Index

Press Release 30/6/08

Another Rotary year has come to an end when on Friday night Rotarians from the East Kilbride Club and their guests attended the Presidential change over.Outgoing President John Cardno firstly welcomed the new President from Strathaven Maher Hadidi and his wife Dorothy who were accompanied by their Clubs International Convener, Paula Welch. Representatives from East Kilbride Kittoch Rotary Club were also present, accompanying their President Raymond Lyon and his wife Sandra at the gathering held in the Bruce Hotel. Special guest Russell Smith from Phoenix Honda had a special mission at the Presidential changeover when he presented President John Cardno with a cheque for £2000 to be used to boost the clubs Relay for Life campaign which at this point looks like hitting the £75,000 mark. Final figures will be released within the next few weeks.

President John, prior to handing the chain of office over to the new President of the Club had the pleasant duty of installing the Rt. Hon. Adam Ingram MP as a new honorary member of the Club. This was gracefully received by our local MP after Past President Iain Macpherson highlighted Adams Ingram's career to those attending the dinner.

Incoming President Frank McLuskey, having received the Chain of Office from outgoing President John, reciprocated by presenting, now Immediate Past President John Cardno with his Past Presidents Badge, plus he had the pleasure of presenting a bouquet of flowers to John's wife Susan for giving support to John during his year in office.

Rotary Club Board Members for the Rotary Year 2008-09

President Frank McLuskey

Senior V.P. Ray Porrelli

Junior V.P. Roddy Shanks

Honorary Secretary George McGraw

Honorary Treasurer Leslie Irvine

IPP John Cardno

John Murphy, Roddy Shanks, Jack Blackwood, Brian Wood, Andrew Ferguson

Publicity Officer Edwin Robertson

Sports Officer Jim Anderson

Speaker Secretary John Murphy

Rotary Foundation Andrew Ferguson

Attendance Officer Brian Wood

Protection Officers Archie King and John McCafferty

Club Historian Edwin Robertson

Health & Safety Roddy Shanks

Youth Exchange Archie King

Service Projects Committee

John Cardno (Convener), Roddy Shanks( Co-Convenor), Jack Blackwood, Henry Doig, Bob Duncan

George Ferguson, George Gunn, David Taylor, Tom Wilson, Barclay Wales, Jim Moretti, Alan Rae,

Ben Miloudi, Archie King, John Murphy, Douglas McArthur

Publicity & Marketing

Edwin Robertson (Convener) Willie Mack

Rotary Foundation Group

Andrew Ferguson (Rotary Foundation Officer)David Brown, Brian Wood, Edwin Robertson

Membership Committee

Barry Wood (Convener), Ian Craig, Liam Donnelly, Douglas Kilpatrick, Ian Macpherson, Ian Wiseman

Auditors

Alan Jenkinson A.N. Other

Saturday and Sunday, seen 16 East Kilbride Rotarians doing 2 hour shifts at B&Q Superstore; East Kilbride, where they started their collection for Cancer Research (UK) Scotland in their New Rotary Year.

Weather conditions were not as kind as a very the very generous public going in and out of the B&Q Superstore enabling the Rotarians to gather the sum of £1233.56,over the period they were at the store. East Kilbride Rotarians are deeply appreciative of the support given by shoppers at the store and wish to thank them via the East Kilbride Mail for their support to Cancer research

Press Release15/6/08

Those Rotarian's who could not manage their Friday meeting, missed out on an excellent performance of the work of our national bard Robert Burns, when those attending the lunch were entertained by the winners of the Clubs Primary School Burns Competition.

Attending the meeting were Alistair Thompson our solo Piper winner from East Milton, Jay Bell P4/P5 Auchinraith singing Katie Bairdie accompanied with his dad Ross, Andrew Gracie P4/P5 recitation The Wally Dug Southpark Primary, Ainsley Kissack P6/P7 Recitation Holy Willie's Prayer from Southpark Primary both accompanied by teacher: Miss Munro.

Press Release 8/6/08

Schools Powerpoint Press Release

The subject for this year's high school Powerpoint competition was "Carbon Footprint", a very topical subject and high on the list of government priorities.

This is the second year of the competition run by East Kilbride Rotary Club, with the assistance of the East Kilbride Group Training Association (EKGTA).

Two schools, Calderglen High and Duncanrig, entered teams for the competition which was held in the EKGTA premises last Monday evening.

Apart from the Powerpoint presentation itself the schools have to provide their notes on research with evidence, preproduction plan and any references which form part of the judging criteria.

The adjudicators on the night were Jim Holmes ,EKGTA, Dr Simon Walker and Raymond Lyon from Langside College.

Both teams enthralled the audience of Rotarians, teachers, parents and guest , Linda Fabiani MSP with a very graphic, colourful and informative presentation. Interestingly each school had a different approach, both abound with fascinating and attention-grabbing information.

Before announcing the winning team Dr Simon Walker summarised commenting on the quality and creativity of each of the presentations, the high standards achieved and the difficulty the adjudicators in their evaluation. However on this occasion the winners were Duncanrig High School.

John Cardno, President of East Kilbride Rotary Club, presented the winning school with a lap top computer, commenting on the links between Rotary and the schools and the benefit resulting from these types of events. He also presented members of both school teams with certificates.

Linda Fabiani took great pleasure in awarding the trophy to Duncanrig High School highlighting the standards in schools, demonstrated by the skills and accomplishments of Calderglen High and Duncanrig High. She did reminisce back to her school days, not quite the abacus, slate board and crayon, but the lack of equipment available then, listening as opposed to participating and how teaching aids and methods have changed for the better.

The event was closed by Ray Porrelli of East Kilbride Rotary Club who thanked the schools, remarking on the obvious amount of time, effort and research in the making of the presentations, the imagination, ingenuity and resourcefulness of both teams and the support and dedication of the teachers. He also thanked the adjudicators, particularly Simon for coming down from Shetland that day just to judge the event,

Linda Fabiani, Jim Holmes and the EKGTA for the premises and their continued valued support and finally to all who came along in support of the event rounding off with the comment he had looked at his own footprint, looking good for appliances at 0.4tonnes, the home 1.8 tonnes but transport was a grim 5 tonnes giving what could be a size 20 footprint and well above the average of 4.48 tonnes.

