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Kingspark News Rotary
Club of Kingspark |  |
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This is the Web Version of the weekly bulletin of the Rotary Club of Kingspark Hong Kong, District 3450 Club Website: http://www.rotary3450.org/kingspark-hongkong |
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Editorial
(Membership Development) - By John Wan |
| Club
Webmaster : John Wan |
| Membership Development
A few members had left because they were hardly hit by the economic downturn, and this phenomenon is not peculiar to our club either; some said they were too busy and could not find time to attend club meetings; while still others said they had other priorities, which are all rather sad. At the Intercity Meeting held last week to welcome our World Leader to Hong Kong, RI President Bhichai Rattakul once again stressed that he had not given any target to his governors, but rather had urged them to encourage their clubs to set targets for themselves in what he called the bottom-up approach. President Bhichai did say that membership development would continue to be a priority, as was the Polio Eradication Campaign. On membership development, President Bhichai clearly was saddened that a district in India which had reported an increase of 37 new clubs in 2001-02, thereby qualifying the district governor for an award, had since lost 30 clubs. Of greater concern was the fact that Rotary had reported significant losses in membership since 1 July 2002. I have spoken on many occasions the need and urgency to brief potential members properly and thoroughly. I am now more than ever convinced that no one needs to join a Rotary club unless he or she is attracted by Rotary's service ideals and prgrammes of service. This is fundamental. At the end of the day, this will be the only thing that matters. Rotary begins with the idea of one person and his belief and conviction that one man can make a difference. We should not therefore be disheartened at the falling membership figures as long as we are convinced that those members remaining have sufficient Rotary in them to continue to carry the banner of Service and to propagate and impart these service ideals to men and women who would subscribe to the same. This is where we need continuing education, Rotary education and the very reason why the District Academy was introduced. I wish you all a happy holiday and a prosperous and rewarding year ahead. May the spirit of Christmas give you the strength, hope and love to forge ahead in all your endeavours, particularly those involving our service ideals, world peace and international understanding. |
President's
Message It's been a busy and productive month for us in Rotary. On 22-24 November, several of us were fortunate enough to enjoy the generous hospitality of our fellow Rotarians from the Rotary Club of Sathorn in Bangkok, Thailand. My wife and I went on the trip to Bangkok, along with PE Peter Lo; VP Thomas Chan and his wife; PP Tom Hui; Michael Au and his wife; Sunny So; the President of our Rotaractor, Joey Lo, and three other members of Rotaract. As always in the friendly world of Rotary, we received a warm welcome from Rotarians in Sathorn, and our visit featured a very satisfying mix of business, service and pleasure. The main purpose of our visit to Bangkok was to participate in the launch of a community service project titled "Sustainable Garbage Management EM (Effective Microorganism)". The event was held at a community school. Rtn. Supan Wiboonma, 2002-2003 International Service Director of the Rotary Club of Sathorn, explained to us that the project involves the implementation of a garbage management programme using a control system called Effective Microorganism (EM). The project is needed because of major health problems caused by the lack of an effective garbage management programme in the Sathorn area. Bangkok, as we all know, is a very crowded city. The population is estimated unofficially at 10 million, due to the influx of people from other parts of Thailand, and illegal immigrants from neighboring countries such as Myanmar, Laos and Cambodia. Like many other developing countries, Thailand faces difficulties in raising the awareness of its citizens about their responsibilities in relation to the environment, and public and community utilities. Residents have always considered that garbage control and collections are the responsibility of the government administration body, the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA). But in reality, it is not possible for the BMA to manage the garbage problem alone, without the co-operation of people in each community. As a result, people in many communities, particularly in low-income areas, are suffering from respiratory diseases, allergies, diahorrea, dengue fever, infectious diseases or other health problems. So in order to improve the living conditions of people in Sathorn, the EM project aims to help the community establish self-managed garbage management units. This will result in better health and hygiene for everyone. An added advantage is that recyclable garbage (fertilizer) collected from households will help people to earn extra income. An education project in local schools will also teach young people about environmental