Achievements and activities of some of our clubs in Rotary District 5040 in November
The Rotary Peace Garden project, which Rotary International President 2022-23 Jennifer Jones launched at Garden City Park in Richmond last year is one of the causes supported by the Rotary Club of Richmond Sunset's 22nd Annual Winter Wonderland at Richmond City Hall on display throughout December. Proceeds from the project, launched on December 2nd, are expected to reach $50,000 or more and will support Rotary sponsored Interact clubs at Hugh Boyd and Steveston-London Secondary schools, scholarships at Kwantlen Polytechnic University, Richmond Christmas Fund and The Rotary Foundation, plus an endowment fund which focuses on one of Rotary's seven Areas of Focus, maternal and child health.
Winter coats and boots for kids, a valley trail viewing platform, an off leash dog park, seniors’ outdoor fitness stations, lower income family kids sponsored for summer camp, young musicians to participate in a youth orchestra are the kinds of projects made possible with proceeds from a Rotary fundraising event.
Members of Rotary District 5040 -- the 48 Rotary clubs from Vancouver up the coast to Prince Rupert -- many throughout the Lower Mainland raised net proceeds of $29,000 at a dinner on November 18, 2023. The funds will all go to the The Rotary Foundation, among the highest ranked international foundations over the past 15 years.
The Richmond Delta Youth Orchestra is a professional orchestral preparation program for young musicians. Rotary Club of Vancouver Centennial, with a District Grant from The Rotary Foundation, has funded a music scholarship and bursary program to support some youth to attend Richmond Delta Youth Orchestra.
In the tourism paradise of Bali, Indonesia and surrounding islands there is a lot of poverty and hardship. Children with cleft lip and palate live deprived of normal lives and struggle with impaired speech. Many of these children are hidden by their families, not allowed to go to school or participate in community activities. Because they are not able to eat and drink properly unless helped undernourishment as children leads to health issues. Rotary Club of Vancouver has participated in two Global Grants from The Rotary Foundation to provide surgery for the many affected children.
Fellow District 5040 members, I hope you are all well and enjoying the changing season as the leaves change.
It has been an absolute pleasure to visit clubs and see the amazing work of our Rotary Family. The many hundreds of kilometres on the road and multiple ferry rides have all been worth it on feeling the joy and true inspiration I experienced in reaching my various destinations, to hear the "brags" about our District and about the Interactors raising funds to support girls' education in Bangladesh, and installing eight new members in a single club and five in another.
District 5040
Leaders Leading Leaders
(and if you are wondering who the leaders are, “the leaders are you!”)
You are invited to a series of
Facilitated Rotary Learning Conversations
Leaders Leading Leaders
(and if you are wondering who the leaders are, “the leaders are you!”)
You are invited to a series of
Facilitated Rotary Learning Conversations
“How do we engage our members in a conversation towards a deeper understanding of one another, improve membership engagement and growth while expanding our innate leadership skills in a volunteer setting?”
The answer is, ASK THEM HOW!
Camp Potlatch is run by the Boys and Girls Club South Coast BC on 133 acres of wilderness along the shores of Howe Sound. Thousands of children have visited Camp Potlatch over the past 70 years. Rotary Club of Lionsgate in North Vancouver, with support of a Rotary District Grant, sponsors under privileged children to attend Camp Potlatch in summer
Armours Beach in Gibsons is a public recreation area and meeting place for families and friends of all ages. The swimming and picnic area is active throughout the spring, summer and fall. Rotary Club of Gibsons led a project to renovate the Armours Beach facility, at the north end of the Gibsons Beach Walk which starts at the Gibsons Marina, 1.2 km to the south.
Achievements and activities of some of our clubs in Rotary District 5040 in October.
Today 20 million people, who might have been paralyzed by polio, are walking. Another 1.5 million people, who would have died from polio, are alive. So far, the global effort to eradicate polio has saved more than $27 billion in health care costs. Another $14 billion is expected to be saved by 2050. -- photos by Michael Cowhig, Rotary Club of Vancouver Arbutus
1 in 10 girls in Sub-Saharan Africa misses 20% of school during their menstrual cycle. Many girls starting to menstruate drop out of school altogether. Lack of affordable menstruation products, facilities and education are among the reasons for this barrier to education. Myths and taboos around menstruation in some societies and communities are further barriers.
Working with the Rotary Club of Kampala Nsambya, in Uganda, the Global Grant was, "Girls Helping Girls Stay in School" Rotary Club of West Vancouver Sunrise plus clubs of Vancouver, Pender Harbour, Whistler Millennium, Williams Lake Daybreak, Kitimat, and Squamish received a Rotary Global Grant.
As the dawn broke over Stan Clarke Park in Squamish on Saturday, a jolly band of Rotary Pumpkineers joined Squamish BIA members and a crew from Sea to Sky Couriers to create the Pumpkin Patch in the Park.
500 pumpkins were spread around the park, tents were erected, games were set up, and the BBQ was lit.
All was ready for 10am when the kids and adults arrived, many in costume, to select their pumpkin(s) by donation, have faces painted, dance to the music, go on the trick-or-treat adventure, have photos taken, do some Halloween crafts and play the games.
And for the hungry, the hot dog crew was busy cooking and serving up the Rotary Dog-in-a-Bun. The proceeds will be going to the Squamish Welcome Centre and the Rotary Club of Squamish’s Oceanfront Playground fund.
