Juanette shares her remarkable Story with us, The Anns August Club 100 winners (omitted last week), what are the Anns getting up to? and celebrate Heritage Day the EcoBrick way....

From the Pen of the President..... 

Dear fellow Rotarians and friends,

Spring has sprung and there is something in the air!! EMBRACE the feeling….

I found this on Facebook and thought it appropriate to the time of year.

JOY

Joy does not arrive with a fanfare, 

on a red carpet strewn with the flowers of a perfect life.

Joy sneaks in, as you pour a cup of coffee,

watching the sun hit your favourite tree, just right.

And you usher joy away,

because you are not ready for it. 

Your house is not as it must be,

for such a distinguished guest.

But joy cares nothing for your messy home, 

or your bank-balance,

or your waistline, you see.

Joy is supposed to slither through the cracks of your imperfect life,

that’s how joy works.

You cannot invite her, you can only be ready when she appears.

And hug her with meaning,

because in this very moment, 

joy chose you.

Donna Ashworth

Yours in Rotary….

Ann Hope-Bailie

Last Friday.....

As Editor-in-Chief I don't think I would have done Juanette McCrindle's  "Story" any justice if I had condensed it, so here it is as written and told by Juanette herself. 

" My journey started 55 years ago… as my mother stood in the queue to go to the cinema in Umtata in the Transkei.  She never made the movie, my dad took her into hospital and then went back to watch the movie…..

Apparently I was a very difficult little girl and hence my grampa offered to adopt because my mother could not manage my charming and challenging personality. I am not sure if I have changed much and Rainer probably would love for my Grampa to adopt me now….:)

I have an older sister in the UK, a younger sister and brother in Australia and my parents who are both still alive in Australia.

My dad worked on West Rand Cons mine and my mother was a hairdresser.  As a child I attended 3 primary schools and 2 high schools. Most of my childhood was spent in a place called Mooinooi near Rustenburg. We commuted by bus daily in primary school and in High School I asked to be in the hostel so I could participate in after school activities. We were not wealthy, but I do not remember feeling compromised in any way.

Academically I did alright and I played tennis for the first team. I started ballet at the age of 4 and continued until age 12 when I gave it up for jazz dancing. Hostel prefect.

Do any of you remember POP SHOP with David Gresham???? Well I was on one of the dances on a couple of his shows.

 In my matric year I was fortunate to go the United States on a tour, without my parents. It opened my eyes to a whole new world.  I had just turned 17. Because I had taken Maths, Science, Accountancy and Economics… a good thing I felt would be to learn how to type. So I went to technical college for a year and got a secretarial certificate and worked part time for a clothes designer.

 I could not see myself living and marrying a man on the mine, I had other ideas, I was stubborn, determined, focused, I wanted to go places and meet people.

I then left home at the age of 18 and moved in with my aunt and uncle in Springs…. Yes there was a reason… he was a year younger than me and we met because his mother and my mother were in school together.

I worked a part time job in a video store for a few months before getting a job as a junior bookkeeper. I moved into my own flat. My relationship ended, life went on and by then I was a senior secretary for a Customer services manager and later a bookkeeper for an asset manager with Liberty Life in Braamfontein.

I initially commuted to Johannesburg and back until one day I was in the train going home when it was stoned by an angry mob of people who could not get home because the 2^nd class compartments were full. Yes it was back in the time when you had 1^st class and 2^nd class SAR coaches. It was however during one of my train rides to and from Johannesburg that I met my ex-husband Doug, I was 20 at the time.

I then moved to Johannesburg to stop this commuting to and from.

Doug and I had been going out for just over a year when I bought my first townhouse and he and I bought a piece of property together. After 4 years we got married. I was 23 and 3 weeks pregnant, had my first child when I was 24, my second when I was 25 and my third at 27. 

When my second child was 2 months old we moved to Botswana. Doug was a chartered accountant and took a position in Selebi Phikwe, where my youngest was also born.

So, arriving in the desert I asked myself what am I going to do?? I used these years to develop my domestic skills, I learned to sew and made some of my children’s clothes, I learned to cook and helped run a community coffee shop. I continued my dancing exams and I developed my thespian skills. I also did the books of a florist. 

After 4 years we moved back to RSA to Richards Bay of all places. I applied for a position with Knight Pieshold as righthand woman to the person running the office. I got the position but 6 months later we moved to Zambia.

