Treasured Art - we need a new venue for next year, so please could members bring their creative ideas on where it could be held. We want it to be a main fundraising event so this provides an opportunity to change direction and grow. Contact Kathy.
Events and membership co-ordination - next Friday please can this committee meet briefly after the meeting. Contact Sally.
Member presentations: Ian Burns and Julie Hignett
Guest speaker
Todd Muller MP started with some interesting inside information on what
had been a long week in politics for Labour and the Greens. He then reminded members about the necessity of not taking anything for granted in an MMP environment. After an anecdote about his knocking on over 2000 doors so far, he described his recent trip to Dubai and Iraq.
As Chair of the Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade committee he accompanied the Minister of Defence. Their trip began in Dubai where he met some of the 60 New Zealanders who provided surveillance in a P3-Orion to combat drug trafficking in the Gulf. They then flew to Baghdad in a C130 Hercules and experienced a hair-raising steep dive of a landing, whilst wearing flack-jackets and helmets. After meeting the Iraqi Minister of Defence and a 3-star US general, and listening to a full military briefing, they flew to Camp Taji, and met more New Zealander service personnel. Todd movingly described the immense pride he felt in these soldiers who were training the Iraqi army. In his opinion they epitomised the essence of New Zealanders through their professionalism and humility.
Todd ended off by explaining how he had been involved in the Save-a-life battle, and that his grandfather had been awarded a Paul Harris Fellowship.
Sergeant
Eric provided a typically robust and wide-ranging series of fines to members for their indiscretions neatly bundled into categories of power, politics and religion. He then introduced the more poignant subject of the 100
th anniversary of the Battle of Passchendaele, and senseless slaughter of 260,000 soldiers.
Parting thought
Barbara proved two:
Before the AB’s vs England World Cup semi-final in 1995 the following fax was received: “Remember that rugby is a team game; all 14 of you make sure you pass the ball to Jonah.”
“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed it’s the only thing that ever has.” Margaret Mead.
