Are you the Club President, Club Secretary, President Elect, board members and any members who are making decisions regarding working with youth.
You are invited to attend an upcoming Zoom meeting focused on Youth Protection.
This session is designed to provide important updates, reinforce best practices, and ensure all clubs are aligned with current Youth Protection requirements and expectations. Your participation is highly encouraged, as this is a vital area of responsibility within our organisation.
Meeting Details: Date: Friday 10th April and to be repeated on Sunday 17th May Time: 6.00pm
Platform: Zoom – Details to be forwarded after registrations
Agenda Highlights:
Overview of Youth Protection policies
Roles and responsibilities within Clubs and District
Clubs across District 9620 are invited to support one of Rotary’s most impactful youth initiatives by sponsoring a student to attend RYPEN (Rotary Youth Program of Enrichment).
After a break of several years, we are excited to offer this valuable program to clubs in our district by joining with the RYPEN committee in D9640.
RYPEN is a dynamic leadership and development experience for students in Years 8–10. It encourages young people to step outside their comfort zones and discover their potential in a supportive and engaging environment.
Participants develop:
Confidence and self-awareness
Resilience and a positive self-concept
Communication and teamwork skills
A strong sense of community responsibility
For many students, RYPEN is a life-changing experience—helping them build friendships, gain independence, and return to their schools and communities as more capable and motivated young leaders.
Program Details
Dates: 15–17 May 2026 Venue: CYC Adventures Lennox Head (Camp Drewe) 117 Camp Drewe Rd, Lennox Head NSW 2478 Cost: $385 per attendee
Clubs are encouraged to sponsor a student and help make this opportunity accessible to a young person who will truly benefit. Your support invests not only in an individual, but in the future of our communities.
The Rotaract Club of Brisbane Rivercity is excited to announce our first fundraising event for the year: Social Board Games Night! Please join us at the Stellar Room at Hotel West End to come play board games, chat, and raise some money for the Children’s Hospital Foundation!
Feel free to bring as many friends as you’d like, or come alone and we will find you a group to play with! Board games will be provided by our team but feel free to bring your own if you have a favourite.
We will also be running a raffle on the night (with prizes to be announced soon!)
It’s only $10 upon entry to come join us so don’t miss out! Please also respond with “going” on the Facebook event page if you are planning to come, as this will give us an idea of our final numbers. Food and drinks will also be available to order from QR codes displayed in the room.
Because small connections can create a big impact.
Any further questions about Mirror of Hope and Tommy's visit, clubs are free to contact me, Valerie Simons, Rotary Club of Paddington, +61 458 149 028 or email valeriesimons@gmail.com.
Changeover Dinner Rotary Club of Ipswich City 2026-2027
Join us for an evening of celebration as we reflect on the year that was, welcome new leadership, and recognise the service and impact made by our members and partners. This year’s Changeover Dinner embraces a Disco theme. So dust off your dancing shoes as we celebrate connection, community, and Rotary’s 2025–26 theme: Create Lasting Impact.
Date: Saturday 6th June 2026
Time: 6:00 pm
Venue: Ipswich Turf Club (219 Brisbane Road, Bundamba QLD 4304
Tickets: $80 Per Person, includes a 2 course meal & drinks package (Beer/Wine/Soft Drink)
All Presidents-Elect in District 9620 are invited to attend the President-Elects Learning and Development Seminar (PELDS) in 2026 on Saturday and Sunday. All other Rotarians and Rotaractors are invited to attend the District Training Assembly (DTA) on Sunday.
The locations are
Western PELDS will be held on Saturday and Sunday, 18/19 Apr26 at the Dalby Showgrounds,
Eastern PELDS will be held on Saturday and Sunday, 30/31 May26 at Jindalee Hotel.
You can attend either weekend, as the program will be the same at each venue.
Attendees will need to make their own accommodation arrangements if required.
Registration will be available through the District website from this week.
The weekend provides Presidents-elect and other Rotarians and Rotaractors with the opportunity to plan for the coming Rotary Year. It is also an opportunity for members to network with other Clubs in their Cluster and the District.
I look forward to meeting the Presidents-elect and the members of their Clubs as we Create Lasting Impact.
A reminder that our D9620 Tree Planting Challenge Day is planned for 9am – 11am Sunday 26 April 2026 - (Environment Month).
For Brisbane and surrounding area Clubs, Brisbane City Council’s Offsets and Restoration Team is looking at a site in Bald Hills which they have already started work on.
More information about the site has been received from the Council team about the site.
Changes to Volunteering with Youth in Our District
Rotary has always taken great pride in creating safe, supportive and empowering environments for young people. As part of our ongoing commitment to youth protection and best practice governance, there are important updates to requirements for Rotarians and volunteers working with youth across our District.
What’s Changing?
Our District is strengthening its youth protection framework and will be formally adopting the Queensland Child Safe Standards. These standards set clear expectations for organisations working with children and young people and reinforce our shared responsibility to ensure their safety and wellbeing.
As part of this transition:
Updated compliance and screening requirements will apply to all Rotarians and volunteers involved in youth programs.
Clearer processes will be introduced around training, reporting and governance.
A refreshed District Statement of Commitment to Child Safety (attached) outlines our principles and expectations moving forward.
These changes align with Rotary International’s longstanding youth protection policies and reflect our dedication to maintaining the highest standards of care.
