Interested in Building Playgrounds in Belize?

The Team:  for each Playground build project will have:

• A Project Leader which is usually a Canadian Rotarian;

• A Professional builder supplied by the Emmanuel Foundation;

• Rotary Volunteers and friends from Canada;

• A Project Leader and volunteers from Belize; and

• Interact members from Canada and sometimes from Belize.

• Travel and Accommodation: arrangements while in Belize will be coordinated by the Rotary leader of your build project. If you wish to holiday before or after the build you will have to make those arrangements directly with your travel agent.  Costs of travel and accommodation during the build are the responsibility of each Canadian Rotarian.

• The Playground Build Project: usually takes about 4 to 5 days.  An official opening celebration will be held.  During the build time the Rotarians visit the schools and are involved in training playground leaders and setting up some basic play programs in connection with the playground project. The last two to three days are usually free days and our Rotary hosts with your leaders will plan activities in the jungle or at the ocean for you during this time.

• Why Get Involved in this Project: Building playgrounds in these developing countries enhances the United Nations declaration that children have the “Right to Play”.   Through our work we bring hope and happiness to poor children and their families.

• The playground becomes the center of the Community and enhances Community Development and sustainability of the project.  Our professional installers not only ensure the playground is built well but take the time to train a maintenance crew regarding repair and safety on the playground.  In some cases, the playground opens doors to the community so that our clubs can return to work on long term community development, water and micro finance projects to further enhance these poor communities.  Indeed we have adopted both schools and Communities.

• Involvement in the Playground Program gives your club an opportunity for a hands on project which you may want to consider supporting over a multi- year period.  Some years you may be more active and some years donate to the overall program to support the long term goals.

Our request is:  for your Rotary Club to consider providing $3000.00 per year to the District 5370 Playground Committee for a period of three years.  These funds will be matched as part of either an Alberta CIP or TRF Global Grant. We are currently looking for future partners for a Global Grant project to enhance our current playground work. This information and more detail is also on the Services Committee data base at services@rotary5370.org at the bottom of page 2.

HOW TO GET INVOLVED IN ROTARY PLAYGROUND PROJECTS WORLD WIDE

Info for Interactors

What:   Canadian Municipal Playgrounds that are in good shape and destined for the landfill are saved by the Emmanuel Foundation, rebuilt and redesigned, purchased by Rotary Clubs and shipped to projects organized by our partner clubs around the world.

Who:  Rotary Clubs in Canada work with Rotary Clubs in Belize, Honduras, etc. to determine where the playgrounds should be built in any given year.   The Rotary and Interact Clubs of Canada and Belize work together to install and paint the playgrounds and work with the children of the area to teach them to play.

The Funding: For each project cycle, a CIP ( community Initiatives-International) matching grant has been requested from the Alberta Provincial Government . Matching Funds will come from the partner Rotary Clubs. Each playground has 3 or 4 partner clubs who each contribute $3000 in a Rotary Year towards the project. We ship two large playgrounds and medical and school supplies for a total project cost of approximately $24,000.00 CDN.

What are the funds used for:   

The $3000 input from Rotary Clubs to the District Playground project can be used for the following purposes:

• Cost of procuring, shipping and installing the playground

• Costs to include their Interact Club in a build; Training, supervision etc.

• Domestic costs to have the playground sand blasted and treated prior to shipping

• Costs of extra school supplies etc. that will fill the container

A Rotary club can be very hands on getting the playground ready to send and also send a team of Rotarians and/or Interact clubs. Or a club can be less hands on and choose to donate to a specific project and follow the progress and see the results.

The Team:  The team for each Playground build will have:

·         a Leader/Canadian Rotarian

·         Rotary Volunteers from Canada

·         Leader and volunteers from Belize

·         Interact members from Canada and sometimes from Belize

Travel and Accommodation:

Accommodation and transportation arrangements while in Belize will be coordinated by the Rotary leader of your build. If you wish to holiday before or after the build you will have to make those arrangements directly with your travel agent.  Costs of travel and accommodation during the build are the responsibility of each Canadian Rotarian.

Health, Insurance and Safety:

Depending on the country, certain shots are necessary and malaria medication may be necessary. Our committee will advise.  The safety of Rotarians on these builds is ensured by our host Rotarians and we are covered for travel under  a blanket Rotary International Policy.

The build:  

The build takes about 4 to 5 days.  An official opening will be held.  During the build time the Rotarians visit the schools and are involved in training playground leaders and setting up some basic play programs in connection with the Playground. The last two to three days are free days and our Rotary hosts with your leaders will plan activities for you during this time or you can book some time at the ocean on the Cayes.

Why Get Involved in this Project:

Building Playgrounds in these developing countries enhances the United Nations declaration that children have the “Right to Play”.   Through our work we bring hope and happiness to poor children and their families.

The playground becomes the center of the Community and enhances Community Development and sustainability of the project.  Our professional installers not only ensure the playground is built well but take the time to train a maintenance crew regarding repair and safety on the playground.  In some cases, the playground opens doors to the community so that our clubs can return to work on long term community development, water and micro finance projects to further enhance these poor communities.

Involvement in the Playground Program gives your club an opportunity for a hands on project which you may want to consider supporting over a multi- year period.  Some years you may be more active and some years donate to the overall program to support it’s long term goals.