Membership Mixer

September 8th

It was great to reconnect with everybody after the summer and welcome others interested in learning more about our Rotary Club.

Mike Greaney treated us to an entertaining presentation he developed about the background and benefits of Rotary, and included highlights of our club activities. Others gave brief reports on their areas of interest and we were all treated to wonderful food prepared by the staff at the Rooster Cafe and Kitchen. It was a fun evening and a big thank you goes out to everyone who contributed, especially Mike for his initiating and organizing of the event.

Here is Emelda helping out as we put together Christmas care packages for the Edmonton Skills Society.

My name is Nyaradzai (pronounced "nyah-rad-zah-yee," with the Spanish ñ sound as in "canyon") Emelda (em-elder) Gwitimah (gwee-tee-mah).

I have lived in Edmonton since 2023 and currently work as a Communications Advisor at NorQuest College.

Being part of a worldwide organization like Rotary is meaningful to me for several reasons. My connection began long before I became a member. My dad joined Rotary while completing his master's degree at the University of Alberta in 1993 and later became a member of the Rotary Club of Belmont in Bulawayo when he returned to Zimbabwe. As a child, I was fascinated by the fact that every Tuesday evening, he and my mum would get dressed to the nines and head off to their Rotary meetings. While our Whyte Avenue club is a little less formal than some others, that's a bonus for me because I often arrive straight from work in my jeans!

I am also a third-generation teacher. After teaching high school Geography and History for several years, I saw firsthand the impact that access to books and learning opportunities can have on people's lives. Because of that experience, Rotary's focus on basic education and literacy was one of my strongest motivations for joining.

What I enjoy most about our club is that we are united by a shared desire to make a difference while embracing diverse perspectives and experiences. I especially appreciated our support of Sports Central. During a World Cup year, it was inspiring to learn that the captain of Canada's national soccer team first had the opportunity to play soccer because of Sports Central's work in Edmonton.

Outside of work and Rotary, I write fiction and hope to publish a novel, or perhaps even two, someday.

Emelda currently serves as our Youth Services Coordinator. Here she is with the students who participated in the Adventures in Agriculture Program.