Lots going on

There continue to be many fund raising projects underway across the country and overseas so it is recommended you keep an eye on the Rotary district websites and newsletters via www.rotarysouthpacific.org - select a district to access what is happening in that part of the country.

An example is the:

United We Stand : KIA KOTAHI TE TU
Christchurch Earthquake Charity Ball being held on 14 May in The Rocks, Sydney

If you want to get a ticket for this email unitedwestand88@gmail.com

Thanks to all involved!

Taking a break? It's Easter

Unfortunately, for many in Christchurch the grind continues without a break. It is now two months since the devastating 22 February earthquake in Christchurch and while there has been huge progress, along with the ever present aftershocks, residents' stress levels, health and hygiene, accommodation and financial concerns remain and will be present for months if not years ahead.

And Rotary will be there every step of the way, working collaboratively in many cases as has happened with so many Christchurch clubs supporting the vital activities of the Salvation Army (and others) as they deliver welcome food parcels and other essentials to needy families, help to clear the properties of those unable to do this themselves due to age or infirmity and so much more.  The Rotarians of Christchurch are doing this despite facing their own challenges. The generous donations from Rotarians and supporters from around the world have passed the $1 million mark - a massive response!  This will be needed in the time ahead as Rotary starts to implement projects carefully targeted to those in most need under the guidance of a special project committee set up to receive and process applications for support projects and assistance.  Please continue to support the Rotary fund.

Assistant Rotary Co-ordinator Ross Skinner suggested http://canterburyearthquake.org.nz/ as a authoritative website for 'on-the-ground' information about the activities of the Civil Defence Emergency Management in Christchurch and this is something of a eye-opener to those not in Christchurch.

Rotary Update 15 April 2010

15 APRIL 2011

Morning team

Each day we are receiving warm wishes and thoughtful suggestions from our many friends in New Zealand and overseas – truly Building Communities and Bridging Continents. I know that DGE David and his team would also be saying that there is much evidence of ­Reaching Within to Embrace Humanity.

The Christchurch Rotary Earthquake Fund has now grown to $1million with the money identified for immediate distribution being allocated.  There has been some concern expressed that the fund will not be allocated in a reasonable timeframe. Please be assured that the trustees will ensure that all monies received will be allocated for families and communities affected by the earthquake.

The information we now have about the distribution of larger funds for  this purpose (Red Cross: emergency hardship grants;Christchurch Appeal: grants will focus on restoring community infrastructure not covered by the Government, including sports fields and places of worship; Salvation Army:Food packages, financial hardship grants) reassure us that the plans in District 9970 to provide longer term support for recovery activities in our communities is appropriate.

Kia kaha

Margaret

Please also read the next two posts as a part of this update

Rotary Earthquake Administration and Grant Details

Rotary 9970 Earthquake Recovery Support Project (EQRSP)

The Project Team established to lead this project met on 7 April 2011

·         to hear updates on recent developments in Rotary involvement in EQ Recovery, information on the District Fund and also support from outside the District

·         to review Workshop Information from the 12 March meeting with Presidents, AGs, Inner Wheel leaders

·         to discuss networking, PR and communications.

The role of the team was identified as a broker facilitating projects and directing funds to causes including funds allocated in other Rotary Districts. There is a need to tap into community organisations and local needs.

A Register has been made available by District Administrator Ken Booth and this will be published both within the District and to other New Zealand districts so that needs can be identified and met.

New Zeland-based district Rotarians can access this via http://www.eqsupportregister.rotarysouthpacific.org/

Christchurch Rotary Earthquake Appeal Fund Committee

Applications are being received on the standard application form sent to ebh@hfk.co.nz. Although other organisations or groups may seek grants a helpful role for Rotary clubs is to identify possible projects worthy of support and to help the organisation/s to apply for funds.

You can help with 'feel good' gifts - here is how

Shoe Boxes of Love are ‘feel good’ gifts that will be given to people in Christchurch to lift their spirits, to connect to fellow New Zealanders, and to let them know that we care. Full details are set out at www.shoeboxesoflove.org.nz. 

34 MP’s offices (including Prime Minister John Key’s) and hearing experts Bay Audiology clinics are acting as collection points.

Rotary clubs have been asked to assist in the collection process.

