Once again our weekly meeting was via Zoom - hopefully only two or three more weeks before we can meet face to face - HOPEFULLY!!!!Member participation in the Zoom Meetings is becoming very consistent with numbers again this week being 21 plus guest speakers. It would be great to have a few more members join in if it's at all possible.
As mentioned above we were treated with member Oscar Lyons zooming in from London! It was great to see and hear you Oscar and to be updated on how well you are doing in the UK, and more importantly, it was so good to hear that NZL is still home and it may not be too long before we see you back here, even if only initially for another visit.
Director Foundation and PE Gary reminded all members that the annual (Tax Free), voluntary donations to the Rotary Foundation are now due. As little or as much as can be afforded will be well received by our Charity of choice.There are several Club and District events scheduled between now and the end of the year. However, as we have seen over the last couple of months, many of these have been postponed or cancelled, so do please be sure to check the Bulletin each week for new dates as they come to hand, and we have a better understanding of the extent of any future lockdowns.
It was also good to have another Sergeants Session conducted via zoom - thanks Angus. 
Following the Director updates and other club notices, our guest speakers were introduced; Ann Dunphy Penrose Rotary, Libby Barrett a teacher and REP Coordinator from One Tree Hill Collage, (OTHC).over 20 years and or very own Alex Gatt. 
REP has been running at OTHC for some time now with over 1,000 students being given the chance to experience its unique benefits. REP is a literacy initiative that relies heavily on community involvement. It is "learning through connecting" and it involves students being mentored by many volunteer tutors – all of whom have made successes of their lives. Our Alex being one of these tutors and he has now been involved for 7 years.
For many years now, there has been the realization that the literacy skills of a portion of students entering college, are not at the required levels to encourage success. The REP programme has therefore been devised to upskill students in the required components in an endeavour to overcome their reading challenges. OTHC have been fortunate to be able to make REP available to a selection of Year 9 students due to the support of the management and teaching staff, and the sponsorship of;
- Penrose Rotary Club,
- Burnett Charitable Trust,
- Event Cinemas,
- David Levene Foundation,
- Lois Dalley Trust, MSA Charitable Trust,
- Newmarket Rotary Charitable Foundation,
- One Tree Hill College BOT,
- Management & Staff, Rotary Club of Newmarket,
- Scholastic NZ,
- The Chenery Trust,
- The Fletcher Trust and
- The Harold Thomas Memorial Trust.
The success of REP can be judged, not only the data gathered, but by the fact that its reputation is spreading, and it has now been set up in nine different colleges and high schools in the North Auckland and Auckland regions, with many more enquiring to set up the programme in their schools.
Auckland University has just released a report on their research into why REP is so successful – their findings back up fully what the programme was designed to achieve for the students. The programme targets students who have ability but just need the necessary enrichment of their literacy skills to reach their full potential and therefore be successful in their academic life.
An excellent overview was delivered by Ann and Libby and accolades to Alex for his commitment. If any members are interested in learning more on how they could participate, please contact Alex who will be more than happy to share his experiences.