2026 District Changeover
We had a wonderful celebration for the District Changeover on Saturday.
District Governor Carol Green handed the Governor chains and Taupriripiri (rakau korero/talking stick) to incoming District Governor Brent Gerrard.
We were very fortunate to have Dame Dorothy Spotswood and Sir Mark Dinajtschik with us and we were able to honour Dame Dorothy with a PHF award for services to the community. Dame Dorothy and Sir Mark have been the philanthropists behind the recent Te Wao Nui Child Health Service and Hospital, the new Sir Mark Dinajtschik Mental Health Centre currently under construction in Lower Hutt and the Dorothy Spotswood Charity Hospital in central Wellington, which will open in 2028. This is just a small taste of their philanthropy work and Rotarians have in the past been able to support some of their projects and look forward to continuing that support.
Further recipients of PHFs were:
Graham Evans - District Treasurer who is passing on the role to Linda Wellington. Jocelyn Hogg - Past District Governor and Rotary Foundation Co-Chair, Satellite club founder,
Nigel Miller - Husband, major behind the scenes supporter of DG Carol, past President and Board member of Lifting the Lid. District Governor Carol Green for her services to the District.
Also recognised for their services were:
Helen Algar - Chair of District Finance and Risk Committee, past Assistant Governor. David Shackleton - District Membership Chair, past President and Assistant Governor, Board member Lifting the Lid.
We had presentations from Vito Lo Lacono from the Dorothy Spotswood Charity Hospital, Judy Bain for Big Hats High Tea event for Life Flight Trust and David Shackleton, Jane Patterson and Bill Day for Lifting the Lid on Youth Mental Health.
Chris Eales - incoming District Governor-Elect, gave a brief introduction and set the scene for being our last District Governor for 9940 from 2027-2028 before we are merged with our South Island colleagues in 9999. This merger has been ratified by the Rotary International Board at their meeting in Taipei just over a week ago and as such we will be on the hunt for a District Governor nominee for the new combined district.
Incoming District Governor Brent has a focus on membership and the Rotary Foundation. With membership, he believes that our club experience is what keeps us as Rotarians and is also what can draw new members to us. If your club experience is what Rotarians and new members are looking for, then you can't help but grow. The Rotary Foundation is our charity of choice and is a vital platform for funding projects with District and Global Grants - our giving to Foundation has dropped over the last few years and this directly affects the Districts ability to fund many of the projects we would like to move ahead with. Our End Polio campaign is of vital importance to the world. We are down to 9 reported cases of wild polio infections and after a falre up after Covid, it has taken several years to get the numbers back to single figures - we need to finish the job.
Incoming Rotary President Yinka Babalola urges us to be better than our best and his message is for us to Create a Lasting Impact - we have the tools, we need to get out there and just do it!
Thanks to all of you who helped to make the District Changeover a success. Particularly PDG John Mohi and members of the Rotary Club of Port Nicholson and the staff at Boulcott Farms Heritage Golf Club.