On 11th May 2022 Ballymoney Rotary club had a well attended evening meeting, including an excellent dinner, at the Old School House in Ballymoney. The speaker was Andy Brooking a senior producer/director and filmmaker who delivered a fascinating presentation regarding his career which included making prime time programmes for BBC (including Coast) and Channel 4 and making highly creative films (e.g. Titanic:A Tale of Two Journeys featured on The History Channel).
Andy holds the audience spellbound
Club President Gordon Robinson with Andy Brooking
Close to 100 people enjoyed our fundraising dinner on Wednesday May 25 at the Royal Court Hotel, Portrush. The guest speaker was BBC NI sports presenter Stephen Watson. Stephen shared interesting and amusing stories and personal experiences. He has twice had kidney transplants and is Patron of the NI Children’s Kidney Fund.
Charity Supper with Stephen Watson
A delicious dessert to round off an excellent dinner
Gordon Robinson, President of Ballymoney Rotary Club, and Past President Jimmy Dunlop
have just completed a fundraising walk which involved walking some distance in each
of the six counties in Northern Ireland. Known as the Fatlad Walkabout, (referencing
the initials of each of the counties and not the physical condition of the participants!),
the sponsored walk certainly did burn off lots of calories. The routes followed were
the wooden walkway at Cuilcagh Mountain, Fermanagh, also known as the Stairway to
Heaven, the Lagan Towpath from Stranmillis to Lisburn, Gortin Glen to Mullaghcarn
Hill in Tyrone, around the bridges in Derry/Londonderry, from Portadown to Poyntzpass
in Armagh and along the Coastal Path from Holywood to Bangor in Co. Down -
50% of funds raised from the walk will be going to the NI Children’s Kidney Fund and 50% to local charities.
ROTARY CLUB OF BALLYMONEY
OUTGOING PRESIDENT’S REFLECTIONS
ON THE YEAR TO 30 JUNE 2022
At the Presidential Handover meeting held in the Old Schoolhouse on 29th June outgoing President Gordon Robinson was in reflective mood as he addressed the members one last time.
“The Rotary theme for my year in office was “Serve to Change Lives”, so with that in mind I have been reflecting on the club activities over the last year to consider if we have done so locally, nationally and internationally.
Locally
1. Closing off the John Boy Project with a special computer which has enabled him to communicate with people. John has lost the ability to see and hear and now his life has been opened up again.
2. Black Santa appeal headed by Alistair Coyle but supported in the background by Rotary raised over £10,000 for 5 local charities all working to improve peoples’ lives.
3. Just One Life event attended by approx. 300 teenagers from our three secondary schools encouraging responsible driving
4. Tree planted in memory of all those whose lives have been impacted negatively by COVID.
5. Youth Leadership competition run in our secondary schools.
6. Partnering with North Coast Eco Warriors and serving the local community of the Newbridge Road by regular litter picking to keep the roadsides clear.
7. Distribution of monies raised to local charities changing lives:
Robinson Hospital Palliative Care Unit
St Vincent de Paul
Wave Trauma
Samaritans
The Quiet Garden Project providing a place of peace for the whole community
Salvation Army
Christians Against Poverty changing peoples’ lives by helping them work their way out of debt and poverty
Nationally
The Childrens Kidney Fund NI with monies raised by hosting an evening with Stephen Watson (BBC Sports Correspondent) in The Royal Court Hotel
British Heart Foundation collection at Tesco’s Ballymoney
Buxton Mountain Rescue -
Film and TV Charity, helping to keep the people behind the cameras in work, so we could enjoy those programmes we love to watch such as Coast.
Internationally
Providing funds for the Ukraine Appeal, Shelterbox and Aquabox emergency response to earthquake and flooding in Afghanistan. Funding for Schools in Africa, giving children a future and, our Lendwithcare project, which has helped thousands of people in Africa through working with enterprising entrepreneurs and is ongoing.
