Events

The speaker for this week is

Richard Westlake

one of our own.

His topic is, "The story of Richard's father and the war."

Please register for yourself and any guests no later than 6pm Sunday 13 July with details of any dietary requirements, so that we can advise attendance information to the Wellington Club. Please note - if you dont register and turn up - there may not be any breakfast available.

Duties for the meeting:

Desk - 6.45am          Paula Smith McKnight

Greeter                    

Kaikohau                  Heather Lucas

Opening Thought  Hadleigh Petherick

Introduction            David Quinn

Thanking                   Marc Rands

Sharing                      Tony Robinson

Parting Thought        Mike Selvaduai

Club Reporter            David Shackleton

If you are unable to perform your duty please get someone else to stand in for you and advise Jo Douglas (joanna.douglas1954@gmail.com) and President Nicole Barker (nicolebarker883@gmail.com) who the replacement is.

Notes for the coming weeks meeting:

• RSVP no later than Sunday 13 July, 6pm (Best do it now). 
• Please make sure you register to assist the Wellington Club staff. No registration could mean no food and no seat.
• If you have any dietary requirements, please note them in the comments section of the registration
• Include your email address and mobile phone number in the response
• If you wish to bring guests/spouse/partner, please add them when you register
• Remember to click "Save" at the bottom of the page
• If you do not receive a confirmation immediately after you have registered, you have not completed the process.

Perambulators Hike Dry Creek Loop

coffee or lunch afterward (place to be decided)

Sunday 20 July

9.15 meeting for 9.30 start

This perambulation will start at the Dry Creek Campsite - entrance off Haywards Hill near the quarry on the Lower Hutt side - please ask if you are not sure - Peter or Lou will be able to help. 

Dry Creek Loop is a well-formed and well-marked track easy to follow. The beginning is steep but once you have gained a bit of altitude the rest is up and down and very manageable. There are amazing views from the top and along the walk. The track is about 8km and should take us about 2 - 3 hours.

Bring a drink and snacks for a wee break at the top, good walking (hiking) shoes, jacket, poles (if you have them), hat and gloves. The weather can change so make sure you have enough clothes with you if it turns cold or wet.

At the end of the hike we will go to a Cafe (place to be decided) and have either  coffee or some lunch - or both!

Bring family and friends - all welcome. 

Register so we have an idea of who is coming - but it will be also OK for extras to turn up on the day.

Looking forward to this one - see you there.

Lou and Peter

This week is the first of our monthly evening meetings

The speaker is

Grace Curtis

From Cool Change NZ

Grace is a mental health advocate and author. She currently works as a Ministerial Advisor/Media for the Government. Prior to her current role, she worked as a Communications, Research and Policy advisor to an MP in Parliament. and was a solicitor. She graduated from the University of Canterbury with a double degree in Law and Arts, majoring in Political Science, minoring in Psychology.

As well as her day job, she works in community-based mental health advocacy, including being an Ambassador for Movember to raise money and awareness for men’s health.
Her book ‘The Best is Yet to Come’ - a better mental health for all New Zealanders - launched in June 2025, with author proceeds going towards mental health in New Zealand.

Please register for yourself and any guests no later than 6pm Sunday 20 July with details of any dietary requirements, so that we can advise attendance information to the Wellington Club. Please note - if you dont register and turn up - there may not be any breakfast available.

Duties for the meeting:

Desk - 6.45am         Ryan Donovan

Greeter                    Victoria Triegaart

Kaikohau                  Jo Durrant

Opening Thought  Andy Ellis

Introduction            Brent Gerrard

Thanking                   Tony herring

Sharing                      Hadleih Petherick

Parting Thought        Lisa King

Club Reporter            Jo Douglas

If you are unable to perform your duty please get someone else to stand in for you and advise Jo Douglas (joanna.douglas1954@gmail.com) and President Nicole Barker (nicolebarker883@gmail.com) who the replacement is.

Notes for the coming weeks meeting:

• RSVP no later than Sunday 20 July, 6pm (Best do it now). 
• Please make sure you register to assist the Wellington Club staff. No registration could mean no food and no seat.
• If you have any dietary requirements, please note them in the comments section of the registration
• Include your email address and mobile phone number in the response
• If you wish to bring guests/spouse/partner, please add them when you register
• Remember to click "Save" at the bottom of the page
• If you do not receive a confirmation immediately after you have registered, you have not completed the process.

REMINDER for those not yet registered

The Rotary Clubs of Port Nicholson, Karori and Wellington invite you to attend:
Business Breakfast Programme

Registration closes Friday 11 July - this Friday

Guest Speaker: John Allen, Chief Ombudsman

John Allen succeeded Peter Boshier as Chief Ombudsman in March 2025. He was formerly chief executive of Wellington NZ; of the New Zealand Racing Board; the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade and the New Zealand Post Group.

