Friday, November 23, 2012

Rotary Foundation Month

November is the traditional month to celebrate The Rotary Foundation, one of the largest privately held foundations in the world - and the fuel which drives our Rotary clubs. Without the Foundation, Rotary would not have the necessary resources to change the world for the better.  

On November 3rd in Salt Lake City and again on November 10th in St. George, Rotarians spent their time discussing 10 of our large club projects. Attendees learned about these Global and District Projects being supported by District Designated Funds, and were asked to partner with one of these clubs seeking additional financial support .

The District Foundation Committee asked clubs to do four things during Governor Summerhays' Rotary year:
  • One: Each club is asked to strive to have their best Rotary Foundation year in their history by raising more per capita funding than ever before.
  • Two: Hold a club fundraiser exclusively for The Rotary Foundation to solicit funds from the general fund.
  • Three: Allow the District Foundation Chair to come to their club and present information about The Rotary Foundation.
  • Four: Join an international project by partnering with a Rotary Club whose project is already supported by District Designated Funds but is still in need of additional funding to increase the impact of the project. By doing so your club money will be multiplied by matching funds from The Rotary Foundation.
Rotary didn't create the challenges faced by two thirds of the world population including hunger, water, literacy and shelter challenges; but Rotary will be involved in solving these challenges.

Here is the most recent list of international projects seeking partners among clubs in District 5420:

Rotary Global Grants 2012/2013:
Project Proposal Descriptions &Seeking Partnerships



Blanding Rotary - Utah Navajo Land - Westwater Dine Project - Project Funding Ongoing - Clayton Long:  801-232-5624; clong@sjsd.org

West of Blanding on 120 acres of land, Navajo families are living in trailers and shacks without running water, electricity or sewers.  Projects goals are to provide water to every home, to clean up the 120 acres; to finalize a Land Use Plan that includes home site leases to provide 29 families with decent homes to live in.  Currently 14 homes are completed.  Short & Long-term Needs:  Dumpsters and volunteers for clean-up.  Funds for 15 more homes.  Build a service, utility road across Westwater Canyon.  Community Center needs.

Hispano Latinos Rotary - Mexico  - Project Funding Ongoing - Francisco Soto;  jasoambar@gmail.com
Casa Hogar “La Paz” is home for the elderly.  Funds for this project will be utilized to provide shelter and basic necessities for elderly individuals that have been abandoned.  Funds will also be utilized to purchase much needed equipment to properly operate and upgrade this facility.

Vocational Technical Training Project Seeking Partners

Salt Lake Rotary – Morocco – Neurologic Trauma Hospital Project – Immediate Project Total: $12,500.  Salt Lake, Park City Sunrise, American Fork, and Pleasant Grove have contributed $7,500.  $5,000 more is needed, $2,500 ASAP. John Pace 801-898-7223; john@pacehartdesign.com.

Grant Status:  Vocational Training Team Global Grant Proposal in Draft Stage for the 2013-14 year.
Funds are utilized to support the first neuro-rehabilitation center in Morocco so that individuals with neurological injuries can receive much needed treatment not currently available.  This will be our district’s first Vocational Training Team Global Grant.  Hospital staff from Morocco will come and be trained at facilities in Utah, and a medical team from Utah will go to Morocco to help them in their own facility. This Global Grant will provide other needed equipment as the facility grows.

Global Grant Projects Seeking Partners

Heber Rotary - Guatemala - Transitions (Wheelchairs) - Global Grant Total:  $45,000.00.  Contact:  Andy Dahmen - 453-671-5034; andy@andydahmen.com

Grant Status:  Proposal in Draft Stage - Not Yet Submitted to TRF
Heber Rotary has teamed up with an organization in Guatemala called Transitions, whose goal is to mobilize disabled Guatemalans through health, rehabilitation, education, spiritual development, leadership skills and social integration.  This grant will be used to help build wheelchairs in the wheelchair shop owned by Transitions and run by disabled Guatemalans.  The grant will also be used to purchase expensive prosthetic parts and to purchase much needed tools as simple as wrenches from Sears to a lap top to manage activities. 

Murray Rotary - Ecuador - Bathrooms/Safe Water Education - Global Grant Project Total: $49,750.00.  Murray, Brigham, Richfield, and Midvale have committed $7,000.  So commitment for $3,000 more club money is needed.  Money can come from this year’s or next year’s budget.  Contact:  Ron Jensen - 801-266-9577; ronrotary@gmail.com.

Grant Status:  Proposal in Draft Stage - Not Yet Submitted to TRF
This project is a continuation of GG-25087, Bathrooms and Safe Water/Education for Ecuador.  Ecuador Rotarians recently communicated that costs per school have escalated to $5,000.00 per school.  We propose bathrooms for 9 schools so are seeking $45,000.00 in funding for the bathrooms.  Because education of community health workers, students and mothers is so important, $4,570 is budgeted for duplicating materials (flip charts, DVD’s, posters, etc.) created previously by GG-25086 for training sessions for communities. 