Foundation is Rotary International’s own charity which we support and in return get grants to enable us help others in our community.
We are a small club of about 20 active members but in the last year in addition to the Black Santa Money we have paid out £15,000 to the above network of charities with the lion’s share staying in our own community.
So, have we changed lives? Yes, I think so and I am immensely proud of the club members and what we have achieved this past year.
And now to the future and our new President Trevor Patton who has taken up the baton.
The theme this year is Imagine. Just imagine what more members could achieve in our
local community. We are a fabulous fun-
Fermanagh
Armagh
Tyrone
L’derry
Antrim
Down
Outgoing president Gordon Robiinson congratulates incoming President Trevor Patton at the Rotary handover meeting on 29th June 2022
JC Clapsaddle and Jack McGuire of San Antonio, Texas Rotary Club, along with Past President Gordon Robinson present an award to Sonia Tammen of WAVE at a recent event in Ballycastle Golf Club. The WAVE Trauma Centre has provided support to those bereaved, injured and traumatised as a result of the Northern Ireland Troubles, dealing with the legacy of our past and providing a safe haven for many still living with those scars.
Ballymoney Evergreen Club, Social Centre, Edward Street when in previous use
Dr. David McKeown, right, receives his award from Past-
DONATION FROM BALLYMONEY ROTARY CLUB TO THE EVERGREEN CLUB
Ballymoney Rotary Club welcomed representatives of Ballymoney Evergreen Club to their meeting on October 5th, 2022. A donation of £3,000 from Rotary International Foundation and Ballymoney Rotary Club was presented to Isobel Dunlop and Isobel Fleming, leading committee members of Ballymoney Evergreen Club.
Marie Louise McCleary, from Ballymoney Community Resource Centre (BCRC), reported on the major project in progress to renovate and revitalise The Social Centre, Edward Street, Ballymoney. Marie Louise has provided invaluable support to the Evergreen Club, assisting in drawing up a business plan and helping to generate funding and grants to complete the estimated target of over £288,000 to provide a fully renovated Edward Street Social Centre.
Ballymoney Evergreen Club was formed in 1956 and is Northern Ireland’s longest serving senior citizens club. The Social Centre Hall in Edward Street was built in 1965 with funds raised by the members and was an important community resource hosting tea dances, charity fundraisers, bingo, important birthdays, health therapies and many other social gatherings. In June 2019, the Evergreen Club was the recipient of the Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service in the Queen’s Birthday Honours List in recognition of its charity work and dedication to the senior and disabled members of Ballymoney and local area.
In 1983, Ballymoney Borough Council became responsible for upkeep of the Social Centre. Unfortunately the building was closed in 2018 by the local council and since then had fallen into further disrepair and vandalised damage. In August 2021, the Centre was then returned to full ownership of the Ballymoney Evergreen Club who appointed Trustees and a Committee to undertake the renovation project.
Isobel Dunlop and Isobel Fleming reported that the Evergreen Club now has over 100 members attending from Ballymoney, Coleraine, Garvagh, Ballycastle and the Causeway area. Presently over 80 members per week meet in the British Legion Hall and enjoy a variety of activities. Funding of initial target of £110,000 for Phase 1 of the refurbishment project has almost been met and will allow important work to secure and repair the building. The Social Centre can then be used for Evergreen Club meetings and also help to generate funds from other community groups or functions who wish to make use of the Social Centre facilities.
From left: Isobel Dunlop (Evergreen Club), Isobel Fleming (Evergreen Club), John Flynn (Ballymoney Rotary Club)
ROTARY GUEST SPEAKER 26TH OCTOBER 2022
DR SCOTT BROWN
Known locally for his work as a GP in Mountsandel practice for thirty years, Dr. Scott Brown was appointed Professor at the University of Ulster to set up a graduate entry medical school at Magee Campus and which opened in September 2021.
