Rotary News March / April 2016

March / April 2016 • Issue 007

YOUNG CHEF

INTERNATIONAL WOMEN’S DAY

See page 9

See page 11

50 YEARS FOR BALLYMONEY See page 15

Rotary Clubs Rise To The Challenge

Despite The Rain - Bray’s ‘Giving Tree’ a huge success The Giving Tree which has become part and parcel of Christmas in Bray was back again this year on the steps of the Holy Redeemer Church on Main Street Bray.

Bray Rotary Club who have organised and run the Christmas Giving Tree for the past 13 at the Holy Redeemer forecourt on the first two weekends in December say that despite the weather it was a huge success.

The tree has gift tags with the first names of local needy children and older people. These names are supplied by the four local St. Vincent de Paul Conferences, the Five Loaves Soup Kitchen, and Bray Cancer Support Group. This year they also included envelopes for the Simon Community so that donations could be collected for the homeless charity.

Bray Rotary asked the public to take a gift tag and buy that child or older person a present and return it to the Giving Tree. The toys and presents were then given to the charities who distribute them to the relevant families.

Over the years the people of Bray have been extremely

generous, and this year was no exception. Approximately 200 – 300 children and many older lonely people received a very welcome present due to their generosity.

Una Whelan of Bray Rotary said “ The weather was just awful and we really appreciated Lidl Bray coming to our rescue with the loan of their marquee tent; not only that but they very generously donated a huge number of presents to the Giving Tree and dropped off a basket of pastries for the crew manning the tree.

“Also Aldi Bray donated €500 worth of shopping vouchers which were gratefully received;-we had been expressly asked for shopping vouchers by a number of local conferences of Vincent de Paul.

“The homeless issue was on everybody’s mind this year and the public were very supportive to our Simon appeal. A special thanks to our local Bray Credit Union, who donated €500 to our Simon appeal. Also I must mention Tesco and Reads for their generous help.”

Pictured above is Jonathan Weir of the Dublin Simon Community (2nd from left), with Henry King, Chairman of Bray Credit Union (far right) at the Bray Rotary Club Giving Tree on the steps of Holy Redeemer Church with members Bray Rotary Club, l/r John Whelan; Therese Morgan; Arthur Fitzharris; Una Whelan; Molly Comish; Gary King and DanCourtney (President Bray Rotary)

All over Ireland Rotary Clubs are working hard towards By Dale Orr - Editor increasing their membership.

Why? Well, like any organisation our effectiveness in the local and international communities is governed by the number of active member we have. If we have more volunteers we will change more lives, its that simple. We are proud of our achievements but we want to do more.

By reviewing the 7 editions of this news paper is clear to see the difference Rotary Ireland is making to lives home and abroad. Being a member of Rotary is a win-win privilege. All over the world the 1.4 million Rotarians work to save lives, feed the hungry and educate children who aspire to be leaders. They provide disaster relief, carry water to deserts and work tirelessly to eradicate disease.

In 1985 when Rotary launched it’s PolioPlus program there were 1000 cases of Polio reported EVERY DAY over 122 countries, in 2016, at the time of print, there has been 1 solitary case of Polio reported on our planet.

To help achieve this, Rotary has raised more than $1.5 billion and provided countless volunteer hours to immunize more than 2.5 billion children. So, people all over the world win through the efforts of Rotarians and each member of every Rotary club will acknowledge Rotary has changed their lives.

All credit due to Ireland’s Rotary clubs for rising to the membership challenge. To achieve we need a target, a goal, something to aim for. If you don’t know where you are going how will you know you have arrived. Our target is to increase the membership of Rotarians in Ireland to 2500 by June 2018. We are moving in the right direction, from Ballymena to Tralee, Portlaoise to Limavady, Clonmel to Coleraine, our clubs are welcoming new members, all ordinary people embarking on a journey which will enable them to do extraordinary things.

If you are a Rotarian reading this article bring a friend to your next club meeting, show them why you are so proud of this great organisation. If you not a member of Rotary, the door to your local club is always open, why not come along, it will prove to be one of the best decisions you will ever make.

Rotary Car Ballot After several months of feverish ticket selling by many clubs in Northern Ireland, the 2015 Rotary/Peugeot car ballot was brought to a finale on Thursday 28 January when the winning ticket was drawn at a special meeting of Rotary Club of Donaghadee by well known local TV and Radio personality Karen Patterson from BBC NI. The lucky winner of a brand new Peugeot 108 was Mr Joseph Killen from Armagh and the winning ticket was sold by Rotary Club of Portadown at the Rushmere

Shopping Centre in Craigavon.

Several participating clubs were represented at the draw and heard an interesting talk by Karen on her career in journalism.

Arrangements are currently being made to present the car to the winner, the participation of so many Northern Ireland clubs ensured the success of ballot and raised many thousands of pounds for local charities.

Rotary Club of Donaghadee plan to run the ballot again in 2016.

Peugeot Representative Ken Scott, Karen Patterson BBC NI and Club President Robert McIlveen.

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ROTARY NEWS

March / April 2016

20 Reasons to Join Rotary

1. Friendship: In an increasingly complex world, Rotary provides one of the most basic of human needs: the need for friendship and fellowship.

2. Business Development: The second original reason for Rotary’s beginning is business development. Everyone needs to network. Rotary consists of a cross section of every business community. Its members come from all walks of life. Rotarians help each other.

10. Assistance when Travelling: Because there are Rotary clubs everywhere, many a Rotarian in need of a doctor, lawyer, hotel, dentist, advice, etc., while travelling has found assistance through Rotary.

14. Vocational Skills: Every Rotarian is expected to take part in the growth and development of his or her own profession or vocation, to serve on committees, and to teach youth about one’s job or vocation. Rotary helps to make one a better person.

11. Entertainment: Every Rotary club and district has parties and activities that provide diversion in one’s life. Rotary holds conferences, conventions, assemblies, and institutes that provide entertainment in addition to Rotary information, education, and service.

15. The Development of Ethics: Rotarians practice a 4-Way Test that governs one’s ethical standards. Rotarians are expected to be ethical in business and personal relationships.

3. Personal Growth and Development: Membership in Rotary continues one’s growth and education in human relations and personal development.

4. Leadership Development: Rotary is an organisation of leaders and successful people. Serving in Rotary positions is like a college education. Leadership: learning how to motivate, influence and lead leaders.

17. Prestige: Rotary members are prominent people who are leaders in all disciplines. Rotary is the oldest and most prestigious service club in the world. Rotarians are people who make decisions and influence policy.

5. Citizenship in the Community: Membership in a Rotary club makes one a better community citizen. The average Rotary club consists of the most active citizens of any community.

18. Nice People: Rotarians above all are nice people — the nicest people on the face of the earth. They are important people who follow the policy of it is nice to be important but it is important to be nice.

6. Continuing Education: Each week at Rotary there is a program designed to keep one informed about what is going on in the community, the country, and the world. Meetings provide an opportunity to listen to different speakers and a variety of timely topics.

19. The Absence of an “Official Creed”: Rotary has no secret handshake, no secret policy, no official creed, no secret meeting, or rituals. It is an open society of men and women who simply believe in helping others.

7. Fun: Rotary is fun, a lot of fun. Each meeting is fun. The club projects are fun. Social activities are fun. The service is fun.

8. Public Speaking Skills: Many individuals who joined Rotary were afraid to speak in public. Rotary develops confidence and skill in public communication and the opportunity to practice and perfect these skills.

12. The Development of Social Skills: Every week and at various events and functions, Rotary develops one’s personality, social skills, and people skills. Rotary is for people who like people.

9. Citizenship in the World: Every Rotarian wears a pin that says _Rotary International. There are few places on the globe that do not have a Rotary club. Every Rotarian is welcome — even encouraged — to attend any club in any nation and geographical region. This means instant friends in both one’s own community and in the world community.

13. Family Programs: Rotary provides one of the world’s largest youth exchange programs; high school and college clubs for future Rotarians; opportunities for spouse involvement; and a host of activities designed to help family members in growth and the development of family values.

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20. The Opportunity to Serve: Rotary is a service club. Its business is humankind. Its product is service. Rotarians provide community service to both local and international communities.

This is perhaps the best reason for becoming a Rotarian: the chance to do something for somebody else; to sense the selffulfilment that comes in the process; and the return of that satisfaction to one’s own life. It is richly rewarding.

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16. Cultural Awareness: Around the world, practically every religion, country, culture, race, creed, political persuasion, language, colour, and ethnic identity is found in Rotary. It is a cross section of the world’s citizens from every background.

Rotarians become aware of their cultures and learn to love and work with people everywhere. They become better citizens of their countries in the process.

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ROTARY NEWS

March / April 2016

Cut To The But!

Attending the RI Institute held at Kenilworth,England; LR; PDG Verity Swan (Dublin North), RI President Ravi Ravindran, PDG Sean Doyle (Sligo).

Limerick Thomond Rotary Club Annual Christmas Remembrance Tree Project Limerick Thomond Rotary Club has provided a Christmas Remembrance Tree in Limerick City since 2009. We provide a public space where people can remember loved ones who have died or who are unable to be home for Christmas. We meet thousands of people who come and share their personal stories with us and it is a great honour to work in this public space every December.

Each year the club selects four charities to partner with and they benefit from the funds raised. The charities for 2015 were Cuan Mhuire Drug Addiction Treatment Centre, Dóchas, providing services to people with autism, Fighting Blindness, the Rape Crisis Centre and Rotary’s programme to eradicate Polio from the face of the earth.

Volunteers from the four charities worked on the tree each day throughout the project which ran from 2 to 23 December 2015; the wettest December on record in Ireland. In addition to people remembering their loved ones in Limerick we had requests from people in Australia, Jordan and the United States to place a yellow ribbon on the tree for them.

People and businesses in Limerick City and County were very generous and provided pro bono support to set up, run and take down the infrastructure needed to run the project. Many businesses generously provided food and drinks to our Rotary and charity volunteers.

The project concluded with a well attended remembrance service at the Augustinian Church on 6 January 2016 where the thousands of ribbons placed on the tree were laid out in the Church for all to see. It was a wonderful experience and a fitting conclusion to a community based service project that saw Limerick Thomond Rotarians working among the public for twenty two continuous December days The Remembrance Tree project was given much coverage on the club’s Facebook page and Twitter account. There was good quality local and regional broadcast media coverage and RTE Radio and TV gave film and on site and studio interview time.

The project has raised in excel of €112,000 to support the work of people and organisations working in our communities.

"Cut to the 'but'!" Is something my son orders from time to time. He knows when I am leading up to something.

He has an uncanny sense that a "but" is on the way and he is usually right! I like working my way around to raising my head above the parapet. It might get shot off! My son wants me to go straight into it, I can't!

Youghal Rotary is in great shape. The recent award for being the third best club in the district for Foundation reflects that. The membership embraces a whole series of activities.

The Christmas Memorial Tree is well established in the town and the funds generated by the contributions are welcomed by the various charities which benefit from it. A "round-robin" dinner generates a little more.

