Tag Archives: Prince George Rotary

Where is the world is … ?

07 Thursday Feb 2019

Posted by in Foundation Global Grants, National Immunization Days (NID), Rotary 7600 Foundation News

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Where will you find D7600 Rotarians?

Last week as we ushered in Peace and Conflict Resolution Month we highlighted work in progress on Water and Sanitation global grant projects in Ghana. District Rotarians Shel Douglas (Prince George) and Past District Governor Stephen Beer (Innsbrook) are on the ground on that series of grants. Yes, you will get a little update.

India:

We also have had a team in India working on preventing polio and vaccinating children. The 7600 Rotarians on that trip are Colleen Bonadonna (New Kent) our district’s Polio Plus Chair, Dianna M. Waters (Brandermill), and Muriel Hawkins (Petersburg Lunch). After two weeks of work, they are getting a little R & R.

Polio Plus Angels, Dianna, Muriel, Colleen

Costa Rica:

We have also learned of a global grant project in Costa Rica spearheaded by the Rotary Club of Richmond, with the Rotary Clubs of James River and Huguenot Trail joining in. This project has been to provide English language books to elementary schools in Costa Rica. Members from the Richmond Club have already been on one or more trips to Costa Rica including, Michael Little, Jeanne Walls, E.M. Miller, and John Delandro. Around the end of March, there will be another trip of local Rotarians to Costa Rica to bring additional books to assist elementary school children in learning and improving their English language skills. Mike Little, Jeanne Walls, Kelly Keene, and Karin Jimenez (James River Club) are scheduled to go on that trip along with Mike’s and Jeanne’s spouses.

Ghana:

The district Rotarians have actually just landed in Accra (about 1 pm our time Thursday) where they will meet with the District Governor on Friday morning. Then the team will have a few hours to shop, rest, read, whatever before they catch their flight back to Virginia. Two pictures sent by Shel captured this writer and are shared here. This is also an homage to our Rotarians in India just about to finish their work there.

Part of the grant project in the Andasi village in Ghana was to install a block of micro-flush toilets. This project builder is a young man trained last year by the grant’s master trainer. Everyone had said that this polio survivor would never be successful. He has proved them wrong!

  • Builder
  • Block of micro-flush toilets being built

This blog is just a teaser … More in the March Spirit of 7600

All three project trips will be featured in more detail in the March Spirit of 7600. It is an abundance of riches to have many of our District 7600 Rotarians engaged in three different international endeavors, Polio Plus, and two global grants, but how interconnected they are! Doing good in the world.

D7600 & Global Water Grants

14 Friday Dec 2018

Posted by in Rotary 7600 Foundation News, Rotary Grants

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

, , , , , , , , , , , ,

Clean water, toilets, & schools, oh my …

Rotary District 7600,  clubs in the district, as well as districts and clubs throughout the US and in Ghana, have committed funds and volunteers to a series of water and sanitation global grant projects in Ghana.

These grants, spearheaded by Walter Hughes of District 7570 and greatly aided by grant writer, Shel Douglas, Past President of the Prince George Club and Assistant Governor of Area 6, will also include basic school buildings complete with libraries filled with books.  There will be volunteer work trips, one of which is coming up in late January and three of the volunteers on that trip will be Walter, Shel, and Past District Governor Stephen Beer.

Walter visited the Rotary Club of Prince George County on December 12 and provided the club with information about the water & hygiene grants in particular, but also about the Rotary Water & Hygiene Area of Focus (or Cause, if you will).  On hand were PDG Stephen, PDG & current District Rotary Foundation Chair, Chuck Arnason, District Polio Plus Chair, Colleen Bonadonna, and non-Rotarian visitors and guests interested in health, education, clean water, and sanitation.

Walther Hughes addressing Prince George Rotary

The presentation is provided here as a video and runs about 20 minutes. Watch it if you can, but if not, know that the gist of Walter’s message is that access to sustainable potable water, hygienic sanitation, education, and maintenance training,  not only fights disease but also provides economic development opportunities for isolated areas. These opportunities build the ability of communities to continue improving their own facilities, resources, and futures.

Shel Douglas & Walter Hughes

Economic Development Grants

16 Thursday Nov 2017

Posted by in Rotary 7600 Foundation News, Rotary Grants

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

, , , , , ,

As promised, a bit about Community and Economic Development District Grants:

On October 19th we posted an article about Community and Economic Development as being one of the Rotary Areas of Focus to not be overlooked when looking for a worthy global or district grant project.  You can scroll down on this page after this article  and reread the October 19th blog.

cropped-historic-triange-equine-assisted-therapies.jpgWe promised to come back with some of our District grants which listed Community & Economic Development as a primary or joint area of focus.  The District 7610 Peace Conference and the Foundation Reception and Awards Banquet intervened, but today we will begin a series about Community and Economic Development District Grants.

We begin today with the $42,527 multi-club 2017-2018 District grant (partially funded by the grant) awarded to the Area 7 Rotary clubs of Petersburg, Petersburg Breakfast, and the Colonial Heights.  The paragraphs in italics are clipped directly from the application for this approved grant and can be seen on the grants tab of dacdb.com.