Meeting Date/Time: Wednesday 30 July 2025, 7:00am – 8:30am

Meeting Location: The Wellington Club, 5th floor, 88 The Terrace

Registration and Payment
The function cost is $35 a head, including breakfast. Please indicate any dietary requirements in your registration.

Please let us know by Friday 11 July if you plan to attend.

For Port Nicholson Rotary Club Members please register in the normal way.

For non Club members please email Louise Bray-Burns at lbrayburns@gmail.com with the names of those attending and a contact phone number. Please include "Business Breakfast" in the subject line. 

Payment to be made in advance via Internet Banking to the Rotary Club of Port Nicholson, account 03-0502-0132476-00. Please include your name and BB2507
in the reference. 

Please pass this invitation on to others that may be interested.

Flashback Friday 187 Bar

187 Vivian Street - entrance 211 Victoria Street

1 August 2025 12pm

Our next Flash Back Friday will be at the bar owned by Hadleigh Petherick - one of our own. The entrance to the bar is 211 Victoria Street.

187 has a small but efficient kitchen and serves a range of craft beer, wine, spirits and cocktails.

We are booked for 12pm on 1 August (the birthday of one of our regular and esteemed  members). Please register and bring along friends and family and let's support Hadleigh as he embarks on this venture. It would be good to let Hadleigh know numbers by Thursday 31 July.

Looking forward to seeing a good group of us with friends and family there.

Lou :)

The speaker for this week is

Belinda Hinimoa

Chief Executive

Social Service providers Aotearoa

Belinda is CEO of Social Service Providers Te Pai Ora o Aotearoa. She whakapapa's to Ngāti Apa and Ngāti Hauiti in the Whanganui/Rangitīkei rohe and was raised in Kaikohe in Tai Tokerau. She has lived in Wellington since the mid 90s and her son is studying at Auckland University.

She has worked in the social, justice and international policy areas in government. She has worked across youth justice, youth development, child abuse, family violence, sexual violence and education sectors and most recently led the Policy and Research function at the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in Care.

Belinda is an avid connector of people and have rich intergenerational professional and personal networks.

Outside of the office, she is President of the Zonta Club of Wellington which aims to build a better world for women and girls. She loves being active and is a keen gardener, photographer and love exploring new places.

REMINDER - Flashback Friday is this week 1 August - 12pm 187 Bar All welcome :)

Please register for yourself and any guests no later than 6pm Sunday 3 August with details of any dietary requirements, so that we can advise attendance information to the Wellington Club. Please note - if you dont register and turn up - there may not be any breakfast available.

Duties for the meeting:

Desk - 6.45am         Geoff Smith       

Greeter                    Lindsay Chitty     

Kaikohau                 Jo Douglas    

Opening Thought  Brad Weekly

Introduction            Darryl Ross

Thanking                   Dawn Sanders    

Sharing                      Mike Selvadurai  

Parting Thought        Peter Whittington   

Club Reporter           Julian Bateson    

If you are unable to perform your duty please get someone else to stand in for you and advise Jo Douglas (joanna.douglas1954@gmail.com) and President Nicole Barker (nicolebarker883@gmail.com) who the replacement is.

Notes for the coming weeks meeting:

• RSVP no later than Sunday 3 August, 6pm (Best do it now). 
• Please make sure you register to assist the Wellington Club staff. No registration could mean no food and no seat.
• If you have any dietary requirements, please note them in the comments section of the registration
• Include your email address and mobile phone number in the response
• If you wish to bring guests/spouse/partner, please add them when you register
• Remember to click "Save" at the bottom of the page
• If you do not receive a confirmation immediately after you have registered, you have not completed the process.

The speaker for this week is

Tina Curtis

Chief Operating Officer

EARS Hearing Limited

Tina's topic is "Hearing loss and industry."

Please register for yourself and any guests no later than 6pm Sunday 10 August with details of any dietary requirements, so that we can advise attendance information to the Wellington Club. Please note - if you dont register and turn up - there may not be any breakfast available.

Duties for the meeting:

Desk - 6.45am          David Quin     

Greeter                    Tony Robinson

Kaikohau                 Brent Gerrard

Opening Thought  Rick Hughes

Introduction            Richard Brodie

Thanking                   Andre Lategan  

Sharing                     Jeff Lee

Parting Thought        Everard Aspell  

Club Reporter           Paula McKnight

If you are unable to perform your duty please get someone else to stand in for you and advise Jo Douglas (joanna.douglas1954@gmail.com) and President Nicole Barker (nicolebarker883@gmail.com) who the replacement is.

Notes for the coming weeks meeting:

• RSVP no later than Sunday 10 August, 6pm (Best do it now). 
• Please make sure you register to assist the Wellington Club staff. No registration could mean no food and no seat.
• If you have any dietary requirements, please note them in the comments section of the registration
• Include your email address and mobile phone number in the response
• If you wish to bring guests/spouse/partner, please add them when you register
• Remember to click "Save" at the bottom of the page
• If you do not receive a confirmation immediately after you have registered, you have not completed the process.