There is the Youth Leadership and a range of other activities which activities include mock interviews, cooking and photography competitions. All are well run, all are becoming part of the school year.

A regular after dinner speaker is welcome both for the educational aspect but also is stimulating to the conversation whether postprandial or not. Socially, intellectually there is a great welcome in the club for members and visitors.

MurderMystery Dinner, International Cuisine Night, Shelter boxes, international tours, visits from and to other clubs, we have done the lot! Old

reading glasses, printer cartridges, mobile phones, old bicycles have been collected and passed on. Youghal Rotary is firmly part of the Youghal community. It is a can- do, will- do club.

The membership is dynamic, probably due to the majority female composition so a few more males would be a welcome gender balance. Some clubs are very formal, some less so. Youghal is firmly in the later category. Which helps the club and the membership.

All in all it is a thriving club with a solid membership and good attendance( which speaks for itself).

Many of the members are there since the club was founded and since that foundation, there has been a solid influx of new members over the years.

We may have lost a few but all have been replaced. Cut to the but! I can hear you shouting, where is the "but"?

Well, like many Rotary clubs there is a difficulty encouraging someone to take the chair. There , I have said it!

When you look at the Youghal membership all are well used to voluntary organisations, all have lots of experience in a variety of roles at committee meetings. So why is there a problem taking the chair? It is only for a year. You would imagine that someone who is or has taken the chair in one organisation would do the same in Rotary. And yet they don't. All are firmly committed to Rotary.

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My suggestion is that we need to understand the reluctance of people to take the chair, understand and accept and if possible surmount it. Rotary as an international organisation has a huge need to maintain that organisation, to ensure standards, to support members where needed.

And part of that involves lots of meetings outside and beyond the club.

Meetings like PEPS. But, there you are,.... The "but"...... but not everyone is willing to get involved beyond the local club. Willing to do a lot at local level but not beyond.

Is it possible the notion of PEPS, and other regional and national meetings, of going away for a weekend may be a disincentive to people taking the chair? I think everyone is happy to function at a local level. But for many it is local and no more. Is there a way around the issue or will clubs end up rotating the chair among those willing to take it? Could we be losing potential chairpersons who, for whatever reason, will not commit to meetings outside the weekly meeting and probably in another town? Is formality itself an issue?

This is a debate we need to have, an issue we need to resolve. Not just in Youghal but in many more towns as well. With all the modern technology we have at our disposal- emails, FaceTime, telephones, and so on, could a new chairperson be supported and encouraged without the need to travel?

Killadeas Sensory Garden Project The President of the Rotary Club of Enniskillen, Ken Rainey has chosen as his main charity for the year the development of a sensory garden and recreational area at the local Killadeas Day Care Centre based in Enniskillen. The project was initially mentioned to President Ken

by Lord Brookeborough who attended a Club Meeting to initially launch the project in Summer 2015. Also at the meeting was the Centre Manager Patricia Griffith who outlined the plans.

The centre was originally started to provide day care opportunities to those with learning disabilities, but it has now grown to include seven centres throughout Fermanagh. The main centre in Enniskillen provides day care facilities such as therapeutic rooms, multi-sensory and soft play rooms, it is open Monday to Friday each week.

Initially there was a green area which could be used to provide outdoor facilities to include a recreational area with suitably designed swings for adults and other specialised outdoor leisure equipment. There will also be space to provide an outdoor garden area for

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Kildea sensory guard with Enniskillen Rotary

growing vegetables and flowers in raised beds to accommodate those who are in wheelchairs. An outdoor facility such as this is like a dream come true for the service users who attend the facility and those who support them.

The initial plans were drawn up and approved by everyone concerned, and they agreed that the project should proceed. The estimated cost to develop the site, purchase all necessary equipment and make it

ready for use would be in the region of £40,000. It is hoped that the project would be complete by Summer 2016.

The first sod was cut in November 2015 and the project is currently on schedule with all the ground work complete and tenders are being sought for the specialised equipment required. The project also received a boost with local company Balcas based in Enniskillen providing all the timber required for

fencing the entire perimeter area.

President Ken is delighted with the progress, and his fund-raising efforts have surpassed his expectations with £32,000 being allocated to the project to date. The Club is thankful for the District Grant received amounting to £6,500 and District Governor Declan Tyner recently visited the site and was really impressed with the Project and the benefit it will give to the service users.

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ROTARY NEWS

March / April 2016

Rotary Club Bangor

Presentation of a Cheque £900 by Aodh McCay to Adel Rouse (SuperValue) for Action Cancer. included Rotarians Harry Friar and Colm Gallagher.

The Rotary Club of Banbridge recently paid a visit to the Kingspan Rugby stadium where they were welcomed by Ulster Branch President Bobby Stewart. The first part of the visit took them around various parts of the stadium including the changing rooms, the stands and the gym.

Irish international Tommy Bowe was undertaking some light training in the gym at the time which led to some Rotarians commenting that they felt they could do at least as well as he was doing! Thankfully, they did not have the opportunity to put their bravado to the test!

The second part of the visit was to the recently opened Nevin Spence Centre where they were able to view the excellent display illustrating the development of Ulster rugby throughout the years.

Particularly poignant, however, was the section devoted to Nevin Spence, who, tragically, was killed, along with his father and brother, in a farming accident.

The afternoon concluded with an excellent meal in Ormeau Golf Club.

Banbridge Club President being welcomed to Kingspan by Ulster Branch President Bobby Stewart together with together with members and friends.

Dundalk Rotary Club

PORTLAOISE YOUTH LEADERSHIP Portlaoise Rotary club was very proud to be represented among the 24 young leaders who travelled to the European Parliament two weeks ago. Ms Emily Davis from Scoil Chriost Ri, Portlaoise acquitted herself very well and was thrilled to represent Portlaoise Rotary Club.

(Pic name:- YL Club Final).

Emily is pictured with president Andrew, the interview judges and fellow Laois students. L to R Mary Callanan (Judge), Matt Kennelly (Judge) Kerry Carroll, (Portlaoise College); Mide Olubowale (Scoil Chriost Ri); Emily Davis, Winner (Scoil Chriost Ri); Liam Oxley, (Heywood Community school); Damien Carter (Heywood Community school); Kas Jatkowska, (Judge); Andrew Cremin, Club President.

Dundalk is being celebrated beginning with a Special Dinner and meeting held last July attended by Rotarians and their partners.

Assistant Governor Mary Graham and District Governor Declan Tyner were in attendance.

Following on, we plan a Special Lunch on the 9th April next in Ballymascanlon House Hotel Dundalk when neighbouring Clubs and other valued Social Connections will be in attendance.

We will celebrate the tripartite meetings of

Larne, Omagh and Dundalk which began 33 years ago,and we understand holds the Record in R.I.B.I for the longest running Inter Club Project.

The idea for the Project started at the R.I.B.I Conference in Blackpool in 1983 when Gussie Hynes in Omagh the late Michael Mc Guinness Dundalk and the Late Adam Mc Kinley from Larne enjoyed a cup of Coffee together.

We will also be enjoying our Golfing Links with Coleraine Club which began in 1996 and has

continued with Golf on alternate Courses since then. On International scene we travel in May to St Neotes Club near Newmarket Racecourse in England and will be joined by Tournai from Belgium for a three day Rotary Social Event.

This very sociable gathering began in 1995. We are of course continuing our usual projects such as meals on wheels each Monday, Remembrance Tree and Shrove Tuesday Morning Breakfast but this Special once off Golden Jubilee will make it a year to remember.

Rotary Clothes Appeal Rotary and Gorta Self Help Africa are working together to “Be a gift to the World”.

What you don’t want, Gorta Self Help Africa will sell in their shops.

They need what you do not want to change lives.

Bring any unwanted items as well as clothing and fashion items, in any condition, to the Rotary Ireland District meetings.

Everything you donate can be sold by Gorta in their shops. They accept books, CDs, DVDs, Bric-abrack, old jewellery and yes, they can sell the suitcase or bag that you use for donating – the only items they can’t accept are toys and electrical goods!

Gorta Self Help Africia’s vision is a world where there is no hunger and where the poorest communities have the means to create prosperous futures for themselves and their children.

George Kennedy, Rotary Antrim President and Ciara Tallen

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Sean Dunne and Newbridge Rotary President George Kennedy

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ROTARY NEWS

March / April 2016

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Project H2O Keringet, Kenya Water is an extremely precious resource but around the world, the absence or scarcity of water continues to be an issue especially in rural and remote areas of the developing world. Rotary Ireland are addressing the problem through Project H2O and although the need is great, with your support we are making a huge difference.

People living in Keringet have been relying on natural water sources, such as rivers, streams, shallow wells or stagnant ponds, which are often contaminated with human and animal wastes. Rotary visiting delegation DG Declan Tyner, DG Elect Gerry Kierans and International Services Chair Sean Dunne have seen firsthand how poor, underdeveloped and food insecure the Keringet area is.

The funds raised through Rotary’s Project H2O are being invested in a range of water development projects in Keringet in Kenya’s Rift Valley - and specifically focus upon the establishment of ‘rainwater harvesting’ systems for homes and schools in the region. These interventions introduced by Rotary and Gorta-Self Help Africa are transforming the local community - with a knock-on positive effect on diet, health and well being.

At Rotary we understand that water is the key to life.

Everything starts with water. Water for washing,

cleaning, cooking and drinking. Without water students miss many days of school due to related illnesses. Girls are more likely to drop out of school when they do not have access to adequate latrines.

With Project H2O the women and children benefit first. Rural women are being brought into the mainstream decision making processes through our partner Gorta-Self Help Africa and as a result of safe drinking water being made available at schools, the attendance has increased substantially.

Women collecting dirty water in Keringet, Kenya Clean water is a huge challenging but together Rotary (15,389 people) helping them to improve their clean and Gorta-Self Help Africa are changing lives. Over the water challenges and in turn their food/nutrition, course of three years we are working with 3,371 families economic, health and education status.

Ballymena Rotary In December 2014 I applied for a place on the Rotary Youth Camp scheme which is organised

by Rotary International through the local clubs. In my case I was delighted to be accepted for a place on the San Diego Youth Symphony Orchestra 2015 camp. My application was supported by Ballymena Rotary, and in June I attended an orientation morning in Dungannon led by Seamus Walsh of Dungannon Rotary, who gave us a lot of good practical advice and information. I also was able to meet some of the other young people involved, who were going to be taking part in a wide range of activities both in America and on the continent of Europe. I had already booked my flights and had been given the details of the Fennell family who I would be staying with. Through Rotary I was also able to make contact with three other young people, two of

them from Cork and one from Derry, who would be at the same camp. We made arrangements to travel together, from Dublin to San Francisco and then on to San Diego.

This was a very exciting journey for me as it was my first overseas trip without my family. We made our airport transfer without any problems and it was great to be met by the Rotarians when we got off the plane in San Diego.

