Pictures from Events taken throughout 2014

We had the pleasure of paying for two out of the five trees that were planted to represent the 50 years that Aldryngton School has been open. We donated £200 towards the total cost of £500 with each tree being planted by a representative from the school, the PTA, Rotary, the Mayor of Earley representing the Community and a representative from the group who sourced the trees. The School chose this day to plant the trees as part of National Tree Week.

Our Club arranged to have Santa visit a garden centre in Hare Hatch accompanied by a full entourage of reindeer, penguins and elves. Every year we help Santa at various grottos around Reading with a portion of the grotto entrance fees being given to Reading Maiden Erlegh for onward donation to charities and good causes.

As well as the Team prizes Rotary also awards a trophy for the best individual speaker. Pictured here is Tom Langer of the Piggott School receiving his Best Speaker trophy from Rose Burgess, the President-Elect of the Rotary Club of Reading Maiden Erlegh.

Pictured is the Piggott School team - Harry Bingham, Tom Langer and Emily Logan - receiving the Senior trophy from Rose Burgess, the President-Elect of the Rotary Club of Reading Maiden Erlegh.

On 11th November a group of 14 Rotarians visited the REME Museum at Arborfield. During the visit they joined other visitors and staff in the two minutes silence at 11 a.m.

The group heard about the history of the Corps of the Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers (REME), the engineering challenges of the many different types of military vehicles in the museum and finally were shown the display of medals awarded to REME soldiers.

Being a member of Rotary isn't all community work and fund raising. We also have an active social life including a regular Whist evening.

The Reading Art Exhibition - now in its seventh year - raised over £6,000 of which £5,000 will be donated to the Alexander Devine Children's Hospice. The Exhibition and Sale is held annually at St Joseph's College which is a great venue close to the town centre with excellent free parking; we very much appreciate the support they give us.

St Joseph’s College provides us with two large exhibition galleries which gives us lots of space and they have very good natural light from both sides. The Reading Art Exhibition is part of the Reading Cultural Partnership and supported by the Reading Guild of Artists who run a series of Workshops.The ever popular Art cafe, managed by Reading Maiden Erlegh Inner Wheel, serve first class home made cakes to go with our visitors’ tea and coffee.

With 1.2 million members worldwide, Rotary is far reaching. Because of Rotary’s vast international spread, we are in a unique position to be able to reach people in need all over the world, from running life changing projects in developing countries to making an immediate response to disaster-hit regions.

We have six clubs in the Reading area with 250 members who raise hundreds and often thousands of pounds for local charities and good causes. The clubs of Loddon Vale and Reading meet at lunchtime, Pangbourne, Reading Abbey and Reading Maiden Erlegh meet during the evening and Reading Matins meet for breakfast. Details of the various meetings can be found at www.rotary-in-reading.org.uk.

Members volunteer their time to serve their local communities through activities such as supporting community events and projects, running educational programmes, supporting local businesses or helping out at open days and fun runs. Many Reading businesses and professions are represented within our membership which provides excellent networking opportunities across the wider Reading area and links with other Rotary Clubs in the region.

If you would like to visit one of our club meetings then drop an email to Greg Wilkinson (greg1090@ntlworld.com) - pictured here - or Rose Burgess (r.burgess.1@btinternet.com) or use the Contact details on the website www.rotary-in-reading.org.uk.

The Rotary Young Leaders Award (RYLA) course, organised by Rotary clubs in Thames valley, was based in Rhos-y-Gwaliau, a small hamlet near Lake Bala in the Snowdonia National Park, North Wales. The first part of the course concentrated on team building activities. This was followed by learning new skills, including orienteering, rock climbing, abseiling, high rope walking, sailing, canoeing and slate mine exploration.

Katie, a Royal Berkshire Hospital clinical research trials assistant and Sarah, a biological sciences under-graduate at Reading University have both completed a physically and mentally challenging week in North Wales. They accompanied 32 other young people on a Rotary Young Leaders Award course known by its acronym of RYLA. Colin Moir, President of the Rotary Club of Reading Maiden Erlegh, presented both participants with framed certificates recording their successful completion of the RYLA course. He said, “It is always inspiring to see the value these young people get from their participation in RYLA”

Two 18-year-old local girls, Catherine and Katie experienced amazing adventures at their Rotary Youth Exchange Camps, a world-wide Rotary initiative for young people between the ages of 15 and 25. Catherine, a keen climber, attended the Thomas Kaiser Alpine Climbing Camp in Switzerland along with 22 other Rotary sponsored participants from 16 different countries. Both thanked Rotary for sponsoring them and said that their experiences had significantly improved their confidence, in addition to making many international friendships.

We organised a golf tournament that raised nearly £4000 for the Alzheimer's Society and other local causes.

The golf course got the better of some players but someone was overheard to say “Amazingly, I played with the same ball for 18 holes”.

No one got a hole-in-one when 72 golfers in 18 teams of four competed at the Sonning Golf Club but there was plenty of action.

The Royal Berkshire Hospital held their annual Walk for Wards sponsored charity walk on 13th July 2014 at Englefield Park, near Reading, Berkshire. B and Paul Cunningham – members of the Inner Wheel and Rotary Clubs of Reading Maiden Erlegh – are pictured here supervising a gate in the Park that had to be opened when walkers arrived, but otherwise kept shut to keep the deer in. This year over 247 people participated in Walk for Wards at Englefield Park helping to raise a staggering £14,000. For more information about the Royal Berks Charity and future fund raising events go to: http://www.royalberkshire.nhs.uk/get-involved/royal-berks-charity.htm

The Rotary year runs from 1-July to 30-June, and this year we had the sad duty to say thank you for an outstanding year to outgoing President Tim, seated to the right of the Rotary Wheel. However, we also had the pleasure of welcoming in our new President Colin for the year 2014/15, seated to Tim's left.

Rotary recognises distinguished service through presentation of an award named after Rotary's founder Paul Harris. As one of his last outgoing Presidential duties Tim had the pleasure and honour of awarding a 'Paul Harris' to Rotarian Robin for his outstanding contributions.

As one of his first duties President Colin - seen pictured here with his wife Maureen - attended our District Governor's handover dinner. This parallels the Club process and involves the outgoing 2013/14 District Governor handing over to the incoming District Governor for 2014/15.

The Club and guests spent a lovely evening celebrating our 25th Charter Anniversary Dinner. Our excellent guest speaker was Andy Robertshaw who was military advisor to the film Warhorse.

Seven instrumentalists and five vocalists performed in the final of this competition at St. Joseph's College, Reading. The two winners, Robert Cheung, piano and Francesca Power, vocalist, will move on to the regional final.

The video clip - shows the Waingels College Team who won the foundation level (11-14 years) of a Technology Tournament with their gripping device. The Technology Tournament was run jointly between the Rotary Clubs of Reading Maiden Erlegh and Loddon Vale and was held on 28th March 2014 at the Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers museum in Arborfield. Working against the clock, teams of four design and technology students were tasked to design and build a gripping device with which, a radioactive meteorite (tennis ball) could be safely handled from a distance.

President Tim Pascall presenting a cheque for £1000 to Hazel Walsh Atkins, local organisor of the charity SOBS, Survivors of Bereavement by Suicide.

Food donated from within the community is sorted and stored here before distribution to those who are in urgent need