Park City Rotary - Guatemala - Water Project - Global Grant Total:  $60,000.00.  Contact:  Frank Furr - 435-647-9436; wffurr@gmail.com.

Grant Status:  Proposal Approved by TRF.  Application Pending Approval by TRF.
These funds will be used to support a water project, water filters and latrines for 275 families in Sacala Las Romas, Guatemala.

Salt Lake Rotary - Thailand - Dengue Fever Prevention  -  Global Grant Project Total:  $60,000.00 Contact:  Doug Mortensen - 801-349-8597; dandvmort@msn.com.

Grant Status:  Proposal Approved by TRF.  Application Pending Approval by TRF.
The requested grant will help fund a pilot project in Thailand, a country in which Dengue Fever is prevalent.  Dengue fever is caused by a virus transmitted by a particular species of mosquito.  Treatment consists solely in relief of symptoms (rest, fluid intake, etc.).  There is no known cure, medicine or antibiotic to treat the disease.   Prevention and control of the spread of the disease depend on education and vector control.  Individuals, families and communities must proactively reduce mosquito habitat.  Dengue Fever is a debilitating, potentially fatal disease which is now present in 100 countries, putting at risk about 40% of the world’s population.   There are approximately 100 million cases of Dengue Fever per year and some 22,000 deaths, mostly of children under the age of 10.

Salt Lake Rotary - India - Eye Surgeries - Global Grant Project Total:  Minimum $30,000.00.  The more clubs that donate money, the more eye surgeries can be done.  Contact:  Duane Millard - 801-706-5082; duane@allied-sign.com

Grant Status:  Proposal in Draft Stage - Not Yet Submitted to TRF
In India $10 PER PATIENT funds eye surgery to restore vision! Charity Vision Inc. has performed 340,000 procedures worldwide. There are 20 million people unnecessarily blind worldwide, 4 million in India alone.  Cataract surgery restores their productive lives.   

Sugarhouse Rotary - Columbia - Bathrooms and Water Project - Global Grant Total: Minimum $30,000.00.  Sugar House, South Salt Lake and Orem have committed $4,000.  So commitments for $6,000 more club money are needed, preferably from this Rotary year’s budget.   Contact:  Therese Milad – 801-599-9410; Miladhome@gmail.com

Grant Status:  Proposal in Draft Stage - Not Yet Submitted to TRF                                                                                                                                                                    
This grant will be a continuation of Grant 25088 to fund the building of additional bathrooms and provide adequate water supplies.  Many young females will not attend school because there are no bathrooms.  Children are more frequently ill with diarrhea because they do not have clean water to wash their hands and do not understand the relationship of illness to this factor.  By working with the community to provide the clean water and bathrooms we will help them to understand the relationship of hygiene to illness.  Also, by providing bathrooms rather than an open pit more young women will attend schools.  Along with new bathroom facilities and instruction in the school setting as well as community, we expect to realize a drastic decrease in the incidence of diseases.  The combination of polluted drinking water, along with inadequate sanitation conditions, lack of knowledge of diseases and cultural risk factors, such as food preparation, have a direct impact on pregnancies and healthy babies, missed days of school or work, and the overall well being of the community.   
 
St. George Rotary - Guatemala - Stove Project  - Global Grant Project Total:  Minimum $30,000.00 Contact:  Lowry Snow, vlsnow@gmail.com.

Grant Status:  Proposal in Draft Stage - Not Yet Submitted to TRF
The St. George Club has been actively involved with stove projects in Guatemala for more than six years.  In cooperation with Behrhorst Partners for Development, the specific objectives of this project will be to construct high efficient wood burning stoves (constructed with cinder blocks, metal plancha, stove pipe, water sealant for roof, sand, gravel, cement, sand and water),  to reduce wood consumption for cooking, improve the health of Mayan families by reducing the amount of smoke on the interior of the homes by venting the stove smoke and carbon oxide to the outside and to reduce the number of accidents among children that fall into an open fire and suffer burns. 

Mayan women cook their family meals over an open fire inside their huts.  Constant inhalation of smoke creates respiratory diseases in both the women and their children.  A World Vision study done in 2008 in the Guatemalan Highlands shows that 75% of these families cook with wood causing a negative impact on the surrounding forests.  The study also shows that 37% of acute respiratory infections occur because of inhaling cooking fire smoke.  Of 350 women tested, 22% had throat problems and 25% of those had pneumonia and chest pressure problems due to cooking smoke inhalation.  The same study showed a high incidence of tuberculosis, asthma and lung cancer.  Eliminating the smoke from the interior of the family homes will significantly reduce these health issues.  By removing the hot surfaces and open flames exposure, the rate of burn accidents among children will be reduced.


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