Rotary Club of Freshwater Bay, District 9450 1

New HorizonsThe Official Bulletin of the Rotary Club of Freshwater Bay Inc.

Minister Macklin Launches AquaBoxAquaBox is a Rotary initiative to provide clean water in disaster zones. Page 3

ShelterBox SpecialWhat is ShelterBox and what does it cost. Page 1

Rotary Foundation Thought of the WeekThis week’s thought is a b o u t D i s t r i c t Simplified Grants.Page 4

ShelterBox Activity for May 2009Where has ShelterBox been needed in the last month.Page 2 & 3

District Changeover DinnerInvitation to the last District Changeover for D9450. Page 4

Program for JuneClub program for June. Page 4

Volume 1, Issue 20 1st - 7th June 2009

PO Box 168, Nedlands, Western Australia, 6909 District 9450 ABN: 99 602 195 617

ShelterBox SpecialRotarian Michael Reeves presented to the club at last week’s meeting a p r e s e n t a t i o n o n ShelterBox and the important work that the project is doing.

Starting as a Club project in the United Kingdom as a ‘Millennium Project’, ShlterBox is now a Global Rotary Club Project.

S h e l t e r B o x e n j o y s extensive support in the United Kingdom, with Australia being the 2nd biggest supporter of the project.

The Rotary Club of Freshwater Bay, in it’s first 6 months has already sponsored 2 ShelterBoxes thanks to Mary Anne Wright and Bryant Stokes. Margaret Stuart has also been fundraising at her work in order to sponsor another ShelterBox, with Thursday night’s progress report stated indicating that only $40 was required to meet her target. Margaret also informed us that her employer has agreed to match her fundraising in order to sponsor a second

ShelterBox. Well done Margaret!

Our mission“To provide humanitarian aid worldwide in the form of shelter, warmth and dignity to people displaced by natural and other disasters.”

A unique solutionOur solution to disasters is the ShelterBox – a tough, green plastic box containing a 10-person tent and ancillary equipment designed to enable a family of up to 10 people survive for at least six months.

Made to a unique design using high quality materials, our tents are suitable for a wide range of conditions. Other items may include insulated groundsheets, thermal blankets, a multi-fuel stove, cooking equipment, tools, mosquito nets, water containers etc. Exact contents will depend upon local conditions and what is most needed.

ShelterBox works directly with local organisations in countries where disasters have occurred, in partnership with other aid agencies and through the international Rotary network.

Our volunteer teams often oversee the distribution of boxes to individual recipients – making sure aid gets direct to those people who need it most.

What Does it Cost?The cost of each S h e l t e r B o x i s approximately $1200. The cost of the box and it’s contents is around $800-$900, with the remainder of the $1200 covering the transport of the ShetlterBox to the scene of the incident for which it is being deployed, and the training of the ShelterBox Response Team members.

The two main distribution points are currently England and Melbourne.

This year saw ShelterBox being deployed in Australia for the first time, as a response to the Victorian Bushfires in February.

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ShelterBox responds to Cyclone AilaThursday 28 May, BANGLADESH: Two hundred ShelterBoxes are being sent to Bangladesh to give emergency shelter to those affected by Cyclone Aila which hit the south of the country on 25 May. The ShelterBoxes, which will give help to up to 2,000 people, are being despatched from prepositioned stock held at Birmingham Airport and are

expected to arrive in the country by 1 June. A ShelterBox Response Team (SRT) is due to leave for Bangladesh shortly to identify those most in need and coordinate aid distribution. The SRT volunteers are Stuart Oates (UK), Pat Prendergast (UK) and Owen Smith (NZ). According to latest reports, more than 200 people have been killed by the cyclone and 600,000 displaced. More than 600,000 people have been displaced by the cyclone

Additional aid sent to PakistanWednesday 27 May, PAKISTAN: Volunteers at the Helston HQ have been packing an additional 250 ShelterBoxes to be sent to Pakistan to assist those who have fled their homes because of the conflict in the north west of the country. The latest shipment of aid is due to arrive in Islamabad by the end of the month. ShelterBox Response Team member Mark Pearson (UK) is in the country to coordinate the aid distribution. He is currently overseeing the allocation of

250 ShelterBoxes, 224 relief tents, 250 heavy duty tents and 380 ‘family kits’ of essential equipment which are already in Pakistan. “The need for ShelterBox is massive. In total there are 1.88 million registered displaced people since the conflict began with little or no shelter available for them,” says Mark. “I went to one registration point and they received 1,200 people in one day and that was a quiet day. The situation is  so bad. In government buildings close to the conflict area there are three families (90 people) living in each room. The conditions are horrendous.”

