Welcome to the website of the Rotary Club of Basingstoke Deane

ABOUT US

We are members of the largest Service Organisation in World.
Which runs the largest Charity in the World .
Which has a permanent seat at the United Nations.
We have access to a network of over 100 local community and business leaders in Basingstoke, over 2000 across Wessex, and an instant group of 1.2 million like-minded friends in over 200 countries throughout the World.
We are playing a part in the biggest health improvement programme ever, which will make history.
We have been able to develop ourselves personally and learn from experts in project management, leadership, communication
We get the chance to meet regularly with like-minded people we like, people we trust, and people we can have a jolly good laugh with.
And at our meetings we get to hear from interesting speakers.
We have an extra dimension to our lives.
We get the chance to put something back into our local community and help the lives of many less fortunate.

All this because we are members of Basingstoke Deane Rotary

News from Basingstoke Deane

First Lady President for Basingstoke Deane

Rotarian Marion Cornick became President of The Rotary Club of Basingstoke Deane at the Club meeting on 28th June 2011. Marion is Basingstoke Deane's first lady President.

Changemaker Award 2012

President Kalyan Banerjee has awarded the Rotary Club of Basingstoke Deane with The Changemaker Award. We are officially the best middle size Rotary Club in the world! Such exciting news – but the club has a history of service to the community over the last 27 years and especially a commitment to fund raising to support many local charities, needy individuals, projects for young people, international projects and the local hospices.
Everyone works hard to ensure we can keep on giving to our community and overseas, both in service and in charitable donations.
A really exciting piece of news!

RIBI web site

The Rotary Club of Basingstoke Deane, District 1110, has been recognised for its outstanding work in the community with the Changemaker Award.

The accolade was created by RI President Kalyan Banerjee to encourage clubs to reach within to embrace humanity by carrying out service in their community, helping others and making an impact.
Basingstoke Deane Rotary is a successful club District 1110, with its members committed to helping in the local community, and also internationally. To achieve this they have several major fundraising events each year which raise around £65,000 for a wide range of local and international causes. Local venues are used for musical shows and the club's international boxing event raises lots of money and makes use of a local school.

The wide range of support by the club includes youth work, such as helping Kestrel Kids and children in Rotary competitions, to supporting disabled and senior citizens to travel on Dial-a-Ride to town, shopmobility or to share in the disability forum. Other club activities include helping a family with a sick mother, who were given a holiday where she and her children relaxed together and enjoyed their first holiday, and running sports events for disabled people.

The commitment to international work goes back to a water–aid project in Uganda and is now followed with a special education project in Zambia to train teachers and add the skills to the school in that very poor country where the teachers are really keen to learn. Basingstoke Deane are also supporting a local school with a special interest in Ghana and need support for a group going there to Ghana in the summer.

Basingstoke Deane members enjoy working with the other two clubs in Basingstoke and have had some very successful joint events, especially the New Generation events such as the Youth Speaks competition.

Club members are over the moon at being awarded the honour of the best medium size club in the world as it reflects the work they do in Basingstoke and with the numerous charities and projects overseas.

SERVICE ABOVE SELF AWARDS

ZAMBIA INTERNATIONAL PROJECT

Marion spoke about her recent visit to Zambia to see the special school there and to ensure that our support is meaningful. As a result the plan is to welcome the headteacher over to the UK in February 2012 to see Loddon School and other special schools. Then Marion will go back in March to begin the task of re-development of the school taking equipment made largely from recycled card - so that the school can make their own without cost.
In addition books are needed for the school's library and sensory items for children to explore as well as communication cards and pictures.
There is much to do in this very poor sub-Saharan country. The Loddon School and Liaise are also committed to making a difference in the school. See www.loddonschool.co.uk for more details of how you can help.
There was lots of interest from our club and from Inner Wheel to help make items - which we will follow up in the new year - and maybe we will need more than a suitcase to take resources for these children!
Thanks so much for your support.

President Marion in Zambia March 2012

Marion met with 45 of the parents for a two hour meeting about positive behaviour supports, ideas for activities at home, sleep problems, behaviour problems - and they want a conference when we come back next time. It is exciting that both teachers and parents and some of the doctors want more training in the summer.

Charities Night 3rd April 2012

An exciting night when we are able to give cheques to some of our charities to support them in their important work. Julian had prepared an excellent video which showed something of the work of Rotary and of the various projects the club supports including Kestrel Kids, Aerobility, MW, Samaritans, Leukaemia Busters, Rett Syndrome, Disport, Young Carers, Disability Forum, and our work in Zambia. The Mayor, Councillor David Leeks and the Mayoress, Mrs Amanda Leeks were pleased to receive a cheque for the Mayor’s charities.
The hard work at our key fund raising events including the Anvil, Haymarket and Boxing enable us to give to our local and international charities and to support Shelterbox, Shoebox appeal and other groups who need our support during the year.
So we ‘made a difference’ to groups in Basingstoke and across the world.

"Who does he think he was?"

A tale of mystery, intrigue, scandal and even sex. This was what members of the Basingstoke Deane Rotary Club enjoyed when Gill Arnott visited the Club to ask the question “Who does he think he was?”

Gill is a Senior Keeper at the Hampshire Museum Service and responsible for Local Studies and the Topographical Collections. Several years ago, the Museum Service acquired the Tichborne Papers and found an intriguing story relating to a local Hampshire family from Alresford during thesecond half of the nineteenth century. The papers were analysed and revealed a story of the disappearance of the direct successor to a title and estate and the subsequent worldwide search. It was assumed that the heir had been lost at sea but this could not be proved and a claimant eventually emerged in Australia. For many years, a legal battle was fought to establish whether the claimant was genuine or an imposter involving visits to both Australia and South America. The claimant lost his case although gaining public support and was eventually buried in a pauper’s grave in Paddington Cemetery. But a the final twist to the tale came when the Tichborne Family allowed the name of Sir Roger Tichborne to be placed on the claimant’s coffin. As Gill said, “Who did he think he was” We will never know but the case dominated the courts at the time and even led to fears of rioting and revolution.

Gill told the story largely as a mystery, asking various questions and then disclosing more details, contradictory in turn. As the tale twisted and turned, it led to the eventual conclusion that the claimant, as he was known, remained unknown, either as Sir Roger Tichborne or under his real name.

To tell the story in detail with the varying facets would have taken several hours but instead had to be condensed into 30 minutes. However if “The Tichborne Inheritance” is googled, you can enjoy a fascinating read.

All credit to the Hampshire Museum Service for obtaining the papers and making the story available.

In the next 30 days..

Tuesday 29th May - Club Weekly Meeting - Speaker: Chief Constable Alex Marshall. Joint meeting with Andover Rotary Club Host: Neal Day - Speakers Host: Roy Sands
Tuesday 5th June - Club Weekly Meeting - No Meeting. Public Holiday
Tuesday 12th June - Club Weekly Meeting - Speaker: Fort Hill School. Club Host: Bob Evans Speakers Host: Paul Temple
Tuesday 19th June - Club Weekly Meeting - Club Assembly. Club Host: Julian Ricketts-Senior Vice President