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Gryffe Valley Rotary Club Past President, Chris Butlin, lived and worked in New Jersey in 1980-82. He was revisiting Philadelphia with his family at the time when Barack Obama won the election. Chris said that things have changed a lot since he lived and worked there and it was great that colour is no longer an issue in the States.

Rotary members are always welcome to visit other clubs in any part of the world and Chris enjoyed a visit to one of the nine Philadelphia Rotary clubs when he was there. Chris is pictured exchanging banners with Rotary Club President John Wynn in the Union League building in the heart of city.
John Rodger addressed Gryffe Valley Rotary Club on the Kilbarchan Amateur Athletic Club
The club was founded in 1919, has 400 members and 22 coaches, all of whom are volunteers. It is an extremely successful club and is ranked 4th in Scotland. They currently have 6 Great Britain class athletes and over 50 potential Scotland team members. The club not only caters for elite athletes, but also has a good percentage of joggers who just want to keep fit.
Scottish athletics faces a number of challenges including a generally lower quality of fitness than in the previous generation and an increase in obesity. John explained that there are numerous initiatives to promote athletics and a healthier lifestyle, particularly amongst the young, however, Renfrewshire really needs an all weather indoor training facility to support its athletes and young people at whatever level they strive to compete.
John is right to be proud of the club, its athletes and those who freely give their time in training and supporting the club. Further details can be found on the club's web site www.kilbarchanaac.org.uk.

Elaine Edgar and Alison Hamilton gave a talk to the Gryffe Valley Rotary Club on dementia.
Elaine and Alison deal with dementia on a daily basis. Both are employed by Alzheimer Scotland to provide help for families affected by the disease. Dementia is defined as the progressive loss of brain power to the point of extreme forgetfulness. Elaine and Alison explained that the two main causes are Alzheimer's disease and vascular - related dementia. It is estimated that some 58,000 people in Scotland are affected.
Local examples of the help provided by the charity are a specialist day centre, a home support service, a dedicated helpline and courses for carers.
The charity is currently fund-raising to provide a better respite care service in the area. Additional information on dementia is available at the Alzheimer Scotland web site www.alzscot.org
Former president, Mike Pepper gave a short talk on his work a volunteer with the Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen and Families Association - put shortly as SSAFA or Forces Help.There are 7500 volunteers associated with a country-wide network of about 100 branches. The branch for this locality covers Renfrewhire, East Renfrewhire and Inverclyde and operates from offices in Greenock and Paisley. The volunteer links those ex-service people who are 'In Need' with the forces charities who have the resources to help. Thus the trained volunteer learns of a potential beneficiary, meets the person(s) and establishes the need and then approaches relevant bodies to broker a successful outcome. The branch is self- supporting, raising £7000 per annum to cover its costs and expenses and has 270 clients who benefit to the tune of £200,000.
Willie Munro explains Orthotics to Gryffe Valley Rotary Club

Orthotics is concerned with the provision of external fittings to assist people with painful or deformed limbs caused by disease, accident, operations or simply bad posture. It is a relatively new specialisation within the NHS. Willie obtained his degree from Strathclyde University, where the course has only been available since the early 1980s. One of the first practical skills an orthotist learns is how to make a well formed shoe, so that he/she can then make corrections or inserts to existing footwear. Willie described the various types of deformations of the legs and feet and spine, and the devices which are used to relieve pain, provide support or correct the deformation. It was interesting that many ladies suffer considerable long term pain from bad posture caused by wearing high heels and Willie explained how they can be helped.

Brian Tuck, who is a former member of Gryffe Valley Rotary Club, presented John King (vice president) with a banner from his new club, Warksworth, in New Zealand.

Robin Veitch (pictured left), Rotary district chairman of Youth Opportunities, outlined the various programmes, which Rotary provides for young people. Amongst others were:

Youth Speaks competition which aims to offer young people an experience of speaking on a public platform as members of a team.

Primary School Quiz. These start with various heats and culminate in a district final. The events give great enjoyment to pupils, parents, teachers and Rotarians.

Euroscola. The day is hosted 20 times a year by the European Parliament in Brussels or Strasbourg. Around 500 young people from across the EU take part in a day of presentations, questions, discussions and voting on issues relevant to them. The day is multi-lingual with the expectation that all participants must be able to communicate in French and English. The day is led by officials of the Parliament and is structured to ensure all young people participate to the full. It is a prestigious event with the young people being treated very much as MEPs as they sit in the main debating chamber and use electronic voting.

John Tuck, committee chairman, (pictured right) commented that Gryffe Valley Rotary Club is proud to have particpated in these activities.