The Community Service Committee would like to invite you to participate in one or both of our events for January. A previous event with The Genesis Project was posted but had to be postponed until May.
Our "hands on" project for January will be at the United Food Bank.
Your help is needed! Volunteers are required for the following event. Click on Sign Up to view available slots and book yourself directly online.
Event:
United Food Bank Emergency Food Bag Build
Date:
Jan 19, 2022 at 6:00 PM - Jan 19, 2022 at 8:00 PM
Chair:
Shelly Romine
Location:
United Food Bank Volunteer Center 358 E. Javeline Ave. Mesa, AZ United States of America 85210
We will also be collecting disposable face masks for A New Leaf (turnanewleaf.org). A New Leaf provides housing, health and social services for families in need. Their services need to be in person and with the continued challenge of COVID 19 they use a lot of masks. If we can help meet this need they can spend donations helping their clients in better ways. Please bring a box of disposable masks to any meeting in January.
In the December 30 Messenger, there was a story about James Wheeler Davidson. Our good Canadian Rotary friend, Lolita Wiesner, read the story and provided the following response:
"James Wheeler Davidson is quite famous in our area of course, since there is a mountain peak in the Rockies named after him. It's probably less than a 3 hour drive from our house to that area. A few members of my club, RC of Red Deer East, joined this hike described below.
"Mount Davidson has a really interesting backstory. It was officially named in 1935 after James Wheeler Davidson (1872-1933), a prominent Calgarian of international stature, but somehow a mistake was made and the name never appeared on government maps. The omission wasn’t noticed until 2003 when a group of Rotary Club members made plans to climb the peak. The Geographical Names Board of Canada was contacted and Mount Davidson was finally put on the map. Rotary Club members and friends led by Robert Lampard subsequently organized a trip up the mountain on August 2nd, 2003 (only a few actually hiked all the way in, most were helicoptered into the upper Waiparous Creek Valley). They built a cairn, placed a capsule with Rotary Club paraphernalia and a summit register, held a formal meeting, and even drank champagne up there! For the full story, see this article on Peak Finder. Note that the first recorded ascent of Mount Davidson was by Frank Campbell and Karl Nagy on October 22nd, 1988.
"There's more here, including photos of the mountain:
"Bob Lampard and his wife Sharon also winter in Mesa at Leisure World, and we tried to get together this fall when we were down there but our brief time in Mesa was too hectic. Bob is a member of Red Deer Rotary, which was the first Rotary Club here."
In later exchanges with Lolita, we learned she had shared our December 30 Messenger with Bob and Sharon Lampard. They provided information to correct and clarify information contained in our original story.
James Wheeler Davidson died in Vancouver
He formed the Colombo and Hong Kong clubs and set up the TaiPei club although he gave the chartering credit to the Japanese member on the RI Board.
He became a dual citizen in 1923, when Canadian citizenship first became available.
We hope you will schedule this event on your 2022 calendar! December is always such a busy month for Rotarians - who are already busy people - that we have held off until January to have our Mesa West celebration.
Since the fine print might be too fine for many, it will be held at the home of Pam Cohen, 3650 E Quenton Drive, Lot 8, Mesa AZ 85215. You will need her gate code which is 1492. It will be a pot luck dinner with appetizers and desserts provided as a courtesy of attending members. Non-alcoholic beverages will be provided. If you have a favorite beverage you wish to enjoy, please bring it with you. The event is free for members. There will be a $10 charge for guests.
A highlight of the evening will be our Annual Gift Exchange. The exchange is anonymous and optional. Participating members will draw numbers out of a hat to select a gift. Be prepared however, as your gift could be stolen if someone drawn after you likes it better than their chance of opening another gift.
When you complete the survey, we ask that you let us know whether you plan to provide an appetizer or dessert, and you will have an opportunity to let us know specifically what you plan to bring.
The survey will save your executive secretary a lot of time, but for those who are technically challenged, or have a specialized form of ergophobia where you fear taking surveys, you can e-mail Jeanie Morgan providing your name, the name(s) of any guest(s) who will attend with you, and the appetizer or dessert you plan to bring.
As Rotarians, we are regularly exposed to opportunities to support various causes with our time, talent and treasure. Sometimes it is hard to sift through all the information and decide where we are going to use our available financial resources.
It would be wonderful if every Arizona Rotarian would make the following BIG FOUR their Rotary charities of choice and support every one of them every year, we could make a bigger difference than we are making today.
The Rotary Foundation (TRF) Annual Fund - The Rotary Foundation transforms your gifts into service projects that change lives both close to home and around the world." Giving a small amount each month adds up. CLICK HERE to download a form you can use to sign up for Rotary Direct, electing "Annual Fund - Share" for your recurring donation.
The Rotary Foundation (TRF) Polio Plus - Rotary's commitment to eradicate polio is so well known and respected that the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation matches donations $2 for $1. To take advantage of this opportunity to multiply the effect of your giving, CLICK HERE and download a second Rotary Direct form, this time electing electing "Polio Eradication" for your recurring donations. Those who donate $100 or more annually to Polio Plus qualify in District 5495 as Polio Plus Society Members. If you would like to make that commitment, CLICK HERE to download the commitment form.
The Rotary Vocational Fund of Arizona (TRVFA) provides vocational education grants to Arizona Residents who meet specific low-income guidelines. The grants enable the recipients to lift themselves out of poverty, benefitting themselves, their families and the economy of our state. TRVFA is a 501(c)(3) charity. They also are a Qualifying Charitable Organization for Arizona Tax Credit Donations. Their QCO Code is 20698. Many Arizona Rotarians say giving to TRVFA is a "no brainer." If you can help someone lift themselves out of poverty and it won't end up costing you anything why would you not do it? Mesa West Rotary has the highest number of members who have signed up for automated monthly recurring donations by electing that option on the "Donate Now" button on the TRVFA website. Click the image to learn more or CLICK HERE to DONATE NOW.
Mesa West Rotary Foundation, Inc. is the funding and fundraising arm of our own Mesa West Rotary Club. It is a 501(c)(3) charity. We have had successful sponsorship campaigns the last few years enabling us to spend our energy on service rather than on holding fundraising events. Charitable grants that we get involved with are funded through our charitable foundation, Our signature Gift of Hearing Project in Guaymas Mexico is funded through this foundation. Scholarships are awarded annually to Westwood High School Students (the high school where Mesa West Rotary sponsors an Interact Club). Funds are used to support a variety of activities in four of the Rotary Avenues of Service:
Community Service
International Service
Vocational Service
Youth Service
The process isn't quite automated at this point in time, but we hope it soon will be. For now, you can email our executive secretary who can help you work out a recurring donation plan should you wish to make that arrangement to support our own club's charitable activity.
Club Information
Welcome to our Rotary Club of Mesa West!
THE ACE OF CLUBS
Thursdays at 12:00 PM
Via Zoom or in-person
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/3748672091
Doubletree, 1011 W Holmes
Mesa, AZ 85210 United States of America
Our hybrid meetings are held weekly on the 1st thru 4th Thursdays of each month. The meetings are broadcast via Zoom to include all, whether attending virtually or in person.