The Madiba Buggy Initiative, the Anns bring Christmas Cheer and letters of thanks for donations made on behalf of the Vocational Awards recipients....

From the Pen of the President....

Dear fellow Rotarians and friends,

 

I said a Christmas Prayer for you, because the Season’s near,

I did not ask for riches, but for gifts so much more dear.

I asked for Joyful gatherings with your friends and family all around,

And for Carols to inspire you with their old familiar sound.

I asked for quiet moments in your heart on Christmas morn,

For a Special time to celebrate the Saviour who was born.

I asked for friends to send their best so you might know they care.

I asked for Peace and Love and Hope and I know God heard my Prayer.

 

My best wishes to you all.

Ann

 

Last Friday.....

....Costa Qually was given the opportunity to share his journey with an initiative that has changed the lives of desperate cerebral palsy children and their carers forever.

If cerebral palsied children are not seated correctly, they cannot eat or speak properly. Their muscles are unhindered to shorten into a pattern of spasticity and their little bodies become twisted and "stuck". Wrists and ankles dislocate spontaneously from abnormal spasm and they live in terrible pain. 

Socially, they are often put on the floor and only ever see feet while those around them are making eye contact with one another. 

Older children are heavy and are often left at home when the family goes out.

About 10 years ago Marilyn Bassin began renovating used specialized wheelchairs for profoundly cerebral palsied children. She needed spares from the suppliers but they were often unaffordable.

 Tutty Faber introduced Marilyn to Rotary and Jerry Bernardo immediately volunteered to make tray tables and foot plates for baby size buggies. Sadly Jerry was called to higher service shortly before he would have attended the first outreach which took Marilyn and her team of volunteers to Thohoyandou, Limpopo in November 2021.

A buggy given as early as possible in a CP child's life is the best gift one can give. A new buggy costs R22 000,  this initiative renovates for R4 200.

Since that first Outreach the Rotary Club of Rosebank and also the Anns have been integral in assisting with the refurbishment and transport of the wheelchairs, blanket collection and e-pap donation and taking part in the three further Outreaches to Dundee and Ladysmith KZN, Alice and Fort Beaufort - Eastern Cape and Eshowe and Nkandla KZN.

Costa finished off his presentation with some very profound words:

The Rosebank Rotary Anns bringing Christmas Cheer...

The Rotary Anns of Rosebank have been busy spreading some Christmas cheer to those less fortunate. A group of Anns recently visited Gerald Fitzpatrick House and Nursing Home in Bertrams. There are 79 ladies resident there in various types of accommodation, including Frail Care. The Anns gave a tea party and distributed gift bags which included foodstuffs, clothing, toiletries, as well as household items for the “independent” residents. We also had a raffle, having given each lady a ticket – prizes were costume jewellery and table linen. The morning went very well and the residents were most appreciative.

Another recent project was our annual donation of baby hampers to Rahima Moosa Mother and Baby Hospital. These are given to mothers of the first baby boy and baby girl born on Christmas Day and also on New Year’s Day, as well as any other mothers and babies whom the staff feel are needy and deserving. The hampers include baby clothes, toiletries, blankets and soft toys. Once again the gifts were well received in these particularly challenging times.

Letters of Thanks from our Vocational Service Award Recipients....

From Ruth Stubbs...

Dear Ann,

 

I trust that you are well.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank you for the Rotary Vocational Service Award which I received this time last week.

Other than being an honour, it is also extremely humbling.

 

The work I do for the Paige Project within communities reflects not only what we as an NPO believe in but what each of us, as individuals within the NPO believe in.

I am privileged to work for the most phenomenal men whose tireless efforts in raising funds so that we can continue to do the work we do in itself is inspiring.

 

The award therefore was accepted on their behalf too because as a team we strive to improve the lives of children with disabilities within the communities we serve.

 

Many thanks once again.

Warm regards,

Ruth

 

This was the last edition of the Ramble for 2022......

See you all again at the first meeting on the 6th of January, either in person or on Zoom.

It will be a social meeting.

Another Induction, "My Story" , A School Award and a Christmas Party to ring out the year....