Richard Fletcher

Richard will talk about Libertine and the state of the New Zealand film industry.

Producer and Co-President of SPADA (the Screen Production and Development Association), Richard Fletcher has worked on Vincent Ward's River Queen, and helped arrange foreign finance for movies The Strength of Water and Under the Mountain. Fletcher is Managing Director of production company Libertine Pictures. 

Reminder

Flashback Friday Ernesto's Restaurant and Bar

This Friday 29 August 12pm

Please register by Wednesday this week

Would love to see you there :)

After a big discussion with Joy about Wellington On a Plate we thought we would try Ernesto's. A great thought until we found out the they stop doing their WOP burger the week before we had booked! Never mind - we thought we will give it a try.

So here we go. Our next Flashback Friday is Friday 29 August, 12 pm at Ernesto's - an easy place for us all to find and meet. This has a cuban style atmosphere and is based on the man of the famous author. They have a great range of cuban style foor and a good wine list and a few craft and standard beers.

Lets give this one a try - quite different to what we normally do. Hope as many of you as possible can make it :)

Remember to invite friends and family and pop them on the registration form so we can let the restaurant know numbers. If we could have registrations by 27 August 7pm that would be great. This will probably be the last Flashback until late October with Peter and I both away :)

See you there.

Lou

In case you had a problem with registering this is the same invitation slightly amended. It also has the duites for next Wednesday.

The speaker for this week is

Charlotte Perkins, Margaret and Whitney

Charlottes topic is "Arohanui Strings”

Arohanui Strings transforms lives through music by teaching ensemble playing for free in Lower Hutt and Wellington City. Charlotte comes to us with two other, Margaret and Whitney who is a young performer

Please register for yourself and any guests no later than 6pm Sunday 31 August with details of any dietary requirements, so that we can advise attendance information to the Wellington Club. Please note - if you don’t register and turn up - there may not be any breakfast available.

Duties for the meeting:

Desk - 6.45am          Jo Douglas

Greeter                      Yon Yi

Kaikohau                  Mark Rands

Opening Thought   Tony Robinson

Introduction            Dawn Sanders

Thanking                 David Barnes

Sharing                    Richard Brodie

Parting Thought      Brad Weekly

Club Reporter          Paula McKnight

If you are unable to perform your duty please get someone else to stand in for you and advise Jo Douglas (joanna.douglas1954@gmail.com) and President Nicole Barker (nicolebarker883@gmail.com) who the replacement is.

Notes for the coming weeks meeting:

• RSVP no later than Sunday 31 August, 6pm (Best do it now). 
• Please make sure you register to assist the Wellington Club staff. No registration could mean no food and no seat.
• If you have any dietary requirements, please note them in the comments section of the registration
• Include your email address and mobile phone number in the response
• If you wish to bring guests/spouse/partner, please add them when you register
• Remember to click "Save" at the bottom of the page
• If you do not receive a confirmation immediately after you have registered, you have not completed the process.

In case you had a problem with registering this is the same invitation slightly amended. It also has the duites for next Wednesday.

The speaker for this week is

Len Cook
Government Statistician

The population storm and what is NZ Stats doing about it.

Leonard Warren Cook CBE CRSNZ is a professional statistician who was Government Statistician of New Zealand from 1992 to 2000, and National Statistician and Director of the United Kingdom Office for National Statistics, and Registrar General for England and Wales from 2000 to 2005. 

Please register for yourself and any guests no later than 6pm Sunday 7 September with details of any dietary requirements, so that we can advise attendance information to the Wellington Club. Please note - if you don’t register and turn up - there may not be any breakfast available.

Duties for the meeting:

Desk - 6.45am          David Quinn

Greeter                      Tamaris Livera

Kaikohau                  David Shackleton

Opening Thought    Tony Robinson

Introduction             Richard Westlake

Thanking                 Jo Douglas

Sharing                    Ross Buxton

Parting Thought      Tori Treigaardt

Club Reporter          Paula Mc Knight

If you are unable to perform your duty please get someone else to stand in for you and advise Jo Douglas (joanna.douglas1954@gmail.com) and President Nicole Barker (nicolebarker883@gmail.com) who the replacement is.

Reminder 

Our next Perambulation is this Sunday 14 September

Would love to see you at our house before 9.30am

The weather is looking great!!

Perambulators Walk - Te Ngahere-o-Tawa plus a bit 

This perambulation isnt a difficult one so hopefully it will attract a number of members and their family and friends.

We will meet at Lou and Steve's place 14 September, before 9.30am, 2A Lyndhurst Road Tawa. Please find a park close by and come down the drive.

The plan is to leave @A Lyndhurst at 9.30, walk up Kiwi Cres to the start of the track. Head up Te Ngahere-o-Tawa, reach Meridian Road walk down to the start of the Te Araroa walk through the redwood trees and back up to Meridian Road.

