Greetings everyone,  I wish to bring you up to date with some developments with my DG Partners Project, which is Grace’s Place.   For those of you whom District Governor Susan and I have yet to visit, Grace’s Place is a purpose-built project to assist the children who have been the silent victims of a domestic homicide.   This is a project of Martha Jabour, the CEO of the Homicide Victim’s Support Group in New South Wales, who is one of our keynote speakers at the District Conference next March.

 

It had been planned for a ‘SOD Turning” to get the project underway at the land in Doonside that had been donated to the group by the NSW State Government and the Blacktown City Council.   Unfortunately, when the initial inspection was made of the land, it was found that it contained a large amount of Asbestos which had been dumped there over years gone past.   Blacktown City Council has now undertaken a clean-up operation in readiness for an inspection and a building application to be approved.   It is now thought that the turning of the ‘SOD’ will be either just before or just after the District Conference next march.

 

For those of you who like to have a shot at the ‘SOD’, or DG Susan’s Official Driver, the turning of the SOD is purely a building term and not associated with me, but I intend to attend that event.

 

I wish to thank the following clubs and Rotarians who have donated funds to Grace’s Place so that we can fit out one or more of the therapy rooms in the complex in the name of Rotary District 9685.  Those clubs are Brookvale, Glenhaven, Castle Hill, Kenthurst and the Rotary E Club of Sydney.  I would also like to thank Karo Haltmeier for her personal donation.

 

If you wish, you may meet with Martha Jabour at our District Conference in Newcastle where she will be selling ‘building blocks’ at a stall or you can EFT funds to the District 9685 Admin Account and use the Reference 9875 which will alert the District Treasurer that the funds transferred are for Grace’s Place.   If you could also send me an email so that I can have an audit trail for funds raised.  If you would prefer to use a cheque, please make the cheque out to the District 9685 Admin Account.  If you make it out to Grace’s Place, please endorse the back of the cheque to pay the Rotary District Admin Account.

 

Once again, thank you for your interest and support of Grace’s Place which is named after Grace Lynch, the mother of murder victim Anita Cobby.  Grace was one of the four people who started the Homicide Victims Support Group after the death of her daughter.

 

John Wakefield OAM

PDG 2002-3 D9690

2019 District Conference Chairman.