News Article
1st September, 2011
My dear fellow Rotarians,
As you are already aware, we are only three days away from creating history in our country when on the 4th of September, our District 3220 will be the host District for the first ever South Asia Conference on Development and Cooperation in Colombo. His Excellency Mahinda Rajapakse will inaugurate this Conference on the invitation of RI President Kalyan Banarjee.
Senior Ministers, Business and Rotary Leaders of South Asian Countries will be in attendance at this timely initiative of Rotary International to provide platform for discussion, deliberation on close cooperation in areas of economic, health, education and culture among the countries of South Asia towards seeking to establish a declaration that could be further pursued with the respective Governments. It is indeed an honour for our country and to our District in particular for being able to host such an event and we should be grateful to PRID K.R.Ravindran, Chairman of the Organizing Committee PDG N.R. Gajendran and all the other PDG’s and Rotarians who worked tirelessly towards ensuring it’s success.
I was able complete 9 more official visits to clubs during the month of August whilst few wee postponed due to various reasons communicated by the clubs. As in the case of July, it is heartening to note the enthusiasm and also the involvement of a higher percentage of the membership at club projects and activities already at these early days of the Rotary year. I thank all Rotarians for answering my call positively to reach within and become an “Effective Rotarian” during this year.
Month of September is the New Generations month. Both Rotaract and Interact District leaders and their teams have started off the year on a high note and they have displayed a high level of professionalism in preparing their Annual Plans. However, in many cases, we notice a breakdown in communication between the Rotary clubs and their young partners in service. Dear Presidents, Interact and Rotaract are our own partners and next generation of leaders. Please reach out to them this month renew your relationships, engage in a service project together, show them that you care and you will always be there.
At the end of this month, we will reach the end of our first quarter. It will be a good time to review our performance. Were we within our target time lines? Did we achieve planned goals? Did we send our reports on due dates? Did we invite our District officials to support and guide us in our programs? Did the District officials reach out to clubs? If you answer “yes” to all these questions emphatically, then we are on the road to success my friends. If we answer “no” then we need to remind ourselves that this would perhaps be our last opportunity to make a difference this year. We need to raise our profile, we need to make the time we spend on Rotary worthwhile and meaningful and otherwise why else should we be Rotarians? Let us do the difficult things today as the impossible may take a bit longer.
Yours in Rotary
Gehan Siribaddana
District Governor – 2011/12
31st August, 2011
Happy EID-Mubarak to all of you
A Wonderful One..!!
To Help Make Your Eid
Friendship And Fun
Light Hearted Moments Of
Bright, Happy Things
Warm,Happy Hours And
That This Eid Day Brings-
May the choicest blessings of almighty be with you and your loved ones now and always.
- Gehan & Shirani
1st August, 2011
My dear Presidents, District Officials and fellow Rotarians,
It seems like my clock is running faster than the rest. Days are just passing by ever so quickly; here we are already at the end of the first month of the brand new Rotary year. As our World Leader said at the beginning of the month, we turned a new page in our Rotary book on the 1st of July and what story we will write there will entirely depend on how we decide to write each chapter each month. Well for me, the first few pages of my book is already written with the experiences that you were kind enough to share with me during the month of July. My team and I attended 22 installation ceremonies and 13 Governor’s Official visits during the month covering mainly Colombo and up country. You also invited me to participate in some extremely touching humanitarian projects. I also had the privilege of being at several Rotaract and interact functions as well. As you can see, my story is beginning to take shape and I am enjoying every minute of it.
I am also greatly encouraged to see that our Cluster Club system is already working well. Many Lead Clubs have taken the initiative to organize Joint Matching Grant Projects, Inter City meetings and Family Exchanges between the clubs of each group. The Intercity meeting that was held in Dambulla on the 31st July was a tremendous success, Let us activate ourselves now; a spirited and a committed start sets the tone to achieve greater goals during the year. Please invite all District officials assigned to your clubs to work with you.
