International Service

Arizona Rotary Microcredit Program updates and future trips
 
 
Submitted by PDG Abe Feder
 
Last year, 2024 was a good year for the Arizona microcredit program. Our Rotary clubs and individual members added $75,000 to our base capital, moving the program to just above $350,000.
 
That means your program makes an impact of $700,000 per year in improving the lives of our beneficiaries and their families. The survey information that we have gathered from our borrowers shows the increased capital impacts suppliers and their families as well, and the end result is we improved the economic levels of over 70,000 individuals since this program started.
 
Our Arizona Rotary Microcredit Partners Program has also made some strides, with six new Rotary clubs joining the ranks of those clubs that have donated $5,000 or more to this program.
 
Want to learn more about this program?  Here are two options:
 
First, join  DG Michelle Holcomb, DGE Jim Schmidt and PDG Larry Horton and more than 300 others and take a no-cost trip to visit those that we help in Hermosillo Mexico … our borrowers.
 
We have two trips planned at this point:
February 21-23---7 spots open
March 28-30---9 spots open
 
The second option would be to have me, or another member of the committee make a presentation to your club about this program. Or attend our Breakout Session at our District Conference in May.
 
To reserve a spot on a trip or to have a Microcredit presentation at your club please contact: PDG Abe Feder Microcredit Committee Chair 602-622-7289 or abefeder1@gmail.com.
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Global Grant promotes food sovereignty in small community in Mexico
 
 
The Rotary Club of Prescott partnered with the Rotary Club of Zacatlan on a Rotary Foundation Global Grant to implement green technologies to promote food sovereignty.
 
The grant – The Ayotla Life Nature (GG2236417) created a rainwater harvesting system to serve homes in the community of Ayotla in Zacatlan.
 
The objective of the project is for families in the community to satisfy their basic needs. Captured rainwater will be used to grow grass for livestock feed suitable for human consumption.
 
The grant also includes building greenhouses with recycled material and plastic containers and making compost to fertilize crops.
 
The grant was first presented by the Rotary Club of Zacatlan two years ago at the Mexico-USA Friendship Conference held in Prescott. The Rotary Club of Prescott is the international partner and member Kevin Pitts was the District 5495 Governor at the time (2023-24).
 
PDG Kevin recently visited Ayotla to view progress on the project. A video of the project and Kevin’s visit can be viewed here.
The concept of Rotary Twin Sisters/Partners Clubs
 
By PDG Art Harrington
Prescott Sunup Rotary Club
 
It is called by diffferent names in different parts of the world, but it has been a prevalent practice for a Rotary club in one country to have at least one partner Rotary club in another country.  In some cases, the clubs are known as sister clubs, or partner clubs; and in Mexico, the term "Twin Club" tends to be popular.  Clubs who are connected in this way can essentially do whatever they want with that relationship.  A common practice is to get to know each other's main service projects and annual events, and for at least the leadership of the two clubs to get to know each other.  At the best, the two clubs may undertake doing one or more projects with each other, including possibly a Rotary Foundation Global Grant Project.
 
Last year. at the annual Mexico-USA Friendship Conference and Global Grants Exchange, which was held here in Prescott, our club's International Service Committee representatives agreed to co-sponsor a TRF Global Grant Rainwater Harvesting Project with the Club Rotario Xalapa Manantiales. Their club was to be the Host Partner for the project, and our club agreed to serve as the International Partner. 
 
The project was successfully funded and completed.  This year, when Todd represented us at the Mexico-USA Conference, when it was held in Xalapa, he stayed after the conference to arrange with our partner club for a visit to the area, and some of the homes, which were the beneficiaries of our project.  Todd will be presenting a program for our club on March 19, after he returns from Taiwan, to share with us his personal experience, along with some of the pictures, from his visit to that project.
 
