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Sam Owori 
All of Rotary mourns the loss of Rotary International President-elect Sam F. Owori, who died on 13 July from complications after surgery. 
I invite you to read the article at https://www.rotary.org/en/rotary-remembers-sam-owori  His story is truly inspiring
 
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Dazzling Disco Saturday Night at Duangtawan Hotel 
Did you make it to the Chiang Mai International Rotary Clubs Dazzling Disco Saturday Night?   Well, if you missed it you missed the best CMIRC party to date.   The bar has been raised.  The food and drink was great, the band was awesome and we raised a lot of money for our children's projects. 
 
 
I would like to thank all who attended and supported:    Our honorary member Colin Jarvis gave his time, talent and fuel to provide the sound system and more!   Without Colin the night would have been far less a success both in the quality of sound and the net to charity.  THANK YOU COLIN!  
 
 
Also, I would like to thank our neighboring Rotary Clubs for their support, The Rotary Club of Thinthaingam,  The Rotary Club of Chiang Mai and the Rotary Club of Chiang Mai North.   Did you know that Chiang Mai North is our sponsoring club?  

Without our generous sponsors, we could have no lucky draw.
 
The management and staff at the Duangtawan Hotel are fabulous!    I will certainly campaign to have future events at their property. 
 
 
 
 
 
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President's Message
Rotary International has announced a PEOPLE OF ACTIONcampaign. In the 18 August 2017 edition of the Rotary Weekly bulletin is written: 
‘We’ve created a new global ad campaign called “People of Action.”  The campaign is based on research that revealed that while many people have heard of Rotary, few actually understand what Rotary clubs do.’
 
CMIRC has always been a club of action.  We have done an amazing amount of service, especially when you consider that we are still less than 4 years old!  Let’s take a moment and review a couple of inspiring accomplishments: 
 
Rotarian Optometrist Peter Bell’s Children’s Sight Project (CSP) has moved beyond being solely a CMIRC project.  The CSP has evolved and is now working with as many as 7 Rotary Clubs, with each club taking responsibly for their own CSP clinics. Peter has built a strong collaboration between the clubs he works with.  CMIRC is proud to have spawned the CSP and honors Peter as a man of action. Congratulations Peter!  
 
Rotarian John Schorr Ph.D. is the champion of the CMIRC Children’s Water Safety and Drowning Prevention Program.   He has taken the fact that drowning is the leading cause of death among children and turned it into a marvelous project which won an award for best service project from District 3360.  He has secured a great relationship with Safe Child Thailand which will result in the expansion of the program.  He has also been selected to make a presentation at the World Conference on Drowning Prevention to be held in Vancouver, Canada in October.   Further, John serves as both the club Treasurer and is our President Elect.   John Schorr is a man of action!
 
Every member of the CMIRC board of directors is currently wearing at least two hats.   We are people of action and we are passionate about this club and Rotary as a whole!
 
American screen star Lily Tomlin is quoted as having said “I always wondered why somebody doesn’t do something about that.  Then I realized I was somebody”.   I suggest to you that every member of CMIRC is somebody and that as Rotarians we are uniquely positioned to do something.  For each of us that something will be different because we are in fact different people.  Here is a short list of things that can make a big difference: 
 
Remembering the excellent workshop on membership at our meeting of August 15th, invite a friend to attend our next regular meeting on 19 September.  Maybe that friend will become a Rotarian and maybe he or she will make an incredible difference.
 
We need people to step up and accept club service commitments.  Some opportunities that are on the horizon include:
  • Greeter / Receptionist – It’s only two times a month.   The receptionist is the first person a visitor meets.
  • Public Information – Subcommittee chair under Membership Committee will involve some work including the coordination or actual composition of articles for news media, club bulletins and social media.
  • Foundations Chair – This is a board position and will definitely require a person of action, a dedicated Rotarian who can further CMIRC’s Rotary Foundation Actions!
  • City Life Garden Fair  - This fundraiser needs a champion to organize the collection of items to sell and oversee the day.
PEOPLE OF ACTION:  We need all hands on deck to make the upcoming Dazzling Disco Saturday Night a huge success!  
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Working with Rotary Club of Maesod-Muang Chod
Chiang Mai International Rotary Club and the Rotary Club of Mae Sod-Muang Chod have much in common though separated by a long road.   We are working together on a Global Grant to support migrant students in the Mae Sot area and we are working toward extending the CMIRC Children’s Water Safety program to serve Thai Children in the Mae Sot Area.
 
We plan on signing a friendship agreement between the two clubs at their official installation ceremony on Sunday 6 August!
 
