Oak Bay Rotary on the Avenue - October 24 World Polio Day.

Reported by Lori McLeod

In recognition of World Polio Day, Oak Bay Rotarians lined the Avenue to spread the word and encourage support for Rotary’s goal to end polio. As noted by Bill Boyd, Chairman, The Rotary Foundation Trustees, Rotary International: “Rotarians around the world have made tremendous progress in the fight to eradicate polio. We are at an historic moment - less than 1% away from the end of polio forever. In honor of World Polio Day on 24 October 2011, we are asking for your help to tell the world about Rotary’s achievements and to finish the job.”

   In answer to this call, teams of Oak Bay Rotarians jumped into action raising both awareness and donations. The noon till 1:00pm shift set things up and got everything rolling at 6 stations on the Avenue. The 1:00pm till 2:00pm shift continued spreading the word and took care of the take-down. Thanks to Heather Aked and Joan Peggs for their organizing and mobilizing.

On the sunny side of the street…

Ted Chambers, Mary Canty, Lorna Curtis, Heather Aked, Brian Lamb and David Maxwell displayed Oak Bay Rotary’s banner and commitment to the cause at the corner of Wilmot and Oak Bay Avenue.  Mary even wore her Rotary name badge!  Lorna was topping up with caffeine in an effort to exude more energy to attract passersby. She mentioned that she saw the television ad for World Polio Day and thought it was very well done.  Joan Firkins, who was wandering the Avenue and visiting all the booths to show her support, was encouraging everyone to watch her YouTube video which was shot on the Avenue. Just go to www.youtube.com and type in ‘rotary polio eradication’ and you’ll find lots of great Rotary videos from around the world. Lesley Cobus from Monterey Centre popped by and was the first contributor to this booth’s donation pot.

   Twenty five steps down, in front of Scotiabank, were Tricia Timmermans, Jack Petrie, John Jordan (left) and Corey Burger. Thanks to Tricia for lending this reporter her camera to document the first shift. Thanks to Corey for his photo documentation of the second shift. John’s tactic was to position himself strategically in front of the bank’s door and block entry as he engaged folks with the catchy line “Have you heard the good news on polio?” Jack and Tricia were busily making up songs to attract passersby (and telling John he sounded like a certain religion) and Jack’s dog Nessie was an irresistible draw.

Just twenty-five more steps along, between the other Scotiabank and Pharmasave, Vicky Pitt, Wolf Schopper, Pablo Diemecke, Barry Mutter and Jessica Van Der Veen passed out brochures in an effort to raise awareness. Jessica was a bit late for her 1pm shift but no fine is warranted as she was delayed justifiably engaged in Rotary work for the upcoming Merrython.

   Across Hampshire inside the lobby of CIBC, Perry Bamji, Don O’Coffey, Wynn Taylor and Pete Lawrie passed out info on World Polio Day and our Oak Bay Rotary Club. The two Joans were visiting when this reporter came by and it was noted that perhaps the reason this booth was a bit slow was that President Joan hadn’t given the team any buttons. 

Across the street in the shadows and shivering in the cool breeze…

Ron Cooley, Giles Bixler, John Snively and Hans Ockermueller were stationed in front of BMO Bank of Montreal.  Giles commented that in order to boost donations you must seed the pot. When this reporter popped by there was already over $35 in their donation bucket. 

Also shivering in the shade, stationed in front of Athlone Court, were Rod Sim, Leslie Rogers-Warnock, Jim Force and David Westler. This booth was voted “Best in the Village” for their exceptional A/V support.  Of course, the fact that Jim was decked out in a Rotary hat, coat and badge helped too.

To wrap up my report, I want to say “Great job fellow Oak Bay Rotarians!”  Hope I didn’t miss anyone as I put away my reporter’s pen around 1:15pm…so if you showed up after that…you were late and you will be fined!

Since I’ve been advised that I can be as long-winded as I want because we are now posting our Bulletin on a blog, I’ll leave you with these thoughtful words from our President: 

Club members,

Two successful events to date in celebration of World Polio Day – The END POLIO NOW light up on Monday night and the Rotary/polio awareness day on Oak Bay Avenue today. Donations received totalled $239.68.

A special thank you to all members who participated in one or both of the events.

On Monday evening, PDG Joan Firkins was interviewed; she gave a brief history of Rotary’s involvement in the campaign to eradicate polio as well as her experiences on several National Immunization Days in Ethiopia.

Mary Canty and Joan Toone, both polio survivors, were also interviewed. They gave their experiences of contracting the virus and the ensuing treatment to overcome the paralysis.

Excellent weather, good foot traffic and great visibility on the Avenue today brought in the donations; many stopped, asked questions and were quite surprised that polio was ‘still around’.