As we initiated the project with this partner club, and as we worked with them on the project, we were asked if our club would be willing to become a Twin Club with this Club Rotario Xalapa Manantiales.  The relationship during the project had been a good one, and our club agreed to the idea.  Consequently, one of Todd's other opportunities, while he was down there, was to represent our club at a special dinner, which was planned to formalize our ongoing Twin Club relationship with this Rotary club in Xalapa.  Where this relationship may lead, will be up to the leadership of the two Rotary clubs.  But for now, be aware that our Prescott-Sunup Rotary Club has a Twin Club in Xalapa, Veracruz, Mexico. 
 
Photo: Sunup's Internatonal Service Director Todd Clancy with some of the members of our twin club in Xalapa, Veracruz, Mexico.
Rotarians invited to join Watts of Love project March 13-21, 2025 in Kenya
 
TRIP TO REMEMBER!
Kenya (Northern Rangeland Trust-NRT area)                          
March 13-21, 2025
 
 
Won't you join me?
 
I will be traveling to Kenya to distribute solar lights March 13-21, 2025. 
I am a member of the Rotary Club of Goodyear PebbleCreek. This will be my 4th trip to Kenya.  Not only do we give a solar light to families, but we teach them a financial literacy curriculum of how to save old money (money previously used to buy kerosene or batteries) and earn new money (entrepreneurial endeavors). 
 
Another member from our club (GYPC) will be joining the team and I’d like to get one or two more Rotarians from District 5495 to also join.  Watts of Love (WOL) will be making all in-country travel arrangements and will be leading the team (including the founder of WOL).  There will be approximately 10 on the travel team. 
 
The families have already been identified based on need.  Sixteen of the lights (boxes) will have a Student of the Month name on them from Millennium & Desert Edge High Schools and given to a family in their names. September and October’s have already been awarded. November’s will be named next week (11/4).   It’s pretty cool.
 
 In-country costs - $2400; Includes transportation, lodging, meals, training, t-shirt, possible excursions.  We will be staying at a Conservancy in Northern Kenya (NRT), so it is a safari-type landscape.
 
Fundraising - Usually each team member is responsible for raising $3000 for lights.  However, ours will be discounted.  If we have three Rotarians, it would be $1600 each or a collaborative effort of $5000.  I already have friends offering to donate money for the lights.  It won’t be difficult.  A portion of the lights for this trip is part of a District Grant received by the GYPC Club.
 
Airfare – we make our own RT travel arrangements (coordinating with the group leaving from Chicago).  I think my RT ticket last March was around $1500-$1600. 
 
Let’s help in “lighting the way” out of poverty for at least 500 families.  It’s empowering, it’s sustainable, it’s possible!
 
To learn more about Watts of Love, please visit their website – wattsoflove.org
 
For more information, contact:  Colleen Malany   colleen.gypcrotary@gmail.com  or 630 651 1677
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International service projects abound in District 5495
Have you ever thought about a Global Grant? Do you need assistance with understanding Global Grants?
 
We can help. We have a list of those who have completed successful GGs in our district who are willing to point you in the right direction. You can also checkout the district website to learn more about the process.
 
Did you know that our district has the single largest Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) project in Rotary worldwide? Yes, the Zambia Water Project GG#234894 is a $1.5 million dollar in cooperation with World Vision and Golf Fore Africa.
 
Craig Wilson,
District International Service Chair
Friendship Exchange: Rotarians from Australia to visit Phoenix

ROTARY FRIENDSHIP EXCHANGE WITH Queensland Australia

DISTRICT ROTARIANS: YOU ARE WELCOME TO JOIN US! PLEASE

RSVP TO ANDREA SHIELDS (909-560-0101) FOR EVENTS HELD AT HOMES.
YOU ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR YOUR TRANSPORTATION AND ENTRY FEES.

 

 

What is Rotary Friendship Exchange? 
 
Rotary Friendship Exchange lets Rotarians in one part of the world experience life in another country or culture. Through person-to-person connections across national boundaries international understanding and goodwill are advanced.
 
On a Rotary Friendship Exchange you are not just a tourist
 
Rotarians on a Friendship Exchange genuinely experience another culture, broaden their international understanding, foster goodwill, explore their professions in a different context, build long lasting friendships and establish a foundation for peace. All guided by friends in Rotary, Exchange participants take turns hosting and visiting one another, forging friendships that last a lifetime.
 