Again, it was what am I to do here in Africa. I joined the PTA and later the board of directors for the school my children were attending, it was also here that I met Rainer for the first time.

 These were crazy times and I remember going to Bangkok for a weekend with 6 women… we never slept. We shopped until we dropped and I came back and sold the goods I bought and this covered my costs of this fantastic trip… ..

I joined the International Woman's Club and for a year was the president of the club, which took me to meet the elders of a leper colony which lies an hour or so out of Lusaka and at that time, the people in this community were not allowed to attend any public hospitals. We provided seeds and other assistance which they needed…  I helped at an AIDS orphanage.

Needing some self-development, I completed a diploma in teaching English as a Second or Foreign language and started my own import export company specialising in ladies’ garments.  Ran an audiology business.

A friend asked me to be the area manager for a cosmetic company and this awarded me the opportunity to do the makeup for the miss Zambia pageant.

It was through the cosmetics business that I met a lady who was to be the daughter in law to the now late President Sata… she came to purchase her wedding underwear from me and I was invited to the wedding. There were 4 whites at a wedding of 800 people… my husband and I had such a good laugh… Mr Sata was then the Minister without portfolio, and thought that because we had been invited to the wedding that we must be really important people… he served us wine the whole night… I hope no one ever told him we were nobodies in the biggest sense… ha ha ha…

Because of my good experiences in Botswana, I joined the amateur dramatic club and was picked for the role of Magenta in the Rocky Horror picture show… this was a hoot from the first rehearsal in our underwear till the final of 14 shows where we had a lawyer in the wings because of the possibility of being arrested for being scantily dressed in a public place

After 4 wonderful years in Zambia our lives took us to Botswana once again and then back to South Africa. Back in South Africa I enrolled in a B ed degree and started teaching in a private school. However, my interests had changed and I swapped my degree to a psychology degree.

I was asked to assist in a special project at AirChefs working with a team of Chartered Accounts to sort out their “Creditors”… it was an interesting project and they asked me to stay on permanently….They offered to double my salary but I chose to work with Rainer instead. At an ex-Zambian get together… at Rainer’s house… he was talking to a friend of mine and he asked her… “Do you know anyone who can set up and run my business in South Africa?” I turned around and said.. “I can”… That was the start of my business with Rainer… we developed a network in Africa selling specialised equipment to the breweries and soft drink companies… we were working with engineers from Germany and responsible for 21 countries. At the same time, I got involved in the Harveytile business and developed the Zimbabwe region as well as help manage and direct the Zambian operation.

 We opened up a business in the DRC and for 6 years tried to break into the market amid the bribery and corruption which is rife. Sadly, we left after making a huge loss… but the experiences are irreplaceable. Let me share a few short stories with you… first… I never saw another white woman walk across the Congolese border…..

… we were attacked in Kinshasa walking down the road.. 2 guys jumped Rainer and they rolled on the ground… it was not looking good and the only way Rainer saw out was to stick his finger in one of the perpetrators throat… just then a 3^rd guy approached and said stop stop.. we ran one way and they ran the other…..

…on another occasion we took a local minibus and because Rainer understands a bit of Kiswahili understood that the discussion in the bus was whether to rob us or not, half the bus said yes… we got off at the next stop…

… One Friday going to the airport in Lubumbashi we were stopped a few km before only to find out there was a shoot out between the rebels and the Congolese army going on… we turned the car around and drove to the Zambian border… we did not want to risk being caught up in a war….

.. another time crossing from Congo to Zambia by foot we were stopped by the officer of the president to be searched…. They thought I was a journalist and wanted me to unpack my bag… I did.. by showing the panel my garments one by one.. until the lady got upset because she thought that I would buckle and offer a bribe… instead I just repacked my bag neatly…. And on one occasion Rainer and I were separated at the border… they took the passports and left me alone … then they came back with Rainer and 2 men took me away… only for them to end up arguing in French and me asking if I can leave… I looked calm… but inside I was shivering with fear as I did not know what they wanted to do. …

Shortly after our return to South Africa my ex-husband took a job in Abu Dhabi and we in essence moved in different directions and got divorced. I went through a difficult time and in order to find myself again decided to enter a triathlon and completed the Psychology degree I had started some years ago… just this time at a different institute. I completed both. I will continue my studies in the hope to open my own practice at some point.

I joined Rotary in 2005 and since 2012 am a proud member of the RC of Rosebank… until they fire me for lack of personal attendance … 😊

I married Rainer in 2018….. and we have relocated to Hamburg in Germany.

