Oct. 17, 2026 7:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m. Pacific Daylight Time (UTC-07:00)

Tijuana, Mexico

Come swing a hammer or paint a wall to help build a home in Tijuana with Project Mercy during its Baja Challenge. NO SKILLS ARE REQUIRED. Project Mercy volunteers meet at the Otay Mesa Border McDonald’s at 7:00am on the day of construction, unless otherwise stated. Take the 805 south to the 905 east, take the 905 east and then south Immediately after the 905 swings south there is a sign on the right for Siempre Viva Road exit Exit to the right and take the left lane: the Siempre Viva Road East fork in the road This will take you under the bridge and around back over it to McDonald’s. PARKING: Note that you cannot leave your car at McDonalds! Either carpool from your destination, drive your car into Mexico or arrive early to find parking elsewhere. There is parking through the convenience store at the gas station next to McDonalds for about $10.

At our club meeting on October 6th, Steve Bender spoke about “Building Bridges Through Rotary.” His presentation was an interesting look at how Rotary clubs in the United States, Mexico, and other countries are working together to turn local environmental ideas into collaborative projects with a much broader impact. Steve is the Chairman of the U.S. Green Chamber and President of the Rotary Club of Newport Beach.

Steve Bender’s commitment to the environment and sustainability is life-long and something to which he volunteers his time, energy, creativity, and managerial expertise.   Ever since Steve moved to a house on the Back Bay in Newport Beach almost two decades ago, he has been involved in many different environmental organizations serving the local Orange County community and beyond.

Steve grew up in an environmental family from Kansas.  His father was winning awards for water conservation in the 1960s as well as raising organic beef in Kansas long before they called it organic.  His father also designed one of the first passive solar homes in Kansas.

Steve shared real-world examples, including the Tijuana River Project, Pollinators Without Borders, the Panama Project, EarthX 2027, and other cross-border initiatives. 

On September 29th, Michael Lengyel of Civic Communities spoke at Old Mission Rotary. Michael is the Executive Vice president of Lending and Investment for the San Diego based non-profit.

The core philosophy of the organization is that "Everyone who has access to capital, thrives in healthy communities and has a pathway to prosperity." 

Their mission is “To expand economic opportunity by investing in people and delivering solutions that build healthy, thriving communities.”

Thank You, to everyone who stepped up and made a donation before year's end. We exceeded our goal with a final total of $4,147. 

The Click Me! link below will take you to the Rotary Donation page to make the coming years donation.  

Thank you to everyone who made a pledge to support Thousand Smiles this year. We have received many of the donations already. There is still time to send in your pledge either via check or online on the Thousand Smiles website. 

We are looking forward to receiving the outstanding pledges if possible within the next two weeks and adding to the total through the Art Pratt Foundation.

The Club's Donation Link is below in Click Me!  Just click on the Donate Button and enter your amount.