SERGEANT AT ARMS REPORT: Sonya Thompson ACE OF SPADES DRAW: Robert Kipling was the lucky winner tonight but alas, he drew the 5 of Spades and received a consolation prize, thanks to Dr Larry Hurren. The deck gets smaller and the pot grows.
DUTY ROSTER:
FOR October: Front Desk Sue MacKinnon Bulletin Editor AND Greeter Bob Stewart
(Editor’s note: If you cannot be available for these duties , please find a replacement)
HAPPY TOONIES:
Your bulletin editor did as best as he could to hear all of the Happy Twoonies. Very hard to do so. (Perhaps next time, we should use the microphone for all three clubs ) but he did manage to capture a few of them:
Ted Morrison- _Happy $ 10 . The Rotary Foundation Walk raised in excess of $ 100,000 from District 7070 Rotarians. Thank you.
Ron Dick - Happy to golf 36 holes with his wife, this past week (and he even got a hole in one)
Lennis Trotter - happy to see the three clubs together
Joe Solway - a happy $ 5 trying to get our Sargeant at Arms to sing a song
Sonya Thompson - Happy about grend re-opening ceremony on Saturday at the Kids' Safety Village
Many happy twoonies for the Grand Opening of the Durham College Centre for Collaborative Education that was supported by many Rotary Clubs in Durham region. And the new Golbal Classroom in the CFCE. A magical moment.
ROTARY MOMENT
None tonight.
GUEST SPEAKERS : District Governor Mary Lou Harrison – Her official Visit to the Three Rotary Clubs
DG Mary Lou Harrison was introduced by Assistant Governor of our three Rotary Clubs, Roger Tessier.
Mary Lou is the daughter of a Rotarian and a Rotary Ann. Her father, Don Foster, is still an active member of the Rotary Club of Toronto West. She grew up volunteering at Rotary events and projects of all sorts. Her early exposure to the wider Rotary family included hosting exchange students attending the Rotary International Convention in Toronto in 1983.
A strong advocate for the role of women in Rotary, Mary Lou renewed her relationship with Rotary after watching a TV interview with female members of the Rotary Club of Parkdale-High Park about the creation of The Redwood Shelter.
However, she didn’t join Rotary until several years later when someone asked her. Thank you to Rotarian Scott Allison. Mary Lou is a Charter Member of the Rotary Club of Northumberland Sunrise, a Past President of the Rotary Club of Whitby Sunrise, and an active member of the Rotary Club of Toronto Sunrise. This in no way means that she is a morning person!
Her district roles have included the positions of Assistant Governor, Vocational Service Chair, Co-Chair of RADAR (Rotary Action for the Development of AIDS Responses), and membership on the Communications Team. She can often be found on an event planning committee (Rotary Foundation Walk, Rotary AIDS Walk, District Conferences, Peace Conference etc.) and/or behind the camera capturing wonderful Rotary moments to feed social media.
Mary Lou is proud to be a Rotary Foundation Benefactor and gives monthly through Rotary Direct, an easy way to support the amazing work of our Rotary Foundation, here in our District and around the world. It’s one of her goals to increase the number of Rotarians donating through this easy recurring giving program.
Currently, Mary Lou is the Parish Administrator at St. Anne’s Anglican Church, a national historic site, active church, and performing arts venue in downtown Toronto. Her work life has included positions in the Ontario government as an Arts Consultant, her own catering and events management company, teaching cooking, freelance writing, and being the editor of a community newspaper. She recently launched her own blog. You can check it out at coolnotcool.ca !
Both inside and outside of Rotary, Mary Lou seeks to be a change-maker.
Mary Lou’s Remarks:
Firstly, Mary Lou thanked eveyone in the room for the work that we do, here locally and all around the world. She also thanked the many Rotarians in the room for their commitment to serving and to those who have served at the District and Zone levels of Rotary, for their dedication. This is where Rotary's leadership begins. She challenged all of us to think about it.
She was very impressed, (at the Grand Opening) with the new Global Classroom at the new Centre For Collaborative Education at Durham College. She also thanked our many Rotary Clubs of Durham Region for their efforts and she hopes that the full $150,000 can be raised to call it the Rotary Global Classroom.
She was also very touched by the new Rainbow crosswalk in Clarington , supported by the Rotary Club of Bowmanville ins support of the LGBTQ community.
She talked about the theme selected by Rotary International Presdient Barry Rassin “Be The Inspiration” and said that we are the inspiration.
She also talked about Rotary's new vision statement, “"Together, we see a world where people unite and take action to create lasting change — across the globe, in our communities, and in ourselves." When you are asked about What Is Rotary, you can use just a few key words in the statement: UNITE PEOPLE; TAKE ACTION; and CREATE CHANGE. Her one word that she challenges us all with for this Rotary year is “DO”.
We CREATE CHANGE: She praised our work on the Kids Safety Village, remembering that her children both went there , when she lived in Whitby.
We UNITE PEOPLE when we go to the District Conference on Oct 26 and 27 in Wellington. Only $99 for the day. Please register today.
We DO just be looking at the new Global Classroom at Durham College, our Youth activities, the Kids Safety Village and the new rainbow crosswalk. Let's share the doing and tell everyone.
Mary Lou talked about the good we do through the grants of the Rotary Foundationand Polio Eradication . She is coming to our World Polio Day event along with attending many others during the day on October 24. She remarked that donor fatigue is nothing when you realize that volunteers, administering the vaccination are getting killed in some countries. We are counting down to history when polio will be eradicated from the world. She noted that every week, President Barry Rassin gets the numbers from the Global polio eradication Initiative. He doesnt think of the number. He thinks of the child and was that child paralized or not.
She urged us all to get online at the Rotary Foundation and sign up for Rotary Direct – the easiest way to donate - -weekly, monthly, however we choose.
We CREATE CHANGE by eradicating polio. She was one of two District Governros at the recent Zone Conference in Montreal to receive a Flamingo of Change. Look at the recent Rotarian Magazine and see the flamingos. One is pointing in the opposite direction . That one is the flamingo of change. She told us all to be Flamingos of Change.
Mary Lou said that the District, (which is made up of Rotarians just like you and me), is here to help each club and each committee. Just ask. As we all go out . Unite and create change in the world.
DG Mary Lou Harrison was thanked by Past District Governor Ted Morrison..
Meeting was adjourned at 8:35 PM.
IF YOU CAN’T MAKE IT, MAKE UP : Go online at www.rotary.org go to the Rotary Club Locator and find a club or clubs near your destination. Or you can add the free App Rotary Club Locator to your phone for instant look up of any club in the world. Please mail or fax your make-ups to Secretary Robbie Larocque, or give your make-up card to the attendance/registration officer at the next club meeting.