awareness, thus making the development a sustainable one. The project, with a budget of just US$4,000, is expected to benefit as many as 120,000 people, or 31,0000 families in the Sathorn area. Similar schemes have already proved successful in many other communities run by other Rotary Clubs in District 3350. We congratulate the Rotary Club of Sathorn on this important community service initiative, and wish them every success. On the social side of things, we all enjoyed a fun bowling competition at Mahboonkrong. I'm delighted to report that Kingspark was the champion (by just one nerve-wracking point). Another highlight of the trip was a dinner at Rtn. Pornvipha's residence, for Family Night. The theme of the evening was "River Festival", so the dinner was held in a beautiful riverside pavilion. We all dressed in traditional Thai costumes, prepared for us by members of the Rotary Club of Sathorn, and participated in a traditional Thai ceremony. We each placed a candle on a banana leaf, and let it sail down the river. According to Thai beliefs, when you let the leaf sail away, you also let any sad things in your life sail away too. Back in Hong Kong, 25 November was the inauguration of the second Interact Club to be sponsored by Kingspark. After months of planning, the Interact Club of Wah Yan College Kowloon was formally chartered, in a ceremony hosted by our club. Our DG Gloria Chan honored us with her presence and gave an inspiring speech. I'd like to welcome the members of the Interact Club of Wah Yan College Kowloon as partners in Rotary service. Congratulations are in order for PP Alexander Mak, who has been successfully nominated as the District Governor Nominee for the year 2004-05. I know we all appreciate Alex's conscientious efforts and service to the club and the district, and I'm sure we'll all do whatever we can to support Alex in his challenging role. Finally, I am
proud to report that two new members of our club were inducted on 5 November.
They are Rotarian Raymond Lam and Rotarian Feroz Sultana. Rotarian Raymond is
the senior manger of KPMG, and Rotarian Feroz is the business manger and senior
financial advisor of American International Assurance. Both of them are outstanding
and successful in their careers, and have consistently displayed the values and
high ethical standards that all Rotarians share. |
The
Biggest Christmas Party December 14, 2002, according to the Chinese calendar, was an auspicious date for wedding and partying. Naturally, we picked this wonderful date for our Christmas party and the Sister Pact signing ceremony. The party turned out to be the biggest Christmas party in our club's history! After our MC James and Party Chair Stephen kicked off the party, we immediately grabbed some tasty food from the buffet dinner at the Kowloon Club. We also enjoyed the great red and white wines sponsored by Philippe Charriol. Friends and new friends mingled as the Christmas lights from Tsim Sha Tsui east and the harbour glittered all around us. Then came our International Director, Sunny, who introduced our sister pact signing ceremony between Rotary Clubs of Kingspark Hong Kong and Taipei Chung Yuan in perfect Putonghua. Witnessed by our matchmaker PDG Raymond, our PP's and distinguished Rotarians, President Anwer and President Teresa officially signed the marriage certificate! Just married- 2002!! During our dinner, Rotarians from RC Taipei Chung Yuan serenaded us with two classic Cantonese songs. All rotarians from their delegation participated and they even had a "Cantonese expert singer" amongst them that diligently rehearsed with them. Their practice paid off as they enchanted everyone with their songs. How about Kingspark? Of course, our President Anwer represented the club to dedicate a fun Mandarin song to everyone-or at least, all the girls! The highlight of the evening came when Rotaractors Victor and Jacqueline led us in three very fun games. The kids loved stepping on each other's balloons so much that some looked as if they were starting a fight. Models of all ages strutted their stuff at the catwalk competition. In the "money" competition, one group of contestants resorted to "kidnapping" women for a dollar in order to win. We also had a gift exchange, which was presented by our young Santa Clause, Feroz's son and our mature and rotund Santa, Terrence Leung. Award winners are as follows: Catwalk champions were Rotarian Vivian from Taipei and Rotarian Neil Mok; best costumes went to Rotarian Danny from Taipei, President Anwer and Rotaractor Jacqueline. After the exciting games, everyone took to the dance floor, young and old. The kids seem to have forgotten their tiredness and danced and jumped to the strong music beat. Even Raymond Sin's son, who was at first scared by the loud 'noise' of the microphones, didn't mind the loud music and had a lot of fun dancing. Special thanks to our program director Peter Lo, finance director Neil Mok, reception directors Jane, Feroz, Rotaractor Vivian and Candy. Without their help, this party would not have been as successful and fun. Thank you all! |
Muna
