International Night 2021
International Night Attendees
A great night was had by attending members and guests last week at the Netherlands Society Clubrooms. Great food was provided by caterer Deborah Gill-Smith with the chocolate dessert being a particular favourite!
Stuart Batty and his Foundation & International team hosted the evening which began by Euan going over a bit of history about Rotary starting in 1905 and being 116 years and three days old. It currently has approximately 1.2 million members in over 360 clubs across 220 countries with all members sharing the same common good of providing service to the community.
After toasting Rotary International Jim then raised a 2nd toast to the Usa River club in Tanzania which we are a sister club with. This club relies on support from Rotary in various ways that support their needs and in particular helping locals find and keep job opportunities.
Stuart continued by noting that we also support the provision of Emergency Supply Kits across a number of countries including Fiji which began in 1985. These are especially useful when extreme weather hits. “We are also usually the 1st responder in these situations” noted Stuart.
Presenters Stuart & Jim
In addition Rotary makes Donations in Kind to help deliver education and medical equipment plus support disabled children in day care facilities as well as give some assistance with ensuring living spaces are appropriate They also supply wheelchairs and work with supporting the Mango Tree Centre in particular.
Next Jim gave us an update on the PolioPlus programme. “In 2020 there were 139 cases of wild polio and now there is only one” shared Jim. A huge effort is being put in place despite the effect of Covid including having a target figure of $50 million to raise in order to receive a sizeable donation from the Gates Foundation.
Jim finished by challenging us to become Centurions in order to help Rotary support the move towards this worthwhile goal.