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August 26 th , 2013 

Volume 50 Issue No.08 

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Rotary 

rossroads 

e-bulletin published by Rotary Club of Singapore 

Proud of our Heritage , Committed to our Future 

Chartered in 1930 

In Focus 

LAST WEEK 

MARK YOUR DIARY 

1 District Governor 

3 Report on our Wed, 12 

Chew Ghim Bok’s Speech 

August 21 st Meeting 

What’s ahead? Don’t miss 

the forthcoming events 

and Birthday / Anniversary 

celebrants and more ….

In Focus 

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Rotary 

Every year the club receives the District Governor’s traditional visit. What is unique for our 

club is that the Governor attends both our assembly and club weekly meeting over 2 days. 

Here is a reproduction of District Governor Chew Ghim Bok’s Speech at the weekly meeting 

on Wednesday August 21 st 2013. 

President Dr Shahul Hameed, PDG Dr Philbert Chin, PDG Dr Ivor Thevathasan, 

Assistant Governor Dr Yap Lip Kee, District Officers, Distinguished 

Guests, Rotary Spouses, my fellow Rotarians. Good Afternoon! 

It is no mean feat for a club to exist for more than 80 years. During the last 16 

years, 17 clubs were closed. I have no record of the 1st 65 years after your club 

was formed. RC of Singapore being the oldest club and biggest in our District 

has a rich history and traditions. It is also the most cosmopolitan club in the 

District and possibly in the whole Rotary world having 21 nationalities in your 

membership. I can safely say there is no other club which has more. For the 

last 15 years, despite recruiting more than 120,000 members annually, Rotary 

worldwide membership stagnated at 1.2mil. There are some districts in countries 

like India and Taiwan whose memberships are actually growing at a pace 

of about 10%. This also means that membership in most of other districts 

actually decreased. 

District Governor Chew Ghim Bok 

During the same period, the average club size worldwide comes down from 42 to 35. So, what is the problem with Rotary? According 

to Albert Einstein, you cannot expect a different result by doing the same old thing over and over again. RI has also realised 

that their one-size fits all strategy no long works. Your membership of 140 is 4 times the worldwide average. Even our District’s 

2nd largest club is less than half your club size. At your yesterday’s club assembly I learned that many of your sub-committees are 

bigger than many of the clubs in our District. There is almost a third of our clubs whose memberships are under 20 members. 20, 

by the way, is the minimum number to charter a club. As introduced by AG Dr Yap Lip Kee, I run a Venture Capital Fund and doing 

Mergers and Acquisitions, buying and selling companies is my forte. Given a choice I would merge some of our smaller clubs. 

However, as you know, in Rotary, we are “Servant Leader”. I cannot treat Rotarians like circus animals by not rewarding you with 

food or whip you if you don’t obey instructions. Neither can I treat you like in the army by punishing you if you don’t obey. Or in a 

company, I cannot dock your pay or freeze you promotion if I don’t like you. As in Small & Medium Enterprises (SMEs) which are 

very difficult to merge due to ego of the founders, likewise, in Rotary, you have charter presidents or dominant members who have 

egos too. 

Although I had been saying that we need more Rotarians than members, critical mass is important as well. With critical mass, 

you can achieve economy of scale. For example, you have 10 Interact clubs and 2 Rotaract clubs and last night I received the news 

from RI that your 3rd Rotaract Club, the Rotaract Club of Singapore was given the charter. Your Annual Leadership Training camp 

for your own Interactors, is a classic example. I hope you can extend your training camp to other clubs in our District. With your 

strong membership, it is not surprising that to become the club president of Rotary Club of Singapore, it will take you more than 10 

years of membership. You don’t have a succession problem faced by many clubs. You don’t have to throw your new members into 

the deep end. You have many PPs who are willing to stay active and advise the newer members. There is a big difference between 

advising and dictating. Things done 30 or 40 years ago may be outdated long time ago. So you cannot bring in younger members 

and expect them to do things your old way. While we must maintain certain traditions and protocol which make Rotary so unique, 

we must accommodate younger members’ views and ideas. Yesterday I had the opportunity to witness the launch of your club 

state-of-art apps to replace your Who’s Who directory as well as introducing a whole new way to make payments. I am happy to 

note that your club, despite being more than 80 years old, you are changing. Very soon, PE Perlita will make history when she leads 

your club next year, for being the first lady president of your club. 

