Thursday 21 February 2013

Upcoming Events

Good day all:

Just a quick note to let you know what is coming up for the Estevan Rotary Club.

We are in full swing gathering items for our 50th Annual Rotary Live Auction which is slated for Thursday, March 21, 2013 at the Estevan Shoppers' Mall.  We will need Rotarians there that afternoon to help set up.  Please contact Dennis B if you need more information. 

Cory P and Charles O are eagerly awaiting their PETS training that they are attending on March 15-17 in Russell, Manitoba.

For our next meeting on Feb 26, 2013 our registration desk is Cody S and Laurel B.  Our greeters for the meeting will be Raj S and Tim S while delivering our Rotary Minute will be Donna F. 

If you missed our Feb 19, meeting you missed an opportunity to listen to our latest short term exchange student who spent a month in the south part of Germany.  She shared her experience and several pictures in a very good presentation. 

Currently we have a GSE team from our district traveling in India.  If you wish to follow their experience, you can follow them on twitter at https://twitter.com/2013GSEIndia or their blog site at
http://blogs.thestarphoenix.com/2013/02/10/rotary-district-5550-group-study-exchange-to-bangalore-india/?postpost=v2#content

We are still looking for a couple Rotarians that wish to host the incoming GSE team from India in May.  All they need is a room to sleep for a few nights and a meal or two.  It is a very good experience to expand your knowledge about India as well as the role Rotary plays world wide.  If you are interested in hosting a team member, please let Kim M or Charles O know and they will get you more information about dates and times. 

Friday 6 July 2012

Brian Pilloud is our new president



(L-R) New Rotary Club of Estevan president Brian Pilloud accepts the presidential gavel from past-president Tyler Knibbs. Brian's one-year term is club president started on July 1, and he was presented with the presidential gavel on July 3. At that meeting, he shared some of his background in the financial sector, including his travels through Manitoba prior to his arrival in Estevan. We look forward to Brian serving as president during the upcoming year. 

Friday 22 June 2012

Rotary Lobsterfest was a big success

Rotarians, and others, gather for a group picture with the giant lobster that  was at Lobsterfest.
Thanks to Terri Williams, who designed this sign, and others, that greeted people at Lobsterfest.

Lobsterfest supporters enjoyed a fresh, whole Atlantic lobster.


Raj Singh and Leann Boehm stirred and served butter for the lobster. 

Art Beselt was among those who cooked steaks at Lobsterfest. 
Former Rotarian Vern Symons and current Rotary member Reynold Bert prepared the lobster. 
The Rotary Club of Estevan recently hosted its biggest fundraiser of the year, our annual Lobsterfest.
We served steak and lobster to more than 700 people. Not only did people support us by purchasing the lobster, but many of them placed bids on silent auction items or purchased 50/50 tickets.
This year's Lobsterfest was the biggest yet in terms of the number of tickets sold. 
A number of community groups volunteered to help make the event possible.
Proceeds from Lobsterfest will be used to support various Rotary projects in the community and around the world. We were able to make a couple cheque presentations at the start of the evening. (See the story below for more information).
Rotary would like to thank everybody for the support they showed to make Lobsterfest another huge success. We'll see you again next year. 


Rotary supports two organizations

(L-R) RM of Coalfields Reeve Stan Lainton, Estevan City Councillor Roy Ludwig, Rotary Club of Estevan president Tyler Knibbs, St. Joseph's Hospital CEO Greg Hoffort and RM of Benson Councillor Larry Mack participated in a cheque presentation for the new STARS Air Ambulance helipad. 

(L-R) Rotary Club of Estevan president Tyler Knibbs presented a cheque to Hearthstone Community Campaign chair Vern Buck.


The Rotary Club of Estevan was proud to continue their support for one organization, and make a cheque presentation to another, during our annual Lobsterfest on June 8.
Rotary presented cheques to the new Hearthstone Community Campaign, which is trying to construct a new regional nursing home in Estevan, and the Regional Health Care Committee, which is constructing a new helipad for the STARS Air Ambulance.

The club and the foundation each donated $10,000 to Hearthstone.
Rotary announced last year that it would contribute a total of $100,000 over five years to the new nursing home. The donation works out to $10,000 a year, over five years, from both the club and the foundation. The presentation on June 8 marked the second payment to Hearthstone from the Rotary club and its foundation. 


The Regional Health Care Committee received $20,000 from the club. The money will be directed towards a helipad for the STARS Air Ambulance. Construction is underway on the helipad, which is near St. Joseph's Hospital.
The donation from Rotary will take care of all of the money that the health committee had to raise for the helipad. Contributions from the provincial government and work-in-kind donations meant that the committee had to raise $20,000 of the estimated $500,000 cost.

Rotary presents funds from Carol Festival


The Rotary Club of Estevan presented cheques to local band programs on June 19. Band programs for the Estevan Comprehensive School, the Holy Family Roman Catholic Separate School Division, and public schools in the city and in the rural areas each received $325. The funds were raised during the Rotary Carol Festivals in 2010 and 2011. Participating in the cheque presentations were: (L-R) band instructors Kyle Whitehead, Shauna Meek, Stacy Grunert and Corinne Kuchinka, and Rotary Club of Estevan president Tyler Knibbs. 

Sunday 6 May 2012

Clean-up will be May 12.

Rotary Club of Estevan members will be busy on Saturday, thanks to the annual Highway 47 South clean-up.
Volunteers will meet at 8 a.m. at the Pro-Wash Shell. Then they will be walking up and down Highway 47 south of the city, picking up garbage from ditches.
Local 4-H members have assisted with the clean-up in the past, and will likely be asked to participate again.
We weren't able to do a clean-up last year, due to the spring flooding that swamped Highway 47 South. So there could be extra litter this year, which means we could need even greater support.

Rotary auction was again a success

The Rotary Club of Estevan's annual auction on April 26 at the Estevan Shoppers Mall was a big success, as the club raised thousands of dollars for their projects in the community and around the world.
Hundreds of items were auctioned off during the three-hour event, including clothes, gift certificates and various forms of merchandise. The products that were sold during the auction fetched an estimated $10,600.
A few thousand dollars were collected through cash donations.

The event is Rotary's second-largest fundraiser of the year.
Auction proceeds will be directed to a wide variety of Rotary projects in the community. Those community efforts include: the 4-H calf show and sale, 4-H speaking contests, the Estevan Salvation Army, Christmas hampers, Meals on Wheels delivery, the Rotary Youth Leadership Awards, the Estevan Arts Council's Stars for Saskatchewan program, the Envision Counselling and Support Centre, parks and recreation facilities in Estevan, Penta Completions Estevan Minor Football, and Estevan's new regional nursing home.
Other initiatives include sponsoring a local student to attend Adventures in Citizenship in Ottawa, the Model United Nations Assembly in Winnipeg, and the short-term and long-term student exchange programs. 
Thanks to everybody who purchased items at the auction, the Rotarians and the other volunteers who worked throughout the evening, and to Mack Auction Services for once again doing a great job of selling the items.