Month of August is dedicated to membership Development in Rotary. This is an area where all of our clubs/us have to work on with due diligence. Needless to say that all of us needs more hands to sustain the responsibilities that we have taken upon ourselves and to ensure continuity in everything we do. Let us all make an extra effort to invite a worthy member of our society to join hands with us and thereby reciprocate the kindness of the Rotarian who invited you and me to this wonderful organization. A knowledgeable Rotarian is always is a good Rotarian; please share rotary knowledge with your membership, encourage every member to participate in your service projects. There is no better teacher than experience in life. Let us do at least that bare minimum to justify our Rotary membership.
I urge all 11/12 President and the District officials to embark on completing your annual programs today itself. Let us do the difficult things today as the impossible may take a bit longer.
We will be visiting some of your neck of the woods during this month and we are eagerly looking forward to having productive meetings and experiencing exciting projects with you.
Wishing you another meaningful Rotary month in which we will “reach within to embrace humanity”.
Yours in Rotary
Gehan Siribaddana
District Governor
01st July, 2011
My Dear 11/12 Presidents, District Officials and fellow Rotarians,
The moment of truth has dawned upon us. The day that all of us have been preparing for is here. At the very outset, let me share with you what RI President Kalyan Banerjee says to us today.
Quote
My Dear Brothers and Sisters in Rotary,
The first of July is here, and as we turn over that page of our calendars, we will turn over as well a new page in the history of Rotary. It is a page that will be written by us all: by the world’s Rotarians, by the 2011-2012 leadership team, by you and by me.
That page is still blank, its lines yet to be inscribed. A year from now, what story will be told there? Will it be a story of opportunities lost? Or will it be a tale of successes, of hope, of possibilities realized, of victories gained? Will those lines tell of families that are stronger, futures that are brighter, and a Rotary that is more vibrant than ever?
Will there be a line, written large and joyously, that reads: Polio is no more?
The first of July will be the first of our 365 days in Rotary office. So many challenges await us: challenges of distrust, of poverty, of inequality. We are ready to take on those challenges, to set to work with faith, friendship, and determination. We are ready to Reach Within to Embrace Humanity.
The time is now; our future is here; there is not a moment to be lost. Let us begin to write this new page together—with courage, with vision, with confidence, and with love.
Best regards,
Kalyan Banerjee
2011-12 President, Rotary International
Unquote
What more can I add? My Dear friends, as we are setting out to dedicate yet another precious year of our lives to serve those who are in need, let us resolve to be the miracle that they are praying for everyday. Let us remember the words of Mother Theresa: ‘What we are doing may only be a drop in the ocean but without that drop the ocean will be one drop less.
Let us all together “Reach within to embrace humanity”
Gehan Siribaddana
District Governor 2011-12
RI District 3220
13th June, 2011
My Dear Friends in Rotary,
Please allow me to convey my most sincere thanks to all of you for turning up in huge numbers for two important District events during consecutive weekends to support and launch our Rotary year on a high note. District Assembly recorded 700 plus registration and the District Membership Development Seminar held yesterday in Kurunegala had 172 registrations. Feedback received from our fellow Rotarians as both events were most encouraging. I thank Rotary Club of Battaramulla, my home club for organizing the District Assembly in a highly professional manner and Rotary Clubs of Wariyapola and Athugalpura for doing a wonderful job in organizing the membership Seminar. All Assistant Governors Elect, District Chairs Elect, District Rotary Coordinators, District Secretary Elect did work very hard to make these events a success.
By now most of you may have received your copy of the District Directory. We printed only 700 copies out of which 650 copies were on sale. Over 450 copies have been sold since the District Assembly and please purchase you copy immediately to avoid disappointment. We must extend a big thank you to PP Hiran de Silva of RC Capital City, The District Chairman – District Directory for taking great pains in completing this very tedious task with much dedication and in a timely manner.
My Dear Presidents Elect, District officials Elect, we are just two weeks away from commencing our journey at the helm of our clubs, directorates and the District. Let us add the final touches to the plans we built over months and may be even years in order to “Reach within to embrace humanity”. Let us prepare ourselves to make a difference in the lives of those who are in need. Let us prepare ourselves to “serve above self”.
