Rotary is a global network of more than 1.2 million neighbors, friends, leaders, and problem-solvers who see a world where people unite and take action to create lasting change – across the globe, in our communities, and in ourselves.
We provide service to others, promote integrity, and advance world understanding, goodwill, and peace through our fellowship of business, professional, and community leaders.
Rotary members believe that we have a shared responsibility to take action on our world’s most persistent issues. Our 46,000+ clubs work together to:
• Promote peace
• Fight disease
• Provide clean water, sanitation, and hygiene
• Save mothers and children
• Support education
• Grow local economies
• Protect the environment
Clubs are non-political, nonreligious and open to all cultures, races and creeds. As signified by the motto Service Above Self , Rotary’s main objective is service – in the community, in the workplace and throughout the world.
The following paragraphs describe some of our Rotary International involvement and some of our Nepean-Kanata Rotary Club projects.
Rotary has been working to eradicate polio for more than 35 years. Our goal of ridding the world of this disease is closer than ever. As a founding partner of the Global Polio Eradication Initiative, we’ve reduced polio cases by 99.9 percent since our first project to vaccinate children in the Philippines in 1979. Rotary members have contributed more than $2.1 billion and countless volunteer hours to protect nearly 3 billion children in 122 countries from this paralyzing disease. Rotary’s advocacy efforts have played a role in decisions by governments to contribute more than $10 billion to the effort. Today, polio remains endemic only in Afghanistan and Pakistan. But it’s crucial to continue working to keep other countries polio-free. If all eradication efforts stopped today, within 10 years, polio could paralyze as many as 200,000 children each year.
Rotary worked with Shelter Box Canada to deliver emergency aid after the Haitian Earthquake, Japanese tsunami, Philippine Typhoon and other calamities. Our club contributed shelter boxes to provide temporary housing.
We collaborated with other local Rotary clubs and combined resources and effort to build the Rotary Centennial Playground for Children of all Abilities at Brewer Park on Bronson Avenue in Central Ottawa.
Our Club has worked with the Michele Heights Community and has sponsored an after-school homework club, contributed to a Michele Heights Community Library and funded the refurbishment of their computer room. We recently helped them to prepare and distribute Eid food baskets.
We have distributed Christmas food hampers for the Caldwell Family Centre for a number of years.
We worked with the City of Ottawa to build a much-needed park and playground at Winthrop Court, an Ottawa Community Housing community. We provided a gazebo in the park for an outdoor community meeting place for parents and adults.
We have adopted a portion of West Hunt Club Road under the Adopt a Roadway Program and each year we clean our portion of Hunt Club.
We volunteer regularly to assist the Bells Corners BIA with annual social events and programs.
Rotary is an active sponsor of Rotary programs for students and young professionals.
The Rotary Youth Leadership Awards Program brings participants 30 and younger together for a weekend of leadership training and development.
Our club has participated in the Rotary Youth Exchange Program sponsoring a student to spend a year abroad on an educational/cultural exchange and hosting a student here for the school year to experience our culture. These students become ambassadors for our Rotary club, for Canada and experience a learning opportunity that would not be possible without our assistance.
Our club has delivered our signature program “Adventure in High Tech” for 40 years. The program exposes students to the wide variety of technology opportunities and education facilities.
We also support students each year with our Bursary Award program. We provide $1,500.00 assistance to students to continue their post secondary education. The qualifying criteria for this award is not just academic achievement. We require students to be active community leaders as well. Their community involvement exemplifies the best Rotarian principles.
We are able to contribute to all of these initiatives through our various fundraising efforts during the year. We have sold chrysanthemums at Thanksgiving, Rotary cash calendars, Whisky Tasting events, and we participate in a charity bingo several times each month.
Our members meet weekly for fellowship and to discuss project possibilities and fundraising opportunities, either online via Zoom or in person for dinner or with a speaker presentation on a variety of subjects.