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North Delta Rotarian and now retired school teacher, Bonnie Sutherland, on starting the first of many visits to Africa with her late husband, Don, 30 years ago, saw the great need for teachers and students in remote areas of Kenya. They recognized that remote, rural schools often had limited access to books, paper and writing materials, and suffered from intermittent power and no internet access. After earlier efforts to provide not only education materials, but failed attempts to supply equipment for digital learning, a Rotary team developed the African Ruggedized Education System (ARES), a "classroom in a box".
Rotary District 5040 Executive Administrator Nancy Eidsvik receives the District banner for Rotarian of the Year held from 2021-22 recipient Peter Roaf (right), saddened along with Past President Denis Denischuk, as they hand it back in preparation for presentation to this year's recipient.
Insurance Corporation of BC (ICBC) Road Safety Coordinator, Karon Trendaman, talked about pedestrian safety, road safety and insurance coverage in a presentation to the Rotary Club of Ladner on March 22, 2023.
Member of the BC Legislative Assembly for Delta South Ian Paton, first elected in 2017 and again in 2020, serves as Shadow Minister for Agriculture and Food. He has also served as a Member of the Select Standing Committees on Health and Agriculture, Fish and Food. He spoke to Ladner Rotary on March 14, 2023. -- photo courtesy Alaska Highway News
It is a special year in Rotary worldwide, on International Women's Day, March 8th with the first female President of Rotary International in its 117 year history: Jennifer Jones. She is also a Canadian -- an extra source of pride for all of us. Not only worldwide, but here in our District 5040 of 49 clubs, we have a number of women as our leaders.
Ladner-based Alongside You provides a team of counsellors which works with individuals, children, adolescents, couples, and families and are able to help navigate many of the challenges that people face in every day life. Sometimes people come to counselling simply because “something doesn’t feel right,” in their life. Some of the many common issues people bring to counselling sessions include depression, anxiety, addictions, chronic pain, grief and loss, sexual dysfunction, obsessive compulsive disorder and post traumatic stress disorder.
From Ladner Trunk Road, a section of Arthur Drive in Ladner is now tidied up for Spring, thanks to a team of 10 club members who picked up bags of winter trash.
To support the growth and value of the Delta Gymnastics Seniors’ Program for the entire community and the service above self of the 113 members in the Ladner Rotary sponsored Interact Club at Delta Secondary School the Rotary Club of Ladner is holding its Spring Shred-A-Thon on Saturday, April 1, 2023, 10:00 am to 2:00 pm, at 5300 Ladner Trunk Road, behind Eastlink (Delta Cable).
Any individual, company or organization can bring their old tax returns, credit card bills, business records, bank statements, and personal information documents so a shredding company can safely and securely shred the paper on the spot. A donation of $15 per banker’s box of paper will go entirely to support the programs for seniors’ wellness and youth achievement in community service.
When people have access to clean water and sanitation, waterborne diseases decrease, children stay healthier and attend school more regularly, and mothers can spend less time carrying water and more time helping their families.
Rotary’s people of action mobilize resources, form partnerships, and invest in infrastructure and training that yield long-term change.
March is Water Sanitation and Hygiene month throughout Rotary world.
Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) is becoming a way of life for clubs throughout Rotary. It's our sustainable future and, for some, our present as we plan and act to create a safe place for so many different people to thrive and belong as they engage in service above self, for our community and our world. Rotary District 5040 DEI Committee Chair Ardath Paxton Mann presented background and a Code of Conduct for DEI in Rotary. She was joined by fellow Committee member, Ladner Rotarian Peter Roaf, for part of the presentation.
Delta Gymnastics Society considers itself one of Canada’s top gymnastics clubs because of the way it treats each of its gymnasts, at every level. With the slogan, "Where Kids Are First," Delta Gymnastics doesn't just build athletes, it builds people.
Over the years the Delta Hospital Auxiliary Society has generated many millions of dollars to support purchase of expensive equipment for the Delta Hospital. The Auxiliary has provided that valuable support through four businesses: Thriftshop in Ladner; Courtyard Café; Dogwood Gift Shop; Lifeline.
A devastating 7.8 magnitude earthquake ravaged southern Turkey and northern Syria on February 6, 2023. Over 2300 people have lost their lives, and this number is expected to increase exponentially. A second major earthquake and over 100 aftershocks have also been reported. Turkey's President, Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Monday's disaster was the worst the country had seen since 1939, when the Erzincan earthquake in eastern Turkey killed nearly 33,000 people.
Chief Kim Baird is Chancellor for Kwantlen Polytechnic University. She was the elected Chief of the Tsawwassen First Nation for six terms, from 1999-2012 and was the first woman in BC history, who was not an MLA, to address the BC Legislature on October 15, 2007 when the BC Treaty Legislation process was initiated. She is seen here with Melinda and Laura Cassidy at the Simon Fraser University convocation when Kim received her honourary PhD.
When a person was poised to jump off the Alex Fraser Bridge on January 23rd, one of the first Delta Police Department members on the scene, trying to talk him out of his suicide intent, had a body cam which streamed to a fellow officer, who specializes in negotiating in volatile situations and was en route in a vehicle and who advised his colleague what to say and do until he arrived on the scene. That was one example of the value of a body cam. Delta Police Department is the first police force in BC to use body cams. Delta Police Chief Constable Neil Dubord and seven police officers, including a sniffer dog, were on hand the next day to present some of the ways the Delta Police Department serves the community.
Delta resident John Horton was the first artist appointed to the Canadian Forces Artist's Programme (CFAP) in 2002 and was sent to join our Navy in the Arabian Gulf (Persian Gulf) aboard HMCS Algonquin. In earlier years John had served in the Royal Navy in the Atlantic, Arctic and Pacific Oceans. This experience contributed to his knowledge in recording scenes of our Navy in action today.
