HEADLINES [click on headline to view story]: 

5 Rotary Clubs in Pattaya hold ceremonies to install new presidents and directors

AustCham sails with the wind

Pattaya gets first organic rice field

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5 Rotary Clubs in Pattaya hold ceremonies to install new presidents and directors

‘The future of Rotary is in your hands’ is theme for 2009-10

Elfi Seitz
June is usually a very busy month for Rotary clubs in every part of the world. Traditionally, the Rotary year begins on July 1 and ends on June 30 of the following year. This is when new presidents and the board of directors take over to plan and implement new or ongoing projects for the benefit of the underprivileged in their respective communities.

DG Siri Eiemcharoonlarp installs Trutz Fiddikow as President of the Rotary Club of Phoenix Pattaya.

These events can be simple affairs held at the regular weekly meetings of the club or they can be grand affairs, held in restaurants or hotels with visiting Rotarians and guests from all over the district, with some attending from all parts of Thailand, and even Rotarians from far off lands who happen to be visiting Pattaya and the Eastern Seaboard at the time.

District 3340 of Rotary International under the leadership of District Governor Pratheep ‘Peter’ Malhotra for 2008-09 covers the entire northeast and the eastern part of Thailand, boasts a total of 60 Rotary Clubs, of which 22 are along the east coast.

Florent Pellegrin stands proudly with DGE Siri after hi installation as President of Rotary Club Pattaya Marina.

Pattaya lays claim to 6 Rotary Clubs. Unique in themselves, the clubs are Thai, English, German and French speaking.

During the month of June, 5 clubs in Pattaya held installation ceremonies of their new presidents and board of directors for the 2009-10 Rotary year.

Rotary Clubs of Phoenix Pattaya and Pattaya Marina start new Rotary year together

With District Gov. of Rotary International District 3340 Pratheep ‘Peter’ Malhotra and his successor Siri Eiamchamroonlarp on hand for the official swearing in, the Rotary Clubs of Phoenix Pattaya and Pattaya Marina installed new presidents and board members on June 6 at the Amari Orchid Resort & Tower.

Jean Francois Lecot

Stephan Heynert, charter president of the German speaking Rotary Club of Phoenix Pattaya and Jean Francois Lecot, president of the French speaking Rotary Club of Pattaya Marina, in the last duties as heads of their respective clubs, reported on their chapters’ activities for the past year.

“It is unique that besides the Thai and English speaking clubs in Pattaya, we also have one French and one German speaking club,” Malhotra said. “Both are excellent members of the Rotary family and have reaffirmed Rotary’s ideals of the advancement of international understanding, goodwill, and peace through a world fellowship of business and professional persons united in the ideal of service.”

Stephan Heynert

District Governor Peter then spoke about how important Rotary is for the world, the community, and especially for the needy children. “Because of the initiative of all Rotary Clubs worldwide it was possible to lower the mortality rate of children under the age of five. At the beginning of this Rotary year statistics showed that more than 30,000 children under the age of five died every day from preventable causes. But today I am happy and proud to announce that through your dedication and hard work in the fields of sanitation, health, hunger and educational projects, this number has been reduced to 25,000. I thank all of you for this tremendous effort,” he said.

DG Peter and DGE Siri performed the official ceremonies which saw Trutz Fiddikow installed as the new president of the Rotary Club of Phoenix Pattaya and Florent Pellegrin taking over the leadership of Rotary Club Pattaya Marina.

Trutz Fiddikow introduces his board of directors, (l-r)
Dr. Peter Aistleitner,  Otto Hönerbach, Siegfried Broda,
Günther Duhmke, Bernhard Riedel and Stephan Heynert.

Florent Pellegrin introduces his board members. (l-r) Jean Francois Lecot, Francois Lecomte, Ben Heeting, and Pierre Yves Erraud.

A grand affair at the Royal Cliff Beach Resort

A week later on June 12, three English speaking Rotary clubs held a joint installation ceremony for their presidents and directors for the 2009-10 Rotary year. The newly installed presidents were Bob Denzel, Rotary Club of Taksin-Pattaya, Helmut Buchberger, Rotary Club of Jomtien-Pattaya and Peter Schlageter, Rotary Club Eastern Seaboard. This grand affair attended by more than 200 Rotarians together with their families and guests packed the Grand Ballroom of the Royal Cliff Beach Resort.

DG Siri Eiemcharoonlarp installs Helmut Buchberger as President of the Rotary Club of Jomtien-Pattaya.

District Governor Peter lauded the good intentions and deeds of Rotarians, especially for their efforts to ease the burden of underprivileged people. He closed his speech by saying that after his term as governor, he’ll be real happy to return to being just a member of the Jomtien-Pattaya club.

