District Conference Ticks All the Boxes

Members of Rotary groups, including our own, from all over our Rotary District gathered just outside Oxford over the weekend of 18th to 20th October for the annual District Conference.

And the weekend was packed full of inspirational speakers, humour, fellowship and tales of success against enormous adversity.

From the moment delegates arrived on the Friday afternoon, there was lots to do, be it visiting the 'Rotary Showcase' where charities and other good causes were showing their projects and initiatives, networking with fellow Rotarians or simply enjoying the fellowship in the hotel bar.

The first evening was devoted to a two-course meal followed by entertainment from the fabulous Grace Lovelass, who presented her journey to becoming a professional mezzo-soprano, whilst singing some of her favourite songs and a good dose of audience participation!

Saturday morning was devloted to a series of excellent speakers, from the history of the Stepping Stones School in Malawi, a presentation on the work of the Border Force Maritime Command (from the son of our very own Sue Whitton), The Rotary Foundation, Spurgeons work with children of people sent to prison and a very emotional presentation on the value of bleed packs, from Lynne Baird who lost her son due to a lack of such help. Arguably the most emotional part of the morning, however, was from Dan Biddle, the most injured survivor of the the 7/7 London bombings, who brought the whole room to tears with the details of his battle against the odds after being sat next to one of the bombers on the London Underground.

During the morning, Swanage and Purbeck Rotary were delighted to receive a certificate for the No. 1 Club in District for donations to Foundation, as well as a certificate for donations to End Polio (pictured above).

Also during the latter part of the morning, District Governor Debbie Dunford bravely had her head shaved to raise money for End Polio Now, which has resulted in over £1,200 raised to date.

The afternoon was free time, allowing everyone time to explore the area. Then, in the evening, we had the Gala Dinner, an opportunity for everyone to dress in their finest dinner suit or party dress. Entertainment was provided by the Fifinellas, who sang songs from the 40s, 50s and 60s.

Sunday morning continued the theme of excellent speakers, covering topics such as female rights in Afghanistan, the importance of bees, and the Purple Community Fund who have been helping the poor of the Phillipines for many years. The morning concluded with a talk from Ken Wharfe, formerly Princess Diana's bodyguard, which both entertained and informed everyone present for more than an hour.

The weekend left delegates informed and energised and ready to go back to their own Rotary groups primed for action for the rest of the current Rotary year.