Youth Experiencing Service; Service Above Self Locally and Beyond
This may be something we should look at?
The Haney Rotary Club, in partnership with the Rotary Club of Burlington WA, is sending seven grade 11 students to Guatemala as part of the Rotary Club's Y.E.S program.
Youth Experiencing Service will be living and working in the remote village of Chiblac Palmira, responding to the villagers need for wood burning stoves to replace their open fire pits. All of the villagers' houses, which are really not much more than a shed with a dirt floor, have open fire pits used for cooking and warmth during the rainy season. These open fire pits leave creosote on the roof beams as there is not a proper ventilation system. The open fire pits lead to many respiratory diseases as well as injuries to young children being burned from falling into the fire pits.
Under the guidance of Keesha Rosario, President of the Haney Rotary Club, and Ken Holland, President of the Chamber of Commerce serving Maple Ridge and Pitt Meadows, the students will be installing 75 high efficiency stove kits that will be transported to the village and assembled and installed by the students. These stoves are properly vented out of the hut, use much less wood for cooking and heating, and have been specifically designed for use in the remote regions of Guatemala.
These Grade 11 students have been meeting monthly to prepare for this trip after volunteering 80-160 hours locally within Maple Ridge and Pitt Meadows and carrying out their own fundraising efforts to support them on this trip. "It is rewarding to listen to the students share their stories of experience after their countless hours of local volunteerism." says Keesha Rosario. "We are excited to see how much more of an impact will be made on these students after an international service trip, not only for the families of Guatemala but on the families and friends of these students once they return. They have worked diligently for the last 9 months with large hearts and a vision to continue paying it forward to make a difference in the lives of others."
The Chamber of Commerce supports its local Rotary clubs and initiatives that help students to be the business leaders of tomorrow. "We need more opportunities like this to encourage independence and expose the youth to different life situations where people are in need," says Ken Holland who is also the President Elect for Haney Rotary.
The Haney Rotary club is piloting the YES program after Mike Murray and Bart Findlay introduced it to the Haney Rotary club after discussing it with Bev Harrington at a Rotary 5050 District conference. The program includes both local and international service to benefit Rotarys new avenue of service "New Generations" that focuses on Youth development and leadership focusing on service above self.
For more information about this story, please contact Ken Holland at: 604-817-6656 or Keesha Rosario at: 778-858-0476