Service Projects

2022 Thanksgiving Basket Project 

November 17, 2022 @ First Grace United Methodist Church
The Thanksgiving Basket Project is a joint venture with the Rotary Club of New Orleans, First Grace United Methodist Church and the Warren Easton and Ben Franklin Interact Clubs.  Participants will pack and distribute baskets to 150 needy families in the New Orleans area.  The list of recipients is provided by First Grace, and is comprised of names from not only their membership, but also from the following organizations:  NO/AIDS Task Force – Transitional Housing, Hagar’s House, residents of Tivoli Circle, St. Paul UMC, and the New Orleans Worker Center for Racial Justice. Each basket is designed to help feed a family for the week of Thanksgiving, especially considering that children will be out of school during that time.
 

Crescent City Café

November 5, 2022 @ Rayne Memorial United Methodist Church
"The Crescent City Café serves the poor and marginalized members of our community with dignity and provides individuals the opportunity to build relationships and connect with one another through the sharing of a meal. We currently host free breakfasts twice a month for the homeless and low-income population of New Orleans and plan to open a pay-what-you-can community cafe in the near future. Since serving our first breakfast in 2009, we have provided our guests the chance to be served a delicious meal while simultaneously being treated with dignity and respect."
 

SOUL Tree Planting

October 22, 2022 & November 12, 2022 @ Ponchartrain Park
Sustaining Our Urban Landscape (SOUL) "is returning to Pontchartrain Park this October as a continuation of the Reforesting Ponchartrain Park Project. Last year saw incredible transformation of this historic neighborhood as trees were installed to create a system of green infrastructure." Their goal for the season is to plant over 800 trees! "A well planned neighborhood-wide design of Cypress, Oaks and Magnolias would bestow the beauty, shade, stormwater management and cleaner air that this notable community deserves."
 
For more information, please visit: https://soulnola.org/pontchartrainpark/
 
 

Re(ad) Treat 

October 23, 2022 @ Woven Roots Community Garden 
RE(ad) TREAT is an alliance of multiple justice-minded organizations in New Orleans committed to hosting a nomadic library for young people as they discover a love of reading while growing their imaginations,  flourishing emotionally, strengthening their communities, and practicing financial literacy.

At RE(ad) TREAT, we know that literacy rates correlate with proximity to libraries, and only 34% of New Orleans children are reading on grade-level. We are a drop-in nomadic library that hosts pop-ups in various neighborhoods. When children visit us, they have an opportunity to use reading support from volunteer Reading Buddies, earn rewards (including science kits and even bicycles), make new friends, and participate in our interactive group read-alouds. 
 
 

Jackson, Mississippi Water Crisis Project

September 7, 2022 @ The Rotary Club of Jackson, Mississippi
The Rotary Club of New Orleans delivered 1500 cases of water, 1500 packs of wipes, and 1500 hand sanitizers to The Rotary Club of Jackson, Mississippi to distribute to the citizens of Jackson who were in dire need of supplies due to the failure of their water treatment plant. 
 
"...Sonny Lee, Son of a Saint founder and RCNO member, put me in touch with Arthur BoisFontaine, co-Owner of Crystal Clear Imaging, Inc.. Arthur is also a member of the United Cajun Navy. Arthur informed me that they have a warehouse in Kentucky loaded with supplies. He has made available, for our club to distribute enough bottled water to fill two 18 wheelers for shipment to Jackson, Mississippi."

 

Backpack Project

It took two days of organizing, but we did it: 209 backpacks stuffed with supplies and delivered. The bags contained everything from folders and paper to ink pens and crayons. Recipients included The New Orleans Women and Children’s Shelter, Langston Hughes School, Kingsley House, and The Unity Welcome Home Program. Son of a Saint donated a couple young men to assist our team.
 
 
 
New Orleans East Inaugural Festival
September 17, 2022 @ Joe W. Brown Park, New Orleans East
This past Saturday, the Rotary Club of New Orleans participated in the inaugural New Orleans East Festival held at the Joe W. Brown Park on Reade Avenue. It was a beautiful day filled with music, snowballs, and family fun. The event was an overall success with lots of support.
As of now, there are six Rotary clubs throughout the New Orleans area, however, none are located in New Orleans East or in the Ninth Ward. Aside from community needs (though this is THE reason Rotary was created in 1905), the East alone is home to over 80,000 residents making a club in this region very sorely needed.
In an attempt to correct this, our club has begun an initiative to bring a satellite club to the area. This past weekend's involvement with the festival was set to gain interest and gather contacts for those willing to band together and create this fledging club. The effort was a fantastic success gathering more interested parties than the club requires at minimum! The feedback was overwhelmingly positive with many stating how badly the area needs it and are excited to be involved.
A Rotary Club in this area will bring additional service and volunteer opportunities to the community, an avenue and voice to reach those in power, and a much needed focus on the positivity that the area has to offer.