Exchange participation is open to individual Rotarian members and non-Rotarians, couples, families, or groups. 
 
This year’s Rotary Friendship Exchange (RFE) is with seven Rotarians from Queensland Australia who are beginning their trip landing in Las Vegas Nevada  this Friday Oct 11, and ending in Phoenix, Arizona Oct 25, 2024. These Rotarians have expressed that the primary purpose of their trip is to meet Arizona Rotarians. Therefore, if you wish, please join them. A full schedule of events that are open is below. For those that are at homes or places that need estimates for food, please let the host or the tour coordinator Andrea Shields 909-560-0101 know so they may plan accordingly.

 

Saturday, Oct 12        

12:30 pm                     Tour Hoover Dam.  Buy $15.00 tickets at door.
Meet Kingman Rotarians at the Dam

5 pm                            Route 66 Fest Lewis Kingman Park- listen to music, relax.
Join Laughlin and Bullhead Rotarians.

Sunday, Oct 13          

2:30 pm                       90 minute Boat Trip on Colorado.
Buy $19 ticket. Visit with Bullhead and Laughlin Rotarians.

6 pm                            Fellowship and pot luck at Rotarian home. Confirm attendance

Monday, Oct 14         

6:30 pm                       Dinner at E’s with Grand Canyon Rotarians. 20% discount.  

Wednesday, Oct 16

10 am                          Museum of Northern Arizona  3101 N Fort Valley Rd Flagstaff, AZ  86001

1 pm                            Lowell grounds, 1400 W Mars Hill Rd Flagstaff, AZ 86001  3:00 and 4:00 pm tours. $39 all day ticket.
Evening at Lowell Observatory –with the telescopes

Thursday, Oct 17

9:30 am                       Sunset Crater and Wupatki Ruins  - hiking available

2 pm                            Downtown Old Flagstaff shopping scenic walks available    

6 pm                            Evening fellowship with Flagstaff Rotarians. Confirm attendance.

Friday Oct 18              Travel through Sedona to Prescott

5-5:30 pm                    Arrive Prescott Resort

6 pm                                      Prescott Rotarians, small, short  reception

Saturday Oct 19

12:30 pm                     Lunch at Palace Saloon on Whiskey Row in Prescott

Sunday Oct 20           

11:00 am                     Arcosanti Tour - $22 ticket at door. 13555 S Cross L Road, Mayer, AZ 86333

Monday Oct 21

Noon                           Scottsdale Rotary Club - McCormack Ranch                       

6 pm                            Desert Belle paddleboat ride on Saguaro Lake. Tickets at marina.

Tuesday Oct 22

1:30 pm                       Peoria Stadium fall league baseball game for outdoor fellowship. Glendale Desert Dogs v. Peoria Javelinas, buy $11.00 ticket at window. 16101 N 83rd Ave Peoria, AZ 85345

4:00 pm                       Happy Hour at The Vig Restaurant. Individual orders $$. Fellowship and fun with west side Rotarians. 9824 W Northern Ave #1840,
Peoria, AZ 85345  623-231-7597

Wednesday Oct 23

9:30 am           Desert Botanical Gardens - 1201 N Galvin Pkwy Phoenix, AZ  85008 - Buy tickets at door. Docent tour at 10:00 am.  
Self tour and gift shop browsing

2:00 pm           Heard Museum visit. 2301 N Central Ave.  Phoenix, AZ  85004.  Buy tickets at door.

5:30 pm           Happy Hour meeting with Phoenix 100 alt Club – Confirm attendance
Keegan’s Sports Bar and Grill 3200 Camelback Rd.

Thursday Oct 24

10:00 am         Taliesin West (Frank Lloyd Wright) 12621 N Frank Lloyd Wright Blvd

                        Scottsdale, AZ  85259 self-guided tour. Buy $39 tickets at door.

1 -4 pm            MIM 4725 E Mayo Blvd  Phoenix, AZ 85050 self-tour time until 3:00 pm Demonstration with Craig Wilson. Buy $25 tickets at door.

