Achievements and activities of some of our clubs in Rotary District 5040 in the past 30 days or so. Star Fish Pack and Backpack Buddies weekend food programs, shown here, are back in action at various Rotary clubs in the District at the start of the new school year for students from families in need.
The City of Delta recently completed the $650,000 Stokes and Cullis Plaza as a resident and visitor meeting place and rest area in the centre of Ladner Village. The plaza is part of the Ladner Village Community Plan. It emerged from recommendations made by the Ladner Village Renewal Advisory Committee in 2020. The new plaza includes oversized planters to act as a visual anchor to welcome visitors and provide wooden seating with coloured light poles illuminated in the evening. In keeping with Rotary’s Area of Focus to Protect the Environment, the Rotary Club of Ladner contributed $25,000 to the project for the installation of two E-bike charging stations, included in the City's plan. The club also sponsored a large wooden bench seating area at the entrance to the plaza. This Rotary contribution included a District Grant of $8,288 from The Rotary Foundation.
The 260 inmates of the men's prison in Arua, 475 km north-west of Kampala, Uganda, no longer have to sleep on the floor. For the past year they have been able to sleep on mattresses with covers, providing a more dignified stay while at the prison. When inmates are treated more humanely, it has a measured impact on recidivism. It's felt that providing more humane living conditions while incarcerated can help ensure a better reintegration into society upon their release. This not only has a direct impact on the quality of life for those in the facility, but can then have ripple effects into the broader community.With the cooperation of the Uganda Prisons Service, Rotary Club of New Westminster provided $10,095 for 300 Rotary branded mattresses and blankets, along with 2 spray pumps and pesticides. Included in that funding was a $3,365 Rotary District 5040 Grant from The Rotary Foundation.
Among the diabetic patients of Thanyaburi Hospital, in Pathum Thani, Thailand, as many as 100 who have experienced complications from diabetic retinopathy may now have a better chance of avoiding blindness thanks to a new $35,112 Fundus Camera provided through a Global Grant from The Rotary Foundation. Fundus photography involves photographing the rear of the eye known as the fundus. For its 8280 diabetes patients the Hospital did not have the equipment to examine them for complications of diabetic retinopathy. Patients have had to wait several months to get this test done or not have it done at all. Those who managed to be referred to Pathumthani Hospital for the examination, 28 km away, there was the challenge of transportation and additional expenses that they could not afford as a barrier to timely treatment before progress of the disease progress.
In the past seven years rural and remote communities have come under greatest and increasing threat from wildfires in British Columbia. There is a need for locally based, designed, and manufactured firefighting equipment to serve and protect.
Working with a local company the collaborative group, of Disaster Aid Canada (DAC), the Rotary Club of Steveston, through its Charitable Society, (RCSRCS) and Siska First Nation, near Lytton, has designed and built a prototype “Fire Trailer” to address this need for wildfire fighting equipment.
The ongoing crisis in Gaza has contributed to reduced routine immunization rates. It has increased risk of vaccine-preventable diseases, including polio. The crisis also poses a significant challenge to fully implementing disease surveillance and vaccination campaigns.
The recent detection of variant poliovirus type-2 isolates in environmental samples and the confirmation of a 10-month-old child who has contracted polio in Gaza is a stark reminder that as long as polio exists anywhere, it is a threat everywhere.
The World Health Organization (WHO) considers there to be a high risk for the spread of this polio strain within Gaza and internationally, particularly given the current situation's impact on public health services. Rotary will continue to work with its partners in the Global Polio Eradication Initiative and other agencies as vaccination efforts unfold. It is estimated that 650,000 need to be vaccinated.
(This story is likely of interest only to those Rotarians considering being nominated for District Governor, 2027 – 2028)
Eligibility includes having served as a Rotary Club President, and having been a Rotarian for seven years. Please refer to the Nomination Criteria and Additional Information document for additional requirements.
The dates below and the attached information package are for Rotarians willing to allow their name to be considered for District Governor.
While it does take time and commitment, it is an exceptional, inspiring, personally enriching way to serve Rotary, our communities, and the world.
