Stories

 

 

Eagle-Garden City Rotarians enjoyed an informative and enjoyable tour of Ada County Highway District (ACHD) headquarters.

Eagle-Garden City Rotary Club Members Attending November 11th Boise State Football Game.

Hunger is a global problem, and Idaho is no exception. Too many people, including children and seniors, are not sure where their next meal will come from. Serving these Idahoans are the 34 food banks and pantries scattered throughout the state. Our club has a close relationship with two of them, and we hold food drives to support them in their worthwhile endeavors: the Eagle Community Foodbank and St. Vincent de Paul Southwest Idaho food pantries. Learn more about what food-related service projects our club has done and how they have benefited these organizations. 

Although most of our members contribute to PolioPlus, we collect coins and cash in the fall for World Polio Day (falling on Oct. 24 this year) and in the spring for World Immunization Week. Last April, through our Pennies for Polio campaign, we filled a jar and raised $215. This fall, with our renewed Pennies for Polio campaign, we sought to beat that amount!

 

Our credit union donated plastic piggy banks for members, and for the last four weeks, people have searched under couch cushions, emptied out the cup consoles in their cars, and cleaned out their wallets for polio eradication! At our weekly club meetings, we pooled the coinage in our large jar, and on Oct. 20, we took it to the bank for counting. Well, we blew past last spring's amount, bringing in $266 this time around. That's a lot of change!

 

That, together with prior donations, brings our club to about 75% of our annual goal for PolioPlus! And we know that we'll soon leapfrog right past that goal. 

Since 1981, Sept. 21 has been designated the United Nations' International Day of Peace. And the monarch butterflies that we sometimes have the privilege of seeing are a symbolize of peace.

 

But monarch numbers have dropped dramatically in recent years. To raise awareness of Idaho's state insect and to support pollinators and peace, we can plant milkweed seeds with our clubs, in our communities or with local schools to support pollinators and peace. And fall is the best time to plant milkweed seeds. Learn how you can get free milkweed seeds and why this plant is so important to the monarch butterfly.

This year, the Eagle-Garden City Rotary Club sponsored Boise High senior Harrison Haynes' participation in RYLA (Rotary Youth Leadership Awards). Based on his experience at the July 28-31 camp at the College of Southern Idaho, he said he'll be "able to take charge of my school career more than I ever have before." We love sending students to RYLA and seeing them grow.

In August, I make many trips to the Boise airport to greet Rotary Youth Exchange (RYE) students arriving for a year in Idaho. As they walk through those last double doors at security and are greeted by District 5400 Rotarians and host families, I see in them a combination of excitement, fear and exhaustion. But I also see confidence and bravery. Five years ago, I saw that same look in my daughter’s face as we sent her to Belgium for a year. And I see that same look in our outbound student Morgan Parrott, who left recently for Austria on his RYE year. 

One of the advantages of being a small club is our ability to act quickly in service of others. And this last week demonstrated that ability. We learned that Family Advocates needed school supplies for the children it helps — and in just a week, 13 of our club members donated $370 worth of backpacks, spiral notebooks, looseleaf paper, crayons, colored and #2 pencils, erasers, glue sticks, and so much more! We ARE "people of action"!

According to our new Rotary International president, Jennifer Jones, "When an organization like Rotary dreams about big things like ending polio and creating peace, it becomes our responsibility to make them happen." She added, "You don't imagine yesterday, you imagine tomorrow." From that philosophy stems her 2022-2023 president theme, Imagine Rotary. And the logo is equally inspiring.

 

“The best laid plans of mice and men often go awry” – Robert Burns

And that Burns' quote best characterizes my year as president of the Eagle-Garden City Rotary Club! We had challenges that we have overcome or are overcoming, and yet we committed to exemplifying "service above self," making the most of our 25th birthday and meeting our goals.

