There's still a lot of work to do to bring back safe shelter, water, medical assistance and food to 7020 communities affected by hurricane Matthew.

Attached you will find all the District's and Foundation approved ways to give through Rotary.

Please consider a special donation during Foundation Month so that our fellow Rotarians on the ground in The Bahamas and in Haiti can help as many families as possible, as soon as possible.

They are counting on us!

 


 

 

 

WAYS TO CELEBRATE

THE ROTARY FOUNDATION CENTENNIAL

 

The Rotary Foundation is about to mark a century of Doing Good in the World through humanitarian projects, scholarships, professional training and exchanges, and its remarkable campaign for a polio-free world.

In 2016-17, Rotary clubs throughout the world will organize Rotary Days to celebrate this milestone by showcasing the Foundation’s rich history and good work. We’re suggesting a few ways that your club can join the party, but feel free to adapt any of these ideas, combine them, or come up with an idea of your own. Or pool your resources with neighboring clubs to organize a larger event.

 

This centennial year is the perfect time to tell your community about The Rotary Foundation.

As you mark the occasion, be sure to prominently display your club name and The Rotary Foundation centennial logo on any signage. In addition, share your photos and stories on your social media pages using #TRF100.

 

CELEBRATE 100 years of doing good by sponsoring a Rotary Day event focused on the Foundation:

• Throw a birthday party with a cake in the shape of a Rotary wheel and light 100 candles. Invite community members and local media.

• Sponsor a centennial walk/run or bicycle race and open it to local participants.

• Organize a centennial concert featuring local talent and music representing each decade of the past 100 years.

• Attempt to earn a place in the Guinness World Records — for example, by serving up the world’s largest birthday cake.

• Spotlight the Foundation’s international impact by sponsoring a Rotary Day with area ethnic restaurants. Donate a percentage of proceeds to The Rotary Foundation and to a local food bank.

• At a local festival, sponsor a Taste of Rotary booth featuring foods from various Rotary countries. Decorate the booth with the countries’ flags and provide information about Rotary and its Foundation.

• Organize a Foundation alumni reunion, inviting past Rotary Scholars and Group Study Exchange and vocational training team members. Recognize the alum from the earliest participation year.

• Coordinate a scavenger hunt for Rotaractors and Interactors, having them visit Rotarians’ places of business to find a clue or an item related to Rotary and its Foundation.

 

INFORM club members and your entire community about The Rotary Foundation’s track record of improving life in communities worldwide:

• Organize a seminar with local experts discussing one or more of Rotary’s six areas of focus.

• At a community event, sell or distribute bottled water bearing a label promoting Rotary’s water and sanitation efforts. Contribute proceeds to the Foundation’s Annual Fund to support water and sanitation global grant projects.

• Sponsor a Rotary information booth or table at a local event and share The Rotary Foundation story with everyone who stops by.

• Organize a book club for members and their families and read the new Rotary centennial book, “Doing Good in the World: The Inspiring Story of The Rotary Foundation’s First 100 Years.” Order copies at shop.rotary.org.

IMPROVE your community by sponsoring a Foundation centennial event and inviting the public to participate:

• Organize a drive to collect 100 items related to Rotary’s areas of focus — for example, books, water-treatment kits, first aid supplies — and donate them to local communitybased organizations at a centennial event.

• Plant a grove of 100 trees to protect the environment, or create a Rotary Foundation community garden.

• Hold a 100-hour service marathon, encouraging Rotarians and their families and local schoolchildren to volunteer.

• Conduct a needs assessment in your community and use the results to develop a centennial district grant project, such as tutoring at-risk students, promoting vaccinations, or developing anti-bullying programs.

• Organize a Rotary Day community cleanup in a local park and encourage community volunteers to help.

RAISE MONEY for PolioPlus, the Rotary Peace Centers, or your club’s global grant projects with fun events in your community:

• Hold a rubber-duck race on a local river.

• Organize a Chilly Golf tournament, a nine-hole winter event in the snow.

• Sponsor a dance-a-thon, walk-a-thon, or bike-a-thon.

• Hold a raffle among club members for a leather-bound copy of “Doing Good in the World: The Inspiring Story of The Rotary Foundation’s First 100 Years.”

• Organize a talent contest or karaoke competition.

• Sponsor a polar plunge, a quick jump into — and out of — icy waters.

 

For more ideas and downloadable resources such as post cards, press release template and more http://centennial.rotary.org/en/celebrate-centennial

 


 
 
 

7 features of a highly effective service project
 

Selecting the right project, therefore, is critical to the health of your club. Here’s a few basic principles we’ve found to be true about service projects:
 

  • Sweat equity is the single most vital aspect of our mission and one of our greatest strengths.
  • Club leaders are responsible for both success and failure.
  • Engaged Rotarians take responsibility for their own learning.
  • Technology is important.
  • Members should expect to serve.
  • We need to recognize the volunteer resource represented by retirees, the self-employed, and non-working parents with time to spare.
  • One-off walk-away projects do little to cultivate longer term engagement with Rotary.
  • Hands-on projects provide opportunities for members to develop their leadership skills.
  • Fund raisers are an important part of what we do, but there is much more to being engaged in Rotary.
  • Rotary is more than being a member of a single club.
  • Club 501(C)(3)s are important to capture individual tax free donations in the USA. Setting one up is not expensive, and within the ability of club leaders.
  • Rotaract, Interact, RYLA, and Rotary Leadership Institutes are important to our present and future.
  • Most of us learn by doing.
  • We need to watch out for the threat of status quo and board inertia.
  • We need to say “yes” to good projects promoted by one or more of our members.
  • Our ability to serve is proportional to the number of available volunteer hours.

 

With this in mind, we suggest any great project should have these seven attributes:
 

  1. Involve several of the six Areas of Focus. Our most recent project dealing with eye care for underprivileged children relates to basic education and literacy; maternal and child health, and disease prevention.
     
  2. Be interesting to as many professions as possible. For example, our latest project is of particular interest to medical professionals, educators, and community and political leaders.
     
  3. Benefit as many people in the community as possible. The bigger the better, as larger efforts will attract more media interest. By collaborating, you can engage small clubs in bigger issues.
     
  4. Be affordable and grant eligible and pursue international partners. Collaborating with other clubs on district or global grants opens up opportunities for members to step into leadership roles and experience Rotary on an international scale.
     
  5. Involve multiple age groups, including InteractRotaractRYLA participants, and all generations from Baby Boomers on.
     
  6. Address a major community issue and include a public image component that will stimulate local media interest and build relationships with media outlets.
     
  7. Involve a long range vision for sustainability and focus on long-term relationships. A series of related projects is a great way to develop ongoing relationships and retain membership interest. Small projects grow into larger efforts this way.
     
We believe doing all these things develops a “Service Centered Leadership” culture which results in a sustained and sustainable membership growth environment.
 

Source: https://blog.rotary.org/2016/10/05/7-features-of-a-highly-effective-service-project/

 


 
 
 
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