Some important dates:
- September 28, Saturday - 10 am "You could be District Governor" information session by zoom
- October 13 Sunday midnight – Deadline for nominations to be received by spcham13@gmail.com and with a copy to dantrobus100@gmail.com
- October 15 – To advise Interviews of Nominees
- October 19 and 20 - Interviews of eligible applicants
- October 20 - Announcement of successful candidate
Attached for reference are Request for Nominations, detailed information
- Nomination Criteria and Addional Infomation
- District Governor Role Description
- Sample Resolution Form to record a club resolution nominating a candidate for District Governor
- RI District Governor Nomination Form writeable edition
If you are interested, your club must nominate you; both the club resolution and the District Governor nomination form should be forwarded to spcham13@gmail.com and with a copy to dantrobus100@gmail.com by OCTOBER 13 midnight.
Thanks for your continued support of Rotary and our District.
Our clubs and Rotarians accomplish so much; District service is a wonderful way to support and enhance those club achievements.
If you are a PDG receiving this notice, it is for information only.
Yours in Rotary Service,
Shirley-Pat Gale,
Immediate Past District Governor and District Nomination Committee Chair
Achievements and activities of some of our clubs in Rotary District 5040 in June, July and August 2024. Shown here is the Slow Ride Cycle through the Pemberton area at one's own pace to visit farms and purchase local produce, crafts and more.
On Bowen Island the community now has a $30,000 12 ft x 40 ft poly tunnel style greenhouse for its Grafton Commons community gardens thanks to the Rotary Club of Bowen Island with support of a $4,000 District Grant from The Rotary Foundation.The Grafton Commons, managed by the Bowen Island Food Resilience Society (BIFS) in the agricultural land reserve, now has the greenhouse to help the Society grow plants year round not only to promote greater local food resilience but to help with education in regenerative agriculture and gardening for adults, seniors and school age children.
The memory of District 5040 Governor 2020-21 Dave Hamilton, who passed away while serving as Governor in 2021, lives on with the awarding of the Dave Hamilton Service Above Self Bursary to the first recipient, Alice Pu, of Tsawwassen.
The new bursary is offered annually to young people planning a post-secondary career in the Rotary Family throughout communities in Rotary District 5040, from Greater Vancouver up the coast to Prince Rupert. It was fitting that Alice, as the first recipient among a number of talented nominees, happens to live in Tsawwassen because Dave Hamilton was a member of the Rotary Club of Tsawwassen. The bursary of $1,000 supports a graduating student who takes post-secondary education at an academic institution or trade school. The Delta Community Foundation administers the endowment which generates the annual funding for the bursary.
The residents of New Westminster and beyond now have access to The Habitat at Queen’s Park as the City of New Westminster transitions the area from the former petting farm space of many years into a naturalized space supporting biodiversity as well as outdoor programming and activities throughout the year. The wetland area will include water and fauna of an indigenous nature and allow for interpretive study and discussion of First Nations links to the land in Queens Park. With $30,000 funding from the Rotary Club of New Westminster and $10,000 through a District Grant from The Rotary Foundation, the Club has worked with the City on the $40,000 project to construct timber walkways around the area to provide wheelchair access for disabled people and others with mobility issues, including the elderly, mothers with strollers and others in the community. -- photos by Gabor Gasztonyi
In 1951, the Rotary Club of Ottawa established its annual "Adventure in Citizenship" Program in which over 150 senior high school students from across Canada spend four days in Ottawa experiencing tours, lectures, discussions and social events designed to enhance their understanding and appreciation of Canadian citizenship. From May 26 to 29, 2024, Shawn Toor, of Ladner, was among students aged 16-18 years from communities in District 5040 and the rest of Canada who are leaders in their community and reflect the broad spectrum of religious and cultural communities that comprise Canadian society. On August 6th Shawn visited members of the Rotary Club of Ladner, which sponsored his trip, to share his experience and thank the club.
