Aug 012012
 

August 2012 – Pupils from Lawn Primary School Northfleet have won this year’s annual competition to find the Tidiest School in Gravesham.

At the Mayors Parlour in the Civic Centre last Monday 9th July 2012 representatives from the school were awarded a cheque for £250 and a certificate together with the annual challenge shield. The competition which is run by the Rotary Club of Gravesend is now in its 25th year and is open to all the primary schools in Graveseham.

2012 Keep Schools Tidy ShorneRotary President Chris Wraight said that ” since we started this competition the standard of cleanliness and tidyness of our schools has reached such a level that it is becoming increasingly difficult to find a winner. The children are now so keen and keep their playgrounds etc so free of litter that for the past few years we have had to include marks for the schools ‘ green activities’, their gardening, wildlife conservation and environmentally friendly aspects.”

The photograph shows second placed was Shorne Primary school which received a cheque for £150. and Riverview Infants school was Highly Commended with a cheque for £100

 

Jun 302012
 

June 2012 – On June 6th at the Gravesend Sea Cadets parade Brian Portway President of the Rotary Club of Gravesend presented the Commanding Officer with a cheque for £640 towards the cost of improved workshop and training facilities.

An ex-shipping container will be turned into a modern up to date dual facility unit used to maintain essential equipment and to teach the cadets basic skills in engineering and training.

2012 Sea CadetsAs material is delivered on site, Gravesend Rotarians will be helping out in construction and fitting out work which.has been funded both by local when over 900 cyclists took part in this years annual “On Your Bike” sponsored fun ride; and also by members of the Rotary Club of Gravesend who have given their time and expertise in the planning and submission of project details to the relevant authorities and also ensuring that Rotary District fund holders requirements were met.

President Brian said that “To be able to help local youth in both financial and practical terms is an example of what Rotary is all about. The standards of discipline and commitment shown by these young boys and girls is a credit to all who give up their time and we are pleased to be able to play our part.”

Bob Denby

 

Jun 302012
 

2012 Dartford ShieldJune 2012 – What a fine day at the Darenth Valley Golf Club, it was warm and the sun was out. We all had our coffee and bacon roll and after a little practice putting, the four of us from Gravesend were ready for action. Unfortunately there were a lot of people playing the course so progress was slow but on the good side, that gave us plenty of time to discuss at length such weighty matters as the various aspects of our golf swing, the problems we were having with our putting, the courses we had played at and the completions we had played in.

Although we battled on valiantly, only Adrian managed shine with a splendid effort in the “yellow ball” competition for which he gained the only prize for our club. John B and Colin scored well but were unable to wrestle any of the other prizes from the eventual winners (and we just won’t talk about my own score, only to say that I didn’t come last).

The day ended with us sitting down with sunburnt faces to a rather nice meal washed down with a glass of wine. We cheered and heckled as the other teams went up to collect their well earned prizes and finally thanked Gravesend and Meopham for organising the tournament. We said our farewells to our fellow Rotarians as the sun set on a truly wonderful day.

 

May 302012
 

On a very cold, overcast and wet Sunday morning in May, members of the Club helped to marshal over 160 walkers and their canine companions wind their way through the muddy lanes around Cobham Hall and Luddesdown. Despite the conditions, the determination of the participants along with some encouragement and guidance from the Macmillan organisers and helpers ensured that everyone completed their set distance. The hot coffee and cream scones at the finish were appreciated by one and all. The first photo shows our members getting a warm drink before setting out.

Apr 302012
 

intern1April 2012 – ShelterBoxes are urgently needed for disasters like the flooding in Brazil, the cyclone in Madagascar and the earthquake in the Philippines. With the money donated by the people and schools of the Gravesend area, ShelterBoxes can be sent to help people in these disaster areas that have lost everything. What’s in a ShelterBox?

The Rotary Club of Gravesend has for several years, with the help of the people of Gravesend, been providing ShelterBoxes to help people in disaster areas. Often we do this in conjunction with local organisations such as schools which raise money to by a ShelterBox which costs £500 each.

