Stories

Barbara Robichaud has been a member of the Rotary Club of Athol-Orange for more than 30 years. She is a past president, a past secretary, a past board member-at-large, and currently sergeant arms.  She has always been the “go-to” Rotarian who volunteers for all fundraising and project committees.

FRIDAY, MAY 27: INDIVIDUAL SEGMENTS

1. Opening Ceremony: In this segment: “Opening Remarks,” by Emcee and District Governor District Diana Nestorova; “Words of Wisdom,” by President Lynn Duffy-O’Shea, of the Rotary Club of the Brookfields; and “Toast to World Peace and Understanding,” by President Rob Bussey, of the Rotary Club of Southborough. https://youtu.be/Fcc_xKCWiDI

2. Hat Contest: This segment is hosted by Steve Levitsky and Sharon Spaulding, of the Rotary Club of Concord. https://youtu.be/YlZ_vMauXVc

3. Top Clubs with Net Membership Growth: This segment is hosted by Ron Bott, of the Rotary Club of Nashoba Valley, who chairs the district's Membership Committee. https://youtu.be/YlZ_vMauXVc

4. RI ‘Service Above Self Award’ to Bud Flannery: This segment is hosted by District Governor District Diana Nestorova, who presents the award – Rotary International’s highest - to Bud Flannery, of the Rotary Club of Acton-Boxborough, who founded that club in 1962. https://youtu.be/gIdIW91Gk0A

5. Assistant Governor Awards and Recognitions: In this segment, those AG awards and recognitions are presented by: District Governor District Diana Nestorova; Assistant Governor Sue Peghiny, of the Rotary Club of Newton; and the district's Public Image chair, Laura Spear, of the Rotary Club of Nashoba Valley. https://youtu.be/wt_7DvqMUng

6. Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Citations: In this segment, the DEI citations are presented by Bill Paulson, of the Rotary Club of Needham, who chairs the district's Social Equity Task Force. https://youtu.be/DYrcRO83qyk

7. Closing Remarks: In this closing segment, District Governor Diana Nestorova previews the Saturday, May 22 session of DisCon ’21. https://youtu.be/yPEJuEgjuQc

FRIDAY, MAY 27: ALL SEGMENTS

https://youtu.be/n8Amz34miis

1. Opening Ceremony: In this segment: “Opening Remarks,” by Emcee and District Governor District Diana Nestorova; “Words of Wisdom,” by President Lynn Duffy-O’Shea, of the Rotary Club of the Brookfields; and “Toast to World Peace and Understanding,” by President Rob Bussey, of the Rotary Club of Southborough.

2. Hat Contest: This segment is hosted by Steve Levitsky and Sharon Spaulding, of the Rotary Club of Concord.

3. Top Clubs with Net Membership Growth: This segment is hosted by Ron Bott, of the Rotary Club of Nashoba Valley, who chairs the district's Membership Committee. 

4. RI ‘Service Above Self Award’ to Bud Flannery: This segment is hosted by District Governor District Diana Nestorova, who presents the award – Rotary International’s highest - to Bud Flannery, of the Rotary Club of Acton-Boxborough, who founded that club in 1962. 

5. Assistant Governor Awards and Recognitions: In this segment, those AG awards and recognitions are presented by: District Governor District Diana Nestorova; Assistant Governor Sue Peghiny, of the Rotary Club of Newton; and the district's Public Image chair, Laura Spear, of the Rotary Club of Nashoba Valley. 

6. Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Citations: In this segment, the DEI citations are presented by Bill Paulson, of the Rotary Club of Needham, who chairs the district's Social Equity Task Force. 

7. Closing Remarks: In this closing segment, District Governor Diana Nestorova previews the Saturday, May 22 session of DisCon ’21. 

To learn more on District 7910, visit https://www.Rotary7910.org.

Robert Mosher never seeks the spotlight and always delivers quality results collaboratively.  

This year, he has:   

• chaired our Bristol Lodge Service Team as he has since his father, the founder, stepped down;  

• WW Rotary has prepared and served dinner at Bristol Lodge once a month every year for more than 30 years. Rob manages all our volunteers and interacts with the MHSA leadership team.  

• chaired our first-ever Christmas Tree and Wreath Sale;  

• Rob created the partnership with the Weston Baptist Church to take over their long-standing Christmas Tree Sale and then directed and  managed all of the success of the incredible experience that delivered volunteer and fellowship opportunities despite COVID restrictions.  

