I wasn't wrong in thinking it would be a really busy weekend! I left home on Sunday at 08.00 and fortunately it was a beautiful day. The three hour drive to 'head office' was pretty straight forward at that time on a Sunday morning, and I arrived in time to find a large group of my fellow Governors happily chatting in the car park and waving to each new arrival. Having now worked together for over two years we are a pretty close knit group, and it is always great for us to meet up together.

At 11.00 we assembled in one of the upstairs meeting rooms around a large table and under the chairmanship of one of our number, to report on the Thanks for Life and crocus news in our districts. Some was very exciting from an event in Trafalgar Square on 1 October, to planting around The Angel of the North, at Castle Howard and many more. We brainstormed until lunch, and all in all it was an extremely useful and productive meeting.

After our sandwiches we assembled in the Council Chamber which is quite an imposing room in which we all have our own seat. The meeting is chaired by the RIBI President, Big Jim, but also at the head of the room are the Secretary/CEO, the RIBI Treasurer, the IPP and PE. To one side also in attendance are our RI Director and the President Nominee. We worked our way through the extensive agenda until about 18.00 when we made our way to check in at our hotel. We then met in groups to discuss a short presentation which had been put to us by the chairman of the RIBI Membership Committee and Head of Marketing, David Bryant, following which it was time for dinner and then bed.

On Sunday morning breakfast was at 07.30 before making our way back to the resumption of General Council. The weather was horrendous and the rain was coming down in sheets, but hey ho, we were all in the dry.

After a sandwich lunch and a quick chat among ourselves about what we had experienced and the decisions made, it was time to load our cars with the Crocus PR materials; a very wet job! I have to say, some of it was very heavy, so I will be doing a bit of body building before the next General Council meeting in case there is a repeat performance. It was then time to brace myself for a very wet drive home during which I encountered significantly more traffic than on the way up.

I arrived home just before 18.00 and as soon as I entered the house I felt absolutely shattered, but I wanted to attend my own club meeting where we were entertaining our new, young local MP, so i made myself a cup of tea and got my act together.

I was so pleased that I had made the effort, because I soon got my second wind and really enjoyed her presentation and listening to her answer the questions from our club members and visitors. I think it is safe to say, that a very good evening was had by all including our special guest.

Tuesday was definitely catch up and preparation day for the rest of the week. There had been no time or opportunity to deal with messages or emails while I was away and this is usually my first task each day.

On Wednesday lunchtime I made a very pleasant visit to RC of Teignmouth accompanied by DGN Graham who is endeavouring to familiarise himself with some of the clubs in south Devon.
It was still pouring with rain and I have a feeling that I may be developing webbed feet!

When I got home, having consulted with District editor Peter, I did some work for the Magazine which I believe is coming along very nicely.

Thursday saw me preparing for the District Executive meeting at Tiverton that evening along with a visit to the dentist. it's amazing how hard it is to fit in these personal things at the moment!

It was a long agenda and we didn't get away as early as I had hoped. This was probably my fault as I'm still on a learning curve, but I must try to get through the business more quickly. As it happens, we wouldn't have got home any sooner because we were held up for an hour and a half on the M5 by the horrendous accident that happened at about 21.00. I was pleased that I wasn't on my own because it's quite disconcerting sitting in a stationary car on a motorway in the dark.

I am now going to take a short break in the North of Italy to recharge my batteries so no blog next week. Hooray!

Another week; another month nearly at an end........

Having put last week's Blog to bed, read the forthcoming General Council papers and put in a little work for next week's club visits, this weekend provided some very welcome relaxation, with a couple of days spent taking in the fresh air and beauty of our countryside and coastline. We walked part of the South West Coast path from Coleton Camp and across Scabbacombe Head, and were blessed with excellent weather. The following day, still taking advantage ot the good weather, we attacked the area west of Plymouth including Rame Head.

On Tuesday morning it was necessary to get up at the crack of dawn---do you realise it was still dark? This must be service above self! I was making a visit to Exeter Southenhay for breakfast where they made me very welcome. It was a lively meeting in a very pleasant venue, and I much enjoyed my time spent with the members.

Tuesday evening saw us at the home and business of one of my own club members, where we were running children's entertainment, a disco and barbecue for the residents on his touring caravan site. Fortuitously, the weather held after a very worryingly wet morning! This is something we usually do three times during the summer, weather permitting, and proves to be not only a good fundraiser but also an excellent fellowship evening for the members.

