President Rebecca's speech from our Charter Night, 22 May 2013.
District Governor Dennis and his wife Lynda, District Governor Elect Ross and his wife Annette, Rotarians & Guests.
I am honored to stand before you as the inaugural President of the Rotary E-Club of Melbourne! Thank you to the Charter Members and to the Charter Committee for placing your confidence and trust in me to serve as your President. Thank you to everyone who has been able to attend tonight - you represent 33 different Rotary clubs and we are delighted to have such a fantastic, diverse, turnout. Also, a big thank you to President Liz and the members of the Rotary Club of Albert Park for allowing us to take over your weekly meeting time and venue for our Charter night.
The E-Club of Melbourne would not have become a reality if it weren't for our sponsor club, the Rotary Club of Melbourne, and key individuals, including, District Governor Dennis, Immediate Past District Governor Keith, and the members of our Charter Committee - District Governor's Special Representative Chris Egger, Chris Don, Richard Groom, Stephen Lake, Trevor Nink and last, but most certainly not least, Past District Governor Ann White.
On a personal note, I am an IT consultant by trade, have two beautiful daughters, Abigail who is 10 and Leah who is 7, and a wonderful husband, Rudi, who I have been happily married to for 17 years. To top all that off I am currently studying for my Masters degree in IT Security and am a Board member for one of Melbourne's leading independent schools. As you can imagine, I'm pretty busy and, as many of us are finding ourselves these days, time poor. This is why, for me, an eClub was a particularly appealing option.
As many of you know, I am new to Rotary, having only become involved in January of this year. My Rotary journey began with my mentor, and dear friend, Gerry Phillips of the Rotary Club of Albert Park. I had, for quite a long time, been keen to join a Rotary club; I have always been very impressed with the values and ideals of Rotary, and the ‘matter of fact way’ Rotary carries on its affairs while quietly (perhaps too quietly at times) incrementally achieving amazing results. In addition to suggesting I visit a few different clubs in order to get a feel for things, Gerry pointed me towards an expression of interest meeting for the then Provisional E-Club of Melbourne. It was at that meeting that Ann grabbed me - and didn't let me go! The rest, as they say, is history.
I believe an eClub should be thought of as being the same as every other Rotary club except for one thing - our weekly meetings are held online, giving our members the flexibility to participate on a 24/7 basis, at any time that suits them, from anywhere in the world. It should be remembered, however, that internet technology is merely an enabler, nothing more. An enabler to connect with those who, for various reasons, are not able to regularly attend traditional weekly face-to-face meetings. Technology is just the means to gather people around something much much bigger. The success of our Rotary eClub will rely, as all Rotary clubs do, on our members committing to the ethos of Rotary, offering strong fellowship connections and meaningful service projects that involve and inspire all.
I think Paul Harris was spot on when he said, in 1945, "I would like to think that the pioneering days of Rotary have only just begun. There are just as many new things to be done as ever there were. Kaleidoscopic changes are taking place, many of them without our will. Even to hang on to the fringe of this fast-changing world is about all most of us can do. Rotary simply must continue to pioneer or be left in the rear of progress."
My main goals for our club in the 2013-2014 Rotary year are simple: to establish a strong foundation of fellowship amongst our members, seek out opportunities for service, and, of course, have fun. Although our club is, as you are all well aware, an eClub, Rotary itself is like a family and the fellowship aspect should never be underestimated and cannot be overlooked. Getting together with like-minded professionals to make a difference in this world is the real crux of what being a Rotarian is all about, and as such I feel strongly that we should endeavour to meet in person for service and fellowship as often as we can - both within our club and in collaboration with other clubs.
I would like to leave you all with another quote that I feel is very fitting to Rotary, this time from Margaret Mead, who said, "Never doubt that a small group of committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has."
Thank you and enjoy the rest of the evening!
