On October 24, our Club invited Ms. Candy Lok, a therapist specializing in play therapy and filial therapy to give a talk on her expertise. Ms. Lok introduced to our members the basic concepts and theories of play therapy, and explained how play action can reveal a great deal about the psychology of a child. While her work focused on children from talking age up to mid teens, she explained that the concept could very well be applied to other age groups, including infants. In general, Ms. Lok explained that visual observation and listening were as important in understanding children’s feelings as asking the right follow up questions at the right time. Ms. Lok also shared with us a number of anonymized cases in which a simple painting or sand play can reveal a great deal about how a child thinks.
Poliomyelitis is a highly infectious disease that most commonly affects children under the age of 5. While polio cases have dropped in recent years, there has been a recent resurgence of the disease in areas thought to have been polio free. Although there is no cure, vaccination is safe and effective in immunizing children and reducing the risks of further outbreaks. For over thirty years, Rotary has contributed more than $1.8 billion to fight the disease. On October 19, over 500 Rotarians in Hong Kong and Macau gathered together to raise awareness of the disease and to raise more funds to help to vaccinate children in impoverished communities around the world.
On October 10, our Club invited Ms. Angel Cheng, founder of Build A Music School (B.A.M.S), to give an overview of the project. B.A.M.S. is a non-profit project aimed to partner with the local community to build a music school in Keng Tung, in the Golden Triangle area of Myanmar. Through music training, B.A.M.S. aims to bring the joy of music to the impoverished children of the area. Ms. Angel Cheng traced her path from a Christian missionary brought to the region to share the words of Gospel, to a music educator and community developer aimed to bring the joy of music to a region ravaged by drugs and warlords.
On October 9, President Mark Tong, together with Charter President Patrick Poon and Past Presidents Grace Yen and Webster Ng, attended the Club Installation of the Interact Club of King’s College. Principal KC Tang also attended the Installation and gave an encouraging speech to the Interactors. President Mark and Charter President Patrick also gave uplifting words to the Interactors, at a time of social unrest. Outgoing President Tom Lam gave a report of his achievements in the previous year, while Incoming President Marx Wong outlined his ideas for the coming year. The new 15-strong committee was pinned by President Mark and Charter President Patrick, with over 30 Interactors and school staff as witnesses.
President Mark Tong, Past President Webster Ng and Rotarian Jason Ling traveled to Taipei on September 28 to participate in Rotary Run 2019 the following day, organized by Rotary Club of Taipei Mingmen, our Sister Club. The competition course, located in the hilly part of Ruifang District in New Taipei City, was specially designed by PP Kent Yen of RC of Taipei Mingmen, a seasoned runner who is never shy of pushing the boundaries. As such, the course meandered across the hillside of Ruifang, and included a steep altitude climb of nearly 500 meters followed by a rapid descent, all within a 4km segment of the course. PP Webster, who attempted that treacherous segment, confessed that it was one of the most insane and challenging runs he has ever experienced, certainly not helped by intermittent torrential rain throughout the morning. That said, all three agreed that it was one of the most unique and beautiful scenic runs ever attempted. For the occasion, the three of us, together with additional contributions from Past President CK Wong, raised 40,000 TWD for our Sister Club to distribute to various charities, including a food bank and a local secondary school.
On September 28, Past President Grace Yen attended the Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) / Automatic External Defibrillation (AED) Education Project 2019-2020 Launch Ceremony at Hong Kong St. John Ambulance Headquarters. The project, organized by our Area 3 friends from Rotary Club of Hong Kong Northeast, is sponsored by our Club. As part of our sponsorship, 20 of our Interactors and their teachers shall have the opportunity to learn basic CPR/AED skills. Past President Grace collected a certificate of appreciation from our District Governor Wilson Cheng and President Heidi Lee of Rotary Club of Hong Kong Northeast, the organizer of the Project.
On September 26, our Club’s first Assembly of RY19-2 was held. Many topics were discussed. Before the official start of the Assembly, a short ceremony was held to present Paul Harris Fellow (+4) pin to Past President Samuel Chung. Congratulations to Past President Samuel for achieving a new philanthropy milestone!
On September 21, President Mark Tong, Past President WT Wong and Rotaractors Anuj Bhatia and Cindy Effendy attended the District Peace Night Dinner at Regal Kowloon Hotel. Rtrs Anuj and Cindy are respectively from India and Indonesia. Our Club arguably sent the most internationally diverse group of attendees to Peace Night (if one also counted el niñito, the Mexican cowboy…)
On September 21, Club members attended District Public Image Seminar at Regal Hongkong Hotel. Perhaps “attending PI Seminar” was not the most appropriate description: our Club members, including Past District Governor Belinda Yeung, Past Presidents Grace Yen, Angela Hui and Dora Liu, and Immediate Past President Lily Chan all have important roles and duties in the District Public Image Committee, led by Chair Past District Governor Belinda, and were instrumental in the planning and execution of this Seminar. On this same day, the Committee unveiled the Rotary People of Action Photo Competition, which is surely one of the most high-anticipated events in this Rotary year.
After our meeting with the District Governor, we jetted to HKU Alumni Association for our monthly Board meeting. The meeting was nourished with excellent food from the kitchen, with a menu specially crafted by Rtnne. Catherine and input from Charter President Patrick Poon. Our Board members and observers continued the Connect-The-World Wine Program with two wines: a Malbec from Patagonian Argentina, and an Aglianico from Campania, Italy. Past President Kay Lau, an expert in wines, gave us an overview of how to appreciate the two wines on offer. When Board members were not too fixated on aromas and finish, we turned our attention to Club affairs, with special focus on various service projects, including those with local service partners and those with sister clubs abroad.