We can then either come back down Te Ngahere-o-Tawa or follow Meridian Road to the entrance that goes to Chastudon Road then back to The Borough (close to cars) for a coffee. 

I suggest you bring good shoes, poles if you use them - not really necessary, a drink, jacket and a snack to have on the way. The walk isn't difficult and will probably be about 2.5 hours total.

If you have any questions please give Lou a call 0273042480. Please bring friends and family - dont forget to register :)

Looking forward to another lovely perambulation :)

Lou and Steve

In case you had a problem with registering this is the same invitation slightly amended. It also has the duites for next Wednesday.

The speaker for this week is

Dave Shoemack

About GoodNature.They knew that taking the world rodent-free would require something way smarter, and way kinder. They started in the remote New Zealand bush, brainstorming 50 ways to kill a rat, then put them to the test in some of the harshest, coldest, wettest and wildest places on the planet. Since then they grown to a team of more than 60 nature-loving Goodnaturists and shipped almost half a million traps to the world. They have revolutionised the way homeowners, farmers, businesses and conservationists deal with rats, mice and other invasive species. GoodNature won the recent Wellington Gold Awards and Goodnature were listed in the Fast Company list of 2025's most innovative companies.

Please register for yourself and any guests no later than 6pm Sunday 14 September with details of any dietary requirements, so that we can advise attendance information to the Wellington Club. Please note - if you don’t register and turn up - there may not be any breakfast available.

Duties for the meeting:

Desk - 6.45am        Liundsay Chitty  

Greeter              Jeff Lee        

Kaikohau              Spencer Petherick    

Opening Thought    Mike Selvadorai

Introduction            Tony Robinson 

Thanking              Heather Lucas   

Sharing                  Rob Whitney  

Parting Thought      Linda Wellington

Club Reporter          Marc Rands

If you are unable to perform your duty please get someone else to stand in for you and advise Jo Douglas (joanna.douglas1954@gmail.com) and President Nicole Barker (nicolebarker883@gmail.com) who the replacement is.

“A Grand Night Out”

ROTARY CLUB OF PORT NICHOLSON

INVITES YOU TO

A FUNDRAISING EVENING WITH A DIFFERENCE

A Cocktail Party, an Auction, a Mystery Dinner

Wednesday 15 October 2025, to begin at 5.30pm, off to dinner at 7.00pm

The Wellington Club, 88 The Terrace

Charity – Lifting the Lid on Youth Mental Health in Wellington

The Cocktail Party includes

Auction items~Mystery Bags~Raffle kindly donated by members and supporters

The “Mystery” Dinner Venue is drawn at the end of the hour

$100pp – make up a table of 8 people for $800 for each venue

then off to a two course dinner only to pay for all drinks

Please ask for an invoice or pay online; reference your Name and Cocktail Party. Rotary Club of Port Nicholson Charitable Trust 03-0502-0407484-00

The speaker for this week is

Livvy Mitchell

PhD Scholar

Motu Economic and Public Policy Research

Livvy holds a PhD in Economics, specialising in applied micro-econometrics. Her doctoral thesis explores the health and economic consequences of youth suicide and youth victimisation for surviving family members. Across four papers, she shows that these events have significant and long-lasting impacts for those exposed to them, with effects extending beyond the immediate losses faced by the youth themselves. She is building on this work as a Researcher at the ROCKWOOL Foundation (Copenhagen), while continuing to be based in Wellington (NZ) as an Affiliate with the Motu Research whānau.

Livvy's topic is, "Ripple effects of youth victimisation and suicide."

REMINDER - Flashback Friday is next week 31 August - 1pm 187 Bar All welcome :)

Please register for yourself and any guests no later than 6pm Sunday 19 October with details of any dietary requirements, so that we can advise attendance information to the Wellington Club. Please note - if you dont register and turn up - there may not be any breakfast available.

Duties for the meeting:

Desk - 6.45am         Steve Lawton       

Greeter                    Jo Douglas     

Kaikohau                 Tori Triegaardt    

Opening Thought  Geoff Smith

Introduction            Rob Whitney

Thanking                   Heather Lucas   

Sharing                      Tony Robinson

Parting Thought        Lindsay Chitty   

Club Reporter           Julian Bateson    

If you are unable to perform your duty please get someone else to stand in for you and advise Jo Douglas (joanna.douglas1954@gmail.com) and President Nicole Barker (nicolebarker883@gmail.com) who the replacement is.

Notes for the coming weeks meeting:

• RSVP no later than Sunday 19 October, 6pm (Best do it now). 
• Please make sure you register to assist the Wellington Club staff. No registration could mean no food and no seat.
• If you have any dietary requirements, please note them in the comments section of the registration
• Include your email address and mobile phone number in the response
• If you wish to bring guests/spouse/partner, please add them when you register
• Remember to click "Save" at the bottom of the page
• If you do not receive a confirmation immediately after you have registered, you have not completed the process.

This week is we have

Ben Baker

One of our honorary members, giving us a musical interlude.

