Vol. 9 No. 4 - 12 August 2009

* President Patricia:

- warmly welcomed the Members and Visitors.

- noted apologies from Rtns. Cathryn, PP Kamal, PP Mark, Marcantonio, PP Anita, Robin, & Helmut.

- THANKED the following members for inviting some Guests to our 22 July meeting:

Rtn. Andrew for inviting Komang Jatmika.
Rtn. Raphael for inviting the Guest Speaker Andre Graff.
Rtn. Robert E. for inviting Shelley Epstone..
Rtn. Detlev for inviting Pete Ruwart.
Rtn. Helen for inviting Mieke Newman..
Rtn. Muriel for inviting Roy Sunarso.

- told the members that she had sent the Club's Condolences to former member Sue Speak whose grandchild died a few days after birth in Hong Kong.

- thanked Rtn. Barb , her Committee , Rtn. Robert E . and Shelley Epstone for ORGANIZING such a FABULOUS SUCCESSFUL Quiz Night on 23 July which raised Rp. 6,000,000 for the Club's Projects. The 70 + participants who attended the evening all had a very very enjoyable time and are NOW waiting for the NEXT one. Also, special thanks goes to ALL the Hotels, Businesses and Rotarians who donated Raffle Prizes for this wonderful evening.

Rtn. Barb and President Patricia - BEFORE !!!
President Patricia, Rtn. Chris and Shelley Epstone - AFTER !!!

- thanked Rtn. Detlev for again donating Rp. 1,010,000 to the Club's Cleft Lip / Palate Project . These funds were raised two weeks ago during his NOW famous Sunday Brunch. Many Many thanks for your GREAT EFFORT .......

- congratulated Secretary Tricia on becoming the NEW GM of the Canggu Club ......... FREE DRINKS for ALL Rotarians now !!!

- told the members that her "White Board" had now become the "Disgrace Board."   If a member's name is on the Board, he/she is in TROUBLE. Please send your Membership Handbook photo to Secretary Tricia ASAP ....... Can't do it all ALONE !!!

- introduced Andre Graff, guest of Rtn. Raphael, who would be the Guest Speaker. Originally, she and IPP Urs had planned to talk about the RI Convention they both attended in Birmingham, UK in June, but felt that Mr. Graff's topic was more pertinent to what the Club is currently doing in Sumba.  The RI Convention talk has tentatively been rescheduled for 19 August.

- introduced Komang Jatmika , a Club Scholarship recipient and a guest of Rtn. Andrew , who took a few minutes to tell the members about his current studies in College and then THANKED the Members for helping him finish his Secondary School education and now for supporting him while he studies to become an English Teacher.

* CP Patrick:

- informed the members that the NEW Potential Members' folders are ready and that if an individual looks INTERESTING / SERIOUS, to please give them one. The folder includes information about Rotary International, the Club's Projects and the financial responsibilities regarding becoming a member of the RCBS.

- told the Club that the Procedures for approving an individual for Membership to the Club this year would be "closer" to the RI recommended guidelines.   He then distributed some Membership Proposal forms and ask the members - once they have a GOOD candidate - to complete a form and then give it to the Club Secretary.  The Potential member - IDEALLY - should not know that he/she is being considered for membership ...... just incase there are QUESTIONS from the Board about his/her candidacy.

- said this was the LAST DAY to order 09 - 10 Rotary Polo Shirts. In the future, members would have to contact PP Mimi (RC of Bali Nusa Dua) to place orders .....

* Rtn. Chris invited all members to come to a "burning the grill" evening at his new BBQ Restaurant on Jl. Umalas 2 . It's just down from his office.  Also, he suggested that this would be an ideal venue for Club events and activities in the future .......

* PE Helen K. Keith from the RC of Bali Taman informed the members that her Club will be holding a Charity Music Concert / Dinner evening featuring the Swara Sonora Trio on Friday, 14 August starting at 18:00 at the Sanur Beach Hotel.   The funds raised will go to the RI "END POLIO NOW" - US$ 200 million Challenge . Members wishing to purchase tickets (Rp. 250,000 Dinner / Concert or Rp. 50,000 Concert only - students) to this OUTSTANDING evening, should contact one of the following RC of Bali Taman Rotarians:

Secretary Noor Ellis , < nooraini@bluefinbali.com >, HP:  081-2387-6383
Rtn. Vonny Thorley , < vonnykwee@gmail.com >, HP:  085-5376-9888, 0361-746-0476
Rtn. Maylinda Rosali , < ritaeko@yahoo.com >,  HP: 081-2393-2836

Why is membership growth important for Rotary?