Good Luck and Best Regards
Gehan Siribaddana
13th April, 2011
My Dear Presidents Elect,
At the outset Shirani joins me in wishing all of you, your loved ones and the fellow Rotarians of your club a Happy Sinhala and Tamil New Year and all the peace and joy that comes with it.
It was wonderful to meet almost all of you in person at the PETS/SETS which was successfully concluded last weekend at the Pegasus Reef Hotel, Wattala. Judging by the feedback I received from you and the other District Officials, it is evident that we are heading the right way and that we are almost ready to lead our clubs and our district to greater heights in 2011/12. I thank you and your Secretaries Elect for your active and enthusiastic participation during the entire seminar.
It was also heartening to note that the new group system had already started to work in a positive manner establishing new friendships amongst Rotarians from all parts of the country. Please keep supporting this initiative by actively planning to achieve the group goals set out in the District Citation.
May I take this opportunity to remind all of you that the priority areas that needs your immediate attention are
- District Directory information
- District Assembly Registrations
- Strategic Plan for 3 – 5 years
- Installation/GOV dates
Please complete these matters without any further delay.
As we agreed at the PETS, if we are to make a true difference, we should be the change that we wish to see. Let us lead by example.
I will be failing in my duties if I do not place on record our sincere gratitude to President Chrishnatha Herath, Rtn Peter, Rtn Sampath and other members of the RC Colombo East, District Trainer Elect Krish, District Advisor Elect Suri, District Secretary Elect George, District Rotary Coordinators PP Sunil and Rtn Gen. Susil, alll AGEs, District Officials Elect and Past District Governors who helped in numerous ways to make the 2011/12 PETS a success.
Once again, let us wish you all a “Suba Aluth Avuruddak”.
Yours in Rotary
Gehan Siribaddana
District Governor 2011/12
3rd April, 2011
My Dear Presidents Elect,
Instead of writing to you as usual on the 1st day of the month, I purposely waited until the completion of the world cup cricket finals to post this note as I always thought irrespective of the result of this game; we would have plenty of lessons to learn from it.
True enough that the result was not what all of us wanted so desperately but in true spirit of the game we must all accept that the team who played better on that day and in fact who planned and prepared themselves better won.
This goes on to prove that the planning and preparation for the important tasks that we have ahead of us are absolutely important and it is always necessary to even have a plan “B” or a “C” to overcome challenges that may spring up so suddenly and unexpectedly.
As Rotary Leaders, we have even a greater responsibility in our hands as we are dealing with the business of mankind. In many instances than not those whom we serve may not get a second chance in life hence we must stay focused and engage in humanitarian service in a meaningful manner.
Since you have both the RI President’s Citation and District Citation requirements at hand now, the focus areas that would guide the rotary year 2011/12 are clear to all of us. The time is now right to complete your Annual goals together with your Club Committee Chairs. Please call on your Asst. Governor Elect for guidance and assistance to complete the Planning Guide for Effective Rotary Clubs.
We have now entered the last quarter of this rotary year which is the most important period of our rotary leadership that would pave the way for a success and an effective rotary year in 2011/12. Let us meet on the 9th and 10th of April at the PETS/SETS where we will learn even more about rotary and also would meet up with our batch mates in fellowship and friendship.
My Dear Presidents Elect, there are thousands of our fellow brethren out there awaiting our kindness and understanding to change their sorrow in to happiness, their tears in to smiles and their pain in to relief. Are we ready to be the ray of hope that they were praying for?
With warm regards
Gehan Siribaddana
District Governor Elect
1st March, 2011
My Dear Presidents Elect,
We are only four months away from assuming office as the leaders of our clubs and it is amazing to note how fast the time has passed by since July, 2010. All of you should be ready now with your 11/12 team and believe that you have also completed your registrations for the PETS/SETS scheduled for 9th/10th of April, 2011 with your Secretary. A committee chaired by President Chrishantha Herath and his members from RC Colombo East are busy adding finishing touches to this all important event of your calendar. If you have not registered for the PETS still, kindly do so with immediate effect in order to avoid extra payments and inconvenience to the organizers.