A little background on Ben:

Born in New Zealand, Benjamin studied at the Yehudi Menuhin School and the Royal College of Music where he was awarded the Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother Rose Bowl.

In 2013 he won 1st Prize at the Windsor International Competition and was a prize-winner at the YCAT International Auditions in London. 

He was a Fellow at the  Ravinia Festival’s Steans Music Institute in Chicago in 2016 and 2017.   His first CD for Champs Hill Records was released in 2015 and immediately went to No.12 in the Classical Charts. 

REMINDER - Flashback Friday is one week away - 31 August - 1pm 187 Bar All welcome :)

Please register for yourself and any guests no later than 6pm Sunday 26 October with details of any dietary requirements, so that we can advise attendance information to the Wellington Club. Please note - if you dont register and turn up - there may not be any breakfast available.

Duties for the meeting:

Desk - 6.45am          David Quinn      

Greeter                     Andre Lategan    

Kaikohau                   Mike Selvadurai    

Opening Thought     Tamaris Livera

Introduction             Dawn Sanders

Thanking                    Richard Westlake  

Sharing                       Jeff Lee

Parting Thought         Howard Tong   

Club Reporter             David Barnes   

If you are unable to perform your duty please get someone else to stand in for you and advise Jo Douglas (joanna.douglas1954@gmail.com) and President Nicole Barker (nicolebarker883@gmail.com) who the replacement is.

Notes for the coming weeks meeting:

• RSVP no later than Sunday 26 October, 6pm (Best do it now). 
• Please make sure you register to assist the Wellington Club staff. No registration could mean no food and no seat.
• If you have any dietary requirements, please note them in the comments section of the registration
• Include your email address and mobile phone number in the response
• If you wish to bring guests/spouse/partner, please add them when you register
• Remember to click "Save" at the bottom of the page
• If you do not receive a confirmation immediately after you have registered, you have not completed the process.

One Day. One Focus: Ending Polio

World Polio Day is a time for Rotary members, public health advocates, and all who want a world free from polio to come together, recognise our progress in the fight to end polio, and talk about the actions we need to take in order to end polio for good.

Join us at Wellington Railway Station to show Wellingtonians that we mean business!

After many requests we are going back to

187 Bar in the City

This is Hadleigh Pethericks bar, and it has had great reviews since he took it over. We have been there before but I have had a number of people asking to go back again - so here we go!!!

The bar has a great range of craft beer - particuarly Garage Project, as well as a good wine selection and expertly curated cocktails. 

Since we were there last the range of food has increased and we can look forward to a leisurely lunch in a bar with great vibes.

A couple of things to note:

• The entrance to the bar is 211 Victoria Street
• The start time is a little later than usual - 1pm . Hadleigh opens up for us so starting later means his staff don't have to hang around as long.

Remember to bring along friends and family - please register them so Hadleigh know how many he has coming.

Looking forward to seeing you there.

Many of us will be back from holiday then, so it wll be great to get together again   

Please note - this week the meeting will be on Level 6

This week is we have

Bruce Adams

NZ Police National Dive Squad

In 2019 Senior Sergeant Bruce Adams, the head of the Police National Dive Squad, became a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit (MNZM) for services to New Zealand Police and the community. Senior Sergeant Adams has been on the Dive Squad for 28 years and has headed the team since 2002. His expertise in dive search and recovery operations is valued within police and external agencies, as is his input to reviewing and refining work safe practices in the dive industry sector.

Senior Sergeant Adams also was awarded the old Medal of Bravery from the NZ Police after the Whakaari White Island eruption in 2019.

This will be a very interesting talk and well worth coming to listen. His topic is "The Dive Squad."

Remember Level 6 :)

REMINDER - Flashback Friday is today - 31 August - 1pm 187 Bar. All welcome :)

Bring friends and family to support Hadleigh in this new venture.

Just a reminder that the start time is a little later 1pm

Please register yourself and any guests for next week's meeting no later than 6pm Sunday 2 November with details of any dietary requirements, so that we can advise attendance information to the Wellington Club. Please note - if you dont register and turn up - there may not be any breakfast available.

Duties for the meeting on level 6:

Desk - 6.45am          Lou Bray-Burns      

Greeter                     Everard Aspell    

Kaikohau                   Peter Whittington   

Opening Thought     Brenda Lazelle

Introduction             Rick Hughes

Thanking                    Howard Tong  

Sharing                       Darryl Ross

Parting Thought         Linda Wellington   

Club Reporter             Tamaris Livera   

If you are unable to perform your duty please get someone else to stand in for you and advise Jo Douglas (joanna.douglas1954@gmail.com) and President Nicole Barker (nicolebarker883@gmail.com) who the replacement is.

