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06 November 2025

Presidents time

President Robbie welcomed everyone, including our guest speaker, Jasveen Singh.

Robbie mentioned that Ken Wood is leaving Timaru in mid-December to live with his daughter, so we all wish him well, as he has contributed greatly to our club over many years.

Three-minute talk
Adrian gave the 3-minute talk, which was about his knowledge of drugs being imported into NZ by being concealed in containers and other freight. He outlined how clever the drug dogs were at picking up the scent of drugs. Thanks, Adrian, for an excellent talk, which was made impromptu.

The robbery
Sergeant John and Corporal Trevor again collected a fine from everyone.

The giving
Robbie won the raffle AGAIN.

Guest speaker

Paul Hewitson, as Chair, introduced Jasveen Singh, who spoke to us about his employment with HC partners starting in 2006 (employed by Paul Hewitson) straight from Lincoln University. Jasveen qualified as an accountant in 2010 and is now a partner in that firm.

Jasveen gave a very detailed talk and had a summary distributed for members' reference.

Jasveen detailed the Sikh beliefs, some of which include the idea that the origin of the universe is from one eternal light source: one God, the creator, who created all humans equal, with men and women having the same rights. Human life – a precious blessing, all carry a spark of divine light. Freedom and liberty for all and respect for all religions. Equality of all faiths, caste, creed and race, and a few others.

With most members (assumption) having limited knowledge of Sikhism, it was beneficial to have some details.

Jasveen talked about his family back in India and has returned a few times.

Colin gave thanks on our behalf.

Duties for 20 November 2025

Chairman: Colin Clemens

Thanks: Geoff Cloak
3-minute speaker: Paul Hewitson

Regalia: Gavin Craig
Corporal: Don George
Sargeant: Adrian Gray
Scribe: Peter Pradar

16 October 2025

Presidents time

President Rob welcomed members, in particular our guest speaker, Polly Rowe.

Bookarama:
Dale, our Resident Poet, presented in a poem the great work done by many to make Bookarama 2025 such a success. About $15,000.00 has been raised. Well done, everyone, and a special mention to Dale, who led this project.

Artarama:
Issy from the Art Gallery says this was a very successful event with over 400 entries and more than 2200 people visiting the show. The great number of visitors was possibly due to the location of Artarama, being in Stafford Street.

Christmas Parade:
Harley provided an update on the Christmas Parade, which is being held on 07 December 2025. Harley called for names of helpers – 12-14 people are needed. Please contact Harley if you can assist. Phone: 027 497 2292.

Toot for Tucker:
Harley also updated that Lions have reached out for assistance with the 2025 Toot for Tucker event being held on 17 November 2025. If you can assist, please contact Harley with your name by 05 November 2025. Phone: 027 497 2292. Those assisting need to be at St John's on Wai-iti Road, Timaru, at 5.30 pm on 17 November 2025.

Unite for Good:
Please note the Rotary theme for 2025 for Unite for Good. The editor had used the wrong theme in the past Bulletin. (The Editor is trying hard to get fired from the job, but nothing seems to be working!).

Christmas Party:
Yes, it's nearly Christmas and we are having a party. Ideas of what you wish to do can be shared with Robbie. Phone: 021 360 305.

Tom Henderson:
Tom Henderson has had a few challenges of late and is not able to drive.

3-Minute Speaker:
Harley provided a detailed analysis of the past Local Body Election – votes and places secured compared to the last election, etc. Only 47% of eligible voters voted in these elections. This was down from 49% in 2022, much lower than the 51% in 2019, about the same (48%) in 2016 and lower than 2013 when 50.9% of people voted.

The Meet the Candidates event was well-received by the public.

The Robbery:
Everyone was appropriately fined when we could not answer the posed questions.

The winner:
The bottle of win was wone by Robbie with the number 007. Our own James Bond?

Guest Speaker:

Robbie introduced Polly Rowe, a local artist and gallery owner who has been in Timaru for 26 years.