We were responsible for our travel costs but through the generosity of Rotary and the host families we stayed there free of charge. In my case I also had the benefit of a £500.00 Arts Bursary kindly provided by Ballymena Arts Partnership. After a day or so of settling down and adjusting to the time zone we started our orchestral rehearsals. The pattern was an early start for orchestra each day and then we had the afternoons and weekends off,

The Four Way Test ... of the things we say and do: Is it the TRUTH? Is it FAIR to all concerned?

Will it build GOOD WILL and BETTER FRIENDSHIP? Will it be BENEFICIAL to all concerned

with the occasional day set aside for trips. And so I managed to get to visit the famous San Diego Sea World and of course there was a trip to the Hollywood Boulevard and Studios. Throughout all this I was getting to know

the other "guest musicians" as well as the other members of the orchestra. My Irish fellow-travellers reported back some interesting questions they had been asked by some of the Americans, such as whether we had mobile phones in Ireland, even whether we had carrots!

So we mustn't have appeared to be as sophis-

ticated as we had imagined we were.

We performed in four concerts in different venues in the second week of our visit. The repertoire was challenging and by the end of the three weeks I think I had made great strides in my orchestral playing.

San Diego is a lovely city to visit, and the weather wasn't quite as scorching

as it might have been in other parts of America. I felt I was very much welcomed by the Fennell family who had teenage children of their own and made it easy for me to fit in. I am very grateful to Rotary for making this whole adventure possible, and I would thoroughly recommend the experience to other young people aged 16 to 23 years.

The Limerick Thomond Rotary Club presentation of Cheques which was raised by Yellow Ribbon Tree which was centred in Limerick City to Verena Trapey, Midwest Rape Crisis Centre, Fighting Blindness, Colette O'Mara , Cuan Mhure, Michael Guerin and Dochas, Pamela Downes.

The Limerick Thomond Rotary Club raised 20,000 in funds for these particular Charties on their Christmas Appeal.

Limerick Thomond Rotary Club For the past few years Limerick Thomond Rotary Club have organised a Remembrance Tree at Bedford Row, Limerick where members of the public are invited to write the names of loved ones on yellow ribbons which are then displayed on the Remembrance Tree for a

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period of 3 weeks prior to Christmas.

After Christmas, all ribbons are displayed on the altar of the local Augustinian Church where a mass / service takes place.

Limerick Thomond Rotary Club have generated a high amount of charity funds over the past few years – all funds are distributed locally.

Members of the charities to benefit also provide assistance at the Tree for three weeks prior to Christmas – every year.

Different charities are selected every year.

Send your club news today: Tel: 01-8400200 • email: info@rotarynews.ie

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ROTARY NEWS

March / April 2016

Athena Richards, In Her Own Words "In December 2014 I applied for a place on the Rotary Youth Camp scheme which is organised by Rotary International through the local clubs.

In my case I was delighted to be accepted for a place on the San Diego Youth Symphony Orchestra 2015 camp. My application was supported

by Ballymena Rotary, and in June I attended an orientation morning in Dungannon led by Seamus Walsh of Dungannon Rotary, who gave us a lot of good practical advice and information.

I also was able to meet some of the other young people involved, who were going to be taking part in a wide range of activities both in America and on the continent of Europe. I had already booked my flights and had been given the details of the Fennell family who I would be staying with. Through Rotary I was also able to make contact

with three other young people, two of them from Cork and one from Derry, who would be at the same camp. We made arrangements to travel together, from Dublin to San Francisco and then on to San Diego.

This was a very exciting journey for me as it was my first overseas trip without my family. We made our airport transfer without any problems and it was great to be met by the Rotarians when we got off the plane in San Diego.

We were responsible for our travel costs but through the generosity of Rotary and the host families we stayed there free of charge. In my case I also had the benefit of a £500.00 Arts Bursary kindly provided by Ballymena Arts Partnership. After a day or so of settling down and adjusting to the time zone we started our orchestral rehearsals. The pattern

was an early start for orchestra each day and then we had the afternoons and weekends off, with the occasional day set aside for trips. And so I managed to get to visit the famous San Diego Sea World and of course there was a trip to the Hollywood Boulevard and Studios.

Throughout all this I was getting to know the other "guest musicians" as well as the other members of the orchestra. My Irish fellow-travellers reported back some interesting questions they had been asked by some of the Americans, such as whether we had mobile phones in Ireland, even whether we had carrots! So we mustn't have appeared to be as sophisticated as we had imagined we were.

We performed in four concerts in different venues in the second week of our visit. The repertoire was challenging and by the end of the three weeks I think I had made great strides in my orchestral playing. San Diego is a lovely city to visit, and the weather wasn't quite as scorching as it might have been in other parts of America. I felt I was very much welcomed by the Fennell family who had teenage children of their own and made it easy for me to fit in. I am very grateful to Rotary for making this whole adventure possible, and I would thoroughly recommend the experience to other young people aged 16 to 23 years."

Rotary Supporting Rotary in Nepal As the sun rises on a crisp February morning in Dublin, news of another aftershock in Nepal emerges. The shake measuring 5.5 on the richter scale, is not severe enough to cause fatalities nor significant structural damage, but its emotional impact serves to remind the Nepali people of the devastating hardship, the severe suffering and loss that they have experienced over the past twelve months. The aftershock taunts the almighty power of nature, and leaves a universal underlying sense of fear and worry; what if.

Roll back almost a year; at mid-day on Saturday the 25th of April, the history books of Nepal were changed forever as a devastating earthquake measuring 7.8 on the richter scale brought the country to its knees. Followed closely by a subsequent quake in early May measuring 7.3; the final death toll when the dust finally settled on this near obliterated nation exceeded eight and a half thousand children, women and men. For those who lived; over sixteen thousand had sustained significant injuries and four hundred and seventy-three thousand homes were destroyed.

Back in Dublin, Rotary Clubs looked on in horror as our fellow Rotarians in Nepal, battled to alleviate the immediate needs in their respective areas. Wanting desperately to support,Past District Governor Phillip Beggs, built awareness around the situation and needs in Nepal and successfully encouraged the clubs around Ireland to support in whatever way they could. Two Rotary clubs in Dublin combined efforts to directly support the incredible efforts of a Rotary Club in Nepal; the Rotary Club of Bhaktapur and it’s 30 members who set about making a difference in their shattered city. Bhaktapur, the city of devotees, ten miles east of Kathmandu, is a jewel in the crown of Nepali living history. This historic city, a UNESCO world heritage site, burdened its fair share of the damage; temples crumbled, buildings fell and homes were razed to the ground, trapping inside all those unable to escape in time.

Initially the Rotary Club established an emergency health camp to alleviate the immediate need. Subsequently Rotarian attention turned to the vast number of homeless in the city, accentuated in criticality by the fast approaching monsoon season. Establishing an emergency

rehousing program, the Rotary Club of Bhaktapur reached out to its international network of Rotary Clubs for financial support to establish homes for families who found themselves homeless owing to the devastating earthquake.

Working together the Rotary Club of Fingal, Dublin and the Dublin Central Rotary Club successfully raised over €9,000 to support the Rotary Club of Bhaktapur’s emergency rehousing program. This considerable sum was raised through two incredibly well supported and much enjoyed nights in aid of Nepal. The first, organised by Dave Murray, Past President of the Rotary Club of Fingal, saw over 100 attend this night in aid of Nepal at the popular Indie Spice restaurant in Swords, Co. Dublin. The staff, predominantly Nepali waived their costs for the night and enabled the club to raise over €6,000 in aid of the Bhaktapur rehousing program. The second night in aid of Nepal was organised by Niamh Mulholland, President of the Rotary Club of Dublin Central at Saagar Indian Restaurant on Harcourt street, Dublin. Over 70 attended a very enjoyable evening supported by Saagar’s exceptionally supportive owner and staff, many of whom are Nepali and helped to make the night an incredible success, with a sum of over €3,000 raised. Combining both sums, a formal presentation of the cheque and a grand sum total of over €9,000 was made at the Christmas celebration of the Rotary Club of Fingal, Dublin to the Rotary Club of Bhaktapur.

Unfortunately, the Rotary Club of Bhaktapur has encountered a number of environmental challenges outside of their control, namely the closure of the Nepal India border over an extended period due to political disagreements. At the time of writing, the borders are still closed and have been for five months resulting in a severe shortage of fuel, medicine and other supplies into Nepal. Unfortunately, the Rotary Club of Bhaktapur has been forced to postpone house building as supplies cannot be sourced. However, to ensure continued progress in support of local people, the Rotary Club of Bhaktapur identified two urgent needs that they could address using the funds donated by the Rotary Club of Central Dublin and the Rotary Club of Fingal Dublin, irrespective of the border closure. The first was the

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need for warm, heavy blankets to keep rehoused families warm through the bitter Himalayan winter. These blankets were purchased and distributed to the appreciating families. With night temperatures dipping below zero, these blankets can be lifesavers especially for the many frail and elderly survivors. The second was the need for new income streams for families, in the face of a collapsed tourism industry post earthquake. In response to this need, the Rotary Club of Bhaktapur has established a Women's Empowerment Project to provide ongoing training in the production, marketing and selling of hand-made products;empowering women to provide their families with an income.

The successful Women’s Empowerment Programme has seen industrious and enterprising ladies of Bhaktapur trained in a wide range of skills including;shoe and sandal making, candy making, liquid soap, cushion and candle making. Candle making being of particularly relevance considering the power cuts of near on fourteen hours per day in Nepal.

Please see https://www.facebook.com/RotaryBhaktapur for more stories and photographs demonstrating how the Rotary Club of Bhaktapur are making a difference in the wake of the devastating earthquakes using the funds donated by the Rotary Club of Dublin Fingal, and the Dublin Central Rotary Club.

The Bhaktapur Rotary Club need your continued help through donations to fund their efforts and implore the Rotary Clubs from around the world for their support.

If you wish to support, we thank you and the Rotary Bhaktapur Bank Account Details that Funds can be transferred to are as follows: Bank:Nepal Investment Bank Ltd, Seepadole Branch, Bhaktapur, Nepal Account Number: 00201030001909 Swift Code: NIBLNPKT Contact Name: Om Krishna Shrestha(President of the Bhaktapur Rotary Club 2013-14. Membership ID: 5966603.) Om is also the Bhaktapur Rotary Club Program Manager for the Emergency Rehousing Program and related projects.

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ROTARY NEWS

March / April 2016

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Limerick Rotary Welcome New Member Limerick Thomond Rotary Club are glad to announce that Professor Don Barry, President of University of Limerick, has been elected as an Honorary Member of Limerick Thomond Rotary Club.

A graduate of UCC and Yale University, Professor Barry was Lecturer, Statutory Lecturer and Head of the Department of Statistics in UCC. He became the first holder of the Chair in Statistics at UL in January 1997.

In addition Professor Barry has spent a number of semesters as a Visiting Professor at Yale University and was the founding Director of the Statistical Consulting Unit at the University of Limerick.

Professor Barry has published widely in Statistics literature and in collaboration with researchers in other disciplines including medicine, epidemiology, biology, and social science.

