| This
is the biweekly bulletin of the Rotary Club of Kingspark Hong Kong Club Website: http://www.rotary3450.org/kingspark-hongkong | ||||
 | Kingspark News Rotary
Club of Kingspark | | ||
| Chief
Editor : Francis Wann Club Webmaster : John Wan | ||||
Editorial
(Moments of Reflection) - By Francis Wann | ||||
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Moments of Reflection
It's well documented how Paul Harris emerged from his rather humble backgrounds with his humble desire to be a better man. But in those days, the world as well as the human race was less complicated. Now a century after Paul Harris had his first meeting with his three friends, should we look for a new set of morals? Should Rotarians begin to question those standards laid down in those days? Indeed, Paul Harris was only sharing with us his personal experiences, experiences which continue to inspire millons of ordinary people worldwide today. He probably did not mean to achieve that much; it's only the very desire to help which set him off - selflessly - and in the course derived enormous satisfaction. I dare say they didn't practise democracy and the simple majority rule in many of his decisions. The determination to bring out the best of human nature was in itself the sole binding force behind all Rotarian movements. The world today is of course very different from what it was. People are generally obsessed with rights of every kind, with the term accountability, and with this thing they call democracy. As Rotary grows over the decades, it's also natural to see sharp divisions and conflicts in ideological interpretations among Rotarians and friends. People have begun to ask: Is the good old Rotarian value system losing its glitter? The resolutions of the Council on Legislation this year should have shed some light on how serious those conflicts are. It's amazing to see how different people understand Rotary ideals in different ways, but it's perhaps also a worrying sign that these little differences might block us from seeing the whole picture. Every time I attend an installation, the president would remind every new Rotarian that being a member of a Rotary club does not necessarily make one a Rotarian; it's what one does which makes one a Rotarian. No one will question the sincerity of our fellow Rotarians and the ideals of Rotary, but no one can deny there are serious holes in our system which need to be addressed. There are problems within Kingspark, and there are problems at district level. I remember some members expressively felt strongly about district events, about the nomination procedures, about the handling of club revenue, about leadership indecision, and about attendance records. About a week ago, we were informed that the Nominating Committee for District Governor Nominee 2006-07 has reached their decision (the official deadline expired some two months ago). Members might wish to go back to the October 15 edition of this bulletin (Webmaster's Column) for more food for thought which I would not wish to delve into. Here I'd rather return to the question raised by Paul Harris - What are we here for? And as we arrive at the last month of the year, it's also time for us to reflect upon ourselves. Have we tried to separate ourselves from ourselves, as suggested? After all, we've become Rotarians by choice , not by chance. Merry Christmas. | ||||
President's
Column Following Up on Club Assembly
At the request of our members, I would like to report on some important issues we have discussed. Improve Communication: To achieve effective communication among members and promotion of coming up events, it was suggested to encourage our Service Directors or Organizing Committee members to report on the details and progress of coming up events in Kingspark News regularly. Besides, instead of circulating the News Flash during our luncheon meeting only, I shall also send it to all members through e-mail. I hope that improved communication will enhance the participation rate of both our Club and District activities, and ultimately increase our sense of belonging. Annual Giving of US$100 per member to the Annual Program Fund: Although our members have agreed to donate US$100 to the Annual Program Fund through our regular debit in January 2005, information about the Annual Giving and Annual Program Fund were requested. In short, Annual Giving is different from donation to become a Paul Harris Fellow (PHF). You can become a PHF by donating either US$1,000 or 10 installments of $100 to the Rotary Foundation. However, not every Rotarian is a PHF or some Rotarians will seldom donate to the Rotary Foundation after becoming PHFs. To encourage every Rotarian to donate regularly, the Council on Legislation has set a goal for every Rotarian to contribute US$100 or more each year to the Annual Program Fund since 2001. Through the Every Rotarian, Every Year initiative, every Rotarian is encouraged to participate in a Foundation humanitarian or educational project that truly makes a difference in the world. According to the latest unaudited statistics for the Rotary Foundation's worldwide programs for 2003-04, the total contributions to the Foundation's Annual Program Fund is US$70.5 million. During the 2004-05 centennial year, it is hoped to raise a total of US$100 million through the Every Rotarian, Every Year initiative. Having determined to contribute to this initiative, you are going to participate in the Foundation programs which will make a real difference in the world. Discussion on Good and Sufficient Reasons for "Excused Absences" : With reference to the adopted enactment 04-27 proposed by the Rotary Club of Sakurai, Nara, Japan, a member's absence shall be excused if the absence complies with the conditions and under circumstances approved by the board. The board may excuse a member's absence for reasons which it considers to be good and sufficient. For any member whose absences are excused subject to the above reasons shall not be included in the membership figure used to compute this club's attendance nor shall such absences or attendances be used for that purpose. Prior to the acceptance of the above-adopted enactment, we have invited suggestions on "Good and Sufficient" reasons from our members and shall present them to the Board to make final decision. No matter what the suggestions are, it was agreed that 4-way test should be applied for assessment and the membership of those inactive members should be reviewed. To summarize, we had a fruitful discussion on the above issues and the suggested solutions will make contributions to the Club in the following areas: 1. Through the improvement in communication, we anticipate that both the participation rate and the sense of belonging will be enhanced because our members will have a better idea on the details of coming up events and can make appropriate arrangement to join them. In this regard, I am looking forward to seeing you more in the future! 2. With an improved understanding on Rotary Foundation and Annual Program Fund, I am sure all of you are eager to contribute and make a real difference in the world through the participation of the "Every Rotarian, Every Year" initiative. Facing your generous support, I would like to thank you on behalf of those in need in the world. 3. Your suggestions will definitely assist the Club to improve the attendance record. Nonetheless, I would like to appeal to you to introduce more quality guests / potential members who possess the same belief of Rotary. We treasure our existing members, but we also need new faces to make our Club become stronger and stronger. Lastly, thanks for your precious suggestions again and please visit the websites of Rotary International and our District to get the information of your interested topics. | ||||
