Here is a nice message of thanks from Mary Murphy of the Mustard Seed's Neighbour Centre for our club's support of their weekly Dinner Club program:

 

"Thank you to the Rotary Club of Edmonton on Whyte Avenue for your financial support and the generous gift of your time and talents!

 

When we were able to share meal making and gather around a communal table to share our delicious creations and conversations you often taught us cooking techniques, made creative desserts out of our ‘interesting’ ingredients and lead us into so many interesting with intriguing conversations with questions of the day.

Rotary Whyte Ave had double the fun this past Tuesday when we had two presentations!  

 

First up, we had our very own District Governor Tracey Vavrek who joined the club online to give an update on Rotary's work since the COVID-19 outbreak. Rotary District 5370 has been active since the beginning by establishing a risk management task force to help the district respond to the changes as well as a policy framework to help the district move forward. Tough decisions had to be made, such as canceling district training and youth camps. However,  Rotary is more important now than ever so the district has been working hard to support Rotarians. The district has since made the district training available online; started releasing its newsletter weekly; is doing virtual events (such as an upcoming virtual pints for polio); and providing clubs special COVID-19 grant funding! Tracey is also inviting members to join her for online coffee chats to help keep Rotarians connected (register for the next coffee chat this Tuesday here). Thank you for coming Tracey!

Next up, we learned about the 1st ever Rotaract Conference in Halifax when University of Alberta Rotaract Club members Kira Eberts, Wyatt Liboiron, and Ana D’Aubeterre came and spoke to Rotary Whyte Ave. The University of Alberta Rotaract Club helped develop this  Conference, the fist of its kind in Canada, to help connect Rotaracters across the country.  Five members from the U of A club went to the Conference in February where they met other Rotaracters, shared ideas on how to make a difference in the community, as well as learned new communication tools and governance practices!  Rotary Club of Edmonton Whyte Avenue supported this great initiative by helping to send University of Alberta Rotaract Club members to Halifax. With what they learned, the University of Alberta Rotaract Club came back to Edmonton and revamped the structure of their club so they can better serve club members and the community. Way to go Rotaract!  

Want to learn more about the Rotaract Conference? Watch a fun video on the trip here.

Thank you to our speakers and for everyone who joined us online!