27th October 2026 - Foundation Dinner at the Bendigo Club. Details to come
14 & 15 Nov Swap Meet
27 - 31 May 2027 - Rotary Barham Weekend, Barham Caravan Park. See Kevin Reade for more details.
Welcome to Issue 9 (2026-27) of our weekly bulletin. Find out about our upcoming events, our guest speakers, what we covered during the last meeting and more!
Can't make our meeting in person please join us via Zoom:
Opportunities to volunteer -for non-Rotarian friends and volunteers:
* Upcoming BBQs - Contact Kevin - 0428 996 619
Week 2
9-Sep
16-Sep
23-Sep
30-Sept
Speaker
Lina Langendorf
Past Exchange Student
Brad Hodge
Retirement Planning
Club Morning
Our Strategic Plan
TBC
Meeting Location
Peppergreen Farm
Peppergreen Farm
Peppergreen Farm
Peppergreen Farm
Chair
Kevin Dobson
Doug Lougoon
Stan Hendy
Chris Purton
Computer
Ted Gretgrix
Allie Lyall
Cathie Miller
Ted Gretgrix
Set-Up 6.45am & pack up
Judy Miatke
Graeme Lynas
Toni West
Geoff Michell
Welcome, raffle & roaming microphone
Toni West
Ray Carrington
Kevin Dobson
Rob Rosaia
PRESIDENT REPORT for 2 September 2026
Spring has sprung, the birds have sung and the bulbs are blooming. Happy days.
It’s been another big week for the Club, starting with the Federation Picnic fundraiser bb last Sunday. Without the guiding hand of Kevin Reade, pressure was intense. Always cool in a crisis however, Rob Rosaia skippered the ship to a successful outcome. Well done Robbie and a huge thanks to our crew of volunteers.
Quietly in the background John Cannon and Graeme Lynas, have been working for several weeks nto assist a newly arrived Karen family (Mum and 4 children). Arriving with essentially nothing, the family are now settled into a house which has been furnished and equipped with white goods and other essential items, thanks to donations organised by John and Graeme. A great Community Service outcome.
We had the privilege of hosting Maria Hicks OAM and Aviv Palti from the Rotary Passport Melbourne (RPM) Club to our meeting on Wednesday morning. Aviv spoke about the international projects set-up and managed by RPM. The work being done by the Passport Club is inspirational and is a true example of how to create lasting impact. See Jim Rolfe’s summary below.
Finally, Rotary International through the Districts, has launched an appeal to provide assistance for those impacted by the flooding disaster in Nepal. After the initial triage, the recovery effort will long. The nature of the assistance Rotary may provide is still to be decided, pending full assessment of needs. Please see the District 9800 communication about the appeal later in this Bulletin.
My philosophical quote of the week: “If I cannot do great things, I can do small things in a great way” Martin Luther King Jr
Here is a QR Code to the RAWCS appeal which may be more convenient.
With your help, RAWCS will continue to establish more Rotary contacts and clubs in Nepal in the days and weeks that follow.
Using our existing Rotary contacts in Nepal and making new relationships to deliver humanitarian aid in the affected areas.
GUEST SPEAKER - Aviv Palti and Maria Hicks
Maria is the President of the Rotary Passport Club of Melbourne and Aviv is a member of the same club. Members of the club meet in person and virtually once every month to plan for and implement international projects in places such as Cambodia, Myanmar and Timor Leste. This initiative commenced in 2009 when Aviv's daughter expressed a wish to be involved in humanitarian work. This simple wish saw the development of a NGO for work in Cambodia and the establishment of the Passport Rotary Club in 2019. The focus in Cambodia is in schools in rural years where many survivors of the Khmer Rouge live. The project aims to build the capacity of the local people through education and leadership training.
Whilst there are high expectations of scholarship holders academically they are also required to lead their communities in creating a better life for themselves and others. The local Rotaract Club is part of the monthly meetings of the Rotary Passport Club. Funded projects such as school libraries, housing and bicycle provision and maintenance are all overseen by local Rotaractors. Relationship Education is for both girls and boys and includes the provision of personal hygiene kits to support girls in the early stages of puberty. Solar lights enable students living in areas without electricity to keep up with their study requirements. Other projects include tree planting and the provision of incinerators in schools. This enables better controls over waste in a country where rubbish is burned anyway. The provision of clean water is an ongoing priority.
Aviv outlined the difference which education makes in changing the dynamics of families. From a starting wage of $200 per month graduates quickly advance to $650 per month and within two years reach a salary of $900 per month. The journey from fishing boats to board rooms rings true for many graduates. The Passport Club relies on other Rotary Clubs to fund scholarships. Scholarships amount to $3K per student with other Rotary Clubs providing $2K of this amount.
In recent developments the Rotaract Club with the help of International grants and support from the Karen Women's Association has overseen projects in Myanmar. This is testament to the success of the empowerment model which is so central to this work. Helen Keller's inspiration, "Alone we can do little together we can do much" is central to the work of the Passport Club. We congratulate members on the development of this innovative model which is impacting so positively in poorer communities. We are especially grateful to Aviv and Maria for going out of their way to be with us in person.
Not only has Cathie mastered a new burger carrying technique, she models the new aprons perfectly.
To all members see flyer above, if anyone interested come and join John Cannon and Rob Rosaia for a fun day at Werribee and support our local team for further details see John (his idea)
John and Graeme meet the family new to Bendigo
Some items are purchased new and fill this families home, giving them a great start to life in Bendigo.
We appreciate and thank the generosity of members friends and family who donated items to create a home for this family.
Coming up: - Industry Visit- J.L. King Food & Produce
The Club's next Industry visit will be a tour of J.L. King and Co on WednesdaySeptember 30th. Members are invited to gather in the foyer at 7.15am, our normal meeting time. The address is 21 Brickworks Road,East Bendigo. There is plenty of parking on the street, if you can't find space in the car park. Management has requested no jewellery and flat soled shoes. It is advisable to bring warm clothing as we will be passing through some refrigerated areas.
For those who are able we will gather for breakfast at Eastside Cafe, 40 Strickland Road, East Bendigo after the tour at around 8.30am. Again there is plenty of parking on the street. Please be in touch with Jim Rolfe (0407554263) if you have any queries.
The online event calendar and print guide are now available, showcasing thousands of festival events across the state. Check out the collection points for which Coles, public library and neighbourhood house you can collect a festival guide from.
Stakeholder promotional toolkit
We would appreciate your support to promote the festival to your community, contacts and networks.
Please see attached a stakeholder promotional toolkit including:
John Cannon mentioned a few weeks ago that he and his son Henry were going on a motorcycle rally in Egypt. Here are a few details of the trip. The Rally is called CROSS EGYPT CHALLENGE. This event is run by ROTARY ALEXANDRIA COSMOPOLITAN and this year is the 15th time the event has been run. The purpose of the event is to promote tourism in Egypt.
The event is over 9 days and covers approximately 2400klms and is run in late October.
Henry and I are riding 150cc scooters. This year the event is also including a
RYLA (ROTARY YOUTH LEADERSHIP AWARDS)event, see attached flyer.
Rotary South Pacific 2026 is where regional leadership gathers, ideas ignite and momentum builds. Under the bold theme People. Planet. Peace., this Conference brings together Rotary leaders, changemakers and members from across Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific to shape the future of our organisation. Convened by Rotary International Director Jennifer Scott AM and chaired by PDG Tony Monley OAM, Melbourne 2026 will connect global vision with regional action. From international keynote addresses and leadership streams to fellowship, collaboration and community impact, this is more than a conference — it is a movement for regional impact.
