ROTARY CLUB OF VANDERBIJLPARK TELLS MORE ABOUT THEIR HISTORY AND ACTIVITIES

Just over 63 years ago the Rotary Club of Vanderbijlpark was chartered on 26 March 1956. As a member of Rotary International, we are part of a worldwide association of men and women who, under the motto “Service above Self” have come together in clubs, to use their professional skills in volunteer work to make a difference in our communities and the world.

It is not easy to define what Rotary is. The problem is that Rotary is too large and complex to easily define. We are a member-based organisation, a club-based organisation, and a service-based organisation; we are local, regional, and international; we are community members, businesspeople and professionals, working and retired, active in nearly every country in the world. Every one of our 1.2 million members has a unique set of goals, experiences, and priorities; every one of us has a unique understanding of Rotary.

We answer the question “What is Rotary?” with our actions, by making a difference through our service while having fellowship and fun.

Comprising a global network of 1.2 million neighbours, friends, leaders, and problem-solvers we are spread across some 35,000 Rotary clubs in 220 countries and geographical areas. Through Rotaract Clubs we add more than 250 thousand people aged 18-30, in almost 11 thousand clubs across 184 countries and not forgetting our Interact Clubs which bring together more than 450 thousand young people ages 12-18 in some 20 thousand odd clubs in over 150 countries.

Rotary has been around for over 114 years. In some ways, we’ve changed tremendously, as we’ve grown, matured, and adapted to the changing needs of our members and communities. In our fundamentals, however, we remain the same: an organisation of people with the desire and the belief that we have a shared responsibility to take action on our world’s most persistent issues, working together to:

• Promote peace
• Fight disease
• Provide clean water, sanitation, and hygiene
• Save mothers and children
• Support education
• Grow local economies

In our community the Rotary Club of Vanderbijlpark is involved in many projects, both by ourselves and in partnerships with other Rotary clubs and organisations. Come and visit us at our Monthly Market and Tea Garden at Stonehaven on the 1^st Sunday of each month, or our Christmas Markets each Sunday from end November to Christmas also at Stonehaven. Two of our larger annual events are the “Kids Christmas Party” held on the banks of Loch Vaal and the “Holiday for Senior Citizens at Rotary Badplaas Rotary Holiday resort”. Together with the Riverside Rotary Club and or other associations some projects include the annual “Fast One Cycle Race”, “Children 4 Children“  raising funds and managing bursaries to enable less privileged children to attend Gr R, and our  annual “Carols by Candle Light”.  Numerous other fundraising or community support projects keep us busy throughout the year.

A passion of the Rotary Club of Vanderbijlpark is the various youth programmes of Rotary designed to develop our next generation of leaders and promote world understanding and peace. These include Rotary Youth Exchange, where young people aged between 15-18 exchange with students from other parts of the world and Rotary Youth Leadership Awards aimed at developing the leadership skills of high school students.

A major upcoming project is the GTCOC’s Golden Vaal Blanket Drive where an attempt will be made to set 2 world records with the help of everybody in the Vaal Triangle. These records are “The World’s Biggest Hand Knitted Blanket! “and “The Most Blankets Distributed for Charity within 24 Hours!”  For more information visit the “Golden Vaal Blanket Drive” Facebook webpage.

If you think you could share in our vision; “Together, we see a world where people unite and take action to create lasting change — across the globe, in our communities, and in ourselves” contact Celeste Lance, our Membership Chair, on 0834532178 or Jackie van Waveren, our Incoming President , on  0843265228 for information on how to become involved.

You can also connect on our Facebook Page “Rotary Club of Vanderbijlpark”