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Happy New Year!
 
Happy New Year to everyone!
I do hope you and your families were able to enjoy Christmas together safely and bring in the New Year with hope.
 
Unfortunately, COVID continues to impact on our social get togethers and many of us experienced very different celebrations this season.  I encourage you all to stay safe as you emerge from isolation.
 
We wish all staff and students at our local schools the very best as they return to school for a challenging term 1. 
 
For Mount Alexander College this includes major building works where most of the old buildings have been demolished and 2 storey portable classrooms have been installed. 
The VCE students will be located at Debney Meadows Primary School this year where several classrooms have been allocated for their use.   We look forward to hearing from Principal Dani Angelico about the work soon.
 
Many thanks to Peta at the Bendigo Bank Ascot Vale for the donation of furniture and cupboards for their use.
 
Our first meeting for 2022 will be breakfast at Mama Bear Cafe, corner Crown Street and Racecourse Road Flemington on Wednesday 2nd February.  7.30am for a 7.45am start.
 
                                      Lesley
 
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Wishing Edith Chen, Jessica and all our Chinese friends a very happy Lunar New Year.  Chinese New Year starts on 1 February and this year is the Year of the Tiger.    Chinese New Year - Wikipedia
 
Chinese New Year 2022: Feb. 1, Animal Sign Tiger, Horoscope
Almoner's Report/ Member News
I spoke with Helen Frank last week.  She advised that Ted will be discharged from Caulfield Hospital but is unable to return home due to the high level of care he still requires.  He will be admitted to the Mayflower Aged Care home in Centre Road,  Brighton where he can be cared for appropriately.  Due to COVID restrictions, Helen and family have been unable to visit for the last 2 weeks but did see him over Christmas.  Visits to aged care homes are still restricted but should return within a few weeks.  Helen would like members to organise to visit Ted when visits are allowed and I assured her this would happen.
 
Geoff Cawsey has been back in hospital again, this time with gallstones and other issues.  He was due to come home last weekend.  On speaking with him, we realised that he has spent most of the last 2 years either in hospital or being visited by District Nurses with a number of problems.  We wish him a better 2022.
 
Len Seddon is recovering from the nasty fall he had early in December which resulted in broken ribs and hospitalisation.  He is feeling his age {88} and is struggling with isolation.  He also would love visitors.
 
Shraddha Sharma attended the last Board meeting and returns home this week.  We hope to see her soon after she has had a chance to settle back into life in Ascot Vale.  She returns to work next week, and Samira starts school.
 
Betty Kitchener and husband Tony Jorm have relocated to Korora on the northern New South Wales coast.  We wish them all the best for their move and ope to see them on ZOOM meetings.
 
Matiu Bush has returned to nursing, working at Royal Melbourne on a COVID ward.  As you will all have heard, staffing shortages continue to be a significant issue for our hospitals.  Congratulations Matiu on taking up the challenge.
 
Beate McManus had COVID in December and thus missed our Christmas get together.  She is now recovered after caring for her friend Bill who also had COVID.  She and Anthony are both well now.
 
 
 
Rotary International President Elect Jennifer E. Jones from the Rotary Club of Windsor-Roseland, Ontario, Canada has announced her theme for the Rotary year 2022-2023.
 
 
This was designed by an Australian indigenous artist to link with the Melbourne convention in 2023.

The elements have multiple meanings.
Circle - connections to one another
Dots around it - Our People
There are 7 Dots because of our Rotary’s 7 areas of focus;
Circle + dots around it - Navigation star, our guiding light
 
Green solid line - digging stick (used when doing hard work); for us it’s People of Action, representing the tools for getting things done
Colours: Purple, Green & White -  Celebrate Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, 
Freedom to express ourselves differently but still with a special connection
Purple- Polio
Green- the Environment
White - Peace
Represents Empowerment and Newness and also the colours were utilised for the women's movement giving us the opportunity to grow our female membership.
 
Jennifer said:  "Imagine our world that deserves our best, where we get up each day knowing we can make a difference.  We cannot imagine the past but we can imagine the future!"
 
This theme will come into operation as from 1 July 2022.
 
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Op Shop and Fit4 Use Store reopen
May be a cartoon of text that says 'It Takes a Village 2D'
After a well deserved break, Mel and Lorry and volunteers have been back at work this week in the 2 stores.  They have been inundated with donations - in the first week, Mel and her hard working volunteers sorted, washed, folded and displayed over 1000kgs of donations! Thank you! 
It was a similar story at Werribee for Lorry and her volunteers.  They also culled and bagged over 100kgs of rags for the Ragman collection.
 
Our customers were very happy to see us open again too with many welcoming and positive comments. That sentiment resonates with all the volunteers.   The Rotary Op Shops are so much more than a great place to shop. They are a place of safety, kindness, support and friendship. We value each and every person and it's a culture that we wish to strengthen, especially in 2022.
 
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RYLA February has been cancelled  
 
Due to ongoing concerns amid COVID infections and the need for precautions, the RYLA committee has made the difficult decision to cancel this program which was to held at Camp Getaway February 13th-19th. 
 
Instead all candidates will be offered a place in the program scheduled for 27 November - 3 December.  It is hoped that restrictions will be minimised by then.  
 
