Latest News
Legend of Rotary
Congratulations to Lawrence Atley. April marks 50 years of his association with the Rotary Club of Footscray as a member and honorary member. A full report on his significant contribution to Rotary will feature in the next Bulletin.
Read more...RYPEN
A successful RYPEN Camp has just been completed. 16 students, 5 Supporters and 3 Rotarians attended. The students were 15-17 year olds in years 9, 10 or 11. The supporters are the enthusiastic young people who voluntarily give up their weekends to act as team leaders for the students, and the Rotarians are the members of the RYPEN Committee including Suzanne Zammit.
Suzanne found it such a breath of fresh air to be at Doxa encouraging the students to explore and step into their potential and they so do.
Tree Planting
A tree planting was held on 2nd September at Doug Mills Reserve on the banks of the Maribyrnong. Organised by Fred Maddern and Nada Stojkovski this activirty was conducted in conjunction with Council and Footscray City Secondary College.
Read more...Speaker 7th April
2023 International Convention
Melbourne will host the 2023 International Convention!! While the official promotion program for the Convention will not commence until after the 2022 Convention, have a think about the opportunities to Volunteer at this wonderful event.
https://www.rotarydistrict9800.org.au/Stories/2023-international-convention
Rotary & Interplast – A Good News Story
Fifteen-year-old Rashmi dreams of being a doctor. When Interplast last met the Sri Lankan schoolgirl, she was busy studying for her Ordinary-Level examinations, undertaken in the final two years of high school.
Aiming to enrol in a biology stream for her higher studies, Rashmi’s goal was to become a doctor, and help others, as she has been helped over so many years.
Read more...Rotary supports COVID-19 Vaccinations in Timor Leste
Rotary Port Phillip in conjunction with representatives of Spend it Well, a local Timorese Government organisation, SABEH, and the Australian Government representative in Timor Leste coordinating the Australian Government response to COVID19, initiated a project to administer one dose of an anti-COVID vaccine to approximately 5,000 to 6,000 people over a two-week period.
Read more...Rotary Acknowledges Outstanding Teachers
The pandemic forced teachers to adopt new modes of teaching. It was uber timely that Rotary Altona City established the Hobsons Bay Rotary Teacher Awards program in 2018.
Focusing on early career stage teachers, experienced teachers, and teams, the awards recognise and encourage outstanding performance in local schools.
RI President Shekhar Mehta urges countries at COP26 to protect mangroves
Ryan Hyland
Rotary International President Shekhar Mehta joined the Rotary delegation to the 26th United Nations climate conference in Glasgow, Scotland, on 10 November to explore ways Rotary can work on environmental challenges, including by restoring mangroves, a crucial ecosystem that can mitigate the effects of climate change in coastal areas.
The climate summit, also known as COP26 (short for Conference of the Parties), brought together nearly 100 heads of state and governments over a two-week period to set new targets for fossil fuel emissions. This was Rotary’s first time at the annual conference.
Italian Night
Footscray Art Prize 2023
We had our first meeting for the Footscray Art Prize last Tuesday.
Philip and Suzanne will the Rotary Representatives for the 2023 Arts Prize. Maria will be president when the Footscray Arts Prize and the Footscray Rotary Arts Prize Dinner take place. The Arts Prize will be announced on late May, and the finalists will have their work displayed for about 2 months.
The junior Arts Prize finalists will have their work displayed for a month.
The Footscray Rotary dinner will occur on 17th June 2023.
Golf Day Sponsors
Thanks to all our generous Golf Day sponsors contributing to the overall success of the day, raising funds for local projects.
$1200 Sponsors: Kincrome, Davis Lawyers and Seddon Comminity Bank
$600 Sponsors: FPW Finance, Joseph Lois Real Estate
Other Donors: Tripp and Co. Pty Ltd, The Golf Clearance Outlet
Rotary International Convention 2023
Special registration fee for RI Convention.
Ensure you register for this once in a lifetime opportunity as the 114th Rotary International Convention is held in Melbourne 27-31 May 2023.
The best and cheapest registration fee of US$425 is available for 5 days only during the Houston Convention [4-8 June 2021, Houston time]. Fee increases to US$475 on 9th June. Register online at: https://convention.rotary.org/en
New Members
The club was delighted to welcome new members Rana Yawary and Khushel Kahn at our meeting on May 19th. We look forward to getting to know them and their contribution to the club.
Western Emergency Relief Network
A request for help from PDG Ross Butterworth to help WERN with flood relief. WERN is a charity changing lives every day for those marginalised in our society or suffering trauma threough emergency situations. WERN is made up from people and organisations wanting to make a difference.
Victoria has been hit by significant storms and flooding throughout the state. Our neighbours need our help, with cash, furniture and our time.
Can you help?
