In Gear | Rotary in Southern New Zealand Issue 1 | Page 16
MY WORD
with Monica Mulholland,
President-elect, Rotary Club of Queenstown
In life, there’s nothing surer than
change. Yet, so often, we, as nations,
as groups, as individuals, find the
shifting sands of life one of the most
challenging aspects to confront and
navigate as we make our way within
this world.
Arguably, there would be few
who could speak on the subject
with such insight and bravery as
our own Monica Mulholland, a
wonderful Rotary leader and proudly
transgender woman.
Here, Monica shares a speech
she gave at a recent Inner Wheel
gathering, including some sage
observations on the societal changes
she’s seen and experienced, her
hopes for Rotary’s future and the
questions she’s on a quest to answer.
I am a
dinosaur....
I am a dinosaur
in that I am
nostalgic
for
what
seems
to me to be a
golden
time.
A time when
the family was strong, civil institutions like Rotary, the
Scouts, the Guides, the churches, the school committee,
the residents’ committees, community organisations, etc,
were strong.
That seems like a golden age of stability to me which has
been lost ... but, of course, a person like me could never
have existed in that kind of environment. The price for
that kind of stability was conformity.
Today, these institutions are no longer strong, but people
like me, and others on the margin, are free to exist, and
even flourish. It is no longer a homogeneous society ...
but, there is a price to be paid for that, also.
People today are more isolated, more depressed.
Nowadays, there is only the individual, and the
government. No longer are there the layers in society that
connected us all and made us feel that we belong.
WHIPPING OUR DISHY
Check it out – doesn’t the mock-up concept of District
9980’s commemorative cookbook look just delicious?
Recipes from each of our clubs, together with lovely
stories of the Rotary inspiration behind each dish, are
starting to come in thick and fast.
If your club still hasn’t submitted its special recipe, please
get it through to public i mage chair, Vicki Moseley –
[email protected] – as soon as possible.
The cookbook, which is being produced as a fundraiser, is
our district’s commemoration of the Rotary Foundation’s
centennial. Not only will it showcase a delectable array
of cuisine, it’s being produced in glossy “coffee table”
style, and will feature our district’s stunning scenery and
locally-produced fare.
District governor Janice Hughes is making her way round
each of the clubs on her annual DG’s visit during the next
few months, with each of the clubs providing a signature
Rotary dish.
Page 16 | In Gear - Rotary in Southern New Zealand - District 9980 | www.rotarydistrict9980.org