Remember members,  if any of you wish to donate US $100 or more towards the RI Foundation PolioPlus campaign you have until October 28th to do so AND at the same time receive 2 for 1 recognition points. 

Yours in Rotary.

Jp

Joan Peggs

Meeting of October 18, 2011

   President Joan Peggs opened the meeting with a tribute to one of Nova Scotia’s best loved poets. Maxine Tynes died in Halifax on 12 September, 2011 at age 62. As a highly regarded poet, she wrote celebrating her life as a black woman and as a survivor of polio, often exploring social issues such as gender discrimination, racism and prostitution. Her publication, “Borrowed Beauty” received the Milton Acorn People’s Poetry Award and she was a frequent guest on both radio and television. She was also an effective teacher and a writer of textbooks who was adored and respected by her students.

   The national anthem was sung by the assembled with leadership from Jack Petrie and Tom Croft. Brian Lamb delivered grace.

   Visiting Rotarians and guests were introduced by John Snively. Visiting Rotarians included John Heraghty, Harbourside, Mary Laing, Vancouver Downtown, and our old friend, Tom Croft. Our guest speaker, Enio Sacilotto (below) was also welcomed.

   Fines Master, Wynn Taylor extracted large sums of money by identifying those of our members who enjoy the odd glass of wine. We discovered that both Jack Petrie and Tom Croft have extravagant tastes and can afford French Reds. Wynn was able to tell us about wines costing between $1,000 and $2,800 (Hmmm – what do you do in your spare time, Wynn?). Leslie Rogers-Warnock and Rod Sim contributed happy/sad dollars and Lori McLeod had her (29th) birthday (again). Pablo Dimecke and Hans Ockermueller were recognized for their 10th and 9th club membership anniversaries.
   Mary Canty reported on Foster Isherwood’s health and Joan read a letter from Foster, thanking the club for giving him Honorary status.

ANNOUNCEMENTS

   Jim Force reported on the great success of the Rwanda Today forum and President Joan asked all volunteers to stand and be recognized.

   Joan Peggs and Joan Firkins talked about World Polio Day and outlined the great incentives for those who contribute online next week. Please contribute with gusto! Heather Aked promoted next Tuesday’s Rotary on the Avenue event and asked volunteers to attend on the six tables that will be situated at various locations. She also promoted the Oak Bay Merrython Run/Walk event to be held on 1st December. Our club is co-ordinating the event under the capable leadership of Leslie Rogers-Warnock and Heather Aked.
   As Assistant-Governor, Tav Macpherson noted that his three-year term was drawing to an end and invited those interested and qualified to enter the selection process for this challenging but fun role.
   Bill Burns promoted flu shots and Mary Canty promoted the quilt raffle for the Guatemala project.

  Mary Laing, President Elect of the Vancouver Downtown Club, gave an interesting outline of the Centennial Celebrations to be held in April, 2013. All clubs in the west are invited to join in the festivities.  
   Finally, President Joan asked for volunteers to help with the Oak Bay pumpkin display.

GUEST SPEAKER
   Our guest speaker, introduced by John Snively, was Enio Sacilotto, Assistant Coach for the Victoria Royals WHL franchise. After a degree in Phys. Ed., Enio took his Masters and then proceeded to coach hockey. Starting in Italy, he had many coaching positions in Europe, including England, Norway, Switzerland and Croatia. He has enjoyed the various cultural differences but is glad to be back on Canada’s West Coast as his family is in Vancouver.
   Enio outlined some of the joys of coaching. He indicated that a coach is always under the scrutiny of the media, the fans, and the public, all of whom know better what the coach should or should not have done! A coach is reliant on the players’ performance and is frequently judged on short term results - winning is essential to survival. A good coach must multi-task in different areas to be effective. They must be effective in such diverse areas as psychology, administration, and public relations, and as well they must have an in-depth knowledge of hockey rules, tactics and skills. The coach must also see each player as unique, both on and off the ice, winning their confidence and yet applying discipline and developing skills sets.
   Enio gave us an interesting summary of the WHL and its value system. As a developmental league for young players, the league insists that players continue their education and perform community services. The goal is to help players reach the NHL. Almost 20% of the NHL’s players have graduated from the WHL. Enio finished by talking about some of the outstanding young men who are either past or present players under his care. After question period, during which Enio voiced opposition to the amount of fighting in hockey, Jack Petrie thanked Enio and presented him with a coffee mug suggesting that he could propel it at the next reporter who questioned his coaching ability.

An interesting and humorous talk. Thanks Enio and good coaching!

The meeting was adjourned at 1:37 p.m. with the singing of “God Save the Queen”.