SUMMER MEETINGS IN JULY AND AUGUST CHANGE LOCATION EACH WEEK - HOSTED AT ROTARIAN HOMES. SEE UPCOMING CLUB EVENTS FOR MORE INFORMATION RE HOST AND ADDRESS EACH WEEK.

Welcome to the Rotary Club of St. Marys

Service Above Self

We meet In Person

Mondays at 6:30 PM

Rotary Parkview building

22 St. Andrews St. N., St. Marys
Parkview banquet hall, lower level east entrance
St. Marys, ON N4X 1C5
Canada

District Site

Bulletins

Venue Map

Mailing Address: 12-20 Huron St. N, St. Marys, ON N4X 1C5

Our 2023-2024 District Grant project in action

The Rotary Club of St. Marys are sponsoring the weekly Saturday introductory and advanced classes of ESL for Ukrainians for the next six months. Our club provided dictionaries, grammar and speech booklets to assist with their learning the English language.

Rotarian Andrew Middleton who is with ESL teacher, Tetiana Pipus, showing three of the dictionaries that have been made available to the 33 Ukrainian families. The second picture shows students participating in the advanced ESL class. The youngest members of the class were not very talkative but it was great having Bobby and David in attendance.

Rotary Club of St. Marys welcomes exchange student from Taiwan

Youth Exchange Officer, Mark Oliver, met our inbound exchange student from Taiwan at the Toronto airport. Her name is Ching-En Li. Her adopted English name is Eunice.

She is currently living with Walter and Teresa Pearce who are the parents of former exchange student to Croatia, Angie Pearce.

Rotarians please include Eunice in your family outings. Let's make her as welcome as possible.

Rotary Club of St. Marys presents cheque to the local library

On Friday, September 1, 2023, members of the Rotary Club of St. Marys Literacy Committee presented a cheque to the St. Marys Public Library to cover the costs for books donated to the library in honour of our guest speakers for the coming year. The books selected for the children’s library reflect Rotary’s 7 areas of focus.

Pictured around Rotary's Open Book statue that was gifted to the library when the Rotary Club of St. Marys designed and installed the Rotary Reading Garden in 2005:

(L-R) back row-Sarah Andrews, CEO St. Marys Public Library, and Rotarian Linda Schuyler; front row (L-R) Kate Long, Cataloguing and Acquisitions Clerk at the Library, and Rotarian Diane O’Shea.

Tribute to Gordon Lightfoot

Will Kennedy off to Korea for one year Rotary exchange

St Marys Rotary Exchange Student William Kennedy 2023-24 has arrived safely in South Korea and was met by his host family.

If you are interested in being a host family for exchange student coming to St Marys, please message us for further details.

https://www.facebook.com/rotarystmarys

Calling all St. Marys based students from DCVI and St. Michael's

Calling all St. Marys-based students from DCVI and St. Michael’s!

The Rotary Club of St. Marys is currently accepting applications from candidates who would like to go on Rotary Youth Exchange in August 2024. (A year from now.) Candidates must be between 15.5 and 18.5 years of age by August 2024. The deadline for applying is September 1st, 2023.

Youth Exchange has been one of the cornerstone programs of Rotary International for more than 60 years. The Rotary Club of St. Marys has been involved in Youth Exchange for over 50 years. To date, St. Marys has sent and hosted more than 125 young people! The goal of Rotary Youth Exchange is to strengthen world peace, one exchange at a time.

Benefits of Rotary Youth Exchange:

- Enjoy the experience of a lifetime while living and studying abroad.

- Become fluent in another language.

- Learn another culture.

- Make life-long friends from around the world.

- Choose from over 45 countries that participate in Rotary Youth Exchange.

- You will receive extensive training and preparation before you leave.

- Rotary Youth Exchange is the most-affordable exchange program.

Are you ready to challenge yourself? For more information, send us a message or reply to this post. Our Youth Exchange Officer will be happy to answer any questions you have. Remember, the application deadline is September 1st, 2023.

