By Jamie Salter
On behalf of Rotary Australia, Nossal High School is hosting an Australia Day event that aims to reduce the prevalence of family violence.
A Zoom broadcast will showcase Rotary SAFE Families – a primary prevention model of Stopping Abuse in Families Everywhere (SAFE) including women, men, children and the elderly.
This model has reached more than 100 Rotary clubs Australia-wide over the past five years, relaying the latest news and methods of abuse prevention.
Founder Dorothy Gilmour said family abuse was a crime that needed to be prevented.
“The program informs Rotarians what abuse looks like and to realise the three R’s – recognise the signs , raise concerns safely and refer the victim to professional support,” she said.
“It’s such a simple program but the idea is to get as many Rotarians as possible to become informed to talk about abuse.
“Our Australia Day message is for old and new Australians, with resources available for multicultural communities in their preferred language at rotarysafefamilies.org.au.”
Marking both 101 years of Rotary volunteering in Australia and Australia Day, the event will also detail several of Rotary’s major projects.
Past Rotary district governor and Nossal ICT manager Mark Humphries said he was looking forward to hosting the Zoom broadcast at the school.
“We’re doing a national broadcast to celebrate Australia Day and to highlight some of the work that we’re doing across Australia,” Mr Humphries said.
“I have all the IT infrastructure at Nossal to put on a fairly good production.
“It’s great for Rotary to show we’re moving with the times and it’s great for Nossal because we have a large community focus and this is a way for the school to give back to their local community.”
Rotary International Zone 8 director Dr Jessie Harman will be one of the keynote speakers and will discuss Rotary’s impact on the community.
Australian opera singer Lisa Edwards will be signing for the event as well as Alison Jones who will deliver a live performance of the national anthem.
World-famous singer Josh Piterman, known for his work in the West End Production of The Phantom of the Opera in London, will also be performing.
“Josh is an amazing singer,” Mr Humphries said.
The event will also pay respect to First Nations people, with a Welcome to Country and display of indigenous art and artefacts, highlighted in the broadcast.
The broadcast will be held on Wednesday, 26 January from 1pm at Nossal High School.
