The Rotary wheel has many cogs and continues to be energised by wonderful, committed people all around the world.
Thank you to all the people who attended the conference in Geelong. It was a privilege to share stories of philanthropic pursuit … a chance to reflect on ROMAC and Disaster Aid Australia (DAA) … and hear of other amazing projects DAA has played a major role in.
Thanks to the amazing support of our fellow Rotarian volunteers, Disaster Aid Australia was able to showcase our Family Survival tent, NFI (non-food items), clean drinking water solutions and solar lighting to fellow Rotarians at Conferences and Multi-District PETS. Our sincerest of thanks to all involved for your commitment and a huge thank you to District Governors, District Governors Elect, Club Presidents and fellow Rotarians for your support.
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| DART Charles Bender at D9800 Conference | DAA Director Peter Faulkner discusses the rebuilding of communities | Happy to talk DAA to fellow Rotarians |
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| GSE Team D3450 (Hong Kong) presents a donation for a Family Survival box | YEP students assist in the set-up at D9640 Conference | Stuart Robert, Shadow Minister for Defence, Science, Technology & Personnel and Gold Coast Benji with Jenni Heenan |
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| RC Endeavour Hills assisted by Shelley Stewart at RC Chadstone East Malvern Family Day |
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Following on from another successful deployment into the Philippines where we created four new communities for survivors following Typhoon Pablo, Disaster Aid Australia is again working with Rotary Ambassadorial Scholar Belkys Lopez and her not-for-profit organisation KUSH to ease the pain and suffering in South Sudan.
Importantly, Disaster Aid is also working with the Rotary Club of Juba and other NGOs to ensure life-saving aid, in the form of our Family Survival tents, additional mosquito nets and water solutions effectively reaches those most in need. We will concentrate, on this our third deployment, in the region of Abyei. This is truly Rotary in action.
DART (Disaster Aid Response Team) member and Rotarian Larry Agee from the USA said “Without the hard work and donations from all over the world, we would not be able to assist those marginalised. I wish I could convey to you the sheer enormity to a recipient of receiving our aid packages. You are doing more than providing a shelter when you donate, you are enabling a community and giving hope” he said.
The past two months has been a very rewarding time for Disaster Aid Australia. The rebuilding of four communities in the Ban-ao region is testament to the commitment of our amazing volunteer DARTs (Disaster Aid Response Teams) and our Deployment Manager, Ed Cox. Faced with a disaster zone, they never lost sight of our goal to make a difference by rebuilding communities for those who lost everything following Typhoon Pablo (Bopha). For six weeks they cleared thousands of coconut trees to make way for our communities to be built with the assistance of our valued partner in the Philippines, the Balay Mindanaw Foundation.
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| Making way for a new beginning … | Yes, the blue represents new communities and hope is reborn … |
