KINGSPARK NEWS

Club Number: 30119

2005-06 Rotary Year : Issue 24 : 25 June

Contents

Editorial (Why Are We Here?) - By Francis Wann
President's Column - By President Dominic Ko
From the Webmaster (Another Year) - By CP John Wan
Letters to Editor
The Board

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EDITORIAL

Why ARe We Here?

Why are we here?

It's not only Professor Stephen Hawking who asked this fundamental question of existence. All we mortals since the beginning of universe have been trying to unravel and understand the wonders of life.

Perhaps it's only in Hong Kong - and China - that Prof Hawking's popularity is being elevated to cult status. His appearances, itineraries, and lectures have been tampered with commercial considerations. It's not difficult to understand why we all love Hawking. Here we see in front of us the living proof of all human contradictions: someone so remote, yet so close; so powerful, yet so fragile; so able, and yet so disabled. Who is the real professor? Never mind the black hole; Hawking sells.

For Rotarians, the question would take on a different meaning. And it's only coincidental that this week, thousands of dedicated Rotarians and likeminded individuals descended in Copenhagen for the 97th annual convention, not only discussing, but outlining strategic plans for the next Rotary year which begins in two weeks' time. For Rotarians, the answers are already there.

The RI convention is the World Cup of Rotary and you would be dazzled by its formality in every aspect. The annual event is packed with everything you want to know, and not only that, it offers an opportunity for Rotarians worldwide to get to know each other, which is fellowship in Rotary terminology.

Here we witness the importance - and wonders - of fellowship, and how it helps shape the future of Rotary. It's always the spirit of fellowship which influence our friends to attend our meetings, and finally become one of us. This year DG Peter pledged to increase membership of only one in each club, which seems painlessly achievable, but the impact of one member could be enormous in the history of Rotary. As RI President Carl-wilhelm Stenhammar put it, "Fellowship is at the heart of the convention."

But the RI convention isn't just fellowship and moral highgrounds. Those members who are fortunate enough to leave their work behind would find themselves thoroughly immersed in Rotary culture, and I would imagine that for a while you might just assume John Lennon's imaginary world of no boundaries is right before your eyes.

There are of course many meaningful sessions to suit your different taste and interests, and I hope delegates won't miss the interactive discussion groups and the ever popular House of Friendship. There is also an update on Rotary's determination to make our world polio-free as WHO's David Heymann told the world about new vaccines and new strategic approach. I hope they will not miss Sister Ethel Normoyle's keynote speech on Rotary's role in breaking the poverty cycle, ie poverty - disease -illiteracy. And this year's World Peace scholar Path Heang of Cambodia talks about his specific role in a world of conflicts.

Still on the subject of world peace, this week Kingspark has just endorsed RTHK's veteran journalist and Chair of Press Freedom Committee of the Foreign Correspondents' Club Francis Moriarty as the district's candidate for the Rotary World Peace Fellowship.

As this year's convention draws to a close, we see new opportunities and a renewed sense of confidence in humanity. Paraphrasing Prof Hawking's words - when there's Rotary, there's hope.

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President's Column
By President Dominic Ko

This is the last article that I write as the President's of the Club. For the last couple of weeks I have been trying to do as much as I can for the next year and some long term arrangement.

Rotarian Stephen Bramah and his Rotarianne Janette of the Rotary Club of Canberra Sunrise, our Twin Club in Australia, visited Hong Kong on 30th May, 2006. The Bramah family hosted our outbound Youth Exchange student, Tiffany Li of Belilios Public School, last summer. Tiffany greeted them in the airport and I welcomed them in the hotel. She and I took them to see the Dragon Boat Competition on 31st May, 2006 and then PP Edward and Michael Au joined us for lunch at the Jumbo Floating Restaurant in Aberdeen. Stephen is the Vocational Service Director of our Twin club and he is going to be the International Service Director next year. They attended our luncheon meeting on 1st June, 2006 and he told us that probably we cannot send any outbound student to Canberra in July 2006 because they cannot find any host family up till now. However, he will continue to organize the Short Term Youth Exchange Program with our club for the coming year and he explained that the members of his Club are aging and not many are interested in providing host families. They were happy with their stay in Hong Kong. We all agreed our 2 Club should keep up with our good relationship and should try to doing some projects in future.

Our Community Service Director, Joyce Mak, did everything to organize a BBQ for about 20 handicapped teenagers jointly with Heep Hong Society at Turtle Cove on 3rd June, but unfortunately it was cancelled due to the rain and she will postpone it to a later date.