This year, our club's goal is to raise $1,025 in contributions to the PolioPlus Fund. President Linda Gerber set that goal to signify our $1,000 goal from last year plus $25 for the 25th birthday the club is celebrating this May. And we've more than met that goal, with contributions from club members totaling $1,672 as of April 26. That's nearly $73 per member!

 

But the fiscal year's not over yet. For World Immunization Week (April 24-30, 2022), we decided to collect pennies (and other coins and bills) for polio up through our April 28 meeting. And generous members gave and gave and gave. At the end of the day, we were able to write a check from the club to PolioPlus for $215. That's a lot of change!

May 16, 2022, marks 25 years since the Rotary Club of Eagle-Garden City was chartered.

 

In that time, we have sponsored many youth projects and activities to support our community. Among those projects are awards to honor teens who have shown persistence in finishing their education, library books for young readers at Whittier School, bike safety clinics at the Boys & Girls Club, tree plantings, highway cleanups, food drives for food banks, financial grants to local charities, and birthday kits for disadvantaged children.

 

All this "service above self" began with the commitment from 24 community members who realized they could do more together than as individuals. 

We in the Eagle-Garden City Rotary Club are getting as excited as children about our upcoming 25th birthday! And we've been thinking about how we can celebrate this milestone.

 

One idea really took hold. We recognized that not everyone gets to celebrate their birthday. Children whose families rely heavily on food banks and social services must put basic needs above all else. 

 

So we decided to create birthday kits for children! Each kit has a cake mix, frosting, birthday candles, sprinkles and can of Sprite (a substitute for the oil, eggs and water) organized in a disposable aluminum cake pan with a clear plastic lid. We've also included a birthday wish from our club and instructions for using the Sprite in place of other ingredients. 

Lots of Rotarians have shown up the last couple of months to bring the Wetland Peace Preserve closer to our vision. In February, volunteers planted riparian cuttings and wrapped trees, while March found Rotarians weeding and mulching the saplings we had planted last fall. Our club's volunteers for these two events included Laura Spencer, CJ Huston and Natalie Chavez. On another track, the WPP advisory committee is preparing for the city approval process.

Lots of things weigh almost 300 pounds, a newborn elephant for one.

 

But that's also the weight of the food the Eagle-Garden City Rotary Club donated to the Eagle Community Foodbank recently! According to a formula the foodbank uses, the boxes, bags and pallets of food were valued at $706. We were tickled that, with little effort, we could provide such a huge benefit to this valuable community organization.

There's no doubt about it: People around here are so generous!

 

To sort and organize a wealth of donations, several of us spent a couple of hours at the Women's and Children's Alliance at the corner of 8th and Franklin in downtown Boise on Thursday, Feb. 9. Our WCA "boss," Lupe, led us through a warren of hallways and rooms, all floor to ceiling with pillows, sheets and towels, toys, laundry and cleaning products, and so much more. It was both amazing and heartwarming.

 

Geared up in warm coats and armed with garden tools, 15 Rotarians and family from across the Treasure Valley strode off to combat false indigo on Saturday, Jan. 23. The Wetland Peace Preserve has areas infested with this invasive shrub that need to be cleared for native foliage to thrive. 

The Eagle-Garden City Rotary Club is pleased to announce that five nonprofits from the Treasure Valley have been awarded a total of $3,000 in grants through our winter 2021-2022 grant cycle:

The Eagle-Garden City Rotary Club's annual Christmas party for Pierce Park students evolved to focus on giving rather than receiving this year. Twenty-one 5th-grade students helped us by wrapping gifts for 42 children ranging in age from infants to late teens. First names and ages were given to us by Family Advocates, after which club members purchased cold-weather items like knit hats and gloves, candy canes and $5 McDonald gift cards to give to the children. Pierce Park 5th graders wrote holiday greetings to the gift recipients and then wrapped them in tissue paper and put them into festive gift bags. 

