Page 1 - Rotary Matters - November 2021

November 2021 DG Newsletter
Dear fellow Rotarians, partners and friends of Rotary,
October has been another busy month. We have now completed 41 of our visits, almost
half way point! As we begin to return to the “new normal” we have now been able to
book visits with our interstate clubs, which we are really looking forward to.

The fellowship and fun that we have experienced first-hand from many of the clubs we have visited has
been extraordinary. It is really wonderful to see the Rotary spirit alive and well in our District. The age-old
traditions that many of us have grown up with such as Person behind the badge talks; vocational visits and
Sargeant sessions, if run well, highlight our members and encourage participation and engagement.

As Rotarians, we have to understand who we are. Rotary is about people. It is people that work on the
projects and activities of our clubs. Regardless of what the project is, the end result is to benefit people.

During a recent visit to a Rotaract club, I experienced the perfect example of the importance
of understanding our members. I shared a story with them about Kodak. Kodak thought they
were in the film and camera business and relied on their experience and reputation to
continue down their current path. What they failed to realise was that they were actually
in the recording of memories business.

Half way through the presentation, Jenny indicated to me that I had lost the group and she didn’t think
they knew who Kodak was. She was right. These young university students had absolutely no idea who
Kodak was and what film was. After much discussion the closest we got to their understanding was
Polaroid film. They were horrified to think that in the past one had to take photos with a camera, not
be able to see what they had taken, send it away to get developed and sometime later have the photos
returned to them not being able to be photo-shopped.

If Rotary and Rotaract clubs are to survive into the future and grow in their membership, understanding
and engaging people has to be one of our main focuses. Being relevant to the community, having fun,
having a sense of achievement are things that people like to do and it’s an even greater attraction if you
can do those things with a group of people you enjoy being with.

In the last edition, I mentioned the Rotary Youth Leadership
Award conducted during the month of September. There will
be some reports in this edition highlighting the success of
this important Youth program. I would like to acknowledge
the Rotary Club of Campbelltown for being the sponsor club.

I appreciate my home club committing to this project in my
District Governor year. Much hard work goes into delivering
this program and I thank all of the members of the Rotary Club of Campbelltown, particularly those who
took on leadership roles, for their support.

In October, we saw many clubs hold events in support of Mental Health Awareness. Jenny
and I were lucky enough to take part in the Rotary Clubs of Eastwood & Regency Park -
Walk for Mental Health and the Rotary Club of Seaford – Seaside Walk. These were two
very successful events to raise awareness of Mental Health.
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