Polly stated the Red Bird Art Gallery in Stafford Street, as she wanted to support local artists. The gallery is located above her daughter's shop, Mille Rowe. Polly and her husband bought the building because her daughter was paying high rent, and Polly wanted a place to display art. Polly and her daughter support Timaru and want to make it a better place.

Selling art is challenging. The artist usually received 50% of the sale price, with the gallery taking the rest; however, Polly takes less as she wants to see art sold and enjoyed. Generally, there is little profit to be made in the art business.

The focus of Polly’s presentation was to show the work of a young Timaru artist, Felix Colnan, who is still studying at Mountainview High School. The work is in pencil and charcoal, and Polly believes he has a great future, but needs to get his work shown and needs his work framed. Polly‘s request was for assistance in getting the work framed, and she will then display this in her gallery. Felix wants to eventually study art at Elem Art School in Christchurch.

A vote of thanks was made by Paul Hewitson.

Rotary Luncheon – an invitation from Rob Rhodes and Reese Hart
We hope that you are not blown away in the wind; it is springtime after all, and time to think about another luncheon before the end of the year.

We have decided to meet for lunch at the Geraldine Farm shop & Café, Main North Road, SHW 72 at 11.45 am on Friday, 31st October. (this month)

Following lunch, we will travel about a km further north to the Roger Mahan Heritage Centre to view Roger’s collection of vintage and classic cars, and extensive collection of heavy earthmoving machinery. A staff member will give a short talk on the significance of this collection. Cost $15 per head.

We need an indication of numbers attending and look forward to seeing as many of you as possible on the day.

Regards from,

Rob Rhodes 03 686 1543
Reese Hart 027 290 6985

Duties for 06 November 2025

Chairman:       Bill Weir
Thanks:             Colin Clemens
Regalia:             Geoff Cloake
Scribe:                Peter Prader (filling in for Tony)
Corporal:          Trevor Johnson
Sargeant:          John Keenan
3-Minute:          Harley Smithson

02 October 2025

Presidents Welcome

President Robbie welcomed members to the meeting.

A special welcome was given to birthday boy John Davey, Guest Speaker Jay Lovely and great to see Tom and Bob as well.

Robbie wished Anita Shore a speedy recovery.

In President’s Time:

Robbie advised that Artarama was currently in play at the former Unichem Pharmacy on Stafford Street. The Prize Giving is planned for 1pm on Sunday 12 October and ‘takedown’ (about an hour’s work) is scheduled for 4pm that same day. Members are requested to be present and help at each of these sessions please. (Post script: the Editor was away in Australia till today – Sunday 12 October – so apologise for the delay in getting this information out).
Dale Davey spoke to Bookarama and was grateful for the help to date especially the extra student helpers, thank you to the faithful members who have assisted with the collection and setup, everything was on track for opening day tomorrow Friday 3 October and pack up at 3pm on Sunday 5 October. Dale requested members add their name to the weekend helper’s roster.

3 Minute Speaker

David Roundhill was rostered, but he had ‘nothing to say’, so this session finished promptly!

The Taking

New, apprentice Sergeant John Keenan was ably assisted by the far more experienced Lieutenant Corporal Rod Sparrow; they did the collection from members with good humour and elicited a healthy contribution for Club expenses.

The giving

John Keenan had the lucky number 1 to take home this week’s fine red vintage.

Guest Speaker

Harley introduced the guest speaker, Rotary Member Jay Lovely, his partner in crime on the Christmas Parade committee, who had been corralled into helping.

Jay spoke of his insights into modern day Policing in the Family Law arena using his legal experience insights and suggested that this would be his ‘uninterrupted soapbox rant’ but went on to say he would value members feedback to his observations.

He said that 6 months back, South Canterbury Police was very well or even over-resourced, in regard to our satellite stations at Pleasant Point, St Andrews and Waimate, but this has changed since restructuring, where Police had to offset a 4% pay increase cost with reduced Police numbers by at least 8 and the closures of these ‘outposts’. He suggested the closure of the Waimate Station was absolute madness in light of the serious crime statistics in that area and that Temuka may be next for closure. He outlined how well Senior Sargent Mike van der Heyden ran Waimate and how good he was at training up new officers. With these staff reductions, there is potential for domestic and family law incidents to increase and not be dealt with promptly. The issues of fresh, young cops, a more woke society and the issues caused by social media are reasons why crime expands as the ease of contact is so much faster and harmful in this digital age.