Professor Barry took up the post of Vice President Academic & Registrar at the University of Limerick in May 2004 and was appointed President of the University of Limerick by the Governing Authority in May 2007.

Launching the Killarney Rotary Young Musician of the Year were, back, Eduard Schmidt-Zorner, John O'Mahony, Killarney Rotary President John O'Sullivan, Sean Treacy, Barry Murphy, James Tarrant and Angela O'Connor, front. Grace O'Neill, Ciara Irwin Foley and Paul Sherry.

Killarney Young Musician Of The Year KILLARNEY ROTARY CLUB was hitting all the right notes in advance of its 16th Young Musician of the Year competition and concert.

The event, held in association with Killarney Advertiser, offers rising stars of the musical world an unrivalled opportunity to showcase their talents.

The contest takes place in the Kerry Diocesan Youth Service centre, Fair Hill, Killarney, on Friday, March 4, and Saturday, March 5, with the final-night concert being staged in the nearby Franciscan Friary on Saturday, March 5, at 8pm.

“As always the event is proving hugely popular and we have had approximately 150 entries this year,” said Killarney Rotary President John O’Sullivan at the launch in The Malton Hotel.

“Everyone is welcome to the concert in the Franciscan Friary on Saturday, March 5.”

The Killarney Rotary Young Musician of the Year competition has contributed hugely to raising the standards of classical music performance in the county over the years, said organiser Sean Treacy of Killarney Rotary Club.

“The objective of the competition is to create a forum for schoolgoing musicians

Anton O’Carroll, President of Limerick Thomond Rotary Club welcomed Professor Don Barry and President of the University of Limerick as a most valued member of society and presented him with his rotary badge with Members of the Limerick Thomond Rotary Club at the Strand Hotel.

of all standards to perform in public in their chosen discipline,” said Sean. It was Sean and his fellow Rotarian Barry Murphy who first established the contest in 2001. “Not only does it give young people the opportunity to perform alongside their peers, but the contest also opens up new avenues for showcasing their talents,” said Barry.

Killarney Rotary president John O’Sullivan added: “We are delighted to welcome Killarney Advertiser as media partner and trophies sponsor for the third consecutive year.”

The overall winner of the 2015 event was singer Megan O’Neill, who competed in the over-16 voice category in the prestigious event.

Meanwhile, talented young Killarney pianist Jack McCrohan was the first winner of the James Gleeson Memorial Trophy at last year’s Killarney Rotary Young Musician competition.

Jack, nine, from Ross Road, impressed all when he made a guest appearance at a Killarney Rotary lunch at The Malton Hotel a month later where he dazzled Rotarians and hotel guests alike with a virtuoso performance. James’s wife Grace and son Eoin presented the trophy in his memory.

Rotary Club Lurgan

Rotary Club Lurgan presenting cheque

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The Rotary Club of Lurgan has been helping PIPS Upper Bann (Public Initiative for the Prevention of Suicide and Self harm) over the last 3 years.

PIPS is Suicide awareness charity based in Mount Zion house, they aim to support anyone affected by suicide or self-harm and to help improve positive mental health and emotional well-being in our community.

We first donated £4000-00 to

help fund their counselling services and the present scheme for which we are donating £3000-00 is to help fund the “Climbing Out of Depression" training course which was developed by PIPS Upper Bann own Psychotherapist Jackie McCrum.

Climbing Out of Depression is a 4 hour course that aims to support the improvement of mental health in our community, specifically around depression.

It is ideal for those who think

they may be depressed, also for those caring for someone with depression whether in a home or work environment and for any who simply wishes to educate themselves on this subject.

The photograph includes Seanna Nugent Chairperson of PIPS Upper Bann, Canice McGivern PIPS committee member, Dessie Gregg President of the Rotary Club of Lurgan and Peter Ryan Foundation Chair of the Rotary Club of Lurgan.

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ROTARY NEWS

March / April 2016

The Inaugural Rotary Club of Londonderry Peace Scholarships

President Letterkenny Rotary Club, Gerry Burke together with Vice President Paddy Delap and other members presenting Fr Eamonn Kelly for Marys Meals, with proceeds from the Winter Woollie Warmer, 5k Race & Walk in November last.

Peadar Conway, Victoria Short and Micheal Staunton at the Rotary Club of Dundalk fundraising breakfast on Pancake Tuesday in The Crowne Plaza.

Remembrance Tree Project in Cork This project is run jointly each year by Cork Bishopstown Rotary Club and Cork Rotary Club. This year the project ran from the 12th to the 25th of December outside Brown Thomas on Patrick Street. The tree was manned by the members of the clubs, their families, friends and members from the local Charities being supported. Under extremely bad weather conditions they manned the tree the 13days (136 hours).

An ecumenical prayer service was held on the 9th of January in St Peter & Paul’s church attended by The Lord Mayor and DG Declan.

Donations at the tree this year exceeded €60,000.00 and is being presented to the designated local charities

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The Rotary Club of Londonderry recently celebrated the launch of the inaugural Rotary Club of Londonderry Peace Scholarships at an event hosted by the Ulster University at their Magee campus on Monday 18th January 2016.

Professor Paul Carmichael, Dean of the Faculty of Social Sciences, welcomed the Rotary Club of Londonderry President Peter O’Connor and members at a lunch, as well as the two inaugural scholars, Hugo Maguire and Garry Lynn.

In his address, President Peter O’Connor stated that “these scholarships are supported as a legacy to the Rotary Global Peace Forum held in Derry as part of the City of Culture 2013, in which Ulster University’s International Conflict Research Institute (INCORE) played an integral part”.

The conference was the culmination of a programme of events including Rotary Global Peace Forums in Berlin, Honolulu and Hiroshima. The aim was to contribute to Reconciliation, Learning and Full Self Expression for those committed to Peace.

We wanted to bring together people who have something to say about peace building - and bring them to Derry during its year as the UK’s first ever City of Culture.

That year - 2013 was also: 1. The 400th anniversary of the granting of the city’s charter and the creation of the name Londonderry; 2. The 90th anniversary of the Rotary Club of Londonderry; and 3. The 15th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement – the accord between the men and women of this Island (North and South, Unionist, Nationalist, Loyalist, Republican and those unaffiliated with any of these factions), that laid the foundation for Peace here.

Our partners at INCORE designed a programme which provided delegates with the opportunity to engage with local and International peace activists, political, community and business leaders, all in the context of the ongoing culturally led regeneration underway in this great city. Working with Professor Brandon Hamber and the team at INCORE we secured speakers from Europe, Africa, Asia, the United States and Ireland – North and South.

Amongst others, we welcomed Rotary International World President Sakuji Tanaka and the former president of the Basque Country - Juan José Ibarretxe Markuartu who provided lessons of economic and social transformation from his time in charge of the Basque Country.

We had workshops, panel sessions and talks and – in the very best tradition of our Rotary club we had a Gala Ball at which broadcaster & journalist Fergal Keane gave the key note address.

Visiting delegates got a unique opportu-

nity to witness peace building as it is unfolding here, with participation from many of those who have made, and continue to make, telling contributions to the Northern Irish Peace Process and the emerging reconciliation in and between Northern Ireland, the Republic of Ireland, Britain and the rest of the world.

The event was described by those running the City of Culture Programme as THE most significant private sector initiative of the year of Culture. It raised over £180,000 in revenues.

Rotary have now provided support to the value of £42,000 to support students undertaking the MSc in Applied Peace and Conflict Studies on a full-time basis.

Three further awards will be made, two to support one local scholar in each academic year 2016/17 and 2017/18 and one to support an international scholar in 2016/17.

President Peter O’Connor stated “We are delighted to have INCORE in Derry and to be able to offer young people the chance to come and study Peace and Conflict studies here in the city. We are equally pleased that both Gary Lynn and Hugo Maguire the first recipients of the scholarships - are here today. The legacy of our peace conference lives on in these scholarships and in all that Gary, Hugo and the other young people who follow them will contribute to peace and reconciliation in their homes, their workplaces and their communities into the future”.

Special thanks were extended to the Rotary Global Peace Forum Steering Committee for their efforts to secure this funding. The members of the Steering Committee were James Buchanan PHF, Gerard Finnegan PHF, Patrick McGonagle PHF, Alan Rodden PHF and Chaired by John McMonagle PHF. Both scholars expressed their sincere appreciation of the support from The Rotary Club of Londonderry and Professor Brandon Hamber, the John Hume and Thomas P. O’Neill Chair in Peace, articulated the importance of such support from the University’s local stake holders and of the investment made in the next generation of peace builders.

Peace Scholar Hugo Maguire said ‘This scholarship has enabled me to commit to this course unburdened by the financial constraints which would have impacted on my ability to focus exclusively on my academic objective. It has also allowed me the prospect of continuing my research in a subject area which I believe is integral to achieving a stable and peaceful society. My goal is to develop my knowledge of this subject through undertaking further doctorate level studies. This scholarship has ensured that I am one step closer to achieving this goal.’

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ROTARY NEWS

March / April 2016

Rotary Club Of Mullingar On Monday, February 15th, 2016 Mullingar Rotary Club members and their Guests numbering 60 people attended a dinner followed by an address given by Mr. Declan Coyle.

Mr Coyle is a Director of ‘Andec Communications’ , a training and media company founded in 1990, the author of “The Green Platform” and a much sought after international conference speaker on the topics of leadership, management and organisation development.

The speaker was introduced by The Rotary Club President, Oliver Fay who had arranged the meeting and was at school with Mr. Coyle. President Oliver outlined Mr. Coyle’s career after he left school from being

ordained as a Priest in Ireland, obtaining Masters degrees at 2 Universities in Ottawa, Canada, subsequently spending many years working as a priest in the slums of The Philippines and Taiwan before returning to Ireland to become a world renowned authority on how to obtain a fulfilling and happy life and career.

In his address Declan used many anecdotes from his personal life, his career as a missionary priest and his subsequent involvement with many high profile organisations and people to outline his message that “the purpose of life is to be happy” and “if it is to be it is up to me”. The speaker said he feels happiness in life is obtained by making

others happy and that the best way we can do to obtain this state is to develop the ability “to manage your state” and thus avoid “the horror of a half lived life”.

Mr. Coyle’s premise is that whilst we all face unavoidable challenges and difficulties either real or perceived throughout life we have a choice how we deal with these. We can either choose to moan, groan and complain about the situation (The Red Platform) or choose to accept that situation (“it is at it is”) and use our talents to turn the position in to an opportunity to improve our lives and those of others (The Green Platform). Once the latter choice is made and action taken providence and circumstances will

conspire with us to produce a positive result.

The speaker feels “Negativity is poison” and “limiting beliefs stifle vision for opportunity”. To get onto “The Green Platform” we must actively make the decision to do so. Mr. Coyle pointed out everyone has talents and it important for individuals to identify what their own specific talents are and how best to use them for the benefit of others.

