Rapport 28 May 2024 (Nov 05, 2025)

4 November 2025

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From Co-President Warwick

What a great start to the new year 2026 with excellent presentations on the new RAP programme ar Aorere College. The college is using the well established ARA Skills Programme for its practical tuition, and so we heard three speakers from ARA give outstanding talks on their roles. Miriam is in charge of theri school engagement programme which now includes 7 schools in South Auckland as well as teenagers from MSD. Their aim is to give these kids sufficient skills, experiences, training and certifications that will enable them to gain employment.

Fiona, the teacher at Aorere College who is responsible for their GOAL (Get One Amazing Life) programme, confirmed how important it was for these particular teenagers, as they would otherwise likely be dropouts.

This is such an amazing programme that deserves our support, especially with Mentoring. Aorere will need 5 mentors to give an hour a week to connect with one student each, and make a huge difference to their lives. Please contact Ann Dunphy to find out more and register your interest. ta.dunphy@xtra.co.nz

Parking, Parking Parking

Please remember parking days at Go Media Stadium. Iif you haven’t signed up for one of the parking days please do so as it is vital that we keep this income stream alive.

IF YOU CAN LEND A HAND LET JOHN HAWKE KNOW NOW

AGM - CHANGE FO DATE FROM THAT ANNOUNCED

Following advice from Mark Wells re our constitution and General Meetings, we need 20 clear days notice for a General Meeting.

Therefore rather than Tuesday's announcement that we'd hold it on 3rd Feb, we will be holding the AGM on Tue lunch 31 March as we penciled in on our programme.

We'll also need to heed the quorum requirement of 50% of financial members.

We'll now aim to have the notice of AGM plus accounts sent out to members in the first few days of March.

Warwick

Co-President

The Kidney Society

Our main speaker on Tuesday was Joanne Hand from the Kidney Society supported by the Society CEO Kath Eastwood.

Joanne introduced us to the Kidney Society, a community-based organization providing wraparound services for people diagnosed with kidney disease.

Joanne told us that kidney disease affects one in every ten New Zealanders, with many cases being silent until significant kidney function is lost. The Kidney Society has grown from a small group of dialysis patients in 1978 to serving over 3000 people in the upper North Island. Services provided to those experiencing Kidney Disease include social work, health education, wellness support, and community dialysis houses in South Auckland.

The Society employs a social worker and health educators to support patients and their families. It provides wellness support including specific exercises designed for people with kidney disease to improve their well-being. Community dialysis houses provide flexible dialysis schedules, allowing patients to choose their own times and have support from others on the same journey.

The organization aims to remove barriers by delivering care in the community, at home, and through face-to-face and phone support.

Joanne told us of the importance of Kidney Function and Disease Management. She explained the critical role of kidneys in filtering waste and excess fluid from the body. Damaged kidneys lead to the buildup of waste, causing serious health disorders. All services provided by the Kidney Society are free, and the organization aims to empower clients to manage their lives.

Joanne noted that the Kidney Society saves New Zealand $1 million per annum for every 14 people in their dialysis care, compared to hospital care.

Jonane told us that the Kidney Society's work is based on decades of experience and aims to help people with kidney disease live their best lives. The Kidney Society's vision is to become a global case study for efficient, cost-effective, and transformative care for people with kidney disease.

We were told about risk factors and preventive measures. Joanne sugested that getting annual fitness checks and regular blood and urine tests if you are at risk of kidney disease. Also maintaining a healthy lifestyle, including eating less salt, more fruits and vegetables, and staying hydrated, is crucial. Also communication with doctors about all medications and supplements, even over-the-counter ones, is important. The Kidney Society provides a website with information, magazines, and the ability to call for more details.

Joanne's address lead to a spirited question and answer session about Kidney Disease. Kath in answer to a question about the cause of Kidney Disease said it is a hard to detect problem and it is often diagnosed late due to lack of symptoms. Kath mentioned that kidney disease affects all ethnicities and ages, and high blood pressure and diabetes are significant risk factors. On the plus side she noted that most people can live with one kidney if they donate one, and the average age of their clients is around 55. Kath then commented about the impact of diabetes on kidney function and the importance of managing diet and medications.

After a quesiton about Dialysis and Community Support Kath explained thatdialysis is provided in hospitals, satellite units, and private residences. The Kidney Society's community dialysis houses provide flexibility and support for patients. She went on to highlight the challenges of getting a permanent dialysis slot and the benefits of community dialysis houses. The Kidney Society's infrastructure, including dialysis houses, is privately funded, not the machines themselves as those belong to Health New Zealand.

