Chatterbox 1010 - Rotary Club of Belper

otary international district 1220
www.belper-rotary.co.uk
September/October 2010
the rotary club of
belper &
duffield
World Heritage Site
-a birthplace of the Industrial Revolution
In this issue:
District Conference Report
African Veterinary Adventure
GSE Team from India
1
CHATTERBOX

Nick, accompanied by Mercy,
gets ready to present his talk on
Educational Software. Page 5.
President David makes the SportsAid
presentation to Fiona Donnelly.
Report on page 7.
2
Hilary Surga with colleague Keith after
giving her Job Talk on 20th September.
Full report on page 6.
Ruby Shorrock meets ‘Tiger’ and ‘Bullet’, a pair of
‘ambassador’ Cheetahs during her African Conservation
Experience. More information on page 8.

Highlights of Southport Conference
8th - 10th October 2010
After an unpleasant journey we arrived at Southport at 7.00pm having intended
to arrive at about 5.30. A frenzy of text messages followed and we were booked
in for a meal at an Italian restaurant which President David had organised; having
started with two places there were eventually eleven of us! It was most enjoyable
and set the mood for the weekend. We then made our way to the Conference
Centre to watch the show "We'll Meet Again" which was a revue of 40’s music and
humour. I found it disappointing but it didn't prevent me from looking forward to
the rest of the weekend with anticipation.
Unfortunately, I missed the official opening of the conference and the
welcomes by the invited dignitaries but we were present for various presentations
including The Children of Courage scheme delivered by Stuart Rickersay who will be
speaking at our club about this project. There were inspiring talks from groups such
as "Headway" (they support and provide rehabilitation activities for people with
brain injuries) and "Framework ", an organisation which offers help to the homeless
and vulnerable members of the community in Nottinghamshire and some parts of
Derbyshire. The dedication and commitment from the workers representing these
groups was quite humbling. We were introduced to the engaging GSE team from
Cover picture - the GSE Team from India at Butterley Police Hqs
There is an account of the visit by the GSE Team from Chennai, India to
the Club Meeting held on 11th October after their appearance at the District
Conference. Full details on page 12.
3

India who told us about themselves and performed the dances which we saw when
they visited our club recently.
The particular highlight for Alan and me was listening to Gervase Phinn
who described his experiences from his association with schools in the Dales; we
laughed until we hurt. His material was so entertaining and we both said we hadn't
laughed so much in a long while! We looked forward to another pleasant treat with
the spectacular firework display which took place in spite of the rain.
Again we made our way to the Centre to enjoy a marvellous evening of
dancing to a jazz band and "The Revival Group" who played music from the 50's,
60's and 70's. We had a fabulous time and it was good to see everyone dancing,
chatting and enjoying each other’s company. On Sunday morning there were
several more presentations including those from our own GSE team and from the
Ambassadorial scholars, as well as an amusing talk from Jake and Matt who had
been on a RYLA weekend three years before.
The guest speaker for Sunday morning was Richard McCann, a young man whose
earlier years had been deeply troubled. Shockingly, his mother had been the first
victim of Philip Sutcliff, the Yorkshire Ripper; his story of how this traumatic and
violent event and other unhappy experiences affected his life was harrowing. To
hear how he overcame them was truly moving and inspirational but humorous as
well. I will always remember it.
These were the highlights of my first District Conference with the Rotary
Club and I hope it provides a flavour of the occasion for those who were unable to
take part. After seeing the presentation for next year’s event, I can only say
"Scarborough, here we come!"
Hilary Surga
Educational Software etc ... (continued from page 5)
His trust now receives funding from UNESCO which helps with the books
and stationery and a charity “Crossroads” in Hong Kong is supporting with laptops
free of charge. The trust is also trying to raise money world-wide and £1000 a
month will provide teaching for a month for a community. They are also trying to
provide a mobile classroom, fully maintained including the cost of the learning
materials and Nick considered that the software his firm provides raises the reading
age of the students by twelve months in twelve weeks.
There were many questions, and the vote of thanks was excellently given
in a summing up by David Henson, which received the usual applause from our
members.
Vernon Barnes
There is a photograph of Nick and Mercy on page 2.
4

