The City of Wolverhampton club has used the Rotary network to give desperately needed aid to India.

The Covid 19 crisis in India is a major catastrophe. By May 28^th, there have been  27.7 million recorded cases with 323,000 deaths. In the State of Kerala alone, the figures are 2.7 million cases with 8,257 deaths. The true figures are probably even higher as many cases go unrecorded.

Our club decided it would prefer to take direct, rapid action rather than simply make a donation to one of the many commendable relief funds that have been set up.

Our network of well known, directly contactable Rotarians includes Past District Governor Scaria Jose of the Rotary club of Changanacherry, Kerala,  who serves as the Rotary Jaipur Limb (RJL) Ambassador to India and is well known to our member, Richard Green, the RJL Trustee and Director for India. Scaria advised that there is a desperate need for oxygen concentrators – machines designed to provide relief to patients with severe breathing difficulties associated with Covid. By contacting fellow Rotarian Binoop Paul, Scaria established that a concentrator, manufactured in China, could be purchased for £728. The funds were rapidly despatched to the supplier, Binoop’s employers, N2 Healthcare in Cochin.

The unit arrived in Mumbai on May the 26^th and was transported across country to Cochin and delivered to Scaria Jose’s house on May 27^th.

It was handed over to the government public hospital in Changanacherry on May the 28^th, where it was accepted by the hospital superintendent, Doctor Ajith, in the presence of the local member of the State Legislative Assembly, Mr. Job Michael and other Rotarians from the Changanacherry club including President Saju.

Job Michael expressed his heartfelt thanks to all the Rotarians involved in extending help to the needy patients during what he described as the current calamity.

Now, Binoop has been able to source 5 BiPap (Bilevel positive airway pressure) machines and a number of other clubs have sent funds to purchase these. Delivery is expected during the first week of June.

PDG Richard Green

Jay Blades, star of the popular B.B.C. show ‘The Repair Shop’, is supporting the Wolverhampton Young Citizen of the Year Awards. Jay is a graduate of Wolverhampton University and used to have a furniture restoration business in the city. He is keen to encourage the community of the city to recognise young people who have helped others during the pandemic and he has produced a video which has been posted on the Awards web site

Chairman of the Young Citizen Awards Publicity Committee, Gordon Essex, said ‘ I first heard of Jay Blades’ charity work through the Wolverhampton homeless charity The Good Shepherd. Paul Berry, from the charity, made contact with Jay who readily agreed to make a video to publicise the awards. So as Jay says ‘Get nominating’  by going to www.wolverhamptonyoungcitizen.org.uk

The 2021 Awards will be given to 13 – 18 year olds and in addition there is a category for the 19-25 age group. This is to bring it in line with the Rotary National awards which are televised on the B.B.C.

Anyone can nominate by visiting the above web site. The closing date is on 31 May. Subject to Covid 19 restrictions the awards ceremony will be held on 8^th. July.  Roger Timbrell, Chairman of the organising Committee said ‘I urge anyone who knows a young person who deserves to be recognised for helping others during the pandemic, or for demonstrating good citizenship, to nominate them on line’.

These awards were devised and are sponsored by the five Rotary Clubs in the city and organised in partnership with the City Council, The Express and Star, Wolverhampton Wanderers Foundation and supported by Carvers Building Supplies Ltd. various local publications and the James Beattie Trust.

Contact: Roger Timbrell    roger.timbrell@yahoo.co.uk

mobile : 07885944030

18 local organistaions have been awarded grants by the partnership of the Rotary Club of the City of Wolverhampton and the James Beattie Charitable Trust.

A fuller account is available on the club website page- click on the bold text…..

The Rotary Small Grants Scheme-Outcomes

Well known and much respected actress Jenny Seagrove has been appointed an Honorary member of the Rotary club of The City of Wolverhampton.

Jenny supports a number of charities including the Rotary Jaipur Limb project, of which she is a patron. This charity, formed in 1984, provides prostheses free of charge to amputees in India and Africa. 

Her father and grandfather were Rotarians and, as a result, she has a full awareness of the Rotary ethic ‘Service Above Self.’ She recently delivered one of the series ‘Rotary Together Talks,’ in which she spoke about how honoured she felt to be asked to be involved. 

She has addressed a number of Rotary District conferences, talking about her passion, the Mane Chance Horse sanctuary of which is she is the founder. The sanctuary, established to give a home to neglected and illtreated horses, provides support and healing to disadvantaged and terminally ill children, who gain tremendous comfort and mental wellbeing by visiting the sanctuary and interacting with the horses. 