Read more...Club Meeting Nov 17th
At our meeting on Nov 17th we heard details of current activities and projects.
Elizabeth Drozd updated us about the Western Region Aged Care Fund.
Suzanne Zammit spoke about the Footscray Art Prize. Applications are now open and the main prize has been increased to $20 000. Our club will again sponsor the prizes for the primary and secondary students.
Jama Farah informed us of a project currently in development. He and I met with a representative from the Austin Hospital to discuss their donation of six recently superseded dialysis machines which will to be sent to Africa.
Jamie Robertson, began the Vietnam Dental Project in 1992. He visited Vietnam earlier this year to organise the visit for 2023.
The Melbourne Cup
At our meeting on Oct 20th Darcy Brennan gave a wonderful talk on the history of the Melbourne Cup, the horses, trainers and the jockeys. His love for the sport of racing was evident and he brought along photos showing the famous horses that captured people’s imaginations and hearts.
Read more...Walk West 2022
Western Health Foundation is excited to announce that registration is officially open for the 2022 WalkWest Virtual Landmarks Challenge
The virtual event will run from Wednesday 9 November through to Wednesday 30 November and best of all - it's completely free to register!
You'll have 21 days to get out and explore Melbourne's west! We're encouraging you to challenge yourself to a marathon effort of walking 42km in 21 days - the distance between Flemington Racecourse and Werribee Zoo.
Read more...Yarraville Tennis Club - a Century in the Community
Our speakers on October 6th were Dr Denise Clarke and Graham Richardson from the Yarraville Tennis Club. This a community organisation with over 100 years of service to its community and currently flourishing with over 400 members. What lessons do they have for us? The tennis club has had its ups and downs over time and staying the course through tough times has allowed the club to survive to take advantage of better times.
Beyond Water
BeyondWater and Rotary clubs across Australia have partnered together since 2007 to give 240,000 people (and counting) clean water and sanitation facilities EVERY DAY to East Africans.
What began with our founders Pete & Sharon Crean (RC Pohutukawa Coast, NZ) to give one child clean water has expanded to schools, medical clinics and remote communities across seven countries. Our leadership program, The Girl Project, now operates in four locations in Kenya and Rwanda.
With the generosity of Rotary, Interact and Rotaract Clubs thousands of students now have good toilets and somewhere to wash their hands.
Read more...Footscray Art Prize
The Footscray Art Prize will be held from July 15th-Seprtember 17th. Applications are now open and the main prize has been increased to $20 000. Maribyrnong Council has an acquisitive prize for a person living the one of surrounding LGAs. The Footscray Art Prize dinner will be held on August 5th at St Augustine’s Hall in Yarraville. Our club will again sponsor the prizes for the primary and secondary students.
Vale George Kerry
Members of the Rotary Club of Footscray mourn the sudden passing of fellow Rotarian George Kerry on Monday 20th June.
George was a quiet, ever-present gentle man. Introduced to the club by his father, George senior, he was an active member for almost 33 years. He lived the Rotary motto of ‘Service above Self’ and will be greatly missed
A funeral celebrating George's life will be held at
Holy Protection Cathedral
1-7 Albion St, Brunswick East
10.30am Thursday 30th June
Mambourin Awards
At the meeting of May 5 the club welcomed staff of Mambourin, an organisation that supports people with disability. Following a presentation by Casandra Smith, General Manager-People and Culture three awards were presented:
Most Outstanding Supported Employee of the Year Award
Louise Emmett (see photo)
“A supported employee within in our social enterprise …a vibrant and outgoing member of the team working towards a Cert 2 in Warehouse Operations and obtaining a forklift licence”
Read more...
Vale David Graham
One of our club giants, David Graham OAM, died last Friday, September 3rd, just short of his 91st birthday.
David joined the Rotary Club of Footscray in 1977 while he was headmaster of Rosamond Road Primary School. He brought a deceptively quiet energy to everything he tackled in life and he was prominent in his own community of Altona where he became Mayor, as well as in our club with one legacy being the Aged Care facility in Mephan Street. He didn’t act alone in that venture but his role was pivotal.
David’s strengths were in administration and networking and his achievements were many. His calm manner and quiet dignity belied the solid contributions he made in life and these contributions were, perhaps belatedly, recognised through him being awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia. In his later years, David (which was really his middle name, his first being Hugh) put his energy into Footscray Probus Club and he became an Honorary member of our club. He remained a source of wise counsel to anyone who asked.
He would be the first to admit that Team Graham achievements were attributable to his wife Valda and himself. She might be the model for the well-known saying, “behind every great man there is a…”
Death brings a full stop to the contribution which any person makes to society but the ripples of past actions can spread out and have effect long after. The best way we can honour David is to redouble our efforts to improve the community in which we live and which he loved.
Sincere condolenscences to Valda and family.
Jamie Robertson AM, President