Meeting – 6th September
Educational Software etc...
by Nicholas West
W hen President David introduced his speaker, Nicholas West, as being the
managing director of the local technology firm SIR Learning, I for one expected
to hear mainly about the latest software we could buy. The talk was far and beyond
those limits and began by Nick introducing his colleague Mercy, who was also his
fiancée, and to whom he was pleased to tell us he was marrying at Christ Church,
Belper on Sunday September 19th (and which ceremony our President and Anne
attended).
He went on to tell us about his premises only a few doors away on Bridge
Street which he had recently refurbished to the demands of conditions of the
conservation area in which they are situated. The firm of SIR Learning specialises in
producing programmes for school groups of all ages but he also felt a need to help
children in the Philippine Islands by trying to relieve their poverty and also giving
them training in music. This he does in conjunction with his brothers who between
them have formed the West Bros. Charitable Trust, who have their own website.
He explained that he had met his fiancée in Hong Kong on a Christian
get-together and became aware of the poverty in the Philippines on a visit to
Mercy’s family. Prospects for work there are very low and education doesn’t reach
all the children – in fact 40% of the children and adults between the ages of 6 and
24 don’t receive any education at all. Families decide which of their children will be
educated and the others stay at home to work in the fields; 2500 people a day leave
the islands to seek work elsewhere. Generally speaking, those over the age of
about 15 are expected to contribute any money they earn to the expenses of the
family. The slides which he presented showed that many of the houses are just
shacks and of the total population of 88 million, 3 million children are working
under age. The population is expected to increase still further to 98 million by 2015.
Rubbish dumps are sifted through daily to find anything of value to make money.
Nick’s company produces 46 products of low-specification software to try
to help the education of the country, working on the principle that their efforts can
save the need for lots of teachers. He helps to provide computers which can be
powered by solar panels because of the difficulty of electric power and in an effort
to raise the standards of the pupils’ dignity and expectancy, he and his Trust have
provided many with school uniforms. He described to us his “learner support”
material, and also his instigation of “buddy support” for the pupils – people who will
deliver educational help on four days a week, the fifth day being devoted to
personal development.
Continued on opposite page ...
5

Meeting – 20th September
The Delves School and Sports College
by Hilary Surga
Hilary introduced Keith, the present Head teacher of the school at Swanwick
who had come to co-present the account of the recent development of this
Derbyshire Area Special School. Hilary spent all but the first four years of her
teaching career at the Delves, becoming Head after several years as deputy supporting
a Head with a terminal illness. She was the first Head in Derbyshire to take a
phased retirement, mentoring her Deputy into Headship.
She described the movement of the school from an Area Special School in
the 1970’s when the majority of the children (mainly boys) carried the label of the
time - ‘Educationally Subnormal’ (ESN) with some children designated as
‘Maladjusted’. They were taught in classes of 20 and the school took all ages from 4
– 16 years. I spent four exciting and happy years alongside Hilary at that time and
left just as education was moving towards ‘Inclusion’ and, ironically, even more
detailed labelling of children’s learning and behavioural disabilities. Hilary and Keith
took us through some of the acronyms, ASD, ADS, OCD… and many more. Worryingly,
they had both been observing their audience during the meal and kindly selected
a few good examples to pick on and illustrate the extremes of these conditions!
(Actually, Hilary, my family wish I had a few more ASDs and OCDs then I might sort
out Grandma’s papers…) We were allowed to slink back to our seats after a good
going over muttering about getting the hecklers in the car park afterwards.
Now the audience was familiar with the more difficult attributes of the
school population, Hilary and Keith set out how they had developed both the
physical environment of the Delves and the skills of the much enlarged staff,
meanwhile working on (oops, with!) the Education Authority to provide appropriate
funding to support what was becoming an increasingly demanding brief with
very challenging young people.
Having seen Hilary in action with the most recalcitrant and enormous
teenagers of both sexes I am certain that the Officers of the Education Authority
trembled in their shoes at her 4ft 11inches of steely charm and I don’t wonder at
her success in pushing through the initiatives which eventually led to the Sports
College award which she was able to leave as a legacy to Keith. Since her retirement
Hilary continues to support the school as a governor.
Subsequent to this presentation, there have been suggestions that these
recent awards may not be followed through due to cuts in funding. I am sure that
we all hope that this is not so as these special children of Derbyshire so much
deserve the kudos that belonging to a school with such facilities and opportunities
brings.
Sheilagh Harnan
See photograph of Hilary and Keith on page 2.
6

