Rotary Club Awards
$5500 in Community Grants

Names from l to r are: Gloria Hansen - United
Way, Janice Bartels - Rotary Community Service
Co-Chair, Chuck Quinn - Oahe, Inc., Beverly Lewis -
Rawlins Library, Katie Nagle - Central SD RSVP, John
Foreman - Junior Shooters, Kristie Maher - SD
Discovery Center, Vern Brakke - Junior Achievement,
Jamie Breske - Habitat for Humanity.
Pierre, SD -- Nine local
organizations were awarded a total of $5500 in
community grants from the Pierre-Ft. Pierre Rotary
Club during their May 17, 2010 meeting.
Internationally, Rotary clubs address critical
issues at home and abroad by providing health care
and medical supplies, clean water, food, job
training, youth development, and education to
millions of people in need.
The projects
selected to receive support locally fit into these
international priorities. In the area of youth
development the following received funding:
Pierre Junior Shooters - $250 – to defray
costs of travel to attend the National BB Gun
Championship.
SD Discovery Center US FIRST Lego League – to
equip a new team to join the local league.
Central SD RSVP - $400 – To support the
summer reading buddy program at the Pierre Indian
Learning Center.
Rawlins Municipal Library/Oahe First Book -
$400 – to purchase 200 recommended books for the
Read & Tell activity for the summer reading program.
Junior Achievement - $550 – to fund a new
middle school JA class on personal finance and
global economies.
SD Discovery Center - $2500 – This is an
annual contribution to support the science education
mission of the Center. The current contribution will
help reduces fees for youth science workshops
year-round.
In the area of
job training, Oahe, Inc was awarded $400 to be used
to help provide employment opportunities for
clients.
To meet the
local need for safe, affordable housing, the
following projects received support:
Capital Area United Way - $250 – to fund “Day
of Caring” projects to benefit the elderly.
Oahe Habitat for Humanity - $500 – In
sponsorship of the local volunteers that will ride
in the Habitat 500 bike ride. The funds will support
local building projects.
The club raises the funds by renting and setting up
exhibit hall booths for conventions.
“It a fun way to get to know each other and generate
funds for great causes in our community.” commented
Scott Isburg, club president.
These community grants are awarded annually. Local
organizations can find the application at
www.pierrerotary.com
The Pierre-Fort Pierre
Rotary Club hosted a Group Study Exchange from
Ibaraki, Japan in September 2009.
The Group Study Exchange
program of The Rotary Foundation of Rotary
International is a unique cultural and vocational
exchange opportunity for young business and
professional men and women between the ages of 25
and 40 in the initial years of their professional
life. For four to six weeks, team members study the
host country’s institutions and ways of life,
observe their own vocations as practiced aboard,
develop personal and professional relationships and
exchange ideas. The Japanese team was led by
Mitsukaido Rotary Club member Ryukai Seto, a head
priest at a Buddhist temple. His team included Ikuko
Gunji, 35, who works in public relations at the
Japan Atomic Energy Agency; Junko Mizui, 36, a
ceramic artist and teacher; Masahiro Nakano, 27, an
accountant; and Kentaro Okano, 32, a community
affairs official. The team visited Sioux Falls,
Vermillion, Brookings, Watertown, Mitchell and Rapid
City, South Dakota in addition to Pierre-Fort
Pierre. Chuck Schroyer chaired the local committee
that oversaw this exchange.
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Front row:
Anne Gormley, Iku, Kentaro, Jun, Hiro, Ryu,
Back row: Kelly Glot, Larry Lingstad,
Wally Thompson, Tom Tveit
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