By RUSSELL BENNETT
ONE of the hills’ most important community organisations is being celebrated through an exhibition at the Emerald Museum.
The Rotary Club of Emerald and District has become an integral part of the local community since it was chartered on 28 March 1980, and the current display at the museum celebrates its contribution to the town.
The club is involved in a range of both local and international community engagement projects each year, including: the All American Car Rally held at Gembrook; the Great Community Raffle held in partnership with Ferntree Gully Nissan and the Kids Fun Run with Thomas which recently donated more than $150,000 to the William Angliss Hospital’s paediatric ward.
The club also sponsors the Australian Himalayan Foundation’s Teacher Training Program in Nepal, in memory of former Rotary Club member and the photographer on the Hillary-Norgay first ascent of Mount Everest in 1953, Alfred ‘Greg’ Gregory.
Mr Gregory’s contribution to his local Rotary community is also celebrated as part of the exhibit. He was involved in Emerald and District Rotary from 1995 until his death in 2010.
The museum exhibit contains both photographs and objects from the Everest climb, as well as others that detail his life and accomplishments.
Mr Gregory explored and led a host of expeditions in the remote Himalayan and Andean regions at a time when the areas he visited were completely unknown and unmapped. He spent a lifetime travelling on photographic assignments around the world, and his pictures are still regularly syndicated to 35 countries. Along with his wife Sue, he produced many classic photojournalistic stories through the famous Tom Blau (Camera Press) news agency in London.
To get involved with the Rotary Club of Emerald and District, visit www.emeraldrotary.org.au or email info@emeraldrotary.org.au.
The current exhibition at the Emerald Museum will run until 30 June. The museum is open each Wednesday from 10am to 3pm and Sunday from 1.30pm to 4pm, or by appointment. For more information, visit www.emeraldmuseum.org.au.