The Calderglen High School team was Rachel Gerrie, Kieran Burns, Callum Thomas, Suzanne Caldwell and Amy Hendon supported by teacher Maureen McKinnon. Duncanrig High School was represented by Iain White, Iona Halford and Rachel Currie and their teacher Jackie Christie.

Maureen McKinnon of Calderglen High was one of the teachers involved with last year's winning team, Hunter High.

Press Release 1/6/08

East Kilbride Rotary Club have for many years put forward the prize for the best apprentice of the r coming out of the East Kilbride Engineering College this year was in itself quite unique in that their were joint winners in the name of Ross Munro who is employed by Burn Stewart and Alasdair MacLean who

is employed by Scottish Water. Unfortunately Alasdair could not make the luncheon as he was at his place of work on the Isle of Lewis arrangements have been made via the Rotary Club of Stornoway to make a presentation to Alasdair on behalf of East Kilbride Rotary Club

Ross Munro gave a very good and confident talk to the club members present. Thanking his teachers at the college for their patience in helping him to learn the skills that he now has.

Ross was accompanied by Derek Brown from East Kilbride Engineering Training Centre who has been the mentor for Ross over his training period.

Ewan Morrison represented Burn Stewart the company who employs Ross.

Senior Vice President Frank McLuskey in his presentation highlighted how he was a product of the College in his apprentice years and that Ross definitely had a bright future ahead of him after which he presented Ross with a cheque and certificate

Press release 26/05/08

LIGHT A CANDLE OF HOPE FOR LOVED ONES IN East Kilbride

FAMILIES affected by cancer will get the chance to remember loved ones during a touching candlelit ceremony aimed at raising vital funds for Cancer Research UK.

Members of the public are invited to the event, which takes place in East Kilbride on 13th / 14th June 2008 and marks the highlight of the Cancer Research UK's Relay For Life.

The event brings together the whole community in one location for 24 hours to celebrate the achievements of local cancer survivors, but just as importantly to remember those who have passed away and honour the courage of their loved ones.

Up to 600 people are expected to take part in the entire event, taking turns to walk, run, skip or crawl around a track in a relay following an opening 'lap of honour' by cancer survivors.

But those who cannot attend for the whole 24 hours will still get the chance to take part in the Candle of Hope Ceremony, which begins at 10.30pm on Friday 13th June in the Stadium at the John Wright Sports centre.

The ceremony is the most poignant part of Relay For Life as specially made Candle of Hope bags decorated with touching tributes - in memory or in celebration of loved ones - are filled with sand and lit up with candles around the Stadium track

Jack Blackwood Relay For Life Chairperson, said: "The Candle of Hope Ceremony is a poignant reminder of why everyone has come together for Relay for Life.

Past Chairperson, John Cardno will be lighting a candle in memory of his sister, Joan, who died at the age of 46.

Donations for the Candle of Hope bags will be collected before the event by dedicated volunteers who are working hard to make Relay For Life as successful as possible.

All money raised from the donation of the candles will go towards Cancer Research UK's pioneering work to prevent, diagnose and treat cancer.

To dedicate a Candle of Hope or to find out more about Relay For Life please telephone David Brown on 07808592941 or 01355221790.

This is the 4th year of East Kilbride Rotary Club organising the Relay for Life on behalf of Cancer Research UK and we are still looking for teams and support from local businesses.

Together with its partners and supporters, Cancer Research UK's vision is to beat cancer.

Cancer Research UK carries out world-class research to improve understanding of the disease and find out how to prevent, diagnose and treat different kinds of cancer.

All money raised from the donation of the candles will go towards Cancer Research UK's pioneering work to prevent, diagnose and treat cancer.

Press Release 18/5/08

The Dim and Distant Past

This was the title announced for the talk at Fridays Rotarian lunch, the principle speaker being one of the Clubs own members; Past President and Paul Harris Fellow, Rotarian Bob Duncan' born 26th February 1919, 2 months 15 days after the end of the first world war.

Now, at this point you will see where the title of the talk came from; it was obvious that Rotarians & guests were going to have an insight into a part of Bob's Life.

As a result of this talk this little tale has been written; if for nothing else but for the fear of loosing the content in time when the memory is gone.

The speaker is one of a group of survivors who are few and far between in there ability to explain explicitly and without default the factual information of an interesting, if not unwanted experience of becoming a Prisoner of War at the early part of the second world war.

Bob took time to relate to his younger days being raised in Aberdeenshire where he came from a family who for seven generations had made their living from the sea. His Grand father started a business with two boats and a small curing business, so he grew up really being an integral part of the fishing community.

Bob and his brothers were fortunate in that they were bright at school, as a result of this their father did not want them to make their lively hood from the sea.

After his school days our speaker was accepted as a indentured apprentice by a company known as C.S&E and eventually became a Civil Engineer.

Conscription started in July and August of 1939, and when the war started on the 3rd of September1939 reservists & the territorial's were mobilised. In October of '39 Bob had to go to the Bridge of Don, he was a young man 20 years old who got on a bus in Peterhead took a journey of one and a half hours, walked into he army barracks & immediately became a Gordon Highlander.

In the billet were another 29 conscripts a regular corporal and a regular lance corporal with the platoon sergeant being billeted in the Barrack building. (If his memory served him correctly this sergeant was from the London Scottish and was waiting to be commissioned).

Training for the army took place with one month Basic Training at Bridge of Don followed by three months at Linksfield Training School, after which he became an infantry signaler.

