The Diamond Centre for Disabled Riders is a registered charity, which provides the opportunity for disabled children and adults to have regular contact with horses. Based in Carshalton, Surrey, it is known and respected world-wide and is the only Centre of its kind in the London Region specialising in all fields of riding for the disabled including dressage, carriage driving, vaulting and hippotherapy.

Three horses and six riders from the Diamond Centre competed at Hartbury and all achieved a place in the top six in every class they entered. In particular Amy Willmott riding Cushia came First in Class 9 – Music and Second in Class 2 and Debbie Rowlanes, also riding Cushia came First in Class 47 – Music.

The photographs show Debbie Rowlanes riding Cushla and, from left to right riders Amanda Morley, Linda Redmond and Amy Willmott together with supporters from The Diamond Centre. The other riders, not shown, were Nicola Moyle and Elaine Kingett.

Nonsuch Rotary is proud to support all these ladies in a very successful event.

Following many years support from the Legal & General who provided the use of their Kingswood pool, we are pleased to announce that Epsom College has now offered the use of its superb 25 metre pool on the Epsom College Campus in College Road Epsom. (Follow the Epsom College link above for directions).

Our Swimathon helps local organisations and charities to raise funds for their own purposes as well as supporting Rotary charities. We have aways been well supported by local schools such as Rosebury School in Epsom and Nonsuch High School in Cheam but any local group interested in raising funds is welcome to enter one or more teams.

The idea is simple. Teams collect sponsorship from friends, relatives and supporters for a 30 minute sponsored swim. Nonsuch Rotary, under the leadership of Terry Mayho, organises the event and the proceeds from sponsorship are split 50/50 between the local group and Rotary charities. Last year a total of 28 teams and 119 swimmers swam a total of 3798 lengths which equated to 94.95 kilometers or 59 miles!

Rotary provides all the documentation including sponsorship forms and a certificate upon completion of the swim and free refreshments are available to swimmers.

Forms are available for download via the links below or contact Terry Mayho for further information on 020 8593 2583 / email nonsuchswim@aol.com or John Putland on 01737 556 640.

Download Swimathon 2009 documentation here:

• Swimathon 2009 information leaflet
• Swimathon 2009 Team Application Form
• Sponsorship Form 2009 (to be completed by individual swimmers)
• Disclaimer Form 2009 (to be completed by all swimmers)

The photograph shows President David Riley presenting our cheque to Peter Coles, Interim Chief Executive of Epsom and St Helier University Hospitals NHS Trust.

Behind David and Peter are Susan Clelland (Palliative Care Clinical Nurse Specialist), Tarlika Patel (Macmillan Cancer Information Manager), Julia Sinclair (Cancer Services and Palliative Care Business Manager) and Seema Sullery (MDT and Data Coordinator),

The Rotary Foundation’s Group Study Exchange (GSE) programme is a unique cultural and vocational exchange opportunity for business people and professionals between the ages of 25 and 40 who are in the early stages of their careers. The programme provides travel grants for teams to exchange visits in paired areas of different countries. For four to six weeks, team members experience the host country’s culture and institutions, observe how their vocations are practiced abroad, develop personal and professional relationships, and exchange ideas.

In a typical four-week tour, applicants participate in five full days of vocational visits, 15 to 20 club presentations, 10 to 15 formal visits and social events, two to three days at the district conference, three to four hours per day of cultural and site tours, and three to four hours per day of free time with host families.

For each team member, the Foundation provides the most economical round-trip airline ticket between the home and host countries. Rotarians in the host area provide for meals, lodging, and group travel within their district.

A group from Brazil visited our District 1140 last October and now John will lead a return group who will spend May in Brazil, concluding with the District 2240 Annual Conference.

District 4420 covers the southern part of Sao Paulo and Santos and our group is a single vocational team of young police officers. They will spend the whole of May in Brazil culminating in District 4420’s Annual Conference.

The photograph shows, in the back row, John Goodhead and Josephine Bright representing Surrey Police and sponsored by Woking Rotary Club and in the front row from the left, John Halfacre representing Hampshire Police and sponsored by the Aldershot Rotary Club, Jayme Johnson representing the Metropolitan Police and sponsored by the Kew Gardens Rotary Club and Alex Thorne representing the British Transport Police also sponsored by the Kew Gardens Rotary Club.

John is no stranger to the international scene. Working with VSO he and his wife Barbara have previously worked in Albania, Kosovo and Zambia helping local people to establish and manage small businesses.

In total 29 young people from the Rotary District 1140 area spent a weekend at Avon Tyrrell, an activity centre near the village of Burley, in the New Forest, Hampshire.

Rotary Youth Leadership Awards is Rotary’s leadership training programme for young people. RYLA participants can be ages 14-30, but we usually invite pupils from local secondary schools to enter for an award.

RYLA emphasises leadership, citizenship, and personal growth, and aims to:

• Demonstrate Rotary’s respect and concern for youth
• Provide an effective training experience for selected youth and potential leaders
• Encourage leadership of youth by youth
• Recognise publicly young people who are rendering service to their communities

Read feedback from Carshalton Boys Sports College here.

The Paul Harris Fellowship was established by Rotary International in 1957, ten years after the death of founder Paul Harris. It is presented to Rotarians and others in recognition of outstanding service to the community and the club.

Chris Forkan, Nonsuch Rotary’s Youth Officer, has led our youth activities for a number of years. He has built relationships with a number of local schools and has worked tirelessly to fulfil an important Rotary goal of helping young people to maximise their potential. Chris has established Nonsuch Rotary as a leading supporter of youth activities. This includes mock interviews to help students prepare for university and work, Rotary Youth Leadership Awards (RYLA) providing an outward bound style training and development programme for young people, Youth Speaks public speaking competition and Rotary’s Young Chef competition.

The award came as a complete surprise when presented to Chris by President David Riley at the President’s Ball but all members agreed was well deserved.

Nonsuch Rotary’s primary fund raising activity is its Christmas Collection. For the past 22 years Club members have been taking Father Christmas to the streets of Worcester Park, Stoneleigh and Cheam to meet the children and to collect for local charities. Father Christmas also visits the local supermarkets; Waitrose in Worcester Park, Sainsburys in North Cheam and Tesco in Cheam Park Farm.

The collection is very rewarding for its collectors; financially in that much needed funds are raised for local charities, healthy in that walkers get a great deal of pre-Christmas exercise and enjoyable in seeing the pleasure Father Christmas brings to the children he meets on his travels.

But it can be hard on the collectors, walking up to six miles a night in the cold and sometimes wet of December evenings. There is, however, one particular route that all Rotarians look forward to! Since 1986, at one particular house, the home of the Walker family, collectors are met with a tray of silver goblets of sherry and plates of hot mince pies.

Mrs Cherry Walker started this most welcome practice 22 years ago and ever since Nonsuch Rotarians have looked forward to this wonderful custom by a very generous family in which Cherry has been ably supported by her husband Mike and their children.