PP Garry Cooper died peacefully, surrounded by his close family, on 28 April.

 

Garry was an incredible contributor to the Club, always ready to help tow art screen trailers, help with logistics for the Australia Day celebrations and Christmas Carols functions, support the Farmers Market and much more.

 

During his presidency (2011-2012), Garry led the Club in a wide range of activities, including a very successful charity business dinner and other fundraising activities that benefited the Rotary Foundation, Berwick College, Interplast, ROMAC, 4Cs, Polio Plus, Disaster Aid Australia, St John of God, Beaconsfield and Berwick CFAs, Relay for Life, Prostate Cancer Foundation, Sports Australia Hall of Fame and Windemere.

 

The Club mourns a great member and would like to express the members' deepest sympathy to Marlene and the extended Cooper family.

 

Garry's funeral service will be held on Thursday, 9 May, at Our Lady Help Of Christians Catholic Parish, 496 Princess Highway, Narre Warren. Rotarians are invited to form a Guard of Honour at the end of the service.

 

I planned at our ANZAC Meeting scheduled for 24 April which we unfortunately had to cancel because of numbers to share why ANZAC day means so much to me.

I won’t let it percolate for another 12 months so I want you all to meet my Dad.

Here is his picture when he enlisted at 17 years of age to be part of our WW2 War Effort

He served in the Navy in the Pacific, his ship was bombed and he was sent in to Hiroshima to help in the clean -up efforts.

He only rarely opened up about what really went on. He used to box in the tents to win money so that he could send it home to his mum (my grandmother) during the war.

Here is a copy of his service record.

 

 

Every week for many years Dad & I went to the local RSL for a beer and a game of pool and at 8.00 pm we’d pause & reflect with the ANZAC code. That’s when I truly got the impact of how WW2 affected not just my Dad but so many other Returned Servicemen.

Let’s all ensure that the ANZAC tradition never gets watered down and it is up to us to keep it alive.

 

 

 

 

 

After a lengthy introduction to the workings of the Caroline Chisholm Education Foundation (CCEF), David Button has been appointed a Trustee for the next three years. 

 

A good summary of this journey, including why it evolved in the first place and what it means to our Club, can be viewed here: https://rotaryberwick.org/Stories/the-big-thank-you

 

Partnering with local organisations with values similar to Rotary, in this case Vocational Service, makes sense when understanding a broader, often hidden side to our community. For example, enrolments into Chisholm are at an all-time high, but there are also applications for assistance from the CCEF to help these students afford the education and retraining. There are many stories of students struggling to live, let alone pay for education, that could get them out of the struggling cycle. So far this year, CCEF has approved $233,000 worth of assistance scholarships, at an average spend of $960 per scholarship.

 

For me, Rotary needs to be able to see in real-time the facts and figures of what is happening in our community at a measurable level to communicate this information further and understand our broader community. I see our involvement with the CCEF as an opportunity to directly support our young tradies through rough times and actively participate in their journeys. We appear to be at the beginning of a very turbulent economic downturn, and we cannot afford to lose skilled workers because they cannot afford to keep learning.

 

More about the Caroline Chisholm Education Foundation: Click HERE

 

 

Did you know that members of our club are arranging the District Changeover as our current District 9820 merges with our neighbouring District 9810 to form a new District 9815?

 

 

Geoff and Di Double are creating a great event to celebrate this groundbreaking occasion. It will be a watershed moment for us to meet a whole new bunch of Rotarians that most of us have never met in a relaxed environment and to celebrate the beginning of a brand new District. Our good friend and past Assistant Governor, Colin Byron will be sworn in as the new District Governor.

 

 

The event is not far from home and promises a good night out.

There is a booking fee of $4.83 per ticket, making the total cost $89.83 just so you know.

 

I have already booked, and I am looking forward to seeing how our newest Rotary District will impact our community.

Use the QR Code below to book using your phone, or click on the images above to take you to the booking page on your computer.

See you there.