24th May 2011

Howe Rotary ‘Away-day’ at Elmwood College.

Last week’s meeting of the Rotary Club of the Howe of Fife took place at Elmwood College – in the restaurant, to be precise.

There, members were able to sample the tasty menu on offer, with its choice of three main courses (including a vegetarian option), followed by a plate filled with not one, not two, note even three, but four attractively presented delicious desserts. Rotarians were indeed spoiled for choice!

Section Manager and Rotarian, Rick Bond had arranged the outing and later introduced the staff responsible for the culinary delights: staff members Vicki Munro (front of house) and Willie Balfour (chef), aided by HNC students Barbara Carter and Lisa Bryans (front of house), Alison McGregor, Michael Clark and Christopher Taylor (chefs).

Junior Vice-President Sandy Davis thanked all those responsible and led Rotarians in a hearty round of applause.

3rd May 2011


George Laurie, Project Officer of the Rural Access Committee, Kinross, was last week's visitor to the Rotary Club of the Howe of Fife. His topic was the Loch Leven Heritage Trail

The idea to 'do something with Loch Leven' was first raised at the Kinross Community Council in 1996. Its importance was recognised from a heritage point of view due to its connection with Mary Queen of Scots; its wildfowl, written about by noted naturalist, Peter Scott; its fish (some of the best fish stocks ever last year); and its panoramic views across the loch.

One priority for the project was to reduce the levels of phosphates in the loch and eradicate the scum on its surface waters. This was successfully carried out.

Now the trail, which Perth & Kinross Council maintains, links Kinross with the Vane Farm Bird Sanctuary; it offers 8 miles of traffic-free walking and it can be joined at five different points. It takes walkers through a variety of landscape - woodland, farmland and secluded sandy beaches - and the length of it is marked with well designed, attractive interpretative signs.

In the future, it is hoped the trail may extend as far as Benarty, Ballingary and the Meadows, although George emphasised the trail would never be a 'round the Loch walk' as some areas are still preserved from public access.

President Rod McCall thanked George for his presentation and said it had encouraged him to look out his walking boots and test the trail for himself.

26th April 2011

HOWE ROTARIANS LEARN ABOUT MARIGOLDS IN DELHI!

The trials and tribulations of the 2010 Commonwealth Games in Delhi formed part of Gina Logan's talk to the Rotary Club of the Howe of Fife last week.

As Assistant Manager in charge of welfare for the Scottish team, Gina found her job involved more than she'd bargained for. While accommodation built for the athletes was of a high standard, cleanliness was not. That meant spending £500 on cleaning material - and expending a great deal of elbow grease. The Indian Minister responsible for building, Gina noted, had recently been charged with fraud and corruption.

On the positive side, the Indian staff were kind and helpful and the athletes' security well organised. There was a strict 'signing in' system, from which even Prince Charles was not exempt. With just 200 in the Scottish team, 'small was definitely beautiful' , Gina said, which helped create a great spirit among those participating.

President Rod McCall thanked Gina for her talk and said the Scottish team's medal tally of 26 - 9 Gold, 10 Silver and 7 Bronze - had been a wonderful effort.

12th April 2011

TWO FOR THE PRICE OF ONE!

Members welcomed two visitors to a recent meeting of the Rotary Club of the Howe of Fife. Ron Bissett, Howe Rotary 2009 Citizen of the Year, was invited by President Rod McCall to receive a cheque for £1000 for the Parkinson's Disease Society; Alan Graham attended as guest speaker for the evening.

Alan has recently retired from a horticultural career that began in Glasgow and ended as head gardener at Craigtoun Park, St. Andrews, where he gave thirty years service. A keen plantsman, Alan spoke about the trees and plants that Scotsmen had collected from around the world to bring back to this country. Green-fingered Rotarians were thankful for their fellowcountrymen's kleptomania. Thanks to them, many gardens now feature a range of colourful and exotic non-native species that constantly delight and amaze.

