What is Rotary all about? Rotary recognises that family comes first, business comes second and hopefully Rotary is third. Amongst members, comradeship is very high on the list of priorities. Yes, there is no doubt that we are Rotarians to “do good in the world” and to support each other while doing so. The vision of Upper Blue Mountains Sunrise (UBMS) is to help create a world where men and women unite and act to create lasting and positive changes - across the globe, in our communities and in ourselves – in other words, belonging to Rotary is a team sport; we do not and cannot achieve our goals by ourselves. There are some goals we cannot achieve as a single Rotary club of UBMS and need to join with other clubs in the Blue Mountains. A recent effort of joining together saw a mountain wide Australia Day celebration from Blackheath, Katoomba, Lawson, Springwood to Glenbrook which we are being encouraged to repeat each year; in April we had a team effort to celebrate the 100th anniversary of Rotary in Australia on the 21st April with a hike from Mount Victoria to Glenbrook carrying an “R100” replica torch and highlighting all the contributions that Rotary Clubs in the mountains have done for the local communities. There are issues like suicide and homelessness which are also widespread and need a joint effort to achieve desired results. Rotary Clubs have been operating in the mountains for between 20 and 76 years and of course have developed their own histories and “cultures” – we all still have the same vision to do good in the world while enjoying the comradery. So, if you are contemplating joining a Rotary Club, visit each one and see how you feel, because at the end of the day, we are all pulling in the same direction. _______________________________________________ Finally, as most of you know Dawn and I are moving from the Mountains to Noosa. We leave next month with fond memories of our Rotary Club, our friends and our time in the Blue Mountains. Bill Pixton will takeover as President, albeit two months earlier than planned. We will be back for Changeover and hope to see many of you at Parklands, Blackheath on 6th June. |