President Neil opened the meeting with the 1929-30 Rotary Vision of RI President M. Eugene Newsom - “To keep it simple enough that the average Rotarian can apply its principles to daily life”.
In a 1927 Rotarian article called “What Constitutes Vocational Service” he said: “Real genuine friendship and the laws governing friendship provide the basis for all forms of enterprise. If Rotary can materially contribute to the development of friendship between individuals, businesses, professions and nations, and if the individual is willing to make friendship the basis of his job or vocation, then we have an ideal of service being applied in ways that should make all of us happy.”
Mark Your Calenders
Foundation:
Tav reminded us of the District Foundation Seminar on October 18 at The Travelodge in Duncan. Members are encouraged to attend and learn about programs like the Annual Programs Fund, the Permanent Fund, Humanitarian Grants and Rotary’s $100 Million Challenge.
Walk For Polio: Joan Peggs needs our support for the Polio Plus walk on October 5 at 3:30 pm from her house at 30 King George Terrace with pot-luck supper to follow. Sign up on ClubRunner, make a pledge and buy a T-Shirt.
Linda Hallett
At right, Janet Collier of the Oak Bay Recreation Centre and Peter Lawrie, who will be working with the Interact Club
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Honouring Bill Sharlow
The photo below shows the wedding of Bill and Jean Sharlow. Bill was presented with a Certificate of Honourary Membership by DG Brian Beagle at the September 9 meeting. The Certificate was to acknowledge his many years of service to Rotary.
(This biography appeared in the December 22, 1998 Rotary Oak.)
It was May 1941 in Croydon, England. “There’s a good show playing at the Rex at Hayes,” I said. “Okay, let’s go then,” said Bill. “We can most likely get home before the air raid starts.” Read this exciting story in the book, ‘Blackouts to Bright Lights, Canadian War Brides who came to Vancouver Island' available at your local library.
Bill and Jean Sharlow were married in West Wickham, Kent on July 19, 1941. His regiment, the 92nd Battery of the 3rd Field Regiment Royal Canadian Artillery attended. A guard of honour plus the military band was outside the church.
He was born on a farm at Wetaskiwin, Alberta and moved to Trail B.C. to work as a hard rock miner on the Pend Oreille River and also dabble in placer mining in the same area. September, 1939 saw him enlist in the 109th Battery of Artillery and ship overseas to Britain. He served with the 1st Canadian Division in the Mediterranean. The ship he was on for the invasion of Sicily was torpedoed and he was picked up and taken to North Africa. He eventually reached Sicily then on to Italy, Germany and Holland where he was when the war ended.
Bill was back in Canada in May, 1945. Poor Jean and son Michael were to wait until February 1946 before joining 1,200 other war brides and children for the rough crossing on the Mauretania packed ten to a room. After 35 years with BC Electric Gas, he retired as Construction Superintendent. They moved to Oak Bay in 1984. Bill joined Rotary in 1961 and was President of the Burnaby Club in 1966-67. He joined Oak Bay Rotary in 1985.
Guest Speaker: Carry On Grannys
Doug MacDougall introduced our guest speaker, Lynda Hallett, pictured at left, a nurse who works with the Steven Lewis Foundation and is currently the co-President of “Carry on Granny’s” in Victoria.
In 2006 Lynda was a volunteer with the Steven Lewis Foundation at a Grandmothers’ gathering in Toronto. 100 grandmothers from Africa met with 200 Canadian grandmothers to discuss the dire situation in Africa where families are being torn apart by the AIDS epidemic. Thus began the Grandmothers to Grandmothers campaign. It has grown to over 200 groups across Canada raising over $3 million dollars to date.
The goal of the group is to raise $3 million annually. Their mandate is to communicate with Grandmothers in impoverished countries and try to understand how best to support them in the midst of socio-economic plight and the AIDS epidemic which is killing the children and parents so that the grandparents end up raising the kids. Many solutions are at grassroots levels and Lynda and her group are committed to supporting these initiatives.
Lynda told us of her recent trip to Uganda, South Africa, and Swaziland where she marched in the International Woman’s day and met many grandmothers who have suffered significantly and continue to do so raising children where the parents have died of AIDS.
The group has 150 projects in Canada to increase support for the grandmothers in Africa and their plight. They continue to need our support.
All today's photos by Jack Petrie
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Introduced by
Tav Macpherson
No Rotarians today but there were three guests:
Elizabeth Borek (Joan Peggs) Shelley Best (John Picken) Janet Collier (Lorna Curtis). Janet is the Recreation Oak Bay contact with the Interact Club and herself a former Interactian (a word?)
Perhaps Interactor.
Sergeant at Arms Wendie’s Way
(Wendie Hogarth)
Our S-at-A was in a fining mood after being bumped from the program last week. She levied a dollar a head for the enforced sabbatical. Tav was fined for having the good luck to win a door prize somewhere.
Dallas paid a Happy Dollar to tell us how her father avoided a collision with a toddler. He was striding to the stage to accept an award when the child wandered into his path. He leapt over the child, did a roll, and continued calmly on his way to collect his prize - all this at the age of four score and a bit!
Below: Two OB Rotarians caught by Jack
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