Notes for the coming weeks meeting:

• RSVP no later than Sunday 2 November, 6pm (Best do it now). 
• Please make sure you register to assist the Wellington Club staff. No registration could mean no food and no seat.
• If you have any dietary requirements, please note them in the comments section of the registration
• Include your email address and mobile phone number in the response
• If you wish to bring guests/spouse/partner, please add them when you register
• Remember to click "Save" at the bottom of the page
• If you do not receive a confirmation immediately after you have registered, you have not completed the process.

Brooklyn Walk from Jo's place

This time we are going to meet at Jo's place, 250A Mitchell Street Brooklyn, on Sunday 9 November at 9.15 for a 9.30 start.

Jo is going to take us on an amble around her suburb of up to 2 hours. 

At the end she is going to give us fresh muffins and coffee and send us on our way.

This won't be a hard walk, she promises, but will be a lovely last walk for the year before  the Shackleton's Xmas lunch walk.

Friends and family are all welcome :)

Please RSVP by Friday 7 November so we know approx numbers and Jo can be sure to have enough muffins to feed our hungry tummys!!!

This week is our

AGM and Club Forum

This is an important meeting  for us to all attend. We will have the AGM first and ask that you have read all the papers that Jo sends out so we can spend time on the Club Forum - a chance for members to have a say in the running of the Club and to share ideas.  

The minutes of last years AGM are attached for you to read and reflect on before the meeting.

Please register for yourself and any guests no later than 6pm Sunday 9 November with details of any dietary requirements, so that we can advise attendance information to the Wellington Club. Please note - if you dont register and turn up - there may not be any breakfast available.

Reminder:

Perambulators Walk Broolyn - this Sunday 9 November.

Meeting at Jo Douglas's place: 250A Mitchell Street Brooklyn WEllington 9.15 for a 9.30 start.

Finish off with coffee and muffins at Jo's. If you remember - please bring a mug as Jo has a limited supply. All welcome

Duties for the meeting:

Desk - 6.45am                

Greeter                    Tony Robinson             

Kaikohau                  Ross Buxton            

Opening Thought     Howard Tong

Introduction             N/A   

Thanking                    N/A       

Sharing                       Steve Lawton         

Parting Thought         Peter Whittington 

Club Reporter             Paula McKnight

If you are unable to perform your duty please get someone else to stand in for you and advise Jo Douglas (joanna.douglas1954@gmail.com) and President Nicole Barker (nicolebarker883@gmail.com) who the replacement is.

Notes for the coming weeks meeting:

• RSVP no later than Sunday 9 November 6pm (Best do it now). 
• Please make sure you register to assist the Wellington Club staff. No registration could mean no food and no seat.
• If you have any dietary requirements, please note them in the comments section of the registration
• Include your email address and mobile phone number in the response
• If you wish to bring guests/spouse/partner, please add them when you register
• Remember to click "Save" at the bottom of the page
• If you do not receive a confirmation immediately after you have registered, you have not completed the process.

This week our speaker is

Q Walker (Mrs Q)

GM of The Circus Hub

Q Walker is the GM of The Circus Hub - Aotearoa's largest circus school. She has been in the performing arts her whole life. She grew up in the United States and specialises in wirewalking, but has trained in all of the major areas of the circus. Circus Hub's love and passion for circus arts is at the root of their work to support and grow a thriving circus community in Wellington.

Q Walkers topic is, "The Circus Hub - a performing arts school, a performance venue and charity work."

Please register yourself and any guests for next week's meeting no later than 6pm Sunday 16 November with details of any dietary requirements, so that we can advise attendance information to the Wellington Club. Please note - if you dont register and turn up - there may not be any breakfast available.

Duties for the meeting:

Desk - 6.45am          Rick Hughes      

Greeter                    Peter Whittington   

Kaikohau                  Geoff Smith 

Opening Thought     Andre Lategan

Introduction             David Barnes

Thanking                    Tori Triegaart

Sharing                       Heather Lucas

Parting Thought         Brent Gerrard  

Club Reporter             Jo Douglas   

If you are unable to perform your duty please get someone else to stand in for you and advise Jo Douglas (joanna.douglas1954@gmail.com) and President Nicole Barker (nicolebarker883@gmail.com) who the replacement is.

Notes for the coming weeks meeting:

• RSVP no later than Sunday 16 November, 6pm (Best do it now). 
• Please make sure you register to assist the Wellington Club staff. No registration could mean no food and no seat.
• If you have any dietary requirements, please note them in the comments section of the registration
• Include your email address and mobile phone number in the response
• If you wish to bring guests/spouse/partner, please add them when you register
• Remember to click "Save" at the bottom of the page
• If you do not receive a confirmation immediately after you have registered, you have not completed the process.

This week our speaker is

Dr Nate Rigler

Project Lead - Kia Mouriora Te Kaiwharawhara Sanctuary to Sea

Nate is a PhD graduate in Pacific studies from Victoria University of Wellington. His background is based in cultural anthropology, natural resource management, agriculture, housing management, and disability social work. He has a passion for history, poetry, music, film and sustainable environmental design.

 His topic is "Sanctuary to sea project."

