Christmas is the season for giving back and helping others, and the five local Rotary clubs are doing just that.
Christmas comes every week of the year for Peninsula Rotary. Each Thursday night, you will find members at Cobs Bread at South Point. Through the generosity of Cobs, all leftover bread is donated to a charity each day.
The Thursday night charity in this instance is Women’s Place. The dedication and commitment of members is shown as they gather the bread, take it to Women’s Place and bag it.
More than 70 people come to the centre on Friday mornings for bread. It is also used for the hot-lunch program at Women’s Place.
White Rock Peninsula Rotary is donating $750 to this valuable hot-lunch service to help offset the two bread deliveries that will be missed over Christmas.
They take very seriously their commitment to “feed the hungry” in the community all year long, not just at Christmas time. A big thank you to Cobs in South Point for your generous donation of the bread.
White Rock Rotary is also spreading goodwill and cheer. On Nov. 25, they assisted Whitecliff Retirement Residence with sales of poinsettia plants at the club’s weekly lunch meeting.
All proceeds will go to Sources’ White Rock South Surrey Food Bank. Members also decorated the White Rock Rotary Club Christmas Tree at Morgan Crossing.
On Dec. 9, White Rock Rotarians will be singing Christmas Carols with the seniors at Morgan Place Nursing Home.
Every year, Semiahmoo Rotarians purchase gifts and food for moms and children living in local shelters. This year, the need has increased and Santa’s elves are busy shopping for gifts. Food hampers are also being wrapped.
Our annual Safeway Gift Card program has raised more than $13,000 for the local Food Bank since 2010. The food bank can triple this money with their buying power. These cards will also be given in the food baskets to needy moms.
In November, Semiahmoo Rotary provided hands-on help to the Semiahmoo Animal League Inc. (SALI) organization, with a general cleanup of the property the animal-advocacy group are renting for the next year.
There is an old barn on the site that they wanted to house their two horses in, but it needed work. So the members undertook cleanup and repair. SALI puts together abused animals with at-risk youth in our community.
• It looks like White Rock’s 45th annual Polar Bear Swim has found new sponsors with the five local Rotary clubs.
The clubs are taking over from the Lions Club that sponsored the New Year’s Day event for many years. Rotary did not want this important community tradition to die after the Lions Club folded.
Registration opens at 10:30 a.m. on Jan. 1, with the swim at noon.
We are supported by Crescent Beach marine search and rescue (RCM-SAR5), YWCA, Interact, Jimmy Flynn’s and the City of White Rock.
For information, contact Rotary District 5050 assistant governor, Linda Coyle – Linda.Coyle@kpu.ca
• The local Rotary Clubs would like to wish everyone in the community a Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays and a Happy New Year. Why not visit one of the club’s in the new year?
Valerie Giles writes monthly on behalf of the Semiahmoo Peninsula’s five Rotary Clubs –valeriegiles@shaw.ca