Where is Dubai? You may well ask! The amazing thing was how many members of the club had been there...okay, many of them only in transit. Wendie White, the MD of Lloyd Orr Communications, gave us an entertaining talk on the pleasures of Dubai but understandably, as Dubai Tourism & Marketing is one of her clients, none of the less savoury aspects of the political side of Dubai. Nevertheless you have to admire the economic and business acumen that transformed the one Gulf state with negligible oil into a Consumer Mecca. Many thanks, Wendie, for an interesting talk.A Night at the Zoo - 5th November
Lori Bramwell-Jones has organised a night experience at the Johannesburg Zoo on the 5th November. You don't have to spend the night there but some of us will need to be careful about not being kept behind in error. I suggest that you have your ID with you just in case.
And here's Julie Felix singing that Tom Paxton song all about it in the '60's. She's practically forgotten today but I remember her coming to our Folk Club and thinking how exotic she was and maybe when I grew up...... Paul Simon also came but that is another story!
DG's Regional Dinner, 19th November
This is an important event as it replaces the DG's Visit to the Club. There aren't any details as yet about cost etc but please put it in your diaries. Partners are also welcome and it gives us the opportunity to socialise with Rotarians from other clubs. We must be well represented so let's not just leave it to those who are obliged to go....especially as David Grant sent us this nice email!
Rotary Global Grant GG1531461: Application approved
Dear President Neville, James and Mark
Congratulations to you and the Rotary Club of Rosebank on being
awarded the Rotary Global Grant GG1531461 for such a worthy and exemplary project.
It is a great achievement and one to be admired by all the clubs in our
District.
We look forward to hearing of the project’s progress in due
course.
Kind regards
David
District Governor
Rotary District 9400
This Week
Steven Anastopoulos is presenting a "Mind Trap Quiz". I don't know what that is but it sounds extremely dangerous. Is the Wanderers lunch bait, do you think?I have just had my mind X-Rayed and this is what mine looks like inside....not a pretty sight. If Steve is attempting to purify our minds with this quiz and I lose my not very attractive lodger I would be grateful.
ROTARY AND SHELTERBOX SUPPORT SYRIAN REFUGEES
In Syria, where a civil war has been raging since 2011, more than 6,000 people flee the country every day. As of September, more than 4.1 million people have become refugees, and 7.6 million more have been internally displaced.
“The plight of Syria’s refugees is a litmus test for the world's compassion,” says Rotary International General Secretary John Hewko. “Rotary members worldwide are profoundly disheartened by the refugee crisis now unfolding in Syria and other parts of the world,” which the United Nations has described as the worst in decades.
“Rotary is following the situation closely,” Hewko says. “We know our members have an inherent desire to act, to relieve the suffering and uncertainty that displaced individuals and families are facing. We call on you to respond as Rotarians have for more than 100 years: to use your professional skills and acumen, leverage your connections to other leaders, and mobilize your local communities to provide the necessary resources and funding to address the humanitarian crisis.”
Rotary members can donate to the disaster relief efforts of our project partner ShelterBox. The organization has supported the Syrian relief effort for close to four years and is working with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees to distribute relief materials. ShelterBox is also working with communities in Greece and parts of Turkey to provide transitional housing and supplies to displaced people passing through these regions in an effort to reach other countries in Europe.
Rachel Harvey, a member of a ShelterBox response team that recently returned from Greece, says Syrian refugees are making dangerous crossings to the shores of Greece.
As many as 2,000 people arrive daily on Lesbos’ northern beaches, says Harvey, referring to a Greek island in the Aegean Sea off the Turkish coast. The trip from Turkey to Greece usually takes about an hour and a half. “The flimsy rubber dinghies are invariably overcrowded, and the majority of passengers can’t swim,” she says.
Harvey adds: "The experience is terrifying. Another trauma added to the layers that many of the displaced have accumulated through war in Syria or South Sudan, insecurity in Afghanistan or Pakistan. One man told me: 'It was a nightmare. I don’t know how we got through that trip,' ” she says.
Says Hewko: “We appreciate our clubs and members for their support, helping the millions of displaced people find shelter and rebuild their lives and communities. Every refugee is in our hearts and minds.”
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