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Guest Speaker 26 Sep '23 - Kim Dziegiel - The Permit Shoppe

On Tuesday morning, 20 June 2023, Gail Bouw welcomed Kim Dziegiel as our Guest Speaker. At our hybrid (ie live attendance at R83 with zoom remote attendance) session, she spoke to us about assisting with the existing municipal permitting process and the role her shop (The Permit Shoppe) can play in such concerns.

In consideration of Kim's corporate experience as an employee on the Norfolk County staff as well as her skill at navigating the municipal permitting processes as a private consultant, we were treated to a detailed look into a very bureaucratic and difficult situation. The briefing proved to be most informative and was followed by many questions.

More information about Kim may be found by going to the "Read more ...' tab.

On behalf of the Club, President John concluded with an expression of appreciation to Kim for a well-prepared presentation - too bad that such a need exists but so great that such consultative services are present to guide the way.

It's Rally Time

Just before his passing, our first club president, Keith Flexman organized a car rally - it was one of the very last things he contributed to the club. To honour all that Keith meant to us, we have continued with that event ... it's fun, it brings us together and it helps the community.

So, we are now ready for our fourth annual Flex's Road Rally - it will start at 1pm on Sunday 29 Oct and will start at the St Williams Community Centre - it's now time to sign up!

Go to the 'Read more ..' tab for more details and a copy of the event poster.

Guest Speaker 19 Sept '23 - Dave Nicolle - Dave's Excellent Adventure

n Tuesday morning, 19 Sept 2023, we welcomed our own Dave Nicolle as our Guest Speaker. At our hybrid (ie live attendance at R83 with zoom remote attendance) session, he spoke to us about his recent trip to Southern Africa.

In his very entertaining and informative presentation, Dave noted that this long-planned trip this past April, had been intended as a motorcycle adventure and a family reunion. In respect of his 14 day, 10 bike, 18 rider, 3000km motorcycle tour (see the 'Read more ..' tab), Dave noted that he passed through 5 countries, witnessed many wildlife and nature parks, saw some unique & exceptional scenery and made friends with a terrific international group. He filled-out his one-month adventure by describing how good it was to reconnect with his family in that part of our world.

Dave's most excellent presentation was followed by as many questions as time permitted, as well as a note of Club gratitude from Gail Catherwood who recounted her own similar travel experience.

More information about the Dave's motorcycle tour may be found by clicking on this link.

Sunrisers Down on the Farm

On an absolutely beautiful Saturday morning, the Rotary Club of Norfolk Sunrise was hosted to a tour of Suncrest Orchards by the owners Hayden & Amanda Dooney.

This morning-out was so informative. There is no doubt that the fruit industry is such a central part of the local economy; indeed life of Norfolk County and Hayden and Amanda provided so many glimpses into why this is so. Fascinating to learn the rewards, risks and complexities of running such an operation. So great to meet a group of the visiting workers who are essential to getting the job done.

We are indebted to have County citizens such as the Dooneys and grateful for their hospitality and willingness to share their stories.

Additional photos from the day are given at the 'Read more ...' tab. Well done to Dave Douglas for planning and setting up the tour.

Is Rotary Right for YOU?

Ever wanted to know a bit more about Rotary and what's going on with our service club??

Just for YOU, our Membership Committee is organizing an introduction/orientation to Rotary. Everyone (new member, interested friend, curious bystander??) is welcomed to attend Venture Norfolk at 7pm on Tuesday, 26 September.

The only thing you need to bring are your questions!

Run for the Cure - RCNS Support

Once again members of the RCNS were out in force, this time making floral arrangements for the 2023 Run for the Cure fashion show. The beautiful arrangements will be given away as door prizes at the end of the show. In true Rotary fashion food was also featured as we lunched on a potluck chili, corn bread and lots of sweets.

In attendance were RCNS members Gail Catherwood, Carol Mummery, Pam Shantz, Linda Muir, Bettyann Carty, Michele Langedyk and Joanne Kiefer. Joining in with the fun were Lyndsey (Dave King's daughter at whose location the event was held prepping flowers for us), and Dana (from the Run for the Cure committee).

Return to our Exchange Student Program

Meet Macarena (Maca) Gimeno! She hails from Valencia, in Spain, is our newest inbound exchange student and has been with us for two weeks now. She's busy making friends and even has her first day in school and attendance at her first Rotary Club of Norfolk Sunrise (RCNS) event under her belt! Interesting to add that our own Sophie Mummery has now made it to Sweden and has successfully started her own part of this international exchange adventure.

Maca's RCNS councillor is Rudi Atkinson and her first home hosts are Adam Woolley & Kareena Martin from Simcoe. They are the first of three host families who will care for Maca over the course of her one-year Rotary exchange in Norfolk County.

We all join in welcoming Maca and wishing her a great year with us.
Speaking of home hosts, if you have any interest in this great RCNS program (Rotary member, friend of Rotary, interested on-looker?), do not hesitate to contact Rudi for information and/or advice.

Photo shows Adam, Maca and Rudi at our recent RCNS Welcome Back BBQ.

Slava Ukraini

They are back from their Ukrainian homeland; safe in Canada and they are most grateful for this great personal turn of events.