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An e-bulletin published by Rotary Club of Singapore – Proud of our Heritage, Committed to our Future 

email: rtyinfo@rotary.org.sg Website: www.rotary.org.sg 

Save our Forests! Save Paper - Print only if absolutely necessary.

In Focus 

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Rotary 

I am sure members of your club join Rotary because becoming a president is not their first priority. President Dr Shahul joined 

Rotary 18 years ago and PE Perlita joined 13 years ago. Your members join your club because of your fine fellowship and they want 

to serve the community to make a difference. To quote one of your youngest members, Rtn Winston Khoo, who said: “When I first 

joined Rotary, I did not realise the amount of time and commitment required of me. However, no price can be put on the satisfaction I 

get from helping the community and the underprivileged. When you see the smile on the faces of the people you are helping, everything 

is worth it.” Unquote. Well said, Winston! 

Your club’s long term signature project, the Rotary-Entrepreneur of the Year Award has served your club image well for many 

years. Not that I qualify, it is the most sought after award amongst entrepreneurs in Singapore. 

I particularly like your sunshine projects where many of your members can actively participate and contribute through their vocations. 

Most of the projects do not cost a lot of monies but only some of your time. It is more meaningful than just writing cheques. 

I am not saying cheque writing is not important. It is the hands-on experience at ground zero that will inevitably change your 

members’ perspective of lives. 

Judging from the presentation from your International Service Committee, I noted that your club had been very actively carrying 

many medical missions as well as other service projects in other countries. So far, you had been the international partner of these 

projects and large amount of funds were raised to support these projects. As international partner, your contributions are mainly 

funds as most of the works including needs assessment and implementation are carried out by the local partners. While there are 

needs overseas, there are also needs in our District. I am happy to note that you will soon initiate a Global Grant project locally 

where you will be the host partner. 

No DG’s speech is complete without mentioning The Rotary Foundation (TRF). However, my job is made simple because you have 

President Dr Shahul who is knowledgeable about TRF and also enthusiastic Club Foundation Chair, Rtn Robert Craiu, who is the 

best “robber” I have seen. He doesn’t need a gun to rob you guys. Your club had been a substantial contributor to TRF. Year to date, 

your club had contributed USD566K and you have 9 Major Donors. Last night alone, he raised total of USD26K for TRF. What is 

important to note is that your club understand the importance of unrestricted givings, i.e. contribution to the Annual Program 

Fund. TRF will give back 50% of your contributions to our District in 3 years’ time by way of District Designated Fund (DDF). 

This DDF is administered by our District to fund projects carried out by our clubs. Every dollar the District gives you for your project 

will attract a 1 for 1 matching from TRF. Please note that if you donate directly to the project, TRF will only match you 2 for 1 

i.e. 50 cents for every dollar you contribute. 

Whether it is local or overseas project, I urge you to consider tapping on the Rotary Grants. With the support of the Rotary grants, 

you can leverage and have more “bang” with your dollar. Your contributions to TRF enable Rotary clubs worldwide to continue to 

do good in the world. 

With regards to District events, the District is missing you. I hope you can consider sending more of your new members to attend 

the District Training Assembly, the various District seminars like the Foundation seminar, membership seminar, the vocational 

service seminar as well as the District Conference. Attending these events not only allows you to learn something new but you will 

find great opportunity to meet with many other Rotarians from the District. For your information, the District Conference will be 

held in Penang from 16-18 May 2014. 

In closing, I have this say to you, I am sure RC of Singapore under the continued able leadership will continue to flourish and be 

useful to the community. RC Singapore is indeed an effective club, meaning you have a strong membership, have good service 

projects, support the Rotary Foundation as well as developing members to serve beyond the club. In fact, some your members like 

PDG Dr Philbert and PDG Dr Ivor have even served beyond the District. 

If there are more clubs like yours, then the work of a DG would be easier. Let’s work together Engage Rotary and Change Lives. 

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Last Week 

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Rotary 

Last Week 

Last Week – Report on the Wednesday Meeting – August 21 st , 2013 

INTRODUCTORY REMARKS 

President Shahul warmly welcomed District Governor 

(DG) Chew Ghim Bok to his official visit to the 

Club as well as Assistant Governor (AG) Dr. Yap Lip 

Kee. He added that DG Ghim Bok and his wife Phyllis 

joined members at last night’s Club Assembly and 

dinner. President Shahul also took the opportunity to 

thank AG Lip Kee’s wife, Rachael who organized the 

ladies programme yesterday. 

