WE CELEBRATE centuries in many aspects of our lives.
People are sent a card from the Queen on their 100th birthday, and in our national sport, cricket, we celebrate our batsmen scoring 100 runs.
Well Rotary is a global charity that is more than 100 years old, growing today to over one million men, women and young people who have fun together and help others in the community, both locally and globally.
Unlike single purpose charities, Rotarians offer several areas of focus worldwide: promoting peace, fighting disease, providing clean water and sanitation, supporting education, growing local economies, and protecting the environment.
Each year, Rotarians adopt a theme.
Appropriately, this year’s theme is Rotary Opens Opportunities.
Easthampstead Rotarians, from Bracknell Forest and Wokingham Boroughs, work with other local charities and schools on agreed projects.
Most recently, during ‘lockdown’, we have supported our Foodbanks, and The Cowshed which provides support to people of all backgrounds in a time of personal crisis.
The Cowshed offers good quality cleaned and ironed clothes and other essentials free to anyone in need.
But as our schools plan to re-open in September, Easthampstead Rotarians from Wokingham, Alan Finch and Brian Sutterby, have already been busy delivering Dictionaries 4 Life to several local Berkshire schools.
The Dictionary 4 Life, published by Usbourne is a 288-page full-colour guide for young enquiring minds.
The encyclopedia includes 10,000 entries, 20,000 definitions, and more than 1,000 illustrations.
More than 200 have been supplied to several local schools.
Brian explained: “Dictionary 4 Life is a Rotary initiative and represents an integral part of our support for young people.”
Alan, who liaises with schools, colleges and local youth groups across Bracknell Forest and Wokingham Boroughs, added: “We also coach the older pupils on writing a CV and interview techniques.
“And then there are the Rotary Youth Competitions which we run in partnership with local schools.
“In recent years, hundreds of our young people have benefitted
by participating in our Youth Speaks, Young Writer and Technology Tournaments.”
For more information about the competitions, visit: www.rotarygbi.org/projects
Peter von Bergen, Easthampstead Rotary
Share news from your club, group or society
If you are in a WI, Mothers’ Union, a friendship group or an action group then send us a report of your meetings and we’ll print them here!
Share your reports by emailing news@wokinghampaper.co.uk
