Accomplishments in 2013-14

Posted by Jerry Venters 
on Jul 05, 2014
 

Look at What Plaza Rotary Accomplished in 2013-14Image
By Debra Anderson, President, 2013-14

The Plaza Rotary Club had another outstanding year of service and fundraising in 2013-14 to support our Rotary mission of Service Above Self.  Members completed numerous service projects and once again the club is among the leading clubs in the District in fundraising and in contributions to The Rotary Foundation.  Plaza Rotarians can take pride in these accomplishments:

  • We supported Shelter Box with donations, with our  Shelter Box ambassadors doing presentations to other groups, and Jeff Deatherage serving as a disaster relief team member.
  • We purchased bicycles and provided scholarships to Malawi Children’s Village with $1400 raised through our Silent Auction of donated services.   The auction also raised $800 for the Plaza Foundation.
  • We hosted our first-ever Reverse Raffle, a huge success.   Money raised from this event and KC Day newspaper sales went to Urban Rangers for their Resource Center ($3200), to Cristo Rey High School ($2400) for supplies for their graduating seniors headed to college, to the Plaza Rotary Foundation ($3140), and to Hope House ($500) for bed rails for bunk beds.
  • We conceptualized and completed a major community service project for Urban Rangers, transforming a room into a computer center with 12 work stations.   This project was completed over a 4-month period and included repairs, paint, carpet, furniture, computers, and recreational reading books.
  • We participated in five other community service projects, including two at Hope House, two workdays at Bloch Cancer Park, and meals for Bridge Home.
  • We set a club record of 1,026 pairs of shoes collected for Shoes for Orphan Souls, which had an estimated value of at least $5,100.
  • Plaza Rotarians donated $24,903 to the Annual Fund The Rotary Foundation and $6,370 to PolioPlus, including $4,300 in Centurion donations.   Through May, Plaza Rotarians had donated a total of $32,568 to all funds of The Rotary Foundation, the highest amount in the last five years.  We were designated a Peace Club at the District Foundation dinner for a $5,000 Foundation contribution.
  • We had 3 vocational visits (WWI Museum, Federal Reserve, and Federal Courthouse) and 4 social events (Chiefs game, Arts Fair, Shelter Box social, and reverse raffle).
  • We sent a student to RYLA and provided several RYLA counselors. 
  • We supported two Interact Clubs and one Rotaract Club.
  • We laid the groundwork for a new Brookside/Waldo club.
  • We had fun meetings and terrific weekly programs.   We had entertaining and informative weekly newsletters.
  • We presented two vocational service awards, one Avenues of Service Award, and several Club Champion Awards.
  • We received the Pillars of Hope Award from Urban Rangers, the Klinginsmith Cup Award from District, and have qualified for the Presidential Citation.
  • We had special change for charity donations, including Shelter Box ($1250 for Philippine typhoon disaster relief) and Cristo Rey Interact Club ($176 for winter coats).