RCGI e Bulletin 19th February 2017 (Feb 14, 2017)

Great to see you, come back again soon!

We meet Tuesdays at 12:30 PM

Chic Restaurant,

Royal St. Lucian Hotel
Rodney Bay, lc
Saint Lucia

District Site

Peace & Conflict Prevention/Resolution Month

Feb 01, 2017 – Feb 28, 2017

St Lucia Independence Day

Happy 38th Independence Day

Feb 22, 2017

112th Anniversary of Rotary International

Happy 112th Anniversary Rotary International!

Feb 23, 2017

Water & Sanitation Month

Mar 01, 2017 – Mar 31, 2017

Rotary Club of Gros Islet - 24th Anniversary

Happy 24th Anniversary to the Rotary Club of Gros Islet!

Mar 05, 2017

March Board Meeting

Host: Rtn Lenita; Location TBA

Mar 08, 2017 6:00 PM

Lunch Meeting Cancelled

Mar 21, 2017

Charter Night Dinner

Location TBA

Mar 25, 2017

Join Date

Chuck McCarthy

February 12, 2013

4 years

Judy Deterville

February 13, 2007

10 years

Angela Clarke

February 14, 2012

5 years

Convention: Southern hospitality
The Atlanta Host Organization Committee is offering some good old-fashioned Southern hospitality at the Rotary International Convention from 10 to 14 June. It has planned a wide range of activities featuring everything from good food and music to inspiring tours of local landmarks. If it’s your first convention, these events are chances to meet fellow Rotarians from around the world, and if you’re an experienced convention goer, you can catch up with old friends. Hall of Fame baseball player Hank Aaron will host Rotarians for a “Strike Out Polio” night at the new SunTrust Park, where you’ll...

Member spotlight: The power of the press
When Teguest Yilma helped found the Rotary Club of Addis Ababa Entoto in 2002, she thought polio had already been eradicated from most of the world. But while Ethiopia had been free of the disease, Yilma was shocked to learn that new cases had started cropping up in surrounding countries such as Somalia. “I was thinking, it’s not possible, we can’t be free if the countries around us are not free,” she says. Yilma, the managing editor of Capital, Ethiopia’s largest English weekly newspaper, has brought a journalist’s skills to the fight against polio. She became vice chair of the Ethiopia...

Member interview: Writer sheds light on FDR’s right-hand woman
Battling breast cancer in 2000, Kathryn Smith found comfort pursuing her lifelong interest in Franklin D. Roosevelt. The more she read, the more intrigued she became with the 32nd U.S. president’s private secretary, Marguerite Alice “Missy” LeHand. “I thought, what a fascinating life she had because she was by his side through the polio crisis, establishing the polio rehabilitation center in Warm Springs and then after his return to politics,” she says. Smith, a past president of the Rotary Club of Greater Anderson, S.C., and a longtime newspaper journalist, turned that curiosity into a book...

The Rotarian Conversation with Ban Ki-moon
One of United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s earliest memories is of fleeing with his family into the mountains during the Korean War, his village burning behind him. His father and grandfather had to forage for food in the woods; his mother gave birth to his siblings away from anything remotely resembling a health facility. “I have known hunger,” he says. “I have known war, and I have known what it means to be forced to flee conflict.” The soldiers who came to their rescue were flying the blue flag of the United Nations. The UN provided them with food and their schools with books....

Culture: Life in the bike lane
Like a lot of us, I spent much of my childhood riding bikes, but fell out of the habit for a while. Forty years. Then my wife and I moved to New York, where cyclists risk their necks in a daily Thunderdome of cabs, police cars, firetrucks, double-decker buses, messengers on motorbikes, and delivery trucks backing around corners at 20 miles an hour. Not for me! At least not until my 50th birthday, when my metabolic furnace flamed out. Calories started going directly from beer bottle to beer belly. It was time to start exercising. Either that or give up Samuel Adams, and I couldn’t do that to...

Happy 38th Anniversary of Saint Lucia's Independence

February 22nd marks the 38th anniversary of nationhood for our tiny island state. 38 years ago on that day, the late Sir John George Melvin Compton, then just John Compton, presided over Saint Lucia's independence from Great Britain. We have travelled the bumpy road of nationhood enduring the constant pain that accompanies our small size and held our heads high. Today we reflect on our achievements and resolve to learn from our mistakes. Today we resolve to come together as one and to cast aside the divisions of politics, for it is only as one that we will achieve our full potential.

May God bless our nation and our people.

See our National Anthem and our National Pledge by reading more.

Happening Week Ended February 18th 2017

RCGI had a fun filled lunch meeting on Valentines Day - See Story

Rotaract Club of Gros Islet Inducted a total of six new members - See Story

RCGI to support launch of 100 Men Who Give a Dam - See Story - Valentines Day

RCGI commit to support CDGC along with Winchester Rotary - See Below

RCGI continue Schools Career Guidance Talks - Through Rt. Trudy Glasgow - See Below

Club Assembly planned for March 4th

March 5th Marks 24 years for RCGI

Confirmed that 24th Charter Anniversary celebration will take place on March 25th at Sandals Halcyon. Tickets will soon be on sale for EC$150 each with discounts for Rotaractors. We are expecting a super fun evening so please come out in numbers and bring guests. Early commitment would be useful so please contact PE Angela to commit.