Concluding Mr. Coyle said “it is important to tell your story but without bragging” and “you have a choice of either “being a hostage to your ego on ‘The Red Platform’ or a host to God on the ‘Green Platform’. (“The Green Platform”; Published by Ball-point Press; 288 pages paper back; Cost € 14-99c All proceeds go to “The Jack & Jill Foundation”)

Members of the Rotary Club of Carlow were joined by girls from Gaelscoil and boys from the CBS at the launch of the Rotary Club of Carlow Christmas tree.

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Young Chef

Congratulations to Adam Morrison from Killyleagh, a pupil of Down High School and aged just 14, who has been chosen to enter the all-Ireland heat of the Young Chef competition in Dublin. If he wins that, he’ll be off to the UK finals in England. And then, who knows, a TV spot with Jamie?

His winning meal consisted of pea and asparagus soup, topped with Parmesan shavings served with Parmesan flat bread. His main course was fennel and herb crusted salmon served with garlic chunky chips, mangetout and a lemon and horseradish creme fraiche. Dessert was lemon cheesecake served with a berry coulis.

Paul Harris Fellowship Long-standing Rotarian, Mike Moore, has received a Paul Harris Fellowship, Rotary’s highest club award, for his work as Chair of Comber Regeneration and Community Partnership.

After spending 20 years in Derry/Londonderry working on the city’s urban redevelopment plan, Mike became District Valuer, based in Bangor. Recently he has been the driving force behind Comber’s Public Realm Scheme and the highly successful Farmers Market.

Mike Moore receives his Paul Harris award from President John

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President Aodh McCay presenting a cheque for £950 to Bishop Ken Clarke included (lt. to Rt.) Colm Gallagher (SuperValu), Leslie Anderson & Dessie Gregg (Rotary Club of Lurgan), Edel Rouse (SuperValu), Rev. Mark Lennox, Lurgan Rotary Club like Strabane Lifford are involved in supporting charities and worthy causes at local, national and international level.With this in mind we were approached by Dessie Gregg president of Lurgan Club in fund raising for a school Holy Trinity in Lima, Peru. A school for the education needs of deprived children. With the financial support from Rotary District, Lurgan Strabane and others we purchased 12 computers, 2 lap tops and school furniture. Our monies of £1850 were raised from the Remembrance Tree project in SuperValu over Christmas. The other £900 went to Action Cancer.

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ROTARY NEWS

March / April 2016

Chef Dermot Hughes (Lansdowne Hotel, Belfast), Emma Morrison (Enniskillen Club representative competitor), Stephen Clarke (Regional Organiser, Rotary Club Newtownabbey)

Young Chefs Compete To Treat On Saturday 30th January, the Rotary Club Newtownabbey hosted the Regional Heat of the Young Chef Competition at Ashfield Girls School Belfast. Of the five contestants taking part from the clubs of Athlone, Comber, Enniskillen, Newry and Newtownabbey, three competitors were selected to go forward to the All Ireland final taking place in Dublin on Saturday 27th February 2016.

Judge, Chef Dermot Hughes from the

Lansdowne Hotel Belfast, had an extremely difficult decision due to the very high standard displayed by all contestants. Regional Organiser Stephen Clarke (Rotary Club Newtownabbey) whose onerous task it was to taste all the meals produced, declared they were all “absolutely delicious!” He added that this was an excellent competition and encouraged more clubs to be involved. “The young people have an enormous opportunity not only to showcase their talents but to pick up some useful tips form a very experienced chef.”

In wishing the contestants good luck in the Dublin Final, the organisers thanked the competition sponsors ‘Filippo Berio’ and ‘The School Food Company’ for all their valuable support and encouragement.

Gay Berkery, Oliver Nixon and Fergus McArdle at the Rotary Club of Dundalk fundraising breakfast on Pancake Tuesday in The Crowne Plaza.

Bishopstown Rotary Sponsor Robotics In Local Schools

P O RT L A O I S E YOUNG CHEF Portlaoise is on a roll. The club has piloted this worthy competition for this first time this year with four local secondary schools. We were very fortunate to obtain sponsorship from two well known local restaurants for prizes and top chef as judges.

Batonis Restaurant, Emo, Co Laois & Tynans @ The Store Yard, Portlaoise.

Mark Dunphy of Mountmellick Community School in Laois has now won two legs of this competition, the club final and the regional final in Cork (End of January). From there he has achieved a place in the national final of Young Chef in Dublin on Feb 27th next. Mark is pictured in action in the photograph.

Students holding the Design trophy with their teacher and Rotarian Mary O Mahony.

In 2015 Bishopstown Rotary supported 2 local secondary schools by buying attachments for the robotics kits - we had already donated the robotic kits to these schools last year. This was to encourage further

The Letterkenny Rotary Club President Gerry Burke & Vice President Paddy Delap proudly presented representatives from the Letterkenny Youth Club, The St Vincent de Paul Society, the Donegal Youth Services Club at The Loft, with the proceeds of 6,600 from the Annual Christmas Tree of Remembrance.

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interest in robotics and help students develop more technology skills.

These attachments made the robots more competitive and more interesting for the students.

After months of work in their free time both schools-Colaiste an Spioraid Naoimh and Mount Mercy took part in the EMC Robotics Final on Jan 25th 2016.

Both schools reached the quarter finals out of 24 schools competing Colaiste an Spioraid Naoimh also won a Vex Award for design-one of the 8 awards only for the 24 schools.

Acknowledgement of Bishopstown Rotary

support was visible on the stands of both schools and on the main screen in the competition hall showing sponsors of the competition.

After successfully running the Rotary Technology Tournament –the first in the Republic-3 years ago we decided to progress into robotics competitions as being more modern, relevant and progressive for the students . Interest in robotics in both schools continues to grow and, as the robots can be reconfigured each year to comply with the required task , the study of robotics and STEM skills will continue into the future

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ROTARY NEWS

March / April 2016

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Rotarians Raise A Toast To A Real Wonder Woman The Dublin Fingal Rotary held a lunch last week in honour of National Women's Day. At the event, there was a guest speaker, Carol Brill, and the presentation of a cheque to local charity Remember Us. It was a hugely successful lunch, with well over estimated numbers in attendance.

Carol Brill gave a very moving speech.

Carol suffers from Usher syndromes, a genetic condition that affects her sight and hearing. She told how she fell into a depression and couldn't accept her illness, but how a light at the end of the tunnel came in the form of her daughter.

When she was born, her outlook changed. Her life had been laced with tragedy, having lost a son previous to the birth of her baby girl 8 years ago. At the

Heather Ellis speaking about Women in Rotary

beginning of her speech she posed the question, ‘Imagine not being able to see or hear your children, imagine how terrible that would be?’

Now she is determined to live her life to the full, making memories she can always call back in her minds eye long after her sight has failed her. She said that ‘The way my daughter sees my illness has made me view it through new eyes.’

It was a beautiful and uplifting speech by a very courageous woman and a very fitting speaker to celebrate what it means to be a woman on National Women's Day. A toast was raised by all the men in the room to the women in attendance to signify the respect given and deserved to the women in their lives.

Enniskillen Speaker Melanie Grimsley

Dublin Fingal Rotary President Michael Kennedy and Andrea Molloy of the Maldron Dublin Airport present Carol Brill with flowers after her speech at the National Womens Day lunch in the Maldron Hotel Dublin Airport.

Jenny McCrea Dr Aidine McGinley OBE Enniskillen President Ken Rainey and First Minister Arlene Foster N.I.

Dublin Fingal Supporting Chimteka

Sligo Club Receive District International Award Dublin Fingal Rotary President Michael Kennedy and Dave Murray hand over a cheque for €7,500 to Carol Stafford for Chimteka Children Support Charity at the national womens day lunch with the Dublin Fingal Rotary Club in the Maldron Dublin Airport Hotel.

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District Assistant Governor Jenny McCrea presenting the Cecil C.D.Whaley Memorial Trophy to President Gerry Cannon and Past President Sean Doyle in recognition of the Sligo Club’s International achievements during the year 2014-2015.

The Club were thrilled to win this trophy for the late Cecil Whaley from the Enninkillen Rotary Club was responsible for the formation of the Rotary Club of Sligo way back in 1965

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ROTARY NEWS

March / April 2016

Environment project: Homes for Wildlife

Conor McKinney, Ulster Wildlife’s Reserves Manager, taking delivery of barn owl boxes, which he described as ‘the best I have ever seen’

School children across Co Down will have an opportunity to explore nature this year as their school grounds are transformed into wildlife-friendly areas.The “Homes for Wildlife” initiative,developed by local nature conservation charity Ulster Wildlife with support from Comber Rotary Club,is designed to help children create habitats for wildlife in their school grounds and get closer to nature.

Kevin McAlpin, project leader for Comber Rotary Club, said: “We are thrilled to be able to help local children explore and learn about their environment, both at school and at home. One of the constant aims of Rotary is to help

Saintfield HS carpentry students and their teacher show off their finished barn owl boxes to President John;

young people of all ages improve their skills and knowledge. Ulster Wildlife’s support has been invaluable in achieving this as their expertise in outdoor learning is second to none.”

Another of Kevin’s ideas involves nesting boxes for barn owls, birds which are rarely seen these days (or nights) due to changes in farming practices. Again local schools are helping – and benefiting. In this case it’s Nendrum, Saintfield and

Killinchy PS P7 pupils show their approval for the wildlife project;

Bangor Supports Croft Community Bangor Rotary Club has presented a cheque for £2,500 to its local Croft Community which cares for adults with learning difficulties.

Recently the Community built a new respite centre which is providing relief for up to a hundred families in the North Down area and the money is to be used to provide equipment to aid wheelchair users.

Receiving the cheque, the Croft Community Chief Executive, Clive Evans, said it was easy for some organisation to come along and provide a “one off gesture” but Bangor Rotary Club had been helping the Community all along the way and they were extremely grateful for the support.

The money was raised as part of the Club’s annual car ballot and business breakfast.

Handing over the cheque Club President Paul Hatty said he was delighted that the Club had such a close relationship with Croft and that the members were able to help out with various events throughout the years.

Rotary Youth Leadership Development Competition

Bangor Club President Paul Hatty (right) hands over a cheque to Croft Community Chief Executive Clive Evans

New Members For Coleraine Three years ago, Rotary Club of Coleraine was presented with the not too unusual problem of a decrease in membership. The Club went down to 21 members and the concern was that we were steadily losing members from a Club of 40 plus 15 years ago.

Then PP Thomas Turner took on the task of chairing the Membership committee and he and his team has worked well together to help the Club turn things around.

Tom’s predecessor set out the task for us to bring in 5 members a year with the offset of possibly losing 2 members to give a net gain of 3.

Through his leadership and novel use of new business cards with the QR Code to take people directly to Coleraine club’s website; regular membership booster talks and monthly membership committee meetings, Coleraine club now has 37 members! Thanks to Coleraine members embracing the concept,

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Movilla secondary school students who are building the boxes. Already, another of our members, Eric Patterson, has put one up on his grounds, hoping to attract a barn owl this spring.

This work is all part of a major project costing more than £3000 to help the Comber and surrounding community to appreciate the value of the environment, especially its contribution to health and well-being.

the club is going from strength to strength with interest and involvement from all Rotarians very high.

