I am not sure why, but November has always been one of my favorite months. It is probably the combination of the fall season that makes it my favorite: the season of giving thanks; a time that our two countries honour our veterans (11 November being Veterans Day in the USA and Remembrance Day in Canada…and my father was a fighter pilot); the childhood recollections of Halloween and the anticipation of Christmas; and for the last 28 years of my life, it has been Rotary Foundation month.
I am very passionate about OUR Foundation. What other charity can you donate to – and then three years later have a say in how those funds will be used? We have received twelve consecutive four star ratings from Charity Navigator, an independent evaluator of charities in the USA. There is a very cool site at Rotary that shows some very interesting statistics on the Foundation.
Some very exciting news is that our very own PRIVP Dean Rohrs has been elected by the RI Board to replace RIPN Jennifer Jones as a Trustee for The Rotary Foundation. Dean will complete Jennifer’s term to June 30, 2023.
I have really enjoyed sharing with the Boards of the Clubs your Clubs’ and member contributions to the Annual Fund-SHARE - and what you have received back in District and/or Global Grant Awards for the fabulous work you are doing in your local and international communities.
Please join us for our Foundation Gala on 6 November with special guest RIPN Jennifer Jones to celebrate YOUR Foundation success from the 2019-20 Rotary year. We also have a great opportunity to hear from PRIVP and Polio Plus Chair Michael McGovern where we are with polio eradication and our polio volunteers’ response to COVID-19 on 19 November. Then on 25 November PRIP Ian Riseley will provide us some insight into the new/seventh Area of Focus. Please register for these events on the District 5050 website.
Thank you for all you do to fulfill the mission of OUR Foundation – The Rotary Foundation:
If you are a member that has never donated to the Rotary Foundation this one is for you!
Make a minimum donation of $50, CDN or USD, to the Annual Fund or PolioPlus
during the Month of November and your name will be entered into a draw for a Paul Harris Fellow.
Paul Harris Fellow Award #2
Make a minimum donation of $100, CDN or USD, to the Annual Fund or PolioPlus in the month of November in-lieu of what you would normally spend attending the Foundation Dinner and your name will be entered into a draw for a Paul Harris Fellow.
Paul Harris Fellow Award #3
Make a minimum donation of $250, CDN or USD, to the Annual Fund or PolioPlus in the month of November that is over and above your normal donation to the Foundation and your name will be entered into a draw for a Paul Harris Fellow plus, you will receive matching Paul Harris Recognition Points.
How do you get in on this Bonanza?
To make your NOVEMBER donation to the Rotary Foundation, sign in at Rotary International
below your name, found in the top right-hand corner, you will find a donate button
Then send me an email showing your name, Rotary ID number and the amount donated.
Make sure you tell me if this is your first donation to the Rotary Foundation.
I am honoured to announce that David Lukov from the Rotary Club of Mount Vernon has been selected as the District Governor Nominee Designate and will serve as District Governor in 2023-24.
David Lukov is currently a licensed funeral director at Kern Funeral Home in Mount Vernon, and has been serving in the funeral and cemetery professional for many years. He is also a licensed insurance agent and an officiant in the state of Washington.
David is a graduate of Shorecrest High School (Shoreline, WA), Whitworth University (Spokane, WA) and Princeton Theological Seminary (Princeton, NJ). His professional background includes years as a pastor, a Hospice Bereavement Coordinator and chaplain, and a college instructor. David was born in Seattle and is married to Mary (a true blue Tarheel). They have two grown children: Brett and Megan.
David first joined Rotary in 1998 and has been a member of several Rotary clubs as he moved for work over the years. He is currently a member of the Rotary Club of Mount Vernon and served as Club President in 2017-2018.
He serves as a member of the District Visioning Team, a facilitator with the Rotary Learning Institute (RLI), and a training leader with the Pacific Northwest President Elect Training Seminars (PETS). David is also the incoming Chair of the Mount Vernon Chamber of Commerce.
He enjoys bowling, hiking and walking, trivia, jiu-jitsu, Pilates, bourbon sipping, laughing to good comedy and M*A*S*H.
With COVID-19 stressing our local food bank, the Rotarians, Rotaractors, and Interactors of Chilliwack united to stage a city-wide food drive on 3 and 4 October. Members from all four Chilliwack Rotary Clubs, the Rotaract Club and Interact Club along with exchange students were involved in this act of solidarity.
The largest Club, the Rotary Club of Chilliwack, adopted its own supermarket, while smaller Clubs joined forces to man two other locations. This resulted in a delightful mix of ages and backgrounds!
At each location, Rotary volunteers offered empty bags to shoppers to fill for the food bank. Full bags were received, with thanks, at the exits. Food bank volunteers circulated between locations to pick up donations.
A local radio station interviewed Rotarian Shannon Baird, and enthusiastically promoted this event. One location was enriched by live music and another by a charity BBQ, adding to the fellowship. At each location, Rotarians were thanked, and humbled by the kindness of strangers.
As a first effort, we were pleased by our results: almost four tons of food and CDN $2,600 in cash donations.
