Rotary: Making a Difference in the Community

Solving problems takes real effort, commitment, and vision. Globally, Rotarians work to protect communities from preventable disease, keep mothers and children healthy, improve education and economic outcomes, create safe water and sanitation infrastructure, protect the environment, and make communities a more peaceful place.

Some of the Local Rotary Club of Clay County Projects are:

• Hayesville High School Scholarship – Two scholarships are awarded each year to graduating seniors. One goes to a vocational student and one to an academic student. The scholarships renew each year the student stays in school.
• The Little Library – the Club maintains and provides books for The Little Library at the Clay County Recreation Park and Playground.
• Wheelchair Access Ramps – In partnership with the Hinton Center, the Club raised funds to build wheelchair ramps for local residents who cannot afford it and that rely on a wheelchair for mobility.

         

    Samples of Rotary Global Projects would be:

• Ending Polio – Partnering with the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, the World Health Organization, and UNICEF to end polio, once and for all. 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.
• Protecting the Environment – Over decades, Rotary members have carried out thousands of projects to protect the environment with grants totaling $18 million in just the last 5 years. Some of the projects consisted of restoring habitat, planting native vegetation, removing invasive plants and animal species, addressing pollution and coastal erosion, supporting eco-friendly agriculture, water diversion and conservation, reducing food waste and supporting the transition to clean and efficiency energy uses.