Please register yourself and any guests for next week's meeting no later than 6pm Sunday 23 November with details of any dietary requirements, so that we can advise attendance information to the Wellington Club. Please note - if you dont register and turn up - there may not be any breakfast available.

Duties for the meeting:

Desk - 6.45am           David Quinn        

Greeter                     Jeff Lee          

Kaikohau                   Spencer Petherick         

Opening Thought     MIke Selvadurai

Introduction             Rob Whitney 

Thanking                    Geoff Smith            

Sharing                       Darryl Ross  

Parting Thought        Linda Wellington 

Club Reporter            David Barnes    

If you are unable to perform your duty please get someone else to stand in for you and advise Jo Douglas (joanna.douglas1954@gmail.com) and President Nicole Barker (nicolebarker883@gmail.com) who the replacement is.

Notes for the coming weeks meeting:

• RSVP no later than Sunday 23 November, 6pm (Best do it now). 
• Please make sure you register to assist the Wellington Club staff. No registration could mean no food and no seat.
• If you have any dietary requirements, please note them in the comments section of the registration
• Include your email address and mobile phone number in the response
• If you wish to bring guests/spouse/partner, please add them when you register
• Remember to click "Save" at the bottom of the page
• If you do not receive a confirmation immediately after you have registered, you have not completed the process.

This week our speaker is

Emily Mason

Managing Director FrankGroup

Emily is a social investment pioneer, skilled at seeing connections between unrelated ideas. She brings a vibrant personality, perennial optimism, and highly analytical approach to her teaching, facilitating, and consulting. Emily is an experienced public service leader who is passionate about understanding what works for whom and at what cost. Prior to founding FrankAdvice, she worked in senior strategic and operational roles across central government (including with the Social Wellbeing Agency, the Ministry of Education, and ACC). Emily has been a Teaching Fellow at Victoria University’s School of Business and Government and regularly teaches at Wellington Uni-Professional. She is a co-founder of Impact Lab.

 Her topic is "Understanding social investment."

Please register yourself and any guests for next week's meeting no later than 6pm Sunday 30 November with details of any dietary requirements, so that we can advise attendance information to the Wellington Club. Please note - if you dont register and turn up - there may not be any breakfast available.

Duties for the meeting:

Desk - 6.45am             LIndsay Chitty   

Greeter                       Everard Aspell

Kaikohau                     Bill Day

Opening Thought       Tamaris Livera

Introduction               Brenda Lazelle

Thanking                      David Shackleton

Sharing                         Nick Duncan

Parting Thought          Richard Brodie

Club Reporter              Mike Selvadurai 

If you are unable to perform your duty please get someone else to stand in for you and advise Jo Douglas (joanna.douglas1954@gmail.com) and President Nicole Barker (nicolebarker883@gmail.com) who the replacement is.

Notes for the coming weeks meeting:

• RSVP no later than Sunday 30 November, 6pm (Best do it now). 
• Please make sure you register to assist the Wellington Club staff. No registration could mean no food and no seat.
• If you have any dietary requirements, please note them in the comments section of the registration
• Include your email address and mobile phone number in the response
• If you wish to bring guests/spouse/partner, please add them when you register
• Remember to click "Save" at the bottom of the page
• If you do not receive a confirmation immediately after you have registered, you have not completed the process.

Chouchou 

RCPN Christmas Lunch

BONJOUR! Located inside the newly refurbished Circa Theatre, Chouchou is our destination for this years Christmas lunch.

A touch of Parisienne fare to titillate our taste buds!!!

Date: 7 December 2025

Time: 12pm - 2pm ish

Address: 1 Taranaki Street, Te Aro, Wellington

The decision has been made - we are booked to go to Chouchou. The Xmas menu has yet to be finalised, but this will be a delicious lunch event to welcome in the Christmas season.

As we need to make sure our booking is confirmed, we need all registrations to be in by Wednesday 26 November 6pm, so Geoff can give the restaurant numbers. The restaurant has a cap of 40 peple so if you want to go make sure you register ASAP. All partners welcome, don't forget to reegister them when you register yourself..

To add to the fun a raffle will be drawn at lunch, details follow:

The raffle is for a 3 course dinner for 8 people at Novotel Wellington, 133 The Terrace Wellington Central 6011. The voucher is valid until 19 March 2026.

The cost of the raffle tickets are $20 each or 3 for $50

The funds from the raffle will go to part of the Grand Night Out to the charity “Lifting the Lid on Youth Mental Health”.

Raffle tickets can be purchased by paying into the 03-0502-0407484-000 Rotary Club of Port Nicholson Charitable Trust Account reference your Name and Raffle. Cash is also acceptable - hand the money to Paula McKnight. As you purchase tickets for the raffle your name will be put on a numbered list and the draw for the lucky winner will happen at Chouchou on Sunday 7 Dec.

Don't forget registrations for lunch at Chouchou close Wednesday 26 November 6pm. There is a limit of 40 people so best register now.