March 1940 came along and a group of Gordon Highlanders were marched from their barracks to the railway station (as a reader, do you remember London North Eastern Railway and London Midland Scottish) where they boarded a rather crowded train on their journey southward. They did not disembark from the train until they arrived in Southampton. Here they boarded the Ulster Prince and were shipped to Cherbourg, then by train to the Belgium boundary near Armentieres. There joining the 5th Gordon Highlanders territorial battalion unit which with the 1st. Gordon Highlanders and 4th Blackwatch formed the famous 51st Highland Division.

The British Expeditionary Force was stationed along the Belgium border and it was decided that the 51st Highland Division would replace a French Division in front of the Maginot line. So our soldiers went again from the Belgian frontier to Alsace Lorraine where they were re- stationed. The local population had been mostly evacuated and the severe winter had given way to lovely spring.

The Germans fired several shells per day to keep everyone awake and the 51st. in turn did the same.

On the 10th of May the Germans attacked Belgium and Holland and attacked the 51st in force as a result we had to retreat behind the Maginot Line. From there we were moved by rail through Metz, Orlean & Abbeville where we were held up by the Germans for 6 hours and then chased by them until we arrived at St. Valery by which time we had abandoned everything except our rifles. We took up a position about three kilometres from St Valery and all day the remnants of the British Expeditionary Forces and French Forces were making for St Valery where they hoped they would be rescued.

On the morning of the 12th of June Bobs group had taken up positions along a rural French road with rifles pointing to a dense hedge some 50 metres away when a couple of officers came down the road telling us that on orders from England we had to surrender, at that point we took the bolts out of the rifles and threw them away.

Shortly afterwards a German tank broke through the hedge with an armed soldier sitting crossed legged on the top of the tank knowing that he was not going to be fired upon, and to sum up, that was that!!

Now the long walk began through France, Belgium and Holland then by coal barges to Germany from where our story teller was moved by trucks to Thuringia in East Germany from here our story teller was shipped with another one hundred and eighty prisoners of war to a camp in the village of Unterbreizbach. Here there is a salt mine (Potassium Chloride) used for fertilizer. Attached to the mine was a factory where the salt was put into sacks and labeled then distributed all over Europe.

Some of the prisoners worked in the mine but our story teller because of his profession as a civil engineer was assigned to the Blacksmith shop. By a strange coincidence the boss of the blacksmith shop was a prisoner of war on the Isle of Raasay and spoke English with a strong Scottish Highland Accent.

At this point our little tale ends, not that there was not more to come from Rotarian Bob Duncan, but Club President John Cardno had to draw the proceedings to a close as we had over ran our allotted meeting time

It must be added that Bob Duncan's talk kept the Rotarians mesmerized and silent; as he spoke. This was highlighted by Alan Jenkinson who gave a short but very appropriate vote of thanks on behalf of his fellow Rotarians to Bob Duncan coupled with an invitation to Bob to come back and finish his memories of The Dim & Distant Past in the near future.

Press Release11/5/08

Rotarians of the East Kilbride Club were entertained by their speaker on Friday when the topic of the talk was "A Year in Power".

Lynda Fabiani MSP gave an excellent account of her duties as the Scottish minister for External Affairs in Europe and at the same time what it has meant to her with respect time, in that her diary is down to 5 minute time slots rather than 1 hour time slots.

Linda made comparisons to other small countries and their economies compared to Scotland and how it was important that Scotland had a minister in Europe looking after our affairs albeit that we are not a member state!!! On a more light hearted note she highlighted some wonderful moments and some funny moments of her year in power all of which were received well by her lunch time audience.

The vote of thanks was given by Past President Barclay Wales.

Press Release 5/5/08

East Kilbride Rotarians played host to their twinned club from Ballerup. President John Mená of the Danish club and his group of thirty two Danes visited the town from the first to the fourth of May and took part in a very busy pre-prepared programme.

On arrival in East Kilbride a reception at the holiday Inn was held for everyone to renew old acquaintances and meet Danes who were here for the first time First item on the agenda was a visit to the new South Lanarkshire College in East Kilbride where a very well prepared tour of the college was conducted by the staff.

Rotarians who attended this part of the programme were immensely impressed not only by the standard of the building but by the standard of teaching plus the broad curriculum coupled with the eagerness of the pupils to do well.

A Rotary Lunch at the Bruce Hotel and Home Hosting with East Kilbride Rotarians on the Friday kept everyone busy.

On the Saturday everyone was on the go again, this time immediately after breakfast with a visit to The Royal Yacht Britannia then some free time for them in Edinburgh and in conclusion a last night party at the Holiday Inn where they were staying. At the final event Past Club President Ian Macpherson gave his out of season "Address to the Haggis" that had been piped in by Rotarian Pipe Major Roddy Shanks. All of which went down well with the captive audience.

The visit included a special presentation of a Paul Harris Fellowship to Rotarian Steen Jensen of the Ballerup Club who has over many years given full support to the link between the Rotary Clubs. Senior Vice President of East Kilbride club Frank McLuskey on the right of the picture made the presentation.

Press Release date 21/04/08

The Annual General Meeting of East Kilbride Rotary Club was held on the 15th of April with an attendance of 50% of the membership. The following members were elected as officials for the new Rotary year that commences on the first of July 2008

President: Frank McLuskey, Senior Vice President: Ray Porrelli, Junior Vice President: Leslie Irvine, Secretary: George McGraw, Treasurer: Leslie Irvine, Club Council Members: Douglas McArthur, Ian Craig, Andrew Ferguson, Brian Wood, Ian Wiseman, David Brown and Ben Miloudi.

Club Auditors: Alan Jenkinson, Douglas McArthur, Membership Convener: Barry Wood, Publicity Convener: Edwin Robertson, Administration Convener: Ray Porrelli, Speaker Secretary: John Murphy, Service Project Conveners Leslie Irvine and John Cardno, Attendance Officer: Brian Wood, Youth Exchange: Archie King,

Club Protection Officers: John McCafferty and Archie King, Club Historian Officer: Edwin Robertson

Rotarians world wide are in the process of changing their Club Structure in an attempt to make their Clubs and the organization more streamlined.