 
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Are you in Los Angeles or Philadelphia?
If you are in Los Angeles or Philadelphia and want to support a great organization, have a great time and enjoy some fantastic food this article is for you!!    Stu and the Kids is not a Rotary project, but he certainly lives by the principles of Rotary embodies Service above Self and is all about Child Safety, Health and Education. 
 
 
 
Stu and the Kids summer fundraisers
July 30th in Los Angeles and August 5th in Philly
 
 
Sunday July, 30, 2017 Stu and The Kids will have their annual Thai-style Fundraiser at Vibiana. Come enjoy Thai-inspired dishes with beverages to match from more than 35 of the best chefs, bars, bakeries and restaurants in the land. There will also be Thai performances, music, dancing and beautiful decorations straight from Thailand. Come out and join us for an amazing day and all to help these great kids.
Click here to for information and to get your tickets
 
 

August 5, 2017 at the White Elephant in Philly

A very special family style Thai meal will be served for lunch, ending with a delicious banana spring roll with coconut ice cream.
*Lunch will be served at 1 but please come at 12:30 so we can catch up.
*T-shirts and Thai items including handmade silver jewelry will be available.  
*Let's all help these amazing Hill Tribe kids to continue their education.
*Get your tickets on-line now by just clicking the link below.
 
 
 
 
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Meeting Time Changed to 7:00 p.m.
 
CMIRC meeting time has changed to 7:00 p.m.    Everything else will remain the same.  
 
Our regular meetings are on the 1st and 3rd Tuesdays.   All Rotarian's are welcome.   Non-Rotarian's my receive an invitation by contacting secretary@cmirotary.org
 
On regular meeting nights we will have our delicious Chinese Family Style Dinner at 6:00 p.m.  The cost is only 300 THB per person, plus beverage expense.  To reserve your place at dinner please contact tablecaptain@cmirotary.org not later than 12:00 noon on the day of the meeting.   
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Stories
CMIRC - Kru Payu Swim Children’s Water Safety and Drowning Prevention Program
Safe Child Thailand Grant Helps to Expand our Program:
The U.K. based Safe Child Thailand foundation grant of 500,000 Baht has allowed us to plan for the expansion of our program.  We are currently teaching survival swimming and water safety to all fourth graders in the eleven Chiang Mai Municipal Schools, and thanks to Safe Child Thailand, we are exploring working with the Lampang Rotary Club to expand our program to serve all municipal schools in Lampang and working with the Warm Heart Foundation to serve municipal schools in Phrao.  Once these new programs are established, we will reach out to Bangkok as well. 
 
World Conference on Drowning Prevention, Vancouver, Canada, October 17-19:
John K. Schorr, Ph.D.  Children’s Water Safety and Drowning Prevention Program Chair, coauthored a presentation with Asst. Prof. Wanida Lertvorapreecha-Chong of Mae Jo University, and Kru (Teacher) Natthasak Thawudom of Kru Payu Swim.  The presentation is entitled: “Using an International Service Organization to Develop a City-Wide Children’s Water Safety and Drowning Prevention Program in Chiang Mai, Thailand.”  John will travel to Canada to make the presentation and to meet with Thai Ministry of Public Health, World Health Organization officials.  He will also, explore corporate sponsorships for the CMIRC program, since all major sports equipment companies will be represented.
 
Our Chiang Mai Program:
With the generous support of the CMIRC and other donors, we have already completed 15 hours of swim and water safety instruction for all fourth graders in five municipal schools.  We are planning a certificate ceremony for those who have successfully completed the program and we are scheduling dates to teach the remaining six municipal schools before the end of June, 2018.
 
Would you like to help?  We have refined and revised our program, so that we can now provide 15 hours of swim and water safety instruction for about 500 Baht (US$15) per 4th grade child. One entire 4th grade at a school can be taught for about 17,000 Baht (US$510). Feel free to contact me at john@cmirotary.org , if you have questions or wish to provide assistance for our project.
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CMIRC & Mae Tao Clinic Child Development Center GED Project
Despair is disallowed!  Recently was stricken by a bout of deep sadness because our attempt to raise enough money to fund a global grant for the Burmese Migrant students fell short.    Almost immediately I was encouraged by fellow Rotarians and by the wonderful people at Mae Tao Clinic.   These people have lived for many years in a situation of political uncertainty.  They have seen funding taken away because the “important people” think it’s better to put the money in Myanmar.   At the same time, they have seen their patient and student population remain stable.   These people are here to cheer me up!!  Wow!   They have terminated my pity party and now it’s time to get back to work!   Despair is disallowed, and that’s for sure!
 
