The Joys of International Projects
Speaker Bridget Jacob of the Ladner Rotary Club, gave a fascinating account of the International project she was involved in during 2019. It was sponsored jointly by the Rotary Clubs of Ladner and of Richmond Sunrise.
Partners, colleagues, friends and believers took on that year’s theme of “ROTARY CONNECTS THE WORLD” and headed for the Philippines. All along the way the power of saying YES! was evident.
The Ladner Club and the Richmond Sunrise Clubs wanted to bring the ARES Education System to the Philippines. ARES, or the Asian Ruggedized Education System is a compact, simple, fact-filled shoe-box size electronic database of world knowledge for pre-kindergarten kids to high school students. Our goal was to donate 3 of the ARES systems to 3 different High Schools along with 30 simple chrome book laptops by which the system could be accessed. In addition, enough books and shelving were donated to equip 5 different elementary schools on the island of Panglao.
So the adventure began: First financial donations were collected from the 2 Rotary Clubs and an application for a District 5040 Grant was completed. Next, with the help of their local Interactors, hundreds of books were collected. Finally, through a partnership with the legendary Rotary World Help Network, the books, medical equipment, mattresses, wheel chairs, computers (and gently used soccer team shirts for young players) were all loaded onto a container headed for Cebu.
The ship’s container arrived in Cebu City and was transported to Panglao ahead of the arrival of the ARES team. In February 2020 the team arrived in Manila to be greeted by many of the Rotarians who had been part of a Rotary Friendship Exchange to Vancouver the previous year. The team was welcomed with a marvellous show at IMUS National High School where the first ARES donation was made. Onward to Cebu and a ferry to Panglao where the real work began. The container had been unloaded but the books still had to be distributed to the schools so sleeves were rolled up and many local Rotarians and community workers pitched in to ensure the books reached the appropriate elementary schools.
For the Ladner Rotarians all these exciting projects were a thrill to see. Bridget was quick to note that their books were not just a donation to the 5 schools – they set up real libraries! A team was assigned to properly label all books by age, category, subject etc. … is that still called the Dewey Decimal system?
To make sure all funds went to the projects, the Rotarians paid their own travel expenses. They were generously supported and feted by local clubs from Manila, Cebu and Panglao.
As a final note of concern, Bridget reminded us that their project completed on the very eve of the incoming pandemic. These days many ships are delayed or stranded at ports where extra demurrage charges are incurred. We shall see how this might affect Rotary World Help.
Bridget is an enthusiastic and committed Rotarian and her Club’s work on this project was inspiring as was Bridget herself. Well done Ladner and Sunrise Rotarians!
and our Michael Frost had this to share regarding Bridget's presentation:
Our guest speaker, Bridget Jacob, is a lawyer and a member of the Richmond AM Club, though this is perhaps the end of the line for what has been a peripatetic life: born in Malta, residing then in Europe, and then alighting upon those verdant pastures that we call Richmond, Bridget proved an erudite and excellent speaker, in particular on the subject of a major project that her Club, alongside that of Ladner, recently completed in the Philippines. The presentation was one of considerable quality. As with most presentations, a picture tells a thousand words, and the photographic journey through Manila, Pang Lao and Cebu greatly enhanced the tale of the provisions of libraries, sports facilities and some excellently described local cuisine to parts of a country that is still relatively poor and vulnerable to disastrous typhoons, floods, a wayward government, and a geographical problem in living so close to what China considers its domain.
The pictures of Manila, and Bridget’s description of the heat, the crowding (it is a city of some 12m souls) and the description of the joy with which school supplies are received by the under-resourced schools all combined to show that Bridget’s reason for joining Rotary (to provide to the segment of the third world that needs so much assistance) had succeeded inasmuch as some 424 containers of needed goods (and books are still necessary in a country where use of the computer is less than many in the West believe) have been delivered to that nation. On the evidence before us, Bridget’s experience in what has obviously been a selfless endeavour, has been both fulfilling and fulfilled.
Your correspondent was particularly taken with the picture presented of Cebu, as he had occasion to visit its rather sorry roadstead in 1962 for some 3 days. What we see now is a city of some 3m of considerable economic importance, and with a geographical advantage for the site of a container port that is both modern and symptomatic of the vast progress made over the intervening years. At that time I saw a port of few facilities, more horse-drawn carts and wagons than trucks, and many pedestrians who had slung around their hips gun-belts (with guns, be it said) more redolent of Western movies than of even-then modernity. Now this presentation showed us classrooms, libraries and happy young students whose lives have unquestionably been augmented by projects such as the one which we saw at our meeting. It would have been nice if we could have seen more of the success of such Rotary projects!
In other Club news:
President Dianna and President Grant both encouraged us to join Zoom meetings at other clubs. It’s simple, just look at the Club’s website and find out when their meeting is scheduled and get the access info.
Here’s a question for you –
How many years has Rotary Vancouver Arbutus been operating?
Answer: Since 1977.
A venerable 52 years of service!
And speaking of old … discussion about our constitution and by-laws took place. It was decided we’d do some sprucing up and backfilling to the modern era. Our By Laws were updated a couple of years ago and now a Constitution needs a look.
Projects
Ron and Lydia gave a 1000 x 5 Book project update.
We will be sending 100 new “baby board books” to the Vancouver School District’s Early Learning division in each of the next 4 months.
Since we are unable to set up donation bins at schools until the lockdown at VSB is over, we need gently used books for kids 3 to 5 years old.
Club members are asked to send a request out to their social circle, friends, family and other acquaintances asking for used-and-in-good-condition books for 0 to 5 year olds. We can pick up or they can drop off to our members.
Lydia will write up an explanatory note that members can use in their efforts to get used book donations. Watch for that in your email and let’s get collecting!
And be sure to attend the meeting on February 25th when Colleen Dickie, dynamic educator, Manager of Early Learning, and our champion at the Vancouver School Board (Yay!) will be our speaker. She will tell us about the many programs she and her team have to help young children get ready for school. We are now one of their pre-primary champions!
Next Week’s special speaker is Michael Cowhig. You will have seen a large white friend over his shoulder in Zoom meetings. Michael will tell us all about his trip to the arctic. Some gorgeous photos are sure to appear. See you all on January 28th!