Meeting - 27th September
Water Holes
by Ruby Shorrock
O ur meeting began a little earlier this week as we had a presentation to make
before dinner. Paul Taylor gave us a brief introduction to SportsAid, which was
established in 1976 with the aim of helping talented young sportsmen and women
of 16 years of age and under turn their sporting dreams into reality by awarding
grants to help with the costs associated with travelling, training, equipment etc.
Paul stressed that by “talented” he meant youngsters with outstanding
national potential. He said that many athletes who have benefited from SportsAid
in the past were now household names, and that 18 out of 19 British gold medal
winners at the Beijing Olympics, and more than half of Team Great Britain overall
had been supported by SportsAid during their formative years. Paul went on to say
that Rotary has worked with SportsAid for some years, both in terms of contributing
to the grants and making awards directly to the athletes at formal presentations.
He then introduced us to Fiona Donnelly who was at the meeting with her mum and
dad.
Fiona is 15 years old, lives in Hazelwood and attends Ecclesbourne School.
“So what” you might be thinking, there are lots of 15 year olds at Ecclesbourne
School (that’s what it’s for after all) and some of them probably live in Hazelwood.
However, Fiona is different. She is a swimmer. Not just any swimmer, but a member
of the Scottish National Youth squad who last year established four Scottish records
for her age group.
In June this year she won the Scottish Long Course Championship in the
100m and 200m backstroke and the 200m and 800m freestyle. I’m already worn
out just typing this! Fiona was selected for the GB team at the recent European
Junior Games in Helsinki where she made the final of the 400m freestyle event and
won silver in the 4x200m freestyle relay. It then fell to President David to present
Fiona with a cheque from the club and to wish her every success for the future on
behalf of the club. Although Fiona only said “thank you”, it was clear that she was
very grateful for our contribution and also, that for a 15 year old, she was one very
confident young lady who I think we will be seeing more of. (There is a photograph
of the presentation on page 2.)
The meal this evening comprised Soup (chicken, mushroom or vegetable –
you decide as I couldn’t) followed by a choice of Chicken wrapped in Bacon, Beef &
Ale Stew or Mushroom Risotto. I opted for the stew, which was very tasty and quite
filling - I’m beginning to sound like “Gustator”, so I’ll stop.
David Harris brought greetings from Amber Valley, who’s Charter he had
attended with Ann, and then he remembered that he should have welcomed
7

