Weekly Bulletin of

The Jerusalem Rotary Club Club # 13459, District 2490

27 February 2013

Club Officers President:

P/P Rafi Aldor

Secretary:

R/ Zvi Sharoni

Treasurer:

P/P Sandi Darmon

President Elect 2013-2014:

P/P Sandi Darmon

Immediate Past President:

P/P Elly Kenner

Board Members

P/P Rafi Aldor

R/ Yaron Amitai

R/ Art Braunstein

(Programme Chair)

P/P Richard Fain

P/P Marilyn Farber

P/P Elly Kenner

P/P Shlomo Khayat

R/ Michael Mertes

R/ Mike Rand

R/ Zvi Sharoni

P/P Kern Wisman

This Week’s Programme

PDG Gidi Peiper, Rotary International Director

2012-2014: “My Moments in Rotary”

Gidi Peiper studied Architecture in Amsterdam, graduated in

1968 and worked in the Netherlands as an architect until 1973,

when he returned to Israel and joined an Architect’s office in

Tel-Aviv as full partner. Today he owns the office which special-

izes in design of public buildings.

Gidi was chairman of 'Elah' - center for psycho – social support, President

of "Elah for everyone fund", Secretary of the Dutch Jewish Humanitarian

Fund, and Vice chairman of Platform Israel. He was granted the honorary

title of Knight – Ridder in the Order of Orange-Nassau by the Queen of the

Netherlands for his services to the Dutch community in Israel and abroad.

Gidi is married to Chen; they have two daughters and five grandsons. He

is a Rotarian since 1977, and is an active member and past president of the

Rotary club of Ramat-Hasharon.

Gidi Peiper served as District Governor 2490 in 1994-1995, and at present

is a Director on the board of Rotary International.

Dinner meeting at the Jerusalem International YMCA, Wednesday February

27 at 19:00 Upcoming Programme

March 6:

R/Aviva Kogus, "Olympics

Down Under"

March 10:

Special dinner meeting

with visiting Rotarians from

District 3230 in India and

District 2440 in Turkey

March 13:

No meeting

Future Events

March 6:

Monhly Board meeting

March 15-20:

Rotary “Lead for Peace”

conference

June 28-30:

RI Convention, Lisbon

Petite Fleur

French Chansons in Jerusalem

A team of 13 performers – singers, musicians and dancers – will present a

program of chansons in French with connecting remarks in Hebrew, at the

Jerusalem Theater, Thursday, March 14, 8:30 pm.

The program, now on its 100th performance tour, will include the classic

hits of Yves Montain, Edith Piaff, Charles Aznavour, Jacques Brell, Enrico

Macias, and others, with fresh musical arrangements.

Rotarians, spouses and their guests will receive a special discount on the

ticket price: NIS 70.-, instead of the NIS 120.- full price. Tickets are availa-

ble from the producers (050-7256366, round the clock) or at the Jerusalem

Theater box office (special price code: 0058).

We are told that Rotarians from other clubs in the District have liked the

performance. No guarantee!

2

Rotary International

Last Year’s Accomplishments

This past year was one of major accomplishments

for Rotary and your Rotary Foundation.

Extraordinary progress was made toward the

eradication of polio. We made history when India

was removed from the list of polio-endemic coun-

tries — leaving just Afghanistan, Nigeria, and Pa-

kistan. A difficult road lies ahead, but thanks to

the commitment and gen-

erosity of Rotarians and

friends, we are confident

that Rotary will lead the

way toward a polio-free

world.

We also expanded Rota-

ry’s reach in new and ef-

fective ways by entering

into partnerships with

Mercy Ships and UNESCO-

IHE. And we built on our record of humanitarian

service by continuing our strong relationships

with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, USAID,

Aga Khan University, Oikocredit and the Rotary

Peace Centers.

Over half a million young people worldwide par-

ticipated in our New Generations programs.

