Caitlin Day was inducted into our Club last Thursday evening and It is a pleasure to have her onboard.
She has been a long term volunteer for MotorSport New Zealand and her mother Deb is currently the President of MotorSport New Zealand.
Caitlin is currently employed as an Executive Assistant at Dayle ITM. In 2024 she attended RYLA as a candidate and has a passion for helping and mentoring others.
She is a District Youth volunteer for both RYPEN and RYLA.
I am looking forward to going to the Howick Little Theatre play "The Cottage". Be in quick as there are only 2 tickets left to sell. The cost is $29.00pp and it will be charged to your Rotary account. A good Fellowship outing - meet in the foyer of the theatre at 7.30pm for a drink and chat before the show commences at 8.00pm.
Keep following our Bulletin to keep you up to date with future activities within the Club.
We all enjoyed the breakfast meeting on Thursday; there was plenty of laughter and fun plus a really interesting speaker.
Patrick said that the Stonefield's Light Show was a great success and they predicted over 60,000 people attended. Next time however they will need to get a resource consent which would cost about $15,000
Peter Walsh was awarded a Paul Harris award see the story below
Aubrey talked about The Variety Club Bash when he was on the "FROSTY BOY team. See separate story below with some great photos.
Here are some more photos:
Muriel had some lovely words for Peter Walsh
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Aubrey told us about a fun money raising activity:
A rare “selfie” of the bulletin editor and friend
Meet Max Harris – Labour Candidate for Tāmaki Peter Buchanan introduced Max Harris Labour Party candidate
Max Harris is Labour’s candidate for Tāmaki in the upcoming election. A barrister, author and former political adviser, Max is a Rhodes Scholar and has a strong background in law, public policy and campaigning.
He is a progressive member of the Labour Party and has written extensively about reducing inequality, strengthening public services, improving workers’ rights and increasing government investment in housing and infrastructure.
Max is campaigning strongly in the Tāmaki electorate, which includes St Heliers, Glendowie, Kohimarama, Meadowbank, Ōrākei, Panmure and Glen Innes. He hopes to make history by winning an electorate that Labour has not held for many decades.
Max is also ranked 29th on Labour’s party list, giving him another potential pathway into Parliament.
THURSDAY 10 SEPTEMBER MEETING AT THE HUDDLE :
Don't forget to book tickets for The Cottage play. It promises to be a bit “raunchy” and fun. So don't miss out
At The Huddle you can choose your own breakfast:
Peter had a very healthy breakfast, but Penny was not so sure! (It was a very tasty pie LOL)
Gabrielle has some announcements and Willard listened very carefully…. he's a smart man!
In fact, everyone listened to Gabrielle!:
Christmas puddings:
Yes, folks it's that time of year again to get packing and help with the packing!
Willard is planning for Saturday 19 September. He will send out a notice to appeal for packers so get ready to turn up and pack!
If you have any inspiration for selling these tasty puddings, contact Willard.
David Hartstone said he is contacting people and businesses for donations for the SILENT AUCTIONS on the next Golf Day which is planned for 5 March. Every year David has tirelessly organised this Golf Day which has raised a huge amount for the club. Make sure you are part of this day. Contact David if you can help in any way and if you have ideas for the silent auction.
Peter joined Rotary on 13 December 2007 — nearly 19 years ago — and has made a significant and lasting contribution to our club over that time.
As an active member, Peter has taken on many roles, including Vocational & New Generations Director in 2013–2014, followed by Youth Services Director and Club Services Director for two years.
From July 2018 through to 2022, Peter took on the important role of Bulletin Editor, keeping members informed and connected with all the latest club news and activities. He also produced the District Governor’s Newsletter during Allan Smith’s tenure and was our club photographer for many years. Peter also has a real talent for producing videos, capturing many of the memorable moments and activities of our club.
Peter served for four years on the Board of the Charitable Trust, making another valuable contribution behind the scenes.
More recently, from 2024 to 2026, Peter served on Club Services, where he kept members informed about speakers and club activities, managed RSVPs and liaised with the Golf Club regarding room bookings, menus and all the behind-the-scenes logistics that help our meetings run smoothly.
Peter has also been actively involved in organising social activities and was a keen supporter of Have a Go Sailing.
Over the years, Peter has already received two Paul Harris pins, recognising his outstanding service to Rotary. It is therefore my great pleasure tonight to present Peter with his third Paul Harris pin, in recognition of and thanks for his very significant contribution to the success of our club.
Peter, thank you for everything you have done — and continue to do — for Rotary and for our club.
And a special thank you to Angela as well for all her support over the years.
