ROTARY clubs from across the South East and Western Victoria regions departed Mount Gambier on Sunday feeling like they had “made a difference” following an action-packed district conference held in the city over the weekend.
Inspiring speakers and world-class entertainment delighted the hundreds of Rotarians who converged on the city for the three-day Rotary District 9780 Conference.
District governor Ray Herbert said everything they had planned came to fruition, resulting in a “brilliant” weekend.
“Notable speaker Gill Hicks had a great message of ‘build it and they will come’ and they certainly did on the weekend,” Mr Herbert said.
“We were very pleased with how it all played out and the feedback we have had from people who have attended several conferences is that this was right up there with the best they have been to.”
The weekend included many highlights, notably a stunning jazz performance by the world-renowned James Morrison and Friends at Saturday night’s Erupt with Jazz at the Barn Palais.
“James’ talent is renowned and once we had negotiated him as a performer, it was very easy to attract people to the event,” Mr Herbert said.
“He is a musician, comedian, satirist and just the complete entertainer, it was an absolute privilege for people to be there in his presence on Saturday night.”
Quality speakers came from far and wide to share their stories at the conference and Mr Herbert said the synergy of their messages perfectly aligned with the underlying theme of peace and conflict resolution.
“To have so many people come and speak about how they have made a difference and really drive home our sub-theme of peace and conflict resolution was fantastic,” Mr Herbert said.
While all the speakers had left their own mark on the conference, none had the crowd more captivated than 2005 London bombings survivor Gill Hicks.
Losing both her legs in the attack, Ms Hicks told her inspiring story of how she found a purpose to make a difference, which led to a standing ovation from the crowd to cap off the conference on Sunday morning.
“Her organisation is called ‘M.A.D (making a difference) for peace’, which was a marriage made in heaven for us given that was the international theme of the conference,” Mr Herbert said.
“We were very lucky to have someone so aligned with that theme speak about her experience.”
While there was no shortage of entertainment, ultimately the weekend allowed hundreds of like-minded people to come together and share the difference they had made in the past 12 months.
“The thing with our service clubs is that all these people operate within their confined communities and are focused on the needs of those particular places,” Mr Herbert said.
“This conference allows everyone to come together in a social environment and renew friendships, while also sharing what they are doing and hopefully take away some learning from the other clubs.”
