The Presidents-Elect from Rotary Clubs
in Sabah, Sarawak, Brunei Darulsalam, Labuan FT, Singapore, Johor and Malacca were
in Johor Baru recently to attend the annual Rotary District Assembly of Rotary
International District 3310.
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| One for the album - Rotary spouses and some Rotarians with BCSG JB members at the BCSG Centre |
This event also included the
Governor’s Banquet where Datuk Lee Chuen Wan from Rotary Club of Likas Bay,
was installed as the In-coming
District Governor commencing July 2017, for year 2017 – 2018.
While the Rotarians were training for their roles,
their spouses had a separate Spouses Programme with their own time of training
and doing their part for charity here.
Besides learning more about Rotary International and
their role and responsibilities as a Rotary Spouse, the ladies gained knowledge
and insights from the experience of other Rotary spouses and discussed ideas
for fund-raising, sharing goodwill with the less fortunate and contributing to
the needy in their own communities.
When In-coming District First Lady, Datuk Naomi Chong,
received a letter from the Johor Baru Breast Cancer Support Group (BCSG)
seeking the support of the Rotary Spouses, she was keen to find out more about
their activities and how to help them.
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| Andy Chan [Standing Left] demonstrating how trimming and styling hair will help the patient deal with gradual hair loss |
During her first visit to the BCSG Centre in JB, Datuk
Naomi was impressed with the excellent work they were doing for patients and
survivors with the help of volunteers and supporters.
When she had a better understanding of how BCSG is
reaching out to help those in need, Datuk Naomi initiated the Pink Wellness
Project with the Rotary Spouses to raise funds to donate to BCSG.
The Rotary Spouses’ event at the BCSG centre kicked
off with a photo-taking session to capture a memento with BCSG members, Rotary
spouses and some of their Rotarian husbands.
This was followed by a welcome address by BCSG President, Jessie Lim.
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| Andy Chan [Standing Left] demonstrating how the patient's wellbeing can be enhanced with styling her wig [Right] |
Datuk Naomi said she was following the lead of past
District First Ladies who raised generous sums of money through the Rotary Spouses’
projects to help chosen charities.
In line with their theme, ‘Making a Difference’, she and
the Rotary spouses aim to make a difference in the lives of BCSG members
through the Pink Wellness Project.
“A generous sum was raised and will be formally
presented to BCSG at the Governor’s Banquet for them to buy wigs and prosthesis
that will go a long way to increase the comfort and confidence of patients
affected by breast cancer,” said Datuk Naomi.
BCSG Immediate Past-President, Doris Boo, said BCSG
used to loan wigs to patients who had lost their hair due to chemotherapy
treatments and would only return the wigs after their own hair had regrown,
maybe in 10 months’ time.
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| Rotary spouses watching how a prosthetic brassiere is being prepared for a patient to wear with confidence |
She said the generous support from the Rotary Spouses
will enable BCSG to provide wigs Free-Of-Charge for patients to custom-design into
their desired hairstyles.
To demonstrate this, BCSG invited L’Oreal Professional
Artistic Ambassador and Creative Director of Andy Chan Hair Studio, Andy Chan, and
his team to be part of the event.
Five BCSG member-volunteers participated in the demonstration
where the hair stylists transformed their looks and increased their confidence with
beautifully styled hairdos from their wigs.
In his professional opinion, Chan said that patients
can deal with their hair loss better when they have their hair cut and styled
at least three times during the chemotherapy period.
Ladies, as we know, are deeply attached to their hair
and this made it more emotionally challenging for them to part with their
hair. And by having their hair trimmed and
styled regularly, it should help them deal with their hair loss more gradually.
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| Datuk Naomi Chong [Seated 4th from Right] with Rotary spouses, Andy Chan and his team, and BCSG members |
In the next part of the event, Image Consultant, Tracy
Ngooi, demonstrated the importance of wearing the most flattering colours and
how it would enhance one’s wellbeing.
With the help of two BCSG volunteers who were wearing
headscarves or tudung, Ngooi showed
how the right choice of colour could dramatically enhance your appearance.
Then the Rotary spouses and visitors were invited for
a tour of the BCSG Centre to see how the premises was being put to good use
with rooms for physical therapy, Breast Self-Examination guidance, prosthetics
and even handicrafts, with a recreational area upstairs. At the close of the event, everyone was
treated to a sumptuous buffet lunch.
The BCSG JB Centre located at No. 12,
Jalan Ru, Melodies Garden, Johor Baru, is open from Monday to Friday from 9am
to 1pm. The Prosthetics and Brassiere Shop is open on Tuesday and Friday
from 10am to 1pm. For appointments, Tel: 607 – 335 7211 and Fax: 607 –
335 3211. Email: bcsgjb04@hotmail.com
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