The 46th annual Vancouver Pride Parade -- the oldest pride parade in Canada -- attracted hundreds of thousands of people to downtown Vancouver on Sunday, August 4th to celebrate and support the LGBTQ2+ community. A team of 12 mainly young adults participated as a Rotary contingent marching with the City of Vancouver entry. The parade ran from Davie and Denman Streets, through the West End on Beach Avenue and Pacific Street and ended at a festival in the vacant land east of B.C. Place. -- photo courtesy of CBC
As the new Rotary year begins in District 5040, we usher in the Rotary theme of "The Magic of Rotary." This theme centers on engagement and Empowering Through Unity.
The Rotary Vision Statement encapsulates the start to the new year perfectly: "Together, we see a world where people unite and take action to create lasting change — across the globe, in our communities, and in ourselves."
When we break that down, it means that together, people create change, which equates to empowering through unity. You, the members of District 5040, are the magic. You are the magicians, through your projects, your work, and your contributions to Rotary, both locally and globally.
[photo of DG Drew Antrobus, wife and Rotarian Judy Smith, and Sherlock]
In the slums of Dhaka, Bangladesh, where Islamic extremists prey on vulnerable and uneducated women, the women are becoming educated and empowered to make positive changes in their communities and generate new economic opportunities. Children, in turn, have improved opportunities for breaking free of extremist ideologies and extreme poverty. Since 2006 the Amarok Society has been working to defeat ignorance through educating mothers. Mothers in slum neighbourhoods educate children too poor for school. On a daily basis these mothers pass on their education they receive to their own and neighbourhood children in their own huts. Amarok Society rents a room in one of the poorest areas in the slums of Dhaka to teach 25 mothers who, in turn, commit to educate at least 5 children in their own homes.
Rotary Club of Powell River has led a $9,750 project to fund the Amorak Society along with the Rotary Clubs of Pender Harbour Madeira Park, Gibsons and Sechelt and with a $3,250 Rotary District Grant from The Rotary Foundation.
Rotary Hospice House is a 10-bed facility in Richmond, BC. providing medical care and spiritual care at the end of life for palliative care patients. The Hospice cares for up to 450 patients a year and serves over 1,000 friends and families of patients. Rotary Club of Richmond raised over $500,000 in 12 years towards building the Hospice which opened in 2005.After 18 years of service in 2023 the Hospice needed to replace the outdated oxygen concentrator and, surrounding the property, a rotted fence which was considered a hazard for Hospice staff, volunteers and visitors. Rotary Club of Richmond addressed these needs with a a contribution $6,700 and additional support of $3,300 from a District Grant from The Rotary Foundation
PDG Leo Nimsick passed away on June 30, 2024, in Kelowna.
In Powell River 180 grade 12 students graduating from Brooks Secondary School chose to attend the Rotary Club of Powell River’s Casino for Dry Grad after graduating ceremonies at a local recreation complex. Photo shows Quinn Carlson, Brooks Interact president and Grade 11 student, encouraging grads to try their luck at the Crown and Anchor wheel.
StoryWalks, of children’s book two-page reading stations, exchanged every two weeks or so year round, along a one kilometre trail provides an outdoor experience and an opportunity for children to read with adults, learn new words, describe things and events, enjoy and tell stories, learn how to follow a story in sequence, physically moving as a hop, skip, run or fly from page layout to layout, and hear and play with sounds and letters in words.Literacy has been a top priority for the Rotary Club of Williams Lake Daybreak and that has continued with its new Satellite division in adding another StoryWalk along the RC Cotton trail off of Scout Island Nature Centre and bird sanctuary in the Williams Lake, BC community with $3,668 from the club and $1,386 in a Rotary District Grant from The Rotary Foundation.
Binners' Project, a project on Makeway Charitable Society's Shared Platform, operates programs to help people improve their lives as waste-pickers. By helping improve the livelihoods and economic opportunities of those who need a hand up, the program also provides a community of social inclusion as the waste-pickers contribute to the environment with cleaning up trash from city streets and properties. With the support of $4,340 from the Rotary Club of Richmond Sunrise and a District Grant of $2,160.00 the Society was able to purchase uniforms for the Binners, imprinted with the Rotary logo, 60 long sleeve jackets, 60 Toques and 39 Binners kits for use over the following five years.