1919-20 Albert S. Adams (real estate), Rotary Club of Atlanta, Georgia, USA.
Rotary vision: To make Rotary friendship and fellowship a living force in the world at large.
“Friendship…the craving for which brought Rotary into existence is the thing that will keep Rotary a living, vital force in the world for all time, the very foundation of our organization.”
— Address to 1920 Rotary Convention, Atlantic City, New Jersey, USA

The above snippet was taken from a post on ROTI (Rotarians on the Internet). It speaks to the heart of the primary issue being experienced by Rotary clubs in our district - Friendship. Friendship, or lack thereof will either cement the members of a club together as an effective force for doing good in the world, or the converse will be true where there is a lack of friendship. Worth thinking about this my friends in Rotary.

Happy Valentines Day

Our Valentines meeting was great fun with Visiting Past District Governor, Bill Thompson and his wife, Francoise from Rotary Club of Colchester-Milton, District 7850 (Vermont but including part of New Hampshire and Québec), and PP Brad Paul from THE Rotary Club of Saint Lucia (a.k.a. the over the hill club). We were honoured to also have as our guest, Valerie Jenkinson who was our guest speaker, Maiko Miura, a Japanese volunteer, working at the Upton Gardens Girls Centre; as well as partners in service Katherine Lawrence and Maggie Jaganath. In the spirit of the day (depicted above) PP Lisle presented the meeting with a box of Valentines chocolates and President Astrid who arrived at the end of the meeting due to a work commitment brought along some of her now famous cupcakes.

VP Jono presided over the meeting and Secretary Joel summarized the business conducted at the Board meeting. Maiko gave a brief introduction of herself and Valerie spoke to us on the 100 Women who Care and the soon to be launched 100 Men who Give a Dam. Click "read more" for more details of the meeting.

Rotaract Club of Gros Islet on the Move

On Thursday February 9th, the Rotaract Club of Gros Islet inducted five new members. The new members are: Brittany James, Clint Walker, Dervon Amedee, Miguel Charles and Vallin Popo.

At a brief but jovial ceremony held at the Gros Islet Constituency Council Office, the Rotaract Club of Gros Islet welcomed five (5) new members to its family. There were a number of Rotarians representing the Rotary Club of Gros Islet in attendance including President Astrid Mondesir, Secretar...y Joel Crocker, Service Projects Director/ New Generations Chair Lenita Joseph, visiting Rotarian Peter Douch and prospective Rotarian Dr. Marie Antoinette Murray.

The proceedings were presided over by Rotaract Vice President Robin Branford who welcomed the various speakers in turn including Rotaract President Carlyn Joseph, District Rotaract Representative Everistus Jn. Marie and President of the Rotary Club of Gros Islet, Astrid Mondesir.

President Astrid's remarks were as follows:

"Fellow Rotaractors and Rotarians

This is indeed an immense pleasure to be here with you this evening to welcome new members to the Rotary family. Rotary and Rotaract are service organisations which encourage individual contributions to a common need to persons and causes that help to develop our communities one person and one project at a time. Every spoke in the Rotary wheel is vital. You as proposed members will become important cogs in that wheel.

As members of the Rotaract Club of Gros Islet, let your membership count. Every meeting, every workshop, every project is an opportunity to make life better for someone else, including your team members. Let that be the focus of your relationship with your fellow members. Serve humanity and have fun doing it.

I wish you all a very productive, impactful membership in your Rotaract Club. I wish to assure you of the commitment of your sponsoring Rotary Club, as is evident by the attendance here this evening.

On behalf of the Rotary Club of Gros Islet, I want to welcome you all into the Rotary family!"

An then on February 16th:

Shanelle Julian - that is the name of the newest addition to the Rotaract family. On Thursday 16 February, 2017, Shanelle was inducted into the Rotaract Club of Gros Islet by New Generations Chair and Service Projects Director of the Rotary Club of Gros Islet, Rotarian Lenita Joseph.

This was just the beginning of the evening as the vital function of election of officers for the upcoming Rotary year had to be conducted. The election proceedings were overseen by Rotarians Lenita Joseph, Joel Crocker (Secretary) and later President Astrid Mondesir.

It is therefore with great pleasure that we introduce the new executive of the Rotaract Club of Gros Islet for the year 2017/2018:

President - Robin Branford
Vice President/Immediate Past President - Carlyn Joseph
Secretary - Brittany James
Treasurer - Shanelle Julian
Directors:
Professional Development - Robin Branford
International Service - Minerva Gustave
Club Service - Clint Walker
Community Service - Carlyn Joseph

We are very proud of and encouraged by the steps take to build the capacity of the Club. To that end, Rtn. Lenita has committed to providing leadership training to the incoming executive on their roles and responsibilities.

Bravo! Rotaract Club of Gros Islet!!"