On Wednesday I made my way to Sidmouth for lunch. Unfortunately the weather wasn't of the best to visit this very desirable place, which was very much a favourite spot for my late mother and her sister. I spent many a happy time taking my elderly aunt to Sidmouth in her later years, as it was the place she almost invariably chose if I was taking her out for the day.

The inclemency of the day was very much made up for by the hospitality and charm of the members of the Sidmouth club who made me very welcome, even to the extent of arranging for someone to park my car for me! I had a superb lunch and they made me feel very spoilt. Make a note: must go there again soon!

On Wednesday evening I paid a visit to Babbacombe and St Marychurch. This was obviously the day for Rotary gallantry because President, Charles also made a great fuss of me, and I much enjoyed our discussions during supper. This is another club that this District can be very proud of, and one which has really turned round in the last few years. They have a number of excellent major local projects on the go, and are actively and very successfully recruiting younger Rotarians.

For those of you looking to improve your club websites I would suggest you have a look what Babbacombe have done with theirs. It is excellent and very welcoming.

On Thursday I was up at the crack of dawn again, this time to visit Exeter Enterprise. Two breakfast meetings in a week, with a fair amount of driving involved certainly take their toll! They are an amazingly lively bunch for that time in the morning, and I can certainly recommend their excellent breakfast. There was a real buzz of conversation in the room and they are obviously a very vibrant club who will easily attract younger members.

Following the meeting to Enterprise I went over to Buckfastleigh for an editorial meeting of the magazine, where I spent a very stimulating hands on six and a half hours helping with the compilation of the next District Magazine. We really are working very hard to get this right and make it, not only something that this District and its members can be proud of, but also a good PR and marketing tool for us to use, particularly in our membership recruitment.

Here I am on Friday; shortly I have a mini Conference Meeting with Conference Manager David and Jan Lewis who will be looking after registrations.

Friday is usually the day when I update the blog and make the initial preparations for the following week. It is slightly different today because I have to prepare for a two day General Council Meeting at Alcester which starts on Sunday and is preceded, this time, by a meeting with our Thanks for Life coordinators. I guess it will be a busy weekend!

Another week begins.......

The new week started with my own Club meeting on Monday evening. I really enjoy being at home in Totnes because it gives me a chance to sit back, relax and enjoy the vitality and fun of my own club.

Tuesday saw me at Otter Valley. They have are just coming to the end of their very successful project Sail4Heros and are still on a high. The project was run in cooperation with Ottery St Mary 41 Club. Chris Highnam, RC Secretary sailed his yacht, Stenfis from Sutton Harbour, Plymouth to HMS President which is permanently moored on the Thames and where a promissory note was handed over to Simon Weston on behalf of the charities. The journey followed the South Coast of England taking in all of our naval ports as well as passing many of the home bases of our armed forces.

On the journey Chris was accompanied each day by another sailor plus at least one injured service person. There was also room on the boat for two more people who paid a sponsorship fee to join a day of the sail.

The sail was supported by a land team, and also by many Rotary Clubs along the way, showcasing the power of clubs and Districts working together.

Very well done Otter Valley!

On Wednesday I attended a meeting of the District Youth Opportunities Committee chaired my Gordon Peacock of RC Exeter Enterprise. The members of the committee are an exceptional team working very hard and devoted to providing exciting opportunities to develop and foster the skill of our young people in District 1170. Please keep an eye on the Youth Opportunities page on the District website as it gets updated with the latest information, and use the committees knowledge and skill if you need any help or advice in this area

Thursday saw me visiting another of our clubs; this time Dartmoor Vale of Santa Special fame, an amazing project and something which never ceases to touch the hearts of all those who experience it.

They are seriously considering sponsoring a RYLA student this year. This is an area of Youth Service that I would commend to you all. Run by RC Okehampton in this District, RYLA is an underused resource with only 18 participants this year. It is a fantastic opportunity for these youngsters, and they definitely find inner strengths and capabilities that they didn't know they had.

Dartmoor Vale made me very welcome, and I much enjoyed my evening in the company of President Anthony and the members.

A new month begins....Rotary Membership Development and Retention Month.

Well, it's Monday again! How time flies; I can't believe that we are into the second month of the Rotary year.

