As we all know, November is Foundation month in Rotary. This means it’s time to donate to the Foundation, if you haven’t already done so, during the current fiscal year from July 1, 2019 to June 30, 2020.  Our Club’s Treasurer, Ron Wrobel, sent an email reminding us about it. Remember that donating to the Foundation is voluntary and is not required. However, if you make a donation, the club will match it up to your first $50.00. There are three ways to donate: bring a check to Ron Wrobel at the meeting or mail a check to the Bar Harbor Rotary, P.O. Box 701, Bar Harbor, ME 04609. The third way is to go onto the RI Website and make the donation online. Ron is planning to send in the big check by this Thursday, November 21st. So, if you are planning to donate to the Foundation, let Ron know about it as soon as you can. Donating to the Rotary Foundation means clean water and sanitation, health and hope in areas that were once ravaged by diseases like polio, economic development and new opportunities. Your financial help makes all this possible and more.

• For as little as 60 cents, a child can be protected from polio.

• $50 can provide clean water to help fight waterborne illness.

• $500 can launch an anti-bullying campaign and create a safe environment for children.

 

Many thanks to all the Rotarians who volunteered for the Backpack program last Friday. The MDI Backpack program seeks to help alleviate hunger in young children in the community by sending them home on Fridays with palatable, shelf-stable, nutritious, easily-prepared food.  I’m glad there are always club members willing to help and say, “I’ll be there.” Thanks to Josh Yarbrough, Steve Boucher, Chris White, Colleen Maynard, Dick Fox, and Scott Hammond. You guys offered to help and were there hands on.

 

Thanks to Rotarian Aurora Hilton for attending the Rotary Leadership Institute this past weekend. This is the second year for Aurora, and I won’t be surprised she will a good leader within this club in the near future.

 

Our Holiday party this year will be at McKay’s on December 4th. As in past years, we will hold the silent/live auction with the proceeds going to a charity of our choice. The Board of Directors will discuss what charity we will be donating this year’s proceeds to at our next board meeting, and it will be announced shortly after that. So far, these are the local businesses that have donated to the silent auction: My Maine Darling, The Kimball Shop, Shaw’s Jewelry, Floret, Reel Pizza, Destination Health, Milk and Honey. We also have items and services donated by Rotarians Scott Hammond, Aurora Hilton, Lisa Horsch Clark, Dean Reed and Jim Ash. If you would like to make a contribution to the auction either with a product or service, please let me know what you will be donating and the value of it, and I will place it on the list of items donated. I am planning to get more from local businesses; so stay tuned because I will be posting the complete list with items, services, and values within the next few weeks. I hope you can attend the party; it’s always a fun time and most importantly we are giving back to the community.

 

“Giving is not about making a donation, it is about making a difference.” - Kathy Calvin CEO, and President of the United Nations Foundation.