Elizabeth Henson to the meeting – an omission which cost him dearly at the end of
the night.
It was announced that on the 25th October a murder will take place in
Milford. As this statement was made by Sheilagh Harnan, Peter Shepherd looked a
bit worried until he realised Sheilagh was actually talking about a Murder Mystery
evening at their home. Things then started to get really out of hand with talk of
blood capsules and all sorts (and all this just after we had eaten).
Chris True reported that her planned speaker had had to pull out so she was looking
for suggestions for alternatives, so John Scotney proposed a quiz. By now, Ron
Giffin (our retired accountant) has managed to balance the books for the night and
we moved on to the “main event”.
David Henson introduced us to Ruby
Sharrock, a 13 year old student from Ecclesbourne
who had come to talk to us about her
experiences working with a Vet in South Africa.
Ruby explained that she wanted to train as a
Vet and was therefore taking every opportunity
to gain work experience, including a spell
with the Scarsdale Clinic. She had found ACE
(African Conservation Experience) on the internet
and they had recommended the Shamungwe
Vetinary Experience, so off she went for
two weeks.
She was assigned to a small village
called Swindsbury and was with another trainee
vet called Lydia and a Wild-Life vet who
worked alongside a small-animal vet. Ruby
lived on a Wildlife Estate which was five minutes from the clinic and in the middle
of a wildlife park. Amongst her experiences she can list failing to trap a Hyena but
finally managing to “dart” one the following day and then fitting a tracking device
to be used in a research project. She visited a herd of trained elephants, where one
of the bulls had trodden on something which had resulted in an injury to its foot. It
turned out to be a very big splinter of wood but then I guess it would need to be to
impact an elephant. While the vet worked on the animal the rest of the heard was
forming a boundary to protect it until it could stand.
Ruby was able to visit the Kruger National park, where she saw Buffalo,
Rhino, Elephant and Leopard (in other words four of the “big five”), but didn’t see
any Lions. She did however finally encounter a hand-reared Lioness which needed
a contraceptive capsule placed in its neck. She also came across 11 Rhodesian
Ridgeback puppies which came into the small-animal clinic for vaccination, and she
also met “Tiger” and “Bullet”, a pair of “ambassador” Cheetahs which were replacing
two older animals which were being retired.
8

Apparently Bovine TB is as much a problem in South Africa as it is in the UK,
so buffalo have to undergo regular blood tests. This was something Ruby also
participated in, as well as assisting in the treatment of a buffalo which had been
attacked by another buffalo. Interestingly, its wounds were packed with tar soaked
bandages to “bung” the holes.
Five kittens were found abandoned, of which three found new homes and
the other two were taken home by Lydia. Apparently the centre was the only place
that would take stray cats. A stray puppy was found in a crate; it had no fur and was
covered in scabs and was taken in by the SPCA. Unfortunately, the area has started
to attract the wrong kind of tourists and the growth of restaurants and night clubs
has meant that there are problems with drunken tourists.
In summarising, Ruby said that two weeks had not been long enough. As
soon as she reached Duffield upon her return, she had booked another visit, this
time for five weeks. Most importantly, her experience had convinced her that she
did want to be a vet. There were many questions from the members and Peter
Davies gave the vote of thanks for what had been a most interesting and entertaining
presentation. David Collard won the raffle.
Nick Blurton
There is a photograph from Ruby’s collection on page 2.
Club Council - 21st October 2010
Treasurer’s Report
Club Account at 21/10/10 £4,042
(includes £704 in the Hospitality sub fund & £550 in the DG Support sub fund.)
Charitable Trust Account at 21/10/10 £1,832
It was agreed that £100 be transferred from the Club Account to the Charity Account to
support the fund available for donations.
It was agreed that the £200 held for a donation to the Belper Civic Trust should be released
to the Foundation fund as the Civic Trust had not shown any interest in the donation.
The £84 held in reserve against the 2009 Cathedral Concert will be released.
With the above changes, this would leave £780 available for general donations.
Contributions to Foundation should be increased which would bring our total club contribution
to £1300. With Gift Aiding, the club needs to raise an additional £600. We also need to
raise further funding for Polio Plus and an additional £600 for the DG’s India Project.
It was agreed to make a donation of £100 to the Derby Street Pastors
9