In Uganda, 1 in 4 people lack access to clean, safe water. Women and children will walk on average 3km, and spend 6 hours a day fetching dirty water. Then entire families will often catch Typhoid Fever from the dirty water, costing them months of wages for medicine along with lost time at school or working. Tsawwassen Rotarian Yvonne Anderson, spoke about a clean water program in Uganda which multiple Rotary clubs as well as The Rotary Foundation, through a global grant, could sponsor to lift up the lives of girls and women and all family members in a community, not only in terms of health, but economic productivity and well being.
With the theme of "Serving with Imagination and Hope'', the Rotary entry, in the 135th annual Tournament of Roses Parade in Pasadena, California on January 2, 2023. won the 2023 Princess Award for most outstanding floral presentation among entries 35 feet and under in length.
Despite the heavy snowfall on December 20, 2022, President "Papá Noel" Guillermo Bustos welcomed 30 of the planned 40 Ladner Rotarians and partners or friends, managed to gather for a cheerful Christmas lunch at the Coast Tsawwassen Inn, which treated all to a delicious meal, with some fun seasonal music and friendship. -- photos by Penny Offer
Live Well Exercise Clinic South Delta in Tsawwassen area uses exercise, lifestyle and nutrition counselling and healthy habit formation to give clients the information and support they need to become more active and make lasting changes in health and lifestyle. The trained exercise physiologists work with clients no matter the age, stage or shape -- not just the young, fit and glamorous -- in a culture of comfort, acceptance, care and kindness.
The Weekend Family & Peer Support Group in South Delta, for special needs adults, their families and caregivers, were hosted for the 18th annual Christmas Dinner on December 10, 2022 at the Ladner Community Centre by the Rotary Club of Ladner. 21 Ladner Rotarians and friends prepared days in advance and on the day of the event to serve the traditional Christmas dinner to a group of 50 guests, with entertainment and gift giving sponsored by the Group.
Food for school students and families needing a hand up, planting of trees in Ladner, supporting medical and dental equipment to regions of countries in need are some of the causes supported in 2021-22 by the generosity of Delta residents in supporting fundraising events as well as that of club members in raising a total of CDN$133,000 in 2021-22. Our Rotary District 5040 of 48 clubs recognized this achievement and that of almost CDN$25,000 for The Rotary Foundation's Annual Program Fund and End Polio causes.
For its support of the global campaign to rid the world of polio, started by Rotary in 1986, the Rotary Club of Ladner received a certificate from Rotary International for over US$1,200 donated by the club and individual members in 2021-22. Immediate Past District 5040 Governor Lorne Calder presented the certificate at the club's annual general meeting on December 6, 2022.
Paul Harris Fellow honourees are individuals who meet high professional and personal standards set forth by Paul Harris, the founder of Rotary International. Honourees may have contributed more than US $1000 to The Rotary Foundation or may be recognized with this award by their club for extraordinary service above self. This is the sixth time Walt Hayward has received this award, at the Ladner Rotary Annual General Meeting on December 6, 2022.
The 22 polio cases reported in the world so far this year in only two remaining countries signals that the end of the lifetime debilitating and sometimes fatal disease is approaching. That is a huge global achievement over the past 36 years. When Rotary International launched the campaign to rid the world of polio in 1986 in The Philippines there were 300,000 or more cases in 120 countries. Since then health authorities, foundations and governments have joined Rotary in this massive effort to rid the world of polio with medical and scientific knowledge, billions of dollars and millions of paid and volunteer workers such as Rotarians.
Part of that effort now, estimated to require another US$5 billion, is not only to make the two remaining countries, Afghanistan and Pakistan, polio free, but ensure it does not return. Ensuring children under 5 years receive the vaccine in remote communities is still a big challenge, but so is the process of validating that results being reported are accurate and precautions are taken. Ridding the world is within reach after decades of effort, but it is still a complex and expensive challenge which Rotarians are encouraged to support.
Patients in acute care beds, outpatients, residents in long term care residents, staff, auxiliary volunteers and visitors in the "community" of the Delta Hospital and Mountain View Manor and those at Irene Thomas Hospice next door are getting a lift from the Christmas lights and decorations now brightening up the main entrance, in the Healing Garden at the hospital's central courtyard and inside and outside the extended care residence. Thanks to a team of 16 Rotary Club of Ladner members, including a team from Pure Sunfarms, took the morning of November 23 for this community service project. -- photos by Chris Offer and Peter Roaf
Recruiting & retaining appropriately skilled workers is the top concern of businesses in Delta, according to Jill McKnight, Executive Director of the Delta Chamber of Commerce. Speaking at Ladner Rotary on November 22, 2022, Jill also advised: for every $10 you spend locally $6.10 recirculates in our community. For instance, Delta's 730+ retail businesses employ more than 18,300 people, and businesses pay 46% of the property taxes that fund services in our city.
BC and Alberta Guide Dogs is a non-profit charitable society, based in Ladner, which breeds, raises and professionally trains Guide Dogs for individuals who are blind or visually impaired, Autism Support Dogs, for children 3 to 10 years and their families, and Service Dogs for veterans, first responders and RCMP members suffering from Operational Stress Injury or Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, all at no cost to the client. Each fully trained guide dog or service dog enables each client to live a fulfilling and productive life.
After two years of suspension due to the pandemic, the Ladner Remembrance Day parade and cenotaph ceremony happened on November 11, 2022 to honour those who lost life and limb for the liberty and sense of freedom we enjoy today, over 100 years and more later, still under threat today -- Lest We Forget. Rotarians in Ladner and Tsawwassen participated in the ceremony.
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Service Above Self
Delta, BC V4L 2B2
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