LOCAL LIFE
Rotary Pride of Workmanship and Community Service Awards 2024
Rotary is about making a difference and works under the motto Serve to Change Lives .
Every May , The Rotary Club of the Hills – Kellyville seeks to recognise members of the local community for their special work that contributes to communities – in the Hills district and further afield . While there are many people who contribute their time to others , they are often hard to find because they don ’ t do it for recognition and work tirelessly and quietly .
It is Rotary ’ s job to seek them out and recognise these special individuals with the help of the local community , Rotary have two categories for their chosen awards , Pride of Workmanship and Community Service . Rotary held an awards night where six individuals were recognised for their outstanding work in our community . Pride of Workmanship awardees : Deepinder Singh – IT expert with Turbans 4 Australia for his extraordinary , voluntary work in running social media and setting up websites while also ensuring IT protection .
Suzanna Almeida – Customer Services Worker , St Joseph ’ s Conference and Retreat Centre , Baulkham Hills for her work as the first point of contact in welcoming all guests .
Christine Klaricich – Until recently ,
Centre Director , St Joseph ’ s Conference and Retreat Centre , Baulkham Hills for her work in managing the centre to the highest standards . Community Service awardees : Yatish Vadher – Volunteer with Turbans 4 Australia for his generosity and care in his work every Sunday since 2022 as part of the food relief program the organisation runs .
Dimitri Desilva – Volunteer for the Rotary Club of The Hills – Kellyville for the generous donation of his time assisting with Christmas tree sales and Jazz in the Pines events .
William Korman – Centre Manager , Grove – The Hills , accepting the award on behalf of his staff who set up and run the Christmas Giving Tree in conjunction with our Rotary Club to provide Christmas gifts to children and mothers in local women ’ s shelters .
Also on the night a Paul Harris Recognition Award was presented to past member Allan Walker and his wife Janice for their length of service to the community through Rotary . The Paul Harris Fellow recognition is Rotary ’ s highest award for significant contributions to the work of Rotary .
The Rotary Club of the Hills-Kellyville not only holds events in the local community , it also raises funds for
Left to right : Nira Sivanathan ( Vocational Services Director , the Rotary Club of The Hills- Kellyville ), Ian Pascoe ( President , the Rotary Club of The Hills-Kellyville ), Ms Ruth Vambuca ( Vocational Chair , Rotary District 9685 ), Deepinder Singh ( volunteer , Turbans 4 Australia ) & Amar Singh ( President and Founder Turbans 4 Australia and 2023 Australian Local Hero awardee - Australian of the year awards ).
numerous programs far and wide , from the Hills area to outback Australia to overseas communities with specific needs .
Local programs include literacy initiatives for students and a local community garden . Further afield the club continues its Bourke Public School Breakfast Club project which helps to increase school attendance . The club continues to be proactive in providing support for drought , flood and bushfire affected communities .
The Children ’ s Hospital at Westmead purchased new state-of-the-art equipment for their Eye Clinic with funds organised by the club .
On the international front , the club is also involved in major humanitarian projects in Sri Lanka and India .
For more information about the community projects of the club , to seek membership or donate visit the Rotary Club of The Hills-Kellyville at www . hillsrotary . org . au .
THE HILLS INDEPENDENT theindependentmagazine . com . au ISSUE 108 // JUNE 2024 9