5th April 2011


The Rotary Club of the Howe of Fife last week welcomed Dorothy Armstrong to their meeting. Formerly an English teacher, Dorothy, who hails from Glasgow, read a selection of poetry and prose extracts that demonstrated her love of her 'Mither Tongue'. Some words may have left a few Rotarians scratching their 'heids', but Dorothy's clear delivery and well judged tone easily conveyed meaning. It led onto an interesting discussion of language, the roots of English and Scots, and a sharing of dialect words from different parts of the British Isles. As President Rod McCall said, in thanking Dorothy for her talk, "Eee, lass, that were grand!"

29th March 2011

HOWE ROTARY’S LONE STAR VISITOR!


Mandy Morton, Rotary ambassadorial scholar from Nacodoches, Texas, received a warm Howe Rotary welcome at the Village Inn, Pitlessie.

A student at St. Andrews’ University’s renowned School of International Studies, Mandy holds a Masters degree in Public Administration from her alma mater in Nacodoches. She introduced herself to Rotarians and described the Lone Star State of Texas, mentioning the renowned Davy Crocket. Some Rotarians, who remembered wearing ‘racoon’ hats in Davy’s honour as boys, noted with disappointment that Mandy had neglected to bring along samples with her!

In a lively presentation, Mandy enthused about the field trip students had taken to Bosnia, and the discussions that had initiated. Her aim, Mandy said, was to make the world a better place through an understanding of the effects of intervention in other countries’ conflicts. Rotarians hoped the powers-that-be would take note.

Thanking Mandy for her exuberant talk, President Rod McCall assured her that: “the entente cordiale between America and UK, as far as members of the Rotary Club of the Howe of Fife are concerned, is in fine fettle!” A fact he went on to prove!

15th March 2011

EUROSCHOLAR PRESENTATION.

Howe Rotary members recently enjoyed a presentation from Bell Baxter pupils, Katherine Gemmel and Francesca Hill, chosen as Euroscholars by the Rotary Clubs of Cupar and the Howe of Fife. Judging from a colourful powerpoint display of photos that accompanied an enthusiastic description of their activities while visiting the Parliament in Strasbourg, it was obvious the whole experience had been a Euro-delight.

Part of a thirty-strong group from Scotland, Katherine and Francesca met other pupils from all over Europe; interviewed members of the Strasbourg public about their knowledge of Scotland; quizzed local historians on Strasbourg history, then presented their findings to the rest of the students; attended Parliament where two representatives from each group introduced themselves as well as their country; and took part in discussion groups on such topics as democracy and citizenship. And all this in French. After that, the Scottish contingency still had enough energy to give several impromptu demonstrations of the Gay Gordons and even found time to host a ceildh at the hostel on their last night, where they introduced their guests to the delights of Scottish Country Dancing.

Clearly, both Katherine and Francesca had seized the opportunity given to them as Eurscholars to gain as much as they could from the experience of visiting Strasbourg. As President Rod MacCall said, in thanking the girls for their presentation, Katherine and Francesca had been “wonderful ambassadors for their country, their school and themselves”.

In the picture are : Andrew Kennedy (Youth Service Committee); Susan Moffat, French teacher from Bell Baxter; Francesca Hill, Euroscholar; Katherine Gemmel, Euroscholar; Rod McCall, President of the Rotary Club of the Howe of Fife

9th March 2011

Howe Rotary Club says: “Let’s Quiz!”

Eleven Primary Schools took part in a quiz organised by the Rotary Club of the Howe of Fife recently in Strathmiglo Hall. Local winners, a team from Freuchie Primary School, will now go forward to the area final to compete for a place in the national finals of the Rotary Primary School Quiz, an annual event initiated over 30 years ago by the Leven Rotary Club.

Questions, covering a wide range of topics including Geography, Current Affairs, Sport and many others, were read out by quizmaster Sandy Matthews. They were also displayed on a screen for the team and a large audience of parents, teachers and Rotarians to view. This was interspersed at intervals throughout the competition with a table showing the scores, which helped to build excitement and encourage the efforts of team members.

