by IPDRR Wayne Lai
It has been another busy time for District Rotaract.
As we step into the new normal of post-COVID era, the District Rotaract Team has worked hard to further re-connect, re-establish and engage with our Rotaractors to serve our community in a better way.
With the theme of VIVID Rotaract, the team has focused on delivering projects related to Service, Training, Public Image and Membership Development..
Service
This year, the theme of our service project is Mental Health, echoing with the focus suggested by Rotary International President Gordon McInally. We aim to support our community and fellow Rotaractors through various ways.
It is crucial in developing our self-care capability, so we can help ourselves before supporting others in the community. We have also featured Mindfulness and counseling skills workshops to equip our Rotaractors with relevant knowledge and skills. We also invited guests and experts to share with us on the tips.
Our kick-off ceremony was held on 18 November, where we were grateful to have Rotary International President Gordon Mclnally as our honorable guest to share his thoughts and have a dialogue with us. After the kick-off ceremony, we were glad to invite Counseling Psychologist VInci Chan to give us a mindfulness workshop to guide us through the concepts of “Metta” (loving-kindness) and equip us with the mediation skills. We also practiced concentration, non-judgemental observation and living in the moment in the workshop.
In February, we also conducted a workshop for our Rotaractors to further nurture emotional wellbeing through mindfulness and counseling skills, as well as care for the emotional wellbeing of those around us. Kudos to the Art Therapist Aaron who guided us through a journey of the Art of Recognising reactivity.
Training
Each year, First Step to Rotaract (FSTR) is featured providing on-boarding for our new university-based Rotaractor through interactive games and developing fellowships with other Rotaractors to create a support network. This year, our FSTR was held on 27-29 January at PLK Tai Tong Holiday Camp, with the introduction of Rotary and DEI by DG Andy and DDS Dennis, interactive games and a camp-fire dance session. Special Thanks to our Youth Service Committee Chair CP Joseph for coordinating to make the “real fire” happen.
Spring Gathering
It was the happiest time of the year, where Rotarians and Rotaractors gathered together to celebrate the joy of Chinese New Year together. Our Spring Gathering cum 2nd Joint Clubs’ Meeting was held on the 24th of February, with more than 200 Rotarians and Rotaractors joining to celebrate the success and happiness together. We wish everyone a happy and healthy year of the Dragon.
Public Image – World Rotaract Week (WRW)
Every year, the week of 13th March is denoted as World Rotaract Week, where Rotarians and Rotaractors celebrate the birthday of Rotaract together. We also make this opportunity to promote the good work of Rotary and Rotaract to the general public. In the past years, we organized concerts, outdoor camping and bazaar to celebrate this special occasion.
This year, with the theme “Capturing Cherished Moments”, highlights the idea that life is like a filmstrip, where each experience can only be captured once, making the memories invaluable.
We have organised a series of events with our Rotaractors to capture our cherished moments together.
WRW celebrations started off with a series of busking performances held in Tsim Sha Tsui and Mong Kok public area. We conducted 3 performance sessions, the performers were Rotaractors and friends. Apart from enjoying the music together, we also took this opportunity to promote our Rotaract branding to the community.
The core of WRW celebrations was the Carnival held in West Kowloon Cultural District on the 16th of March. We have set up 9 booths at the carnival, each offering an unique and engaging activity, to provide visitors with fun challenges and opportunities and have some fun together. We also had a photo booth and music performance to create a relaxing atmosphere to celebrate the Saturday afternoon together. DG Andy also took the chance to sing 海闊天空 at the venue.
The event was well-received by the general public and it was a wonderful experience for our teams. Kudos to Chair Victor and the organizing team for the hard work!
Apart from that, we also organised a video competition to invite our Rotaractors to share the cherished moments together.
Rotary International (RI) Dues for Rotaractors
As you might be aware, RI dues for Rotaractors have been in place since Rotary Year 2022-23. Rotaractors will be paying RI dues once per year, invoices will be issued in January, based on the membership snapshot as of 31st of December.
A few reminders to all Rotaractors and their Sponsoring Clubs’ Members:
1. Please be reminded to input all of your club’s members’ details in MyRotary. RI has started taking action to address the Rotaractor clubs with few members (1 / 2) registered in MyRotary.
2. Please ensure that you have assigned Club Officers in MyRotary (President, Treasurer and Secretary)
3. If you haven’t settled the dues for Rotary Year 2023-24, please settle it as soon as possible.
District Rotaract Team 2024-25
We were also glad to announce, our District Rotaract Representative 2024-25 Election has been successfully conducted on 01-03 March 2024. Timmy Lam from Rotaract Club of Hong Kong City North is now officially elected as District Rotaract Representative Elect. Congratulations to Timmy again. He will be partnering with PP Gabriel Wong from Rotary Club of Innovation Hong Kong to lead our Rotaract Community to another new height.