Their involvement in Rotary Youth Exchange,

Rotaract and Interact clubs, and RYLA events

helped them develop skills that they’ll need to

become service-minded community and global

leaders - and future Rotarians.

In 2012, The Rotary Foundation also earned top

marks from several independent charity evalua-

tors, including the American Institute of Philan-

thropy, Charity Navigator and the Wise Giving

Alliance.

As we look ahead, we can be proud of all that Ro-

tarians have accomplished. I am pleased to share

the digital version of the 2011-12 Rotary Interna-

tional and Rotary Foundation Annual Report (click

here), which offers a firsthand look at how Rotari-

ans are working to improve the lives of people in

need. I encourage you to review our annual re-

port carefully, and to share it with others who

may be interested in joining, partnering with, or

donating to Rotary.

Thank you for helping Rotary achieve lasting

change in your community and around the

world.

Sincerely,

John Hewko

General Secretary

Rotary International and The Rotary Foundation

Twitter: @johnhewko

International Toast

Niamey Croix du Sud, Niger

Democratic Presidential elections in Niger (the

first ones since Niger’s independence from France

in 1960) were held on 27 February 1993, exactly 20

years ago. They followed the constitutional

changes approved in

a referendum 1992,

which re-introduced

multi-party

democracy, and

were the first

presidential elections

to feature more than

one candidate.

In many countries, we can observe a link between

the emergence of democracy and the founding of

Rotary Clubs. Therefore, it comes as no surprise

that the Rotary Club of Niamey, Niger’s Capital,

was established in 1992. It defines itself as an

organisation of business and professional leaders

based in Niger who work to help poor and

vulnerable people in

the country. As part

of District 9100, the

club sponsors

projects designed to

improve health,

education and

development of

children and their families.

While the Club‘s blog does not reveal much about

their activities, we are told that the membeship

meets every Thursday at the Hôtel Gaweye at

19:00.

Niger is facing increased security concerns on its

borders from various external threats including

insecurity in Libya and spillover from the rebellion

in Mali. This is why our toast and our best wishes

should not only be dedicated to the RC Niamey

Croix du Sud, but to the people of Niger as a

whole.

Michael M.

3

Jerusalem Rotary Club

Meeting at the YMCA, 26 King David St, Jerusalem

Wednesdays at 13:00, last Wednesday of each month at

19:00. Meetings are conducted in English. Visiting Ro-

tarians and other guests are welcome.

Luncheon/Dinner cost: NIS 60, students and lone sol-

diers: NIS 20. For Kosher meals please book in advance.

For this and other enquiries e-mail the club Secretary:

zvi.sharoni@gmail.com

Visit our website:

www.JerusalemRotaryClub.org

Happy Hour

When in Rome…

The Baianas, residents of Bahia in Brazil are

known for their lax attitude to the serious busi-

ness of life. Here is how they queue up.

An idea to copy?

Sent in by reader Arnon Flint, Rio de Janeiro, Bra-

zil

You Are Here

The Hula Nature Reserve

The world famous Hula Valley is a real paradise

for birds and wildlife, and as such is a must for all

nature lovers.

The rich fertile valley supports a huge variety of

habitats from foothill savannah, fishpond com-

plexes, vast fields and impressive wetlands.

During the winter months around 30,000 Common

Cranes roam the valley and congregate at designated

and carefully managed feeding areas in order to re-

duce crop damage. The sights and sounds of these

impressive birds and the surroundings is what make

the Hula Valley so magical.

The “Agamon” - a mini-Hula lake, all that is left from

the original lake and marshes that were drained in the

1950s to make room for farmland, supports over 250

species of birds including large waterfowl concentra-

tions and excellent opportunities for viewing raptors

such as Greater Spotted and Eastern Imperial eagles.

The reserve also hosts impressive Papyrus (Paper

Reed) beds and other important natural habitats

for birds and wildlife.

A guided visit to the Hula Reserve will be one of

the highlights of this year’s annual outing to Peniel-

by-Galilee on 25-28 April. Register with David S.

Yaron A.