With a focus on Education and Literacy -- one of Rotary’s seven areas of focus -- up to 250 kindergarten children from public, private and French schools in Powell River and Regional District are receiving a book in a bag through the Rotary-sponsored “Read to Me” program. Funded by the Rotary Club of Powell River with initial support of a District Grant from The Rotary Foundation, the $5,420 program is intended to encourage parents to read to their children.
Surrounded by South Africa, Lesotho is a nation of 1.9 million people, 40% of whom live in severe poverty with income of less than $1 a day and 25% who are HIV positive. One result is 300,000 children who are orphans. The orphaned children of Lesotho are sometimes abandoned in trash dumpsters, toilet pits, or found alone in a forest.Beautiful Gate is a non-profit organization that provides a home for younger Lesotho orphans up to age 6 and continually operates at full capacity. After that age, the children are forced into the broken and unmanageable foster system which leaves many to become victims of human trafficking or child labour. One of the world’s smallest nations, Lesotho is second in the world for child human trafficking.
To care for unadopted, older children aged from 6 to 18, the orphanage has now developed “Beautiful Gate 2: Peka Project” with support of $25,550 from some Rotary clubs in District 5040, led by the Bowen Island club, and a $10,000 District Grant from The Rotary Foundation. The Project is a farm, school and special needs facility as a caring home and community for these children. It gives the older orphans an opportunity to be children, give them a chance at life and ultimately find them adopting “forever families”, in Lesotho or abroad.
The three Prince George Rotary clubs held the community's first Hoop-A-Thon on June 8th at the Jumpstart Multi Sport Court. In collaboration with the University of Northern British Columbia (UNBC) Timberwolves basketball team, and sponsored by Canadian Tire, this Hoop-A-Thon was a basketball free-throw challenge. Players sink as many free-throws possible in one minute. Pledges and donations are gathered and all funds stay in the local community. -- photos by Chuck Nisbett, Prince George Citizen; video by Ron Davis
Hundreds of children and youth in four elementary schools and one high school in Whistler, BC, who were arriving at school without adequate good food to sustain them through the day are benefitting from a Children's Lunch Program. Whistler Community Services Society, which has been serving the local community for 35 years, provides the program to the schools. The Society identified the need for additional refrigeration to support the school lunch program and two others – Food Rescue and Outreach -- with safe delivery and storage of perishable food, and Rotary stepped in to help the Society to co-fund the school program, in conjunction with Breakfast Club of Canada. With support of a District Grant of $3,000 from The Rotary Foundation Whistler Rotary covered the cost of the equipment as a way to contribute to the wellbeing and nutrition of local youth and children in schools.
Speaking to the many thousands of Rotary members from around the world, attending the Rotary International Convention in Singapore, May 25 to 29, 2024, John Hewko, Rotary International General Secretary and CEO, said the 2023-24 Rotary year brought a number of firsts.
John said, "India celebrated its first decade of being polio-free. We opened our first Rotary Peace Center in the Middle East. And the first ever Rotaract-sponsored global grants were awarded. These accomplishments are just examples of our collective efforts to increase our impact, expand our reach, provide a memorable membership experience, and adapt to a changing world."
Speaking to the Convention, Rotary International President 2023-24 Gordon McInally said of Rotary, "...our common humanity and our shared desire to build a more peaceful and compassionate world, especially in the times of greatest peril. World peace is a perilous, difficult journey, and we are experiencing some trying moments right now."
As an outcome of the collaborative effort among Rotary members from the Skeena Valley and Prince Rupert, demonstrating strong community and inter-club relationships in the Rotary network Rotary Club of Kitimat has inducted five new members. This growth in membership helps restore the Kitimat club’s ability to serve the community as it has done over many years. It also demonstrates the collective commitment to Rotary's mission of humanitarian service and ethical leadership and active participation from the community and neighbouring clubs. District Governor Shirley-Pat Gale, who inducted the new members on May 21st, expressed her enthusiasm and congratulations to the new members, emphasizing the importance of Rotary's role in community service and global peace-building.
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