On the 12th of March we had a hilarious encounter with Tony Pilkington. He made use of his exemplary public-speaking talent entertaining a substantial number of members as our "Member in the spotlight". I believe that the initiative contributes to our increased attendance lately. Chair of meeting was Cameron Gibson and apparently he enjoyed orchestrating the show as much as our main performer. Our next "Member in the spot light" is Phil Gresham on the 26th of March.
(A reminder, the meeting on the 19th of March is cancelled. Members are encouraged to attend one of the events with RI President Ian Riseley.)
I must admit that my report to the members was far less entertaining than Tony's intervention. Luckily I gave it before Tony stepped in so there was less ground for comparison in my disadvantage. In an effort to be at least structured I split the report into three parts: Membership, Club projects and News from the District and beyond. Here is what has been communicated:
Membership
We welcomed a new member – Robyn Burridge. Robyn has worked as a Specialist Educator for 27 years. Her field includes Teaching English as a Foreign Language at Primary, Secondary and University Levels. Her field is now Yoga. She has also been a company director focusing on property turnarounds. She avoided the bitcoin craze and retired in 2014. Her interests include mysticism, science, the arts and championing the underdog. Robyn is already involved into Club activities. She took part in the International Women's Day breakfast and she is assisting our Peace Fellow Mentor, Mark Williams, in making his mentee, Morgan, more welcome and engaged. Welcome, Robyn, to the Club and well done on your involvement!
On the other side of the coin Steve Dunlop handed a note of resignation. Due to work and family commitments he cannot see himself being back to the club this year. It is sad to see him go. Steve was bringing fresh humour at our meetings and I certainly enjoyed sitting next to him in my first months of joining the Club. I hope he will consider re-joining when he finds the necessary time and spirit.
Club projects
The EU co-funded project proposal I mentioned a couple of months ago in which the Club is the Australian partner was successfully submitted last week. The project will create opportunities for the Club to 1) diversify its fun offering to the members and 2) establish links with fellow Clubs in Belgium, Bulgaria, Hungary, Romania, Germany, Portugal and the Netherlands. We shall know of any results by the end of June. The interesting fact about the project is that preparation work is done in my Rotary year. The bulk of funds and work will flow in Chris's year while profit, if any, shall come in Michael's year. Lucky Michael!
We will be moving towards utilising what we have learned from the QUT Ideas Factory and turning it into a comprehensive Strategy plan for the Club. A PwC strategy consultant is recruited for the purpose and she will be working in close cooperation with 1) our PE and PN to embed their views and aspirations for the forthcoming two years, 2) the Ideas Factory participants themselves and 3) all Club members as well as with some that have resigned. I will be asking for permissions to pass on contact details (telephone numbers and e-mail addresses only) so if you do not wish any or all of your details to be communication you will need to get back to me. Leveraging on his experience, Clive volunteered to supervise the process together with me.
We still have to distribute some PAF funds this year. I still would prefer to have a project 1) in the CBD, 2) addressing a social issue and 3) with promotional value to the Club. Since it is very unlikely to find a perfect match my idea is to revamp our unsuccessful Aurizon proposal, Guardians of the night, and propose it to QUT Business School for joint implementation as an Integrated Workplace Project by a team of their students and our members. QUT has a DGR status. Thus we 1) produce a story worth talking to the media about, 2) provide an opportunity for our members to get involved with no monetary costs associated and 3) engage with potential members.
News from the District and beyond
Rotaract CBD is planning a fundraising event on the 10th of May at the Brunswick Hotel. The name of the event will be 'Rainbow Games' as they are supporting Open Doors Youth Service which offers counselling and support for youth aged 12-18 and their families who are part of the LGBTIY+ community.
Mid-City is organising a Lift the Lid Ball on the 2nd of June at the Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre. They will be very grateful for assistance in securing support and prizes for the event. All proceeds will be donated to Australian Rotary Health.
Rotary Club of South Brisbane compiled the first annual (2016-17) Directory of Rotarians’ Services and Businesses in the targeted area of Brisbane and Ipswich and extending North to Bribie Island and Caboolture, South to Logan and Beenleigh and east to the Redland and Moreton Bay areas. The aim of the Directory is to give Rotarians the opportunity of networking and promoting their businesses within the Rotary world as well as including a heavy emphasis on promoting Rotary throughout the Directory. Should members wish to promote their business in the directory and would like more details, please, get in touch with Michael or myself!
We also held a Board meeting on the 12th of March. I was pleased to see all Board members attending. We had heaps of work since last Board meeting did not take place but nevertheless results are more than simply positive. However, I will reserve my right and report on those advancements in our next Bulletin issue.