He is Vice Chairman of the Royal College of GP’s London for the last 3 years and Chair of the Northern Ireland Royal College of GP’s Council for 5 years. Dr. Brown is the longest serving Northern Ireland representative on London Royal College of GP’s Council (21 Years) and was awarded the Royal College of GP’s, Foundation Medal for Services to medical education in the UK and Africa.
Scott told the fascinating story of how, 30 years as a local GP, he ended up in Africa at University in Uganda and working with Fields of Life.
Find out more about Fields of Life at https://www.fieldsoflife.org/
The charity believes that if every young person is educated, skilled, fed, watered and safe, we can see a new generation, inspired by faith, hope and love, transforming their communities.
ROTARY CLUB OF BALLYMONEY -
AWARDED TO DR. DAVID McKEOWN
This prestigious award is made annually in memory of our founding President, Jack Pinkerton, esteemed father of our own Past President John Pinkerton. The award recognises the outstanding contribution made by an individual or group to the community of Ballymoney and district.
There is no doubt that this year’s winner has fully exemplified the Rotary motto ‘Service above Self’ in his profession life, for many charities and for Ballymoney Rotary Club over a long number of years.
A resident of Stewartstown, Co Tyrone, he attended Dungannon Royal School before training to become a Veterinary Surgeon at Glasgow University, arguably one of the best Veterinary Schools in the UK, before moving back to N. Ireland and starting to work in a veterinary practice with Harold Moore in Dervock. He would subsequently form a partnership with Liam Kearney at Knockanboy Veterinary Clinic, Dervock.
In his professional life, he would become well respected for his high standards of work, modernising both the practices of large and small animal care. During his working life he became acutely aware of the stresses and difficulties facing many, often isolated farmers and colleague veterinary surgeons in modern farming and veterinary practice.
After stepping down from veterinary practice, he worked for several years as a Director
of Veterinary Defence Union (VDU) during which time he counselled many vets who were
in financial, legal or health difficulties and trained many vets in preventative
practice to avoid professional legal or health problems. Indeed, the British Veterinary
Association has recently acknowledged this by presenting David with the Chiron Award.
This Award acknowledges lifetime achievements in veterinary science or outstanding
services to the profession and is judged as being of a standard that commands international
or inter-
On retirement from the VDU and not willing to fully retire, David became a Volunteer Counsellor with Samaritans based in Coleraine. In the past few years he has become the local Director, taking on responsibility for management, recruitment, training and fund raising for Samaritans in Causeway. He would probably not admit to the hours he works as a volunteer in this role, but there is no doubt that he has put Samaritans, Causeway, into a very healthy condition structurally and has helped to train and maintain a very committed and efficient team of volunteers. As Samaritans require to be fully funded from public funds, he has led from the front in fund raising to meet the required targets.
David has a long history of fundraising. A keen cyclist, many of his fundraising
events have involved cycling. Leading a Ballymoney Rotary Team to participate in
the Maracycle from Belfast to Dublin return in 1987, he helped raise about £8K towards
Polio Plus and NI Hospice and in 1992 a Rotary cycle event from Cork to Causeway
raised a similar amount towards funding a CT Scanner at Causeway Hospital. Soup Sunday
in September 1990, an event instigated and organised by David, was attended by around
1,000 people, the profits all going to charities. For 7 years with his son Brian,
he participated in the Prudential Ride 100-
A Past President of Ballymoney Rotary Club in 1990, David has served on many club committees, led or participated in many Projects, and has always been the life and soul of social events. David was widely respected at Rotary District level to help Ballymoney Club win several District Awards in the past. Latterly he was heavily involved in leading and organising the Dragonboats charity events.
The members of Ballymoney Rotary Club unanimously proposed David McKeown for the annual Jack Pinkerton Endeavour Award. His service to profession, charity fundraising, Rotary and in particular Samaritans has been exemplary, and it was felt that he greatly deserved the recognition of this award.