At this stage of proceedings, Elaine handed over the badge of office and presidential responsibilities to Peter Veerhuis who proceeded to introduce the incoming board. AFTER DINNER ENTERTAINMENT. Following on from the musical presentation provided by Ben Gillard and our very own Sergeant s Team, who would have thought that the best was yet to come but that s exactly what happened. We were very fortunate in obtaining the services of an ensemble known as Clarified. This clarinet ensemble is a product of the Riverina Conservatorium of Music and consists of three staff members plus four senior students. They demonstrated the versatility of the clarinet by playing a diversified range of music. It was unfortunate that the time was so limited as most expressed a desire to enjoy more of the music. However, anyone seeking to enjoy more of the music presented by the Conservatorium can seek to be placed on the email list by calling the office on (02) 6925 3522.
NEXT MEETING: - We now move into the new Rotary year and our first meeting sees us once again enjoying the hospitality of the Wagga Wagga Country Club. On this occasion we will meet the recently appointed General Manager of the Wagga Wagga City Council, Peter Thompson. Peter moved here from Tamworth where he was employed in a senior management role in Local Government for the past decade. He has qualifications in both science and law and prior to working in Local Government he was employed by the NSW Environment Protection Authority as a Senior Operations Officer, and the Department of Land and Water Conservation. We expect that this will be a quality presentation and you are encouraged to invite guests especially guests that might become prospective members. But don t forget to advise numbers for catering in the normal way. PERSONAL JOTTINGS: - BILL PREST RETIRES (AGAIN). Bill has retired from his voluntary activities at Kurrajong s Lifestyle Choices. At a recent gathering of staff & clients at Chauncy Cottage, Deputy CEO Ray Carroll spoke of Bill s untiring efforts in glowing terms and thanked him for his twenty-three years of service. Bill is reported to have responded Volunteering is not a one-way thing, it gave me something to do in my retirement and I got a lot of enjoyment out of it. I also met a lot of good people. He announced his retirement so that he could spend more time with Dot the fact that he is now 86 is reported to be totally irrelevant. TERRY & FRAN MECHAM (GREY NOMADS). Terry & Fran are currently in outback South Australia. Last report saw them departing Coober Pedy and after a short sojourn south, they plan to head up to Erldunda then onto Uluru and Kings Canyon. Terry still receives the Bulletin by email and passes on his congratulations to Elaine on her year as President and is looking forward to working with Peter over the coming year. JULY IS ROTARY CHANGE OVER MONTH: - As we all know, Rotary International normally sets a monthly theme so that members can focus their thoughts on the relevant themes nominated. No specific theme has been allocated to the month of July 2018 which allows us to concentrate upon the year ahead. During the coming weeks, our incoming Board headed by our new president Peter Veerhuis will sit down and crystallise the planning and preparation for the coming twelve months; to determine our role in the Rotary Family and the wider community. Wagga Rotary Club is a democratic organisation and whilst Peter and the directors have been elected by us to undertake certain functions, it is certainly not intended that individual members abrogate their own roles. We all need to be actively involved in our Club and the activities undertaken. One can recall (the late) Peter Walsh warning intending members about being a RINO (Rotarian in name only). Don t be a RINO like most voluntary organisations, the more input you have, the greater the reward. We have a great Club let s make it greater.
BIRTHDAYS AND ANNIVERSARIES: - (7 h Jul to 13 th Jul) Birthdays: Rotary Anniversaries: Nil. Nil. Wedding Anniversaries: Karel & Wendy Bijker (10/7) KOOKABURRA In Memoriam With all the sadness and trauma going on in the world at the moment, it is worth reflecting on the death of a very important person, which almost went unnoticed last week. Larry LaPrise, the man who wrote "The Hokey Pokey", died peacefully at age 93. The most traumatic part for his family was getting him into the coffin. They put his left leg in. And then the trouble started.