Protection Orders are so easy to get, and they last forever – there is no finite term to these. But in Jay’s view, the law should not concern itself with ‘trifles’ but should concentrate on matters of substance. He reeled off a sample list of Protection Order issues that had made their way to court as examples of issues that should not be wasting the court's time, but incidents that cost the defendant significant sums even when the indictment is dismissed. Protection Orders are being utilised to police the family relationship, but they should have finite timeframes. Police should have the flexibility to address family issues, but the law does not allow it, and both the Police and the Crown put themselves under pressure to win in court. Jay thought this woke, political approach needed a shake-up, as it is weaponising being a victim. Family Law and Protection Orders are there for the right reasons, but things have gone too far in Jay’s view.

Alcohol was easy to source, as is Cannabis, but the worst drug of all is methamphetamine or P. Depression and anxiety or ADHD and the like should not be justifications to commit crime. P has been around for a long time since WW2, but came to NZ around 2000. Our P is the highest price in the world, in Mexico you can buy 1kg for around NZ$5k, whereas in NZ the cost can be anywhere between $80k to $160k, a Point or 0.1gm of P sells for around $100. So, P hugely fuels crime as users seek to fund their addictions. Jay believed Cannabis was the best of all the drugs, and there is way less harm and adverse outcomes from a crime perspective.

VoT: Geoff Cloake proposed the vote of thanks, spoke of his own upbringing and how the community constables kept the youth on the right path, acknowledged the extremely interesting presentation and asked the members acclamation for Jay’s riveting insights.

The next meeting is one week hence and on Thursday, 16 October.

Please check the roster below to ensure you arrange and complete your meeting duties and log an apology if you will be absent.

Duties for 16 October 2025

Chair: Bill Weir
Thanks: Paul Hewitson
3 - Minute Speaker: Harley Smithson
Sargarent: John Keenan
Corporal: Trevor Johnson
Regalia: Colin Clemens
Scribe: Tony Brien

Full house Meeting the Candidates 2025

Democracy in Action: Full House for Candidate Evening

Click here to view all photos

The Rotary Club of Timaru North's "Meet the Candidates" evening exceeded all expectations last night, with West End Hall packed to capacity as over 120 community members turned out to engage directly with their local election candidates.

The event for the Mayoralty and Timaru Ward, held on Wednesday 24 September, brought together 12 candidates including 2 mayoral hopefuls - in a professionally managed format that gave voters the opportunity to hear directly from those seeking to represent them.

Strong Candidate Participation

Candidates who participated:

Nigel Bowen (for mayor)
Peter Bennett (for mayor)
Anah Aikman
John Bolt
Ian Hawley
Owen Jackson
Stu Jackson
Ethan Richardson
Hadleigh Oudemans
Chris Thomas
Graeme Wilson
Jason McDonall
Sange Mailama

Apologies were received from Stu Piddington and Stacey Scott

Community Engagement at Its Best

The evening's format proved highly effective, with mayoral candidates each given 7 minutes to present their vision for Timaru's future personal own role, while ward councillor candidates had 4 minutes to outline their expertise, priorities and commitments.

Local media were present throughout the evening, ensuring broader community awareness of candidates' positions and commitments.

The random question segment generated particularly engaged discussion, with candidates drawing questions submitted by community members throughout the evening. Topics ranged from infrastructure and rates to environmental concerns - clearly reflecting the issues most important to Timaru residents.

The question-and-answer format, featuring randomly drawn community questions, proved particularly popular with both candidates and attendees, creating spontaneous moments that revealed candidates' thinking on unexpected topics.