By President-elect Dominic Ko Our Club and the Rotary Club of Canberra Sunrise has participated in the Rotary Centennial Twin Club Program and has registered our relationship with Rotary International on 1st December, 2004. An agreement was signed by the Presidents of the two clubs and a copy is enclosed for the members' reference. The Twin Club Program seeks to establish strong ties between the clubs to carry out a centennial-year effort to work on a matching grant project to build a water well in Mongolia together with our sponsored RC of Zuunmod and a student exchange for about 6 weeks in 2005. The water resources project is concurrent with the major emphasis of Rotary International of this year. The goals of the program are to emphasize the international avenue of Rotary service and friendship and to establish a long term relationship with our two clubs that will lead to ongoing projects possibly in the Pacific region. The term of the agreement is one year and will remain in place until terminated by mutual agreement or by one month's notice. There is no obligation for our two clubs to visit each other annually. However, members are encouraged to visit each other's club and they should be treated with care and attention. Our relationship with the RC of Canberra Sunrise started in 2001 when our DG Alexander Mak sent 2 students from Hong Kong, Frank Choi (former Secretary General of Model United Nations Assembly ("MUNA")) and Ivy Yeung (Past District Rotaract Representative), to participate the MUNA in Canberra and learn how to hold MUNA in Hong Kong. PP Graham Hicks from RC of Canberra Sunrise led a team from Australia to attend our first MUNA in Hong Kong in 2002 and helped us start our Model UN. He has continued his support by bringing his team in again in 2003 and 2004 and attended all the sessions of our MUNA. We started a student exchange between our clubs in 2003. A student from Hawker College, sponsored by the RC of Canberra Sunrise, studied in Wah Yan College, HK and stayed at Rtn. Michael Au's home in Nov. and Dec. 2003. An Interactor from Wah Yan HK, sponsored by us, studied in Hawker College and stayed at PP Graham's home in Jun. and Jul. 2004. All these projects have justified our 2 clubs to enter into a twin club relationship. With our new relationship, we can work on some other projects in accordance with the goals of the program, further our understanding and encourage friendship visits between our two clubs. We have friends in Canberra and I am sure you will be taken care of nicely by them when you visit the capital city of Australia. | ||||
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Joy of Giving
Rotarians can consider themselves figuratively as descendents of Paul Harris, certainly in spirit. They would therefore hold the key to Service and have the power to overcome poverty, illiteracy, hunger, destitute, pain, sufferings, diseases and so on. They should never be defeated by apathy, aloofness, greed, pride, lust, anger, envy, gluttonly, sloth and above all war and inhumanity. Rotarians believe that they are bearers of world peace and international understanding. Christmas is indeed a season for giving, a time when everyone would remind oneself one's duties to his neighbours and experience the joy of giving. Mitch Albom, a newspaper columnist, a broadcaster and author of a few international bestsellers, attributes to his professor and mentor Morrie Schwartz this statement, "The most important thing in life is to learn how to give out love, and to let it come in," adding with a quote from a wise man called Levine, "Love is the only rational act." Rotary is about love, to give out love and to accept love. Giving is an acquired art. It may be difficult in the beginning, but once one learns the knack and experiences the joy, one would never stop giving, which may explain why only 15% of the Rotarians in the world have contributed to the Rotary Foundation, the top 10 to 15 contributing countries are almost the same every year. Fumio Tamamura is a Rotary Foundation Trustee. He was at the 2004 Regional Rotary Foundation Seminar held in Bangkok last week. The quiet gentleman from Japan spoke forcefully and with conviction why Rotarians in Japan have consistently contributed generously to the Foundation. His country had the first Rotary club in 1920. In 1923, Tokyo had a major earthquake and suffered tremendous losses of lives and properties. Out of the blue, a sum of US$89,000 was delivered from Rotarians world over. This was a large sum of money and economists would tell you that it would be millions in today's worth. The donation helped Tokyo to rebuild itself, and the Japanese were ever grateful that the money had come from people they had never met. Then in 1945, Japan lost the War. Rotary clubs resumed operation in 1949, and a year later, Rotary began to offer scholarships to worthy young men and women in Japan, initially one a year. It was the beginning of the Rotary Ambassadorial Scholarships, made possible with funds from The Rotary Foundation. It was these unconditional givings from Rotarians worldwide that Japan would never forget, so that when they become more ecomically affluent, they would give unconditionally and continuingly, offering scholarships to people of all nationalities, including Mongolia, China and Hong Kong. Andy Wong, brother of Raymond Wong, is one of the receipients. His brother ran a story in Kowloon East's bulletin some time ago. It is therefore gratifying to see our President Thomas committing to make our club a 100% Foundation Sustaining Members Club. Let us waste no time to support him, thereby supporting The Rotary Foundation and Humanity. | ||||
Views in any article in Kingspark News reflect those of the authors. They are not necessarily the views of the Rotary Club of Kingspark or of District 3450. You are welcome to write to Chief Editor Francis Wann or 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. | ||||
Chief
Editor : Francis Wann The Board of Directors President
: Thomas Chan | ||||
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