Page 4 - 2020-05-Rotary-on-the-Move-Newsletter-Zone-8

‘CHARTERING A CLUB DURING THE PANDEMIC’

Article by ARC PDG Ida Portella, Rotary Club of Mareeba

Chartering a club in the middle of a world pandemic is certainly challenging and yet it came at a time that the spirit
of community was so needed and Rotary delivered.
Rotary Cairns Northern Beaches has finally chartered and it took almost 4 years in the making. The Mareeba Rotary
club in District 9550, has been supporting a satellite
group meeting for members who had transferred to
Cairns for work and wanted to stay in Rotary. Over
the years, members moved on and yet we continued
to persist as we knew that if we could get our local
businesses to see the benefits of Rotary, we would
soon have our own club in this area.

The clubs main focus is youth and it was through
working with the Principal of the local high school
and Division Councillor, that we were able to secure
two events, i.e. Trinity Beach Vibe and Anzac Day
Dawn Service, they even managed to secure funding
from the Cairns regional council to run these events,
through Mareeba Rotary.

The club chartered this month with 21 members, Club’s Adviser PDG Ida, incoming president Luke Bancroft
three members will transfer from the Mareeba and Treasurer Jodie Allen finalising details to run its first
Rotary club and two are returning Rotarians and 16 official Zoom club meeting, 27 April 2020.
new members.

‘HOW WE REACTED WILL BE REMEMBERED’
Article by RC Zone 34, PDG George Robertson-Burnett, Rotary District 6890
From the Newsletter of Zone 34 Rotary Coordinator and Membership Teams, April 2020.

I think it is fair to say that the Coronavirus Pandemic will be remembered for a very long time indeed.
Inquiries will be held, books will be written and recommendations on how to avoid a repetition will be
made.
But what of our own actions and reactions, how will we judge ourselves and how will we be judged. Our first and
most important duty is to ourselves and to our family. Providing for our family, following guidelines and keeping
our nearest and dearest safe and protected, is paramount.
And then there is our other family - our Rotary family. We are a fellowship which directs a large proportion of our
efforts for the improvement of the lives of others, but during this pandemic perhaps we need to first look closer to
home. While there has been a great move towards online meetings by our Clubs, it is as important to note who is
not attending as it is to welcome those who are. Reaching out to our members with an email, or dare I say an actual
phone call, reinforces our basic principle that every member has value, every member is valued.
There may be many reasons why they have not connected, technical issues, family or financial concerns, or feelings
that it just doesn’t matter, the main thing is that we need to show it does matter, we do care and we do have solutions.
Sometimes the carers need to be cared for.
... and thirdly we have our Community family, those who for so
many years have been the focus of so much of our Club’s efforts. We
must stay connected to our community and let them know that
Rotary is open for business. Increasing our virtual social footprint,
reaching out by online media, telephone and with cards and letters,
offering comfort, help and reassurance. This will reinforce the fact
that your club is an integral part of the community, and that Rotary
cares.
All of these actions, and our other creative practices, will be
remembered and appreciated long after the present emergency is
over, this is after all what we do as Rotarians, and even pandemics will not stop or stifle our efforts to maintain and
build our fellowship, and to positively impact our communities and the lives of others.

Rotary on the Move Mayl 2020 Page 4