If you are attending one of the events with RI President Ian Riseley, please, get in touch with Mark so that he can record it in our system for you to buffer make-ups.
The 2018 Rotary Club of Brisbane Charity Golf Day is on again, on Friday June 15. This year, proceeds will go to aiding our ongoing project to help train rural medical practioners and nurses to perform endoscopies so that patients do not have to travel to large cities to have these procedures.
Click on the image below to get your entry form now!
Chair for the day was Cameron Gibson, and after Rotary Grace and toasts, he invited President Daniel to the podium to deliver the President's Message, which is shown in full above.
Following the President's message, we experienced a key event in the life of the club - the induction of new Rotarian Robyn Burridge. Robyn has lived a pretty interesting life so far and brings a wealth of experience to the club. We hope her Rotary career will be long, happy and successful.
President Daniel Presents Rotarian Robyn Burridge with her Rotary pin and induction package.
After a short break for fellowship and lunch, it was time for spots:
Graeme Whitmore announced that the date and venue for this year's RCoB Golf day had been chosen, and Virginia Golf Course has won the right to host this year's event on the 15th of June. A Prize sponsor has already been secured, and more sponsorship is on the way. This is one of our major fundraisers for the year and members are urged to enter their teams as soon as possible.
Keith Watts informed members that he will be absent from Brisbane for six weeks starting from just before the next meeting on 26th March. In his absence Phil Gresham has agreed to carry on the duties of membership chair. Many thanks to Phil for taking on this job while Keith is swanning around Europe.
Mark Williams appealed to members for more bulletin and website stories. The world is sick of his prose and he misses too much. The Rotary Club has been doing story-worthy things at the rate of about one a fortnight recently and we hide our light under a bushel. A "story" can be as little as 100-200 words and a picture about something the Rotary Club of Brisbane has been doing or something one of our Rotarians has been doing in the community. Members may also have noticed that when they click on the "read more" link at the bottom of the story intro in their bulletin, they are taken to the web version of the story. In Many cases there is a blue "F" at the bottom of the story. If you click on the blue "F" then the story is automatically shared on your Facebook page. Generating publicity for the Rotary Club of Brisbane is that easy!
Mark Williams also informed members that the UQ Rotary Peace Centre will be holding a Peace Seminar at The Women's College, UQ on Saturday 24th March from 11am-5pm. Rotary Peace Fellows will be reporting on their Master's work and field study projects. The event is at the top of the upcoming events section above, and members and friends can RSVP at the link which will reveal itself if they click on the link.
Denise Schellbach reminded members about the special lunch meeting on Monday 14th May at which Police Commissioner Ian Stewart will be the guest speaker. The meeting will be held at the United Services Club rather than the Brisbane Club, but will nevertheless count as meeting attendance rather than as a makeup. Commissioner Stewart gave us a very interesting and informative presentation last year, and this year he will speak about the upcoming Commonwealth Games from a policing perspective. Many people from other clubs and the community at large will be present, so it is also important that we as a club attend in force to show the flag.
Following spots, it was time for what we had all been waiting for: Member in the spotlight Tony Pilkington.
Tony regaled us with some choice anecdotes, including how he lost his first two jobs in radio (after a short stint with an SP bookie) by offending first Malcom Fraser and then Al Grassby. That he lived to tell the tale end even got a third job is a testament to something. Had the Brisbane Club provided aisles, we would have been rolling in them.
There being no sergeant, we proceeded directly to the drawing of the raffle. This week, two people tried to find the joker, but neither succeeded. The jackpot is now worth more than your editor's car (but less than a service for it.)
President Daniel closed the meeting right on time at 13:45.
By Albert Essien, Rotary Club of Tema Meridian, Ghana
Fante Mayera is a medium-size rural community of about 800 people in the greater Accra region of Ghana. In August, I visited the community with the manager of the Rotary-USAID partnership in Ghana and other officials to meet with villagers and check on the progress of a borehole and latrine. I had been part of an initial visit with my Rotary club in 2016 to assess conditions there, and it was exciting to return and see the difference this important collaboration is making.
Albert Essien, left, visits the stream that is a source of water for the village.
The main occupation of the people in Fante Mayera is farming. The community is connected to the National Electricity Grid so inhabitants have access to a power supply. The community had an existing hand-dug well, which was installed a decade ago. But over time, the quality of the water had become very bad. When we arrived at the well site, the apron was hanging off from erosion and the hand pump was not working. To fetch water, villagers had to use a bucket and rope. The color of the water resembled tea.