Today I visited two fairly small clubs, both of which manage to carry out service projects and social activities of which bigger clubs would be proud. I had a super lunch with Honiton in pleasant company at their lovely country retreat. Mind you, I did for a few moments wonder where Jane, my 'sat nav guide' was taking me! After the meeting I travelled home to tie up a few more Rotary ends before travelling to Seaton, were I was due at their evening meeting. They meet at a small private hotel in Colyford where I was provided with a splendid supper; I can certainly recommend the fish. It turned out to be a business meeting and these are of great interest to District Governors. It's quite amazing how much you learn about a club, and shows how very bad we are at blowing our own trumpet and how much of our good work we don't make public.

Mid afternoon on Tuesday, Les and I made our way back to Exeter and along the A30 to Great Torrington. The club meet at the Black Horse Inn which is reputedly one of the oldest Inns in North Devon and was originally a 16th Century coaching inn with civil war connections. It is a venue full of character and charm. Torrington have recently changed their meeting time from lunch to 6.30 p.m. and are finding it to be very successful, adding a new dimension of leisure to their meetings, as they no longer have to watch the clock. They were also glowing from the recent success of a Sunday Lunch fundraiser that they had just run. There was much talk of Cornish comedian Johnny Cowling who had entertained them and made them laugh so much that they cried!

On Wednesday District Editor Peter and I had a working lunch with 1290 District Communications Chairman Ken Sharp, and Geri Parlby, current President of the Tavistock club but also of RePOD fame, who wanted to discuss District magazines with us. We had a very useful meeting and they went back to Cornwall to consider what they had seen and heard.

Wednesday evening, being the first one of the month, was our regular Conference Committee meeting. This is a mammoth task for Conference Manager David and the members of the Totnes club, but they are very much taking it into their stride and all the signs are good for a bumper conference in February. Watch this space!

CONFERENCE 2010-2011

25-27 February 2011

Langstone Cliff, Dawlish Warren

(Golf Competition 24-02-2011)

On Thursday I was back on the road to visit Crediton club for lunch. Another warm welcome and another very good lunch. This club has been organising the Young Technologist Competition, but it seems they need to pass the arrangements on to another club this year and are looking for volunteers, so please let them know if you can help.

August is Rotary membership and extension month, and that couldn't be more appropriate for District 1170 at present. Thursday evening saw the first planning meeting for the Exeter and Exmouth clubs who are to be involved in the membership recruitment campaign for which we have won RIBI marketing and PR support. This is due to the hard work and vision of District Membership Chairman, Nova to whom our sincere thanks must go.

This is an amazing and exciting opportunity, not only for his group of clubs to work together, but for this District to have some really substantial gains in its membership, not only in and around the city of Exeter but also further afield. With the right mindset and determination we can make a real difference. It is a one off chance and we will not let it slip through our fingers.

Membership must be at the forefront of our thinking whatever we are doing if Rotary is to thrive in this District and these islands. Without members we cannot carry out service, so it must be a fundamental and integral part of all our activities.

Please remember to consider the membership dividend in all your activities.

On Sunday 18 July Les and I had the pleasure of attending Rotoproj, the fantastic District Project run by the two Rotary Clubs in Kingsbridge. In the morning at about 10.30, the coaches arrived carrying the five hundred plus disadvantaged young people and adults who had been invited for a day out. Many of them had been looking forward to it for months, having attended the event for several years. They spent the morning enjoying the thrills of the fun fair rides, generously donated for the occasion by David Rowlands and his family. In the background a jazz group was playing, and clowns on stilts were walking about.

Soon it was lunch time and everyone made their way to the sports hall were they feasted on Cornish pasties, crisps, chocolate bars and fruit, all washed down with a fizzy drink. After lunch it was time to rearrange the hall for the entertainment and disco. I think it’s safe to say, judging by the smiles and laughter, that a great day was had by all, including the Rotarians who turned out in force from several local and not so local clubs to help and give their support.

Monday 18 July saw us back on the road with a lovely picturesque journey up to lunch with RC Holsworthy. President, Pam was a great host and we much enjoyed our visit. We were very graciously hosted to tea and biscuits in the afternoon by Governor Nominee Graham Smith and his wife Pauline, and it gave Graham and me a great opportunity to discuss topics of interest to Governors and Governor Nominees before making our way to Hatherleigh for their evening meeting. They were most welcoming and I was very impressed by the amount of money that they manage to raise for good causes working together with Crediton Boniface to run a two day Beer Festival.

