Rotary Central Melbourne face to face meeting - 19 March 2024

Reporter: Peter Duras
Photographer: Roger Thornton

Acting President Elias Lebbos gave the acknowledgement to Country and the toast to Rotary International, before welcoming our visiting Italian physiotherapist Mia Fornasaro to the Club for the first time.

He also welcomed the representatives from the University of Melbourne and Victoria Police.

The Silk Miller Presentations

Chairman Doug Robertson then opened up to what was probably the most comprehensive session on the scope and impact of the Silk Miller Scholarships that the Club has experienced.   

For 22 years the Club has presented these scholarships which cover 50% of the cost of a University of Melbourne Graduate Diploma in Adolescent health and Wellbeing.

Ours is a partnership between RCM, the University of Melbourne and Victoria Police. Doug is our current representative.

Dr Ani Wierenga from the University told that us there have been 800 graduates from the multidisciplinary course over the 29 years that it has run. She thanked our club for our long running support and indicted that the partnership is currently being further developed.

Commander Jo Stafford from Victoria Police thanked RCM and the University of Melbourne for their roles in the scholarships, acknowledging that better education within the Force leads to better outcomes for young people. She congratulated the current scholarship holder Steve Turner and helped present his certificate.

Sergeant Steve Turner has been in the Police Force for 14 years. He operates in the Brimbank Melton area. Early on he observed a spike in street robberies, with an average age of offenders being 14-17 years. He became involved in Community Policing and the provision of youth support services. He instituted a youth crime early intervention program which gradually earned support from within the force.

The first contact strategy involves most of the agencies that work in the field, including lawyers, police and youth workers. While it can take up to 15 months for court hearings to take place, Steve’s program aims at stepping in within weeks, with the prospect of entering a rapid diversion program.

Data collected over nearly two years indicates some very positive results, and there is the possibility of this strategy being rolled out throughout Victoria. Steve is working on it, and has found the course, though challenging, has been a great help. Answering questions, Steve indicated that the level of family support is a vital element in successfully reconnecting young offenders (or not).

Certificates were then presented to our 2021 and 2022 Silk Miller Scholars.

• Acting Senior Constable Julie Woods (2022) has become a Youth Specialist Officer and has put a lot of work into producing a manual for her colleagues on all things involved in interacting effectively  with young offenders.
• Sergeant Ben McWilliam (2021) from the Latrobe area is pleased that the Silk Miller Scholarships are awarded to Police at a grass roots level. With considerable experience, he believes that further education opens up broader communication channels and encourages academic oversight. The three scholarship recipients thanked the Club for their involvement.

Member Announcements

• Ignacio Inchausti introduced our visiting student Mia Fornasaro who is here to widen her physiotherapy knowledge. She is a bright young lady who has rapidly settled into the Melbourne environment. She is currently staying with Warwick and his family.
• Ignacio also announced record joint proceeds from Bunnings Port Melbourne and Collingwood sausage sizzles: about $2,300 from Port Melbourne and about $1,250 from Collingwood. A fantastic result for our Club projects! Ignacio did point out that we are currently running short on volunteers. If you can possibly help, please contact Campbell Chambers or Neville John. A special shout out to Mia who did 2 shifts at Port Melbourne!

In closing, Elias thanked all our presenters and Doug Robertson for all his ongoing work with the Scholarships.

When booking a ticket, please use the code ROTARYCMELB. Further details are contained in the flyer.