 

THANK YOU GRAVESEND

We have held street collections in Gravesend and these have raised over £800. By adding some more money to this we have bought additional ShelterBoxes that were sent to Haiti.

Shelterbox at Riverview Jan 10 (0)While we raised money ourselves to buy ShelterBoxes, the scheme has proved to be an excellent way to introduce schoolchildren to helping with disaster relief. We aim to visit all the primary schools in the area to raise awareness of ShelterBox and to invite schools to raise money for one of their own. If they wish to do this, then a specific box, with an individual number, will be sent to whichever part of the world has need of it. The school is told when and where ‘their’ box has been sent and they can track it on the ‘ShelterBox’ website. To date we have visited more than ten local schools. Sometimes the schools send their money directly to the ShelterBox Headquarters in Heston, Cornwall and other times they have sent it through the Rotary Club of Gravesend. In the case of Haiti, local schools sent six of ‘their’ boxes which were supplemented by the two boxes sent directly from our own club. A list of some of the local schools that have become involved in ShelterBox are, Cobham Primary, St. Joseph’s Convent, Kings Farm Primary, Riverview Juniors, Shears Green Juniors, Singlewell Primary, Vigo Village Primary, Holy Trinity Primary, Wrotham Road Primary, Whitehill Primary and Culverstone Green Primary. The enthusiasm we find at the local schools was typified by our visit to Riverview Junior shortly after the Haiti earthquake where pupils collected £1,000 towards ShelterBox by a “Hats for Haiti Day”. The Gravesend Reporter paper documented that the head teacher Mrs. Rosemary Dymond presented a cheque for the money raised to Gravesend Rotarian Chris Keeble. The Rotary Club of Gravesend would like to thank the children¸ parents and staff of all the participating schools for their support of ShelterBox.

 

GIVE MONEY FOR A SHELTERBOX

You can donate money towards a ShelterBox:

Send a cheque by post to Rotary Club of Gravesend, 9 Gatwick Road, GRAVESEND, Kent DA12 5AJ

Cheques should be payable to “Rotary Club of Gravesend” Telephone enquiries should be made to 01474 579940

Or go to the Shelterbox web site or ring them on 0300 0300 500

 

SHELTERBOX IN ACTION

The following information was received about the first of the Gravesend ShelterBoxes sent to Haiti after their terrible earthquake.ShelterBox_Haiti_MP_010 com

“The first ShelterBoxes have arrived in Port au Prince and hundreds more are due to arrive. The ShelterBox Response Team has been in Haiti’s capital since Thursday, took delivery of the first ShelterBoxes at Port au Prince airport yesterday. The team say twelve of these boxes will be used to build an emergency field hospital at the airport.

We are helping build a field hospital with these tents at the airport. These are desperate conditions, amputations are happening every half hour. There’s an urgent need for tents at hospitals and this is our first priority are working with the agencies on the ground to ensure that ShelterBoxes are not only distributed speedily and efficiently but that our team on the ground is able to work in a safe environment. Hundreds more boxes are due to arrive into Port au Prince later today from Miami on a chartered aircraft. Thousands more ShelterBoxes are being packed and shipped from ShelterBox HQ in the UK.” ShelterBox Founder and CEO Tom Henderson said “The devastation in Haiti has moved everyone here. We now have our boxes on the ground and it’s a privilege to help. The scale of devastation is huge. By the sheer grit and determination of our staff and volunteers we have been able to respond in record time. Our thanks to the teams of volunteers, as well as to our donors who have allowed us to do this.”

MORE INFORMATION

EShelterBox_Haiti_MP_011 comlsewhere:

More about ShelterBox from the  Shelterbox  web site.

More about what is being done by Rotary in Great Britain & Ireland

Membership of the Rotary Club of Gravesend

For more information or if you would like to help us, please email Chris Keeble or phone him on 01474 872698.