As we left Hatherleigh, just as it was getting dark, the heavens opened and we experienced a dark and very wet drive in torrential rain up to Ilfracombe, where their club President Ian had kindly offered a night’s B&B before our visit to his club
The following morning there was little improvement in the weather but we braved the elements to make our way down into the town to visit St Nicholas Chapel and lighthouse on Lantern Hill, renovated and looked after by the Rotary Club of Ilfracombe and open to visitors. It is a tiny Chapel dating from 1321 and is a great project giving the club a very high profile in the community.

At lunchtime we attended a meeting of the club, who were very welcoming and gave us an insight into some of the things that they do, following which, after tea and biscuits with Ian and Cynthia, we made our way in pouring rain back southward, to visit RC Crediton Boniface for supper.

Boniface is a small club in numbers but certainly punches above its weight in terms of many of its efforts. One of their community projects is to plant and maintain planters at the entrance to the town. What a great PR exercise! I was very flattered that I was even treated to a special Grace written for the occasion! Thank you Slim.

'When I was young, of tender years with spots upon my face
I'd take a tranny into bed for Journey into Space.
Then TV came and sci-fi grew, our heads still turned to Heaven,
And on our screens came into view that awful show Blake's Seven.
But colour sets and new effects and techniques of the highest tech
Gave rise to Scotty, Kirk and Spock and all that makes that great Star Trek.
And now our new DG will go where others fear to go,
Where Klingons wait to ambush her, that's right it's on the road to Bow.
But Carole fear not you're safe with us, please dine and have some fun,
And when you've drunk the final toast it's Totnes Warp Factor 1.'

Rtn Slim Savage 10 July 2010

Tuesday evening saw me attending a meeting of the District Training Committee. We are so lucky to have such a strong and talented committee carrying out this essential job under the very able leadership of PDG George Kempton. Last year the whole of the District training and development programme was revised and modernised, and the committee are now consolidating their approach for this year, and incorporating the lessons that have been learned from last year's programme.

On Thursday it was back again to North Devon for lunch with Rotary Club of Bideford. Another happy occasion where I was delighted to receive greeting from the ladies of Inner Wheel. Bideford were busy finalising their arrangements for their Water Festival, and I am sure it will make a large splash and be a wonderful success.

On Friday I hosted a meeting of the District Continuity Committee in my home (we take it in turns). This is the committee where past governors and those in the succession chain, discuss items that will ensure the smooth running of this District from year to year, so that we can avoid the dreaded 'stop/start Rotary'.

Sunday saw Totnes Rotarians out in force to man the car parking for the Totnes Show. This was the first time that it hadn't been held on a weekday, and it was a real success with the weather being kind and the sun shining.

After attending my own club meeting on Monday 26 August, I headed up to South Molton for lunch on Tuesday. I arrived a little early so that President, Kathy could take me along to see their Charity shop and meet some of its staff. It is an amazing effort as it runs the whole year round, under the leadership and guidance of club member Helen Macintosh. It has also gained a reputation for its sale of school uniforms which has raised its profile in the town.

On Wednesday we were back up to North Devon again. This is now a well worn track, and I am getting more familiar with the journey. It's amazing how you spot something different every time you go. Bideford Bridge meet at the oldest Golf Links in England where they are very spoiled by the culinary expertise. It was a lively meeting where we were made very welcome by President, Steven and all the members. Bideford Bridge run the very impressive 'Breath of Life' project supplying simple anesthetic machines to third world countries where they save the lives of many young babies and their mothers.

Following another night of B&B with George and Margaret Kempton we left for lunch at Okehampton. We had managed to choose a time when most of the roads in Okehampton seem to be closed, but with fantastic instructions from President Andy, we found our way to their temporary home at Okehampton Golf Club with ease. This is another lively club, and I have to say, that it is a real joy to sit back and listen to the buzz of conversation and friendly banter as I make my visits.

Friday morning saw me back in Okehampton for the RYLA awards. This is such a terrific programme for our young people, and I would urge all our clubs to seriously consider sponsoring at least one candidate. They learn so much from it.

Wow! A weekend off! Just some preparation for next week.