The success of the club was even recognised at the January District Council Meeting in Dublin where Tom gave a talk on how to raise membership in your club. Go to Rotary Ireland website to find out how the Coleraine Rotary Club is helping to give the very precious gift of membership, to those curious, on what Rotary is all about!

The Rotary Club of Athlone, on behalf of Rotary Ireland, runs an annual competition for secondary school students aimed at helping young people prepare for their future careers. It is part of Rotary’s development programme for young people where the emphasis is on leadership, citizenship and personal growth. The competition is open to any qualifying citizen of an EU/state living on the island of Ireland who must be under 18 years of age in March of the following year.

This year members of the Rotary Club of Athlone interviewed transition year students in their schools and short listed thirteen for the final Club interview in the Radisson Blu Hotel, Athlone. The interview panel consisted of barrister, John Hayden, Ann Marie Crehan of St Hilda’s and Club President, Billy Nott.

The interviews concentrated mainly on personal achievements and organizational and leadership skills.

The panel was very struck by the high standards of the young people presenting themselves for interview and after long deliberation selected Clare Lemass of Our Lady’s Bower as the winner of the Rotary Club of Athlone Youth Leadership Competition.

The Youth Leadership Competition was organised by Kate Murphy-Flynn on behalf of the Rotary Club of Athlone. The club would like to thank the interview panels, parents and teachers from the schools involved for organising the students for the competition.

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ROTARY NEWS

March / April 2016

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Carrickfergus Rotary Club’s Tree of Hope Pays Out Carrickfergus Rotary Club President, Brenda Houston expressed her delight at being able to hand over substantial cheques to support the work of Children’s Hospice, Action Cancer, Diabetes UK and the British Heart Foundation.

This was the outcome of the collection at the Club’s ‘Tree of Hope’ sited at Tesco’s Carrickfergus store in the run up to Christmas.

Present to receive the cheque for Children’s Hospice were Karen Humphreys, leader of the Carrickfergus

Diane Strain of Carrickfergus Action Cancer group pictured accepting a cheque from President Brenda.

Children’s Hospice Support Group and Catherine O’Hara Community Fund Raiser for Hospice. Anne Ritchie, Tesco’s Community Champion, accepted the cheque on behalf of Diabetes UK and the British Heart Foundation. The recipients expressed their gratitude for the support of Carrickfergus Rotary Club and detailed the sort of activities that would benefit from the generous donations.

Diane Strain from Carrickfergus Support Group for Action Cancer was unable to be present on the evening but attended to collect their cheque at the next Club meeting. In thanking the Club for their generous donation she confirmed that in the seven years the Carrickfergus Rotary Club’s ‘Tree of Hope’ has operated Action Cancer has benefited to the tune of £29,157.

Anne Ritchie (Tesco Community Champion) accepts the cheque for In conclusion President Brenda thanked all those who, Diabetes UK and the British Heart Foundation from Rotary President along with members of the Rotary Club, had helped at Brenda Houston. the tree. These included members of Carrickfergus & District Men’s Probus Club, Downshire Interact Club, Carrickfergus Inner Wheel, Abbey Insurance, Carrickfergus Action Cancer, Carrickfergus Hospice Support group and friends in the community who volunteered. She also thanked Tesco for facilitating the venture and reserved special thanks for Tesco shoppers who so generously supported it.

She reminded those present that in the seven years the Rotary Club has organised the Tree of Hope over £70.000 has been raised L-R. Karen Humphreys (Leader of Carrickfergus Children’s Hospice Support Group), Brenda Houston for deserving causes.

(President Carrickfergus Rotary Club) and Catherine O’Hara (Hospice Community Fund Raiser)

Clonmel Rotary Club The Rotary Club of Clonmel was a hive of activity in the run-up to Christmas, with two of the major projects of the year taking place.

A great deal of planning and preparation paid off when the Remembrance Tree raised a magnificent €6,248.85 for South Tipperary Hospice. The committee was chaired by Rotarian Michael O’Malley, who joined the club in the past couple of years.

Rotarians and local volunteers staffed Remembrance Trees at two locations in Clonmel town centre in the week before Christmas, with members of the public sincerely appreciating the opportunity to commemorate their loved ones with a ribbon on the tree. On the Sunday after Christmas, all those whose names were on the tree were prayed for at Mass in SS Peter & Paul’s Church.

Earlier in December, the club’s annual food, wine and flowers night was held in Raheen House Hotel, raising funds for two very deserving local charities, Cherry Blossom Autism Preschool in St Mary’s Primary School, Clonmel; and the Friends of Bridgewater House and Knocklofty, which provides services for young adults with special needs.

Each of the charities has been presented with

€1,000 from the proceeds of the event, a very enjoyable occasion with local chef Jenny Flynn providing cookery demonstrations. A very hard-working committee chaired by club Vice President Peter O’Donnell cooked for days to provide each audience member with a sample of every dish cooked, while Anne Flynn, wife of past President Gerry, headed up a great team of volunteers behind the scenes in the kitchen.

In the community and vocational area, members provided students at Clonmel’s Presentation Secondary School with mock interviews to give them some valuable experience.

The 2014-15 year was most fruitful on the membership front, with eight new Rotarians welcomed into the club; and 2015-16 is following the trend, with President Billy Doyle having already inducted four new Rotarians since he took over in July.

District Governor Declan Tyner presented three new members with their pins when he made his visit to Clonmel; and all at Clonmel are looking forward to these energetic young members bringing their enthusiasm to the club’s activities.

The club made a great response to the appeal for clothing and other items to be sold in

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Gorta charity shops for the Africa Self Help project, with members collecting a vanload, which was gratefully received by Gorta.

2016 will bring lots of activities and projects at Clonmel, with plans for members to take part in the National Spring Clean by joining up with Clonmel Tidy Towns and local young people to clean up an area of the town.

The club is investigating the possibility of putting up Rotary signs on the approaches to Clonmel.

And members are looking at fundraising projects to raise €1,500 for the sponsorship of a room in the parents’ accommodation unit at Crumlin Children’s Hospital, a very worthwhile project which the club has committed to.

The 2014 appeal by the Rotary Club of Clonmel for bicycles no longer needed in their area to be donated for shipment to Africa to allow children travel to school was so successful, the club ran it again in the autumn of 2015, again getting a great response. More than 50 second-hand bikes in good condition, suitable for children from the age of 10 up to adult, collected by the Rotary Club on Saturday, November 14 from 10am to 1pm, by kind permission of Paul and Thomas Ronan, who allowed the club to use

the premises. Then Club President Billy Doyle, past President Joe O’Sullivan and incoming President Peter O’Donnell transported them to Loughan House Open Prison in Co. Cavan to be reconditioned by the inmates, who learn bike repair skills in the process. Local furniture store owner Larry O’Keeffe, Clonmel, very kindly lent them a truck to transport the bikes to Cavan, which was an extremely generous gesture.

Following refurbishment, the bikes will be taken to Africa by the Jole Rider Bikes4Africa charity to transform the lives of children by enabling them to travel to school.

The Jole (pronounced ‘jolly’) Rider charity has provided 13,000 bicycles for schoolchildren in the Gambia since being set up in 2004.

The charity ships a container of bikes every two months and when they arrive in The Gambia, their partner organisation Jole Rider Gambia oversees the distribution of bikes with the assistance of the Gambian Ministry of Education.

Bikes remain school property, with teachers allocating them to the children who need them most, and when a child graduates from school, their bike is re-allocated to another child. Local field engineers and selected school students receive training in bike maintenance and servicing. The schools buy some of the spare parts needed in the Gambia and Jole Rider also send some; and Jole Rider Gambia monitors the bike fleets and assists the schools with the maintenance of the bikes.

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ROTARY NEWS

March / April 2016

Mayor’s Reception For Antrim And Newtownabbey Clubs Councillor Thomas Hogg, Mayor of Antrim and Newtownabbey Borough Council recently hosted a reception for members of the Rotary Clubs of Antrim and N e w t o w n a b b e y .

Councillor Hogg along

with Mrs Jacqui Dixon, Chief Executive outlined the development, strategy and role of the new Council within the community.

Leonard Sproule, President of Newtownabbey Rotary

Club and Naomi Carey, President Elect of the Antrim Club presented Councillor Hogg with a Belleek Pottery Butterfly Meadow Basket in recognition of Council support to Rotary projects within the Borough.

Leonard Sproule, President of Newtownabbey Rotary Club and Naomi Carey, President Elect of the Antrim Club presented Councillor Hogg with a Belleek Pottery Butterfly Meadow Basket in recognition of Council support to Rotary projects within the Borough.

Newbridge Club News

The Rotary Club, Dublin's President's Dinner was held in the Royal Irish Yacht Club in Dun Laoghaire on Friday, 26th February. Cultural diversity was to the forefront with Rotarians and guests from seven countries sharing a table.

Front Row: Mariandy Frice - Phillipines, Lisa Tacco - Italy, Rossella Milanovic - Serbia, Abiola Witte - Nigeria, Back Row: Li Yan Booth - China, Veronica Kunovska - Macedonia, Mauro Adamo - Italy, David Booth - Ireland.

Volunteers Needed for Crumlin Childrens Hospital Over the past few months, a Rotary campaign has been under way to raise funds to support the refurbishment of the Parents Accommodation Unit at Our Lady’s Children’s Hospital in Crumlin.

The campaign has gathered considerable pace with numerous Rotary clubs from all over Ireland coming onboard and pledging to sponsor a room. The hospital is the largest paediatric hospital in

Ireland and is the only hospital for paediatric cardiac surgical procedures serving both Northern and Southern Ireland. Each year, almost 500 children and babies receive life saving cardiac care in the Children’s Heart Centre with over 150 of these children coming from Northern Ireland.

The Parents Accommodation Unit offers 48 bedrooms and living spaces to

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Remembrance Tree: The Rotary Club of Newbridge held this project in the major local shopping centre in the days leading up to Christmas. The general comment was that "amid the bustle of Christmas shopping" the Remembrance Tree stood out as an example of how people could not only remember their loved ones at this time of year but could also donate funds to local charities".

We held the follow up Remembrance Service in a local church on January 24th, 2016. The church was full to capacity and our members took an active part in the service through readings, speaking about Rotary and bringing the Remembrance Messages of so many people to the altar. There was a very joyous feeling in the church helped by the local gospel choir who added greatly to the service. Both the clergy and the congregation commented very positively about the Rotary Club and its community activities.

Secondary School Information Days: The club members were invited to address the final year students of three local secondary schools and spent more than two hours in each school and giving an insight into Rotary locally, nationally and internationally. These schools have offered to partake in the Jole Rider project. The word has spread and the interest generated by these visits have triggered additional invitations from the remaining Secondary Schools in the locality.

parents of sick children whilst they are being treated in the hospital. The unit is within the main hospital building allowing parents to stay close to their child and is often the only viable option for parents who live beyond the Dublin area. In the sixties, the unit served as sleeping quarters for student nurses in the 60s and 70s but unfortunately the decor has not changed. The rooms are small and very run down. Windows are over 60 years old and do not seal resulting in noisy, cold and damp rooms in the winter.