President Shahul also extended a special welcome to 

PDG Mitsuo Nitta from District 2580. 

Pres Shahul (AG) Dr. Yap Lip Kee with DG Ghim Bok 

WELCOME OF GUESTS & VISITING ROTARIANS 

Duty of welcoming guests of members and visiting Rotarians was performed by Rtn. Swetha Gopalan: 

Guests: 

Ms. Danielle Benson 

Ms. Corrina Chang 

Mr. Kevin Seetoh 

Visiting Rotarians: 

PDG Mitsuo Nitta – Tokyo Koishikawa, Japan 

Dr. Hoon Sing Keow – Malmo, Sweden 

Prerna O’Hara – Villa Park, California, USA 

David Pearson – Darwin, Australia 

Rtn. Swetha Gopalan 

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In Focus 

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TOAST TO THE NEW ROTARACT CLUB OF SINGAPORE 

President Shahul invited AG Lip Kee and Vice President Shamin Vaswani to join him at the rostrum when 

he announced that the last Rotaract Club was formed 36 years ago by the prime mover of PDG Dr. Philbert 

Chin. He was pleased to state that the Club received notification from Rotary International of the formation 

of the 3rd Rotaract Club – Rotaract Club of Singapore! 

He advised that the advisors of the new Rotaract Club are AG Dr. Yap Lip Kee, PP Philip Leong, VP Shamin 

Vaswani and YSC Chairman Sean Twomey. 

President Shahul called on members to join him in raising a toast to the newly formed Rotaract Club of Singapore. 

GLOBAL GRANT APPROVAL 

President Shahul was pleased to add that the District have agreed to contribute from the District Designated 

Fund (DDF) towards the Club’s first Global Grant for Club HEAL and with the Club’s Paul Harris Fellow 

(PHF) contributions from the Unrestricted Giving – the total would be matched by The Rotary Foundation. 

President Shahul added that this showed the power of PHFs! 

President Shahul advised that the first Global Grant was done and he hoped to complete two more such 

Global Grants and will use the PHF contributions effectively. 

PAUL HARRIS FELLOWS 

Rtn. Robert Craiu was called upon by President Shahul to share further good news on the PHF unrestricted 

giving. Rtn. Robert added that PHF contributions were a very effective way of donating for good causes. He 

noted that DG Ghim Bok advised that the attendance at the Assembly was bigger than some of the Rotary 

Clubs in the District and following his appeal, several members responded and agreed to support The Rotary 

Foundation with pledges for PHF unrestricted giving and they are: VP Suresh Hathiramani, Director Ronald 

Wong, PP Raymon Huang, PP Chiang Shih Fang, Rtn. Reinhard Klemmer and a long-standing member who 

wished to remain anonymous. Rtn. Robert advised that the total collection received was for 27 PHFs. 

Subsequently, before the end of the meeting, Rtn. Robert added that new member, Rtn. Nasir Haji had also 

pledged as a PHF. Our sincere thanks to all Paul Harris Fellows for their contributions to The Rotary Foundation. 

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Last Week 

FRIENDSHIP CLUB AGREEMENT 

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Rotary 

The 3rd piece of good news announced by President Shahul was that the Board agreed to the Rotary Club of 

Bandar Seri Begawan’s request to be a Friendship Club. President Shahul explained that a Friendship Club 

was similar to a “pre-nuptial” agreement before entering a Sister Club agreement. President Shahul added 

that he spoke to President Joshua Tang from the Bandar Seri Begawan to consider being the Club’s international 

partner, and he was pleased to add that the Bandar Seri Begawan would be donating $5,000. 

DISTRICT 3310 INTER CITY MEETING 

President Shahul advised members of the poor response for the District 3310 Inter City Meeting to be held 

on Wednesday, 28th August 2013. He called for members support as the host club, he did not want the Club 

to be embarrassed. He added that IPP Jimmy would assist and collate members’ responses for the table seating. 

President Shahul also advised that registration would start at 5.00pm. He added that the meeting would 

start at 6.00pm as RI President Ron Burton would have to leave by 8.30pm to catch his flight. 