Rotary Young Chef Competition
Six pupils of Belper School, 3 boys and 3 girls, took part in this heat of the
competition at their Open Evening. The task was to prepare a healthy 2-course
meal for two, cooked and served in approximately 1 1/4 hours. The judges were
Sam Jackson, co-owner of Fresh Basil in Belper, and Janet Cousins who owns a
delicatessen and cafe in Willington, Derbyshire. The young chefs would be judged
not just on their cooking ability but their hygiene, tidiness, planning
and presentation.
Kay Lilliman, their Food Technology teacher set the children off at 18.15pm
and they all looked most proficient in their "kitchen whites". They proved very
industrious from the start as the judges moved amongst them asking questions;
quite an ordeal for them but they did not look overawed. When their time was up
the children presented some fabulous plates of food to the judges. What a difficult
task they had to select a winner - fans of Masterchef will understand how hard it
is. But a winner there had to be and after much deliberation the judges decided
to award the prize to Joe Chadwick, who cooked up a very tasty dish of Duck Breast
with vegetables and a delicious Chocolate Soufflé for pudding. Well done, Joe, and
to everyone who took part.
The runners-up were:
Alise Clarke - Vegetable Risotto and Apple and Blackberry Crumble
Charlotte Davies - Butternut Squash Soup then Chicken with Garlic and Cream
Cheese Filling and Roasted Vegetables
Cameron Hutchinson - Pea and Bacon Risotto then Tropical Fruit Crunch
Kelly Gaunt - Chicken Risotto and Lemon Mousse
James Nolan - Chorizo Salad followed by Stuffed Chicken with Sugar Snap
Peas and Garlic Mushroom Sauce.
(see photographs opposite ...)
10

Thursday 30th September 2010
11

Meeting – 11th October
GSE Team - District 3230, Chennai, India
Rtn Dr. Anthony Ashokkumar – Team Leader
Madan Kumar, Kanimozzi Mathi, Singaram Ramkumar and Dr Naganathan Ezhilan
The four members of GSE Team from Chennai and their Rotarian Team Leader
were in the District from 18th September for four weeks and they were each
hosted by six Rotarians and their families including four nights with members from
Belper and Duffield and Amber Valley. During this time the team visited the World
Heritage site at The North Mill, toured facilities at Police Headquarters and toured
Pride Park Stadium where Tom Glick spent some considerable time answering all
their questions about football. They also had meals out at Carsington Water and the
Sylet Spice Indian Restaurant in Ripley.
Tonight, the team entertained Belper and Duffield members and their
partners with a display of two Indian traditional dances as well as speaking briefly
about themselves and where they were from. David Ashley introduced the evening
by giving a short talk about the history of The Rotary Foundation and GSE Teams.
Prior to their visit to the Club each member had spent the day working
within their own vocations. The Lion Hotel and its sister, The Cathedral Quarter at
Derby played host to the Team Leader giving him an insight into the running of two
very different hotels owned by the same group. Madan Kumar spent the day with
West House Dental Practice on Bridge Street, whilst Singaram Ramkumar was looked
after royally by the journalists at the Derby Telegraph, in fact subsequently
appearing on the front page of the Express and with a half page spread about his
visit in the Telegraph itself. Kanimozhi Mathi learnt all about how we prosecute
people in this country by spending the day with the Crown Prosecution Service at
Derby, whilst Naganathan Ezhilan had a very long vocational day, starting at 8am in
Mansfield with a medical practice, then going on to Kings Mill Hospital, before
finally arriving at our meeting about 8.30pm. (Lucky that we had a delayed start !!)
On a personal note Gail and I had the pleasure of hosting Kani for her stay.
We found her to be really friendly and a pleasure to be with. We spent a couple of
evenings (till the wee small hours) chatting to her about her life in India. She told us
things about family life, the cultures and the customs of India that would never
come out in a formal presentation. We also found out that despite being a non
drinker at home she was more than happy to enjoy the odd glass (or two) of white
wine, red wine, gin and tonic etc etc.
If and when our club has the opportunity to host another GSE Team
(probably in 2012) I would recommend any Rotarian who has not hosted before to
give it a go. Provided you have a spare room and a warm heart that is all the
qualifications you need for an unforgettable experience.
Dave Ashley
12