At the end of the evening, all quiz participants received a certificate from the President Rod McCall of the Rotary Club of the Howe of Fife, who also presented the Winners’ Shield to Freuchie Primary School. In thanking all those who took part, President McCall praised the high standard of general knowledge displayed by all the teams and wished the Freuchie team well in the next stage of the competition.

1st March 2011

Members of the Rotary Club of the Howe of Fife welcomed to last week's meeting Rotarian Ambassadorial Scholar, Ben Backsmeier from Bloomington, Illinois.

A commissioned officer from West Point Academy, Ben already held a Batchelor of Science in American Policy and Policy Strategy when invited to apply for a Rotarian Ambassadorial Scholarship. He chose St. Andrews' University in which to study for a Masters in Literature and Security Studies, due to the high reputation enjoyed by its School of International Studies. During his presentation, Ben showed he is taking full advantage of the opportunity: travelling throughout the UK, as well as joining in student activities, such as Raisin Day, and even displaying a set of American knees under a kilt!

During a question-and-answer session, Ben spoke about his experiences training members of the armed forces in readiness for deployment overseas. He admitted that in preparation for the conflict in Iraq, for example, little or no 'orientation' education had been carried out; this had now changed and training exercises help soldiers develop social, cultural and religious sensitivities when dealing with other nationalities. He also asserted that soldiers returning from recent conflicts are better supported that soldiers had been from, for example, the Vietnam conflict.

In thanking Ben, President Rod McCall said that it was the first time that a member of the American armed forces had visited the club; Rotarians had learned much from his presentation.

1st February 2011

OKLAHOMA GAL.

The Rotary Club of the Howe of Fife last week welcomed to their meeting Ambassadorial Scholar, Amanda Mullins. A native of Wagoner, Oklahoma – that had Rotarians singing in their seats! - Amanda eschewed the wide open spaces of the ranch where she grew up to study Law at the University of Oklahoma. Now, supported by her local Rotary Club, Amanda is studying for a Masters’ degree in International Relations, with especial reference to the Middle East, at St. Andrews’ University. She is supported in her studies by her local Rotary Club.

Having familiarised herself the Rotary ethos, Amanda said she sympathised with their approach. Reaching out to people in need with practical help, she felt, and using negotiation tools are the best ways to solve cultural and political differences. President Rod McCall thanked Amanda for her presentation, one that had left members optimistic about the future of America in hands such as hers.

18th January 2011

Roberta started by explaining that Cruse Bereavement Care Scotland exists to provide support to people experiencing grief following a death, working primarily through volunteers, providing free care to bereaved people.

The equivalent English organisation started over 50 years ago in Surrey, offering counselling first to widows and then to widowers and finally to anyone affected by bereavement. Roberta said that the first branch of CRUSE opened in Scotland in the late 1960s and by the mid 1990s there were 28 branches north of the border. These had since been reduced to centralise the organisation and the branches are now more aligned with the NHS areas.
Roberta said that about 60,000 Scots die every year, and as on average 6 people are closely affected by each detath, there are some 360,000 people each year who could call for councelling.
Roberta said that the organisation is a charity and depends upon the support of the public, funds from government having ceased.
Having answered several questions from the floor, President Rod called upon Amanda Fleet to give the vote of thanks.
President Rod is pictured with Roberta after her presentation.
The CRUSE website can be found at http://www.crusescotland.org.uk/.

Joan Cran

21st December 2010

At our Christmas meal, President Rod was delighted to present the Howe Of Fife Rotary Club's Citizen of the Year award to Joan Cran from Freuchie.

Joan, who had been nominated by Freuchie Community Council, led the Freuchie in Flower team till last year,  and has
 worked tirelessly to improve the appearance of the village, resulting in many awards and accolades for Freuchie  over the last 20 years. Under the Scotland's Gardens Scheme, she also opens her own garden to the public every June, raising money for charities in the process.

21st December 2010

At the Village Inn, Pitlessie, we held our annual Christmas Dinner. Members and their spouses attended, President Rod being in the chair.

