In the News

Estes Valley Sunrise Rotary

Estes Valley Sunrise Rotary Club Achieves Charitable Milestone

Out of more than 46,000 clubs worldwide, the Estes Valley Sunrise Rotary Club recently achieved a remarkable charitable milestone that distinguishes them above most – a 100% Paul Harris Fellow Club. They are only 1 of 2 Clubs in District 5440 to achieve this distinction.

This exceptional accomplishment signifies that all 46 members of the Club have been credited with a donation of $1,000 or more to become a Paul Harris Fellow, a society of The Rotary Foundation, which serves as the charitable arm of Rotary International.

Paul Harris was the founder of Rotary International in Chicago in 1905 along with three other individuals. Today, Rotary boasts an international membership of more than 1.4 million members, each of whom is guided by the principle of “Service Above Self”.

In celebration of this charitable milestone, Andy Smallwood, former RI Director for 2012-2014 from Houston was sent to represent Rotary International. Steve Sehnert from Steamboat Spring represented the Rotary District 5440. Both were present to give a special recognition banner to the Estes Valley Sunrise Rotary Club at their regular breakfast meeting on Tuesday, March 19^th at the American Legion Post 119.

The Estes Valley Sunrise Rotary Club is well-known for hosting the Labor Day Weekend Arts & Crafts Show as well as the Autumn Gold Festival featuring Beers, Brats & Bands each September. Funds raised from both of these activities are reinvested in the community to support local students, nonprofits, and various community activities.

The Club meets each Tuesday for breakfast starting at 7:00 am at the American Legion Post 119. For those interested in discovering more about the Estes Valley Sunrise Rotary Club, check out their website at https://portal.clubrunner.ca/5242/

Estes Valley Sunrise Rotary Donates $5,000 to Veterans Community Project

Estes Valley Sunrise Rotary won a $5000 grant from Dignity Memorial® for use at the Veterans Community Project (VCP) in Longmont, Colorado. This grant will completely outfit the inside of a Tiny Home for one lucky Veteran.

VCP Longmont is a crossover venture between Veterans Community Project, the City of Longmont, and HMS Development. Located on a 2-acre property, approximately 13 miles northeast of Boulder, the Village will feature 26 tiny houses and a 3,000-square foot Community Center. Each single residency home is 240-square feet; the Village's five family homes are 340-square feet and can sleep up to 7.

VCP’s solution can provide Veterans a home of their own and individualized, wraparound support services that not only help get them back on their feet but ensure they continue standing.

The VCP Village consists of tiny homes that provide everything a Veterans needs to live with dignity and security: new furniture, appliances, housewares, bedding, and utilities- all free of charge. The Village Community Center provides on-site support services as well as a place for residents to socialize and build a strong network of support with other Veterans.

Veterans Community Project is truly the community's project. Each year, thousands of volunteers help build tiny houses, organize donation drives, host fundraisers, or find other creative ways to serve those who served us. As the weather improves, Estes Valley Sunrise Rotary Club is planning to get involved with an all-Club Service Project to support our Veterans in a hands-on way. In the meantime, Sunrise Rotarians were happy to furnish one tiny home with the $5,000 grant from Dignity Memorial®.

Dignity Memorial® - Serving families is our passion, our commitment and our expertise. Whether you’re planning a funeral or cremation service for a loved one, or making your own arrangements in advance, meaningful life celebrations begin with Dignity Memorial’s compassionate funeral and event planners.

Estes Valley Sunrise Rotary Club meets each Tuesday for breakfast starting at 7:00 am at the American Legion Post 119. For those interested in discovering more about the Estes Valley Sunrise Rotary Club, check out their website at https://portal.clubrunner.ca/5242/.

Sunrise Rotary Club turn out in numbers to support Golden Antler Nominees

On November 16^th2023 Estes Valley Sunrise Rotary club members turned out to support several of their own members who were nominated for the Golden Antler Award.

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Real World Learning in Estes Park Middle School

The Estes Park Armature Radio Club received $500 from Estes Valley Sunrise Rotary for its "Putting Students on the Air" program which is designed to teach and encourage Middle School students in the field of Ham Radio.

The program pays for books, licensing and test fees, and radios. Bob Ernst, Ham Radio Club and 7^th grade teacher, Mrs. Dais are involved in this program. Some of the students used the ham radios to communicate during the recent power outage.

Thank you to Mrs. Davis, and the Ham Radio Club for their support and to the Sunrise Rotary Club for supporting our schools!

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Estes Valley Sunrise Rotary Donates $1000 to Blue Santa

November 2023

Estes Park Auxiliary Police officer, David White, accepted a $1000 donation from the Estes Valley Sunrise Rotary for their Blue Santa program.