One of the most serious challenges your local Rotary Clubs now face will be to provide the final funding for the total eradication of Polio world wide. Each individual Rotarian will be asked to contribute to this programme being run by "The Rotary Foundation"

Going back to 1984 when Rotarians world wide accepted the challenge laid before them to provide money to remove the scourge of Polio from the world, they dug into their own pockets and raised sufficient cash to get the ball rolling

on a vaccination programme where by the year 2000 all of the world had been protected from polio but there were still pockets where access into the countries was denied for various reasons.

Rotarians being of a stubborn nature did not see their job as being completed and continued via the United Nations Unesco, World Health Organization and other world bodies in an attempt to achieve their goal.

Now the end is in sight one more fund raising exercise where within the next 3 years Rotarians world wide will be able to say that they along with others will have eradicated Polio from the World stage. This will be a wonderful achievement.

WALKING ON AIR

On the more relaxing side of Rotary life a group of 18 Rotarians enjoyed a switch off from Rotary and had a relaxing days walking down in Ayrshire area in weather conditions that could only be described as cold!!

It wasn't a good start, never mind the blizzard, the heater plugs on the car failed and starting it was a lengthy process. Last to arrive, just in time for the team photo, and then we were off. Considering the weather, it appeared a brave decision, bearing in mind the cold weather.

Offloaded at Auchincruive in better weather conditions, all eighteen of us, well to be more accurate all but one, donned boots weatherproof jackets and set off in dry, bright weather with a cold wind for company. The party, led by he of the long leg, Tom, soon encountered muddy conditions, and this combined with the "steady" pace set stretched the party out. This necessitated a few pit stops so that the ladies could get their breath back - the combination of an uphill section and the need to blether proved too much on occasions.

After Annbank we came upon the Enterkine Viaduct which is used for coal transportation from Killoch Colliery, and then fields full of lambs in the valley floor below Enterkine House. At this point the prospect of lunch at the Stair Inn started to become an early possibility and the party soon headed down to the riverside at Stair (the nearest thing to Ayr seafront we came across!) to wash down boots. Soon we were again washing down, but this time a splendid, if somewhat slow, lunch with a well earned refreshment or two. We managed to restrict lunch to just short of two hours, and that was without a speaker!

Somewhat reluctantly we set out on the last leg to Failford herded along by our leaders who were in constant contact with the bus driver as we slipped further and further behind schedule. It would have been worse if one of our members had succeeded in his efforts to take us down a dead end into the Ayr Gorge. Instead we skirted round its upper lip, through Clune Woods, before descending into Failford where, alas, there was no time to further refresh ourselves at the Inn.

Straight on to the bus, where the chatter of the outward journey was replaced by the sound of "steady breathing" for most of the party on the return trip. A weary, but otherwise unharmed party arrived back at the Stewartfield Farm having surprisingly, enjoyed splendid weather and scenery, an excellent lunch and good company.

B&Q Collection

Last weekend seen ten East Kilbride Rotarians on Door Duty at B&Q super store East Kilbride, collecting for Cancer Research (UK). Not the warmest of weather, but the Rotarians found a very warm hearted public to whom they were very grateful after enabling them to raise £1076.48, for Cancer Research.

Press release Date 23/3/08

Southpark Primary School was the venue for the East Kilbride Rotary Club's 13th Annual Burns competition.

The number of schools participating has been dwindling over the past years but this in no way detracted from the quality of the entries from each school

Four schools, Southpark, Mount Cameron, Kirktonholme and Auchinraith primaries all, presented themselves very well and obviously had rehearsed children in the disciplines of recitation, singing or piping to a very high standard.

Watched anxiously by mums, dads, grannies, relatives and friends the participants enthralled them all with faultless deliveries of their chosen pieces.

The adjudicator, Rotarian George Ferguson, said that the contestants were of an extremely high standard such that marks were high making it difficult when scoring for each individual.

Winners were

P4/5 recitation

3rd Rachel Crabbe, Southpark

2nd Jay McKenna, Kirktonholme

1st and winner Andrew Gracie, Southpark

P4/5 Singing

1st Katie Bairdie, Auchinraith

P6/7 Recitation

3rd Sarah Harvey, Kirktonholme

2nd Mary Heather McColl, Southpark

1st Ainslel Kissack, Southpark

P6/7 Piping

1st Alistair Thomson

All entrants received certificates and Rotary President, John Cardno, who also presented the trophies to the winners.

All the winners now go forward to the finals of the Lanarkshire Association of Burns Clubs competition at Clyde Valley High School with the winners of the Lanarkshire Association of Burns Clubs competition competing in the National Festival.

Press Release 17/2/ 08

East Kilbride Rotarians had special visitors to the Club on Friday past. Firstly Rowan Main from Cancer Research who had come along to give the following short report on Cancer Research work.

Last year Cancer Research UK spent a record £315 million on research looking into all aspects of Cancer, ranging from understanding the causes and biology of the disease through to developing new ways to prevent, diagnose and treat Cancer. All of this money was raised by the public.

Bowel cancer is the UK's third most common cancer and almost 3,500 new cases are diagnosed each year in Scotland alone. Professor Malcolm Dunlop at the University of Edinburgh is searching for the genetic and environmental factors that cause this disease

Also in Edinburgh Professor Michael Sharpe runs the Psychological Medicine Group, part of the Cancer Research UK Clinical Cancer Research Centre at the Western General Hospital. His team aims to improve the detection and management of depression, anxiety and other conditions that affect the quality of life for people with Cancer

Cancer Research UK funded scientists have found seven new sites in the human genome that are linked to men's risk of developing prostate Cancer. Scientists have discovered how low levels of a protein hormone found in body fat, plays a crucial role in tumour growth and spread.

