HEADLINES [click on headline to view story]: 

Rotary District Governor Peera Potipipith brings message of fellowship, unity and cooperation

Festival highlights Bang Saen Beach as seafood venue

Community Center helps tsunami survivors towards a better future

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Rotary District Governor Peera Potipipith brings message of fellowship, unity and cooperation

DGN Pratheep Malhotra
Rotary is a worldwide organization of business and professional leaders that provides humanitarian service, encourages high ethical standards in all vocations, and helps build goodwill and peace in the world. Approximately 1.2 million Rotarians belong to more than 500 districts in more than 32,000 clubs in more than 200 countries and geographical areas.

District Governor Nominee (2008-09) Pratheep ‘Peter’ Malhotra introduces the district governor and speaks of the challenges of leading this large district.
Rotary in Thailand is divided into 4 districts each covering a different region of Thailand. District 3330 covers the south, 3340 the east and northeast, 3350 the central regions and 3360 the northern region of Thailand. Each district is under the leadership of a District Governor.
Many would come to believe that the position of District Governor is a glamorous job. Little do they realise that to become a district governor one must go through gruelling tests and training throughout his Rotary life. The person has to learn more about Rotary than others so that he or she can pass on his knowledge to fellow Rotarians young and old. In effect the person must be willing to sacrifice a lot of his precious time and put aside his own personal needs.

DG Peera delivers his keynote address.
A district governor must be loyal to the Rotary ideals. He must be a good leader, father, son, brother and most important an exceptional teacher. The governor has a responsibility to travel to all the Rotary clubs in his district to guide, instruct and assist in all Rotary matters. He is the emissary of the RI President and must ensure that all Rotary clubs under his jurisdiction are working according to the procedures and code of policies as defined by the Rotary world body known as Rotary International.
District 3340 RI is privileged to have such a person. On August 23, District Governor Peera Potipipith and his charming wife Ratana made an official visit to Rotary clubs on the Eastern Seaboard, amongst which were three Rotary clubs in Pattaya under the care of Assistant Governor Dennis Stark, namely the Rotary Club of Jomtien-Pattaya, under the leadership of President Max Rommel, the Rotary Club Eastern Seaboard with Marlies Fritz as president and the only French speaking club in South East Asia, the Pattaya Marina Rotary Club led by President Dr. Olivier Meyer.
At a reception held in the Rotary room of the Royal Cliff Grand Hotel, DG Peera made his keynote address to more than 50 Rotarians and their guests.

Presidents Dr. Olivier, Max and Marlies present a bouquet of flowers to Khun Ratana (left) and a gift to DG Peera Potipipith.

“Rotary is a noteworthy volunteer organization,” said DG Peera. “We get no salary, but we sacrifice our time and money and other personal expenses to carry out aid projects in the service of our fellow man. No matter how much volunteer work we do, a Rotarian will only have true happiness, when we see that the underprivileged are able to achieve happiness through progress and development of their communities whereby improving their standard of living.”

Not gone and also not forgotten, DG Peera presents a special gift to Past District Governor Premprecha Dibbayawan (left) as Assistant DG Dennis Stark (2nd left) and Khun Ratana look on.
DG Peera said that Rotary’s motto of Service above Self is straightforward but his interpretation of these immortal words is: “The true ideals and philosophy of good deeds. To be able to serve well we must first train our hearts and our spirits. To help others above your own needs is considered to be the greatest sacrifice of all, because it is but human nature to be selfish in one way or another. But if you are one that is of a kind and generous nature and have the desire to help others without expecting anything in return, then only will you understand and appreciate the meaning of Service Above Self.”
Quoting RI President William B. Boyd, he said, “Rotarians the world over should unite together to Lead the Way to a brighter future through friendship and service. Rotary is a noble example of uprightness and morality. Cooperation between the peoples of different countries and cultures is the true spirit of volunteers.
“As Rotarians we cannot just sit back and dream that the world will become a better place without lifting a finger, but can only happen if we make meticulous plans combined with sincere cooperation and unrelenting labour.
“It is not enough that Rotarians just wait for things to get better without putting in any effort, but we must Lead the Way to achieve the results that we strive for.
Fellowship, Unity and Cooperation in body and spirit will ensure the success of the most righteous ideals of Rotary … the ideals of Service above Self.”

Rotarians and guests had a wonderful fellowship with DG Peera and Khun Ratana.

Festival highlights Bang Saen Beach as seafood venue

Chonburi Governor Pisit Ketphasook is awed by the mouth-watering ingredients on display during the opening ceremony.

(L to R) Satil Khunplome, Wittaya Khunplome (former Chonburi MP), Chonburi Governor Pisit Ketphasook, and Samerkhae Ketphasook (chairperson of the Chonburi Red Cross) make “som tam”.

Ariyawat Nuamsawat
Chonburi governor Pisit Ketphasook opened the Laem Thaen seafood festival at Bang Saen Beach on August 18, a two-day event organized by Saensuk Municipality and the Chonburi administration as part of the national government’s policy of developing local tourism resources.

Fresh seafood at cheap prices, and served by friendly staff at Laem Thaen on Bang Saen Beach.
This is the third year the seafood festival has been held, the intention being to promote Bang Saen Beach as an attraction for both local and foreign tourists.
The event also carries an environmental message, making local people aware of the importance of protecting the natural resources of the area and the ocean, and ensuring that the seafood of the area has an image of quality. In this, the hotel and restaurant operators have a clear role to play, and the aim is to make this a favored venue for seafood dining.
Along with the food stalls at the festival were booths selling OTOP products from Chonburi and neighboring provinces. A highlight of the event was a som tam contest, which drew crowds of enthusiastic spectators.

