As I keep saying, Rotary International is the greatest volunteer organisation in the world; therefore successful clubs are always driven by enthusiastic volunteers, and that's certainly the case with the Rotary Club of Camberwell. We have our huge Camberwell Art Show coming up in July that requires literally thousands of volunteer person-hours, our Hawthorn Makers Market depends of our regular team of volunteers, and the Camberwell Sunday Market (the subject of tonight's talk) requires 2-4 Camberwell volunteers every Sunday rain, hail or shine. The $20K+ per year we earn from providing these 2 full shift (equivalent) volunteers per week is vital income to our Charity Fund.

 

The meeting was once again well attended, with Honorary Member Mayor Garry Thompson, Councillor Di Gillies, Rotarian Rob Nethercote and provisional member Michele Bucoy joining members present. We also had members Sparkey, Chris H, Kemi and Josie Zooming in.

 

Dave McFadyen and Phil Lambers from the Rotary Club of Balwyn gave an interesting and informative talk about the history, company structure and management of the market, the amazing amount of money the market generates (approximately $20M to date!), and where the money goes. Some impressive stats: some 370 stallholders; 30% of surplus (approx $240K per annum) paid into the Boroondara Council's Community Development Grants Fund; an amount each year paid into the Market Development Fund; and the Balwyn Rotary Club's funds a wide range of projects (Asylum Seeker Resource Centre, DIK, Boroondara Family Network, Balwyn Evergreen etc) with the cash flow from the Market.

 

During question time, our own senior member Neil Hookey clarified that the original concept of what became the Camberwell Sunday Market was when Neil (then in Apex) as President of the Camberwell Chamber of Commerce created a strategy to combat the threat from the then-brand new Chadstone Shopping Centre in 1960. The Chamber of Commerce negotiated with the City of Camberwell to purchase properties along Station Street to build  a car park, and over a period of many years this was completed. Finally the Chamber of Commerce, in conjunction with Camberwell Rotary and the Council, gained permission to hold a market in the new car park area on Sundays, as long as only second hand goods were sold - so this was the first "Camberwell Sunday Market". It's good to give credit where credit is due!

 

It was good to see the ROMP Team back in Conochie Hall after a hugely successful visit to Horsham where a Paul Harris Recongition was given to the Wimmera Cancer Centre. More about this elsewhere in this bulletin.

 

With the Art Show only 6 weeks away, can all remaining members who do not yet have their Working With Children Check please do so without delay. It's free, and it's a Swinburne requirement (as well as District's). Also, many of us have their spouses, partners, children, friends etc assisting as volunteers - if they are over 18, they must have a WWC Check as well. Swinburne also have a requirement to successfully complete their on-line Induction - there will be instructions on how to perform this in coming bulletins, and there will be a live demonstration of the process at a future Dinner Meeting. And finally, those who have not yet returned their Roster Availability Form please do so without delay.

 

Thank you for your positive responses to my emails concerning the distribution of our Camberwell Rotarian bulletin. We are very close to 100% successful delivery of the bulletin, and I will continue to work with the few who are still having problems.

 

And finally, now is the time to review your personal and Rotary details in the soft-copy Club Directory. The Secretary is in the process of updating the file to produce the 2021-2022 edition for distribution at the Changeover Dinner, so if you have changed anything, gained a higher level of PHF recognition, come on or off any District or other Boards or positions of responsibility, please let Secretary Fabienne know as soon as possible.  Also, can all members log on to the Member Area of our own website and make sure your personal details are correct. And note that the "Anniversary" date field refers to your Wedding Anniversary (where applicable), not the date you joined Rotary - that's in the "Rotary" section. And please don't be shy about putting birth dates for you and your partner - the information is held securely, will not be published anywhere with the year shown, but is vital for the club, our district and RI to measure and manage the age profile of our organisation. If you are unsure about any of this, please contact me or Webmaster Jeevan.

 

That's all from me, have a good week in Rotary.