Please can we have the help and organisational skills of all Districts in New Zealand to collect these shoeboxes from the collection points before they are transported to Christchurch? Keep in touch with plans for this loving project.  

Click here for collection points

Submitted by:  DG Margaret, District 9970

Before and After

These represent what has happended all over the city ...

 



Christchurch - you are still very much in our thoughts. If readers would like to support the Rotary response that will continue long after the cameras have gone home, go to http://www.rotarysouthpacific.org/ - Rotary is there for the long haul.

Earthquake victims bravely face constant rumbles and winter cold

As winter arrives in the earthquake devastated areas of Canterbury in the South Island of New Zealand, people brace themselves for the cold.

The winter months of June, July and August see average day time temperatures of a high of 12C and a low of 3C (54 and 37F) in the area. But cold frosts and southerly winds from the South Pole can see the temperatures fall to below zero and sometimes there is snow.

For many that means trying to create warmth in houses that were either damaged by the violent shake or inundated with the muddy silt that bubbled up from below the ground. For some it means still trying to find and use portaloos in the streets around them as sewerage systems are still being repaired.

District 9970 Governor Margaret Reeve emphasises Rotarians remain a vital part of a huge effort to restore some sort of normality to life in the province, to help rebuild communities and most importantly to help people work their way through their shock, loss and meeting their day-to-day needs.

Golf classic raises $34,000 - without the swing of a club!

The 21st annual Riccarton Rotary Charity Golf Classic for Cholmondeley has raised more than $34,000 for the Home – so far without the swing of a single golf club. 

As a result of the grief and devastation caused by the February earthquake, the golf day, which was to have been held on March 9, has been rescheduled to September 21 at Coringa Country Club.  

The cheque for sponsorship monies received to date was handed to Cholmondeley at the Rotary Club of Riccarton meeting on March 28.  

Cholmondeley (http://cholmondeley.org.nz/) is a child focused, quality care facility that supports children during short stays when families are experiencing difficulties.  It cares for Canterbury children aged between 3-12 years.

Cholmondeley has been able to start up again, with its first intake of children since February 22, on an interim lease basis, at Living Springs. Staff continue to be accommodated in the office block at Governors Bay, which survived the quake. A decision on the future of the rest of the Home awaits Earthquake Commission and insurance assessments.  

General Manager of Cholmondeley Shane Murdoch said: "Along with other local charities, Cholmondeley is fortunate to receive significant community support. The ongoing assistance of groups such as Rotary is essential for our continuing operation." 

“We acknowledge that Cholmondeley is but one of the charities in Christchurch that has suffered badly,” said Riccarton President Corin Murfitt. “We remain passionate, however, about the importance of the work the Home does for Canterbury children. We acknowledge the generosity of all our golf sponsors, particularly Coringa, and those who have yet to enjoy a game of golf. Rescheduling to September will give us all a chance to enjoy the day out, and to provide much needed help to the Cholmondeley children at the same time.” 

The human face of the Christchurch earthquake

Rotarians throughout New Zealand, Australia and Fiji have offered to open up their homes with hospitality for people who have been traumatised over the past six months with the continuing aftershocks following the earthquakes in September and February.

PDG Stuart Batty has been working with members of the NDRF who have referred people to him. The following are just three examples of people* who have found rest and relaxation with Rotarian families away from Christchurch.

Bill lost his job after the first earthquake. This placed undue stress on him and he has since developed a stress-related arthritic condition, which further hinders his ability to seek work. The family live in the worst affected part of Christchurch, had no electricity for weeks, water supply is still intermittent and there is still no sewage disposal facility.  They have to use port-a-loos placed out on the street. Their home is badly damaged. Margaret although 72 is working is working to pay the bills.

To date, $850,000 received for the Rotary response

These funds will be put to extremely good use over the coming months and possibly years to help youth, families and communities recover.  To find out how you can donate and / or help please go to http://www.rotarysouthpacific.org/  and / or see below:

We will get through this together - RC Christchurch Sunrise Bulletin

President Stuart’s message is quite clear. He wants members to take care of themselves and their families first, to understand that shock and grief is normal and needs to be dealt with before we can move on to help in the community. He does not want to see martyrs out there. There is much to do and members need to be strong and able, supported by their families and the club, so that the needs of the community can be dealt with in a practical and compassionate way.

