Events

This presentation will include insights on long-term strength training and its role in overall health along with answers to key questions on maintaining activity, preventing chronic disease, and reducing injury risk. Darcy will also give guidance on getting started on a strength training journey.

Darcy McCann is an Exercise Scientist with over two years of professional experience at Kieser South Melbourne. Prior to this role, he worked as a Strength and Conditioning Coach at Western Melbourne Propulsion Swim Club, where he had the opportunity to coach elite athletes, including two-time Olympian Tamsin Cook.

He holds a Bachelor of Exercise and Sport Science from Deakin University. Before completing his degree in Australia, he studied Exercise Science at the University of Charleston, West Virginia, where he was also a member of the men’s NCAA basketball team.

He is a strong advocate for health, performance, and longevity across the lifespan, and he firmly believes that resistance training is essential for every adult to maintain strength, function, and long-term wellbeing.

Vocational Committee members Warwick Cavill and Patricia Wilson will speak about how they are working together to improve employment outcomes for people with intellectual disability and autism through the Community Employment Partnership (CEP). Emily Raymond secured a job through the connections of a Rotarian at Box Hill Central Rotary club. She will share her story about the difficulties of finding a job through traditional means and how working has made a positive impact on her life.

This is not a project of charity but of community action. Employment is not only important economically and financially, but it builds our competence, skills, confidence and social connections. It a huge part of our lives and contributes significantly to our sense of belonging and self-esteem.

Ask yourself – what would your life be like without meaningful employment?

We want to meet business needs and assist them to find skilled staff to fill tasks that are not getting done or are being done by others who are not entry level workers. Diverse workplaces improve business morale, workplace culture and can broaden a business’s customer base.

Bryce will introduce Australian Rotarians Against Malaria: why it exists, how it works, the challenges it faces, some success stories, and how Rotary Central Melbourne can help.

Bryce McNair is the Southern Region Chair of Australian Rotarians Against Malaria. He has a background in law, economics and accounting and spent eight years as a ministerial adviser in Melbourne, Darwin and Canberra. Bryce ran a laboratory and two industry associations and was a management consultant before becoming a teacher. He is a member of the Rotary Club of Albury Wodonga Sunrise.

Bad Days happen. At work. At home. Sometimes before 10am. And when they do, having a plan can make all the difference.

Dr Gayle Smerdon is the author of The Bad Day Playbook, a guide to navigating tough days with clarity, humour and practical actions.

Gayle is a workplace learning specialist, speaker and author who helps people make work less exhausting and more meaningful.

For more than two decades, she has worked across universities, government and not-for-profits, helping leaders and teams navigate change, build capability, and create healthy cultures. She studies how organisations function (and malfunction), exploring the interplay of systems, culture and behaviour. Her favourite question is simple: “Is this important and are we helping?”

Gayle lives in Melbourne and is the contented slave to her feline overlord, Mr Spooks.