A new treatment for the most common form of lung cancer, developed from initial research by Cancer Research UK scientists, has entered a pivotal phase III clinical trial Cancer Research UK scientists have unlocked the secrets of

proteins involved in tumour cells creeping away from the original tumour and spreading around the body Cancer Research UK funded scientists have identified two common genetic variants that could triple a person's risk of getting bowel Cancer

Rowan Main also had a "Personal Mission" to give thanks not only to the Club for the money they have helped to raise over the years but also to give her special thanks, to President, John Cardno for the endless work over the same period of time where in her opinion he lived up to the Rotary ideals of "Service before Self".

Thanks to People like Rotarians and the general Public more and more people are surviving Cancer, but without everyone's support Cancer Research would simply not be able to carry out this vital research.

Along the same vain, there were other visitors to the Club, namely representatives from Rutherglen Rotary Club, President Ian Wilson accompanied by Brian Cole Hamilton and Phil Spence were also on a special "Mission of Thanks" to not only East Kilbride Rotary Club but more precisely aimed at one of the Clubs members who devotedly gave of his time to attend to a specific problem that had developed in a holiday home that Rutherglen Rotary Club had down in Largs.

As a way of thanking Iain Wiseman of East Kilbride Rotary Club, Rutherglen Rotary Club proudly presented him with a Paul Harris Fellowship the highest award that can be bestowed by a Rotary Club on any individual.

Not only was Iain overwhelmed, as was every East Kilbride Rotarian in attendance. Many of the East Kilbride Rotarians were unaware of Iain's contribution in this particular exercise and were appreciative of the gesture made by another Rotary Club towards a member of their Club.

Press Release 11/2/08

Rotarians at the East Kilbride Club welcomed a new member into their midst when Past President Tom Wilson introduced David Brown to the membership. President John Cardno then called upon the last member into the Club namely Archie King to read out the "Objects of Rotary".

With this duly done, President John then highlighted the commitment that each Rotarian takes on, as he joins Rotary. With this accepted by David Brown, he was duly elected into the East Kilbride Rotary Club.

Unfortunately, during the proceedings our new member's mobile phone went off, this was a great opportunity for him to be introduced to the Sergeant at Arms, Past President Ian Macpherson who then imposed the appropriate fine that went into the coffers of the Clubs Benevolent Fund.

In addition, to inducting a new member into the Club members had the privilege of having Adam Ingram MP in attendance as a guest of Rotarian Jack Blackwood. For a change Adam was in a relaxed mode as he was not there as a speaker but just as a person to enjoy the company and his lunch.

A Cancer Research Dinner held at the Holiday Inn East Kilbride had an excellent representation from members of East Kilbride Rotary Club this event was not organized by the Club but by one of the teams that will be participating in this years Relay for Life.

The Relay for Life event will take place this year on the 13th of June and once again it is being put together by the Rotary Club however this year more of the representatives taking part in the event are now part of the organizing team so if you could be sponsored and would like to walk in the relay for life why not Contact Ray Porrelli at 01355 230 448 or Jack Blackwood at 0141 637 9333

Press Release 3/2/08

In November 2007 another new PFI funded primary school opened - not in East Kilbride and not funded by the Private Finance Initiative.

This school was built in Panda (pronounced Panda-eye) in Northern Ghana and was funded by a PRIVATE FIONA INITIATIVE.

East Kilbride girl, Fiona Marra, achieved her dream in November when her primary school for girls opened. This followed many months of dedicated hard work by Fiona and involved not only her, but the people of East Kilbride who joined members of East Kilbride Rotary Club on their cruise on the Waverley in July 2007. This raised a fantastic total of £8000 which was presented to Fiona, and allowed her to immediately start building the school which is for bright young girls of Ghana, who would otherwise have no chance of formal education.

The school is simply built with two classrooms; a dormitory building which sleeps 42 of the girls, who live in villages too far away from the school; and a cookhouse which prepare three meals a day for the total of 62 girls who have now been enrolled. The girls, who are provided with mattress, school uniforms, books and school materials, are looked after by two teachers, two assistant teachers, a house manager and house mothers - all at no cost to their families!

Fiona has said that "none of this would have been possible the support of East Kilbride Rotary Club", whose members continue to support her through monthly child sponsorship which covers the full cost of educating one girl for £15 a month. This seems a small price to pay for the full welfare and education of a girl, who will be able to use her new skills to help build a much better life for her family. Another and later benefit occurs in motherhood. A recent World Bank Report stated that

"A year of schooling for a female reduces child mortality by 10% when they become a mother".

Not bad for £15 per month - do you think that YOU could help Fiona grow her dream by sponsoring a girl. "Panda School which is funded by Let us Shine, a Scottish Registered Charitable Trust No SC037483"

Contact:- Rotarian George McGraw at 01355 225611 or george@mcgraw.freeserve.co.uk. for more information. Please do it NOW as on going financial support is essential East Kilbride is a caring town so Let Us Shine about those who are less fortunate than ourselves

Press Release 22/1/08

East Kilbride Rotary Club got off to a good start for 2008 by inducting a new member into the family of Rotary.

Past President Barry Wood introduced Archie King to Club members at their Friday Lunch and Archie King was then welcomed into the Club by President John Cardno.( See picture)

Membership into Rotary has been declining over recent years and Rotarians are in desperate need of trying to attract new members into their world movement. What Is Rotary?...... this is the question that is often asked by non Rotarians

Now I can accept a non Rotarian asking the question, the answer is relatively simple and all covered by three little words i.e. "Service before Self"

Rotary enjoys a rich tradition and organizational structure with customs which can be confusing to new and not so new members let alone the general public, so I will endeavor to simplify

Rotary Clubs belong to a global association known as Rotary International that was formed on the 23rd February 1905.

Rotary International is the world's oldest service organization. Members form a global network of business & professional leaders who volunteer their time and their talents to serve their own communities and the world. Although there are many Rotary Clubs in the world certainly over 40,000 Clubs with 1,500000 members. We are really one big club as no matter where a Rotarian goes he is welcomed by the local club of the area, be it America, Australia or Spain

Rotary's Motto is "Service above Self" …….this in its self epitomizes the humanitarian spirit of the organization. Strong fellowship among Rotarians and meaningful Community & International service projects characterize Rotary world wide.