Dear all

This message is to ask you if you plan to join us for our Christmas lunch at Chouchou, 1 Taranaki Street, Te Aro, Wellington 6011. Located inside the newly refurbished Circa Theatre, Chouchou brings a touch of the Parisienne lifestyle to Wellington’s waterfront.

Start time 12pm, Sunday 7 December 2025.

The restaurant can only take 40 people and we need to have a quick indication of who would like to come so I am going to close this off next Tueday evening 11 November 6pm.

Partners welcome, please add them when you register so that we can properly gauge if Chouchou is large enough to meet our needs.

Geoff and Lou

This week our speaker is

Wayne Naylor

CEO NZ Hospice Foundation

Wayne joined the Hospice New Zealand team in 2021 following on from 9 years with Hospice Waikato in Hamilton as Director of Nursing. Over his nursing career he has worked primarily in oncology, haematology and palliative care. He has been a Research Nurse, Clinical Nurse Specialist and Nurse Lecturer. Wayne also spent almost four years as a Senior Analyst for the Palliative Care Council of New Zealand before moving to his current role.

His topic is "The challenges faced by Hospices."

Please register yourself and any guests for next week's meeting no later than 6pm Sunday 7 December with details of any dietary requirements, so that we can advise attendance information to the Wellington Club. Please note - if you dont register and turn up - there may not be any breakfast available.

Duties for the meeting:

Desk - 6.45am            David Quinn   

Greeter                       Darryl Ross

Kaikohau                     Tony Robinson

Opening Thought       Ross Buxton

Introduction               Richard Westlake

Thanking                      Brenda Lazelle

Sharing                         Brad Weekly

Parting Thought          Yon Yi Sohn

Club Reporter              Julian Bateson

If you are unable to perform your duty please get someone else to stand in for you and advise President Nicole Barker (nicolebarker883@gmail.com) who the replacement is.

Notes for the coming weeks meeting:

• RSVP no later than Sunday 7 December, 6pm (Best do it now). 
• Please make sure you register to assist the Wellington Club staff. No registration could mean no food and no seat.
• If you have any dietary requirements, please note them in the comments section of the registration
• Include your email address and mobile phone number in the response
• If you wish to bring guests/spouse/partner, please add them when you register
• Remember to click "Save" at the bottom of the page
• If you do not receive a confirmation immediately after you have registered, you have not completed the process.

Christmas Perambulation and BBQ Lunch

Sunday 14 December 9.15am

at the Shackleton's Home

47 Homewood Avenue

Karori

Christmas Perambulation and BBQ Lunch

Sunday 14 December 9.15am

at the Shackleton's Home

47 Homewood Avenue

Karori

This week is our last meeting for 2025

We will celebrate by asking you to invite your partners to come and celebrate with us and enjoy:

A glass of bubbles or orange juice or both and

Fresh strawberries on the table as well as other festive things,

Plus another great speaker!!!

Who is.....

Angela Green

Executive Director at Tāwhiri Festivals and Experience

Angela's completed an MBA at the University of Auckland Graduate School of Business in 2017 and trained and worked as a performer in Wellington through the 2000s. Her management experience is drawn from producing arts and entertainment events, theatre venue administration, operations, finance and programming. She 

She has worked in roles responsible for project and financial planning, strategic thinking, stakeholder management, contract negotiation, and arts programming.

Angela is also an alumna from our first Shakespeare GCNZ NSSP in 1996! She was an early mocap artist for Peter Jackson in Jane & the Dragon (she was Jane), and first winner of the Museum Hotel Scholarship.

Her topic is "New Zealand Festival of Arts."

Please register yourself and any guests for next week's meeting no later than 6pm Sunday 14 December with details of any dietary requirements, so that we can advise attendance information to the Wellington Club. Please note - if you dont register and turn up - there may not be any breakfast available.

Duties for the meeting:

Desk - 6.45am           Paula McKnight  

Greeter                     Spencer Petherick

Kaikohau                   Hadleigh Petherick

Opening thought       Lou Bray-Burns

Introduction              Dawn Sanders

Thanking                     Marc Rand

Sharing                       Geoff Smith

Parting Thought         Rob Whitney 

Club Reporter             Linda Wellington

If you are unable to perform your duty please get someone else to stand in for you and advise President Nicole Barker (nicolebarker883@gmail.com or 0275866666) who the replacement is.

Notes for the coming weeks meeting:

• RSVP no later than Sunday 14 December, 6pm (Best do it now). 
• Please make sure you register to assist the Wellington Club staff. No registration could mean no food and no seat.
• If you have any dietary requirements, please note them in the comments section of the registration
• Include your email address and mobile phone number in the response
• If you wish to bring guests/spouse/partner, please add them when you register
• Remember to click "Save" at the bottom of the page
• If you do not receive a confirmation immediately after you have registered, you have not completed the process.

Perambulator's Orongorongo Track Walk

Thursday 1 January 2026 10.00am