For some time now, the Rotary Club of Wolverhampton has been supporting Maison Kimbilio in Lubumbashi, Democratic Republic of Congo.The centre provides education, shelter and accommodation for homeless children while Kimbilio social workers try to rebuild relationships with their families.

In July of this year, along with a matching grant from Rotary District 1210, the Club has helped to provide the facility for fresh water on a permanent basis.

Work has begun with the drilling of two wells. We are pleased to have been a part of this project.

Below note from organisation founder Ian Harvey

We are delighted that we have been able to drill two wells on the Maison Kimbilio site!  These wells will provide essential clean water to the children living in the Kimbilio homes as well as to the pupils at the Kimbilio Primary School due to open in September 2021.Contaminated water can transmit diseases such diarrhoea, cholera, dysentery, typhoid and polio.  We are thrilled that the children we support will have access to this most basic of rights which can be often taken for granted in other parts of the world. We are so thankful to Christine Sayell and her friends and colleagues at the NHS Dolphin Centre in Tunbridge Wells for their impressive fundraising walks as well as a grant from the Rotary Club of the City of Wolverhampton  which made this possible!

Thank you!
Hayley Powell, senior Fundraiser for The Haven, Wolverhampton wished to give her thanks to the Rotary Club of the City of Wolverhampton for their contribution and support to KidsOut toy boxes donated for Christmas. She said” The children were so excited on Christmas morning and spent the day playing with the toys.”

The Haven provided a safe, warm and welcoming place for those recovering from trauma of abuse and homelessness.

Thank you to Rotarian member Susand Husband for organising the raffle which raised £900 for Children in Need and congratulations to winners club members Peter Williams – who tells us Big Pudsey will be on his way to family in Australia, and Little Pudsey to Lisa Stallard.

Well done Susan.

Former Wolverhampton Wanderers star Mel Eves and Rotary Club member has organised this wonderful opportunity to win a piece of history and support a great cause too.

The City of Wolverhampton Rotary club is offering the chance to win a signed Wolves shirt and make a donation to the Samaritans at the same time, via a Crowdfunding website.
The Samaritans are inundated at present with people desperately needing their help in these stressful times.
You can see the full details by clicking on the safe link below:

https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/wolves-shirt-wolves-rotary-wolves-samaritans

For the 13th consecutive year, The Rotary Foundation has received the highest rating — four stars — from Charity Navigator, an independent evaluator of charities in the U.S.

The Foundation earned the recognition for adhering to sector best practices and executing its mission in a financially efficient way, demonstrating both strong financial health and commitment to accountability and transparency. Only one percent of the organizations Charity Navigator evaluates have received 13 consecutive 4-star evaluations.

“Your achievement and 4-star rating will enhance your organization’s fundraising and public relations efforts,” says Michael Thatcher, president and chief executive officer of Charity Navigator. “This exceptional designation sets the Foundation apart from its peers and demonstrates to the public its trustworthiness.”

The rating reflects Charity Navigator’s assessment of how the Foundation uses donations, sustains its programs and services, and practices good governance and openness.

The Foundation/International committee recently made a donation to the charity Feeding Dreams, Cambodia and a certificate of appreciation was received.

Feeding Dreams Cambodia was formed in 2012 to assist hundreds of starving children and their families from a commune in Sala Kamreuk. It is a non-profit, non political, non religious, non governmental ‘grass roots’ organisation which focuses on holistic, sustainable development within the local community.

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Shortly before joining RotaryJulie served as a volunteer at a school supported by the charity in Siem Reap.

Julie tells us:

“The school is situated within the most deprived slum areas of Siem Reap. My contribution was my time when I worked with families to encourage them to send their children to the school, identifying family and community issues, and looking at possible solutions to assist, finding sponsors for children and fundraising.

It is a humbling and inspiring experience to work there. It costs approximately £35 per month to keep a child in school and ensure the child and their family are fed, and approximately £1 per day to keep 30 children attending the school. I plan to return next year.”

In these difficult days, we are so heartened to receive such uplifting reports on the unrelenting efforts of our Rotary members who have responded in their communities against the COVID-19 pandemic.

Today, the single question we hear time and again as we travel the virtual world is, “Are we getting involved with COVID vaccination?” Considering the success and expertise we have gainedin our polio eradication effort, this question is both natural and timely.

Holger Knaack-President Rotary International and K.R. Ravindran Chair,The Rotary Foundation,

The answer is yes. We will have an important role in the months ahead.

But as we know, there is a pandemic sweeping the world. The Board of RI and the Trustees of our Foundation met in joint session and have agreed that we have a role to play.

We will be utilising Rotary’s knowledge of vaccine safety and efficacy based on our polio eradication experience to conduct vaccination education and communication outreach in your communities. This will need to be tailored to local contexts to address unique cultural and regional needs.

We will engage, where appropriate, with our current polio eradication partners WHO and UNICEF at the country level to offer Rotary’s support to COVID-19 response activities, including vaccination efforts.

We will be partnering at the local level with governments, corporations, and foundations to support Rotary activities at the country level.

And through hundreds of global grants and projects, Rotary members have demonstrated what we can accomplish to raise awareness, deliver critical personal protection equipment, and provide support for frontline health workers. Already more than 3,000 projects have registered on the Rotary Showcase demonstrating hoiw effective Rotary can be.

Working together, we have done so much to adapt to the COVID-19 pandemic, to care for our communities, and to prepare Rotarians for the work ahead.

We do this for ourselves and for future generations. We do this as part of our obligation to support our world as it faces the most significant challenge of this generation.

Thank you.

Holger Knaack                                               K.R. Ravindran

President, Rotary International                   Chair, The Rotary Foundation