Rotary has been working closely with the hospital to agree a timeline and a fundraising target that will allow the rooms to be modernised on a phase by phase basis ensuring the maximum number of rooms are available for parents at all time. The next phase is scheduled to begin soon and the hospital

have asked exclusively offered Rotary the opportunity to provide volunteers on Saturday the 9th of April who will assist in clearing out 15 rooms in preparation for the commencement of renovations.

We are appealing to Rotary clubs and Rotarians to get behind the initiative, to volunteer their time for a truly worthwhile cause and to help publicise this much needed campaign. To express your interest, please email info@beagifttocrumlin.org or call Daniel on +44 (0) 7708905697.

Also, we are appealing to clubs to pledge their support in sponsoring a room on the unit. In exchange for a pledge of £1200/€1500, a club will be twinned with a room with their support tactfully acknowledged on the walls within the room. To find out more about how your club can pledge, contact us or visit www.beagifttocrumlin.org

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ROTARY NEWS

March / April 2016

Paul Harris Award And A Big Birthday Surprise This month we celebrate a milestone in the life of one of our long standing members, Mr Andy Cole, who has reached the fine age of 80. Like a good grape, he’s ageing so well he’s had about five different retirements and never stops going or giving.

He thought he had managed to keep it a secret but we ruined that plan and will spring a surprise party on him at our club meeting tomorrow evening to commemorate his birthday.

After we paid tribute to Andy and had some gentle fun

President Letterkenny Rotary Club welcoming new member Lorraine Thompson at her induction in January 2016.

at his expense, we moved to the serious matter of honouring his life achievements outside Rotary in a distinguished career as a civil servant representing Irish Agricultural interests at the European parliament in Brussels, a government advisor and an international agronomist advisor to Countries such as Borussia in Eastern Europe.

Andy has worked tirelessly for his community all his life with his local golf club, Heritage Society, the board of his local credit Union, Tourism bodies in Kildare & Laois and more prominently on the national stage with chairman ships of The Sue Ryder Foundation and Gorta to name but a few. The Rotary core belief of “Service Above Self” perfectly describes this man and how he has lived his life. The most appropriate tribute to pay this man is to award him a Paul Harris Fellowship and we invited ADG Fergus Quinlivan to the celebrations to do just that.

Remembrance Tree Project in Cork. This project is run jointly each year by Cork Bishopstown Rotary Club and Cork Rotary Club. This year the project ran from the 12th to the 25th of December outside Brown Thomas on Patrick Street. The tree was manned by the members of the clubs, their families, friends and members from the local Charities being supported. Under extremely bad weather conditions they manned the tree the 13days (136 hours). An ecumenical prayer service was held on the 9th of January in St Peter & Paul’s church attended by The Lord Mayor and DG Declan.

Donations at the tree this year exceeded 60,000.00 and is being presented to the designated local charities

Rotarians Updated On Shelterbox

Astrophysiciss Talk At Dublin North Dublin North Rotary Club were delighted and honoured to host a public talk by Prof.

Susan McKenna-Lawlor in early January.

Prof. McKenna-Lawlor is Emeritus Professor at Maynooth University and founder of Space Technology Ireland Ltd (STIL) which has built instrumentation systems for space missions for over 30 years including mission critical hardware for the Rosetta space probe which landed on comet 67P last November.

Prof. McKenna-Lawlor’s fascinating talk focussed on the problems caused by space weather which originates from extreme disturbances on the Sun. The talk covered the consequences on Earth - damage to the electricity grid, interference with communication and navigation systems as well as satellite damage.

She also spoke about her plans to launch Ireland’s first satellite to monitor such weather. She has named the satellite Cumar - the Irish word for confluence.

“Cumar represents a confluence of ideas, of strengths and knowledge. This is a mission for everyone - not just our scientists and engineers but also our poets, musicians, sponsors…..Ní neart go cur le chéile - there is no strength without cooperation.”

Prof. Mckenna-Lawlor is launching a nationwide competition to find a group of

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male and female engineering students the professor stressed the importance of having both genders well represented who would be involved in all aspects of the satellite building, preparation and launch.

She also intends to involve schoolchildren in accessing the data from the satellite to gain knowledge about space and the Earth’s environment.

“I think this can be enormous fun for everybody” Despite the technical nature of the subject, Prof. McKenna-Lawlor’s gift of explaining in simple terms left the sizeable audience informed and enthused for such an exciting project.

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Over the last number of years the members of The Rotary Club of Donaghadee have been donating funds, and encouraging others to do the same to Shelter Box. This is a charity which brings emergency shelter to countless desperate people in every corner of the globe. They have lost their homes and livelihoods through natural disasters.

This years Carol service with The Donaghadee Male Voice Choir resulted in the purchase of no fewer than 3 Shelter Boxes.

The club members were pleased to welcome Nicola Hinds a response volunteer with Shelter Box to their weekly meeting in the Stables Groomsport on 7.1.16.

Nicola thanked the members for their support of the Shelter Box organisation and then explained about their work last year and some new equipment.

Last year they had 22 deployments in 19 different countries;this included 9

conflicts, 6 floods, 2 earthquakes, 1 cyclone, 1 volcano eruption and 1 huge storm. Over 28,000 families were assisted. Nicola then gave examples of the work that was carried out in Nepal, Sierra Leone and the Philippines.

Nicola then explained that there are 3 main types of kit, the ShelterBox which contains a tent, blankets, solar lighting, water filtration equipment, tools and water carriers.

School Box which contains enough equipment for 50 pupils.

Shelter Kit which contains tools to help repair a damaged home.

Nicola concluded by saying that her organisation was now supplying short term tents to the Greek island of Lesbos

to house 10,000 people for 2 days as they travel from Africa to Europe.

President Robert McIlveen thanked Nicola for her informative talk and added that it was encouraging to see how the clubs donations were being used.

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ROTARY NEWS

March / April 2016

Rotary Young Chef On Saturday 30 January 6 contestants from Munster and Leinster took part in the Southern Regional Heat of the competition. Three of the fantastic contestants were selected to go forward

to the Ireland final which will take place on Saturday 27 February. It was a very difficult decision due to the very high standard displayed by all entrants.

Thanks to Dave Halpin Jr and Clare Mills who acted as our judges and also special thanks to Regina Mundi College and the exceptional Sandra Lane for hosting the event. Clubs represented were Douglas, Bandon, Clonmel, Limerick, Portlaoise and Wicklow.

Ballymoney Rotarian enjoying the night

The 6 contestants and judges for the competition

Clonmel Rotary Young Chef Andrew Butler, a 15 year old Transition Year student at the CBS High School, is the nominee of the Clonmel Rotary Club at the Young Chef Regional Finals in Cork on January 30th. Andrew was selected from the applicants from the second level schools in South Tipperary to represent the Club at the regional final in Cork. His task is to prepare a healthy nutritious 3 course meal in a two hour period from ingredients not exceeding 20 euros in value. Over the past few weeks Andrew has been busily practicing his menu at home and for local Rotary members at a preparatory event arranged in Cluain Training Centre on Saturday 9th January. Clonmel Rotary Club wish to extend their best wishes to Andrew and at a recent meeting in the High School, Gerry Flynn presented Andrew with a cheque from the Club to assist with costs associated with his participation at the event in Cork.

Ballymoney Rotary Club Ballymoney Rotary Club celebrated its 50th anniversary in style on 21st November 2015 with a Gala Dinner, commencing with a champagne reception with traditional musicians. Among the 178 Rotarians and their partners and friends were District Governor Declan Tyner and his wife Pat and Assistant District Governor William Cross and his wife Tedi. President David Simpson also welcomed representatives from the Rotary Clubs of Ballycastle, Ballymena, Coleraine, Limavady and Londonderry and also Ballymoney Inner Wheel and Ballymoney, Ballycastle, Dalriada and Portballintrae Probus Clubs.

Four founder members were present as honoured guests and many retired members mingled with today’s Rotarians reminiscing on the past and enjoying displays and slideshows of photographs spanning 50 years. The Master of Ceremonies for the evening was past president and active member John Pinkerton, High Sheriff of Antrim. £2000 was raised on the evening, equally shared between two local charities COAST (Causeway Older Active Strategic Team) and the Open Door drop in centre.

The speeches reflected on 50 years of service to the community and life back in 1965. During the evening Bruce Robertson, President of the Rotary Club of MidArgyll, presented a friendship quaich (filled with whisky naturally) to president David Simpson, celebrating many years of friendship and visits between the 2 clubs.

This will be returned to Mid Argyll (filled with Irish whiskey naturally) during a visit to celebrate Burns Night at the end of January 2016.

The evening will live long in the memories of the many Rotarians and their friends and the club looks forward to another 50 years of fellowship and service.

The TABU Effect

In November 2015 a young person from Banbridge Academy who had been sponsored by the Rotary Club of Banbridge was one of three winners in the Regional Final hosted by the Rotary Club of Banbridge, Nicole Parkinson Kelly. In the photo Nicole is being presented with the winners certificate for the competition among schools in the Banbridge area. Nicole joined the group of other young people from Ireland who took part in the European trip at the end of January.

Photo attached. In the photo President Gerry McElvogue, Raymond Pollock Secretary, Nicole the winner and other Rotarians

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The Rotary Club of Belfast congratulates Azza Cohen who, having been studying at Princeton University, New Jersey, has been awarded the US George J. Mitchell Scholarship. This is another success in the path she has forged since she was on the TABU (Towards a Better Understanding) Programme jointly conducted by the Rotary Clubs of Belfast and Highland Park/Highwood in Chicago when, at Highland Park High School, she was chosen by that Club as part of the 2009 group travelling to Belfast to explore peace and reconciliation with fellow youth abroad.

Azza at her last visit to the Club in 2011

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ROTARY NEWS

March / April 2016

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Rotary Club Of Limavady Big Giveaway On Wednesday 27th January the members of Limavady Rotary Club hosted a lunch at Roe Park Resort for representatives from seven local charities.

The proceeds from a number of charity fundraising events were presented during the afternoon.

An outstanding total of 16,250 pound was distributed.

Lions Club President, Billy Dickenson joined Rotary President Helen Reilly O.B.E to present cheques to Maveen McNabb from Alzheimer's UK and Bernadette Campbell representing Foyle Hospice.

This total of 4,000 pounds had been raised at the joint Lions/Rotary presidents night held before Christmas. As a tribute night in memory of the late Brian Brown. Brian had been president of both Lions and Rotary, a unique distinction.

Both Lions and Rotary members are indebted to Danske Bank for so generously sponsoring this event.

The proceeds from the ‘Showstoppers’ concert hosted by Limavady High School last November enabled cheques to the value of 2,250 pounds to be donated to Alzheimer's UK and Marie CUre Cancer Care. Maveen McNabb (Alzheimer's) and Lucille Brolly (Marie Curie) gratefully received their donations and expressed much appreciation to the Rotary Club and to Roadside garages, Coleraine for being the sponsor for this evening of wonderful music.

