Imagine a bright future for our Youth

Interact (14-18yrs)

The Interact Club at Montmorency Secondary College and the Interact Club of St Helena Secondary College have been active with several projects this year under the guidance of teachers who are Eltham Rotarians.

 Rotary Eltham Festival – the Interact Clubs combined to operate a pedalpowered slushy (drink) machine and selling their product to the public

 ANZAC Day – representatives from both clubs laid a wreath at the Dawn Service with their participation being publicly acknowledged

 Queen’s Jubilee tree planting

 Shave for a Cure held at Montmorency Secondary College Many staff and parents were co-opted by the Interactors to participate in the 2023 “Shave for a Cure” to support blood cancer patients and research for a cure.

 The Interact Club took a lead role in the planning and running of the Nepalese themed fundraising Dinner evening in aid of the Nepal project. The Dinner and associated auction and raffles raised a total of $20,000 ?

 Interactors also successfully raised over $500 for their club by operating the Rotary BBQ at Eltham Lower Park one weekend

CAVE Scholarships

The Rotary Club of Eltham continued its support of the Primary school scholarship program managed by the Citizens and Volunteers of Eltham (CAVE) to assist families with the additional expenses associated with the transition of students from primary to secondary education.

WEHI PhD Scholarship

The club continues to partner with the McFarlane family with continuation of the David McFarlane Memorial 3-year PhD scholarship at WEHI (Walter & Eliza Hall Institute) of Medical Research

ARH Indigenous Scholarship

The Rotary Club of Eltham is one of 5 clubs partnering to fund an Australian Rotary Health (ARH) Indigenous scholarship The 2022 recipient Nathan Hawke addressed the club on his education pathway, his passion to make a difference and his progress with the Paramedics course at Monash University.

Outdoor Chess Board St Helena SC

The Rotary Club of Eltham sponsored the construction of an outdoor chessboard and chess pieces at St Helena SC. This has been a very popular initiative with students vying for games at recess and lunchtimes.

First Nations Mural St Helena SC

The club has partnered with the Montmorency Secondary College to commission the painting of a wall mural depicting the indigenous history of the area. The work will be completed in early 2023/24 and be a tangible step in the reconciliation pathway.

VCE VM - Vocational Major Awards

The Rotary Club of Eltham has initiated Awards for students undertaking the VCE Vocational Major applied learning program at local Secondary colleges. The recipients will receive vouchers for the purchase equipment necessary for their vocation.

Youth Night

The Annual Youth Night celebrates the successes of the participants in the various programs in our Youth portfolio. This year we heard presentations by 2 past attendees at the National Youth Science Forum (NYSF) and representatives from our 2 Interact Clubs- Montmorency Secondary College and St Helena Secondary College. The meeting also heard from the Deputy Mayor of the Nillumbik Youth Council

Real Industry Job Interviews (RIJI)

The Banyule Nillumbik Local Learning and Employment Network (BNLLEN) coordinates a program of “Real Industry Job Interviews” for Year 9 students at local schools using volunteer employers and actual job advertisements. The experience of job application and realistic interview prepares the students for the realities of the workplace. Some Eltham Rotarians played the role of employers and used their experience to conduct interviews. They were very impressed by the generally high standard of preparation by the students

Rotary Youth Exchange to Japan

Historic Catch- Up!

One of the first initiatives of the newly formed Rotary Club of Eltham in 1974/75 was to join the District 979 Youth Exchange Program, sponsoring a student to Japan. Several exchanges of 6 or 12 months duration were sponsored to various countries in the early years of the club. It was an historic event when we contacted 1977 Exchange student Dianne Collins and subsequently met with her host father and 3 members of the Yachiyo Rotary Club who were attending the Rotary International Convention in Melbourne in June 2023

32 years partnership with Hondo City Rotary Club

In 1990 the club negotiated a partnership with the Rotary Club of Hondo City (now Rotary Club of Amakusa), Japan to exchange students for short term stays of 6 to 12 weeks duration RC of Amakusa Exchange Program ambassadors Johnny and Mamiko Akiyama visited Eltham in 2022 celebrating 50 years of participation in Rotary Youth Exchange programs, 32 years of which have been partnered with the Rotary Club of Eltham and Montmorency Secondary College.