Each club elects its own officers & enjoys a considerable amount of autonomy within the frame work of Rotary Internationals Constitution & Bye Laws.

Clubs are grouped into over 530 Districts with each District being led by a District Governor who is an officer in Rotary International.

Headquarters of the organization are in Chicago in the District of Evanston with International offices in Argentina, Australia, Brazil, India, Japan, Korea, Switzerland with Rotary International Britain & Ireland serving Clubs in Britain and Ireland.

Rotary International is not a Charity which may seem strange to you.

But it has via its structure an organization known as The Rotary Foundation which is a non profit making organization that receives contributions totaling more than £50m annually. It spends more than £70m each year in support of humanitarian and educational programs implemented by Clubs and Districts world wide…. Contributions from Rotarians go to the "The Rotary Foundations" Annual Programs Fund which provides grants and awards through The Rotary Foundation programs. With this money in the kitty Rotary International can use their influences with governments to back them dollar for dollar in accepted projects world wide There is a Permanent Fund that is an endowment from which only the earnings are spent in support of the Foundations programs.

Basically The Rotary Foundation gets money from each Rotarians annual subscription with additional funding coming from other sources. Every pound contributed by Rotarians helps to fund the humanitarian and educational programs.

Clubs can and apply for Grants to carry out many worth while projects world wide

The Rotary Foundations mission is to support the efforts of Rotary International in the fulfillment of the Objects of Rotary, and the achievement of world understanding and peace, through Local International, Humanitarian, Educational, and Cultural Programs.

Educational programs are designed to promote international understanding by bringing people together from different countries and cultures.

Programs, such as Ambassadorial Scholarships, Rotary World Peace Scholarships, Group Study Exchange programme, The Humanitarian Grant programs enable Rotarians to increase their support of International projects such as Water Aid, Basic Shelter Provision, Medical Care, Literacy classes and many other projects by applying for grants from The Rotary Foundation.

One of the biggest projects ever taken on by Rotary was Polio Plus This was started way back in 1985 and during the period up to 1888 Rotary raised £130m .And In conjunction with the World Health Organization, UNICEF, and International Governments it was planned to eradicate polio by 2005

This has nearly been achieved in fact there is a special effort being made in this year for Clubs world wide to donate £25 ahead to endeavor the final push to succeed.Rotary Clubs in East Kilbride of which there are 2 operate in a District known as1230 and we are one of 56 clubs stretching from Oban to Stranraer All of the Clubs in this District are in need of new members to enable them to fulfill the tasks that lie ahead of them not only world wide but within their Local community

What is Rotary about

In an increasingly complex world, Rotary provides one of the most basic human needs: the need for friendship and fellowship. It is one of two reasons why Rotary began in 1905.

The second original reason for Rotary's beginning……… is business development. Everyone needs to network.

Rotary consists of a cross section of every business in the community…… Its members come from all walks of life. Rotarians help each other and collectively help others. Membership in Rotary continues one's growth and education in human relations and personal development. Each meeting provides an opportunity to listen to different speakers and a variety of timely topics.

Rotary is fun, a lot of fun. Each meeting is fun. The club projects are fun. Social activities are fun. The service is fun.

Many individuals who joined Rotary were afraid to speak in public. Rotary develops confidence and skill in public communication and the opportunity to practice and perfect these skills.

Every Rotarian wears a pin that says "Rotary International." There are few places on the globe that do not have a Rotary Club. This means instant friends in both one's own community and in the world community.

Because there are Rotary clubs everywhere, many a Rotarian in need of a doctor, lawyer, hotel, dentist, advice, etc., while traveling has found assistance through Rotary. Rotarians practice a 4-Way Test that governs one's ethical standards.

Rotarians are expected to be ethical in business and personal relationships.

Around the world, practically every religion, country, culture, race, creed, political persuasion, language, color, and ethnic identity is found in Rotary.

It is a cross section of the world's most prominent citizens from every background. With no discrimination

Rotary is the oldest and most prestigious service club in the world. Its ranks include Executives, Managers, Professionals Plumbers Bakers and Candlestick Makers- people who make decisions and influence policy. Plus provide Service before Self

On Thursday evening at the Torrance Hotel, East Kilbride, members of the Rotary Club and their wives gathered together to attended their final meeting of the Rotary Year and the last one for outgoing President Jim Moretti, who after a successful year handed over the chain of office to incoming President John Cardno.

President John Cardno proceeded to introduce his new team for the ensuing year, naming his principle officers as; Senior Vice President Frank McLuskey, Junior Vice President Ray Porrelli, Secretary Leslie Irvine, Treasurer David Park

This years Logo for Rotary International is "Rotary Shares" and it is hoped with the support of the visitors and the good citizens of East Kilbride that the Rotary Club will be able to continue their good works for local charities via the new "Wishing Well" at the James Hamilton Heritage Park.

On the International side of their work the Club have put together a special trip "Doon the Watter" by hiring the paddle steamer Waverley on the 20th of July and monies gained from this will be allocated to "Let Us Shine Ghana" charity being organised by a young lady from East Kilbride, Fiona Marra.

To date over 540 tickets have been sold and hopefully the Club Convener for International Service John Murphy will add a few more to this total before we sail from the Science Centre in Glasgow for what could be for many of the passengers a nostalgic trip.

The Club members will be out in the community collecting for Cancer Research on the 13th & 14th of July at B&Q Superstore at the Kingsgate where they are hoping for fair weather and a generous public.

Press Release 10/9/07

East Kilbride Rotarians have had a busy week which started off with a visit to Bothwell and Uddingston Rotary Club. The visit was highlighted by 5 young Australians who were part of a Group Study Exchange team administered by Rotary Foundation on behalf of Rotary International.

Group Study Exchange is one of the flagships in Rotary Foundation programs that are designed to support the missions and efforts of Rotary International to achieve world understanding and peace through international humanitarian, education and cultural exchange programs.