The day Juanette married Reiner

As I said in the beginning… which parts of my crazy life do I share and in what detail…so I have given you the straight forward uncomplicated version… and now I would like to share some of the crazy things that happened during what seemed to be a relatively normal life….

Ø  3 Bungees - Highest Bungee in the world

Ø  Zambezi White River Rafting

Ø  Hot Air ballooning, champagne breakfast, etc.

Ø  Skydiving over dunes in Namibia

Ø  Quad biking through the dunes and sand boarding on the dunes.

Ø  Completed a 5-day hike through Drakensberg, did not summit in Lesotho due to storm

Ø  Completed the Otter trail

Ø  Shark diving (in a cage in Hermanus)

Ø  Snorkelled the Great Barrier Reef

Ø  Driven Great Ocean Road and Gold Coast

Ø  Visited the 12 Apostles in Australia and in Cape Town 😊

Ø  Visited Blue Mountains

Ø  Blue butterflies in Cairns (Special place where only they are found)

Ø  Enchanted Gardens in Sintra, Portugal, where Harry Potter roamed

Ø  Eaten Star Fish, Sea cucumbers, Duck tongue and Sea Cockroaches in China

Ø  Played tennis with Egyptian Ambassador in Zambia.

Ø  The late President of Zambia, Sata, served me wine at his son’s wedding because he thought I was someone important 😊

Ø  Valentines Picnic on the Eifel Tower

Ø  Skiing in Austria

Ø  Visited Buckingham Palace

Ø  Visited the White House

Ø  Swimming with Dolphins in Mauritius

Ø  Diving in Mauritius

Ø  Parasailing over ship wreck in Comoros

Ø  Travelled 1^st and Business class over 50 times – do not belong to the Mile High club ☹ but have showered and slept in a suite

Ø  Visited Ann Frank’s House and the Rijksmuseum

Ø  Visited the Hole in the Wall in Transkei

Ø  Thrown sticks off Poohsticks Bridge

Ø  Walked through the 100-acre Wood

Ø  Played Magenta in the Rocky Horror Picture Show

Ø  Participated in a speed Triathlon …. And finished it!

Ø  Spent 6 hours in a Sweat Lodge

Ø  Fasted for 12 days (no food, only water)

Ø  Sat with Elders from a Leper Colony

Ø  Worked with orphaned HIV Aids babies

Ø  Swam the Midmar Mile

Ø  Held a Koala bear, Boa Constrictor and Crocodile

Ø  Lay on rocks hanging over Victoria Falls at devil’s pool

Ø  Visited Twin Towers

Ø  Been up Empire State

Ø  Saw Liza Minnelli Live at Radio City Hall in New York when I was 17

Ø  Climbed down part of Grand Canyon

Ø  Seen Old Faithfull explode

Ø  Been to Disney, Universal Studios and Epcot centre

Ø  Watched the Sun Set and skinny dipped in Key West

Ø  Been on the Biggest Cruise ship in the world

Ø  Cried my eyes out on Robin Island

Ø  Danced on television and performed on stage many times, acting and dancing

Ø  Sewed my children’s clothes and made their birthday cakes

Ø  Watched a traditional burial, the burning of a body in Nepal

Ø  Saw the Kama Sutra engraved in wood around the top of a temple in Nepal

Ø  Travelled the Rovos Rail from Pretoria to Cape Town

Ø  Briefly met Richard Branson

Ø  Been on a house boat on Lake Kariba in Zimbabwe and the Mürizt in Germany

Ø  Seen the Iguazu falls

Ø  Climbed up the Erawan Falls (4^th of 7 levels) in Thailand – 4^th level where little fishes eat the dead skin off your body

Ø  Visited Kanchanaburi, Thailand walked over the Death Railway, visited the JEATH war museum where underneath every loin cloth the artist with much effort gave each man a penis :0 LOL

Ø  Slept in Hotel Del Lago where the rich and famous met their lovers in the late 1800’s

Ø  Been through the Everglades on an airboat to visit an old Indian village

Ø  Travelled on a train in Vietnam

Ø  Visited Angkor Wat in Cambodia

Ø  Stayed 4 nights in a Buddhist temple in the South of Korea

Ø  Swam in a crocodile infested river in the Thuli block

Ø  Am privileged to ride a Harley Davidson

Last but not least… been booed of the stage because I cannot sing

…… I have been blessed with three amazing children who are successful in their own right…

…. My blessings have been bountiful and I have been blessed with more than I need which gives me the opportunity to share and care for others…. and I am grateful every day for the full and amazing life that I have been able to live….