And for the hungry, the hot dog crew was busy cooking and serving up the Rotary Dog-in-a-Bun. The proceeds will be going to the Squamish Welcome Centre and the Rotary Club of Squamish’s Oceanfront Playground fund.
For more pictures, go HERE.
Greetings and congratulations on completing the first seasonal round of the 2023-2024 Rotary year! As your District Governor, I had the honour of starting my club visits in September in the Northwest, Cariboo and Prince George where my heart was filled with amazing stories of service, resilience, and ingenuity!! From lunches with Elders, to amazing community gardens, to a one of a kind rock climbing wall, to community auctions, to fall fairs, and heart felt Paul Harris awarding and inductions of new members in our Rotary family. So grateful for ALL you ALL do to create hope in the world.
For World Polio Day on October 24th, Rotarians, Rotaracts, Interacts, family and friends join Vancouver and area Rotary Clubs for the 2nd Annual World Polio Day Walk, starting 4:30 pm at the North Entrance of Vancouver City Hall. As part of that event the City of Vancouver will present Rotary a World Polio Proclamation.
At 5:00 pm the walk will make its way to Science World where the exterior lights on the dome will turn red to honour our global campaign to end polio. Join us in celebrating the end of this horrible disease!
Bring your “End Polio" T-Shirts or your red shirts, good walking shoes, banners, noise makers, and your loud voices!
Achievements and activities of some of our clubs in Rotary District 5040 in September.
Local community service and global humanitarian relief which the Rotary clubs of Richmond and South Delta have been providing for decades is now enhanced with new “hybrid” meeting technology thanks to $33,500 in funding from the Government of Canada. The funding will help the six clubs purchase OWL 3 hybrid meeting units to enable members to meet in person and involve speakers or other members online with a projector and screen at a meeting venue. Because the Richmond Community Foundation was able to add to the original grant of $18,500, the local clubs have loaned out 10 more OWL 3 units to clubs in other parts of the Rotary District in Greater Vancouver and BC coast and interior. An OWL unit connects to a laptop and a large projection screen so groups can meet with other groups in meetings or engage with a single guest speaker from afar.
Lower Mainland Rotary Foundation Dinner – "A Celebration of Rotary"
November 18, 2023, 6:00 PM
KinVillage in the Delta, BC community of Tsawwassen, which provides older adults life in a community of health, housing and wellness programs is beginning a new phase of development. A significant part of the development's $56.6 million Phase One, which includes 103,000 sq ft for 152 independent living suites, is a new $5 million expanded 5,000 sq ft Day Program for 11 to 35 older adults a day. In turn, the Day Program will provide respite for caregivers of those seniors.
The charitable society at the Rotary Club of Tsawwassen has committed $200,000 over 10 years to development of that Older Adults Day Care, making that the largest donation in the club's history. -- report courtesy in part of the Delta Optimist
Achievements and activities of some of our clubs in Rotary District 5040 in August.
1600 lbs of Canada Grade AAA beef slow roasted on a rotisserie, over a bed of alder, garnished with 275 lbs of fried onions, produced over 2600 beef-in-a-bun sandwiches which Squamish Rotary members and friends served on August 5th & 6th 2023 at the Rotary Beef BBQ 2023 as part of the Squamish Days Loggers Sports Festival. -- photos by Brian Finley
Thank you and congratulations to all of our generous members who have made donations large and small to The Rotary Foundation and for high performance recognized through international Rotary Citations, to make Rotary District 5040 a leader in giving and service among Districts across Canada.
A group of Rotarians, Rotaracts, Vancouver Young Professionals, and Interacts from Rotary District 5040 participated in Vancouver's largest ever Pride Parade on August 6, 2023.
The Rotary Pot of Gold Charity Golf Tournament this year has resulted in $40,000+ raised, and over $665,000 since the first tournament! The proceeds are shared with Royal City Rotary, Rotary Club of New Westminster, Salvation Army and Purpose School, to fund programs for youth in our community including RYLA, Adventure programs, bursaries, and Youth Exchange. Thank you to all who contributed to this event in its 27th year!
Rotarians from over 120 clubs are collaborating to bring water and food security to 16+ marginalized rural communities in South Africa. Through the 1000 Survival Garden Kits Project, over 7700 beneficiaries have benefited from the delivery of hippo water rollers and farming tools to increase the water supply and create homestead food gardens. Rotary's dedication to community service and goodwill provides personal, family, and community impact.
When water comes instantly from the turn of a tap -- hot or cold -- little attention is given to the 1 billion+ people who are not so well served. We've all seen photos of women half way around the world carrying 40-pound buckets of water on their heads. We likely dismiss our discomfort over their discomfort with thoughts and comments such as, "It's part of their culture and a woman's traditional role." As if they had a choice!
A woman's journey into this 'traditional role' begins with young girls who dream of a more empowering future. Here's a story.
A woman's journey into this 'traditional role' begins with young girls who dream of a more empowering future. Here's a story.
“If you don’t know how to read, you don’t know how to do anything,” said Naomi White, librarian for her village of Lax Kw’alaams, north of Prince Rupert, on receiving 14 pallets of books and library furniture so that about 150 school-age children in her small village would get the chance to enhance their literacy through the Rotary-initiated Write2Read program throughout BC. Literacy, she said, is the key to more First Nations people advancing into higher education and holding down jobs in the trades, businesses and professions.
“We’re just so remote here. Now we’re better able to foster the love of learning. And to pass on that reading is power. The more you know the better of you are,” said White, describing how many young people in the village are keen to learn about the larger world through the library.
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