• chaired our scholarship selection team for 10+ years; 

• Rob engages experienced and new members each year to evaluate and select scholarship applications.   

• advised our Interact Club at Weston High School; 

• Despite the pandemic, the Interact Club has been successful this year and its members have joined our volunteer efforts, notably with the Christmas Tree Sale and, now, our spring conservation team efforts.  

• participated on our RYLA selection team;  

• Rob was a part of the team that succeeded in selecting and recognizing 18 students with our local RYLA award and sending 10 (perhaps 12) students to the RYLA OLA.  

• been an invaluable member of our Board and advisor to me throughout my year as president.  
•  

Past President Mark Messina offered this additional, personal perspective:  

“Rob does soldier along quietly. Nothing flashy, just persistent and thorough thoughtfulness that helps keep the project moving forward while including and making available opportunities to anyone who may be interested in joining. I think it is special that he keeps the Bristol Lodge project his dad started with the club alive, and thriving. We haven’t missed a month ever, I think. It is always good to remind new members that his dad and mom were very active with our Rotary Club, and Rob honors their memory through this service.” 

Barbara has been a member of the Athol-Orange Rotary Club for over 30 years.  She is a Past-President, Past Secretary, Board Member-At-Large and currently Sergeant-At-Arms.  She has always been the “go-to” Rotarian that volunteers for all fundraising and project committees.  

This year, she has been the “rock” behind the very stressed President during the unprecedented conditions created by Covid-19.  While, many Rotarians have work and home commitments or health issues that precluded them from volunteering this year, Barbara stepped up for our grant project and our online fundraiser. 

Our grant was for a Habitat for Humanity home build in Athol.  We donated the windows and made a commitment to help.  Barbara not only came to two build days; she was the liaison to coordinate the work dates.  She loved the project so much, that she joined the Local Project Committee, which helped coordinate other aspects of the project including choosing the family. 

One of our fundraisers was on online auction.  She called every Rotarian reminding them to donate.  She picked up items when needed.  She spent days organizing and writing the scripts for all the items.  The auction was a combined event with the local YMCA.  That should net $3,000.  

Barbara joined most weekly meeting via Zoom and reminded in words and deeds the meaning of Rotary.  

John has been a faithful member of this club since 1988.  Throughout that time, he has been a model Rotarian behind the scenes – a Silent Supporter, always ready to help when the Club needed him.   

As a young man, he learned several languages and had the opportunity to travel and live abroad. He is always ready to share his broad knowledge and experience, and is devoted to the idea of cross-cultural understanding through student exchange.  He has been an enthusiastic supporter of educational efforts, especially in Latin America, and a strong supporter of cultural exchange programs.  His love of languages and learning is always evident.   

He quietly stands behind the programs he loves, such as the Clean Water project in Nicaragua, and has made considerable contributions to strengthening the club even when the group may not yet have identified a weakness.  This year he was particularly helpful to us in moving our fundraising efforts to the internet.   

We are grateful for his friendship and his steadfast support, and are happy to nominate John Grew Jr.  as our club’s Unsung Hero. 

1. Meet or reconnect with business people with impeccable business values and ethics.
2. Find new clients, partners, and vendors.
3. Learn something new about your business, how you present your business, or someone else’s.
4. Meet prospective Rotary members. Wait, what? Yes, this “business” initiative has been the source of six new members this year for the Rotary Club of Weston and Wayland.
5. Get results: Here’s a success story: "I had a call today with an international company. At the end of the call, in setting the expectations to the salesperson, I mentioned that I am involved with various projects for the Rotary. It turned out that his father (in Ukraine) has been a Rotarian for years and he's been thinking of joining. The conversation instantly turned more welcoming and warmer. I invited him to one of our Rotary @ Work events and any other meetings we might have. Simply using the word 'Rotary' shifted his perspective and the conversation right away. I thought it was absolutely wonderful and so refreshing – at 7 a.m. for a conference call.”

Rotary Disabilities Advisers meets every Monday at 9:00 a.m. (ET)  via Zoom, to encourage Rotary districts, clubs and members to welcome more people with disabilities into the Rotary organization.

The RDA group consists of Rotarians and non-Rotarians globally, and focuses on areas of accessibility, awareness, inclusion, and support.

Those who have an interest in disability rights are encouraged to attend the next RDA meeting by contacting Ken Masson at daurotary@gmail.com.