Meeting – 18th October
Graham Wright
and his Pig
When I discovered I was to be reporter who was
to cover Graham Wright’s talk about his business
life, I decided that at last I could get revenge for all the grief
Graham and his demented pig had given me and fellow Rotarians over the past year.
Short of kidnapping the animal I decided on reporting his talk on a used postage
stamp instead of an A4 sheet of paper and taking frequent naps during his talk.
When Graham commenced his talk I realized that not only would a sheet of A4 be
required to record his most interesting talk but several sheets would be used.
A Rotarian for eight years, in his early years he attended grammar school and
later studied part-time the technicalities of textile manufacture whilst being employed
at the labs of the knitting wool producers Lister & Co. From Listers he
progressed to shift work at Glaxo during which he saw and successfully applied for
a post with the company of Scraggs that took him to work in Switzerland and Italy
and an offer to work in North Carolina which he turned down for personal reasons.
Graham then arrived in Belper to take a post at a local textile company called
Maystock where he stayed for a time before joining the newly formed electronic
design company, Midelectron. Geoff Glossop, the founder, introduced Graham to
the world of electronics and asked him to promote a piece of equipment developed
by the company and allied to the textile trade. Midelectron became the agent for
computer printers, then in their early days. So successful were sales the company
thrived and moved to purpose built premises at the Pottery.
Midelectron was eventually taken over by a Leicester company to which Graham
transferred but in 1990 the recession took its toll of the company making
Graham a victim until he formed the Mitel company and worked successfully
supplying equipment to the NHS. In 2000 the opportunity arose to purchase the
well-known local outfitters – Ball and Stillman. Graham took the gamble and
became a gent’s outfitter for three years before again returning to the business he
knows so well i.e. the world of ICT.
The talk, it was agreed by everyone, was one of great interest showing that
Graham was greatly experienced in his field of computers. Unfortunately, that
damn pig is still around to blight our pleasant Monday evenings. I would like to
suggest we approach the chef and ask him to create a dish using bacon preferably
from that ruddy pig.
13
Peter Davies

Meeting – 25th October
Murder Mystery Evening
W hen the idea of holding a ‘Murder Mystery Evening’ was first mooted, the
intention was to invite either a small group of actors to play out an incident
or to co-opt members of the club into a group of thespians under the direction of
Martin Drake. In the event, neither option materialised and it was left to Sheilagh
to improvise a suitably themed evening around refreshments and to get as many
guests along to make it a successful fund raising evening to augment our rapidly
diminishing charity account.
Some forty visitors arrived at Willow Lodge and with drinks in their hands
proceeded to meet their fellow victims/investigators? The process was facilitated
by Sheilagh offering each new arrival a card with a cryptic word associated with the
world of crime stories on it and then inviting everybody to find the corresponding
partner. We were then warned that an ‘incident’ would occur at some point during
the evening and we should investigate it and attempt to associate it with some
literary work!
Suitably mystified, we were invited to partake of an excellent buffet of salmon,
assorted quiches, salad and breads followed by a return to the kitchen for a
selection of sweets and coffee. Every unusual movement or topic of conversation
was scrutinised by the assembled company as a possible ‘Incident’. Eventually, we
heard a crash of crockery and a scream from an adjoining bedroom and everybody
dashed to investigate, completely over-running the crime scene and wrecking the
opportunity for a full forensic investigation! One of our mystery guests was laid on
the bed with a bloody wound to the face and the contents of a dropped tray on the
floor with various artefacts scattered around the room. To which novelist and book
would we be led by these clues? Crime story buff Chris Lowe found both the answer
and a copy of the book in the living room – P D James ‘A Private Patient’ featuring
Inspector Dagleish. (Whoever had been assigned the role of the snoop earlier in the
evening was less successful in solving the crime!)
The mystery solved, the evening reverted to form. Dave Ashley appealed for
offers to buy a horse for the Race Evening on 20th November and Graham Wright
challenged the members by arranging to get more tickets printed. SVP Martin
reminded everybody that the Club Charter was to be held on Monday 22nd November
and that they needed to sign up for it. Presumably Graham was aware of the
threat to the pig by Peter Davies and the Sergeant-at-Arms had a night off. Finally,
Dave Ashley proposed a vote of thanks to Sheilagh, Peter and the mystery ‘victim’
and everybody enthusiastically endorsed it. The final outcome of the evening was
that the Charity Account benefited by some £400 after Treasurer David has worked
his magic with Gift Aid.
John Scotney
14

