Rachelle Mulraney
As I sit here and reflect on the first half of this Rotary year, I am overwhelmed at how the club and members have grown and come together to provide the very best we can for our community – we are truly working well at this year’s Rotary International Theme to “Create Hope in the World”.
The board and club members made a conscious decision at the start of the year to pare back on everything we were doing, and ensuring our activities were impactful and purposeful in our community. And at our recent Christmas dinner event, we prepared a video with some “Impact Stats” for what we have achieved in these last 6 months, and you can see we have achieved some incredible things.
You can check out the video here (and I would really recommend you do): https://vimeo.com/897050753
As a group we have achieved so much and I am so incredibly proud to lead such a dedicated group of volunteers – It has been a personal goal of mine this year to develop and give back to our members, as without our members, we would not exist. Our new monthly Cup of Gratitude awards have been an opportunity to give back to those who have selflessly given themselves to the club and our activities, although it is incredibly hard to pick just one member a month – congratulations to our 5 current Cup of Gratitude recipients; Carol Fitzgerald, Gary Hollindale, Paul Swinburne, Ros Kelly & Sue Dudman. Thanks to Zarraffa’s Eagleby, these guys have received a voucher to treat themselves to a coffee or a treat on us as well, to take a well-deserved moment to themselves.
Another member wellness initiative was our Member Retreat Weekend, where we took a trip out to the beautiful Scenic Rim, staying in Boonah. We enjoyed the camaraderie of a visit to the local Rotary Club of Boonah and did our part to support the local economy (I can confirm our members very much enjoyed that aspect) with a day trip to Summerland Camels Christmas Market, The Scenic Rim Farm Shop and Scenic Rim Brewery, as well as visiting numerous cafes and shops in the township of Boonah. The hospitality we received everywhere was second to none. We left the weekend feeling reenergized and enthused to get back into our community and do good in the world.
To further develop members, we have held professional development evenings, with Corporate Member Bob Pillay running a session on personality types, where we were led on a journey of self-discovery, but also how varying personality types can work well together. We also had Janeen Vosper lead a session on elevator pitches, captivating and engaging an audience to share our Rotary journey – something we can all put into use not only in Rotary, but in our professional lives as well. I thank both Bob and Janeen for selflessly giving their time for us to grow.
Our weekly meeting nights this last 6 months have been an engaging journey of discovery and collaboration, from a plethora of amazing guest speakers joining us on various topics, opening discussions and learning for members, to the open and collaborative approach to our new monthly project meeting nights – where everyone has had the opportunity to discuss and develop how our club events and projects come together.
But the real impact comes from what we achieve in the community. We’ve participated in a number of events from our usual Bunnings BBQs and raffle nights at Club Beenleigh, through to ticketing patrons to the Papua New Guinea Independence Day Celebrations, Packing Shipping Containers at RARE (Rotary Australia Repurposing Equipment), Car Parking at events, Runnings BBQ at other community events like the Eagleby Little Big Day out, Donating Undies and Backpacks to Beenleigh Special School, starting an indigenous library at Jinndi Mibunn, Donating conveyor toasters to the local school breakfast clubs, to purchasing a dream cricket kit and running a gala day for an all-abilities sporting day. We have proudly presented 11 All-Rounder awards at recent end of year school awards night celebrations, along with one senior schooling bursary to support a local student in moving into completing their senior schooling studies. Our club also supported a wonderful student, Sophie, to participate in the Rotary Youth Leadership Awards Program, and it has been a pleasure to have Sophie giving back at our club as well.
I believe a highlight for all members has been the true spirit of the current Christmas Season – a season of giving. With rising costs of living, our club wanted to do a number of activities of various impact. We have sizzled up Sausages at the Wesley Mission/Eagleby Giants Eagleby Community Carols event. We were asked to again participate in Logan City Council’s Beenleigh Town Square Christmas Concert & Movie night by providing a Sausage Sizzle and drinks, this year the club decided to put this on for free for attendees, and what a night it was with over 500 sausages and 800 drinks given out. We also purchased a number of bubble wands, which we have given out to the kids at various Christmas events we have attended, just as a small token to spark some joy in young lives. Members shopped to their hearts content as we provided $1,200 worth of groceries and gifts to Beenleigh Meals of Wheels through Star Community Services, to put together hampers for the elderly in our community. We also put together 75 Christmas gift bags to go to the residents of the local Eureka Community Complex, these were lovingly delivered as part of their residents Christmas lunch and was a truly heartwarming experience for members to deliver. I believe each member of our club who has participated in just one or all of our Christmas giving campaign will sit back and feel a sense of accomplishment, as you can see just how appreciated the efforts in our community are.
In this half of the year, we have also welcomed new member Rebecca to our Rotary family and look to have some more new and exciting members joining us in the new year.
As I look forward to what the start of the 2024 year brings, the club will continue with all of the excellent initiatives that have been put in place by members so far in this Rotary year, as well as really kicking into the preparations for our signature event with the Cane Parade & Gala Ball.
I hope to see you as we continue our journey to create hope in the world. Wishing you, your family, friends, and colleagues all a joyous Christmas Season and a prosperous start to 2024.