The two-day event drew large crowds of tourists.

All the squid you could possibly eat was on sale the Laem Thaen seafood festival at Bang Saen Beach.

Opening day featured a Mardi Gras type show.

Community Center helps tsunami survivors towards a better future

Officials cut the ribbon at the new Academy and Community Center.

Walter Kretschmar
The Academy and Community Centre Ban Pru Teaw has been officially opened, a project that provides tsunami victims with practical training to enable them to have a sustainable income.
Really it should have been a relaxing day after the previous day’s official opening of the Academy and Community Center tsunami aid project. The project is in the newly constructed village of Ban Pru Teaw in Khao Lak, Phang Na province, approximately 100 km north of Phuket Island. Michael and I had just arrived and were sitting in the new office of the Academy ready to enjoy our first coffee and reflect upon the events of the past few days. The first surprise was to discover that we had not thought about buying coffee cups, let alone a coffee machine! However, a further surprise came when our Thai colleagues - who have got to know us so well - still managed to serve us with a fresh coffee. It was a pleasant feeling, knowing that the gesture was really coming from the heart. One gets the desire to stay, organize and carry out the training oneself.
“A totally successful day yesterday,” remarked Michael. “I heard only positive comments.” Over 400 people had attended the official opening ceremony, which was astonishing as the tsunami is really no longer a current topic. It was a pleasure to see the residents coming to register for various training courses. I had the desire to immediately start conducting the first courses myself. It will in fact take four weeks before we can start as we must first find the trainers and then prepare them well for the task ahead.
At this moment a tall Thai lady crossed the entrance court and came towards our office door. She caught our attention immediately and we both looked at each other. Michael shrugged his shoulders. The lady was an imposing figure, but one could see she was poor and that a hard life had left its mark on her. She carried some papers in her hands and approached our assistant. We heard an emotional conversation that we did not understand but one that caught our full attention.
Our coffee sat untouched as we observed what was going on. The woman’s clothes were worn but clean and tidy, and she radiated a tranquility and natural beauty. I could not remain seated and went over to ask if I could be of any help.
“She wants to work as a cleaner but we have somebody and don’t need her,” was the somewhat abrupt reply. “Okay,” I replied and said that we should put her details in an application file, as we may need someone later. Then I returned to my chair, having performed my duty as a proper boss!
“Mister, Mister ich Frankfurt in Festhalle, German good,” she approached us and explained, with great emotion and in a mixture of Thai and English, her story of surviving the tsunami. A young German couple had rescued her and her ageing mother from drowning but her husband was missing. “But my husband was a bad man, many women and I ill now.” I won’t repeat the entire story, but it’s sufficient to say that she had traveled to many international events as a dancer and must once have been an extremely attractive lady. She had been allocated one of the donated houses but remained in the slum-like emergency hut as she could not afford to pay for water and electricity, which is free in the emergency dwellings. Later, Michael and I had to admit that we both had lumps in our throats after hearing this story. Unfortunately we cannot solve all the world’s problems but it helped show us that we are doing the right thing with this project.
The idea came in a meeting at the GTZ headquarters in Eschborn where the possibility to provide vocational education as post-tsunami help was discussed. The idea of a training center to provide people with skills for particular jobs was developed by TGI but could not be carried out under the flag of Technical Development Help as the TGI project was concluded and handed over on 31 December 2004. The continued German presence at TGI would later be secured with an agreement between TGI and BDI-APA. During the search for supporters of this tsunami project, Siemens Thailand immediately agreed to offer their support. With 150,000 euros out of the Siemens Caring Hands Foundation the building and start-up costs could be covered. The BDI-APA provided a further 200,000 euros, mainly for project management and the inclusion of German technology to be used for training purposes. In June 2005 an agreement between Siemens, TGI-ITS, GTCC, the Thai Vocational Education Commission (VEC) and the province of Phang Nga was signed to execute the project.
After the initial operational period the project will be handed over to the VEC but with its own independent organization. It is planned to form an association to unite the users and the agreement partners to develop the project further. A long-term plan could be to follow the model of the German high schools.
In the first year, only people to be employed in the many hotels and resorts in the region will be trained, for there is an enormous demand for trained personnel in this sector. These courses will be structured upon the practical German Dual system, which of course requires training the trainers. The first phase up to the opening was very difficult, but the second phase will be even more difficult as quite different cultures will be working together. The construction was also used as training for apprentices and people from the village, which has provided us with a taste of what’s to come. The project would not function without further help, but additional help has been forthcoming.
Siemens has supplied all material for the electrical installations and some office furniture. Independent of the Academy, Siemens also handed over an additional cheque for the amount of 6,000,000 baht on the day of the opening of the Academy for the Thai Basic Education Program in the province, as scholarships for the children.
UI Lapp generously supplied all electrical cables free on site and ABB supplied teaching aids. All three companies will provide personnel for training. Still required are skilled personnel to assist the Thai trainers at the beginning, teaching material and aids as well as equipment such as air conditioners, a water treatment plant and alternative energy sources.
I am sure that we shall be able to provide our Thai dancer with a job to earn money to support herself. What possible purpose could her survival have had if she was just to vegetate in such an inhuman manner?

Siemens donated an additional 6,000,000 baht as scholarships for the children.

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