District Governor Peter presented awards to outstanding Rotarians who had served their clubs and the district with distinction. The Rotary Foundation District Service Awards were presented to Robert Denzel, Pranom Sorn­phan, Jan Abbink, Henny Vermey, Dennis Stark, Kees Peperkamp and Dr. Olivier Meyer.

President Bob Denzel serves a second year as President of the Rotary Club of Taksin Pattaya.

The Rotary Club Eastern Seaboard and the Interact Club of Banglamung School were presented with Rotary International President D.K. Lee’s Presidential Citation for their outstanding achievements during the year.

Michael Lambauer and Pra­nom Sornphan also received the Paul Harris Fellow Award for their contributions to Rotary Foundation’s humanitarian projects.

DG Peter also thanked Jon Tellefsen, Dennis Stark and Alvi Sinthuvanik for their guidance and advice throughout the years.

DG Siri Eiemcharoonlarp installs Peter Schlageter as President of the Rotary Club Eastern Seaboard.

He afforded special recognition to his team from the Pattaya Mail, who has been by his side through thick and thin for more than a decade. He thanked them for their selfless commitment and hard work. Primprao Somsri, Amnart Kangkumjud, Saichon Paew­soongnern and Boonsri Suansuk have not only excelled in their work as true professionals in their vocation, but have also voluntarily supported the work of Rotary in every way they could.

The newly installed presidents pledged to work together for Rotary and be true to the ideals of Rotary service, by continuing with projects to supply clean water to children, ensure that they have good health care and alleviate their hunger, not to mention giving them all a decent education.

President Helmut Buchberger of the Rotary Club of Jomtien-Pattaya
with his board of directors

President Peter Schlageter of the Rotary Club Eastern Seaboard
with his board of directors.

President Bob Denzel of the Rotary Club of Taksin Pattaya
with his board of directors.

Suthiwas Paekuntod
Interact Club of Banglamung School.

Toy Ryser

Dennis Stark

Kees Peperkamp

Pranom Sornphan

Jon Tellefsen

Jan Abbink

Bob Denzel

Brendan Kelly

Stefan Ryser

Dr. Olivier Meyer

Alvi Sinthuvanik

Michael Lambauer

Primprao Somsri

Boonsri Suansuk

Saichon Paewsoongnern

Amnart Kangkumjud

AustCham sails with the wind

Dr Iain Corness
The Australian Chamber of Commerce (AustCham) met at the Royal Varuna Yacht Club for the first time. These networking events are known as the Seaboard Sundowners, and the June event was certainly seaboard and the members did indeed see the sun go down.

(L to R) Don Mackenzie; Billy Popham, associate director of MBMG international Co., Ltd.; and Ian Hamilton, general manager of Business Development for TION Industrial Connection Plc.
The thatched roof cabana on the shore line did catch the evening sea breezes and kept temperatures down. The cold beers and wines also helped lower internal temperatures, and as usual, the Aussies managed to have a convivial evening.
The event sponsor was TICON Industrial Connection and the venue sponsor was the Royal Varuna Yacht Club, itself part of the Pattaya scene since 1957.

(L to R) Jonathon Glonek, Simon Makinsan, and Saranya Makinsan.
TICON’s GM of Business Development is Ian Hamilton, who spoke very frankly on Pattaya Mail TV on the current economic situation as far as his company was concerned. Having a portfolio of turn-key factories in their own industrial estates, they have noticed an increase in awareness as many companies are interested in Thailand as a manufacturing base, but perhaps are currently a little reluctant to go the whole hog and build their own factories. By being able to lease a factory, they can easily put the toe in the water without making too great a financial commitment.

(L to R) Rick McMorran, marketing director of Veritas Enterprises Ltd.; Gregory Pitt, managing director of Mackenzie Smith Law; and Ian Hamilton, general manager of Business Development for TION Industrial Connection Plc.
TICON is Thailand’s leading provider of standard factories for lease, developing about 50 new factories of 1,000-6,000 sq m per year.
In addition, TICON Logistics Park is developing 250,000 sq m of logistics warehouses at TPARK Bangna, 120,000 sq m at TPARK Wangnoi, and 40,000 sq m at TPARK Laem Chabang. Further information can be had through their website www.ticon.co.th.

(L to R) Savitree Sritongorn, corporate sales executive with Schenker; Warisa Raktham, sales supervisor of C.I.T. Property Consultants Co. Ltd.; and Janshine Wisuttiphat, corporate sales manager of Novotel Hotels.
With the worries of swine flu and the repercussions it could have on the manufacturing industry, the AustCham members are fortunate to have Andrew Durieux, their president, who had just returned from Geneva where he had been working with WHO and the Red Cross. He is able to advise businesses on the preparedness required if the swine flu epidemic becomes more prevalent in Thailand. In a lengthy interview on Pattaya Mail TV he reiterated that whilst the A H1N1 virus was spreading exponentially, the virulence (“kill rate”) was in fact very low, with mortality rates only around one percent.

