Official Club Visits Completed

It was with mixed emotions that I drove home last Wednesday having just completed my 69th and final official Club visit. I hit the road on July 1st driving to Taos to participate in the installation of their club officers and the presentation of four new Paul Harris Fellowships. Last Wednesday I visited the Rotary Club of Eunice, a club of 22 members in a community of 3,000. It is an energetic club dedicated to the work of Rotary in their community.

I returned home tired and exhausted after seven months of hard traveling, but realizing that I had just completed a once-in-a-lifetime journey.

Along the way I chunked pumpkins in Estancia, rode in the West El Paso 4th of July parade, enjoyed a wonderful evening of fellowship with the Tucumcari Rotarians at their annual Shrimp Boil and Air Show, and during my travels I learned about the variety of ways Rotary happens in New Mexico and West Texas.

Now that my travel schedule isn't as hectic as it was last Fall, I'll be sharing more of the Rotary stories I learned along the way.

But I also want to invite you to experience the excitement of Rotary in District 5520 first-hand by attending the District Conference, May 6-9, 2010, at Buffalo Thunder in Santa Fe.

Rotary Club of Santa Fe Donates to Haitian Disaster

Members of the Rotary Club of Santa Fe responded to the Haitian Earthquake Disaster last Thursday by raising $8000 to purchase 8 ShelterBoxes.

Shelter Box is the largest Rotary Club project in the world having responded to over 100 disasters in more than 60 countries since its inception in 2000.

Each "ShelterBox" supplies an extended family of 10 people lifesaving supplies. The contents of the boxes are tailored to the nature of the disaster, but a typical ShelterBox contains a 10-person tent, thermal blankets, a multifuel stove, pans, dishes, a basic tool kit and water purification supplies. Highly trained ShelterBox Response Teams oversee the distribution of the boxes, while working closely with local organizations, international aid agencies and Rotary clubs worldwide.

The ShelterBox Response Team has been on the ground in Haiti since Thursday and the first shipment of ShelterBoxes arrived in Port au Prince Saturday afternoon. A second response team and shipment of ShelterBoxes are scheduled to arrive next week.

Many other clubs in District 5520 have also responded to the Haitian Earthquake Relief effort; please let me know what your club is doing.

To learn more about ShelterBox go to www.shelterboxusa.org.

Rotary Community Corps Runs Food Pantry

During a recent visit to the El Paso area, I had the opportunity to see Rotary working at the Fabens Food Pantry. The Food Pantry is run by the newly- formed Rotary Community Corps of Fabens. The Community Corp (pictured above) is responsible for ordering and receiving the food shipments. On distribution day, they process the eligibility papers and distribute 250 boxes of food. In addition to providing food for those in need the program offers on the job training for members of the Community Corp. Because the only formalized governmental agency in the area is the Fabens Independent School District, Rotary works with Superintendent Poncho Garcia and Federal Programs Director Neal Baker. This program originated with the East El Paso Rotary Club with the West El Paso Rotary partnering on District Simplified Grants to provide funding for the Food Pantry. Rotarian Bill Sparks has been the driving force for this very successful project.

Open Letter from District 5520's Ambassadorial Scholar

Last summer the District 5520 Ambassadorial Scholarship Selection Committee chose Andres Martinez sponsored by the Rotary Club of West El Paso as our 2009-2010 scholarship recipient.

Recently Andres sent a letter and some photographs that I would like to share with the District.

Bonjour from Neuchâtel, Switzerland!

It's been two months since I arrived, and I can already tell that this is going to be the most memorable year of my life. When I arrived the Rotarians graciously picked me up at the train station and took me to my dorm. After a day of sleeping, and overcoming jetlag, I started a week and a half long orientation program at the university; I've been busy ever since.

Neuchâtel is a charming city of about 30,000 people on the shores of Lake Neuchâtel. On a clear day, I can see the snow capped Alps in the distance. Every day I take the bus to the train station to catch an underground tram that drops me off just under campus. Campus sits on the beach of the lake. In September, when it was still about 75 degrees, my friends and I would sit on the beach after class. I'm taking classes in French, English, and Spanish, and am really enjoying them. Every Tuesday, the Rotary Club of Neuchâtel invites me to the Hôtel du Peyrou, the beautiful building where they meet, to have a three course lunch complete with wine and coffee. I really couldn't ask for more. My hosts are gracious and the food is amazing

I've had the opportunity to travel all over Switzerland. I've been to Geneva, Lausanne, Montreux, Schaffhausen, Lucerne, and Zürich. I hope that some of you can come visit! The Rotarians here would be more than glad to have y'all!

Thanks again,

Andres

Each year District 5520 participates in the Ambassadorial Scholarship Program, by awarding a $25,000 scholarship to a student from our District. Since its founding in 1947 Rotary’s Ambassadorial Scholarship programs has become the world’s largest privately funded international scholarship program. Nearly 800 scholarships were awarded for study in 2005-06 with grants totaling $500 million dollars from students from about 70 countries to studied in other countries around the world.

The purpose of the Ambassadorial Scholarships program is to further international understanding and friendly relations among people of different countries and geographical areas. While abroad, scholars serve as goodwill ambassadors to the host country and give presentations about their homelands to Rotary clubs and other groups. Upon returning home, scholars share with Rotarians and others the experiences that led to a greater understanding of their host country.

To learn more about Rotary District 5520’s Ambassadorial program visit http://rotary5520.org/scholarships/index.html Dates for 2010 will be posted very soon.

Zone Institute Reception for DGN

During the recent Zone Institute in Oklahoma City, Lorraine and I hosted a reception to welcome Bobby and Michele Wallace as District 5520’s District Governor Nominee. We were joined that evening by PDGs Bonnie Fairall, Rick Akins and Roz, DGE Tim Parker.

The Zone Institute and District Governor Nominee Training are the first of several required trainings to prepare Bobby to serve as District 5520’s Governor in 2011-2012. During the Institute, Tim attended his District Governor-elect’s Training. Both Tim and Bobby will attend the International Assembly in San Diego the January prior to taking office in July.

The successes that our District has accomplished are built on the work and accomplishments of all our Past District Governors and the 3000 dedicated Rotarians in District 5520. I look forward to working with Tim and Bobby during their years of leadership as our District Governors.