Rotary in New Zealand wants to return help to Japanese

When the devastating earthquake hit Canterbury on February 22, Japanese Rotarians were among the first to respond with a large donation to the Rotary New Zealand Christchurch Earthquake Fund. Now New Zealand’s Rotarians are rallying to reciprocate following the earthquake and tsunami in Japan on March 11.

New Zealanders and especially those who experienced the horror and heartbreak in Canterbury feel empathy for people in Japan who have lost or a missing loved ones.

We are not sure just what we can contribute considering the support people in our local communities need and the massive rebuild we face. But this is time to come together and express our condolences to help people who were the first to rally to assist us.

From DG Margaret Reeve, District 9970 (Christchurch)


[The sentiments are shared by Rotarians across New Zealand]

What have we been doing?

An update at end of March 2011 from DG Margaret:

Members of the Rotary Club of Westport have opened their homes to families and friends for that well appreciated quake break, have donated money to the many collection points around Westport and continue to donate cooking, household goods, none perishable food items and packed meats to the Salvation Army.

All members of the Rotary Club of Avonhead have very clean fingernails as they have been doing the laundry for the families in the community of St James School in Aranui where water is still not connected.

The rowing machines in Picton have been working overtime as members of the Rotary Club of Picton row to raise funds for Christchurch.

The Aranui Shelter cnr of Pages and Breezes Road is being supported by the Rotary Club of Lincoln.

Rhod Hutton from The Rotary Club of Lincoln has donated his truck (with Rotary decals attached) to the continuing task of carrying drinkable water into Aranui.

The Rotary Club of Ferrymead has organized and manned the Redcliffs Information Caravan with phones, computers, pie warmer and water to name a few. Great links for a community at a vital time.

Hokitika ran a very successful Children’s Day.

The "Flying Squad" - an experience described

The second week after the February earthquake Sarah-Alice and I signed up for The Flying Squad, another name for the Rapid Response Team. The task of the Flying Squad was to follow up on calls from one of many hundreds of Suburban Welfare Teams that were visiting households identifying those who urgently needed “emotional support”. On any given day some 435 Welfare Teams went out “door knocking” in the Eastern Suburbs to assess how people were coping. Every day the teams visited some 11,000 homes, and with visits limited to 15-20 minutes, this initial check was basic in character. The Flying Squad’s task was to back these services up. There were about ten teams operating in the Flying Squad, each consisted of two counsellors/therapists and a police officer. Each day the teams were allotted a special area, and during that week we were stationed in Avonside, Shirley, Wainoni, Redcliff, Sumner, Mt Pleasant, Huntsbury and the areas north-east of the ‘cordon’. When we received a call from the Westpac Centre (from where the Project Suburban Welfare was managed), our police officer (in our case a woman) would drive us to the designated address and would do a check of the situation at hand, introducing ourselves and the purpose of our visit. We would do around eight visits a day. Needless to say we met with many people in dire circumstances. The earthquake had taken its toll.

Boyle River Rotary Canterbury Earthquake Project

THE FIRST FUNDING ALLOCATION of $23,100 has been approved for the Boyle River project (see below). This project met the criteria by being a specially designed programme for Christchurch youth who had been affected by the earthquake.

Over the past six months the Canterbury region, particularly the greater Christchurch area, has been enduring a series of earthquakes, the largest of which have been 7.2 and 6.3 magnitude (September 4 2010 and 22 February 2011).  The consequence of this has been that many people have lost their lives and many more have had their homes and businesses destroyed.  Children and young people have been greatly affected.  Many have been forced to relocate with their families to temporary homes.  Many have left the city.  Many have had had to find another school to attend.  The social and psychological consequences of this are likely to be felt for a long time.