This is the time that you need to have more regular communication with your AGEs and other District Officials Elect. The entire list of District Officials is appearing on a separate tab on this site. Feel free to draw from their experience to plan your activities/year.
If you have not fixed a date for your installation and the Governor’s official visit yet, kindly contact me at your earliest to fix a suitable date. Having said that, let me inform you that it is not mandatory to have my presence for your installation ceremony and if you wish to have this event on any day with a Chief Guest of your choice (Past and Future RI Officers etc), please proceed with an email intimation to me. We are also encouraging Multi Club Installation ceremonies; please discuss the possibilities with your respective AGEs.
In conclusion, let me remind you that your participation at the PETS is mandatory hence register your self and your Secretary for same today.
Wishing you much success with your preparations and see you all at our PETS where we will learn, interact, enjoy and prepare our selves to “Reach within to Embrace harmony”.
Warm Regards
Gehan Siribaddana
District Governor Elect
1st Februuary, 2011
My Dear Presidents Elect,
Month of January just whisked passed and what a month it turned out to be? Shirani
and I left for USA on the 6th January and we joined a Governor Elect Home Hospitality Program inRochester, Upstate New York. RI District 7120 invites approx. 25 – 30 DGEs from around the world prior to them attending the International Assembly each year with a view to foster friendships amongst the incoming District Leaders of Rotary. This was a memorable experience even though we had to fight sub zero temperatures and occasional snow storms during the week.
We arrived in San Diego on the 15th January and from there onwards it was serious training for 5 consecutive days. International Assembly, the sheer size of the event and the precision with which it was organized cannot be explained in a few lines here. It was indeed an exhilarating and an once in a life time experience. I sincerely hope that all of you would motivate yourselves to be rotary leaders one day to share this experience.
Back to our District and we successfully conducted the AGTS/DTTS at the Galadari Hotel on the 29th January with over 70% of the District Team leaders participating. This event was organized by Rotary Club of Colombo and we are grateful to President Seneka Amerasinghe and Org. Committee Chair Pubudu De Zoysa and her team for a job well done.
I hope as much as we are at the District level, you are also getting ready with your team and plans for the rotary year 2011/12. RI President Elect Kalyan Banerjee has now unveiled a timely and a most appropriate theme in “Reach within to embrace humanity” to inspire and motivate the Rotarians around the world to serve beyond themselves. I sincerely hope that we can together lead our clubs during next year to be just that for greater benefit of mankind. A copy of the 2011/12 RI Citation goals will be given to you by your Assistant Governors within the week and you should use same as the structure on which the annual plans and goals will be built.
Rotary Club of Colombo East and your Assistant Governors are in touch with you to assist you and your Secretary to register for the PETS?SETS scheduled for 9/10th April at Pegasus Reef Hotel, Wattala. Please note that your participation at PETS is a mandatory requirement. Please do not miss this great opportunity to gain access to valuable knowledge, friendships and fellowships that in turn will help you to make your rotary year a success.
“Building Bridges” – District Conference is just a few days away. Let us all meet there and renew our commitment and dedication to “Serve above self” in true rotary spirit.
Wishing you and your members a successful month dedicated in Rotary for “World Understand”.
Yours in Rotary
Gehan Siribaddana
District Governor Elect
1st January, 2011
My Dear Presidents Elect,
At the outset, Shirani joins me in wishing you and your loved ones a wonderful new year filled with peace, good health, happiness and prosperity. I also wish to thank all the Presidents Elect, Assistant Governors Elect and District Officials Elect participated and helped in numerous ways to make the Pre PETS held on the 18th December, 2010 the success it was. I will be failing in my duty if I do not place on record my sincere appreciation to President Pradeep Amirthanayagam and to the dynamic Organizing Committee from Rotary Club of Colombo West for such meticulous planning and implementation.