…. The people in my life including my Rotary friends have enriched me in so many ways and it is to each and every one of you that I am thankful for the experiences and love you have embraced me with…

What are the Anns getting up to?

President Shirley is full of spring energy.  Recently a relative passed on without leaving a will.  Shirley, not daunted by the scale of the task, asked if the Anns could have the contents of her apartment and the family agreed, provided that the Anns do the work of clearing out and transporting the goods.  Another Ann, Anne Whitehead made space available in her garages and outbuildings, for the goods.  It took a team of workers, marshalled by Shirley, to clear out the premises so the apartment could be sold.  In the process some of the goods were sold and a tidy sum of money was raised to be put towards current and future projects. 

On Saturday 3 September a sale took place at Anne Whitehead’s home where clothes and household goods were sold and a further tidy sum was raised.  Friday morning was devoted to sorting and laying out the goods for sale on the Saturday morning and some Anns pitched in and helped.  A team of Anns turned out on Saturday morning to conduct the sale.  A WhatsApp text and photo reported that they had had fun and raised a pleasing amount of money. 

There is to be a jumble sale at the end of September to dispose of more of the goods.  This will be a wonderful shot in the arm for the Anns funds for projects.  Special congratulations go to Shirley and Anne and all the Anns who helped and will help with these sales.

Bridge Drive

With Liz Short’s drive and outstanding organisational skills, we are preparing for our first post COVID fund raising bridge drive on 14 September.  A committee has been meeting monthly to make all the arrangements and the final details are being planned.  There is still time for Rotarians to donate raffle prizes – wine and chocolates are always greatly appreciated.

EcoBrick Heritage Day Celebration...

This Friday....

...We welcome guest speaker Anthony Rosenbaum, who organizes bespoke slack-packing experiences to tell us a little bit more about hiking trails in the Outeniqua Mountains and the Karoo. 

Our Monthly Social Meeting, Foundation Training, The August Club 100 winner announced and Comrades Camaraderie....

 From the Pen of the President....

Dear fellow Rotarians and friends,

 

This week, as I am still in Cape Town, singing songs and reading stories to grandchildren, I have “borrowed” a section from the DGs Newsletter – if you have read it, GREAT (you will recognize it), if you have not read it, here goes….

The issue of recruitment is and always has been the “lifeblood” of any club. However, many times, we as Rotarians, make this process more difficult than it really is. It is just that simple, because each and every one of us has one friend, associate, business partner that we trust and could recommend to Rotary. Our strategy has to reflect the changing times, attitudes and activities that are of interest to our membership. We have been given options (the tools in My Rotary) to have more flexibility in the way we run our clubs, as such, it has never been so easy and encouraging to be vibrant in our club activities. Off course in doing so, we have to be guided by our guiding principles and core values of: Fellowship • Integrity • Diversity • Leadership • Service

The number of members in our clubs, retained and recruited, is an important measure of our strength in service, but so are funds we donate to fuel that strength and the number of projects and volunteer hours we render. We have to continue celebrating ourselves and our successes as people of action in “service above self”

We have to be able to “Tell Our Rotary Story”, says RI President, because, “Our brand is more than just the logo and the words that follow it. It is a symbol of trust … of hope” (Zone Director Patrick Chisanga”). It is the essence of who we are and what we do, therefore strengthening our clubs and membership will help us tell that story in a compelling way and attract like-minded people like ourselves to join.

 

Think on this – till next week!!

Ann

 

Last Friday...

.... being the last Friday of the month, meant that it was a social meeting where we could kick back, relax and enjoy some Fellowship. Post-lockdown it is encouraging to see that attendance has gradually picked up and having the option of attending via Zoom does mean that members that are unable to be there in person can log on for that hour.

Environment Chair Lyn Collocott invited the vice chairperson and treasurer of the Blairgowrie Community Association Margie Roper to briefly address us and give us some valuable information about the river clean up taking place on Saturday the17th of September.

The BCA is very active and they are enthusiastically supporting The Rotary Club of Johannesburg New Dawn's river clean-up initiative coinciding with World Clean Up Day. 

The Rotary Club of Rosebank has been allocated a portion of the Braamfontein Spruit flowing through Delta Park, which is part of the Blairgowrie  'hood.