Community Service in Action

The evening's success reflected careful planning by the Rotary Club's organizing committee. Event coordinator Tony Brien managed the event with the assistance of President Robbie Jackson and Rod Sparrow, the Club’s experienced MC, ensuring all candidates received equal treatment and time allocation.

The event exemplified Rotary's commitment to serving the community without taking political sides. As an apolitical organization, Rotary Club of Timaru North maintained strict neutrality throughout, providing a professional platform for democratic engagement.

Rotary's Democratic Service

"Rotary's mission is to serve our community, and there's no better service than helping people make informed choices about their local government," said club secretary Harley Smithson. "The response last night shows how much our community values this kind of direct democratic engagement."

The Rotary Club of Timaru North thanks all candidates who participated, community members who attended, and the West End Hall for providing an excellent venue for this important community service.

BOOKARAMA for 2025

Yes BOOKARAMA is on again for 2025 at The Trinity Community Centre, 22 College Road, Timaru

Friday 3rd October - 9:00am to 5:00pm
Saturday 4th October - 9:00am to 5:00pm
Sunday 4th October - 9:00am to 3:00pm

Contact and full info on our BOOKARAMA website page here

ARTARAMA 2024

Yet another Artarama at the Aigantighe Art Gallery - being going since 1979 when our late member Dick Logan initiated it.

President Rod Sparrow addressing at the opening with Exhibitions Curator Izzy Hillman alongside, with Jill Harland, President Friends of Aigantighe, and Leslie Brown, President of the South Canterbury Arts Society.

Some of the 700 odd entries by South Canterbury school pupils.

Great H2H morning

The Alpine Energy Hadlow to Harbour (H2H) 2024 was a great success, with over 800 people participating. They spanned all age groups and attended for various reasons; be it competitive running, fitness or those wanting to spend some time with friends as they walked the routes.

These community events cannot happen without the support of our sponsors, who generously give their time and financial support to make the event what it is. The funds raised in 2024 have been donated to the Stroke Foundation, Heart Foundation, Hospice and Life Education Trust.

The 2025 event is scheduled for 02 March 2025, and we look forward to seeing even more people participating.

See Geoff Cloake's Flickr album for a selection of photos.

Team us with us and do great things

By joining us, you can help out on projects like the H2H: Alpine Energy Hadlow to Harbour each year generating $180,000 since year 2000! We also have other events and fundraisers like Bookarama, which has been running since 1976. Help us make these even more successful. Then there's the fun of our social occasions - bring along your family too! You'll love the camaraderie and stimulation of our club, and have the opportunity to network and mix in your abilities to help lead us into the future. Visit http://intro.rotarytimnth.nz. Enquire to Gavin Craig: 021 661 554, Don George: 027 223 424. or Email: join@rotarytimnth.nz

Circus Quirkus comes to town

Some families may never get to see live shows. These shots are from Circus Quirkus, held in conjunction with Timaru North Rotary Club the other night - thanks to tickets sponsored by local businesses.

Team up with us and go places

By joining us, you can explore remote and spectacular parts of our South Island like the Clarence Reserve shown here.

Then there's the fun of our social occasions - bring along your family too!

You'll love the camaraderie and stimulation of our club, and have the opportunity to network and mix in your abilities to help lead us into the future.

Want to learn more learn more

Enquires to

Gavin Craig: 021 661 554,

Don George: 027 223 424. or

Email: join@rotarytimnth.nz

Visit to Glenmore Station

On Febuary 19th, members and partners took on a 50-kilometer return 4x4 trip in the riverbed of the Cass Valley on the Glenmore sheep station, Going was a little smoother thanks to Jim Murray who was reworking the track with his grader.

Harold always likes to make an appearance at the H2H

Harold the Giraffe closes in runners pushing for the H2H finish line

Look out for Harold at this year’s 5th March H2H. He will be on one of his “friends” eye-catching set-of-wheels. He may even wander through the finishing line and pose with fans – he’s a big celebrity throughout Australasia! This is because he is always alongside school children learning about their uniqueness and their right to stand tall and proud – just like a giraffe.