Alex, Yuliia & Yeva, having lived in Canada before (Yullia is a past-member of our RCNS Club), returning to their native Ukraine at the onset of the current conflict. Now, they are living an opportunity to restart their lives in Canada and have been the recipients of Canadian hospitality and generosity. Indeed, our RCNS has offered much moral, materiel and financial support and has been active in getting them settled into their new community in St Thomas. Not to be outdone, the Rotary Club of St Thomas has stepped up and is offering terrific support as well.

In any event, we were glad to welcome them back at our recent 'Welcome Back BBQ' and to reset our support relationships. In turn, Yuliia offered a glimpse of her Ukrainian kindness and appreciation by presenting President John Wallace with several gifts representing Ukrainian heritage - a Cossack Bulava (battle mace), two Tulkas (smoking pipes), several packs of chocolate (from Pres Zelensky's own factory) and a bottle of horilka (Topijika Freedom Edition vodka). John's first Board meeting should be an interesting one!

We all welcome Alex, Yuliia and Yeva back to their second home - Canada!

Photo shows (left to right) James Kristos, Rudi Atkinson, President John Wallace (menacingly holding onto the bulava), Yuliia, Yeva & Alex. Several additional photos are show at the 'Read more ...' tab.

Sunrise Curler Selected

Following a long (and continuing) planning process, the Ontario-based team selected to attend the bi-annual, Canada-to-Scotland, Rotary International curling exchange has been finalized - Keith Jones has been chosen to be the representative from our own Norfolk Sunrise Club. John Vallee has been selected from the Simcoe Club.

This news follows a very successful Scotland-to-Canada trip in 2022 and precedes the November 2024 trip where Keith and John will travel throughout Scotland, visiting many curling clubs and enjoying tremendous Scottish hospitality (yes; lots of haggis and scotch!). These two lucky curlers follow a long line of previous Rotarians (most recently, Jim Simpson & Margaret Bancroft) who have participated in this high-profile Canada-Scotland exchange event. Congratulations to both Keith & John.

For those who follow this RI exchange, the "Read more ..." tab shows the composition of the entire 2024 Canadian Team.

RCNS Continuing Support of Op Eyesight

Mzuzu Hospital has recently accepted the optical instruments that the RCNS provided under our Global Grant. They are currently being trained on the equipment and are awaiting the third shipment of optical supplies to complete the project. Click on the 'Read more ...' tab for a note/photos from Operation Eyesight staff member Blessings Banda on this happy event.

DEI & Our New Club Counsellor

As Rotarians, we believe in the 4-way test. By extension, we support the RI focus on Diversity Equity and Inclusion (DEI).

Our own Club approach has been to follow the RI lead, to strengthen our legacy policies, to set in place new initiatives to ensure compliance, to inform our members as appropriate and to appoint a Club Counsellor.

As a result, every active member of our Club has been afforded the opportunity to read into & understand the issues. Moreover, we have benefitted from a presentation on the same issues as provided at our meeting on 06 June; a presentation given by Emma Brown, one of our members with legal training, qualifications and experience. The key documents are as follows;

Significantly, we have been blessed with a volunteer who has come forward to act as our Club Counsellor. As a Club, we welcome Andrea Matecsa into this role. All are invited to click on the "Read more ..." tab to learn about what is involved with being a Club Counsellor and how she sees her appointment within the Club.

CTA Licence Progress & Results

Following six, successfully-concluded licences of our ever-popular Catch the Ace (CTA) fundraiser, the Rotary Club of Norfolk Sunrise, with the support of the Port Dover Legion Branch 158, restarted the contest on Friday, 09; this our seventh licence - it will conclude once the Ace of Spade is finally drawn.

Once a licence is concluded, a summary of the results is generated. This summary information is then shared with the local print media and can also be found on this web-site - ie see our FUNdraiser Tab at the top of this website to see the results and winners of our sixth licence.

For those who follow the CTA game on a more regular basis, the best way to stay abreast of the current results is to visit our FaceBook site. You may find an image of our FB Page as a panel on this web-page or you may wish to visit our FB Page by clicking on this link. Alternatively, the results are also posted to our weekly RCNS Bulletin (the 'Sunriser'). Normally, it is released to our members and friends on a weekly basis. If you are not a subscriber and you might wish to join the mailing list, please see the 'RCNS Bulletin Subscribe' panel as given at this website.

Do You Have the Club Runner (CR) App on Your Mobile Device?

As an RCNS Regular Member, did you know that almost all of the information found on your home-based, Club Runner (CR) desk-top computer access, can be found on your cell phone?

All you need to do is download the CR App from any App Store and install it on your phone. To download the CR App from the Apple App Store or from Google Play, simply type in 'ClubRunner' in the search bar.

The enclosed, ~1 minute, video provides for some information and instructional assistance.

Once installed, your phone will then provide you with easy access to data from our RCNS records such as;

links our club and district websites;
regular club member personal contact information (phone numbers, addresses etc);
an up-to-date schedule of events and speakers; and
recent stories.

Those who have it on their phones use it frequently - if you don't have it yet, why not give it a try!