Hong Kong 2002 Last Saturday, I went to the prestigious HKU Council Chamber to sit in my first Model United Nations Assembly session V to show my support to the visiting and local student delegates, and to the organisers of the first MUNA in Hong Kong. I would describe that the one and a half-hour session was an illuminating and learning experience to me. I would like to share my brief experience with other members who missed out the show. In the beginning, the air condition of the assembly hall that I stepped into was not very comfortable. It was stuffy and warm. The organiser told me later that the power to the generator was down for the day through no body's fault. After finding a seat at the rear row of the hall as an observer, what I could sense was that the spirits of the young participants were highly energising to my surprise. As a matter of fact, the eagerness to vote with their hands filled the hall every minute, and even overwhelmed the still air. Surprisingly, the joy and fun carried over from the dinner at the World Trade Center the previous night did not even drain the slightest of the energy level from the young delegates a bit. Make no mistakes that the session was like a wild party. In fact, the atmosphere was serious. The discussion among the country delegates was intense. The rules to the procedures were strictly adhered to by all the delegates. Proceedings were conducted orderly, and motions were moved so swiftly and fluidly making the monthly meetings of directors' of Kingspark looked amateur. I was impressed with the political knowledge and the English skill demonstrated by the representing delegates. The vocabulary and the style used by some of the delegates were like professional politicians. The organiser later told me that the students were intensively drilled and prepared with the relevant materials weeks before they represented their countries in the Assembly. My impression was that the great success of this Assembly rests on a number of factors. Foremost, the leadership and character of the Secretary General, Anthony Hogan, throughout the sessions played a crucial part to the game. Secondly, the mix of the delegates from the overseas countries was an important lubricant to the proceedings and discussions. The experience and language fluency demonstrated by the foreign students speeded up the tempo and raised the level of enthusiasm among the participants during the discussions. Thirdly, the quality of the preparatory work done by the organising committee was superb. To this I meant the finding of the perfect venue and the research material relevant to the hot and current discussion issues. There were also other factors that I could not describe in few short sentences here. At the end of the day, I enjoyed listening to and observing the assembly session. The hour spent in the assembly hall was worth it. I supposed the delegates would also share my feeling. At least, I have learned what is 'moderated caucus', and that amendments can be 'friendly' as well as 'unfriendly'! |
Visit
from Rotary Club of Chung Yuan I am happy to report that 27 fellow Rotarians from the Rotary Club of Taipei Chung Yuan visited us from 13 to 15 December. On 13 December, accompanied by International Service Director Sunny So, I met our guests at Chek Lap Kok. We enjoyed a reception dinner at the Super Star Restaurant in China Hong Kong City, then drinks at Felix restaurant in the Peninsula Hotel. On 14 December it was time for shopping. Anwer's wife Christina & Sunny's wife Anne, with help from Rotarian Feroz, led a trip to DFS in Hong Kong. The group lunched at the Hon King Restaurant in TST, courtesy of our guests from Chung Yuan. That evening we held a Christmas party, at which the highlight was the official signing of a sister pact agreement between our two clubs. Representing the Rotary Club of Chung Yuen, Taipei, was President Lin Fei Ming. The sister pact agreement means that we will work closely together to develop contacts and friendship; to undertake economic and cultural exchange activities in Hong Kong and Taipei to promote the prosperity and development of the two cities; to visit each other regularly, and to exchange news. The next day, Ted, Stephen and Sunny led one group to Mission Hills for a golf tournament, while Christina led another group to Lo Wu for shopping. The visit ended with dinner at the airport. On the afternoon of 19 December, we held our Annual General Meeting at the Ritz Carlton hotel, and in the evening an Inter-City meeting was held at the Intercontinental. I am proud to announce we have five new Paul Harris Fellows (Neil Mok, Louise Chan, Clan Hung, Raymond Lam and Feroz Sultana), and that we maintain a 100% Paul Harris Fellow Club. |
| You are welcome to write to Club Webmaster John Wan on any topic, particularly in response to articles published in Kingspark News. We would publish all contributions as long as the authors identify themselves, the contents are not offensive or abusive, and would not offend common decency or common sense. You need not be a Rotarian to write to us and you have a choice to withhold your name in the published version. Where the contents make reference to statements or policies of individuals or organizations, we would try to obtain a response fro the latter for publication in the same issue if possible. |
The Club held its Annual Gneral Meeting last week and confirmed President-Elect Peter Lo as the next Club President. The full line-up is as follows - President : Peter
Lo David Chenug will continue to be Sports Captain. |