One of the joys of attending our weekly meetings has been to hear members' personal stories and how/why they joined Rotary.
 
Bernadette, or as we like to call her, Bernie was certainly no exception last Tuesday.  She has a family of six children and 14 grandchildren.  You'll have to read on to learn more about her family.
 
Her time with Rotary goes way back to Toowoomba South & Mareeba.  She has been part of the Rotary Club of Caloundra family since June 2004 and most recently and formally as one of our Rotarians, having been inducted as a member in February 2014.
 
Bernie is our President Elect and looking forward to assuming her official role as President for 2018-19 on 1 July next.
 
(PS  for our members - we are seeking a nomination for President 2019-20 and would like you to express interest in this important role; a volunteer is always a good choice)
Bernadette Maree Morgan.  That is I, and I was born on 8 January, 1953 to John and Maureen Morgan at the Toowoomba Mothers Hospital.  I have three siblings Douglas, Denise and Keith.  Toowoomba was my home for many years.  I have three grown children June, Theresa and Anthony a stepdaughter Natalie, who are married and living in different parts of Australia and have 10 grandchildren. When Ron and I married in 2002 I inherited another three children Vincent, Michelle and Lucinda who are also married and have added another four grandchildren to my family.
 
My first involvement with Rotary was in Toowoomba as my number 2 husband was a member of the Rotary Club of Toowoomba South. I was involved and met some wonderful people through this Club and this made me very conscious of the need to be involved in the community.  When the marriage dissolved I still felt the need to be involved and offered services whenever I could most through my workplace.
 
I moved to the Sunshine Coast where I attained work at the Telstra Shop in the Plaza.  This is where I met Ron and it was he who had a big hand in helping me become more involved in the community.  We moved to Mareeba with Ron’s Police work and this is when we both were asked to be involved with Rotary.  Ron, with the Rotary Club of Mareeba and I with the Rotaryannes.  We made most of our free time volunteering with all sorts of fundraising events and functions.  It was a wonderful and fulfilling time.
 
Returning to the Sunshine Coast when Ron retired in 2002 we spent a little time getting settled when Ron was asked to become a member of the Rotary Club of Caloundra.  He was happy in that he would be back in helping the Community.  My recent trip to Papua New Guinea and the Solomon Islands reinforced this, just to see the wonderful and continuous work that is being done in the past, present and future by members of Rotary Clubs in our district and worldwide.
 
I have loved assisting Ron and the Caloundra team is servicing the Community and that it was an honour to be presented with a Paul Harris fellow.  My decision to become a member and to be accepted by the Club has set the precedence for being President Elect for 2018-2019 and I hope that I will not let the Club down in my vigilance to serve this wonderful Community.
 
More about Bernie at this link