Sponsored by the Town of Estes Park’s Police Department Auxiliary, this program purchases and delivers non-perishable food and hygiene products for disabled, shut-in, and elderly community members that need a little extra holiday cheer in December.

There are between 90 to 100 Blue Santa recipients in Estes Park each year. See www.estes.org/bluesanta for more information. Thank you to the Sunrise Rotary Club for supporting this important charitable foundation.

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Estes Valley Sunrise Rotary Donates Books for Elementary Students

The Estes Valley Sunrise Rotary Club is proud to run the Plant a Book, Grow a Child program, presenting Scott Applegate, a club member and one of the program’s founders, with a check for the cost of this year’s program--$5,200. The program is in its 8^th year and started with a vision that every local child who visits the Estes Park Elementary School book fair should have the chance to leave with a book of their own to foster a love of learning and literacy.

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Sunrise Rotary Club designated October as “Giving Month”

Estes Valley Sunrise Rotary designated the month of October as “giving month”. They made donations to Crossroads Ministry’s Food Market with much needed staples with 200+ rolls of toilet paper and 50+ loaves of bread. These staple items, and cereal, are always in short supply at Crossroads Market as suppliers in the area are not able to readily provide them.

Sunrise Rotary donations were also made on October 24th to support World Polio Day. It was just 35 years ago that polio paralyzed 350,000 children annually. Today the world is 99.9% polio free, but we can’t stop there. Only two countries continue to report wild polio cases, Afghanistan, and Pakistan. With support from donors, Rotary and partners immunize over 400 million children every year from polio. Donate to EndPolioNow.org and it will be matched 2-to-1 by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, tripling the donation impact! Thank you!

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District Governor Elect, Karen Morgan, Visits Sunrise Rotary

District Governor Nominee (2025/2026), Karen Morgan (Fort Collins Foothills Club) visited our club and spoke to us about how the District Governor has a team that splits up the 5440 club visits (53 clubs). That team is made up of

District Governor - Steve Sehnert
District Governor Elect - Julie Haffner
District Governor Nominee - Karen Morgan
Past District Governor - Lee Varra-Nelson

Karen said that we are her 12th visit so far this year. Karen met with the Sunrise Rotary Board the night before to learn more about our club and projects that we are working on.

Karen gave a brief update on Rotary International's Action Plan, a strategic road map that will help us better connect with each other, grow as an organization, and more effectively share our stories of how we are making a difference in communities. The plan has 4 priorities

Impact
Reach
Engagement
Adapt

We discussed each of the priorities as they pertain to our club and our plans.

At the end of the session, Karen praised our club on each of these priorities and said that we are the epitome of Rotary's International Vision:

"Together, we see a world where people unite and take action to create lasting change — across the globe, in our communities, and in ourselves."

Rotary Welcomes Youth Exchange Student

For more than 40 years, Rotary Youth Exchange has been one of Rotary’s best-known programs. As an official program, it dates to 1975 — but by that time, Rotary clubs had already been sending students abroad for decades with the aim of promoting international understanding and friendship.

In September 2023, the Rotary Club of Estes Park and the Estes Valley Sunrise Rotary Club welcomed Lucia “Lucy” Miano into the Estes Park Rotary family by presenting her with an official Rotary Youth Exchange Badge.

Lucy will spend her 2023/2024 school year with 3 different families, offering an openness to new ideas and experiences, a willingness to adapt and to gain new perspectives, and an opportunity to make new friends and learn new ways of living. These are the same values that define Rotary itself.

Youth Exchange students often say their experience abroad was the best time of their lives. Being part of the program can be life-changing for Rotary members as well.

Outbound Youth Exchange

Local high school student, Naomi McDonald, is headed to Ecuador at the end of this month with Cowboy Country Rotary Youth Exchange and sponsored by the Estes Valley Sunrise Rotary Club. She’ll spend her entire 2023/2024 school year in Portoviejo, Ecuador as a Senior.

Portoviejo, founded in 1535, it is one of the oldest cities in Ecuador and is the sixth largest of the country. It is known for coffee cultivation, cattle, fishing and has a thriving agricultural-processing industry as well as a flourishing gastronomic sector. Portoviejo is known for its rich history and culture in Rock and Roll.

Naomi had her choice of countries through the Rotary Youth Exchange Program, but she chose Ecuador because it is a smaller country, and after studying some Spanish in high school, she is eager to become fluent in Spanish. During her youth exchange, Naomi will live with 3 different families in Portoviejo throughout the year.

“I am more comfortable sending my daughter to a country where I know she is backed by Sunrise Rotary, Rotary International and a strong Rotary presence in and around Portoviejo,” said Tamlin McDonald, Naomi’s father.

Naomi is the first outbound youth exchange in Estes Park in many years and Sunrise Rotary is thrilled to be her sponsor.