All Rotarians, family and friends are invited to the first ever “Circling the Wagons” party on July 2 at the Railway Village. Please arrive a bit early so we can get all the cars comfortably seated before the festivities begin. Rain date is July 9.

Last Thursday President Rick Elder outlined some of the many club accomplishments during his year as club president. His first official task was answering a phone call from the our Rotary District office with the news that our “Eat Well, Play Well” project was accepted and we would receive about $10,000.00 in grant money for building gardens, teaching gardening and healthy eating at the Edgecomb Eddy School and the YMCA Harbor Montesorri Program. The grant also included money for playground equipment at the Edgecomb Eddy School. What a great start.

Some of the other highlights of this past Rotary year include our record breaking annual auction, which raises substantial money for projects, but also engages Rotarianns, their families and all the community members,( Friends of Rotary) who volunteer their time and hard work to make this event such a success. We could never do it without the help of so many members of this amazing community.

This year the Rotary Club provided support for the Food Pantry, Veterans, Hometown Heros, Student Aid Fund, Community Lunches, the Seasonal Workers Bike Program, Polio Plus and many other local and international programs.

But, then COVID-19 hit,our first “Zoom” meeting was on April 23. We have been meeting weekly via Zoom since then.The Restaurant Gift Certificate program was started on one of our first “Zoom” meetings. We have raised almost $4,000 to support our local restaurants and provide gift certificates to local health care workers.

The club brought in many new members this year under the guidance of Elder, even our first virtual member. They must have heard about all the fun we have. We also passed a “Rule of 30” offering reduced dues to members under 30 years old.

Many thank yous and congratulations went out to president Rick Elder for the success of this Rotary Year and his ability to bring the club together during this time.

Even in these challenging times we love new members. You can reach us at www.boothbayharborrotary.org