Please watch this powerful video which will make you want to roll up your sleeves and be there on that day to make a difference.

We are, after all, People of Action!

Foundation Training..

District 9400 offers ongoing Foundation training to Rotary members and last Saturday morning Sybille and Debi Lieberthal  attended the online course dealing with various Foundation programs.

Subjects covered:

Polio Grants , Disaster Grants, Grants of Scale, Global Scholarships and Vocational Training Team (VTT).

It was enlightening to learn how our annual club dues are applied, how the funds are invested and how they ultimately are returned to our District to fund the various grants mentioned above.

The following Foundation training dates and times are:

• Grant Seminar - Saturday 10th September 9:00 - 11:00
• Foundation Overview - Saturday 8th October 9:00 - 11:00
• Grant Seminar - Saturday 22nd October (which will be a repeat)

To register for these training courses, go into the District 9400 website, click on Events, drop down - District Calendar and then send a message to Alice Meyer, district secretary who will send you the training registration link.

It is really worth the two hours!!

And further afield...

David Bradshaw is bursting with pride and would like to share his twin daughter Katie's sterling achievement of completing her first Comrades with us.

Katie, we salute you!

This Friday...

...We look forward to "My Story" which Juanette McCrindle will be sharing with us. 

Club assembly sets the tone for the year ahead, a call for Foundation training, a successful Interact Blood Drive and save the date for World Clean-up Day...

From the Pen of the President....

Dear fellow Rotarians and friends, 

Thank you to those who attended the Club Assembly - I think we can say progress was made!! Rules, rules and regulations - they relax over time and are not necessarily broken.

This week I am in Cape Town spending time with our grandchildren - gosh, am I pleased to be past educating and bringing up children!!

 Keep warm and be safe,

Yours in Rotary.

Ann

Last Friday...

Before getting down to the business of  Club Assembly it was wonderful to be able to induct two new members into our Club.

Professor Shelley Schmolgruber and Vivien Brokken, both academics in critical care nurses training at the University of Witwatersrand, are no strangers to our club as they have in the past been involved in candidate nominations for our Lester Connock Award.

They have attended a number of meetings and are keen to become proud Rotarians and be involved in club projects. No doubt both Shelley and Viv will be valuable members and we welcome them warmly; may they have many happy years at the Rotary Club of Rosebank.

To kick off the Rotary year a club will convene a Club Assembly where the annual budget and club goals can be discussed and agreed upon.

1.    The proposed budget for 2022/23 had been circulated to the members by treasurer John Symons ahead of Assembly and was accepted, with the membership dues being increased to R2,200 per member per annum. The increase in membership dues was also accepted, bearing in mind that club dues had remained the same for the past two years.

2.   In the past the Commemoration Fund was used, among other things, for training of members on District, RI and/or Rotary Leadership Institute (RLI) courses.This practice is to be resumed provided that  members notify their training intentions to the Board in advance and have received approval.

3.    President Ann had distributed the envisaged goals for 2022/23 to all members: 

v  Club Membership - As we have already inducted 3 new members in the first two months of the Rotary year it was felt that a membership figure of 40 is very achievable

v  Service participation – all members should be encouraged to participate in service projects such as the blanket drive, Norwood Christmas food drive and environmental initiatives. 25 should be very achievable.

v  New Member Sponsorship – how many members will sponsor a new member during the Rotary year - 3

v  Rotary Action Groups (RAG) – how many members will join one of the many Action Groups offered on the RI website. There is something there for everyone and Ann would really like to encourage as many of us as possible to join. She has set our target/goal at 10.

v  Leadership Development participation -  How many members will participate in leadership development programs or activities during the Rotary year – 5

v  District Conference Participation   -  How many members will take part in next year’s District Conference in April taking place in Swaziland – Surely we can get a group of 10 to attend?

1.     Additional matters discussed:

a.     Members are encouraged to make use of District and RLI training courses.

b.    District Conference is in Eswatini this year and President Ann would like our Club to have as many as possible attend.

c.     This year we have 3 outgoing exchange students 

d.    We will have to update our by-laws to accommodate that we are now a hybrid club.

e.    We no longer have to report attendance  to RI. We discussed flexibility around meeting attendance versus members showing commitment to Rotary by meeting attendance and/or participation in service and fellowship activities of the Club.