Members of all Rotary clubs in District 7910 are invited to the Rotary Club of Westford's St. Patrick's Day Virtual Celebration, this Thursday, March 18, from 12:00 noon to 1:30 p.m. via Zoom.

Dr. Kuhn Hong Lee, PhD, passed away peacefully in his sleep on January 21 at his Cambridge home, at age 83. He was a longtime member of the Rotary Club of Watertown and promoter of peace and justice.

Happy 2021! Here is the  Rotary Public Image Update for January.

Join us on Tuesday, February 23 at 6:30 p.m. for the kickoff of District 7910's Environmental Committee. Its main goal is to support Rotary’s new Area of Focus: Supporting the Environment.

PDG Nabil Oudeh started his Rotary career in Winnipeg Manitoba Canada over 25 years ago.

Nabil is President and Founder of the Centre for Conflict Resolution International Ltd and CEO of UPVERSA INC a leadership development firm.

The Rotary Club of Franklin is holding its very first virtual fundraiser, so this means anyone around the globe can participate. The event is called Say It With Art: A Valentine Date Night & Live Virtual Fine Art Auction. All purchased art will be framed and be shipped to your home address - free shipping within the U.S.

Our top stories are: December's 'Jingle & Mingle' Party Highlghts; Connect with Rotary's Service and Project Partners; and, Upcoming Club Events. 

To read the entire January newsletter, click here.

This is a slightly edited version of a December 29, 2020 article on MySouthborough.com:

This year, the Rotary Club of Southborough had big plans. In addition to supporting annual traditions, the Southborough chapter was looking forward to celebrating its 60th year. Then COVID-19 reared its ugly head.

Rotarians and Rotaractors worldwide unite in service to improve communities near and far. Together, we: promote peace; provide clean water, sanitation, and hygiene; support education; fight disease; save mothers and children; grow local economies; protect the environment; provide disaster relief; and eradicate polio. This work takes commitment, knowledge, leadership, and above all, determination to take action.

Please purchase your Christmas trees this year in Weston, to support scholarships, food-security projects and other charitable initiatives of the Rotary Club of Weston and Wayland.

Over the years, Acton Boy Scouts of America Troop 284 has picked up holiday trees as a fundraiser to support local troop activities. This year, Troop 284 is joining forces with Troop 1, also from Acton, to expand the fundraiser to better support scouting in Acton and our community. This event allows the scouts to give back to the community by helping families with holiday-tree removal.

In these interesting times, it is great to know that your local community members have got your back! The Rotary Club of Neponset Valley Sunrise was out a couple weekend ago, dropping bucks for gift cards from Salem Food Market, El Centro, La Taquria, Midway, Blue Ribbon BBQ, Big Bear Cafe, Brickhouse Cafe, Pizzadoro’s, Cathay Kitchen, Harrow’s, and Risers - all, in Dedham.

The Rotary Cub of Brookline helped support and encourage many families gather virtually to celebrate the holiday this year as well as provide Thanksgiving dinners for clients of the Brookline Food Pantry. The Brookline club also orchestrated a drive-by pick up on Noveember 25 of pre-purchased, traditional Thanksgiving dinners.   From 11:00Am to 5:00PM a parade of cars lined up for curbside pick-up of about 200 pre-purchased, traditional Thanksgiving dinners at Vine Ripe Grill, 1281 West Roxbury Pkwy, Chestnut Hill.  

New videos have been added to Rotary International's Public Service Announcement campaign.

For more than 40 years, Rotary Youth Exchange has been one of Rotary’s best-known programs. As an official program, it dates to 1975 — but, by that time, Rotary clubs had already been sending students abroad for decades with the aim of promoting international understanding and friendship.

A Rotary DIversity, Equity, Inclusion Webinar is set for this November 12 at 4:00 p.m. (ET) The free webinar focuses on The Power of Connection with Diverse Communities, with moderator Beth Keck, practitioner-in-residence for China Studies at The Johns Hopkins University SAIS.

Vice President, Director at Worthy Village, Amanda Lanigan has worked as an educator in various capacities for nearly a decade. A Rotary Peace Fellow, sponsored by district is 7950, she is currently currently studying for her Masters in Conflict and Resolution as a Rotary Foundation Peace Scholar, abroad in Sweden.  Amanda holds a BA degree in History, with minors in Political Science and Secondary Education from Bridgewater State University. She has worked on education and cultural exchange programs in Mexico, Guatemala, and Cape Verde.