Meeting Date: On Monday, Nov. 4, 2024, after the usual wonderful meal prepared by the ACW,Ben started this meeting by thanking the ladies in the kitchen.
Correspondence:
Program: David Klatt introduced his guest speaker Mark Zayne, owner of the Little Britain” store
- Mark came to Canada when he was 28
- He saw the building where his Little Britain shop is located on Kijiji in 2012 and bought it.
- He opened the a print shop in 2012
- He started Little Britain in 2028, with $3000 on his credit card
- Opening day was very busy, although many folks came in to the store and talked to Mark but didn’t buy anything
- He kept the store during COVID, and had one of two heart attacks in 2021
- He got a job at Enbridge, thinking that the store would suffer, but it was actually very popular
- Since then Mark had another heart attack and a stroke
- He is now back in the saddle and reopened the store on Tuesday, Nov. 5th
- He now has Christmas stock in the store
- The store brings back memories for many people from this area and he is meeting many folks who have some connection with him
- His products help bring back the past, both for Mark and his customers
- He brought a tin of British Cadbury “Roses”, which are considerably more expensive here by the time they arrive than they are in Britain
- He passed the tin around for Rotarians to sample; many had more than one!
- He also has a large printer in the back of the store and does jobs, large and small, for customers from this area
- Mark has over 1800 on his Facebook page, from all over
- He also sells some sportswear from Britain
- Mark has a collection of jigsaw puzzles which customers can borrow and then return as well as bringing in puzzles for others to use.
- He talked briefly about the differences between North American Cadbury chocolate and other brands with those produced in Britain
- He also talked about the intricacies involved in importing products from Britain to Canada and Ridgetown
- Overall, Mark’s talk was very interesting and Rotarians and others were urged to check out the Little Britain, on York St.
Business from the last Meeting
1. Ron: Update on donation to Healthy Babies
- $500 donation has been sent from the Medical Equipment fund
2. Kees: Update on the Food Pantry at the Legion
- $1000 will be given to Kim Scoyne at our Christmas dinner
3. Ben: Update on the “Donuts for Polio”
- Ben thanked all those who participated
- $1220 was raised
- Paul will do an article for the paper (done and in the Nov. 6th, issue)
4. Paul: The Gift Volunteers
- Reminder that The Gift is on Nov. 30 and we are doing our usual section of town
- Helpers needed
- Kees will send out the map for streets we are doing
New Business
1. Kees: Nov. 5, International Project in Gambia discussed
- All CK clubs meeting in Smitty’s restaurant in Chatham at 7:30 am
- Kees is going and asked if anyone else would attend; no one said that they would
2. Kees: New Member orientation for the district
3. Ben: Nov. 11 ceremony at the Cenotaph
- Paul is laying our wreath
4. Ben: Thanked those who took down the corn stalks on Oct. 31
5. Kees: Trees planted on the Memorial Tree Trail
- Kees thanked members would helped, along with First Scouts and Horticultural society members
- 68 trees were planted in about an hour, in pre-dug holes
6. Paul: Adventures in Citizenship
- Paul has registered our club to be able to send one student
- The cost has gone up substantially to $ 975
7. Ben: Best wishes to Henny to get well, from COVID, soon
Committees: None
50-50: Ron won and donated it back to the club.
Leader Ben asked if there was “Anything for the good of Rotary?”
Leader Ben closed the meeting at 7:45 pm.
The next meeting is on Monday, Nov. 18th, with Tim Giles speaking on WW1 trenches and more
The theme for the 2024-25 Rotary year is “Rotary is Magic”
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