Kath noted the criteria for receiving a kidney transplant and the long waitlist due to a shortage of donors. She also noted that the Kidney Society supports transplant recipients and live donors, with many board members being transplant recipients.

This presentation was well received by members as was evidenced by the questions asked.

As always our thank you gift was a Wallace Cotton tea towel.

At our meeting on the 4th of November, we were joined by Lance Hutchinson from the Life Education Trust.

President John presented Lance with a cheque for the sum of $5,000.00 as a donation from he proceeds of our fundraiser Circus Quirkus.

Lance expressed the gratitude of the Life Education Trust to Newmarket Rotary for our long-term support since the charity's inception 25 years ago.

Lance told us that the organisation started with a small group of local businesspeople and has grown to have a presence in every community in New Zealand. Over the past 25 years, Life Education has reached over a quarter of a million children in Auckland Central alone. The charity has raised over $7 million through fundraising efforts, highlighting the community's support.

Life Education is New Zealand's largest education health resource, now present in 86% of schools nationwide. The NZCR review found that Life Education performs well on key indicators, with strong expertise in health and engaging program content. Educators are registered teachers trained in Life Education programs, passionate about delivering and exciting children's imaginations. Over 90% of schools consider Life Education a vital resource, emphasizing its importance in teaching children about health, respect, responsibility, resilience, and loyalty.

Lance told us about Harold the Giraffe the well-known mascot for Life Education, recognized by children across the country. Harold is a symbol of peace, encourages children to look upwards, and has a heart as big as a netball, reflecting his love and high demand.

Life Education has received praise for offering high-quality programs tailored to their community needs and delivered by outstanding educators.

Rotary clubs throughout New Zealand, including Newmarket, have been supportive of Life Education's work, with Newmarket Rotary being a long-term supporter.

Lance noted that Newmarket Rotary's logo is displayed on Life Education's letterhead and website as foundation sponsors and supporters. Life Education recently reskinned their mobile classrooms, which are $260,000 mobile classrooms that travel around schools, with Newmarket Rotary's upgraded logo being prominent.

Lance concluded with a presentation to the club noting that at a recent New Zealand conference, the Rotary Club of Newmarket was awarded an outstanding Community Service Award by Life Education New Zealand. He then presented the award to President John who received it on behalf of the club.

Some of our new members and support team members having been winning awards for their efforts,

The following is a summary of their achievements.

RYLA Leader: The RYLA Leader Award is designed to showcase the incredible work that people are putting in to make their RYLA Programs possible! The RYLA Leaders Award is for all of the leaders, facilitators, mentors, and coordinators.

Henry Thomas-Kircher (WINNER!) RYLA 2019

Henry is a highly respected leader within the wider team of RYLA in District 9920 and has transitioned from 2IC to take complete responsibility for the outdoor portion of the 9920 program. This is a highlight of the 9920 program and involved coordinating 180 x people (120 x Ryla participants +60 x volunteers) vehicles, cooks, engineers, communication team, command centre staff and govt liaison (govt land is used). In addition managing the risk around weather, health and safety (a huge requirement for activity on govt land). He managed this incredibly well and did an amazing job. Directing staff who are all active or retired NZ Army officers commended him on the job done to a standard which they compare to their own experience.

RYLArian of the Year: Celebrates the incredible work that past RYLA participants are doing in their personal and professional and the positive impacts that they are having on the community.

Amy Strang (FINALIST) RYLA 2023

Amy is someone who truly used RYLA 9920 (supported by Rotary Newmarket) and RYLA Oceania which she attended in 2024 as a launchpad for her career development and positive impact.

Not only did she take a career leap, moving from Air New Zealand to Airbus in Toulouse, France (her first time in Europe, and without speaking French!).

Within one year she had received a promotion and several recognitions. At 27, Amy has been leading sustainable aviation programs in hydrogen and marketing across Asia Pacific, America and Europe at the world’s largest aviation company – Airbus.

In addition, she became the first New Zealander to complete the Sahara Half Marathon in the Refugee camps of Algeria, raising thousands of dollars.

And this month she’s invited to launch the Emerging Leaders in Sustainable Aviation group at the International Aviation Innovation Summit, Montreal. Amy singlehandedly created this initiative to accelerate sustainable aviation action, developing a committee of diverse young people across the world, securing a sponsoring parent company (ATAG), and world-leading speakers.