The Rotary Club of Bromsgrove is delighted to support the outstanding work of the Primrose Hospice with a donation of £1000.

At our Fellowship Meeting on 12 December 2017 at Bromsgrove School our President Amal Rampal was delighted to induct Simon Pearce-Hughes from Bromsgrove as a new member. Pictured left is Simon after receiving his Rotary lapel badge from Amal. At the meeting we listened to Olly Kay from Bromsgrove, who is a second year undergraduate student at the University of York studying Politics and International Relations. Olly received some funding from the Club, which assisted him in travelling to Nepal during the summer to undertake work in a village based community. Olly recounted how much the trip contributed to his own learning and development, and spoke of the work which he undertook with other volunteers over ten weeks to put in place clean water and to educate children and other groups about personal hygiene. Members were very pleased to receive such a comprehensive verbal report on the impact of the allocated funding.

Over twenty members of the Rotary Club of Bromsgrove and guests gathered at Hogarths Stone Manor Hotel near Kidderminster on 5 December 2017 for our Christmas Party, and a great evening was had by all in delightful surroundings. Our thoughts and best wishes were extended to those members who were not able to be present.

Rotary International President Ian Riseley is holding a Peacebuilding Conference on 24 February 2018 at the Ricoh Arena in Coventry. Hopefully, some Club members from Bromsgrove will attend, and we hope to sponsor a number of students from local secondary schools to attend with their teachers. We are delighted that the RI President has chosen Rotary District 1060 in which to hold this conference, which addresses one of the six areas of focus for Rotarians, viz. Peace and Conflict Resolution, encompassing one of the world’s most critical humanitarian needs.

At a Fellowship Meeting on 28 November 2017 held in Old Chapel at Bromsgrove School two new members were inducted by Amal Rampal President of the Rotary Club of Bromsgrove.  Pictured left is Chris Smith Headteacher of South Bromsgrove High School receiving his Rotary New Member Guide; and right Vikas Sehdeva, who is a lawyer with his own practice in Barnt Green.

The Michael Holt Debate in memory of Michael Holt was staged again on 7 November at Droitwich Golf Club by the Rotary Clubs of North Worcestershire and Bromsgrove. Teams from North and South Bromsgrove High Schools competed, and debated the motion ‘This House believes that a university education is no longer necessary to achieve success in life.’ After a closely fought debate, the judges declared the North Bromsgrove students, who opposed the motion, the winners. The winning team is pictured in the first photograph, and the two teams together in the second photograph, while members of the Rotary Club of Bromsgrove are depicted in the third.

The Rotary Club of Bromsgrove is delighted to have funded the provision of a water tank and stand for the Lirhanzo Children’s Village in remote south east Zimbabwe, which will ensure the availability of clean water for the orphaned children living there. Pictured are some of the children with a member of staff when the new tank was delivered in the last few days.

The Rotary Club of Bromsgrove is delighted to have supported the provision of an Orcam vision device to a young registered blind woman in Bromsgrove. The device comprises a camera and built in speaker and is able to read a page of writing for its user, identify colours and faces, and various products. We believe that the device will assist the beneficiary to become much more independent in her everyday life, and will open up new possibilities for her in terms of education and work.

The Secretary attended the Awards Ceremony at the Institute of Engineering and Technology in London on 3 November 2017, where he met our new Arkwright Scholar Isaac Jones and his parents. Isaac will be attending a Fellowship Meeting on 28 November to thank members for sponsoring the Scholarship and  to speak to them about his ambitions for the future..