Wetlands may seem like boggy, brushy areas that tear at our jackets and cake our shoes in mud. But they are vital to their functional ecosystems.

For example, did you know that plant roots and microorganisms in wetlands filter impurities from surface water as it seeps into groundwater aquifers? And because wetlands are biological “supermarkets” for wildlife, many birds “shop” in these areas during seasonal migrations or stay for a bit to breed and raise their young.

The folks at Semilla Nueva fight malnutrition with better corn, and many of us Rotarians in the Treasure Valley have followed and supported Curt Bowen and others since they founded this social venture and 501(c)(3) based in Guatemala a few years ago. Now Semilla Nueva seeks a development and communications manager. 

On March 20, the Eagle/Garden City Rotary Club held a food drive at the Garden City Fred Meyer store to benefit the St. Vincent de Paul Southwest Idaho mobile food pantry program. Despite it being a chilly day, it was a success!

A key project for Pierce Park Elementary had to change this year, given the COVID-19 pandemic. Instead of hosting a Christmas party for children in need, the Eagle/Garden City Rotary Club provided $25 Fred Meyer gift cards to 60 Pierce Park families and 24 Eagle Hills families. This project was made possible by club members' contributions and by the special grant we received from District 5400.

 

We are pleased to announce that two nonprofits from the Treasure Valley have been awarded $1,000 grants through our winter 2020-2021 grant cycle: St. Vincent de Paul Southwest Idaho and the Learning Lab. 

Like many clubs across our district, Eagle/Garden City is struggling to find ways to serve others while remaining safe and connected to each other and the community. Being creative and flexible are key in these challenging times. Some of our projects require modifying or rescheduling; however, some just require us to roll up our sleeves, get outside and get dirty.

Many Rotarians in our district are asking, “What can I do to help in the fight against COVID-19?” A donation to The Rotary Foundation’s Disaster Response Fund is one way.  And District 5400 is committing $15,000 of its DDF (District Designated Funds) to match individual and club donations to this fund. This is a one-to-one match, and all Disaster Response Fund contributions back to July 1, 2019, are eligible.  
 

Always wanting to do more to enhance our community, the Rotary Club of Eagle/Garden City asked nearby Pierce Park Elementary how we could help. School counselor Sarah Dunn said that providing some art supplies would be great. Most teachers can’t afford them, and the Boise School District doesn’t provide supplemental funds for such supplies. 

 

Isn't it frustrating when you want to call or email another Rotary club member but you don't know the phone number or email? Well, ClubRunner is your answer! It's a valuable tool — a one-stop shop, if you will — for Rotary clubs, serving as database, wed editor, calendar and so much more. But to serve these functions, it's vital that every member keep his or her contact information updated. Here are the basics for ClubRunner.

Aloha from Lobster Fest! This year, the event went Hawaiian to raise funds for service organizations that benefit youth. Four local Rotary clubs, including our Eagle/Garden City Rotary Club, joined together Saturday, Sept. 28, at BSU's Jordan ballroom for a dinner and auction. And we had a wonderful time!

Our presentation at this week's luncheon featured Cathy Cooke of Whole Home and Body Health. As a certified expert in holistic nutrition and building biology, she and her company dig deep to address underlying imbalances in people's bodies, looking especially at nutrition, exercise, mental outlook and stress, as well as at chemicals, mold and EMFs in their homes and workplaces. Just in time for Halloween, we were scared silly but inspired by her focus on EMFs or electric and magnetic fields

Not so with the Eagle/Garden City Rotary Club’s attempt to bring the district’s first exchange student from Africa. We’ll call her Mary. Despite the best efforts of our club, the Idaho Fine Arts Academy in Eagle, and Dr. Vincent Kituku’s nonprofit Caring Hearts and Hands of Hope, our movie featuring Mary did not have a happy ending. That said, we're not giving up!

