Marg Lucas was our chairperson for this morning's meeting at Gilberts. Guests included Tony Fritzlaff from Cilantro, and Gary Ramage.Linda O'Brien stepped in as Vice President to take President Neville's place whilst he was away for a couple of days.
CLUB ANNOUNCEMENTS - Quite a few
- DG Emma Clark is our guest speaker for next week on Wed 23/9 - an important meeting for our club members and a good opportunity for members to raise any questions about the direction of Rotary and the Regionalisation pilot program.
- Interplast donation vote - club members will be invited to vote on the $10,000 club donation to Interplast at next week's club meeting on Wed 23/9.
- Evening Meeting Wed 30/9 - Interplast CEO Misha Coleman will be our guest speaker. Club members are encouraged to invite partners, friends and guests to the evening meeting.
- Breakfast costs are currently $28 p.p. and will increase to $30 from October 2026. Members need to pay whether eating or not as costs are based on setting up with additional staff rostered to cater for our group.
- The menu has been expanded with more variety added.
- Members are strongly encouraged to register their attendance and place their order by Tuesday Noon the day before. - Rio Charity Ball on Saturday 3/10 in Tullamarine. This event is Terry Kane's annual fundraiser for Share me a Dream at $120 p.p. where funds are used for educational and medical support for remote and disadvantaged groups in the Philippines. Members are requested to register their intention to attend on the club website for club table allocation, but still need to book their tickets separately. Refer to the event entry on the club website for details.
- Holland Foundation Dinner on Saturday 17/10 at the Sandringham Yacht Club. This is the Holland Foundation annual fund raising event at $148 p.p. . Again, members are requested to register their intention to attend on the club website, but still need to book their tickets separately. Refer to the event entry on the club website for details.
- Zone 8 Conference at the Melbourne Conference Centre - 27/10 - 1/11/26. Interplast Australia will be represented at the conference, and club members are encouraged to attend. More details to come.
GUEST SPEAKER - Club member Greg O'Shea
Greg provided a wonderful chronological kaleidoscope of his working life with photos and a PowerPoint presentation to illustrate the various stages of his journeys. Greg spent 36 years in the hospitality industry, starting out as a very young chef hand in 1986 in Colac, and working his way through restaurants that included 3 star Michelin restaurants in London, before returning to Melbourne where he had a stint at Lynch's in South Yarra. In 2000 he headed up the hospitality training school at Holmesglen Tafe in Moorabbin, including Le Cordon Bleu Melbourne cookery school. In 2023, he took a side step with an opportunity to take part ownership of a Quest Geelong Central apartment block in Geelong that he manages with his wife Linda, managing 90 apartments and 27 staff. Whilst ownership changes the perspective, Greg has found the principles he learned in the hospitality industry also applied in running the Quest apartments. People and customers always come first and learning/training never ceases. Maintaining high standards and building relationships matter. Greg is also a director of the Geelong Chamber of Commerce board, continues to participate in various hospitality industry events, and enjoys being involved in the local community. It was a wonderful presentation - thank you Greg.
Vice President Linda O'Brien closed the meeting with this year's Rotary theme - Create Lasting Impact.