Our club had 3 candidates as well as Zoe Borghouts who was to be a leader again.
 
 
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A team led by Past District Governors Peter Frueh {District 9800, Balwyn} and Ingrid Waugh {District 9920 NZ} have worked over the last 3 years on planning and consultation for a regeneration of Rotary in Zone 8 - Oceania.   I have been a member of the Reference Group.
 
Now, our endeavours are coming together in the next month. We have asked the RI Board for their approval in principle to implement a pilot subject to the support of clubs and districts in May/June.
 
The work so far has focussed on enhancing member experiences, diversity, equity and inclusion and focussing on multi district projects eg bushfire relief.  The next step is to work on governance, communication and public relations and partnering with businesses and like minded organisations across the zone.
 
The aim is to increase our ability to adapt and keep pace with changing global trends and the nature of volunteering.
 
For more information and a fact sheet,  see the website.
 
 
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RIMERN continues to power ahead 
 
RIMERN is still short of volunteers to help with sorting, unpacking and organising donations.  Volunteers {Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday 9.30-12.30 or 1.30-4.30} must be TRIPLE vaccinated and wear a mask. 
 
Our club has nominated Thursdays so if you have some spare time and want to actively serve, this is the job for you.  It's fun, friendly, easy and rewarding.  Contact Lesley or Carolina to join us.
 
Many thanks to Lyn Borghouts who has taken on the role of Secretary of the RIMERN Board.  She is also assisting with the creation and maintenance of the database which records donations of goods and filling of orders to those in need.
 
Any questions re tasks, please contact susie.cole@rotaryprahran.org.au or 0414 907 263.
 
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Australian Rotary Health PhD Scholarship
As reported some months ago, the Board approved the club to nominate in sponsoring a PhD scholar through ARH to research mental health programs for children. 
 
I am pleased to announce that ARH have advised the successful candidate is Catherine Johnson who spoke to us back in August on her work on mental health.  Her research will involve training teachers to provide early intervention to primary school aged children. 
 
Catherine will study through the University of Melbourne under the supervision of Dr Laura Hart and Dr Jon Quach.    She has worked with Prof Tony Jorm and Betty Kitchener on MHFA in the past.
We look forward to having Catherine speak to us again in the new year.
 
A new Fiji Resort raffle opportunity has opened through the It's Time Foundation.
\Congratulations to Cherie Osborne from Rotary Keilor East who won the previous raffle.
 
The It's Time Foundation provides solar panels, inverters and batteries to schools on the islands of Fiji ensuring 24 hour power and educational opportunities for the children.  Th project also includes education on climate change, plastic in the oceans and beach clean up sessions educating the children.
 
Raffle tickets are $20 or 2 for $36 and part of the proceeds are returned to our club for our projects.  Please join me in supporting this fabulous initiative and fundraising for our club work.  https://itstime.org/Home/RafflePage/105517
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
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District 9800 Rotary Peace Fellow- Biong Deng Biong
In June 2021, The District Peace Subcommittee, chaired by PDG Dennis Shore, interviewed and selected Biong Deng Biong for nomination as a Rotary Peace Fellow. In 2021, the Rotary Foundation received over 600 endorsed applications for just 130 fellowships in 2022. 
 
In November, we were thrilled to learn that Biong had been selected from this highly competitive field. He was selected to attend the Professional Development program at Makerere University in Kampala, Uganda early in 2022.
Biong is an outstanding community leader with an incredible life story. 
 
He follows on from Peter Pal who was selected for the 2021 inaugural intake at the new Peace Centre in Uganda and joins 41 other Peace Fellows who have been selected from our district since the program began in 2001. Included in the list below are 10 representatives of Victoria Police. Two of the Fellows (Stephanie Woollard and Lucienne Heyworth) were subsequently honoured with prestigious Rotary-United Nations recognitions.
 
 
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The next ESRAG Oceania meeting will be held on Tuesday 15 February at 730pm.  Guest speaker will be Dr Zoe Squires from DEWLP who will speak on biodiversity.
 
 
Rotary Safe Families
 

https://rotarysafefamilies.org.au/

Rotary Safe Families are very proud to provide you with two newly created short films found on the website Rotary SAFE Families

After much research, Rotary Safe Families have made the films just 2.3 minutes each with as much information as possible in the Rotary SAFE Families focus of prevention of abuse.  

They hope you get better insight into the abuse of children and of men from viewing the films.  Rotary SAFE Families is part of the solution in the prevention of abuse in families everywhere!  Please note the placement of the Rotary SAFE Families' "3RRR's" of prevention of abuse.

Remember the "3RRR's" - such a simple tool for abuse prevention of anyone at anytime!

 

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Upcoming Events
PETS in person
Feb 12, 2022 – Feb 13, 2022
 
Club Meetings
Mama Bear Cafe
Mar 02, 2022
7:30 AM - 9:00 AM
 
Happy Birthday Rotary Flemington Kensington
Mar 05, 2022
10:00 AM – 3:30 PM
 
View entire list
Links
Links
District 9800
The Rotarian
Rotary On The Move
ESRAG
Moonee Valley Council Green Action Plan
Donate to The Rotary Foundation
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