Time: 7.00 am Speaker: Liggins Institute Topic:How New Zealand Research is Changing the Future for Preterm Babies.Ass Professor Chris paton will be talking about AI in the hospital environment
Duty Roster
Equipment: John Lewisham Meet & Greet: Graham Fabian Reception: Isabella Tedcastle Host / Thanks / Close: Peter Buchanan Sergeant: Linda Etwell
Thursday 24 September – Fellowship Evening
Night at the Theatre – The Cottage
Enjoy an evening of laughter with The Cottage, a comedy where secrets spill faster than the tea.
Please note: Twenty tickets will be pre-booked, so be quick to secure your place.
Thursday 1 October – Dinner Meeting
Time: 6.00 pm Speaker: Mahesh Muralidar – National Party Candidate. Come along and meet Mahesh.
Duty Roster
Equipment: Patrick Bell Meet & Greet: Muriel Donnelly Reception: Lindy Esselmont Host / Thanks / Close: David Hartstone Sergeant: Matt Adams
Thursday 8 October – Committee Meeting
Time: 7.00 am Venue: Huddle Cafe
Choose your own breakfast and discuss club activities and future projects. This is an informal and friendly meeting. Well worth the effort to come along and interact with other members.
Thursday 15 October – Breakfast Meeting
Time: 7.00 am Speaker: Nigel Sallis – Hearing Institute
Loud Shirt Day: Support Kids with Hearing Difficulties
Duty Roster
Equipment: Kevin Kevany Meet & Greet: Julie Louie Reception: Margaret Voyce Host / Thanks / Close: Linda Etwell Sergeant: Matt Adams
One of our members, Peter Buchanan, has discovered an interesting initiative called Love Heart – a social learning organisation for people aged 50+ based in Auckland and Hawke’s Bay.
Love Heart offers a great programme of webinars, workshops and courses, covering a wide range of interesting and informative topics.
Special offer: If you sign up for their newsletter this month, you will receive free entry to a workshop of your choice.
Find out more about Love Heart and their programme HERE.
As an example, an upcoming workshop that may appeal to some of our members is:
“Biotechnology, Actually, Is All Around Us” Thursday 10 September | 10.00 am – 12.00 noon Stardome Presented by Senior BSI Scientist Dr Revel Drummond.
It sounds like a fascinating opportunity to learn something new, meet like-minded people and perhaps discover a few things you didn’t know about the world around us.
Thanks to Peter Buchanan for bringing this initiative to our attention.
Aubrey told us about his experience taking part in the very first Variety Club Bash which subsequently ran annually for 25 years and raised around $14 million over that period. The event was a week-long road trip based on fun, camaraderie and philanthropy - not a race or time trial.
The vehicles were typically classic, eccentric or outmoded. Teams heavily modified their vehicles with quirky visual themes, matching costumes, water cannons and loud sirens to entertain local communities.
The Frosty Boy team took out the cup for most Dollars raised!!
Aubrey's presentation continued with an appeal for the club to support a past St Johns member - Neil Dewar - who is participating in a similar fund-raising road trip named The Dungarun 2026 - to support The TimeOut Charitable Trust. Teams of two will take on an epic 2,600km journey around the backroads of the North Island in $2,000 cars, tackling remote roads, incredible scenery and plenty of challenges along the way. But this isn't a race. It's an adventure - and every kilometre helps raise vital funds for TimeOut, so we can continue providing families living with incurable illness with the opportunity to spend precious time together.
President Gabbrielle as kindly donated $500 on behalf of the club to Neil's team for which he is extremely grateful.
The Trees for Survival team are thrilled to be the Winners of the 2026 South and East 2degrees Auckland Business Awards for Excellence in Strategy. This award recognises strength and success in development and implementation of a long term strategy and the setting of measurable targets. For Trees for Survival, this amazing accolade recognises the Trust's strength in planning and setting goals and acknowledgement of where the Trust has come from and the people who have contributed along the way. Our partners are part of this success: helping to enable TfS to deliver an inspirational environmental education programme!
As mentioned by Phil Lyons, our National Manager, in his acceptance speech, Trees for Survival is 35 years old this year - from its very small beginnings as an environmental education initiative from Pakuranga Rotary.
Phil (2nd from left in photo) later wrote to his staff and us trustees:
"While the award recognises our strategy and the direction we are heading, strategies only mean something when they are brought to life by people. This recognition belongs to everyone across our team and Board who contributes their time, experience, energy and commitment to making Trees for Survival what it is today.
This award recognises where we are heading, but it is also a wonderful acknowledgement of where we have come from and of the people who have contributed along the way.
So, congratulations everyone. This is something we should all be very proud of. Thank you for the great work you do and for continuing to make Trees for Survival such a special organisation to be part of."
Note that Liz Gunn was also at the Awards Ceremony (8 Sept.) but was somehow missing from this photo. From St Johns Ellerslie, both Liz and I are Trustees of Trees for Survival, along with Gary Key. Gary Langford is our Chair.
As Trustees, we are very fortunate to have Phil as our National Manager and inspirational strategist.