While so many community service projects are limited by COVID these days, this one proved to be COVID-friendly: we were outdoors, masked, and distanced. It also offered a boost to fellowship, often bringing out members we’ve missed on Zoom.
EverettWalt Greenwood
In an online meeting, the Rotary Club of Everett on 20 October honored three local high school students as Rotary Students of the Month. Each month during the school year the Club recognizes outstanding high school students in the city of Everett for their accomplishments and their promise.
Cascade High School’s October Student of the Month is Arshpreet Kaur. Arshpreet is a natural leader, very optimistic and striving to improve. She stays busy with AP (advanced placement) classes and is captain of the Girls’ Wrestling Team, a Link Crew Leader, NHS officer and a member of the Everett Youth Advisory Board.
Sequoia High School’s Student of the Month for October is Leyla Ozturk. Leyla is a highly motivated student who pushes herself in all her classes, but especially AP. She's enrolled in the dental program at Sno-Isle TECH and will follow her dream of being a dental assistant after she graduates in June. In her spare time, she enjoys being outside with her dog.
Student of the Month from Everett High School is Amina Hussein. Amina is pro-active, passionate, and dedicated. She was born in a Kenyan refugee camp and survived Malaria before moving to the US. Whether helping her AVID peers during tutorials, advocating for equity in education in Olympia, or fighting for social justice at Everett High, Amina cares deeply for her peers and the community.
Congratulations to these future leaders of our communities!
Abbotsford-Matsqui
While the current pandemic has precluded large projects and fundraising events, the Rotary Club of Abbotsford-Matsqui has remained committed to doing service in its community.
On 15 October, a small group of Club members completed a shelter at the Ravine Park Hatchery for the Abbotsford Ravine Park Salmon Enhancement Society. The shelter was erected to protect the hatchery’s emergency generator. The work was completed over three days.
The Abbotsford Ravine Park Salmon Enhancement Society is a volunteer organization that annual returns about 80,000 Coho fry to local streams. They also work with schools in the area to involve students in the Salmonid Enhancement Program.
The Rotary Club of Abbotsford-Matsqui was happy to assist this worthwhile organization and will be participating in a cleanup of the entire facility later in the month.
The Club wishes to thank local businesses Eco Planet Cleaning Ltd. and Blackwood Building Centre Ltd. for their generous support of this project.
On June 26, 2020 the Rotary Foundation Trustees and Rotary International board of Directors added a new area of focus: supporting the environment. Environmental projects will be eligible for global grants in 2021; in the meantime and at any time all Area of Focus projects should be considered in light of their impact on the environment. A Rotary Action Group for Environmental Sustainability - ESRAG - was established about three years ago and is a great place to learn more about environmental concerns and to make contact with like minded people. Within District 5050 four Rotarians, members of ESRAG, have formed the nucleus of a group to promote and encourage development of environmental activities by individuals and clubs and to promote partnerships which will help us achieve these ends.
Welcome to the November 2020 edition of the Peace Arch Journal. My apologies that's it's a couple of days late. I mentioned last month that I had more time on my hands because I wasn't working as much. Well, that changed in mid-October. Not sure what the future holds as far as work volume and I recognize that I'm not the only one in this position. Many Rotarians have had to pivot and look for different ways to support their families and communities.
Governor Carol will be wrapping up her Club visits this month culminating in the traditional Governor's "last visit" to her home Club--Chilliwack.
This is Rotary Foundation Month! The District Foundation Committee has planned some "get togethers" this month. See the article above to find out when. RI President Nominee Jennifer Jones will be joining our Foundation Awards! Plan to attend 6 November.
The Committee has also put together an awards program for donating to TRF. Since we can't attend the Foundation Dinner in person, this gives us a way to contribute. Further, this allows more Rotarians to participate who may not have attended the Dinner in the past. See the article above by District Foundation Chair Malcolm Kennedy about this exciting opportunity!
Thank you to the members that have been submitting articles, stories, letters and photographs. As you know I'm usually not able to visit your meetings. Now that I'm not working and have lots of time, I still can't visit--at least in person. Hopefully, both of those will be changing in the near future. The Peace Arch Journal needs your help. If you are interested in writing occasional stories about your Club and neighboring Clubs, your communities and Club activities and events, please let me know.
Sometimes you will never know the value of a moment,
until it becomes a memory.
The
Peace Arch Journal
Carol Tichelman
District Governor
This monthly publication is a service to District Club Officers and members. It is intended as a source of news and opinion from throughout the district.
The mission of the Peace Arch Journal is to promote communication, understanding, fellowship and fun beyond club meetings, in a manner complementary to shared efforts at placing Service Above Self.
Please send articles and news with or without pictures attached to emails. Photographs are always a plus! Note that the editor appreciates conservation of space in order to meet the sender’s needs and the editor’s time.
The deadline is the 23rd of the month.
Address any and all information to the Peace Arch Journal Editor.
The idea that Rotary should own its headquarters dates back at least to the 1920 convention, when RI President Albert Adams said that he hoped to someday see the headquarters in a beautiful building of Rotary’s own.