Dear friends, I will be leaving for San Diego in a couple of days for my International Assembly where the all important theme and the Citation requirements for our year will be unveiled by the incoming RI leader Kalyan Banarjee. As soon as I am back, we will meet the Assistant Governors Elect and the District Team Leaders at the AGTS/DTTS scheduled for the 29th January at 2pm. Through these District Leaders, we will communicate the focus areas of our year to you within the month of February, 2011. Please cooperate with all District leaders and make the maximum use of their expertise to get your planning right. As they say, “If you are failing to plan then most definitely you are planning to fail”.
I hope that you will now activate your Committee Structure and spend some time with them to acquire rotary knowledge required to make effective plans for your club. Please do not hesitate to call on your Assistant Governors Elect for assistance.
I wish you and your members a successful “Rotary Awareness Month”.
Yours in Rotary
Gehan Siribaddana
District Governor Elect
24th December, 2010
May the Joy & Peace of the season be with you all and may the 2011 bring happiness and prosperity to you and to your loved ones!
Warm Regards
Gehan, Shirani and Kids
1st December, 2010,
My Dear President's Elect,
Here we are in the all important month of December. I am excited and looking forward to our first official meeting "The Pre PETS" scheduled for the 18th December, 2010 at the Excel World, Colombo 10 commencing at 8am. RC Colombo West are working hard to make your first official event a grand success. Please complete your registration as soon as you can.
I assume that all of you have already finalized your board for 2011/12 by now. Please prepare yourself to present your team to the general membership of your club at the Annual General Meeting scheduled for this month. Please do not forget to request your incumbent President to report the information of you and your Secretary Elect to RI through Member Access/www.rotary.org on or before 31st December, 2010.
If you have not booked a date for your installation and/or the Governor's Official visit, please do so as early as possible either through this Blog site or by directly contacting me.
My Dear PE's, the clock starts ticking from now onwards and I am confident that everyone of you are as enthusiastic as I am to prepare ourselves to meet the challenges ahead of us. I wish you every success in all your efforts to make this important month of December an effecting launching pad for a successful rotary year.
Yours in Rotary,
Gehan Siribaddana
District Governor Elect
1st November 2010
My Dear President's Elect,
November is the Foundation month. As an incoming President, you have to be thorough with the Rotary Foundation’s programs as the Foundation is the life line of Rotary. Please make an extra effort to learn about popular TRF Programs such as:
1. Educational Programs (Ambassadorial Scholarships/GSE/ Peace & Conflict Resolution Studies etc)
2. Humanitarian Grants (Matching Grants, District Simplified Grants, and 3 H Grants etc)
3. Polio plus Program.
As you know, TRF is solely supported by Rotarians, Rotary Clubs and friends of the Foundation. Therefore, it is important to focus also on programs where we can collectively contribute to the Foundation as well. Annual Program Fund, Every Rotarian Every Year, Polio Fund, Permanent Fund and restricted giving are some of the programs that you are supposed to be familiar with as the leader of your club.
It would be good for you to discuss with your President and the Foundation Chair as to how they are approaching the completion of Foundation Goals this year. You could also request your Foundation Chair Elect to actively participate in these programs this year. There is no better teacher than experiences in life, hence please make the maximum use of the opportunities presented to you.
We are also just one month away from the Pre PETS Seminar and the Annual General Meeting of your club. This means that now you should be more or less ready with your shadow board and Committees. Please prepare early, you will never fail. Kindly visit this Blog site regularly to learn and also to share your ideas, suggestions and constructive criticism with us.
Wishing you a meaningful Foundation month and much success with your preparations.
Yours in Rotary,
Gehan Siribaddana
District Governor Elect
1st October, 2010
My Dear President's Elect,
We have just completed one quarter of the current Rotary year. The 2nd quarter is extremely important to you. As the President's Elect of your clubs, you need to identify your Board members for 2011/12 during this quarter, discuss the scope of work you have in mind for each of the Committees and to obtain their consent to serve in your team. You are required to announce your board at the Annual General Meeting of your club which needs to be held before 31st December, 2010. Please remember to maintain a good balance of experienced, young and even the new members when appointing members to your board. Be mindful of the fact that grooming future leaders is also a part of your responsibilities as the Club President.