 From the Pen of the President.....

Dear fellow Rotarians and friends,

Thank you to those who were able to join our year end function on Saturday evening - a wonderful, intimate, fun evening.  We were able to present Marilyn, our special guest, with money for a Madiba Buggy - money raised at our skittles evening. 

The year is drawing to a close, one meeting left, an important informative account of our association with Boikanyo.  

I was lucky enough to be part of the ribbon cutting of the new Rotary centre at JCCI on Friday. We are lucky to have it close by. It has a great view of the city skyline and promises to be a good venue for both District, Club and private functions. 

It is a hectic time of the year so please take care.

Ann

Last Friday.....

... the Gremlins were at work and sadly our Zoom attendees had a less than satisfactory meeting as they reported that the noise levels were such that they were unable to follow much of the proceedings, which is a pity, as we had the great pleasure of inducting a further member into the club as well as member Michelle von Benecke's sharing her life journey with us.

Brigid Booth has been diligently attending meetings for the past month or so and was excited to finally be inducted into the Rotary Club of Rosebank, where it is her fervent wish to make a difference.

For 20 years she has been carrying this little card with her and it clearly made a profound impact on her life. No doubt Rotary will be the vehicle to channel her energies.

Both Brigid's sons Nicholas and Jonathan attended the induction and are they are visibly proud of their dynamo mom.

It was then Michelle von Benecke's turn to allow us a sneak-peak of her life journey.

Born and bred in Pretoria, she studied at Stellenbosch and lived in London on a gap year, but  she adamantly maintains that she would not want to live anywhere else in the world but vibrant Johannesburg.

Because of her talent as a budding artist her parents sent her to the  Pro Arte School in Pretoria, but sadly she lost both of them in a tragic car accident when she was 15, after which she then lived with her aunt in Bedfordview. 

She studied mechanical engineering as the only girl at Stellenbosch University where she also headed up the student council.

After her initial studies she headed for the bright lights of London for a gap year and then did industrial engineering followed by a MBA.

She loved her first challenging job at SAB, where she worked in a male dominated field and although she is not a beer drinker per se she did achieve a diploma in beer and wine tasting.

Her career then catapulted her into the world of banking, starting off with Capital One, which was bought out by Nedbank, she did a stint at Standard Bank where she set up the credit card analytics department, consulted for various banks and even worked for a manganese mine in Hotazell.

She is now back with Nedbank in a very specialized IT department that deals with global payments and is considered a specialist in everything Forex.

Michelle is divorced and her two daughters and two dogs balance her life.

Michelle and her daughters are clearly very creative and many of their joint past times involve painting, baking and attending weekly concerts of the Johannesburg Philharmonic Orchestra.

And despite Michelle's exhausting agenda she also finds time to teach maths after hours and volunteer her time to the St. Columba's Presbyterian Church Outreach.

AG Jean presents a Youth Committee School Award...

Last Monday the Youth Chair of our Club AG Jean Bernardo attended the annual awards ceremony at the Esperanza Primary School in Newlands where a young Grade 7 scholar Nontabeko Dube received a Rotary school award for outstanding scholarship, sportsmanship, fellowship and leadership.

Jean was blown away by the dedication of the teachers and the enthusiasm of all the young learners who walked away with multiple awards. It is a testament that there is a future worth striving for in this country.

Jingles All the Way....

.... After the whirlwind year that was 2022 everyone needed some hearty Christmas Cheer which gracious hosts Ann and John Hope Bailie offered us in spades.

Ann had promised that if Tutty attended the party she would take a plunge into her pool. That did not quite happen, but she did dip her toe...

It was fellowship at it's best with great food and lots of laughs. All guests received a beautiful plant - a Blood Leaf - generously gifted by Charlotte and James Croswell.

And thankfully the weather gods looked upon a kindly and gave a wonderfully warm and mellow evening.

This Friday....

...Our last meeting for 2022.

 Costa Qually will take us on a tour to the Midlands where he was part of an Outreach which supplied 29 severely handicapped  cerebral palsy children with the gift of mobility.