Information Sessions – Save the Date
To support clubs and volunteers through these changes, the District will host online information sessions via Zoom:
10 April
17 May (repeat session)
These sessions will provide:
An overview of the new requirements
Practical guidance for clubs
An opportunity to ask questions
Clarification on timelines and next steps
All Presidents, Youth Directors, Youth Protection Officers and any Rotarians or volunteers involved in youth activities are strongly encouraged to attend one of these sessions.
Further details, including Zoom links and times, will be circulated shortly.
Rotary’s commitment to young people is at the heart of who we are. By embracing the Queensland Child Safe Standards and strengthening our practices, we are ensuring that our District continues to provide safe, respectful and positive experiences for every young person we serve.
Thank you for your continued leadership and support in protecting our youth.
DGE Ian Hope has already indicated that he is keen to have a District Tree Planting Challenge Day in his year.
For Brisbane and surrounding area Clubs, Brisbane City Council’s Offsets and Restoration Team is looking at a site in Bald Hills which they have already started work on.
The site is part of a Glider corridor and has Rakali on it which they are really excited about.
They have assured me the site is nice and flat with no steep banks as there were last year.
They have allocated 6000 plants to this site and would like our help to get as many as possible of these plants in on the day. Last year we planted 3000 plants at the White’s Hill site.
If you, your family, friends, schools or other community groups would like to join our team and help meet this challenge, please let me know at dkals@aussiebb.com.au.
This will help us work out how many scones we need and determine how many plants we think we can get in the ground on the day.
There will be more information about the site and site access as we get closer to the day.
For the non-Brisbane area Clubs, if any of your Club members happen to be in Brisbane on the day, they would be more than welcome to join the team at Bald Hills. We will need all the help we can get.
We are incredibly lucking to have the continuing support of Brisbane City Council for what has become one of the highlights in our Rotary year.
Participating in this event allows all Clubs to continue to contribute to Rotary’s latest area of focus “Supporting the Environment”.
We are looking forward to your help in taking up Council’s challenge and making this another successful District Planting Day.
Is your Club considering making a District Grant application for the 26-27 Grant year?
Applications are open now and the closing date is 31 May 2026.
Information regarding D9620 District Grants is available on the D9620 website. Just Google d9620 district grants and open the Foundation - District Grants page.
You need to consider the timing of your project as the 2026-27 District Grant funds are not likely to be available before August.
Please note that any funds expended on the project before the date of the Grant approval letter cannot be claimed against the Grant.
District Grants are available to all Clubs in our District and are a great way to boost the funding you have for a planned project.
DG Mark has set a target of 50 applications for the next round of Grants so your application will help meet this goal.
Please contact the District Grants Committee d9620districtgrants@gmail.com if you have any queries or would like assistance in preparing an application.
I look forward to receiving an application from your Club.
David Kearney
D9620 District Grants Sub-Committee Chairman
SUPPORTING THE ROTARY FOUNDATION MAKES DISTRICT GRANTS POSSIBLE
Welcome to the Gist! Rather than send multiple messages per week to club officers in the hope that they will channel your interests and pass on what is important to you, we will be sending one digest email per week using the Clubrunner platform which lists new things in the top section, and reminders of old news in the bottom section. That way, you only need to scan the top half of one email per week to get the Gist, and everyone gets the Gist!
This e-bulletin is published by your District Administrator and Webmaster to let Rotarians and any other subscribers know about what is happening in the district. The GIST is for time-sensitive brief stories sponsored by the District, a Rotary club, or a Rotary RAG or Fellowship.
District Announcements
Club event announcements
RAG and Fellowship event announcements
Event notices will run once only in the "Breaking News" section, and events will continue to be published down below in the "Event Reminders" section until the event has passed.
Articles that report on past events and projects, anything of enduring significance, and anything else that does not fit the GIST publishing guidelines should be sent to the District Newsletter editor at newsletter@rotary9620.org.
How to get an Event in the Calendar
To get an event in the Calendar, please send the following information to gist@rotary9620.org:
Mandatory: The text that you would like to appear in the calendar entry. Should include a teaser as to why someone would like to attend the event, ticket prices, etc etc. The text cannot include potentially sensitive information like email addresses, phone numbers and bank account details. If you wish to communicate these, put them in an image or PDF file that can be linked as a download document.
Mandatory: Date, Time, Location. Please include the postcode in the location as this is needed to generate the location map. (Or the event could be online of course.)
Mandatory: Name of a Rotarian in the district who is the primary contact for the event.
Strongly recommended: An image to go in the calendar entry detail page. Landscape format works best.
Optional: Documents about the event like event flyers, etc etc. Max size: 5MB
Optional: Links that might be useful like bookings links, the home page of the charity you are supporting, etc.
How to get an event notice in the GIST
The GIST is published on Sunday. The deadline to get an event notice in every Sunday's GIST is midnight Friday. Requests coming in after Saturday morning will be handled on a "best effort" basis. To get an event entry in the GIST, please do the following:
Mandatory: Get the event in the Calendar (see above)
Mandatory: An image in square or landscape format to be the article. If you send an image that is in portrait format, it will be cropped to square according to the GIST editor's judgement. It's OK to send a PDF Flyer - the editor will just do a screenshot and use that.
Optional: SHORT explanatory text which will go under the image. 200 words max. Long explanations should go in the calendar entry.