May I once again remind you to keep the 18th December free as we will be organizing the Pre PETS seminar in Colombo. I am looking forward to your participation at this all important event.
I have listed a few thoughts for you to ponder under the heading "things to do" during the month of October. Please feel free to share your experience and best practices with your Batch Mates on this site.
I will be meeting more President Elects during this month as there are quite a few installations lined up commencing with Rotary Club of Cinnamon Gardens today.
Wishing you a very productive month both in your personal life and rotary affairs. I remain.
Yours in Rotary
Gehan Siribaddana
District Governor Elect
1st September, 2010
My Dear President’s Elect,
We are now in to the 3rd month of the new Rotary year. Month of September is very important to us because we celebrate the rotary theme "New Generations" during this month. As you know, New Generations is the 5th and the latest avenue of service recognized by the Rotary International hence it is imperative to concentrate on planning and implementing meaningful projects that benefits youth of our country. This is also the ideal time to strengthen your ties with the Rotaract and Interact Clubs and engage in useful projects with them. Please discuss with your President and the Service Projects Chair as to how you can help and look at the possibility of ensuring continuity during your year.
At the end of the 1st quarter of the current Rotary year, you should also be focusing now on selecting the members of your board. It is important to obtain their consent and commitment before announcing your board at your Annual General Meeting in December, 2010. Kindly keep 18th of December, 2010 free as we will be having the Pre-PETS Seminar for you in Colombo commencing at 9am. More information will be sent to you in due course.
Please do not hesitate to contact me if you need any assistance with your planning activities.
Wishing you a very successful Rotary month.
Yours in Rotary,
Gehan Siribaddana
District Governor Elect
1st August 2010
Dear Presidents Elect, District and Club Leaders,
It feels as if the 1st of July was just last weekend and here we are at the end of July already. Time certainly flies and there are only 11 months more for that all important day when you will take over as the leader of your own Rotary club. I had the privileged of traveling with District Governor Imthiaz's entourage for many Club President's installations both in Colombo and outstations during the month. I had to attend some installation ceremonies where District Governor couldn't attend due to other appointments. All in all, it was a rewarding experience more so because I got the opportunity to meet some of you in person and exchange ideas. I guess August is going to be as hectic and that I will be able to meet more of you at your Club installations.
Dear President's Elect, please be actively involved in all your club activities especially your Club's Governors Official Visit and the activities related to Membership Development during the month of August.
I hope you managed to visit the installation ceremonies of some of the other clubs and met your batch mates during the month of July. Please try to find some time to do so this month as well. It is amazing to note how much we can learn from the others during these events and what a lot of best practices are there to be picked up.
Please feel free to contribute your ideas to this site in order to make same a useful communication tool for all of us.
Kind Regards,
Gehan Siribaddana
District Governor Elect
1st July 2010
Dear Presidents Elect, District and Club Leaders,
We as Rotarians and professionals should believe in planning our activities well in advance. As the famous saying goes “If you fail to plan, you are only planning to fail" and the adverse effects of none planning is all around us to see today. Therefore, this blog site is a sincere effort on my part to show you that I intend leading by example. Please feel free to be a regular visitor to this site and contribute your valuable ideas and suggestions to plan the future of our District. We will do our utmost to provide you with important information and timely reminders of all rotary activities that will help you to plan your next year. I kindly appeal to all the incumbent Club Presidents and the Assistant Governors to help us by providing the names and details of the President Elects (2011/12) at your earliest.
However, whilst preparing for the future, we need to play an active role in making the current rotary year a resounding success. DG Imthiaz and his team has prepared all of us well to embark on "Building Communities and Bridging Continents" during this rotary year. Dear friends, Let us start our "building" effort from our own clubs, the most important foundation block of the mighty Rotary International.
I wish all my fellow Rotarians a very successful and a meaningful rotary year. "Service above self", that's what we stand for.
Yours in Rotary
Gehan Siribaddana
District Governor Elect
Rotary International District 3220 Sri Lanka
Phone: 0094777310575
Email:
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