Aid reaches Filipino homeless

Tu e s d a y 2 6 M a y, PHILIPPINES: Shelterbox Response Team (SRT) volunteers Peter Pearce (Aus) and Lyndon Tamblyn (NZ) have successfully distributed 100 ShelterBoxes to those left homeless by typhoons Chan-Hom and Kujira which struck the north of the country earlier this month. Half the boxes were distributed in the village of Olanen in Pangasinan Province which had been badly damaged by a 20 metre tidal surge. The remainder were distributed to those most in need on Dewey Island. The government estimates that 16,000 homes were totally destroyed by the typhoons and 24,000 partially destroyed. Fifty five people died. ShelterBox is working in the country with the National Disaster Co-ordination Council and local Rotarians.

ShelterBox activity for May 2009

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Rotary Club of Freshwater Bay, District 9450 3

First consignment of aid reaches PakistanWednesday 20 May, PAKISTAN: ShelterBox is reacting to the growing humanitarian crisis in the country as hundreds of thousands of people flee the fighting between the army and militants in the north west. ShelterBox Response Team member Mark Pearson (UK) is in the country to oversee the distribution of 112 ShelterBoxes which have been prepositioned in Pakistan since March and an additional 250 ShelterBoxes, 250 heavy duty tents and 380 ‘family kits’ of essential equipment which are due to arrive on 22 May. Mark will also assess the need for further shipments of aid. ShelterBox is currently working in the country with local Rotarians, the National Rural Support Programme and other agencies. “There is clearly a great need for emergency shelter,” says ShelterBox Operations Manager Pete Sykes. “The first consignment of aid is already being distributed and we are preparing to send more.”

ShelterBoxes sent to the PhilippinesThursday 14 May, PHILIPPINES: One hundred ShelterBoxes are being despatched to the Philippines

to give shelter to people affected by typhoons Chan-Hom and Kujira which struck the north of the country earlier this month. The boxes are being taken from pre-positioned stock in Melbourne. On arrival in Manila they will be trucked to Pangasinan Province, which bore the brunt of the typhoons. The government estimates that 13,881 homes in the province have been totally destroyed and 10,969 partially destroyed. The boxes will be distributed by ShelterBox Response Team volunteers Peter Pearce (Aus) and Lyndon Tamblyn (NZ). ShelterBox is working in the country with the National Disaster Co-ordination Council and local Rotarians.

First ShelterBoxes distributed in Sri LankaWednesday 13 May, SRI LANKA: 224 ShelterBoxes are being distributed today in Menik Farm (Zone 3) in the Vanni region to give shelter to vulnerable IDPs with special needs who have escaped the fighting in the area. An additional 224 ShelterBoxes are due to arrive in Menik Farm by 16 May. ShelterBox Response Team (SRT) volunteers John Mackie (US) and John Cordell (US) are supervising the distribution. “We are working closely with our partners on the ground to get the ShelterBoxes despatched as soon as we can,” says John Mackie. “We will be giving

much needed shelter to the most vulnerable people who have been forced to leave their homes because of the fighting.” ShelterBox is working in Sri Lanka with local Rotarians, Habitat for Humanity, the International Organisation for Migration and the United Nations. “We are continuing to assess the situation on the ground on a daily basis and will send additional assistance if it is needed,” says ShelterBox Operations Manager Pete Sykes.

ShelterBox reacts to typhoons in the PhilippinesTu e s d a y 1 2 M a y, PHILIPPINES: A ShelterBox Response Team (SRT) has been sent to assess the impact of typhoons Chan-Hom and Kujira which have struck the country in the past week. SRT volunteers Peter Pearce (Aus) and Lyndon Tamblyn (NZ) will be working with the local National Disaster Coordinating Council to assess the need for emergency shelter in the country. Typhoon Chan-Hom struck the north of the country on 7 May killing 48 people and destroying more than 6,000 homes, according to media reports. A week earlier Typhoon Kujira killed 27 people and left more than 50,000 homeless. “We will assess the situation and then decide on our level of response,” says ShelterBox Operational Manager Pete Sykes.

ShelterBoxes sent to Sri Lanka

Tuesday 5 May, SRI LANKA: 448 ShelterBoxes are being sent to Sri Lanka to provide shelter to those who have lost their homes in the current conflict. The boxes are being despatched from prepositioned stock in Singapore and Dubai and are expected to arrive in the country by 7 May. ShelterBox Response Team (SRT) volunteers John Mackie (US) and John Cordell (US) are leaving for Sri Lanka to replace the current SRT m e m b e r s M i k e Greenslade(UK) and Dave Webber (UK) at the end of this week. “The team has been working hard identifying where the greatest need is and making sure we have the right paperwork to start work on the ground,” says ShelterBox Operations Manager Pete Sykes. “I am pleased to say that we now have permits to start operating in the field. A big thanks to local Rotarians for their help in liaising with the appropriate authorities.” In addition to local Rotarians, ShelterBox is also working with Habitat for Humanity, T h e I n t e r n a t i o n a l Organisation for Migration and the UN. The UN estimates that more than 150,000 people have been displaced in recent months as the fighting has intensified.

