Month: November 2017

The team of intrepid Rotarians who spent this past Thursday fundraising outside Shop Rite were honored to be invited to Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 6393's annual Veterans Day luncheon … at which time they donated five $75^.00 Gift Certificates for Thanksgiving Dinners to the Post Commander Russ Davidson

(l to r)  Syd Baron, Dick Newbert, Alan Agree, Larry Snyder, Irv Perlstein and Post Commander Russ Davidson

The VFW will, in turn, present these Gift Certificates to needy area veterans.

During the luncheon, Congressman Brian Fitzpatrick paid a visit and both congratulated the Club on its ongoing commitment to supporting our nation's military veterans and their families.

Again this year, the Club is supporting the Salvation Army's annual fundraising efforts by Ringing the Bell outside J.C. Penny's at teh Oxford Valley Mall.  Beginning today and working in two-hour shifts, Club members, together with friends and family, will be helping out each Saturday through December 23rd.  

Starting at 10:00^AM on the cooldest day of the fall so far

Debbie and Dick Newbert

were later relieved by

Augie Audrid and Club President Ira Sherman

Club members teamed-up and worked long, overlapping shifts between 7:30^AM until almost 8:00^PM yesterday in front of

in Yardley raising money to provide Thanksgiving Dinner gift certificates for needy area Veterans and their Families.

Irv Perlstein

Syd Baron, Dick Newbert and Larry Snyder

Alan Agree

It was well after dark when Irv and Alan packed up … by which time incredily generous Shop Rite customers had donated a total of ^$1,077.46.

These monies have enabled the Club to purchase fourteen Gift Certificates which will be donated through the VFW Post 6393, American Legion Post 317, Veterans Administration office in Bristol and other local organizations which support our area's veterans.

Aside from chatting with several neighbors doing their grocery shopping were an amazing group of people who stopped to donate and talk; a lady whose husband at nineteen stormed Omaha Beach on D-Day and lost a leg to enemy fire; a young Marine just back from what he called the "sand box" as he termed Iraq; an female Army officer stationed at Fort Dix; a mom whose son was presently serving in Afghanistan; to name just a few … and many others who never mentioned military service, most notably an 80-year old former Rotarian from Texas in his Stetson hat who clearly loved to talk and whose wife had a difficult time getting hiim to leave.

The Rotary Club of Shady Brook offers its sincere Thanks to

for making this one-day fundraising campaign such an amazing success!

A Special Thanks to Elizabeth Gilchrist who helped coordinate our event!

We were privldged to have Katie and Tony Ferrandino

the founders of Drew's Hope Research Foundation

which they established in honor and memory

join us for breakfast at our weekly meeting this morning.

Their foundation will be the primary beneficiary of the Club's 2018 Charity Golf Outing.

They shared their heart-breaking story of having their son, Drew, go from a sweet and active boy who could run, jump and play  in the months prior to his diagnosis with Late Infantile NCL form of Batten Disease (a very rare degenerative neurologic disease occurring in an estimate 2 to 4 of every 100,000 live births for which there is no cure at this time and is always fatal) to a child needing constant care. 

It took them over two years before receiving a final diagnosis of Drew's condition.  Despite being able to enroll their son in an experimental stem cell transplant procedure, they tried to make Drew's life as normal as possible, takeing him to the Philadlephia Phillies Spring Training, Skiing and on many trips. 

On September 14, 2014, Drew succumbed to his disease at the age of 12.

Since then, Katie and Tony have dedicated their lives to creating greater awareness to the evarious forms of Batten Disease and raising funds for research into the cuases and potential treatments and cures for Batten Disease.

Not only will Drew's Hope be a beneficairy of the the Club's 12th annual charity golf outing, but both Katie and Tony have become active partners in heling to identify potnetial sponsors and participants in the tournament which will be held at

 

Rotary Foundation Chair Bruce Klugman announced the kick-off of the 2018 Rotary Foundation fundraising drive.

The Rotary Foundation is a non-profit corporation that supports the efforts of Rotary International to achieve world understanding and peace through international humanitarian, educational, and cultural exchange programs. It is supported solely by voluntary contributions from Rotarians and friends of the Foundation who share its vision of a better world.

The Foundation was created in 1917 by Rotary International's sixth president, Arch C. Klumph, as an endowment fund for Rotary "to do good in the world."

The Rotary Foundation transforms gifts and donations into service projects that change lives both close to home and around the world.

During the past 100 years, the Foundation has spent $3 billion on life-changing, sustainable projects.

Why should donate to the Rotary Foundation?

Your donation makes a difference to those who need our help most.

More than 90 percent of donations go directly to supporting Rotary International service projects around the world.

How does The Rotary Foundation use its donations?

Donations to the Rotary Fondation help carry out sustainable service projects arund the globe.

Perhaps most importantly, thanks the Rotary Foundation End Polio Now" campaign has wiped out 99.9 percent of all polio cases worldwide.

It has also been influential if training future peacemakers, supporting clean water, and strengthening local economies, particularly in the Third World.

What impact can one donation have?

It can save a life!

A child can be protected from polio with as little as 60 cents.

For every $1.00 Rotary commits to polio eradication, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation has committed $2.00.

If you would like to help …

Contact Bruce Klugman at chiefyn1983@gmail.com.