Gig Harbor Rotary Sends Rachel to Guatemala

Posted by Jeff Harris
Rotary International has six areas of focus. One, Supporting Education has motivated Rotarians throughout the world to responded in many ways including funds and hands on support. District 5020 is no exception. The winner of the 2016/17 Olson Foundation International Club of the year, Parksville AM has also supported schools in Mexico.
 
This year the Gig Harbor Rotary Club along with the Olson Foundation and the Barillas, Guatemala Rotary club has just completed its third Rachel District Grant in northwest Guatemala.

This area receives minimal support from the national government. The 3 projects are reaching 12 communities with some 2000 students. Additionally, a Guatemalan, now a US citizen who returns to his village each year to lend help and resources to improve lives is the third and possibly the most important part of this years Rachel project. 

RACHEL: Remote Area Community Hotspot for Education and Learning is a limited area WIFI system designed to transmit a 64 gigabyte comprehensive educational package to computers, tablets or smartphones. Worldpossible.org along with Intel and others developed this system to help educate those living without access to modern educational tools and/or support. Additionally, this system will allow adults to access the system when students are not in school with materials loaded into the Rachel unit.

The value of this system cannot be overstated. World Possible is moving to make Rachel and its predecessor the preferred and adopted rural educational tool in Guatemala and other nations including several in Africa.

If you are interested in supporting RI’s Education focus and World Possible’s Rachel please consider both finding out more and involving an expatriate from a nation in which you have an interest.

For more information contact World Possible or Jeff Harris of the Gig Harbor Rotary Club