Contact the Rotary Club of St. Marys to apply for this wonderful opportunity. http://www.facebook.com/rotarystmarys

Check out this link for more information. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pbTJ3z4B4Iw

Thanks to Lorne Eedy for his video of the Rotary fireworks

We will miss Janice Mitchell!

We will miss you! Goodbye!

On Monday, June 19th, Janice Mitchell served the last dinner to our club. After 15 1/2 years of service to our club, Janice decided that it is time to cut back and take it easier and maybe even take a long vacation. We will miss her delicious, nutritious meals and her friendly smile and conversations. Her work ethics mirror those encouraged by Rotary and to recognize her service to our club and to the community, the Rotary Club of St. Marys presented Janice with a Paul Harris Fellow certificate of recognition. Janice joins a small group of non-Rotarians in our community who have achieved this recognition level. Pictured below is Janice Mitchell and club President, Charlie Hammond.

Brews and Food Fest - June 18th, 2023

Brews and Food Fest is coming back!

Please join the Rotary Club of St. Marys

on Sunday, June 18th

for an afternoon of craft beer and local food trucks.

Please visit www.brewsandfood.ca

for more information and to purchase tickets

- and hurry!!

36th Annual Rotary Scramble Golf Day- June 1st, 2023

Rural Urban 2023

Rural Urban 2023!

This event would not have been possible without the incredible support of our corporate sponsors, event coordinators, venue operator, food caterer, volunteers, and over 400 guests.

Besides great food and fellowship, we were entertained by author, playwright, and public speaker, Dan Needles who kept us laughing.

2022 Rotary New Year Fireworks

Rotary celebrates Basic Education and Literacy

Since 2013, the Rotary Club of St. Marys has been donating books to the St. Marys Public Library in honour of their guest speakers. To date, almost 430 books have been donated to the library. On September 20, 2022, members of our Literacy Committee presented Library Acquisitions and Cataloguing Officer, Kate Long, with a cheque to cover the cost of the books purchased for this program.

Pictured around Rotary's Open Book statue that was gifted to the library when the Rotary Club of St. Marys designed and installed the Rotary Reading Garden in 2005.

Standing: Pierre Chateauvert (L) and Diane O' Shea

Seated: Linda Schuyler (L) and Kate Long

UPDATE - Keep them coming

Update October 7th - With Aug and October bags collected, our community has now diverted 10,539 outer milk bags from our land fill site.

A BIG THANK YOU FROM THE ROTARY CLUB OF ST. MARYS!

More bags! Seven large bags of outside milk bags were picked up from McDonalds Your Independent Grocer on August 19th. These bags will not be going to landfill but will be made into sleeping mats. Keep the bags coming.

Outer milk bags picked up from the McDonald's Your Independent Grocer on August 19th, 2022, and on October 14th, 2022.

RCSM presents cheque to CBHFM

On Saturday, June 18th, Incoming President Charlie Hammond presented Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum President, Jeremy Diamond with a $15000 cheque as a partial payment towards our pledge to CBHFM.

2022 World Immunization Week

When @Rotary formed PolioPlus in 1985 to #EndPolio, polio paralyzed 1000+ children every single day in 125 polio-endemic countries. Because #VaccinesWork, just 2 countries remain wild polio-endemic. Afghanistan has reported 1 case and Pakistan has reported zero cases so far this year.

#COVID19 reminds us that disease outbreaks anywhere can be a threat everywhere. That's why @Rotary#End Polio is more committed than ever to ending the threat of polio for every child.

2022-2023 RI Theme - Imagine

RI PRESIDENT-ELECT SETS THEME FOR 2022-2023

RI President-elect Jennifer Jones imagines a Rotary where members act to make their dreams become reality and they make the most of their club experiences. She urges members to engage more with each other and use these connections to build partnerships that change the world. Speaking to District Governors-elect at this year's Governor's Training Assembly, RI PE Jones announced that the 2022-2023 Rotary International Annual Theme is Imagine Rotary!

Canadian Jennifer Jones is incoming RI President

Image result for Rotarian Jennifer Jones. Size: 136 x 204. Source: www.dailyherald.com

Rotary International President-elect Jennifer Jones wants members to imagine the possibilities in the change they can make to transform the world.

