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Are you ready to make a difference in your community and in communities around the world? You’ll find Rotary members digging wells, building schools, immunizing children, and organizing food drives. We’re building peace, empowering youth, and saving mothers and children. It’s what we’ve been doing for more than 100 years and our impact on lives is unmistakable.
When we commit to a cause, like eradicating polio, we don’t stop until it’s finished. Since 1979, we’ve raised millions of dollars, immunized billions of children, and put polio eradication on the agenda of governments around the world. Today, as a member of the Global Polio Eradication Initiative, we are “this close” to reaching our goal. Three countries remain polio endemic, but we won’t stop until the disease is gone.
We tackle the tough challenges in our communities with the same spirit of determination. From giving young people the tools they need to resolve conflict peacefully to organizing health clinics for underserved women and children, Rotary members are helping to improve lives in our own neighborhoods.
Our recent “Lunchtime Service Project” benefited The Bridge for Youth. With support from Culver's and Rotary District 5950, our Club assembled and delivered 48 "Got You Covered" packs (and an additional 79 pairs of wool socks) for youth in need. Each kit contained underwear, pajamas, and socks. #PeopleOfAction
The Golden Valley Rotary Club presented a check for $1,000 to Jaime Belden & Future Roots Project / Raices del Futuro to support their sustainable educational initiatives in Central America. We are proud to be a multi-year donor along with several other Rotary Clubs in Minnesota.
The Future Roots Project is a collective founded in Minnesota that focuses on sustainable educational, artistic, and health initiatives in Central America.
From teachers trainings to designing sustainable classroom materials, Future Roots brings educational and artistic opportunities to impoverished communities that improve literacy rates, creativity, self worth, health, & empowerment in children.
From teachers trainings to designing sustainable classroom materials, Future Roots brings educational and artistic opportunities to impoverished communities that improve literacy rates, creativity, self worth, health, & empowerment in children.
"We have the wild poliovirus cornered in the smallest geographic area in history, and now there are just two countries, Afghanistan and Pakistan, that continue to report cases of the wild virus," said Michael K. McGovern, chair of Rotary's International PolioPlus Committee. "As we work with our partners to apply innovative new strategies to reach more children, and embrace lessons learned thus far, Rotary is doubling down on our commitment to end polio for good."
On June 6, Rotarian Betsy Anderson presented a scholarship to a graduating senior at Perpich Arts High School. The recipient for 2019 is Linda Xiong. The counseling staff and music faculty at Perpich Arts High School helped select the recipient for the Golden Valley Rotary Club Scholarship. The scholarship is a one year, $1,000 scholarship. The student exemplifies “Service Above Self” and lives in Golden Valley or attended a school in Golden Valley. The scholarship honors high achievement in music but need not be awarded to a student currently focusing on music at Perpich. The student should plan on either studying or continuing with their music in their post-secondary career. This scholarship rounds out our 2019 giving of $5,000 total. Two scholarships were given to Robbinsdale Armstrong seniors, two to Hopkins seniors, and one to a senior at Perpich Arts High School.
Golden Valley Rotary and Culver's were out in force for the Golden Valley PRIDE Festival on Sunday, June 9 at Brookview Park. The Rotary Club was a Bronze sponsor of the festival. Volunteers served up frozen custard, root beer, and root beer floats. All proceeds from the event will go to The Bridge for Youth to support their LGBTQ homeless youth programming. Much gratitude to Culver's of Golden Valley for donating all the custard and root beer.
On Wednesday May 15, Rotarians Gary Aiken, Shep Harris, and Betsy Anderson presented two scholarships to graduating seniors at Hopkins High School. The recipients for 2019 are Julieta Garcia-Cordova and Parker Stoddard. The counseling staff at Hopkins High School helps select the recipients for the Golden Valley Rotary Club Scholarship. Each scholarship is a one year, $1,000 scholarship. The students exemplify “Service Above Self” and live in Golden Valley or attended a school in Golden Valley. Sixty scholarships, valued at over $56,000, were awarded during the ceremony to well-deserving seniors.
Monies raised at our Winter Warm Up in February are being distributed in the community. One recipient is the New Hope YMCA. The $1,000 donation from Rotary will go toward offering scholarships for their summer camp programs. Rotary has supported this effort in previous years. President-Elect/Treasurer Bryan Palmer presented the contribution to Past-President Colleen Haubner, who is also executive director of the New Hope YMCA. Other community groups have been selected by the Board, and check presentations will be made in the coming weeks, prior to the end of this Rotary year on June 30.
Days for Girls volunteers and enterprises have reached more than ONE MILLION women and girls around the world who now have more days of opportunity, dignity, and health thanks to Days for Girls menstrual health solutions and education— making sure that every single day of her life counts. When we mobilize girls and women through health and education opportunities, their communities and our world grow stronger. Pads are a simple thing that helps girls go to school and women go to work. The project provides a washable/reusable product for use during menstrual cycles, enabling girls and women to attend school/work during menstruation when they otherwise could not.