Weekly Elixir - Week of May 7, 2007

BOND. ROTARIANS BOND – FOR THE FOUNDATION.

In recognition of Rotary Foundation month, the Rotary Club of East Nassau, Bahamas, invited Rotarians and guests to attend the world premiere of the new James Bond film, Casino Royale, in November.

The club billed the event as A Licence to help the Rotary Foundation – a take-off on the superspy’s film.

Tickets to the film, which was partially shot in the Bahamas, were sold at a ‘charity’ price, with all proceeds going to the Rotary Foundation’s Annual Programs Fund. The fundraiser, together with the club’s ongoing support of the Foundation, will enable the club to attain $250 USD in per capital giving for 2006-07 and qualify as an Every Rotarian Every Year club. (A club can receive this recognition if 100 per cent of its members contribute to the Foundation’s Annual Programs Fund, and the club has a minimum $100 per capita giving level.)

“We have 17 of [the] 63 Paul Harris Fellows in the District [7020] and 92 of the 102 club members are Rotary Foundation Sustaining members,” says Lindsay Cancino, the club’s Paul Harris Society co-ordinator. “It is incredibly satisfying to know the pleasure I got out of the release of the new James Bond film also translated into [support for] the Rotary Foundation.”

Photo caption: From left, RI Director Barry Rassin, Rotary Club of East Nassau and his wife, Esther; Trevor Sunderland and his wife, Barbara, both of whom appeared in Thunderball, the first James Bond film shot in the Bahamas in 1965; East Bahamas Club Past President, and Foundation Chair, Lindsey Cancino; Andre Feldman of the Rotary Club of Grand Bahama Sunrise (District 6990); event host and East Nassau Club member, Leroy Archer and his associate.


...Editor's Note:

How can we add something exciting to our Second Annual Rotary Foundation Dinner in March of 2008? Get your thinking caps on now and plan ahead!

Rotary Community Service Jumps Into Action

...May 9, 2007

The Rotary Club of Anguilla, in conjunction with American Airlines and the Westchester Medical Center located in Valhalla, New York, has been able to assist a local woman in saving her eyesight.

Special ophthalmology treatment has been secured for the Anguillian woman, who wishes to remain anonymous. However, the generosity of both American Airlines and the Westchester Medical Center must not remain hidden.

The Anguillian patient was very much in danger of losing her eyesight without a special procedure to correct her vision – a procedure performed at the Westchester Medical Center. Dr. Gerrald Zaidman, Chief of Ophthalmology at Westchester, graciously arranged with the hospital to accept a fee of only $5000 USD to complete the surgical procedure -- roughly one-third of its usual cost.

American Airlines/American Eagle donated the round trip transportation from Anguilla to New York. The Rotary Club of Anguilla and Dr. Louis Bardfield (Anguilla Vision Center) contributed $5,000 USD towards the operation and recovery.

Through an excellent community effort, here is another example of the wonderful works of Rotary – helping our community.

Weekly Elixir - Week of April 30, 2007

Trek of a lifetime

What are other clubs and other Rotarians doing in our world?

Ambassadorial Scholars walk 1,250 miles to fight AIDS in Africa -- By Vukoni Lupa-Lasaga, Rotary International

A group of six students at a South African university, four of them Rotary Foundation Ambassadorial Scholars, made strides against HIV/AIDS in December.

After several months of training, the team from the University of the Witwatersrand hiked for 20 days to raise almost US$10,000 for the fight against AIDS. The trek also increased public awareness of the devastating effects of the disease.

Passing through stunningly beautiful landscapes and, in places, hair-raising cliffs and dangerous, jellyfish-infested beaches, the students walked 1,250 miles in a relay from Johannesburg to Cape Town.

“It was an experience of a lifetime and something we shall all remember for the rest of our lives,” says Kelly Lewis, an Ambassadorial Scholar from Wheeler, New York, USA.

Despite facing unexpected challenges, the students found inspiration in the many good Samaritans, including Rotarians, who welcomed them at every stop, provided free medical treatment for their physical injuries, and donated money to their cause.
The team also included Keegan Kautzky and Ikumi Maekawa, Ambassadorial Scholars from Perry, Iowa, USA, and Ena-shi, Japan, as well as students Ruan Koorts, from Pretoria, South Africa, and Jacob Maboja, from Nairobi, Kenya.

Just last month, the hike inspired further action. Brittany Jungck, a University of Northern Iowa employee who knows Kautzky from high school, organized an event on 1 February to raise money and awareness about Africa’s HIV/AIDS crisis.
“It’s all about collaborating with people who are concerned,” notes Jungck. “If we can get 10, 20, or 100 more people aware of the issue, surely something would be done about it.”

Upon learning of her effort, a student group sold roses on Valentine’s Day in support of AIDS orphans, and a socially conscious local poet planned a poetry reading with a global HIV/AIDS theme.

All funds raised from the hike and the University of Northern Iowa events will support the projects of Rotarians for Fighting AIDS, a Rotarian Action Group that’s implementing community-led responses for AIDS orphans and vulnerable children in seven African countries.

Read more in the RI Newsroom.