During the meeting, President Rod presented the award of Citizen of the Year to Joan Cram of Freuchie for her community work. (See separate article.)

The entertainment was provided by Billy Anderson, seen here with his accordian.

16th November 2010

Members of the Rotary Club of the Howe of Fife were on their best behaviour last week, when the Chief Constable of Fife, Norma Graham, visited to talk about Policing in the Kingdom. Norma has an impressive C.V. , starting from the age of 16 years when she first signed on with Lothian and Borders Police, until her appointment as the first woman in Scotland to achieve the rank of Chief Constable. During that time, she has been awarded the Queen's medal for services to the police.

As a raw recruit, Norma admitted she found it a male-dominated service, with "worrying" similarities with the TV portrayal of the police as shown in 'Life on Mars'. The force's job now in the 21st. century, though, is dealing with "lost dogs; lost property; and lost souls". Public scrutiny and accountability has increased; and it is vital to listen to local concerns in an age when people want a return to community policing. In response to that, an additional 60 officers had been deployed to the community in the last year. Now the service faces its biggest challenge: austerity.

Four clear priorities are set for each member of the force, printed on a 'credit card' for ease of carrying and access: tackling crime; being there for communities; creating safer neighbourhoods; and building on success. How is all this achieved? Through community engagement meetings; additional officers 'on the beat'; and by deploying additional resources to a target area of need. And the results, Norma, asserted, mean the Kindom is the safest it's been for a decade, with a 12 and-a-half % drop in crime and vandalism the lowest ever.

Howe Rotary members were much impressed by the presentation and the Chief Constable giving it; as President Rod McCall said, in thanking Norma, the Kingdom appears to be in safe hands.

9th November 2010

HOWE ROTARY SPEAKER REACHES THE HEIGHTS!

Employment Tax Specialist, Justine Riccomine, was welcomed to last week’s meeting of the Rotary Club of the Howe of Fife. The subject for Justine’s talk, though, was far less controversial than her job title would suggest: a trip to Machu Pichu. Following a family bereavement, Justine undertook the trip to raise funds for Marie Curie. After flying into Lima and visiting the city of Cusco, her group trekked along the Andean trail to the lost city of the Incas, Machu Pichu, built in the fifteenth century. With oxygen in short supply at heights of up to 3600 metres, Justine described the feeling of floating that ensued. A keen hill walker and runner, she fortunately had the level of fitness to cope; and chewing coca leaves, given to tourists by their guides to combat the effects of high altitudes, also helped. To illustrate the colourful costumes worn by indigenous Indians, Justine brought along two woven striped blankets, one of which she draped over President Rod McCall to demonstrate their warmth, though sadly there were no samples of Pisco Sours, a popular local drink. The powerpoint presentation was much appreciated by Rotary members who, by the end of the talk, felt they had learned something of Peru and the Inca Indians.

2nd November 2010

Ken Anton of Bridgefm, Tayside's Hospitals' broadcasting group, visited last week's meeting of the Rotary Club of the Howe of Fife to talk about his 34 years involvement with hospital radio, a commitment he fits around a full-time day job as a chartered engineer.

Originally the brainchild of the Reverend Tubby Clayton of TOC H, hospital radio was first established in Dundee by a local branch of the charity in the 1950's, broadcasting football commentary from Dens Park. It had become a separate charity by the 1980's and is now funded by grants and donations.

Hospital radio, Ken explained, is an interactive service, with volunteers collecting requests from patients.
Past hospital radio presenters include Ken Bruce, now Radio 2, and Radio Tay's Ally Bally. Ken's own style of music was described as 'easy listening' from the 1930's, 40's and 50's, which he demonstrated with excerpts from his programmes.
The nostalgic music certainly appealed to Rotary members, revealing something about their average age!
And of course, Bridgefm, like radio stations everywhere, must keep up to date with the latest technology and programmes are 'podcasted' and sent out to hospitals all over the country.

Following Ken's toe-tapping talk, both Robin Rippin and President Rod McCall proposed a vote of thanks.