There is a severe shortage of funding at Mae Tao Clinic due to the loss of major donors who have chosen to give their funds to organizations based inside Myanmar.   Mae Tao Clinic is being forced to make drastic cuts in services and programs.   They need all the help they can get.   Chiang Mai International Rotary Club will raise funds to support the GED. efforts being undertaken by Mae Tao Clinic Child Development Center.         
Migrant and Refugee children attend Migrant Learning Centers. This is a very generous arrangement by the Royal Thai government.  However, these students do not receive Thai high school diplomas; therefore, they are no eligible to apply for admission to Thai universities.   In the past some have successfully taken the American based General Education Development (GED.) test which did qualify them for admission to several universities, including some in Thailand.  These students had to temporarily re-locate to Chiang Mai or Bangkok to avail themselves to curriculum which would prepare them to take the GED.  
 
We came up with the idea of doing a Rotary Global grant that would fund 28 students per year for 3 years to study for and take the G.E.D. test.  Sadly, we were not able to raise enough money to fund the project.   We now have a smaller project and we solicit your help!
 
 
CMIRC is very happy to announce our fundraising project to support the GED projects at Mae Tao Clinics’ Child Development Center.   Monies Raised will go to Mae Tao Clinic and will be designated for GED related expenses, specifically:
 
  1. Salary of  their GED Coordinator / Teacher for this year
  2. Food and Lodging for 5 students preparing to take the GED at Beam in Chiang Mai
  3. GED test for 5 students in Chiang Mai
  4. GED test for 19 students at CDC in Mae Sot
To successfully fund these efforts we need to raise some 334,000 THB ( $10,450 USD).   We really need your help!    For only $250.00 USD you can fund the GED test for a bright young person who, with the opportunity, might just make a significant contribution to his or her world.   Of course, contributions of any amount are welcome.    Ways to contribute include:
  1. Make a direct deposit to our   MTC Fundraising Bank Account:
BANK:   BANK OF BANGKOK,  Kad Suan Kaew  branch
SWIFT CODE:  BKKBTHBK
ROUTING NO:  026-008-691 (For USA)
ACCOUNT HOLDERS:  MS MALIWAN-KAEWAMPHAI AND MR GERALD EDWARD NELSON
ACCOUNT NUMBER:  424-407348-4
  1. Make a deposit in our PayPal account:   mtc_funding@cmirotary.org
  1. If you are in Chiang Mai, just hand me cash and I will deposit it in the account making sure you get the credit you deserve for your generosity.  
 
Jerry Nelson
CMIRC Mae Tao Clinic Project Champion
 
 
 
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Children's Sight Project
 
Dr. Peter Bell’s Children’s Sight Project (CSP) has moved beyond being solely a CMIRC project.  The CSP has evolved and is now working with 5 Rotary Clubs, with each club responsible their own CSP clinics.  CMIRC has full responsibility for the 11 municipal (tessabaan) schools in Chiang Mai; the same schools served by the CMIRC Children’s Water Safety and Drowning Prevention Project, as well as the Baan Piang School.  CMIRC will collaborate with other Rotary Clubs for the CSP clinic at Baan San Paa Sak (Hang Dong).   Assistants come from all the clubs and beyond.   Peter has built a strong collaboration between the clubs he works with.   Congratulations Peter! 
 
Here is his latest project CSP update.
 
Children’s Sight Project
 
                                                      
 
 
 
                                      
 
 
Rotary Club of Chiang Mai North
Rotary Club of Chiang Mai Thin Thai Ngam
Chiang Mai International Rotary Club
Rotary Club of Chiang Mai San Sai                                      
Rotary Club of Chiang Mai Chang Peuak
                                        
                     
 
The Children’s Sight Project provides comprehensive eye sight exams and free spectacles to the children in the Chiang Mai Province and surrounding districts. As of July 2017, over 2500 children have been tested, with approx. 10% of the children requiring spectacles to improve their vision.
 
All Schools in the Project are visited on an annual basis, so as the children can be re examined and glasses updated if necessary. We expect to visit 30 schools over the coming 12 months!!!!.
 
 
  
 
 
The Rotary Clubs involved are reponsible for specific schools/institutions, with a few of the larger schools, all 5 clubs partipate.
 
 
 
CMIRC is responsible to supply the cost of the spectacles etc. at the 11 Tessabaan Schools, Baan Piang and collaborate with the other Rotary Clubs at Baan San Paa Sak ( Hang Dong) and the CMJO&PC.
 
We are also on Facebook, so you can see our latest school visits- chiangmaichildrenssightproject.com
 
  

 
 Want to support the Project??????
 
If you donate $100, the project will effectively deliver $1,000  of value to the children, as we are fortunate to heve generous sponsors in kind- namely Hoya Lens Thailand and WE Do Asia- these companies donate free lenses and new spectacle frames and cases. So our costs are small, but we deliver quality new spectacles to the children.
Contact Project Champion, Peter Bell  e-mail:       snapi_cnx@live.com
 
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