Jones, a member of the Rotary Club of Windsor-Roseland, Ontario, Canada, revealed the 2022-23 presidential theme, Imagine Rotary, as she urged people to dream big and harness their connections and the power of Rotary to turn those dreams into reality.

Rotary helps on Giving Tuesday save the environment and the homeless

Strong As Stone recipients

On November 1st, 2021, Andrea Macko, Events Coordinator, Town of St. Marys brought greetings and congratulations from the Mayor and Town Council. The Rotary Club of St. Marys was presented with the 'Strong As Stone' award for all that we do for the community.

Andrea Macko announces that the Rotary Club of St. Marys has received

the 'Strong As Stone' award.

Three Board members accept the 'Strong As Stone' award on behalf of the Rotary Club of St. Marys.

Pictured in the forefront (L-R) Rotarian Ron Aitken, Club President John McGarry and Rotarian Doug Goudy.

Congratulations Rotary!

Tree planting at Meadowridge Park

Rotarian Ron Aitken, organizer of the Rotary Club of St. Marys' environmental project advises that DCVI students helped plant 400 trees at the Meadowridge Park (Meadowvale & Southvale area). Our club purchased a variety of trees from the Upper Thames River Conservation Authority (UTRCA). Thanks to the Town of St. Marys and UTRCA for working with the Rotary Club. There will be more trees to be planted in spring 2022.

We are very thankful that the DCVI students helped with the planting of the trees.!

Thank you to sponsors, retailers and supporters

Thank you to all Keepsake Tote sponsors, local retailers who sold our totes and supporters who purchased our totes as a keepsake memory of our town,

John McGarry inducted as 2021-2022 Club President

On June 28th, the Rotary Club of St. Marys ended the Rotary year by welcoming the new District Governor Erin Shankie and the new Assistant Governor Paul Roulston to preside over our meeting to induct our new President, John McGarry and install the 2021-2022 Board of Directors.

We thank Andrew Middleton who served his entire year as our President during the pandemic. It was not a typical Presidential Changeover as we are still living under COVID restrictions. Even though this was an unusual meeting, it was none the less an auspicious occasion.

Congratulations, President John!

Pictured below- L-R: John McGarry and Erin Shankie.

Rotary Club launches new Keepsake Tote Campaign

Posted by Colleen Burghardt

Rotary Club launches new St. Marys Keepsake Tote Campaign

The Rotary Club of St. Marys has teamed up with local sponsors to release a freshly designed reusable tote bag featuring scenic imagery of the town that’s Strong as Stone! Available now at select retailers, the Rotary Club’s new Keepsake Tote is sure to be the ideal replacement for everyone’s shopping needs.

A collaborative effort

In cooperation with the Town of St. Marys, Rotarians coordinated the design to include a collage of unique local photos as well as the town’s new slogan. In support of the Rotary Club’s fundraising efforts, many local businesses helped finance the project. Their company logos proudly frame the design and serve to remind everyone of our town’s resilient and enduring character.

Perfect for many purposes

The totes will become a great keepsake memory for visitors to St. Marys and also make a perfect gift or promotional item for those who appreciate beauty and function. The polyfabric bags hold up to 30 lbs, are durable and consist of 10% recycled material.

How to get yours

Look for the Keepsake Tote poster in store windows to identify the local businesses who are selling the totes. Buyers can also shop online by visiting www.rotarystmarys.ca to purchase the bags in quantities of 5 for $25. Rotarian Len Hawkins will arrange pickup of online orders.

Support St. Marys

The Rotary Club of St. Marys is always seeking ways to better serve our community. It’s been more than ten years since the Rotary Club introduced its last tote bag fundraiser, so it decided, what better time to breathe new life into a community cause? As we turn the corner on COVID-19, let’s focus on the shared beauty, strength and distinction of our town. Please patronize valued sponsors and watch for Rotary Club thank-you ads featuring these dedicated businesses.

Help spread the news

If you’re online, participate in the social media coverage by liking and sharing Rotary Club of St. Marys posts.

www.rotarystmarys.ca