First Posted: 3/28/2014
At a recent meeting of the Rotary Club of the Abingtons, guests included some members from the Rotary Interact Club from the Abington Heights High School. Interact is a Rotary-sponsored club for young people, ages 12 to 18, who want to tackle issues in their community. Through this club, teens can make international connections, develop leadership skills and have fun in a wholesome manner. The club focuses on new ways to do good each month. In March, the Abington Interact officers thought of Spring and wanted to give something back to fellow students in a fun, colorful way. They did so with Parfait and Yogurt Day.
The committee purchased yogurts and parfaits from the school cafeteria. The day before the event, they gathered to cut fresh fruit. Strawberries, cantaloupes, grapes, cherries, raspberries, oranges and more were cut to bite size pieces. The next day, they manned the free parfait and yogurt stand and handed out the treats loaded with fresh fruits in all colors. With the giveaway, was information on the Rotary Interact Club is, what it does and who can join.
Spring Clean Up Starts with the Highway
Early as sun up, Rotarians will dress for outdoor weather and clean up Routes 6 and 11. We will gather at Dr. Douglas Thran’s office, situated right off the highway and have a stand-up breakfast of coffee and donuts. Thus armed, we will walk bravely to the highway and pick up winter trash not only on the side of the road but in the median, where the highway divides. Our clean up area begins where the road turns from two lanes to four lanes, and ends at Glenburn Pond. We will look for old hub caps, paper debris, plastic cups and more, and place the debris in a large plastic bag carried on our shoulders. Watch for us. We will be wearing Rotary vests. We will serve our community to make the highway clean and safe. We will be smiling. We are Rotarians At Work!
Step Right Up! Get Your Pasta Dinner Tickets
Throughout the month of April, Rotarians will be selling tickets for the Pasta Dinner, scheduled for Sunday, May 4 from 1 to 5 p.m. at the Abington Heights High School Cafeteria. Under the watchful eye of Chef Joseph Schiavone, the special sauce will be put together and with a large, long-handled paddle, mixed gently to perfection. Rotarians will assist by chopping fresh greens for salads; cutting rolls; dishing out spaghetti and meatballs; pouring coffee; slicing desserts and cleaning up the cafeteria kitchen. It takes days of planning for correct purchasing and prepping to serve this delicious Sunday dinner to all in the community. Tickets are only $8 for adults and $4 for children under 12. The very popular dinners will be available for take-out. Call any Rotarian for tickets.
“This once-a-year fundraiser gives the Rotary Club of the Abingtons the opportunity to support: the Abington Heights Band; the Abington Heights Little League; the Abington Heights Interact Club and other Abington area youth initiatives in our community,” Chairman Joseph Pagnani said.
Plan on a Sunday outing with your family. Meet your neighbors and friends at the Pasta Dinner, just for the fun of it.
Rotarians Connected Worldwide
Paul Harris founded the Rotary Club with three of his friends, 109 years ago this month. His goal was simple and remains the same after all these years – to create an oasis of friendship amid a city of strangers, with those who shared his values.
The goals of Rotary, based upon that premise, have expanded and matured through the years. They include service, vocational ethics and international understanding. Harris envisioned a world where conflict would melt away, a world where acceptance of differences would relegate war to history. He felt that if people could only come together in a spirit of friendship and tolerance, they would realize how much they have in common.
Freeing the world from polio is a primary goal of Rotary. As reported on CNN.com on March 28, India has been certified polio-free by the World Health Organization since no new cases were discovered since 2011. Five years ago, India had documented half of all the global polio cases in the world. High density populations and weak sanitation challenged health workers in the eradication of the disease. Still Rotary persisted in arming health workers, in providing local education and in stocking clinics.
Our Rotary Club meets once a week, just like the other clubs do in 34,000 communities. Differences of politics, culture, religion and background become obscure as we form a bright new tapestry of giving back, locally, nationally and internationally and continuing to wage the war on polio.
The 105th Rotary International Convention will be held in Sydney, Australia on June 1 to 4. On those days, Rotarians from all over the world will gather to reach out to the world and to one another in an environment of welcome, just as we do, every Thursday at noon at the Inn at Nichols Village.