(L to R) Peter Smith, director of AA Insurance Brokers Co. Ltd.; and David Armstrong, AustCham director.
But for the majority of the attendees at the event, swine flu was probably a long way from their priorities. The AFG president, Mike Diamente, had just returned from the US, where he said that swine flu was not even covered in the daily newspapers. With the death rate in the US from shootings being around 500,000 a year and from seasonal flu being 36,000, the deaths from swine flu being currently 150 world-wide pales into insignificance!
Another group which was not at all down in the mouth was Toll, with GM Eugene Cody reporting on their multi-million dollar 30 year deal with the Cambodian government to run and extend their railway system into both Thailand and Vietnam. This is particularly good news for the SE Asian region and will help stimulate more trade in the area.

(L to R) Randy Simmons, director of CHS-Asia Co. Ltd.; and Ron Kosinski, engineering technology advisor for Unity Industrial Co. Ltd.
A new face at the Seaboard Sundowners was Michael Chick, the GM of the Coffee Club in Thailand, with its new outlet being in the Royal Garden Plaza. Much more than just coffee, but a great restaurant as well.
Another new face was the lovely Pikhamporn (Lek) Nittayasiroj, the sales manager for the dusit D2 baraquda, being protectively squired around by their GM (‘guru’ in D2 speak) Paulo Randone. Rick McMorran, the marketing director of Veritas Graphics in Bangkok was another enjoying the clean air at Royal Varuna, as opposed to the pollution of Soi Chidlom.

(L to R) Patrick Gossett, director & general manager of Materials Management & Engineering Co., Ltd.; Johan Vermeiren, managing director of GAC Thoresen Logistics Ltd.; and Chris Kimpton, general manager of GAC Thoresen Logistics Ltd.
Of course, all the usual suspects were also in evidence, like Peter Smith and Malcolm Scorer from AA Insurance Brokers, Paul Wilkinson (AGS Four Winds), Paul Whyte (Tinfish), Pat Gossett (Materials Management and Engineering - MME), and a very welcome face in the Pattaya Mail’s yachting correspondent (and former Commodore of Royal Varuna) Peter Cummins.
The next AustCham networking evening will be July 10 and you can get more details from the executive director, Brett Ganaway, on execdirector @austchamthailand.com.

(L to R) Michael Chick, general manager of the Coffee Club (Thailand) Ltd.;
Patt from Bangkok Fine Wine; Jame Bradbury, and Sue K.

(L to R) Duncan Millen, Alasfai Actkea, Dale Yeo,
and Paul Wilkinson enjoy the cool ocean breezes.

(L to R) Robert Watson of Technology Green Solutions Co. Ltd.;
Ian Robertson, business development director of Grant Thornton;
John Howarth, MLIA (Dip) senior consultant of Montpelier; and Garry Irvin,
license distribution manager of Engel & Volkers.

Pattaya gets first organic rice field

(L to R) Jate Sopitpongstorn, executive director of Horseshoe Point Co. Ltd., Chonburi Governor Senee Jittakasem and Pattaya Mayor Itthiphol Kunplome harvest some organic rice at Horseshoe Point’s rice-harvesting ceremony.

Vimolrat Singnikorn
A vacant 30 rai plot in Pattaya’s Horseshoe Point neighborhood has become the city’s first organic rice field and, perhaps, a beacon to the future of rice farming in Chonburi.

Women at Horseshoe Point gleefully demonstrate how to work with rice as has been done since ancient times.
At a June 7 harvest ceremony, city, district and provincial government officials all joined in to reap the green field of rice grown with only natural fertilizers. Chonburi Gov. Senee Jittakasem said he wants to see Chonburi’s four rice-growing districts to all go organic.
Executives from Horseshoe Point Co. Ltd., which owns the field, said the project was started a year ago following the philosophy of HRH the King, which stresses self-sufficiency and natural agriculture.
“At the same time, we are following the Thai traditional culture of growing rice, harvesting it together, hosting a ceremony to thank the goddesses of rice and soil, blessing the harvested rice and sharing it with those in the community and rice to the monks,” said Horseshoe Point Executive Director Jate Sopitpongstorn.
Jate said the rice will be donated to local employees, temples and schools, with hay and straw byproducts to be fed to horses in the company’s stables which, in turn, produce fertilizer for new crops. Because the soil hasn’t been damaged by chemical fertilizer, a new crop can be planted immediately, he said.
“We plan to make future advances into organic agriculture, gradually using more of our land bank to grow organic crops,” Jate said.
Senee pointed to the Horseshoe Point project as an example of what the province’s rice-growing industry could become. He said the province will begin teaching farmers in Panas Nokom, Bo Thong, Nong Yai and Pan Thong districts to produce their own natural fertilizers and grow organic rice.

Governor Senee Jittakasem sounds the gong to officially launch the ceremony.