Read more about entering and prepaying here: h2h.org.nz/entering/about-entering

Rotary volunteers working on the H2H preparations

Jeremy Hogan chatting with H2H team member Geoff Cloake about this year’s promotional arrangements.

At the finish line, Jeremy Hogan gets to see the buzz of cheering supporters, the endless huge expressions of relief, astounding smiles of achievement and welling pride topped with congratulatory back-patting and hugging. “Helping on projects like this is just fantastic!” he says. “Being able to give something back to the community I live in, is also loads of fun and you get to meet and work with some very interesting and motivated people.” He adds: “That’s why I like to help out with the H2H. It brings people together in such an friendly and enjoyable way.” About his Rotary Club’s role, he comments: “Rotary projects like this really strengthen our community’s spirit and wellbeing.”

Help is welcome to spread the load and lift the H2H to even greater heights for the benefit of all. Would you like to join in? Please contact John Keenan @ keenanj.s93@gmail.com or 027 292 5267

Read more about entering and prepaying here: h2h.org.nz/entering/about-entering

“The H2H means everything ‘Timaru’ to me!”

“I keep coming back!” Rebecca demonstrates the fun of entering and dressing-up to the camera. - Photo by Geoff Cloake

Read more about entering and prepaying here: h2h.org.nz/entering/about-entering

Step out for the Hadlow to Harbour

Upwards of 1000 people are expected to take to our streets on Sunday 5^th of March to run, walk, jog, and even scooter, the 10kms to Caroline Bay from Hadlow or, for a lighter task, 3kms from Countdown on Church Street. Some will be led by dogs, more in fancy party dress or disguise, while others load themselves with extra challenges like pushing strollers. Free Ritchie buses will shuttle to Hadlow, but please be early to ensure a ride.

Grateful thanks go to all supporters including volunteers and club members who freely provide their time and resources to make H2H so successful. More volunteers are always welcome, even if for a couple of hours on the day or helping more seriously with lead-up tasks. Please contact John Keenan @ keenanj.s93@gmail.com or 027 292 5267

Read more about entering and prepaying here: h2h.org.nz/entering/about-entering

Second successful BOOKARAMA for 2022

Yes we held another BOOKARAMA for 2022!

Donations have been so plentiful we decided to run Bookarama again 4-6 November, making up for the events missed due to Covid-19 restrictions. Extending the Friday hours to 9:00pm proved popular. Friday was an extra day added last time to help spread out attendance and deal to capacity donations.

See this Timaru Herald lead-up item by Racheal Comer - Nov 02 2022 including a video interview with convener Gavin Craig:

272 individually named dictionaries to local students

St Joseph's Year 4 primary school students with their new illustrated dictionaries

Again Year 4 primary school students were thrilled to received the wonderfully illustrated education learning aid from us this year. Schools included Barton Rural, Beaconsfield, Gleniti, Grantlea Downs, Highfield, St Joseph's, Timaru Christian, Oceanview Heights and Waimataitai.

Working with other Rotary Clubs, the cost was covered by a Rotary Foundation grant. Special thank to President Rod Sparrow who individually signed the 272 explanatory letters covering each Dictionary, and members and family who helped prepare, distribute and present the dictionaries to each school.

Otipua Wetlands native tree planting

500 native grasses, shrubs and trees were planted at the Otipua Wetlands on an incredibly nice morning. Eight from the Boy's Brigade 3rd Timaru, with leaders Fiona Blisset and Chris Kronings, joined 16 Club members making short work of the task.. Also digging in was Jim Garden of the Timaru Rotary Club. This project follows a Rotary International initiative, planting 12 million trees world wide.

Noel Crawford preparing a hole for a plant held by Inga, an AFS student from Germany . One day this hillside will be covered with native flora, as seen in the distance.

Robbie Jackson

General: Contact form

president@rotarytimnth.nz

secretary@rotarytimnth.nz

treasurer@rotarytimnth.nz

Mail:

The Secretary

19 Tawa Street

Glenwood

Timaru, 7910

South Canterbury

New Zealand

November 2025

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