26th October 2010

Members of the Rotary Club of the Howe of Fife last week welcomed Wendy Campbell, introduced to the meeting by Ronnie Black.

A private counsellor who also works with Falkirk District Council, Wendy described her specialist area as helping potential suicides and those with mental health problems. Wendy was very frank about how she first became interested in this line of work, then went on to explain who can be afflicted by such difficulties, how those at risk can be recognised, and the ways in which they can be helped.

Despite a serious subject, Wendy was an engaging and amusing speaker.
Obviously a highly committed practitioner, Wendy is an enthusiast, whose zest for life appears to heighten her empathy for those for whom life has become a burden.

Following a lively question-and-answer session, President Rod McCall conveyed to Wendy the thanks of all members for her presentation.

5th October 2010

28th September 2010

At last week's meeting of The Howe of Fife Rotary Club, the two RYLA candidates from Bell Baxter High School gave a most interesting and informative presentation about their experiences at the outward bound camp in the Highlands. Sarah Dawson and Ryan Crowe were the two candidates selected from a short list of ten and they proved to be worthy Rotary representatives. Regardless of the atrocious weather for the first few days Sarah and Ryan still managed to participate fully in events such as rock-climbing, gorge walking, orienteering and canoeing.They both felt that they had gained immensely from the experience and expressed gratitude to the Howe Rotary Club for their support.

21st September 2010

Speaker at last week's meeting of the Rotary Club of the Howe of Fife was Grant Thomson, introduced to members by Past President Graeme Bain. Grant works with Disaster Victim Recovery and Identification programme. This was devised in the late 1980's to ensure that the bodies of those killed in "mass events" such as natural disasters, bomb blasts, road accidents and so on, are treated with the maximum respect, while every effort is made to effect identification.

Grant explained that in a natural disaster, teams assemble to the site from all over the world; for example, 17 countries sent teams to aid victim identification following the Boxing Day Tsunami of 2004. He also briefly outlined some of the difficulties faced by DVI teams in their work, according to the nature of the disaster.

Although Grant maintained his presentation to Rotary members was a 'milder' version, the whole room became noticeably quieter as it progressed. But, following a hearty vote of thanks, Rotarians left the Village Inn, Pitlessie, safe in the knowledge that should any of them have the misfortune to be blown up in the future, their limbs, and any body parts, more than 5cm. cubed, would be treated with respect. For Grant himself, and those like him, was reserved the greatest respect in carrying out what must be a difficult and often harrowing job.

HOWE ROTARY’S NOVEL SCHEME.

Members of the Howe of Fife Rotary Club are helping to turn the most unlikely places into libraries, by dropping off books in cafés, in doctors’ waiting rooms, on public transport and even on park benches. A type of book-sharing scheme, Rotarians want people to pick up the books, read them, then in turn leave them lying about for others to find and enjoy.

The Rotating Books Initiative is being promoted by Rotary International in the expectation that it will help encourage literacy as a well as enjoyment in reading. As part of that initiative, Howe Rotary members will stick labels on books they have enjoyed, each label bearing the well known Rotary logo as well as details of the Howe Rotary Club, and an invitation to “borrow” the book for free. The books will then be deposited in prominent public places.

James Storrar, chairman of the Howe of Fife Rotary Club’s International Committee says: “There are lots of cafés with bookshelves and other suitable places for members to leave books. Hopefully, once books are read, they’ll be passed on in a similar way, so that eventually the books will make their way around the community.”

Similar “BookCrossing” initiatives, as they are called, have been started in cities around the world in recent years. Defined as “the practice of leaving a book in a public place to be picked up and read by others, who do likewise”, the term was derived from the website www.bookcrossing.com , founded in 2010 to encourage the practice, and aiming to “make the whole world a library”. This most recent initiative by members of the Rotary Club of the Howe of Fife should certainly help to do that. Members wish all those who take up a book; “ Happy reading!”