The Roe Valley Community was Congratulated on its outstanding support for the rotary tree fo remembrance

charity fundraiser held during the Christmas period. Support from the Causeway Coast and Glens Council, Tesco’s Limavady, JFC Construction, Campsie, Local Schools and the Roe Valley Business Community, enabled a total of 8,000 pounds to be divided between the salvation army and St Vincent De Paul Society.

All proceeds will be distributed to help alleviate family suffering across the local area. Past President Brian McMurray, Convenor of the tree committee expressed his heartfelt gratitude for such generous support. Major Joan Archibald and Captain Eddie Archibald (Salvation Army) and Geraldine WIlson (St Vincent De Paul) received 4,000 pounds each for their charities.

2,000 pound was divided between Motor Neurone Disease and Kidney REsearch charities. This sum had resulted from the march 2015 presidents night and ice bucket challenge organised by past rotary President Simon

The Limavady Rotary Club presented over £16,000 to charities this week, members of the club including president Glenn Reilly are pictured with recipients including Bernadette Campbell representing Foyle Hospice, Margaret McFatrick representing the Motor Neurone desease Association, Robert Smyth representing the Altnagelvon Renal Unit, Lucile Brolly representing Marie Curie, Maeveen McNabb representing Alzheimers, Major Joan Archibald representing the Salvation Army, and Geraldine Wilson representing St Vincent de Paul.

McArthur.

Simon presented cheques to Robert Smyth (Altnagelvin Renal Support Unit) and Margaret McElfatric (Motor Neurone Association) The representatives from all seven receiving charities expressed their appreciation for the funds received and assured everyone present that the money would be well used.

Limavady Rotary president Glenn Reilly and wife Ivy (right) pictured at the presidents dinner included are District MPRC Chair Dale Orr, District Vocational Chair Maria McGilly, Assistant District governor William cross and wife Tedi, Lions District governor Marion Conneely, Rotary District governor Declan Tyner and wife Pat. Adam McAllister and Spurgeon McLean, Limavady Big Band donate the proceeds from their Christmas collection to past president Brian McMurray and president glenn reilly at the rotary tree of remembrance.

Limavady Rotary president Glenn Reilly and wife Ivy (right) pictured at the presidents dinner with visiting club presidents and includes Limavady Interact club president Rebecca Rainey.

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Glenn Reilly (centre) president of the Limavady Rotary Club receives a cheque from David Boyd of Roadside Garages Coleraine at the 2015 Showstoppers Concert, also included are Noel Barr Musical director of the Britannia Band, Mr Shane Laverty principal of Limavady High School and Jim Goodman Musical director of the Londonderry Musicl society.

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ROTARY NEWS

March / April 2016

Bishopstown Probus Declan Tyner, Rotary District Governor 2016,and a member of Bishopstown Rotary Club , visited the Bishopstown Ladies Probus Club recently. He gave an interesting talk on the projects, community service and international Rotary projects .

He also referred to his visits to the 72 Rotary Clubs all around Ireland, which he has visited since last September as part of his work as District Governor. He praised the Probus activities and mentioned that Bishopstown Rotary had sponsored the local Probus clubs and was delighted to note the success of Probus.

As District Governor he was warmly District Governor of Rotary, Declan Tyner, welcomed by the club and it was a most inforbeing welcomed by Probus Vice President mative, enjoyable and sociable visit.

Maura O Sullivan.

Community Group Recognised The Rotary Club of Belfast are delighted to award the 2015/16 John Savage Trophy, which is awarded by the Club annually to the individual or group selected as giving great service to the Community, to New Lodge Arts Group a community arts organisation based in the Greater New Lodge area of North Belfast which provides opportunities for people of all ages to actively engage with

and participate in a wide range of art forms that they would not otherwise be exposed to.

President Ronnie Porter presented the Cup and Bursary Monday 15 February to Katrina Newell, Head of Arts and Youth Development along with Geraldine Wilkins, Chair of the Board, and Anne Delaney, Arts Programme and Operations Manager who expressed their thanks.

Katrina Newell, Head of Arts and Youth Development, The Rotary Club of Belfast President Ronnie Porter, Geraldine Wilkins, Chair of the Board, and Anne Delaney, Arts Programme and Operations Manager

Pictured at the launch of the 2016 edition of the Irish Pensioners Handbook at the Aviva Stadium, Dublin are RTE personality, Mary Kennedy, Paul O'Reilly proprietor Bluebird Care and Ken Shannon, Bluebird Care

Rotarian Launches Free Guide For Older People And Carers Mary Kennedy launched the 2016 edition of the Irish Pensioners Handbook issued by Bluebird Care.

“This is a great resource and not simply for older people. Every household should have a copy,” says RTÉ’s Mary Kennedy at the launch.

The free publication, which comprises 266 pages of helpful hints, tips, articles and local directories for older people and carers, is now available from local Bluebird Care offices nationwide.

“While we live in a digital world, there’s nothing better than having a book at hand which covers so much from a directory of local services to advice on finance, legal matters, home security, home care and even recipes from the Food For The Soul cookbook. Practical information in one place is invaluable for older people and carers. I’m in the business of communications so I can understand why this book is so popular,” says Mary Kennedy.

The handbook also contains a comprehensive county-by-county directory of hospi-

North Down Rotary Learns of the Work of the Hollywood Family Trust At a recent meeting of the Rotary Club of North Down, Liam McCusker and Rose Wade provided an insight into the work of the Hollywood Family Trust.

The Trust provides support for children through an after-school club as well as a counselling and befriending service for adults. A principal focus is on the needs of young people as the organisation believes strongly in helping young people to fulfil their full potential.

The Youth Programme has

sessions several times a week and also operates a drop in centre and recently a junior Youth Club has also been started. The purpose of these activities is to develop young people emotionally and socially, improving their self-esteem in the process. The programme includes relationship counselling as well as advice on alcohol and substance abuse.

Altogether around 300 young people are involved, mostly from Hollywood but also including

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some from Bangor and East Belfast. Around 90% are from underprivileged backgrounds and a high proportion have special needs in some form. Recruitment is through word of mouth and friendship groups for the most part rather than reference from social services although some young people in care have been referred to the programme.

Each year the Trust carries out a needs assessment of all the people taking part in its programmes. Partly as a result of

tals, local authorities, support groups, charities and state agencies as well as expert articles on matters from wills to investing money, caring for a loved one and staying fit and healthy in older age.

Dublin Fingal Rotarian and proprietor of Bluebird Care, Paul O’Reilly says their 20 offices nationwide had a waiting list of people and organisations that ordered copies of the book before its launch.

“The Irish Pensioners Handbook is hugely popular and feedback so far has been extremely positive. We have uploaded the electronic version on our website so it’s there at the touch of a button. We have printed 20,000 copies and we are inviting members of the public to call to their local Bluebird Care office to pick up their free copy. The articles we commissioned are based on the information older people and carers are looking for from our staff, so we decided to ask a number of medical, financial and health experts to contribute to it,” he says.

The Handbook can be viewed online at bluebirdcare.ie. You can also pick up your hard copy from your local Bluebird Care office nationwide or call Bluebird Care on 0818 227 052 or email info@bluebirdcare.ie.

Find your local Bluebird Care office by logging onto www.bluebirdcare.ie/locations.

the outcomes of a recent such assessment among those taking part in the Youth Programme, it has been decided to create an international project. The Trust has a connection with a charity called Front-line which is Northern Ireland based but which works in India in the field of education. The charity has set up a number of schools there and continues to provide support for them. In the Trust’s international project a number of young people are being taken to India to contribute to that work and to learn from the experience.

When it was first proposed 21 young people applied. Through interviews a final party of 5 boys and 5 girls, all between 16 and 19 were selected to make the trip this summer. An extensive preparation programme is already underway and, following return

from India, a lengthy post trip programme will ensure consolidation of the learning experience.

The focus is on three themes, cultural, educational and leadership as each of the young people has been selected as someone who is thought capable of developing leadership potential. Liam and Rose emphasised that the Trust believes that the emergence of improvements in society requires that young people themselves become agents of change.

Past President Alan Shannon thanked Liam and Rose for an excellent exposition of the aims and objectives of the Trust and wished them success in their work. He referred to the challenges of taking a group of young people to an entirely different environment, but recognised the value of the opportunity for them.

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ROTARY NEWS Sligo Rotary Club News December saw an ecumenical interdenominational service of thanksgiving in St Joseph's church in Ballytivnan lead by Fr. Noel Rooney PP. The purpose of the service was to thank all who had participated in the Remembrance Tree project organised by Sligo Rotary Club in O'Connell St. Sligo in the week before Christmas.

The intent of the tree was to allow passers by the opportunity of remembering those dear to them who were ill or who had died in recent times. This was done by recording the various names in a special memory book and putting their names on ribbons which decorated the tree. This meant these important persons were remembered over the Christmas period. The book recording the names was the centre piece of the service of thanksgiving.

During the week of the attendance of club members at the tree a collection was made for the benefit of two local charities - NW Hospice and St. Vincent de Paul.

The sum collected was €14,202 and this amount was divided jointly between the two charities.

On hand to collect the donations were Colman O'Callaghan of Sligo SVP and Mary Forte representing NW Hospice. Both parties expressed their sincere gratitude to Sligo Rotary Club for organising the Remembrance Tree and to the people of Sligo for their generous contributions.

Gerry Cannon, President of Sligo Rotary Club also thanked the generous donors who provided the names of those remembered on the tree. He also thanked Sligo County Council represented by their CEO Ciaran Hayes and Cathaoirlach Cllr. Rosaleen O'Grady for providing the tree, Derry Taheny for lighting it and Eamon Mc Gauran and AVA who provided the electrical work and sound systems.

Gratitude was also extended to the TY students of the Mercy and Ursuline Colleges who generously assisted with the collection. He reminded those present that over €100,000 had been collected for the benefit of Sligo charities since the Remembrance Tree project was initiated in 2009.

Clergy assisting in the service were Rev. Jeremy Nicoll, Sligo Methodist church, Rev. Joe Bulman OP, Dominican Friary, Rev. Alan Mitchell, Sligo Presbyterian church, Fathers John Carroll and Pat Lombard'.

March / April 2016

Lisburn Annual Trevor Guy Bursary Award President Gary Corkin, Past President Stephen Gilbert and Treasurer Helen Coulter launch this years annual Trevor Guy Bursary Award by The Rotary Club of Lisburn. Every year local people who are about to embark on a humanitarian project apply for support through the Bursary Award. Candidates are assessed by a panel who makes awards to those deemed to rank in the top three. For an application form visit www.lisburnrotary.co.uk

A total of £1300 was raised from our annual Bridge Tournament, this being our 30th year, over those years, monies have been paid out to local cancer charities in access of £30,000. Our Rotary club is indebted to Cath McCay and Strabane Bridge Club. Presentation of a cheque by President Aodh McCay to Michelle McGirr of Foyle Hospice, included Cath McCay.

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ROTARY NEWS

March / April 2016

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