A time of change at Rotary Club of Waterford

It’s all change at the top as Nora Widger takes up the reins as president of the Rotary Club of Waterford. Ms. Widger was welcomed as the new president of Rotary Club of Waterford on the 20th July by outgoing President Anne Marie Caulfield.

Ms. Widger has been a Rotarian for 6 years and her fellow members were delighted to welcome her in as their new president for the forthcoming year.

Ms. Widger said: “I am honoured and privileged to become the President of Waterford Rotary Club for 2015/2016. Through the many projects and events which Waterford Rotary run the Club provides community service to both local and international communities.  This is perhaps the best reason for becoming a Rotarian - the chance to do something for somebody else and the self fulfillment and satisfaction that comes in the process . Waterford Rotary Club is in existence for 47 years and I am looking forward to ensuring that the dedicated work undertaken in the past is continued in my year as President".

  

Ms. Widger is a well-known Waterford City business woman. She previously managed Bank of Ireland Branches in Tramore, Dungarvan and Waterford City and more recently worked as Senior Manager on the Banks Customer Experience Programme. A  previous President of Waterford Chamber, Nora continues as a director of the Chamber. Nora also sits on the board of SEBIC, on the BOM of Butlerstown School and is a committee member of Butlerstown GAA Club.

  

The Rotary Club of Waterford, Ireland is a very active club with dedicated members working on many projects throughout each year. The past 12 months have been particularly busy for former president Anne Marie Caulfield, with the Rotary Club of Waterford presenting  a total of €20,000 to a number of local  charities including Waterford Hospice, The Ronald McDonald House, Pieta House, St Vincent de Paul and Solas.  €5,500 was sent internationally to support the  Rotary Shelter Boxes for Nepal, Rotary Sand Dam Water Project and the Belarus Dental Project.  

The club is active all year round organising activities such as charity cycles, celebrity chef nights, community events and of course the annual memorial Christmas Tree and their very successful annual Senior CItizens event which is held on Shrove Tuesday annually.

Waterford Rotary meets every Monday except Bank Holidays in Tower Hotel Waterford, Ireland at 1pm until 2pm. If you are interested in becoming a member of Rotary Club of Waterford full details can be found on the Rotary Club website or by contacting president@waterfordtotary.org. 

Top Ten Tips for a Healthy Business by Dr. Mark Rowe

“The first wealth, is health” (Ralph Waldo Emerson)

Spring is the perfect time to think about new beginnings and new resolutions. This applies to personal health as much as business.  Because high performance in life relates to high performance in business the Local Enterprise Office has asked Dr. Mark Rowe of the Waterford Health Park to speak at its latest ‘Top Ten Business Tips’ networking lunch on Thursday April 16th on the topic of ‘Health in Business’.

The lunch will take place as usual at the Bistro in the Tower Hotel at 12.30 and they promise you will be back at your desk for 2pm!

Following on from the success of speakers such as Emma Jane Power of PicStash, Des Whelan of WLR fm and Louise Grubb of Q1 Scientific, Dr. Rowe’s tips are sure to be eagerly received by Waterford business people looking for an edge in business.

Dr. Mark Rowe has a background of working as a family physician based in Waterford City and is a thought leader in the emergent area of health, happiness and high performance in life.

He is a member of "leading by design", an invitation only international collaboration of leaders committed to improvements in health through a more effective design of the environment. He founded the Waterford Health Park (www.whp.ie) as a new paradigm for sustainable improvements in community health. The building was a short listed finalist for World Building of the year at the World Architecture festival awards in 2010. 

In 2013, the Waterford Health Park received the Global Health Improvement Award, "A Place to Flourish". Mark is author of ‘The Men’s Health Book- A Guide for the Irish Man’ which was published by Blackhall Publishing in 2009 with all royalties going to a Cancer Charity. He has also contributed to books on Leadership in Ireland and Healthcare Management.

Dr. Rowe has a long-standing interest in medical education, as a trainer of young family doctors with the South East G.P. Training Programme in Ireland, as Senior clinical lecturer with the University of Limerick Graduate Medical School and formerly as an ICGP examiner.

He has worked with organisations consistently over the years as an advocate for health. He is an international keynote speaker on the topics of " New Philosophy of Wellbeing ", "Health Leadership", "Generative Space" and " A Prescription for Happiness".  He also holds the position of Chairman of the Board at Garter Lane Arts Centre in Waterford City, Ireland and has recently been appointed to the inaugural Healthy Ireland Council.

The cost of this event is €8.50 and booking is essential. For more information or to register your interest please contact your Local Enterprise Office in Waterford on 051-849905 or email info@leo.waterfordcouncil.ie .   

A model business for selling on line!

There is no disputing that the future for many industries is to move to on line sales. The benefits of an expanded market, lower costs and improved technology reducing barriers to entry make on line sales an extremely attractive proposition.

Many agencies such as Enterprise Ireland and the Local Enterprise Offices consciously support digital marketing campaigns directed toward on line selling. It results in business growth, export growth and increased employment.

This is why the start of 2015 is a perfect time for Emma-Jane Power, co-founder of PicStash to give her ‘Top Ten Tips for selling on line’ on Thursday January 29^th. 

