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Welcome to our Valley; unique within the vast area of District 7815 !

What Did You Miss - January 19, 2026

What Did You Miss – January 19, 2026 - Online only meeting due to the weather!

Chair: Bill Denyar

Visting Rotarians/Guests: Brian Smith, Bob Caissie, Whitney Hughes (Guest Speaker)

Happy $:

Carl: Thanks Bill for hosting the Zoom meetings!! Should consider a new career as a talk show host.

Stephen: Anglican church fundraiser – Ham dinner $15, he’ll send out more information.

Karen: Thanks for the blue badge!
Her father in law passed away and she was able to be there with him, and they are thankful for all the time they were able to spend with him.

Presentations – Brian Smith and Whitney Hughes – Project Lifesaver

Chris Maynard introduced Brian and Whitney. Whitney Hughes is the Administrator of the Project Lifesaver Association of Nova Scotia (PLANS)

PLANS is a community safety program that helps protect people who are at risk of wandering. The program connects first responders with families and caregivers.

PLANS is a non-profit organization and registered charity. It helps police, fire services, search and rescue teams, and caregivers find people with cognitive disorders who may wander/elope. Clients wear a small radio transmitter on their wrist or ankle. Each transmitter has its own signal that it sends every second. Trained Ground Search and Rescue teams use this signal to find missing people quickly and safely.

If a PLANS client goes missing, caregivers should call 9-1-1 and tell the operator the person is a Project Lifesaver client. Police then work with trained Emergency Search and Services volunteers to start a search. The closest trained team in Nova Scotia is sent to help.

There is a one-time enrollment fee of $400. This covers the transmitter and basic supplies including batteries. There is also a $30 monthly fee to maintain the device. Some people may be able to get financial help if they cannot afford the cost. Support may be available from community groups such as Lion’s Clubs, , Alzheimer’s and Autism organizations, Rotary Clubs, and other service groups. Funding is also available to help seniors pay for the program.

Whitney answered questions from club members and then Bill thanked the presenters!

View the FULL PRESENTATION to learn more!

Committee Reports:
REMINDER: No meeting on Monday, but joint meeting on Wednesday with Marcel Gervais. Sign up HERE

Bursary Program: Kimberley – will be posting information about the bursary program on our Facebook page soon, keep your eye out and share!

Centennial Community Service Funding Application Information

To recognize and celebrate 100 years of community service, the Rotary Club of Kentville seeks proposals for funding of projects in the area of community service; for amounts up to $50,000. To assist respondents, the Club has developed the following guidelines; consisting of “must have” information and such project details which will allow the Club to select the successful proponent or proponents, in a consistent and fair manner.

Please find application information in the link below.

For further information, contact Rotary Club of Kentville secretary Rick Graham at grahamrf8@gmail.com.

https://clubrunner.blob.core.windows.net/00000000383/en-ca/files/homepage/centennial-community-service-funding-applicat/Rotary-request-for-funding-document-8-4-25.pdf

Membership Inquiry Link

Interested in joining Rotary? Click on this link:

https://portal.clubrunner.ca/383/Form/membership-inquiry

Environment Updates

Kentville Rotary and the Environment

Do you have a project Idea for 2026?

If you are a visitor to our home page

Contact us at the membership link above

Have your say on proposed protected areas

Add your voice to support 16 proposed wilderness areas

The government of Nova Scotia is inviting the public to share their thoughts on 16 proposed new or expanded wilderness areas and nature reserves. The Ecology Action Centre is pleased to support these new additions to the provincial protected areas network. Click the button below to take two minutes to add your voice of support as well!

I support proposed wilderness areas

Chain Lakes Wilderness Area. Kings County It is in the southwest corner of Kings County.

What Does Protection Mean?

Commercial resource development (e.g., mining, forestry, aquaculture, dams, pipelines, etc.) is absolutely prohibited, except where there are pre-existing commitments.
Recreation activities with minimal environmental impact are permitted, including walking, hiking, canoeing, kayaking, hunting, sport fishing, trapping, and cross-country skiing. Trails and facilities for these activities can be developed.
We strongly recommend existing snowmobile and ATV trails and usage in the area be agreed to by the Province into the future at the outset. The legislation allows for continued motorized vehicle use on existing trails. New trails or usage areas for motorized vehicles are prohibited.
Access to private lands across the wilderness area can be assured. Existing land leases can be honoured

How can I help prevent the spread of HWA?

HWA spreads naturally via wind, birds, and mammals, but also by humans through movement of wood products and on our clothing/footwear. To help reduce further spread of HWA, we encourage our supporters to adhere to some biological control practices when visiting Nature Trust properties with hemlock forests (if you know or suspect that HWA is present):

Do not collect and move hemlock foliage/wood products
Use a lint roller to remove potential crawlers from clothing, shoes, and backpacks
Do not bring your pet into infested stands
Launder all clothing prior to re-entering the field
If possible, avoid visiting hemlock stands in other, uninfested areas for several days

HWA eggs hatch into nymphs known as “crawlers”, which is HWA’s only mobile phase. Crawlers can be easily spread and cause new areas of HWA infestation. If you are in a hemlock forest from early April to late August, please take extra care to follow the biological control practices listed above.

Known distribution of HWA in Nova Scotia as of 2023. From https://www.nshemlock.ca/.

What should I do if I find HWA in a new area?

Do not collect branch samples or specimens; please take a photograph instead. It is best to photograph the underside of the hemlock branch where the woolly egg sacs are more visible. This can help better gauge HWA infestation level.

Record your location using GPS or mobile device.

Report your sighting on iNaturalist. Observation of HWA are tracked by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency.

If you don’t use iNaturalist, you can also report your sighting to Ron Neville with the CFIA.

If the sighting is on Nature Trust Lands, please also send picture and location pin to riki.kerbrat@nsnt.ca.

Rotary and the Environment

Austrian Rotary member Anton Zeilinger wins Nobel Prize in physics

Austrian Rotary member Anton Zeilinger wins Nobel Prize in

Watch World Polio Day 2022 and Beyond

Watch World Polio Day 2022 and BeyondThe livestream of Rotary International and the World Health Organization’s

The human touch

Following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Olena Morhun fled with three of her children and made her way to Puławy, Poland. There they were welcomed by Krystyna Wilczyńska-Ciemięga, one of many Rotary members who have opened their homes to refugees.