The mission statement of The Mane Chance reads as follows, in regard to this particular part of their activities, demonstrating a genuine commitment to service for the benefit of the community: 

“To provide relief for children, young people and vulnerable people, suffering from physical and/or mental disability, through the provision of managed work with equines in a therapeutic environment to help meet their needs and to enable them to participate more fully in society; also to increase the confidence and capacity of children and young people are therefore delighted to have teamed up with AQA, an organisation offering unit awards for achievement.  Used widely in education and charity sectors, the awards are aimed at those who are struggling in life or to function in mainstream education or those who are unlikely to attain traditional levels of recognised qualifications, such as GCSEs and A Levels. Instead it offers recognition of what they are able to achieve.” 

The sanctuary also has a partnership with the Duke of Edinburgh Award scheme, providing sessions which qualify students for the volunteering part of the award. 

Jenny visited the City of Wolverhampton club in 2014, giving an inspirational talk to a very full audience of Rotarians and guests, since when she has become a friend of  Past District Governor Richard Green, who will serve again as club President in the forthcoming Rotary year which marks the centenary of the club. 

Jenny, who will shortly be appearing with Sir Ian McKellen in a production of ‘Hamlet’ at the Theatre Royal, Windsor says “I am thrilled to become an Honorary Rotarian – joining an organisation that does such amazing work around the world.’

For further details contact:

Richard Green.

richard.green51@talktalk.net

In May 2020, Rotarian Fraser Dukes passed away. He was a great Rotarian who was much respected and admired; he received many awards for his lifelong devotion to the Rotary ethic of Service Above Self.

His notable achievements included heading up the District 1210 Rotary Foundation campaign for the eradication of polio from the day of its start in 1985 until the day he sadly, as we say in Rotary, ‘passed to higher service.’

An appeal was launched to fund the placing of a commemorative plaque on Rotary Ridge at the National Memorial Arboretum. Such was the respect in which Fraser was held that the appeal reached its target in just 5 days; a substantial excess of money subsequently received has been donated to the Rotary Polio Elimination campaign.

The plaque now stands in the beautiful and peaceful surroundings of Rotary Ridge.

,

Dear President Brian,

This week is Thanking Week and  Compton Care is celebrating all of our wonderful supporters and everything that they have done over the last 12 months for our patients and their families.

It has been a 12 months like no other and yet, our fantastic supporters have continued to raise funds so that we can deliver extraordinary care to our patients and their families when they need it most.

As over 70% of our income is from voluntary donations, we would not be able to do what we do without your commitment and support. The practical and emotional care that your donations provide directly improves lives. What a wonderful gift to give.

We think you’re amazing and on behalf of everyone at Compton, THANK YOU so much for being there for us.

Sally Woods

T 0300  323 0250 D 01902 774538 M 07966 184223

www.comptoncare.org.uk

Compton Care. The Cedars

39, Compton Road West, Wlverhampton, WV3 9DW

Two of the oldest and largest clubs in district 1210 come together to

Celebrate Rotary Day

February 23^rd 2021 marked the 116^th anniversary of the founding of Rotary, commemerating the day when Paul Harris called 3 friends together in his downtown Chicago office with the idea of forming a club to do good in the world. The Walsall and City of Wolverhampton clubs decided to hold a joint Zoom meeting to mark the occasion.

At this extremely well attended event the guest speaker was Rotarian Jannine Birtwistle who gave us an enlightening and absorbing talk about the great achievements of the Rotary Foundation including its flagship project – the elimination  of polio.

Jannine, from Guernsey, heads up the EndPolo campaign throughout Rotary in Great Britain and Ireland. She told us that from the start of the campaign in 1985 when there were 1000 new cases of polio throughout the world every day, Rotary, with its partners, the World Health Organisation, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and others, has seen India and Africa become polio free and reach a stage were the disease occurs in only 2 countries – Pakistan and Aghanistan. In 2020, there was just a small handful of new cases, confined to these 2 countries.Telling us about the Rotary Foundation – ‘our’ Foundation as she emphasised, we heard that over $4 billion has been granted to clubs throughout the world to carry out humanitarian projects within 6 areas of focus, which include Peace and Conflict Resolution, Child and Maternal Health and providing Clean Water and Sanitation. A seventh of focus – supporting the environment  – will come into being in the new Rotary year beginning on July 1^st.

Jannine also told us about the Rotary Peace Centres based at universities around the world – including one in the UK at Bradford –  where students benefit from Rotary Scholarships and gain Masters Degrees in peace studies which equip them to progress to extraordinary careers in such organisations as the United Nations.

We learned that for the 13^th year running, the Rotary Foundation has been awarded a four star rating (the highest available) by Charity Navigator, an independent evaluator that assesses the effectiveness, good management and governance of worldwide charities.

Concluding by telling us about Vocational Training Teams, Jannine had given us a valuable insight and update into the remarkable achievements of the Rotary Foundation which came into being shortly after the momentous day in 1905 when Paul Harris formed the first Rotary club.