MEGA FREE EYE CAMP 2013 

Members were invited to participate in the coming Mega Free Eye Camp which would be held from September 

20th to 23rd 2013 in Kolkata, India. The highlights of the Camp would include 40,000 eye screenings, 

5,300 free cataract surgeries operated through 4 Rotary Eye Hospitals. Members who are interested in participating 

in this Camp are requested to contact Project Leader, PP Tapan Rao or ISC Chairman, Rtn. Ashi 

Sarwal. 

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Last Week 

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INCREASE IN LUNCH COST AT THE TANGLIN CLUB 

President Shahul reminded members that the next week’s meeting would be cancelled in view of the Inter- 

City meeting on the same day. So, the next weekly meeting would be held on Wednesday, 4th September, 

which President Shahul advised, the lunch cost would be increased to $38 nett. He added that the increase 

would take effect from September 1st, as advised by The Tanglin Club. 

COMMUNITY VISIT TO BHAKTI LUHUR FOUNDATION IN MALANG 

President Shahul announced details of the community visit to Bhakti Luhur Foundation in Malang, Jawa 

Timur, Indonesia from October 4th to 6th . He highlighted some interesting features of Malang and pertinent 

details of the Bhakti Luhur Foundation and the home-like environment of the Centre for the children. 

He advised that the Club sponsored a bus at the request of the Centre to replace the dilapidated bus. President 

Shahul advised that Rtn. Mohan Vaswani had paid for the bus and the Club would sponsor the bus’s 

retrofitting which costs $44,000. He added that PP Murli Chanrai had kindly agreed to a donation of $12,000 

however the Club still needed $20,000. President Shahul appealed to members to sponsor seats on the bus at 

$300 per seat. 

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Last Week 

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Rotary 

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Last Week 

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Rotary 

ROTARY INTERNATIONAL 

` 

Rotary Club of Bandar Seri Begawan 

Rotary International District 3310 

Chartered On 24 th June 1965 

PO Box 17, Bandar Seri Begawan BS8670 

NEGARA BRUNEI DARUSSALAM 

27 th July 2013 

The President, 

ROTARY CLUB OF SINGAPORE 

Rotary International District 3310 

Singapore 

Dear Dr Shahul, 

SUBJECT: PROPOSAL TO ESTABLISH A FRIENDSHIP AGREEMENT WITH YOUR CLUB 

Our discussion on the above subject refers. 

With the blessing of our Club Board, I am hereby pleased to propose officially the 

establishment of a FRIENDSHIP AGREEMENT with your esteemed club. 

We would like to develop collaborative activities, exchange constructive ideas and best 

practices, support and encourage opportunities for mutually beneficial and exchanges 

with the interest to deepen friendship and cooperation. 

With best regards, 

Yours In Rotary, 

ROTARY CLUB OF BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN 

………………………………. 

Joshua Tang Chok Kien 

President 

Address: 

P. O. Box 17, Bandar Seri Begawan, BS 8670, Negara Brunei Darussalam 

Email: rcbsb3310@yahoo.com 

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In Focus Photo Album - 2nd Club Assembly 

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In Focus 

Photo Album - Club Meeting 

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Exchange of Banners with visiting clubs 

Vote of thanks to our DG Ghim Bok 

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A Little Wisdom 

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THE 18TH CAMEL 

There was a father who left 17 camels as an asset for his three sons. 

When the father passed away, his sons opened up the Will. 

The Will of the father stated that the eldest son should get 1/2 (half) of total camels while the middle son should be given 1/3rd (one-third) and 

the youngest son should be given 1/9th (one-ninth) of the total camels. 

As it was not possible to divide 17 into half or 17 by 3 or 17 by 9, the three sons started to fight with each other. So, the three sons decided to go to 

a wise man. 

The wise man read the Will patiently. The wise man, after giving due thought, brought one camel of his own and added the same to 17. That 

increased the total to 18 camels. 

Now, he started reading the deceased father’s Will. 

Half of 18 = 9. So he gave the eldest son 9 camels 

1/3rd of 18 = 6. So he gave the middle son 6 camels 

1/9th of 18 = 2. So he gave the youngest son 2 camels. 

Now add this up: 9 plus 6 plus 2 is 17 and this leaves one camel, which the wise man took back! 

Moral: The attitude of negotiation and problem solving is to find the 18th camel i.e. the common ground. Once a person 

is able to find the 18th camel the issue is resolved. It is difficult at times. However, to reach a solution, the first step is to 

believe that there is a solution. If we think that there is no solution, we won’t be able to reach any! 

