Westfield-Mayville News

Posted by Sue Hammond

FOUNDATION HAS VIRTUAL SPEAKER

Members of the Rotary Club of Westfield-Mayville gathered for a Zoom session on February 23 to learn more about the important work of The Rotary Foundation (TRF) and how to support its many local and international causes. Special guests in attendance were Sandi Chard, who chairs the Rotary District 7090 Foundation Annual Fund and End Polio Now committees, and Michele Starwalt-Woods, Rotary District 7090 Area 16 Assistant Governor.
 
Club President Janese Berkhouse welcomed all to the meeting. Dan Smith, Rotary District 7090 Vocational Training Team Chair and Club Youth Services Chair, introduced Chard as the program presenter. She is a member and past president of the Rotary Club of St. Catharines Lakeshore, a Multiple Paul Harris Fellow, and a Bequest Society Member. 
 
During her informative presentation, Chard outlined TRF history, its Charity Navigator high ranking for its good stewardship of funds, and types of TRF programs and grants. She applauded the Rotary Club of Westfield-Mayville for seeking and successfully being awarded District Grants for some of its local and international projects during the last seven years.
 
Chard stated, “Cluster funds is my exciting thing. Sixteen Rotary Clubs in the St. Catharines area joined together and each contributed to a pool of funds to purchase a mask cleaning machine for one of our hospitals.” She also said, “The thing I like most is all of the humanitarian projects that happen from TRF District Designated Funds. Some of these are backpack projects, bike lanes, mentor programs, school drop-in centers, laptops to seniors, breadfruit trees, and various water and sanitation (WASH) projects.”
 
Chard also reviewed RI’s areas of focus, the importance of donating to TRF, various means of TRF giving, and types of donor recognition. She highlighted Rotary’s efforts with polio eradication. Chard noted that TRF’s global End Polio Now campaign and polio immunization programs have helped to drastically reduce the number of live polio cases to 141. She said, “Rotary’s work of getting the polio vaccine to places where it is still needed came to a halt during the COVID-19 pandemic. The plan is to start in Sept., 2021 with again giving polio vaccines to children.”
 
The Rotary Club of Westfield-Mayville extends its gratitude to Sandi Chard for her informative program and for championing support of The Rotary Foundation and its many valuable programs and causes throughout local communities and the world.