Seen on holiday
MISCELLANY
I am always on the lookout for the Rotary International ‘roundel’ when holidaying
abroad, it crops up in the most unlikely places! Last month we were cruising on
the Rhine and while exploring Koblenz, walking across an old market place I spotted
a plastic cabinet mounted on a wall and displaying the Rotary Wheel. Closer
inspection showed that it was a Defibrillator to be used in the case of a heart attack.
(see photograph on page 19.)
Some of our members will recall that the club purchased a similar unit for the
‘First Responders’ a few years ago but I think we would have reservations about
actually mounting it on a wall along King Street (or Town Street either!) Having said
that, there was an item on today’s news that a village in Leicestershire has collected
for a similar unit to be located in the public telephone box (I didn’t know there were
any left). It is presumably anchored securely and requires a special code for it to be
opened by a medically trained person.
John Scotney
Christmas Greetings
The next Chatterbox will be the Christmas Edition, to be distributed
on Monday 20th December on the occasion of our Christmas Guest
Evening. We plan to run the ‘Christmas Greetings’ section again and I
will be pleased to receive your Greetings (short, please) and £10 over
the next few meetings. The closing date is Monday 13th December.
Rotary Club of Belper and Duffield
Christmas Concert
with the Dalesmen
Saturday 18th December
St Peters Church
15
JS

STOP PRESS
Pumpkin Evening at the Lion!
Responding to a frantic call for help from Kerry, the new
General Manager at the Lion Hotel, I co-opted the
assistance of John and Chris Lowe to go along and be the
judges at their 1st Annual Pumpkin Party held in the early
evening of Friday 29th October.
An appeal had gone out for all local artists, sculptors and pumpkin lovers to
come along for an evening of pumpkin art, pumpkin soup and Halloween treats.
Pumpkin carvers of all ages were invited to sharpen their chisels, sculpt their
pumpkins and exhibit their finest works in an exhibition of Pumpkin Art.
There was a steady procession of children, parents and adults turning up with
an assortment of pumpkins which were arranged on a large table in the back
courtyard just outside the Strutt Room. We elected to stay in the Strutt Room until
the judging and we were regaled with an assortment of canapés and pumpkin soup.
Finally our moment arrived. We trooped outside to find some twenty decorated
pumpkins grinning at us courtesy of candles and tealights (both real and electronic).
There were some very clever and ingenious carvings and we had to deliberate
for some time before deciding on the winners. The adult winner (from America!)
was an exquisite ‘etching style’ carving into the surface of the pumpkin; the photograph
on page 19 does not really do it justice. The junior winner was a ‘grinning cat’
face, fairly simple but very effective. The prizes were meals for four at the Lion.
The bad news is that with all those pumpkins carved as decorations by the Lion
staff, what is the likelihood of pumpkin featuring heavily in the menu on Monday?
JS
RACE EVENING
Saturday 20th November
7.00 for 7.30pm
Herbert Strutt Primary School
(off Bargate Road, Belper)
£10 Pie and Pea Supper Bar
Proceeds to Rotary Charities
16