“The Lakeview Park Playground/Gazebo project’s objective is to remove the old unsafe playground equipment and replace it with new equipment which will carry a Nautical Theme since it is located new the reservoir at Lakeview Park. The project also includes the building of a new Gazebo that replaces the one that was removed about 2 years ago due to its safety. The project will bring together the 3 clubs of Area 7 (Colonial Heights, Petersburg, and Petersburg Breakfast) in a multi-club district grant and in partnership with the City of Colonial Heights Park and Recreation Department and City of Colonial Heights Lawn Maintenance Department.

The community need is to provide safe playground equipment for the children of the city of Colonial Heights as well as the surrounding South Chesterfield County area as with this location of Lakeview park it is visited by both city residents and county residents. We will also be providing a Gazebo at the park for the families to socialize with their fellow citizens and have a place they could also have small family picnics. The long-run benefit will be for the children to grow up with the opportunity to have a safe place to play and get exercise while making friends and families having a place they feel they can come and enjoy family time and make new friends. We also want this to be an opportunity share the message of Great Rotary Work and partnership with our city to the citizens of the community.”

Lee Park RotariansThese clubs have a great track record completing Community and Economic Development grants.  Their grant last year was completed at The Lee Park Meadow in Petersburg.  That grant had Prince George partnered in the grant as well.  These grants are improving the entire Crater area region.

Just remember that it is annual fund giving that results in monies returning to the district to help fund such grants.

Also, remember to subscribe to this blog to get it directly in your email inbox.

 

 

Jump start the planning … get ready

22 Monday Feb 2016

Posted by in Rotary 7600 Foundation News

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , , , , ,

It’s never to early to start planning:

District Governor-Elect Diane Hagemann and Past District Governor Chuck Arnason connected in September at the Rotary Club of Prince George County for a club program.  Afterwards they took the opportunity to find a quiet corner to confer with each other on matters relating to the 2016 -2o17 Rotary year.  What wasn’t known to most Rotarians at the time was that PDG Chuck was the incoming District Rotary Foundation Committee Chair.

2015-05-16 10.05.35

Area 7 Foundation Advocate, Stan Wall (c)

Recently, Foundation Advocate for Area 7, Stan Wall (Colonial Heights Club), after coordinating with Area Governor Sam Parham (Petersburg Breakfast Rotary), connected with his clubs’ Club Foundation Chairs and Presidents-Elect to once again brief them on and answer questions about the Memorandum of Understanding and other topics the PEs would be studying at the Presidents-Elect Training Seminar (PETS).

These two vignettes demonstrate that sometimes face to face meetings with individuals or small groups can help promote the understanding of roles and contribute to the sharing of information as challenges arise.

Presidents-Elect and Club Foundation Chairs, whether they are new to the roles or are repeating those roles (as often happens in smaller clubs), may feel overwhelmed at times by what is expected and when.   Whatever our roles in our clubs or the district, we all want to do a good job and help others shine in their roles.  Yes, this is a bit of a pep ‘talk’, but worthy of doing.  We are Rotarians  who are ‘Gifts To The World’ by ‘Serving Humanity.’

Announcement:

This weekly Foundation Blog will publish on Tuesdays beginning in March 2016.  Watch for other changes as we approach the 2016 -2017 year.

 

 

‘Bee’lieve that you can ‘Be A Gift to the World’

11 Monday Jan 2016

Posted by in Rotary 7600 Foundation News

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , , , , ,

Beelieving is seeing.  At a recent meeting of the Prince George Rotary, Past Rotary International Director, Ken Morgan, conveyed a Paul Harris Fellow Recognition

BillRobertson&KenMorgan
Bill Robertson (L) and Ken Morgan

on a personal friend, Prince George Board of Supervisor’s Chair, William (“Bill”) A. Robertson.  Ken, a member of the Rotary Club of Chapel Hill, had driven from North Carolina to convey Paul Harris Fellow status on his childhood friend and non-Rotarian, Bill. The club’s President-Elect, Percy Ashcraft, whose day job is being the Prince George County Administrator, had conspired  with club President and Director of Social Services, Shel Douglas, to convince Bill to attend the meeting.  To make the presentation even sweeter Past District Governor Chuck Arnason drove in from the Blacksburg Rotary to witness the ceremony.

Later Club Secretary, Dana Rieves, was awarded her Paul Harris Fellow because a fellow member transferred recognition points to Dana to recognize  her significant donations  to The Rotary Foundation as a new member and her donation of time and talent to the club in general.  This Paul Harris Fellow recognition was a surprise as well.

Promoting The Rotary Foundation is worthy at all meetings but consider adding some excitement and surprise around giving to The Rotary Foundation and recognizing those who do contribute time, talent, and dollars.  It just may encourage other members to ‘Be a Gift to the World.”

A little ‘beelieving’ can go a long way.      pi5preeiB