As we start the new Rotary year, let's reflect on some of the reasons that membership growth is important for Rotary.

* Membership growth increases Rotary's capacity for service.
* New Rotarians bring fresh ideas, new interests, and increased energy to clubs.
* More members increase the volume of support for The Rotary Foundation.
* Diversity in membership ensures that the club is relevant to the entire community.
* Service-minded individuals are given the opportunity to help their communities through Rotary.
* More members create a larger network for both local and international fellowship.
* New and younger members ensure the future of Rotary and its work.

Start thinking about the new membership development initiatives your club or district can undertake throughout August to celebrate Membership and Extension Month. Consider scheduling the program topics for each of the month's meetings to focus on a different facet of membership development, such as:

* Developing a prospective member information packet
* Mentoring programs for new members
* Increasing club presence in local media

Find these and other topic ideas, sign up to receive the RI "MEMBERSHIP MINUTES" e-mail Newsletter: http://www.rotary.org/en/ Members/GeneralInformation/ MembershipResources/Pages/ MembershipMinute.aspx

Andre Graff is a Frenchman and former pilot of balloons in the French Alps.  In 2004, he came to East Indonesia on holiday and eventually made his way to some villages in Sumba. Upon seeing the very poor living conditions in one particular village, Waru Wora , he decided to help the community find water by digging wells using a unique technique.

Andre started his talk by explaining that like many other places in the world, the arduous job of fetching water is reserved for women, including those who are either very old or very young. In Waru Wora , this task used to involve walking several kms every day to get dirty or even dangerous water.

Before leaving Sumba, Andre recorded the co-ordinates of the water hole shown above on his GPS and promised himself to return one day to help the daily burden of these people, especially the women and children.

In 2005 he came back to Sumba. In his luggage he had 3,547 photos that he wanted to give to the people he had photographed in 2004. Some of them just smiled, others were astonished. Soon he had a village full of new friends, but foremost in his mind was his plan to help the village access clean drinking water. What a TASK that lay ahead ......

He was rapidly adopted by the village of Waru Wora and received the shamanic name "Amaenodu."  Sometime later "his" village got its FIRST, very own, clean and efficient water well.

Once the well, shown above, was operating, he was on a roll and went on to dig 12 more wells in other villages in Sumba and on a neighboring island. Currently, there are more wells in the works.

Has his Mission been accomplished ?

Waru Wora now has a well that gives the community clean water. The days of getting muddy water from the mangrove swamp are long gone, but Andre's quest to improve the life of the local women has not yet been completed.
Finding a source of safe water near a village and digging a well that will keep on working for years to come, is one thing. Making sure that women don't need to carry water several kms up a hill every day, is yet another story.

Your HELP is needed !!!

For centuries tribes fought each other, forcing villagers to live on hilltops. However their water sources unfortunately tended to be down in the valleys. The situation is certainly better today for some villages, but there are still many women and children who have to climb kms up steep hills several times a day with buckets or clay jars weighing 20 to 40 kg on their heads to collect the necessary water needed to live.

After working in Sumba for several years, Andre had an idea of providing as many water wells as possible, BUT could see that he needed REAL funding for his DREAM.  He then decided to establish the Pilot Project Waru Wora (PPWW ) to achieve his goals.

The PPWW consists of several simple steps, whereby water from wells located on hill tops can be distributed to villagers living in dryer areas. This plan can be accomplished by laying pipes and installing 2 solar-powered water pumps.

Andre finished his very informative talk by thanking the Club for giving him the time to talk about his work in Sumba and said he hoped that a project like his might be interesting for our Club to consider funding in the future.

For further information regarding the details and costing of this project, please visit Andre's website:
http://web.mac.com/graffounet/ Site/PPWW_Eng..html

TOTAL: Rp. 1,010,000 (Raffle: 840,000   Fines: Rp. 170,000  Misc. Rp. 0)

The Raffle Prize,  a bottle of Naked Range Chardonnay , was won by visitor, Shelly Epstone, and donated by Secretary Tricia.