It was noted that RI attitude is more relaxed than it may have been in the past. The emphasis is on attracting and retaining members.

f.     5^th Fridays: The overwhelming vote was in favour of scrapping the 5^th Friday meetings in favour of social events like the recent picnic and walk in the wilds.  The next 5^th Friday is September 30^th and President Ann will ensure that notice is given of a social function to replace that meeting. It was also noted we must inform District and RI through the appropriate channels and Club Runner and our website.

g.     Club directory:  we discussed the merits of a having a booklet containing member details  versus a digital directory, which members could print if they prefer a paper-based booklet. President Ann undertook to distribute a digital Club Directory by the end of September, and to obtain a quote for a printed booklet, to facilitate a final decision on the matter.

h.    Club members agreed that we should appoint a mentor/buddy for each new member, to facilitate assimilation into the Club. Melodene, Sybille, Jean and Sonja volunteered to fulfil this function for  Debi, Michelle, Shelley and Viv.

i.      Members wishing to bequeath money to the Club can obtain a codicil template from Costa.

j.     AG Jean again stressed the need for flexibility and adaptability in the way we run the Club, particularly as we are an international hybrid Club with members in Italy and Germany.

Invitation to Foundation Training....

This Saturday the 27th of August  at 9:00 a.m. you will have an opportunity to take part in online Foundation training.

Please click into the following link to register:

https://us06web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZUtd-6hrj8tGdCk_wcGdldByijcZCmt9-Zw.

Blood saves Lives...

The Highlands North Boys High School InterAct Club staged a successful Blood Drive at the school last week under the watchful eye of teacher Mimi van Deventer and Rotarian Marianne Soal.

Do your bit for World Cleanup Day ....

Our Club has been allocated a section of the Braamfontein Spruit which runs through the Delta Park from the blue bridge to the Conrad Drive bridge.

Bring your family and friends to make a difference and let's show the world that we are People of Action!

This Friday...

It's a social meeting. Hope to see you in person or on Zoom

T

A

Guest Speaker Eric Dabbs takes us to the Baltics, Quiz 100 and Juanette opens her home to Ukrainian Refugees....

From the Pen of the President....

Dear fellow Rotarians and friends,

Once or twice a year we need to attend to business in the Club by holding a Club Assembly – an ideal opportunity for members to put something on the agenda and be heard/have it discussed by all the members. We are one big happy family, but, as in all families there is always someone with a differing opinion or wanting to have their say or just discuss something bothering them!!

Club Assembly is this coming Friday – please email me with your agenda items – if it is not on the agenda, it is not going to come up!! I will be sending you all, via email, our current annual budget for comment and also the goals I have selected for the club for everyone’s approval.

Please try and attend on Friday, either online or in person – we cannot make any decisions or vote on anything without a quorum!! We have 2 inductions to look forward to as well.

I was so happy last week as it seemed that winter was over – not so, but at least we know that spring HAS to come – it is the order of things!!

Keep cosy,

    

Ann Hope-Bailie

   

 Club President

Last Friday...

... We were privileged to listen to Traveller Extraordinaire, Eric Dabbs' most recent travel exploits.

Since his retirement in 2011 Professor Eric Dabbs has criss-crossed the globe extensively and with his recent trip to the Baltic countries his tally of destinations has now passed the 100 mark.

Eric titled his presentation: Travelling through the Baltics (In the shadow of War in the Ukraine).

He had been drawn to that part of the world as he had numerous friends who had originated there and these were the only European countries he had not been to.

Despite the proximity to Russia the actual war was far removed.

The Baltics consist of 4 very diverse countries: Lithuania- capital Vilnius, Latvia - capital Riga, Estonia - capital Tallin and Finland - capital Helsinki.

The countries have a rich and deep history and thankfully most of the historical castles, churches and buildings have survived, because instead of going to war they capitulated to the invading forces.

Lenore thanked Eric for his fascinating talk and we had to agree with her that we were all intrigued by the Hill of Crosses which he visited while in Vilnius. It is a popular place of pilgrimage, and it is estimated that the hill houses about 100 000 crosses.

Quiz Challenge 100...

To celebrate our 100th Quiz Challenge last Wednesday our organizer David Bradshaw invited a few of the regular Rosebank Rotary participants to his home for a hearty soup supper and the opportunity to test our general  knowledge in person. Our Zoom opponents were from the Rotary Club of Kyalami as well as the e-club of Harare. The winner of that evening was undoubtedly Fellowship!!

