Stories Mark & Stella Yaxley A Visit by Mark Yaxley     DG Mark Yaxley, accompanied by his wife Stella, visited us last week and gave us some of his thoughts going forward.   Mark began his address by thanking various club members for their efforts and the great job they do.  His thoughts then turned to a couple of sayings from a fellow Rotarian in the past which state:  “Rotary opens opportunities” and: “Everything we do opens another opportunity for someone, somewhere.”   In terms of DG goals for the year, these have included (1) create and celebrate memorable moments and (2) collaborate with others to expand the reach and impact of Rotary.   With respect to our upcoming centennial year, Mark paid tribute to some projects that are addressing this including “Give every child a future” and Polio Plus.  The addition of “supporting the environment” as a new key focus was also noted as a significant and important approach in what we do going forward.   “We want to be revolutionary from time to time” suggested Mark and he then shared a famous quote from Henry Ford:   “If I had asked people what they want they would have said faster horses!”   As for change at the top, Mark concluded by noting that RI’s new President Elect is Jennifer Jones.    Tony thanked Mark for sharing his thoughts with us and the challenges & opportunities these will bring in a constantly changing world.     Snippets   An update on Janice from Arie earlier today:   I went back to visit Janice last night and they had her off the pump machine for pain management and she had her eyes wide open and we were able to have a real conversation with her thinking clearly - first time since Saturday night.    She is due to have surgery today to repair the fractures.   We have received many lovely messages via email, phone and text wishing her all the best and offering to help. We are thankful for that and sadly at present there is not enough time for me to respond individually much as I would like to.   Regards Arie     River Queen Trip Snaps   A fun trip was taken by a hardy few on the Kaiapoi River Queen last Sunday.        The Rotary International Convention, scheduled for 12-16 June 2021, in Taipei, Taiwan, will now be a virtual event in response to the ongoing threat of COVID-19. We are sorry that we will not see you in Taipei this year, but this decision, made by the Rotary Board of Directors, is necessary to protect the health of everyone involved.    Click below to learn more.   https://convention.rotary.org/en     Thought for the Week   “The only person you are destined to become is the person you decide to be.”

Upcoming Events you are welcome to attend   Club meeting at Papanui Club Papanui Club Apr 01, 2021 5:55 PM – 7:30 PM   Club meeting at the Papanui Club-Club Photograph Papanui Club Apr 08, 2021 5:55 PM – 7:30 PM   BBQ at Mitre 10 Mega Papanui Mega Mitre 10 Apr 10, 2021 9:30 AM – 4:30 PM   Aratupu Market Day Aratupu Preschool Apr 10, 2021 10:00 AM – 2:00 PM   Cooking Family Dinners at Ronald McDonald House Ronald McDonald House Apr 12, 2021 4:30 PM – 7:30 PM   View entire list Meeting Responsibilities Duty Roster 1st April   Reception Forsyth, Simon   Speakers Host McNee, Ken   Vote of Thanks Gimblett, Deb   Visitors Host Skiba, Larry   Sergeant Geerlofs, Arie   Meeting Setup McMurtrie, Denis   Banner Setup & Room Tidyup Sedgley, Ron   Duty Roster 8th April   Reception Haworth, Jenny   Speakers Host McFadden, Grant   Vote of Thanks Bond, Mark   Visitors Host Wright, Max   Sergeant Thomson, Rob   Meeting Setup McMurtrie, Denis   Banner Setup & Room Tidyup Sedgley, Ron   Duty Roster 15th April 2021   Reception Flanagan, Lois   Speakers Host Hudson, Jim   Vote of Thanks Smart, Kate   Visitors Host Nicholl, Rob   Sergeant Geerlofs, Arie   Meeting Setup McMurtrie, Denis   Banner Setup & Room Tidyup Sedgley, Ron   Duty Roster 22nd April 2021   Reception Digby, Neville   Speakers Host Hilson, Euan   Vote of Thanks Archbold, Doug   Visitors Host Wright, Max   Sergeant Thomson, Rob   Meeting Setup McMurtrie, Denis   Banner Setup & Room Tidyup Sedgley, Ron   Duty Roster 6th May 2021   Reception Denhard, Gary   Speakers Host Gimblett, Deb   Vote of Thanks Van Beek, Verdi   Visitors Host Shields, Gordon   Sergeant Geerlofs, Arie   Meeting Setup McMurtrie, Denis   Banner Setup & Room Tidyup Sedgley, Ron