The Eagle/Garden City Rotary Club officially welcomed three transfer members, and we could not be more excited! I'm shown here with Dennis Creighton, Kathy Creighton and Rebecca Blewett on my left. These three members bring enthusiasm for service and perspectives on how other clubs work. They will help guide us toward our vision of enriching the lives of our community, especially our youth.

Hey club members! We all know what a big job it is to govern District 5400. And we've had some amazing people filling that slot in recent years. But the process of nominating and preparing Rotarians to serve as district governor (DG) never ends. It's time to submit nominations for 2022-2023! Put on your thinking cap and share your ideas at an upcoming Eagle/Garden City Rotary meeting.

Several members of the Eagle/Garden City Rotary Club had a very special experience over the weekend of May 17 through 19. That experience was the 2019 District 5400 Celebration, which was held in Boise for the first time in many years, if ever. Historically, Sun Valley has hosted the annual conference, and perhaps this new venue was a trigger for inspiration and energy as the event was truly one to remember. Led by the boundless spirit and creativity of District Governor Jennifer Deroin, EGC members Gretchen Brown, Natalie Chavez, Gene de Laveaga, C.J. Huston, Mike Sieler and I, along with more nearly 300 other Rotarians laughed, cried, worked and played our way through a remarkable weekend.

Recently, Gen. Darrel Manning, founding member of the Rotary Club of Eagle/Garden City, wrote about the start of our club almost 22 years ago. We began with 25 members — a level we wanted to maintain — and that’s about where we are today. As Gen. Manning said, we take pride in being a small and nimble organization that can move quickly and get things accomplished efficiently. All of this is done with a great spirit of friendship, respect and collegiality. Now as we reflect on our past, we see opportunities for growth in the future. This is the first of several blogs I'll write about our plans and progress. Read more and check back soon!

Rotex, is it the same as Rotaract or Interact? Where do "Rotexers" fit into my Rotary club? I'm glad you asked. Rotexers are young people who have completed a Rotary youth exchange and wish to continue service with their local youth exchange program and clubs. These youth, usually between 17 and 30, are not necessarily Rotary members. But they live, work and study within our communities and have a thirst for service and leadership. 

Chicago attorney Paul Harris formed the Rotary Club in 1905 to bring together professionals with diverse backgrounds to exchange ideas, form lifelong friendships and give back to their communities. Rotary's name came from the group's early practice of rotating their meetings among the offices of its members. That was 114 years ago, and now the organization has 1.2 million members around the globe. Rotary's anniversary reminds General Darrell Manning about the beginning of the Rotary Club of Eagle-Garden City in 1996. We're not at 114 years yet, but we're still counting!

District 5400 Rotarians traveled to Denver for the North American Youth Exchange Network conference, held March 13-17. They went carrying pins, business cards, proven Rotary Youth Exchange practices, and a thirst for new ideas. They returned with a bronze-level certificate of achievement for our leadership and quality RYE program.

This Friday, Feb. 22, our waitress extraordinaire Martina McAllister is strapping on her dancing shoes and preparing to bust 17 hours of moves to raise money for the Children's Miracle Network.

 

That's right, it's time for BSU's annual Dance Marathon! This year, the students have set their sights high, at $208,000. This money goes to the St. Luke's Children's Hospital, paying for a gamut of needed supplies for sick children and their families. Open your wallet and give generously today!

As part of the Eagle-Garden City Rotary Club's commitment to promoting peace and helping youth, we annually host a Rotary Youth Exchange student coming to District 5400. This year, we are proud to host Julia Hakola of Finland.

District Governor Jennifer Deroin visited the Eagle-Garden City Rotary Club November 1 to urge us to "be the inspiration." Using the metaphor of spindles of thread that can be woven into beautiful tapestries, she encouraged each of us to "pull the thread" of our potential and weave it into the Rotary tapestry of our lives. 

Our motto, "Service Above Self," embodies our humanitarian spirit. Rotary’s Avenues of Service guide our activities: