The Rotary Centenary Coins and Stamp launch was held on Thursday morning and was truly a wonderful event. The seamless online communication link between the Melbourne and Sydney UBS boardrooms was impressive and allowed us to showcase the best of the two centenary clubs of Rotary Melbourne and Rotary Sydney. I would like to acknowledge the leadership of those clubs dating back one hundred years. Sir John Monash, the second President of the Rotary Club of Melbourne, and indeed every president since charter, has led a broad church of members who have been able to assist the growth of Rotary in Victoria and across Australia, chartering new clubs and implementing a range of impressive projects that have brought significant benefits to the communities they have served. I congratulate the current Rotary Melbourne leadership team of President Marion MacLeod, Immediate Past President Kevin Sheehan and Hugh Bucknall, all of whom have been so active in the promotion of Rotary’s 100 years of giving and leading our centenary celebrations. They have helped to lay the foundation for the next century of giving.

The multi-District conference, Virtual Victoria, is fast approaching and will be staged over four hours between 11am and 1pm on Saturday 1 May and Sunday 2 May. Under normal circumstances, clubs would have a dinner during the conference week and whilst this year’s conference is virtual, I would like to encourage clubs to still consider holding a dinner the Friday or Saturday night of the conference. Pick somewhere special and invite all your Rotary friends including community and business partners to celebrate in-person a century of service.

I want to take this opportunity to thank my Networker team who work tirelessly each week to put together this newsletter. I am so delighted with the positive analytics showing how many Rotarians across the District are opening it. Going forward however, Networker will be released first thing Monday mornings…a great time to read it over your morning cuppa!

Enjoy the week ahead in Rotary service.

Rotary District 9800 Governor Philip Archer

Paul Harris Quote of the Week

The spirit of tolerance which has made it possible for Rotary to form a worldwide fellowship of business and professional men will make all things possible.