John PESUTTO (Hawthorn) (09:54): I recently had the pleasure of meeting with the president of Hawthorn Rotary Dorothy Gilmour to discuss Rotary Safe Families, an initiative dedicated to preventing family abuse before it starts. This initiative was founded by Dorothy in 2018 and built on the simple conviction that family violence is preventable through educating young people long before they enter an adult relationship. The Safe Families program uses a framework of three Rs: recognise, raise and refer. Each of us should learn how to recognise and identify signs of abuse, we should all provide guidance and raise a conversation with the victim and we should all refer a victim of abuse to a support service or appropriate police intervention. The Safe Families initiative has grown into a global movement involving more than 100 Rotary clubs and community organisations across the world. It is particularly impactful for our migrant and multicultural communities, who can benefit from the support this program provides. Violence, particularly family violence, is never acceptable – not now or ever – and it is important for each of us to do our part in empowering victims to speak up and also educate the next generation to prevent further acts of violence early on.
In addition to this amazing program, I thank and congratulate Hawthorn Rotary on their indefatigable work locally and beyond on so many fronts, like raising awareness around mental health along with international humanitarian projects alongside the Rotary Cub of Nhill in Myanmar so villagers can have safe drinking water. The Hawthorn community and beyond is eternally grateful to Hawthorn Rotary for all its great work.