 702 310 &
Lesley Harris 027 4935 498
Secretary, Treasurer & Apologies: 
Alex Gatt 021 571 722
Presidents' Elect: 
Gary Key 09 373 5769 & Graham Fabian 021 826 292
Club Services: 
Robyn Ingram  022 0200 171 
Foundation: Gary Key 09 373 5769
Community: Hugh Scott Russell 021 0813 7313 & John Lewisham 09 5288908.
Youth: Tom Street 021 685 651
Science & Technology: Peter Buchanan 027 434 1832
Sergeants: 
Michelle Forman 021 0277 9456, Angus McPhee  09 575 1007 & Cheri Joliffe 021 037 7559
Membership: Beryl Robinson 021 652 802
Bulletin Editor: Pete Walsh 021 747 858
Website:  www.rotarystjohns.club
Our Meetings
 
We meet Thursday for breakfast at
7:00 am for 7:15 am start,
except for the first Thursday of the month, when we meet in the evening at 6:00 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 - please phone or email:
Robyn Ingram robyn.ingram@outlook.com / 022 0200 171
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Feeling Good By Doing Good