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Rotary 

Mark Your Diary! 

Birthday Celebrants 

RC sends best wishes to Birthday 

celebrants this week: 

August 31 st – PP Chiang Shih Fang, 

Akbar Kader 

September 2 nd – Dirk Haas 

Anniversary Celebrants 

There are no Wedding Anniversary 

celebrants this week. 

This Week 

August 28 th , 2013 

Inter-City Meeting at Pan Pacific 

Ballroom at 5.00pm 

Guest of Honour: 

RI President Ron Burton 

Tickets at S$95 per person 

(inclusive of dinner) 

Next Week 

September 4 th , 2013 

Reception Desk duty: PP Sajjad 

Akhtar, T.K. Chew 

Sunshine Box duty: PP J K Ong, 

James Lee 

Speaker: Ms. Maria Vas, wife of 

H.E. Mr. Csaba Farago, Ambassador 

of Hungary 

Topic: “Destination: Hungary” 

Coming Rotary Events 

Community Service 

September 5 th 2013 

Date: Thursday, September 5 th 

Time: 7.30pm 

Venue: Function Room and Poolside, 

(Ground Floor) 2 Kay Poh 

Road, The Aston, S248973 

Host: Rtns. Swetha Gopalan, James 

Lee 

Who’s Who Directory 2013/14 

Please send in your updated photos and 

contact details. 

Vocational Service 

September 12 th 2013 

Date: Thursday, September 12 th 

Time: 7.30pm 

Venue: Joan Bowen @ The Village, 

St. Andrew’s Village, 15 Francis 

Thomas Drive, S359341 

Host: AG Dr. Yap Lip Kee 

Queries, comments and articles 

request can be sent to 

bulletin@rotary.org.sg 

August 

Membership & Extension Month 

August 28 th 

Inter-City Meeting at Pan Pacific 

Ballroom at 5.00pm 

Guest of Honour: RI President 

Ron Burton 

September 

New Generations Month 

September 19th-23 rd 

Mega Free Eye Camp, Kolkata, India 

September 29 th 

Rotary Club of Kuala Lumpur Diraja 

Installation at Shangrila Hotel, Kuala 

Lumpur 

October 

Vocational Service Month 

October 4 th – 6 th 

Bus handing over ceremony to 

Bhakti Luhar Orphanage, Malang 

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Have many laughs & help the needy :) 

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Rotary 

Our Book of Humour has helped the less fortunate and the needy in disaster 

stricken countries, far and near. With over 125,000 copies sold, much needed 

funds have been raised. Please help to promote the Book of Humour to your network 

of friends and families by following the simple steps below 

Please go to your Facebook and type “Books of Humour” in search box and click 

the link to the page. 

Please “Like” this page and share it with your friends and invite them to “Like” it 

too. 

THANK YOU FOR HELPING A GOOD CAUSE 

500 Jokes - Only S$10/ A Copy 

www.booksofhumour.com 

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Special Report 

Have you made your RC Singapore vest order 

yet? For enquiries, contact our Secretariat before 

stock runs out. 

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The Four-Way Test 

Of the things we think, say or do: 

* Is it the truth? 

* Is it fair to all concerned? 

* Will it build goodwill and better friendship? 

* Will it be beneficial to all concerned? 

THE GUIDE TO DAILY LIVING 

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Rotary 

Before doing the things we want to do, consider first, the precept 

of the guide. Ask ourselves these 4 questions and act upon them: 

First: Have I spent some time in self-examination? 

Second: Have I spent quality time with my family? 

Third: Have I given my best to my work? 

Fourth: Have I given some time to someone near and far? 

The Guide, in fact, encompasses the 4 parts of the Object of Rotary. 

Board of Directors 2013/14 

President 

Immediate Past President 

President Elect 

Vice President (Membership) 

Vice President (PR) 

Hon. Secretary (Administration) 

Hon. Treasurer (Finance) 

Directors 

Chair, Community Service 

Chair, Vocational Service 

Chair, International Service 

Chair, New Generations Service 

Director 

Shahul Hameed 

Jimmy Ooi 

Perlita Tiro 

Shamin Vaswani 

Suresh Hathiramani 

Louis Lim 

Garry Taylor 

Ronald Wong 

James Lee 

Ashi Kumar Sarwal 

Sean Twomey 

Winston Khoo 

“ Service Above Self ” 

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