The Rotary Club, Dublin
Founded 22nd February 1911
The Dubliner
All the news that's fit to print
President: Mariandy Lennon
Hon. Sec.: Tony Keegan
Telephone 087 244 2818
Volume 26 Issue 27
24 February 2020
Editors:
Alan Harrison
Frank Bannister
David Booth
Delma Sweeney
Dermot Knight
Our speaker today is Aoife Coffey who will be talking to us about transplants at St. Vincent’s Hospital
President Mariandy Lennon chaired our meeting last Monday and Brian O’Boyce gave the invocation.
Forthcoming Speakers and Events
Mar 2nd Rory McGee, Commissioner of Irish Lights
Mar 16th NOTE – no meeting due to holiday weekend
Rotary Rangers Walks
Feb 25th Fananerrin Ridge, Glenmalure Valley.
3rd Mar Paddock Hill, Wicklow Way from Trooperstown Hill Car Park
10th Mar Prince William’s Seat
17th Mar Greystones to Kilcoole & return (beach track)
24th Mar Devil’s Glen, Ashford
Visitors and Apologies
Hon. Secretary Tony Keegan presented apologies from PP Tony Gannon, Brian Taylor, Veronica Kunovska, Dorothy Hannon,Tony Murray, Delma Sweeney and Patrick White.
Apologies: Special Appeal.
Every week there is a large number of people not at the lunch, but who have not sent in apologies. If you are going to be absent, please let Hon. Secretary Tony know by ‘phone or e-mail so that at least we know that you are OK.
There were no visitors last week.
Secretary’s Announcements
Tony read the decision of the Trustees of our club to disburse monies to the following bodies as follows:
The Salvation Army 5000 euro
The Mark Pollock Trust 5000 euro
The Dolly Parton Imagination Library (Tallaght ) 5000 euro
Proposer :Ted Corcoran Seconder Roger Owens
This was ratified unanimously by those present.
PP Ted Corcoran explained that that the Trust had been set up in 2001 and had been the beneficiary of two extremely generous donations totalling over 100,000 euro. Special mention was made of the sterling work of Caroline Barnardo, and Michael Carroll as legal advisor. The Salvation Army does incredible work in providing accommodation for the needy and their dining room needs a major refurbishment. The Mark Pollock Trust is one of the preferred charities of our District Governor this year and Mark is well-known and loved by our club, not just by his partner who is the daughter of PP Brian George’s partner Helen Baker. The Dolly Parton book initiative gives out a book a month to disadvantaged children in the Tallaght area and was initially supported by Veronica Kunovska’s most entertaining quiz night.
Kevin McAnallan asked Ted how much remains in the Trust Fund. After this distribution – €10,000.
Michael Carroll has prepared a template for any of us who wish to make a bequest to Rotary in their wills. Houghton Fry asked if there was an easy way to make gifts to the Trust and this was greeted with great delight.
President’s Announcements
President Mariandy reminded everyone of the President’s Dinner being held in the Fitzwilliam Lawn Tennis Club the following Saturday. Plans were well underway for a masquerade ball to be held on May 23rd. The mind boggles. Maybe there will be a lot of extra masks and costumes going a begging if anyone is passing through Venice this Corona disrupted Carnival time. Poor Italy!
Members Wishing to Speak
Rana spoke for ‘New Generations’ when she gave us details of a recent project of the St. Louis Interact club which now has 14 members and even a President and vice-president. They had been saddened by the dreadful loss of animal life in the recent bush fires in Australia and decided to make up and sell for 2 euro little chocolate gift packs and hand decorated key-rings in aid of the World Wildlife Trust. Rana had samples and they were quickly snapped up by admiring Rotarians. The project is turning out to be a major success story and Rana thanked everyone who supported it.
Induction of a new member
President Mariandy asked Bernadette Mulvey to say a few words before we welcomed our latest member Ms. SINEM BALTA.
PP Bernadette first posed the question – Why do we enjoy Rotary? Why do we come week after week? Various witty comments came up from the floor to which Bernadette replied that she comes every week to learn how to handle hecklers! Actually she admitted she comes for the fellowship and the friendship that she has found amongst us. It was through Toastmasters that she had heard about Rotary. Their President, Ted Corcoran was always going on about Rotary and eventually she took up his invitation to come to a lunch meeting. What she found here was a whole group of people who could become friends who she would never have a chance to get to know ordinarily. Where was she going to meet bankers, architects, lawyers etc.? But could she suggest too our new member, Sinem, that there was much more to Rotary than lunch meetings. She could join the Rotary Rangers on a Tuesday as she herself had done on occasion, she could come to the evening meetings, she could travel with us to Tours or to the brilliantly organised weekend events of the Leonardo da Vinci group of Rotaries. And there were so many projects that she hoped Sinem could find one that she would like to get involved in.
President elect Alan reminded her that as he and many others amongst us had lived far from the place of our births for many years she would find warm and understanding fellowship amongst us.
Sinem Balta was then duly inducted into the club by President Mariandy.