In spite of the poor quality, the community still used it. As we stood by the well interacting with residents, I saw children come around with buckets to fetch water. In the dry season, the well dries up, and when that happens, the community shifts their attention to a stream which is some distance away. From the hand-dug well site, residents led us on a 20-minute walk to the stream.
During my earlier visit in 2016, I remembered seeing a snake swimming in the water, an indication of the dangers the people are exposed to meeting their daily water needs. We impressed upon them the need to get a platform people could stand on to fetch water, so they wouldn’t have to walk into the stream. As part of the collaboration, Rotary and UAID are providing the community with a water supply system based on a mechanized borehole.
Next we visited the primary school to inspect construction of two 4-seater KVIP latrines. I was glad that the girl’s latrine had a changing room with a washing trough connected to a water source. This feature is a requirement of my club’s menstrual hygiene program, under which we distribute washable menstrual kits to school girls.
We were shown the existing latrine which was in a very bad shape. We were told that community members used to come to the school to use the existing latrine, but the heads of the PTA and School Management Committee gave us assurances this would not happen with the new facility. The community seemed very appreciative of the latrines being constructed, so we felt convinced they would not allow anybody to mess them up.
A member of Essien’s Rotary club discusses the well with opinion leaders in the village.
The community members are very appreciative of what Rotary is doing for them. It is my hope that in the not-too-distant future, I will return to witness the completed WASH facilities in use, as our club continues to work with Rotary’s partners to support, train and mentor the community in water and sanitation management and hygiene education.
Lindsey Pointer facilitates a connection circle using a talking piece.
During the recent U.S. government shut down, a bipartisan group of roughly two-dozen senators helped craft the funding deal to reopen the government. The group used a “talking stick” as a tool to facilitate their meeting, only allowing the senator with the stick to speak in an effort to cut down on interruptions.
The use of the talking stick originated in Indigenous North American customs and is today also commonly used in restorative practices such as the circle, a process used to build connections and resolve disputes in community. Sometimes the talking stick is replaced by another object that has special significance to the group or facilitator using it. For example, I have heard a story of a group of construction workers having a difficult conversation about workplace safety using the hard hat of a deceased workmate as a talking piece to pass around in the circle.
At Right: Example of an Indigenous North American talking stick. First Nations Pedagogy Online
Regardless of the object used, the talking piece ensures the equal voice and respectful communication necessary for cooperation.
The story about the senators got me thinking about other restorative principles and practices used by restorative justice organizations I have worked with. I have learned a few key strategies from working with these groups.
Lesson one Always make time for relationships.
Every meeting with our whole staff begins with a connection circle in which each person answers a relationship-building question. Our staff takes turns facilitating those circles and picking the question and talking piece. The work always gets done, but plenty of time is made to laugh together, to check in about our lives, and offer support.
Above all else, restorative practices prioritize the building and maintaining of healthy relationships. We all have a want and a need to feel belonging and the only way to accomplish that is through opportunities for genuine connection. Research has shown that when we feel connected, heard, and appreciated at work, productivity increases. Having positive relationships with the people you work with also makes it easier to collaborate and compromise.
Lesson two Establish a productive way to deal with conflict and remain open to feedback.
A Restorative conversation is a way of addressing one-on-one conflict that focuses on the impacts of an issue and what can be done to make things right moving forward. Longmont Community Justice Partnership trains volunteers in this method so they have a restorative way to resolves disputes among themselves over unreturned phone calls or differences in facilitation styles. Because staff members are all trained in the model, they have a tool for dealing with conflict and it doesn’t fester or come up again later passive aggressively.
Lesson three Listen and show you are listening.
Active listening is a pillar of restorative practices. Facilitators are taught to show that they are listening through eye contact, body language, questions, and reflective statements. Active listening fuels cooperation.
Bringing the values, principles, and tools of restorative practices into our daily lives, families, and work communities allows us to create a social environment conducive to cooperation. Like the simple but powerful talking stick, these practices foster healthy community interactions.
About the author: Lindsey Pointer is a restorative practices facilitator, trainer, and researcher. She is pursuing a Ph.D. in Restorative Justice at Victoria University in New Zealand with support from a Rotary Global Grant Scholarship and the Fulbright Program from the U.S. State Department.
President Daniel Vankov
Secretary Michael Stephens
Treasurer Warren Walker
President Elect Chris Muir
Imm. Past President Graeme Whitmore
Sergeant-at-arms Luke Marshall
The Rotary Club of Brisbane Inc.
ABN 75 152 438 499
GPO BOX 2909 Brisbane Qld 4001
District 9600
Club Number 17787