Whilst these Group Study Exchange teams are in the host district they see how others in their vocations and professions work in the host district. They make cultural exchanges and lifelong friendships whilst participating in local Rotary Cub activities.

Our Club in the past has been an ardent supporter of Group Study Exchange programmes, hosting teams from the Philippines, South Africa, Tasmania to name but a few. Our turn to participate again I am sure will be in the near future and volunteers will be needed to home host for three nights. Intermingled with this of course is the Youth Exchange Program that we as a Club have supported over many years with youngsters from Sweden, Greece. Spain, Bulgaria, Denmark and France in recent years Here at home, support has been given to our local pipe band in the form of financial help designed to help the young people in the town who are interested and keen to learn the skill of piping. Monies for this came totally from members of the public who have kindly dropped their loose change into the Rotary Wishing Well at the James Hamilton Memorial Park, for this the Rotary Club are extremely grateful.

On Friday the 7th September the Club's guest speaker was Fiona Marra our own young East Kilbride lass behind "Let us Shine Ghana" charity.

After her report on the progress and forward planning that the Charity was making she was overwhelmed by the generosity of the Rotary Club when President John Cardno was able to present her with a cheque for £7600 towards the stalwart work she was leading in Ghana.

Press Release 23/7/07

What a night!! "Doon the Watter" in aid of "Lets us Shine Ghana," over 500 would be sailors boarded the paddle steamer the Waverley on what turned out to be a great night to sail down the river Clyde to the Tail of the Bank and in doing so contribute towards the raising of £8500 for the Charity. Among the passengers were representatives from other Rotary Clubs within District 1230. Namely, East Kilbride Kittoch, Kelvin, Eastwood, Kilwinning and Rutherglen

East Kilbride Rotary Club took the bull by the horns when they hired the vessel and then tried to sell the tickets!!! They didn't need to try very hard, as they had targeted themselves around the 500 mark and before they knew where they were their target was exceed.

Organised by the Clubs International Convener John Murphy and his committee they put everything in place to ensure all on board had a good trip on the Waverley.

With everyone boarded, the Waverley left promptly at 7.30pm heading for the Tail of the Bank. First objective was to get the Tombola up and working with Anita Murphy and Janice Tye supported by others getting everything on display and tickets sold. This task was not easy as the majority of passengers were boarded before the Tombola prizes arrived. Undaunted everything was in place as the boat left from the quay at the Science Centre in Glasgow.

Many Companies and Club Rotarians within the town supplied prizes for the Tombola and from their generosity over £1900 came into the coffers for "Let us Shine Ghana" In addition to the Tombola an auction was held that was conducted by East Kilbride Rotarian & Past President Ian Macpherson, items for auction were given to the club by Phoenix Car Company, Donnelly Plumbers, Mr Scott and Dr. Nicola Martin, Andrew & Lynda Ferguson and Lumsden Stuart,

A surprise gallon Bottle of Whisky presented by Cleaning & Wiping Supplies as an extra at the auction raised some additional cash and the successful bidder martin Clark kindly returned the item for use at some future event if you read this Malcolm Thanks you from East Kilbride Rotarians.

There was plenty of music during the evening this was provided by The Rhythm Kings jazz band with their music taking a very short time to get audience participation on the dance floor.

Of course there were others on board who regarded the trip as being quite nostalgic in that the transformation of both sides of the river has been remarkable, gone are the shipyards and associated industries of 50 years ago.

The skyline now in many parts is becoming like many other cities of the world with multi storey office blocks and the appropriate modern housing. The changes have in the writer's opinion brought back the beauty of the Clydeside area of Scotland enhancing the river itself.

If you need to relax and switch off, book onto the Waverley and have a sail Doon the Watter & remember the days when you had your main holiday in Dunoon or Rothesay and see the changes for yourself.

Press release 18/7/07

Storm conditions in no way dampened the spirits of the 23 groups of Walkers, Runners, Hoppers, Pram Pushers, Fancy Dressed walkers and most importantly Cancer Survivors who gathered at the John Wright Sports centre to take part in the twenty Four Hour walk to raise cash for cancer research (UK) Scotland.

The first major hic-up that became apparent were the attempts being made by everyone to get their tents up in time for the start of the event.

Liam Donnelly (Plumbers) had an absolute disaster when during the building of their tents; the high winds caught the structure and totally mangled it. This just meant that they had and additional challenge and that was to find another suitable structure and low and behold this was forth coming and they were able to continue over the next 24 hours.

Andy Kerr (MSP) once again took part in the opening ceremony. On the opening lap all survivors of Cancer present took part in leading the walk off, led of course by the East Kilbride Pipe Band. If you remember last Friday it was not an easy task in howling winds, heavy rain plus cold temperatures to play and march in a procession... Nothing apppeared to dampen the spirits of the participants as they continued their walk over the 24 hour period.

One benefacter of the high wind was the balloon race where during the 24 hour period over 700 balloons were released and a totalof £340 was raised from this alone had the weather been warmer possibly more cash could have been raised. If you didn't manage along to the event and you wish to make a contribution please contact any East Kilbride Rotarian or make a donation by logging on at ekrotary.com and you ca donate on line and the charity can gain by Gift Aid.

The highlight of the evening is of course the emotional Candle Light ceremony where lone piper Roddy Shanks played the lament followed by solo singer Audrey McKirdy.

A full programme of events took place over the 24 hours with Bar football, Races for the youngsters, Bungy Castle walk,ceramic painting and face painting Tombola stands all in the aid of Cancer research.

The Beatson Institue were represented by Dr Ling who gave a talk on breast cancer & Prostrate Cancer plus where and how all the money was spent.

The whole event would not have been succesful without the the many donations that were made by the following companies

Wisemans Dairies,Barrs Iron Bru, Hewdens, Tunnocks, Lees, Superdrug,Haddows,Morrisons,Sainsbury,Scott Dansk, Somerfield,Spar( Westwood,) with many others private donations .

