A team of Harleysville Rotarians attended the EMC School Assembly in November, to be honored by the students for the Club's contribution of 35 new books to be placed in the school's new library.

These were presented in celebration of Harleysville Rotary's 25th Anniversary. The goal was originally 25 books but was increased to 35. Pictured above (from left to right) are Past President Steve Godsall-Myers, Chuck Heckenberger, Larry Moss and Past District Governor Frank Romano. They are standing in front of a display created by the students at the entrance to the library.

 

Twin brothers, Calvin and Ethan Ribelan, who were sponsored by Harleysville Rotary to the Rotary Youth Leadership Awards summer camp (RYLA - also known as Camp Niedig),  described their adventures at this year's camping experience. They are joined by Kyle Zehr, member of the Camp Niedig Committee. One of the brothers was named Camper of the Year. Both relayed some wonderful stories of their experiences and what the camp did to increase their leadership skills.

 

 

 

Last week President Gary organized a game to help newer members, who have been in Rotary three years or less, network with older more experienced members. It was set up similar to Speed Dating in which new members have 60 seconds to talk about themselves before the older members get to relate their story. Every couple of minutes the new members would move to the chair on their left. It was a fast moving game and everyone learned quite a bit. Lots of fun.

 

Joshua Johnston was accepted to the graduate school of Bryn Mawr College to study for his MSW in 2005. Before enrolling, he took his last trip to Tanzania and never really came back. He works there today providing social services for children in a town of 100,000 in a region of 1.3 million residents. The kids age from 7 to 17 and are orphaned, poor and live on the streets doing odd jobs. Some of the girls do domestic work. Most have little or no formal education. Josh is affiliated with the Harambee Foundation (Harambee means "all pull together" in Swahili) that provides remedial schooling and readies kids in just 2 years to be able to go back to school. There are 61 children in the center and 30 beds for the homeless. A cook comes in the evening and 3 kids are assigned to assist. Every Saturday everyone gets a meal of rice & beans. Kids even get a soap allowance. The goal is to provide for their needs so that they can get an education and be productive members of society. Harleysville Rotary is proud to be a contributor to this amazing project.

 

Author, Joanne Hoff introduced her new book, "Between Now and Then". In the book she asks the question, "Do you want to leave a legacy of love or a mess?" Lawyers love a mess and you can not depend on lawyers to straighten out the mess. Joanne talked about being an executor and tips on settling an estate. She also advises folks to get a will and if you have one - keep it updated. Good practical advise that we all need to follow.

 

On the 5th of July these Patriotic Weeders entered the Garden of Health and proceeded to rid the garden of the unauthorized growth found therein. Thanks to efforts of earlier groups,  the job was completed in less than two hours. Sunday's visit was therefor cancelled. See individual photos of the team in "Read More".

 

Dressed in their souvenir shirts, Larry Moss and President Steve reported on their impressions of the Rotary International Convention that was held on June 1-6 in Hamburg, Germany. Approximately 25,000 Rotarians from all over the globe joined in this annual celebration of the accomplishments of Rotary. Between the plenary sessions, the breakout sessions, the House of Friendship, and the Inspiration Lounge, there was plenty of Rotary knowledge to be absorbed. Lots of fun and excitement and many interesting conversations along the way.

 

President-Elect Gary Volpe pins on Frank Hueber's first Paul Harris Fellowship pin. Frank is the new Area 6 Rotary Foundation Coordinator and is working on getting all members of District 7430's Area 6 to become Fellowship members or encourage present Fellowship members to achieve the next level. The Foundation is the "financial engine" that makes most Rotary projects possible. Congratulations, Frank!

 

Dr. Al Grande from the Board of Trustees of the Indian Valley Public Library was our guest presenter on March 6, 2019. Dr. Grande introduced the Club to the newly formed Foundation of Friends at the library. He also went on to highlight the variety of services that the organization provides to the community. The process of loaning books is just a part of all the other activities that are available. In 2018 there were almost 250,000 visits, 1,200 programs, 19,000 program attendees, 270 groups totaling 4,000 people met in library meeting rooms, 1,500 museum passes were loaned out, 2,900 children attended summer learning events, and 5 hotspot devices were loaned out 131 times. It is manned by an 8 person staff and 31 part-time staffers along with 166 volunteers who worked over 7,500 hours. The library has become come a hub of educational and social activity.

 

Our guest speaker on February 6, 2019 was Xander Duerkson who currently is a senior at Dock Mennonite Academy. Last summer the Rotary Club of Harleysville sponsored him as a camper at Camp Neidig, the Rotary Youth Leadership Awards (RYLA) camp to participate in a four day leadership program along with scores of other seniors from many high schools in District 7430. Xander described his hesitation and trepidation about going through this program since it was a way out of his comfort zone, but once he became involved he was amazed at all he learned about himself and the number of new friends he made.

 

This fall he will be heading to Eastern Mennonite University to further his education.  He is certain that this experience has better prepared him for college. Congratulations Xander and best wishes for your continued success.