6:30 pm           Rotary fellowship at Allen Haver & Sandys’ house 12847 N. Windrose Dr. Scottsdale 85360 Let Sandy or Andrea know if attending

 

Friday Oct 25

9:30 am           Western Spirit: Scottsdale’s Museum of the West - 3830 N Marshall Way, Scottsdale, AZ 85251. Buy $25 tickets at door.          

 
Registration now open for 2024 Mexico-USA Friendship Exchange
This conference, now in its 24th year, is the ideal way for your club to get involved in a Rotary Foundation global grant. Open to all Rotary clubs and districts, you’ll have the chance to experience fellowship at its finest with clubs from Mexico and Arizona, plus we will work on getting global grants funded in this unique project-focused event.  
 
This year’s friendship conference will be held October 31 thru November 4 in Xalapa, Veracruz. We will be home hosted by local Rotarians and have a fun-filled weekend of fellowship, cultural exchange and exciting participation with the Rotary Foundation.
 
               Arrive Thursday
               Global Grant Project Presentations Friday
               Continuation of Presentations and Days of the Dead Celebration Saturday
               Project Funding Results and Fellowship Sunday
               Return Monday
 
Conference cost is $225 and includes meals, activities and ground transportation via the Veracruz airport to Xalapa.
 
Clubs that wish to present global grant project proposals please send a brief project description and draft budget to your respective District Rotary Foundation Chair and cc PDG Kevin Pitts.
 
Questions can be directed to kpitts@stratoswp.com
 
Register now: https://www.crsadmin.com/eventportal/Registrations/PublicFill/EventPublicFill.aspx?evtid=5d51f9e3-4f17-4f80-a201-e389ad8abfbe
RC of Goodyear Pebblecreek pursues 'Watts of Love' global grant project
 
The Rotary Club of Goodyear Pebblecreek has partnered with the non-profit organization WATTS OF LOVE to bring solar light to some of the most vulnerable and impoverished parts of Kenya by writing a Global Grant through Rotary International.
 
WHY LIGHT?  Light is a basic need. When the sun goes down, every household needs light to continue daily activities.
 
Light impacts everything… their environment by reducing the number of toxins being released from the kerosene allowing for better air quality, it empowers women in communities where they have been marginalized and overlooked by giving them a gift to care for their families, it provides income from not having to purchase kerosene, allowing them to save and use that money to purchase a chicken, a goat or cow to feed their family or to barter for other necessities.
 
Having solar light impacts their safety. They don’t have to worry about open flames, burns, injuries and fire. In addition, having access to solar light extends the work day, enabling businesses to stay open after dark and lengthening the number of hours the children can read and do their schoolwork.
 
This project empowers people to raise themselves out of poverty and onto a path of prosperity.
 
A financial literacy curriculum is used to train people on how to save, invest and build for the future. Partnering with Rotary clubs in Kenya, local leaders are being developed to train equip and empower entire regions to ensure lasting change around the world.
 
President Colleen Malany is leading the way on this Global Grant for our club.  After making several trips to Kenya and another trip next spring to distribute more solar lights and to help train more local leaders in the financial literacy curriculum, Colleen is in awe of what a difference one solar light can make for a woman and her family.
 
"It’s truly amazing how giving a small solar light, coupled with the pivotal element of financial literacy, unmitigatedly enables a family to dream bigger and actually achieve bigger.  I’ve seen it first-hand. The children are able to go to school and study at home, the family is healthier because they aren’t burning kerosene or using and disposing a significant number of batteries in a year, they have 'new money' from investing their savings in livestock or creating beadwork to sell, they are becoming entrepreneurs who have bigger dreams than ever were possible. 
 
“Akaidemi”! (it is possible).  The Scripps quote resounds with truth…” give light and they will find their own way”.”
 
If your club is interested in joining us in supporting this life changing sustainable “Watts of Love” Global Grant, contact Colleen Malany-colleen.gypcrotary@gmail.com
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