Entertainment was provided by Two bands, No Way Josay and Static Liberty. The line dancers were Quick Silver, The cheerleaders were Glasgow Phoenix Flames, Bird Display from the Clyde Valley, Caledonian Plywood and of course the staff at the John Wright Sports Centre. All members of East Kilbride Rotary Club are truly endebited to everyone who contributed. To each of you a big and sincere Thank You

Second Report See attachment for picture

At their Friday meeting President Jim Morretti presented Rotarian Ray Porrelli with a Paul harris fellowship for the outstanding contribution to community projects made by Ray over his years of membership.

Third little story attachment picture

Also at their Friday llunch Rotarians were entertained by pupils from Hunter High School who presented their winning entry for the Rotary Clubs new competition for Senior Secondary Schools which allowed them to display their skills using a computer programme Powerpoint presentation on "Life in East Kilbride" the school were represented by pupils Keith Forsyth, Josh Kennedy and Calum McDougal the pupils were accompanied by teachers Caithlin McCinville,Liz White and Maureen McKinnon ? All in all a busy week for East Kilbride Rotarians .

Press release 16/7/07

Rotarians, Ray Porrelli, Leslie Irvine, Frank McLuskey, Barclay Wales, Brian Wood, Edwin Robertson, Jack Blackwood, Jim Moretti and Andrew Ferguson used the Glasgow Fair weekend to start of the Clubs charity work for the new Rotary Year 2007-08 when they gave of their time to start the Clubs collection for Cancer Research (UK) Scotland at B&Q Superstore at the Kings Gate, East Kilbride.

The grand sum of the collection was £951.14 given freely from an extremely generous public to whom the Rotary Club of East Kilbride are gratefully thankful to and appreciate the support that is being given to the Charity.

In the picture we have two members of the public showing their support and giving of their hard earned cash to Rotarians Brian Wood and Andrew Ferguson

Press release 7/7/07

For the 24 hour period commencing 1800 hours on Friday 15th June until 1800hours on Saturday the 16th of June 23 volunteer teams under the auspices of East Kilbride Rotary Club will be walking their feet off for the benefit of Cancer Research (UK) Scotland.

This has now become an annual event within the town with the venue being the Sports field at the John Wright Sports Centre.

We have for the first time the full commitment of teams taking part.

This really is a magnificent achievement over recent years when we were as low as 5 teams.

Everyone is concentrating in trying to reach a target of £100,000 gathered over the past four years and it can be done with support from everyone, so come along and join us especially on the Friday night.

But this is not only about teams raising money it is to raise awareness in the community. Yes Cancer can Kill but there are a lot of survivors out there and you can help to increase the number who survive with your contribution to fight this scourge of our society. It is an illness and with your help we will find a cure.

Everyone who comes along to the 24 hour event can support and help to raise cash, the more the merrier, you can buy a balloon for 50p or a bigger donation if you feel you want to and whoever's balloon travels the furthest can win £50. This can be and is a fun way of raising much needed money you can purchase a candle bag for a donation for our Candle of Hope ceremony which is one of the highlights of our Friday evening programme.

If you cannot manage and wish to make a donation you can do so on line by visiting this web site www.ekrotary.com from there you can contribute your money, by doing this we can accrue more cash via Gift Aid. So please don't hold back come and join us and if not try to make a donation.

Press Release 2/7/07

The Club members will be out in the community collecting for Cancer Research on the 13th & 14th of July at B&Q Superstore at the Kingsgate where they are hoping for fair weather and a generous public

Press Release 6/5/07

This little project has taken some time to come to fruition and you know what is said about Rotary projects. (The Wheels of Rotary turn slowly, well this has been true since the concept of putting the project together) Several Rotarians are certainly to the fore when seeing this project take off.

Namely, Roddy Shanks, George McGraw, John Cardno who on the coldest, wettest day with rain, sleet and snow cut out the base for the Wishing Well, Roddy has been reported as saying he has never been so cold as when he was doing this job.

Rotarian Frank McLuskey's contribution in respect of the Rotary Logo stainless steel grid has been absolutely superb. What has been interesting is the support given to this project from various business groups within in the town namely, EK Tool Hire, who sponsored all the tool and equipment hire.

Travis Perkins, donated all the bricks for the project. Specialist Building Services run by Bill Hodge considerably reduced his account. This was followed by the joinery work completed by David McKindley with reduced labour costs.

South Lanarkshire Council and in particular Iain Walker made all this possible and to the Council and Donor's East Kilbride Rotary Club extend a warm and grateful thanks The Wishing Well, now that it is about finished has already got the interest of the users of the park, we have had good comments when we were down laying the path last week, and the idea that all monies raised will go to local causes was received well by these people who were enquiring about the project."

Press Release28/4/07

This is part of what of what Rotary is all about in the community!!

East Kilbride Rotarians at their Friday lunch played host to some of the participants from their schools Burns Competition held earlier in the year. The entrants who were represented did not get a free lunch on the visit to the Club as they had to perform their pieces that they done during the competition. Mind you the teachers did not have to say anything at lunch they hopefully enjoyed the rapport that was felt at the luncheon and the excellent performance of their pupils. The picture depicts the success of the lunch and the enjoyment by everyone when you see the smiles in their faces.

Kirktonholme school were represented by teacher Marlene Dixon accompanied young Sarah Harvie who gave a positive rendering of "A Parcel of Rogue's".

From Southpark school teacher Liz Orr came along with two young talented youngsters, namely Andrew Gracie, who gave his recitation of "The Auld Trout" and Mary Heather McColl, who gave an excellent rendering of "To a Mountain Daisy"

The number of schools entering the competition this year were down to previous years, principally because the schools do not get the information early enough in their scholastic year to put tuition in place. So the Rotary club will endeavour to correct this in the future. For next years competition please any primary school Principle or Teacher out there in the East Kilbride primary school; area who would like to participate next year in furthering the works of Robert Burns within the community, please contact Rotarian Eddie Robertson at 01355 221572 who will be only to happy to get you enrolled for next year.