24th August 2010

MACS is a charity founded specifically to offer support to parents and carers who have children born with eye defects. The acronym MACS stands for The Micro and Anopthalmic Children’s Society.
Most of us take our eyesight for granted, and it adds an incomparably rich dimension to our lives. Unfortunately a small number of children are born every year with serious eye defects amongst which are colobomas ( holes in the external structure of the eye) and micropthalmia ( incompletely formed or very small eye structures).
These conditions have their origins in chromosomal defects that affect development of the foetus and can result in eye defects ranging from altered vision to blindness.
The Macs charity provides support, practical and emotional, to the parents of affected children and also assists the continuing research by scientists into possible causes.
A talk about MACS and its activities was recently given to the club by member John Bonington, one of whose children has received support in the past from MACS.

10th August 2010

Stephen Prentice, who has gathered together an archive of the Fife county town of Cupar, spoke to members about his collection. He brought along examples of photographs, and collages fashioned from old Cupar scenes, for Rotarians to view. James Storrer was delighted to recognise two 'weel kent' faces on a photograph of the Albert Tavern, which was owned by his maternal great great grandparents (the Robertsons). James' grandmother is looking out of an upstairs window, while his great grandfather William Robertson is standing with his father David beside a horse and cart, at rest in front of the tavern.

3rd August 2010

At last week's meeting of the Howe of Fife Rotary Club, Giff Bradley gave a moving account of how the Macmillan nurses had supported his daughter, Sharon, as well as the whole family, when she became ill with terminal cancer in 1991.

Now Giff is a volunteer speaker for Macmillan Cancer Support and will take part in a fund-raising event at Blair Atholl Castle on 28 August 2010. This will involve abseiling down the tower of the castle, as described in an article in last week's Fife Herald. Sir Menzies Campbell, Honorary member of the Howe of Fife Rotary Club, was present to hear the talk, commenting afterwards that he could identify with the experiences that Giff had related.

News was also relayed to Rotarians that the ShelterBox organisation had recently sent 400 of its tents to help the humanitarian effort in Pakistan. Members of the Rotary Club of the Howe of Fife have diligently supported the organisation over the years and were unanimous in agreeing to buy another shelterbox.

In the picture: President Rod McCall thanks Giff Bradley for his presentation.

20th July 2010

One of the newest members of the Howe of Fife Rotary Club, the effervescent Linda Ballingall, formally introduced herself to members at last week’s meeting at the Village Inn, Pitlessie.
For nearly a decade and a half, Linda worked in PR, Marketing, Event Management and Tourism with the former Glenrothes Development Corporation, where she was known as ‘the Singing Tourist Officer’. In fact, in 1983, together with the GDC's public relations officer, Tom Johnson, Linda was instrumental in establishing a successful tourism strategy for the new town. This involved putting on events, organising activity holidays, even master-minding visits from royalty. Throughout that time, Linda’s considerable musical talents helped publicise Glenrothes, with duets with well-known singers such as Kenneth McKellar and Bill McCue, as well as appearances on local and national media. In 1989, Linda and Tom set up Crown Public Relations, and were awarded the GDC contract for PR and tourism. Linda and Tom subsequently went on to establish Fife Tourist Promotions Ltd, who, in conjunction with the Scottish Tourist Board and North East Fife District Council, were spearheading the 1990's campaign for the re-instatement of a Kingdom of Fife Tourist Board. On wind-up of GDC, Fife Tourism Promotions Ltd. ceased and the promotion of tourism in Glenrothes was handed over to the local authority. Crown PR continued until 1998, when ill-health forced Linda into retirement. On recovery, Linda worked with Her Majesty's Revenue & Customs.

After taking over 54 leading lady roles in operettas and musicals for over 32 years, Linda is now a professional singer and the Rotary Club of the Howe of Fife has already had reason to be thankful for her talents. In April, Linda organised a concert featuring herself and ‘singing partners’, John Grieve and Craig Smith, in aid of one of the Howe Rotary Club’s chosen charities, Chimwemwe, a project that supports vulnerable street children in Malawi.

Sandy Rennie led members in a hearty round of applause for Linda’s entertaining presentation, which left the audience with the impression that there was more, much more, to hear of her life story – but that would be for another evening.