Following on from the success of these lunches with speakers such as Des Whelan of WLR fm, Louise Grubb of Q1 Scientific, Ronan Mulligan of Mulligan’s Pharmacies and John Noonan of Flahavans, Emma’s tips are sure to be eagerly received by Waterford businesses keen to develop their on line sales.

These ‘Top Ten lunches’ are a series of networking events on the theme of ‘My Top Ten Business Tips’ delivered by successful local business people and occurring once per month. Each lunch will outline a speakers’ views on a specific topic and take place in the Bistro in the Tower Hotel from 12.30pm to 2pm.

There is a considerable pool of business talent and experience in Waterford and the Local Enterprise Offices hopes to harness this expertise to inspire Waterford’s new and existing business communities.  

As a former model for international brands such as Nike, Riverrock Water, Escada and Paco Rabanne, Emma decided to set up her first business in her late 20's. The idea was to change how brands interact with both traditional and digital media. Making PR more affordable and relevant to brands and media in the Digital Age is a key aim of the company. “Our goal is to be the first go-to resource for any brand to get huge media exposure,” says the Waterford local.

From humble beginnings in her attic, the PicStash now employs over 13 people in Ireland and has a presence in over 7 countries worldwide. It has a list of over 40 international clients including Harvey Nichols, Littlewoods, Sony, Philips and Harvey Norman. Many indigenous companies are also represented, including Meadows & Byrne, Butlers Chocolates and Dubarry.

The cost of this event is €8.50 and booking is essential. For more information or to register your interest please contact your Local Enterprise Office in Waterford on 051-849905 or email info@leo.waterfordcouncil.ie

Top Ten Tip Lunches served up in Waterford

Mr. Ciaran Cullen, LEO Waterford and Mr. Des Whelan, WLRfm

‘Top Ten Lunches’ are a series of networking lunches on the theme of ‘Top Ten Business Tips' delivered by successful Waterford business people and occurring once per month.

These lunches take place in the Tower Hotel Waterford from 12.30pm to 2pm with the inaugural  lunch featuring Des Whelan of WLR fm.

This series is also an appropriate way to introduce the new Local Enterprise Office in Waterford to local business people.

Des Whelan, Managing Director of WLR fm was the first speaker in the series of lunches, with his ‘Top Ten Tips on branding your business’. Des is also founding shareholder and Director of Beat 102 – 103 and Radio Nova in Dublin. He is Chairman of Red fm in Cork, the Waterford Tall Ships Festival in 2011 and the Waterford Viking Marathon. His branding tips come from over 35 successful years’ experience in business.

 

The next speaker is Louise Grubb, founder of Nutri-science and Q1 Scientific. Louise will be giving her ‘Top Ten Tips for business expansion’ on Thursday July 3rd. Future speakers include Ronan Mulligan of Mulligan’s Pharmacy, John Noonan of Flahavan’s and Grainne Walsh of Metalman Brewing.

 

The cost of these events is just €8.50, this is for the cost of the lunch alone.  Booking is essential. For more information or to register your interest please contact your Local Enterprise Office in Waterford on

051-849905 or email info@leo.waterfordcouncil.ie .

Sean Gallagher inspires Waterford Transition Year students

As part of the National Student Enterprise Awards Waterford City Enterprise Board brought entrepreneur Sean Gallagher to the Tower Hotel to speak to over 300 transition year students on the topic of enterprise and starting your own business. 

Ciaran Cullen, CEO of Waterford City Enterprise Board was delighted with the event, “ Sean gave an inspiring talk for over an hour. It was obvious that the students took much from it by the amount of questions they asked at the end”.

David Coleman to speak in Waterford City

David Coleman, clinical psychologist, broadcaster and author will speak at the Tower Hotel on Thursday May 19th. His topic for this visit, sponsored by Mr Binman, is relevant for all parents as it deals with ‘Building your child’s self esteem’.

David Coleman is a graduate of University College Dublin and has been a practising Clinical Psychologist, working with children and families for over twelve years.

David has become well known in Ireland as the presenter of the hit RTE television series "Families in Trouble", "Teens in the Wild" and more recently ‘Families in the Wild’, all of which were enjoyed by huge audiences nationwide. David also presents ‘21st Century Child’, a landmark venture for RTE which follows 12 Irish families for six years from the birth of their babies.

A natural communicator, David’s style is universally acclaimed as accessible and approachable. David has successfully transferred his skills to radio where he is the dependable weekly contributor to the Moncrieff Show’s parenting slot every Wednesday on Newstalk 106-108.

David gives lectures and workshops to groups all around the country on topics ranging from parenting to communication. Speaking, in person, to thousands over the last year David enjoys the engagement with a live audience and his entertaining style is always acknowledged.

Not content with his media and lecturing work David is also a bestselling author of “Parenting is Child’s Play” a guide to raising children young children. The book, a firm and continuing favourite with Irish parents, was published by Penguin Ireland in May 2007. His latest book, published in January 2010, is a guide for parents of teenagers called “Parenting is Child’s Play: The Teenage Years”. He is also a weekly expert contributor to the Health and Living supplement with the Irish Independent every Monday.

Tickets are on sale from Ardkeen Quality Food Store, Shaws Waterford, the Tower Hotel and Christ Church National School (beneficiaries from the proceeds of the event) and are just €10 and €8 to Mr. Binman customers.