Minister Macklin launches AquaboxBy David FlintRotary Club of Eltham, Vic.

Members of the Rotary Club of Eltham, Vic, were joined by the Federal Minister for F a m i l i e s , H o u s i n g , Community Services and Indigenous Affairs, Jenny Macklin, to celebrate the opening of the Club’s Aquabox Centre on April 30.

Aquabox is a Rotary initiative to provide potable water to families in disaster zones where a supply of clean water is not otherwise available.  Simple instructions enable a family to purify 1000 litres. Following an agreement with AusAID initiated by Ms Macklin to store and distribute Aquaboxes to distressed areas in our region, Eltham Rotary leased a small factory in Eltham to prepare boxes for shipment. Most Aquaboxes are comprised of

the requirements to purify contaminated water, together with basic humanitarian aid as advised by AusAID.   In this form, each Aquabox costs $480 to prepare and ship to an affected area and is provided by funds donated to, or raised by, the Rotary Club of Eltham. Immediately following the Black Saturday bushfires, 108 boxes – representing the entire stock of prepared Aquaboxes – were shipped into the affected areas. This

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4 Rotary Club of Freshwater Bay, District 9450

BoardRotary Year 2008-09

Di Collins — Presidentpresident@rotaryfreshwaterbay.org.au

Ken Collins — Vice President / Membership Directorvicepresident@rotaryfreshwaterbay.org.aumembership@rotaryfreshwaterbay.org.au

Rajah Senitharajah — Treasurertreasurer@rotaryfreshwaterbay.org.au

Daniel Forsdyke — Secretarysecretary@rotaryfreshwaterbay.org.au

Bryant Stokes — Projects Directorprojects@rotaryfreshwaterbay.org.au

Claire Forsdyke — International Directorfoundation@rotaryfreshwaterbay.org.au

Toni James — PR & Marketing Committee Directorpublicrelations@rotaryfreshwaterbay.org.au

Peter Symons — Club Administration Directorclubadmin@rotaryfreshwaterbay.org.au

Club DetailsRotary Club of Freshwater Bay Inc.PO Box 168, Nedlands, Western Australia, 6909

MeetingsThursday 5:45pm to 6:45pmCafe, Bethesda HospitalQueenslea DriveClaremont

Email president@rotaryfreshwaterbay.org.auPhone 08 9385 0471Fax 08 9385 0472

Website www.rotaryfreshwaterbay.org.au

Facebook http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=47737002646

Chartered 19 December 2008

Bulletin ContributionsContributions for the weekly bulletin are sought from members of the club.

Why not use the bulletin to update the club on the projects your committee is working on or promote the clubs next fundraising event.

Please forward articles and photos to daniel.forsdyke@rotaryfreshwaterbay.org.au

Date Name

4th June Rajah Senathirajah

11th June Marcos Carot Collins

18th June Elizabeth Bain

25th June Simone Carot Collins

Welcoming Roster

Program for JuneDate Details

4th June Steve Weychan - Climb for a Smile

11th June Jeffrey Williams - The 2006 Tsunami

18th June Committee Meetings

The Rotary FoundationWeek 48: This week’s Rotary Foundation Thought is about District Simplified Grants.

A dictionary may not be your first choice for an exciting read, but for many students, it’s the key to unlocking a world of amazing information. Using District Simplified Grants, Rotary

clubs in Southwest Florida, USA, distributed dictionaries to every third grader in District 6960.

Clubs worldwide use these grants to support short-term

humanitarian projects in their communities.

One club, one grant, one Rotarian can bring wonder to the eyes of a child

Date Details

4th June Steve Weychan - Climb for a SmileJudith Dowson to IntroduceAndrea Hayward to give Vote of Thanks

Guest Speaker Support

District ChangeoverYou are cordially invited to the District Changeover Dinner, at the Karrinyup Country Club on 27th June 2009.

The District Changeover is when the District Governor, and other district office-

bearers take on their new role of the next Rotary Year.

This year will see Geoff Simpson take over from Sue Rowell as District Governor.

It would be great to see a large turnout this year, to witness our last changeover as District 9450.

(Cont. from Pg3) enabled a number of families who relied on tank water access to drinkable water until their own tanks could be cleaned or replaced.“I am delighted to have been involved with this project and to have played a part in the formation of the agreement with AusAID,” Ms Macklin said. “I wish Eltham Rotary every success in this next stage of their Aquabox project.” “This is a major step forward for our

Aquabox project,” said Ian Thomas, Director, Service Projects.“We can now ensure delivery to affected areas within our region.  We never ever thought that we would be required to deploy Aquaboxes in Australia and within a 20km radius of where we are tonight.   But at least we were ready!”

For information contact David Flint on 0419309282.