Tags
Hockey Night on Whyte, Neighbour Center, Rotary clubs, Rotary District 5370, Rotary District Governor, Service Above Self, Whyte Ave, World Class
Edmonton’s Whyte Ave district is a popular destination for people looking for fun, trendsetting excitement, a great place to meet people, to celebrate a zest for life. This young Rotary club encompasses all this and more! They are game changers for many of the homeless and disadvantaged in their area. They are avid supporters of youth who are looking for a hand up not a hand out. They are a respectful group of Rotarians who know they can count on each other to get the job, any job, done.
I think one of the ways this club stands apart from other Edmonton Clubs is their lack of casino funding (though they hope to change that in the near future). They do not have big bank account so they look for other ways to create a positive impact on the world. We noticed a real can-do attitude among the members that was rather inspiring! They have racked up tons of volunteer hours as they make important connections in their community.
What do you get when you bring youth, Strathcona residents, businesses, city staff and community organizations together for street hockey and barbecue? Hockey Night on Whyte sponsored by this active Rotary Club: a 4 on 4 street hockey tournament that involves teams of businesses, community groups, banks, youth from all over.
It has grown over the past 5 years to be supported by the entire Old Strathcona district and has raised the profile of the club and provided good clean fun for all participants.
One of their amazing outreach programs involves the dinner club run by the Neighbour Centre, the only resource organization for the homeless and poor on Edmonton’s south side. Ten times this year Rotarians will join their neighbours — homeless, poor, and well-to-do, who cook, clean and eat together as part of an unorthodox dinner club near Whyte Avenue. Everyone is involved in preparing the entire meal and then they sit down together to eat and visit, and argue over who gets to do the dishes!!
The club is gearing up to participate in the Old Strathcona Whyte Wishes Christmas event. Our Rotarians will be manning the horse drawn carriage stops. Helping people up and out for donations will be a great way to raise the profile of the club as well as raise some much needed funds for their various scholarships and programs. Check out this video:
There is a lot of emphasis on giving a hand up to students in need. Not only do they offer a financial scholarship they also offer mentorship to the student to help them write applications, survive first year jitters, write resumes and more.
One of my favourite membership stories this year comes from this club. Assistant Governor Marilyn Mucha is a proud member of this club. Several months ago Marilyn went to get a haircut at a local shop. She was wearing a Rotary pin and her lapel that was noticed by the young woman doing her hair. Turns out the young woman was a Rotary Youth Exchange student from Mexico who went to Germany. The conversation turned to Rotary and how she could become involved. We were so excited to be at her induction ceremony last week!
Another cool membership story from this club involves Skype. A young man moved to town from Ontario. Just before he left he had been recruited to join a local Rotary club back east. He hooked up with Whyte Avenue Rotary that were only to glad to welcome him. To honour the man who first proposed him, they set up an induction ceremony through Skype to include his participation. Original, creative thinking is the hallmark of this young, exciting Rotary club!