Juanette McCrindle shares her "Ukrainian" journey with us....

We are privileged to own 3 properties in Hamburg. We live in one of the apartments and the other 2 townhouses were standing empty. We decided that we did not want to rent them, but instead offer them to  refugee families who have come to Germany and have to start their lives all over. 

We attend a Rotary club in Norderstedt and we met a lady who I think was the previous Mayor of Norderstedt and she put us in contact with one of the departments who deal with asylum seekers. 

Heide contacted us last December and said she had a family from Eritrea who needed a home. However, this did not work out. 

Then in April after the Ukraine vs Russia war broke out we were contacted once again by Heide saying she had a family of 5 driving from Ukraine at that moment and were arriving in Hamburg within the next week and would need a place to stay. We agreed that they could immediately move into one of the townhouses. It was semi furnished so they had something to start with. It is a family, Vladimir (62) and his wife Natalia (46), Lena (58), Olga (36) and her son Nikita (3). Vladimir could leave as he was over 60 but Olga and Lena's husbands who are both under 60 could not leave, they had to remain to fight the war. 

Without any questions we gave them the keys and they moved in. We also gave them a key to the house next door and said if there was anything that they could use from that house to please take it. 

Vladimir and Natalia helped us and especially Rainer in sorting out our garages and putting up shelves to make our life easier. The language was a problem but our friend GoogleTranslate is an amazing app and we use it to type messages to each other. It took them a while to get registered and  they are now attending German classes. The German government gives them an allowance of 380 Euro per person per month. And the government also pays us rent. (We did not expect anything from the government or the Ukrainians).

At the end of April Heide contacted us and said she had another family looking for accommodation. We made it clear that this house which is available is in fact not really habitable, but if they wanted to look at it they were most welcome. We met with a tall, dark and quite handsome young man. We sat and chatted, I estimated him to be about 33/34, but as it turned out he is only 24. He has a degree in Economics and speaks good English. His manner and the way he conducts himself is very mature and responsible. And remember, this is the 2nd war he is living through. 

He went through the house with me and said yes, he would like to take it. I also gave him the keys and told him to keep what they wanted in the house. He explained that his mother, father and grandparents would be living with him. 

He then asked if he could make some changes, but who would fund these changes as was penniless? So we agreed that if he managed and organised everything, we would fund the requested renovations. Within 2 weeks, he had ripped out the old carpets and replaced them with laminate, he had all the skirtings redone and painted the walls. Once he had moved in he organized  lamp shades and curtain rails. The house has gone through a miraculous change and it has been a blessing not only for them but for us as well. 

We went away to Wiesbaden to visit our grandchildren. Davyd wanted to organise a service to remove all the garbage which had come out of the house and we gave Davyd our car keys and trailer and said: here,  please use it to remove the garbage. He has mentioned many times to me that he and his family do not know how to thank us. He said that it is so unbelievable that people will just hand over the house keys and say: here, stay as long as you like without expecting anything in return. He also can't believe that we would just give him our car keys and then leave town. These are things he said that do not happen and has given him a huge amount of trust and respect for us. 

Davyd and his mom have been in the house since mid May but his dad only managed to get out much later and arrived in Hamburg on the 3rd July. His grandparents decided to stay in Russia with their daughter, as they felt that the trip to Germany would be too much of an adjustment at their age. Which I can totally understand. Davyd and his mum have worked in the garden and continue to make changes in the house and for this I am extremely grateful. 

 I took the ladies and Nikita out for lunch... I had to laugh.. I said to my children, I took Natalia, Lena and Olga out for lunch, we spent the whole time on our cell phones... ha ha haaa.... "translating" ..... It is the only time I have been to a lunch where I agreed that cell phones were acceptable :) 

Our experience has been a humbling one. People who have fled and arrived in a country, with a culture and language they do not understand, have been pleasant, helpful, friendly, they laugh with us and they are so grateful they do not have to live in one of the communal halls where they would have to sleep with hundreds of others. 

Unfortunately other people have had unpleasant experiences when they took in guests from other countries. We have been blessed. 

I am separated from my family in South Africa by choice, but these families  are separated from their loved ones because of war. One loses sight of how fortunate we are. When you meet people who have lost everything.. and I mean everything... It is a good time to stop, reflect and be grateful. 

This Friday....

Club Assembly and the induction of Prof Shelley Schmollgruber and Vivienne Brokken.

See you all there, either in person or on Zoom.