District Governor’s Newsletter – September 2010
Another busy month has flown by and the Charter Season has begun! These are
always enjoyable occasions with time for fellowship between members and
their partners. I have deliberately delayed this Newsletter until Conference had
passed to give me the opportunity to thank everyone who came to Southport and
helped to make the weekend one I will never forget. The warmth, laughter and
serious moments were shared by all and once again I thank my incredible Conference
team for their tremendous hard work and commitment over the past two
years. The stars of the Conference were the club members, Inner Wheel members
and guests. Just by being there you made it so successful. Thank you for the very
positive comments, cards, flowers etc that I have received, they are much appreciated.
I was totally overwhelmed by the outstanding achievement of Rotarian Colin
Gell and his daughter Claire who climbed Kilimanjaro and raised £7,200 for the India
housing project. If all pledges are honoured we will exceed my original target and
help so many unfortunate people. The clubs in District 3150 India have offered to
match the funds that we raise and I look forward to meeting them in December
during my visit to Andhra Pradesh.
I am delighted to see so many clubs inducting new members, the Rotary Club
of Nottingham inducted three men and two ladies last week to boost their team. I
ask club secretaries to ensure that APAC is updated with your membership changes
please so that I can write personally to the new members to welcome then to Rotary.
At the first District Team meeting of the year we discussed communications
within the District, particularly regarding emails. Please keep the number to a
minimum and circulate essential ones through Jeff Naylor if you wish to bring
something to the attention of other clubs.
Anni Gell is doing a great job co-ordinating “Focus on the Crocus” and many
thousand are being planted now and in the next two weeks. Please take photographs
and let me know how you get on. Sherwood Sunrisers are planting in the City
Hospital and have threatened to use hairdryers to encourage them if they are late
blooming in February!
I do enjoy receiving the club magazines and bulletins so please include me in
your circulation list if you have not already done so. They really do show the vast
range of projects and details what is happening in your area.
At the end of next week I will have completed 44 club visits and enjoyed 5
Charter celebrations. I love meeting you all on your home territory!
Best wishes,
Val
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2010 Organiser Reporter Cash Fraternal
November
1st V Barnes J Frankland P James J Norreys
8th N Blurton R Giffin J Kerr D Partridge
15th Business Meeting P Löchel P Shepherd
22nd Charter Evening
29th J Brazier D Henson J Lowe D Soul
December
6th D Collard J Horwood J Moore H Surga
13th M Drake V Horwood J Norreys P Taylor
20th Christmas Dinner D Partridge C True
27th Bank Holiday
2011
January
3rd P Davies P James P Shepherd G Wright
10th J Frankland J Kerr D Soul D Ashley
17th Business Meeting H Surga G Ashley
24th Burns Evening P Löchel P Taylor V Barnes
31st R Giffin J Lowe C True N Blurton
November 15th Club Business Meeting
November 20th Race Evening
DUTY OFFICERS
DIARY
November 22nd Club Charter Celebration at the Hallmark Hotel, Derby. 7.00 for 7.30pm
November 29th Club Council Meeting at 6.30pm
December 6th Nepal Journey. Activity Organiser - David Collard
December 18th Christmas Street Collections
Christmas Concert with the Dalesmen at St Peters, Belper
December 19th Christmas Collection at Morrisons
December 20th Christmas Guest Evening
December 23rd Christmas Street Collection
December 27th Bank Holiday - no Meeting
Christmas CHATTERBOX: Publication - 20th December
Editor - John Scotney
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The GSE Team show off their dancing skills during the visit to the
Club on 11th October. Report on page 12.
A Defibrillator mounted in a street in
Koblenz. More details on page 15.
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The winning entry in the Lion Hotel’s
Pumpkin Carving Competition held on
29th October. See page 16.

The Rotary Club
of
Belper and Duffield
Founded 1930
President David Harris
Senior Vice-President Martin Drake
Junior Vice-President Christine True
Treasurer David Henson
Secretary John Scotney
The Club meets every week on Monday at 7.30pm.
The Lion Hotel, Bridge Street, Belper (01773 824033)
Rotary is a service organisation which exists to help those in need and to provide
fellowship and support to its members, whilst maintaining high ethical standards. If you
are interested in visiting the Club and learning more about Rotary, please contact the
Secretary, John Scotney:
01773 823678 john.scotney617@btinternet.com
Website: www.belper-rotary.co.uk
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