The Boyle Lodge is an outdoor education centre established as a project by three Canterbury Rotary clubs, Rangiora, Kaiapoi and Belfast some 32 years ago.  Over this time the lodge has provided outdoor education and adventure –based programmes to thousands of young  people.  The North Canterbury Alpine Trust which administers the Boyle Lodge has been considering in conjunction with Rotary District 9970 how it might assist those young people affected by the earthquakes.  We would like clubs in other Rotary districts to consider supporting the project which I outline below:

The Project:

Best wishes from Seaford Carrum Downs

Best wishes from the Rotary Club of Seaford Carrum Downs, Victoria, Australia, District 9820

Christchurch we're thinking of you

Members of the Rotary Club of Mt Eliza, District 9820 (near Melbourne, Australia)

Rotary helps earthquake victims in Christchurch

From the April issue of Rotary Down Under magazine comes the following article - the magazine and additional articles about the Rotary response to the Christchurch Earthquake can be viewed via www.rotarydownunder.org, pages 18-23

In response to the devastating 6.3 magnitude earthquake that struck Christchurch on February 22, members of Rotary International in New Zealand and around the world have responded spontaneously to assisting victims of the disaster and mobilising resources for long term recovery. As Christchurch and surrounding townships work to restore water, electricity and other services, Rotary members are coordinating with local authorities and international relief organisations to provide immediate assistance. Rotary is part of the NGO Disaster Relief Forum, which is assisting the Government’s Christchurch earthquake response. William B Boyd, Past President of Rotary International and a resident of Auckland, says the  Christchurch earthquake is a national disaster. “Yet with the help and support of Rotary members throughout the world, I know we will help rebuild the spirit of this city,” Mr Boyd says.

Examples of Rotary’s response:

• Donations are being collected through the Rotary New Zealand Canterbury Earthquake Appeal www.rnzwcs.org  Within hours of the earthquake large donations were received from Rotary clubs and Rotary supporters around the world. More than $260,000 has been collected.

• More than 100 Canterbury Rotarians whose homes, or families, have been affected by the earthquake are dedicating time to help people. Rotary is working with the Salvation Army to hand out food and water to those without and has organised donations of things like solar showers and dust masks.

• Rotary clubs throughout New Zealand are hosting Christchurch residents traumatised by personal tragedies, the destruction and ongoing aftershocks so that they can rest before trying to rebuild their lives. The effort is being coordinated within Rotary and through welfare agencies.

• Rotary in Southland has mobilised to get spare caravans and motor homes into Christchurch so that people have somewhere safer, clean and dry to live.

• Rotary members are working with ShelterBox www.shelterbox.org, a UK-based disaster response organisation supported by Rotary clubs worldwide, to provide shelter and essential equipment to those who have been displaced by the disaster. Approximately 120 boxes and tents have been sent to Auckland, New Zealand from where they will be dispatched to where they are most needed.

Support in many ways

Another example of support from clubs is from District Governor Peter Signal's comments in his District 9930 Newsletter for April 2011:

"The aftermath of the Christchurch Earthquake has affected us all, be it family, friends or just the sights of the devastation, not just those seen on television, but those brought to us by people who have helped on the ground. The opportunity for members of our District to mix and speak with those from Christchurch during South Pacific PETS allowed us to see the raw pain reflected in our friend’s faces and voices. I wish to commend all those Clubs who are contributing to the Rotary Christchurch Disaster Fund, especially Tauranga and Taupo Moana who have both made considerable donations. Thanks also; to those in Rotorua for their great work in gathering two containers full of dry goods for Christchurch; to those offering homes and rooms for short stay accommodation; and for those already working with displaced people from Christchurch."

International support continues

Rotary in Ormskirk, England recently send 100 pounds towards the appeal.

Lots and lots happening

Rotarians from all the clubs in Christchurch are hard at it helping the community in many different ways.  One significant approach is providing assistance to the activities of the Salvation Army. 

An example of a club in action is a collection of book for a Bookarama to be held at the Burnside High School on 28-30 April by the Rotary Club of Bishopdale-Burnside with proceeds to the Christchchruch Earthquake.

A glass of water goes a long way

At the recent District 9940 Conference in Wairakei an impromptu auction was held for a plastic glass of water raising $605 - we would tell you who bought this but our lips have been sealed.  This then led onto a number of activities that brought the total raised from the delegates to $2006. 

District Governor (9970) Margaret Reeve received a cheque from the District 9940 ShelterBox represenative for over $13,000 which was raised from a collection held at a Wellington shopping centre where a Shelterbox was erected on display.  DG Margaret expressed the heartfelt thanks from the members of her district for the ongoing support for the Rotary response.  She said that the funds would be used with an emphasis on supporting children and families over the coming months.

In addition, it was reported that the District 9940 Project Day had raised over $5,000 towards the Christchurch Appeal.