We are organizing our trip to Mongolia from 28th July to 31st July, 2006 to visit our sponsored Rotary Club of Zuunmod and to achieve a few objectives including the implementation of our Water Supply project, our Sheep Donation project and the planning of the Bath House project. Our Matching Grant project to acquire the medical equipments for the Alliance for Smiles (volunteer medical team) to perform cleft lip and palate anomalies operations in China were approved several months ago. We also got 2 Matching Grants project approved by the Rotary Foundation recently, namely the Matching Grant project to set up a computer centre for the orphanage home in Kuala Lumpur and the Matching Grant project to provide hare lip operations to the poor children in Java Island in Indonesia. Upon the completion of these 3 projects we have to visit China, Kuala Lumpur and Jakarta sometime in the next Rotary year.

It was resolved in our last Board meeting on 8th June, 2006 that our Club and Ho Tung Secondary School will join together in the Rotary School Partnership Program (under the support of the Employees and Manpower Bureau) to work out how we can help the school in accordance with its needs. And it was also resolved that our Club will sponsor an Interact Club in the school upon its request. In so doing we are going to have 4 Interact Clubs sponsored by us and our Club will have the highest no. of Interact Clubs in the District.

We have interviewed 2 applicants, one for the Rotary World Peace Scholarship and one for the Cultural Ambassadorial Scholarship. We have invited them to our club meeting and we are working on the endorsement for their applications. If they are finally selected for the Awards we should be proud of them because they will pursue their mission for a better world.

Time flies and there are still many objectives in our Club not yet achieved and many projects not yet finished. When I look back to last year we have done a lot of work on Vocational services, International services and Youth services. We have not done too much on Community services. Perhaps we have not got any long term planning for Community service for the past several years, but this year our Community Service Director, Joyce Mak, will continue to take up the same post next year and she has started to work on a District Simplified Grant project and a fund raising project for the Association Concerning Sexual Violence Against Woman. I am sure they will be very outstanding projects for next year. Our Club has grown to a stage that we have many projects, many sister clubs and many sponsored clubs and it is a lot of work to manage them. As the President I have taken up the challenge to deal with them and to be frank without the support of some key members I cannot do it. I got the pressure from my business, my family and my Rotary work and it was difficult to give priorities. However, I believe that the objects of Rotary can help the needy and make the world a better place and I have passion for Rotary. This is the driving force which has helped me overcome my difficulties. I would like to thank all our members, particularly the Board members and Past Presidents, for your support. Without the guidance of our Past Presidents I would not have this enjoyable year of presidency. I understand that there are still many problems in our Club, like membership, insufficient helping hands, etc., but if our members can team up and bring in quality members I am sure the problems will be solved automatically.

Let us work for together for a new and challenging Rotary year.

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From the Webmaster

Another Year

So we have come to the end of another Rotary Year. President Dominic has reminded us that he has written his last report which, by the way, he handed in on time, i.e., ten days before this issue was uploaded, as has my brother chief editor Francis who has since been sending me emails asking when this issue would see the light of the day.

Let me apologize for the late arrival of this issue. It was not planned as such though. I had taken my laptop - rather heavy stuff - on my last trip which I have been looking forward to a lot, for many reasons, all personal. I went to, among other places, Lourdes and the Vatican with a group led by a parish priest. This was my first pilgrimage to Lourdes and the Vatican, the seat of the Holy See. Alas, not one hotel I stayed in had internet facilities. The result was I could not do a lot; and I am sorry.

During the past 12 months, both President Dominic and Chief Editor Francis had largely kept their promises and commitment of writing an article every two weeks even though I would have liked them to send their articles in at least one or two days before publication date rather than on the day or two days later or not at all. I cannot say the same for the rest of the members on the Editorial Board. I am sure they have reasons for performing the way they had; and this column is not about finding why things did not happen the way we would like them happen, but one would like to believe, about looking ahead.

Looking ahead is always an exercise in faith and hope. I would advise though that regardless of what transpires, one should always be thankful for what happens, for a lot worse could have happened.

Barring unforeseen circumstances, I would continue to be the Club Webmaster and I would gladly write for Kingspark News for as long as I can do so. I thank the readers - who are everywhere - who have been giving us the support and ecouragement that we all need; and we look forward to another year of service and fellowship between the membership nder the leadership of Patrick.

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Letters to Editor

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 from the latter for publication in the same issue if possible.

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The Editors

Chief Editor : Francis Wann
Ex-officio : President Thomas Chan
Features Editor and Board Secretary : Michael Eyles
Events Editor : PP Ted Ho
News Roon Editor : Joyce Mak
Profiles and International Desk Editor : PP Edward Lau
District Desk Editor : PDG John Wan

The Board of Directors

President : Dominic Ko
President-Elect : Sunny So
Vice-President : Patrick Wong
Secretary : Michael Eyles
Treasurer : Ted Ho
Rotary Foundation : Peter Lo
Club Service Director : Edward Lau
Community Service Director : Joyce Mak
Vocational Service Director : Marvin Lai
Programme Director : Feroz Sultana
Sergeant-at-Arms : Kennedy Tsang
Membership Director and IPP : Thomas Chan

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