May 2013 - Lions Clubs New Zealand

From the DesktopApril has seen another busy and very successful month for our club. Themuch coveted “Ron Usmar Award for Community Service” was presented tothe club at the Multiple Districts Convention in Christchurch earlier in the month. This awardrecognises the significant contribution that we made towards the planning and delivery of the TreeHutt at Lower Hutt Hospital. The recent visit of the District Governors and Council Chairman EricCarter helped to impress.I understand that District Governor Robyn will be bringing the trophy to the club at our secondmeeting in May. Stephanie Beddis – “NZ’s Hardest Working Nurse” whose original concept weassisted to develop the Paediatric Emergency area for children, will be updating us in June as towhat has happened since the project began. My understanding is that donations for the projecthave grown substantially, and that a number of different areas throughout the hospital have taken tothe idea. A number of other hospitals are also investigating developing a similar concept. Those ofus who were originally involved had no idea just what a positive impact this project would have in thetreatment of children!The Hull Creek project is off to a good start with one working bee having already taken place toremove a good trailer load of rubbish. Well done to all involved! Next time we need to make surethat train control is involved so that the train drivers aren’t scared by the “sights” that they saw! Asthis project progresses we need to ensure that we obtain maximum publicity through the Upper HuttLeader with photos and diagrams so that we can let residents know exactly what we are doing.A very successful Casino evening was also held for BMW recently. This event was organised byRed Pebble an Event Management Company at The Brewery in Wellington and I am confident wewill receive a number of further requests to assist, from both organisations. The event was probablyone of the least stressful nights for us and yet succeeded in raising some $1,500. Assisting withcommercial casinos is one way that we can keep our club fees down to as low as they are. Thanksto those who volunteered as croupiers for the evening; Casinos are a lot of fun so why not have a gonext time. I urge all club members to look for similar opportunities where we can generate goodrevenue.This week we will support Mary Fisher and her family when we attend the Upper Hutt Sportspersonof the year which is organised annually by Rimutaka Lions. This will be a great event and veryworthy of our support. Hopefully Rimutaka will get good recognition and publicity as well as themany deserving sports-people who have been nominated.While it may seem a long way off next year’s District Convention will be held in Hastings while theMultiple District Convention will be held in Auckland. Both events promise to be enjoyable,educational and rewarding, if this year’s one was anything to go by. As a club we should look to getas many Lions and partners to commit early to attend our District Convention. By combiningtransport and accommodation we can reduce the costs for many, and by booking early we can getgood deals and stay together which is always a lot of the fun. All Lions can learn something fromconventions and benefit from seeing what other clubs do. Let’s plan early to attend!Congratulations to those Board members who were elected to positions last month, I am sure thatyou will enjoy the experience and the opportunity “To Serve”.Yours in LionsRexSilverstream Lions Lines Page 3 May 2013