Community Service

Strategies

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Strategies to achieve the Bloomington Noon Rotary Goals.

  1. Vocational Visits: Give members a firsthand look at new businesses or services by devoting several meetings to vocational visits (i.e., MN Valley Wildlife Refuge, light rail transit opening, IKEA store.)
  2. Classification Talks: Inform members about vocations of new and old members, their family and interests. Classification talks help Club members recall their names, lead to better friendships and point out areas for service.
  3. STRIVE: Strive is a motivational program targeted to high school seniors who want to improve their present grades. The Strive program has a proven record of accomplishment of helping students, the school, and the community. Together, Rotary, community businesses and organizations, and your local school can make a difference in the lives of one of the most valuable resources in the community. Students in the lower one-third of the class often have the same natural abilities and gifts as those who are in the upper two-thirds of the class. The difference is often motivation, attendance, work habits, self-esteem and success in the classroom. Strive is one way to address all of these factors. Strive is a program that began small and expanded as the success and promotion of the program grew. The program is administered, supervised, and mentored through the efforts of the few enthused individuals from Rotary, the community, and the Kennedy High School that form the Strive Committee. Don Stiles has done a superlative job of leading this program and we as a Club need to give more support (time and money) to it.
  4. Pack to School: Do Pack-to-School as part of a Club meeting so that more members participate and become aware of the needs of disadvantaged kids.
  5. Egg Scramble: Egg Scramble is a community service event developed by Tom Truszinski. Each year it has attracted more kids, parent, grandparents and members. It now has a visible Bloomington Noon Rotary connection.
  6. Salvation Army Bell Ringers: The Salvation Army Bell Ringing is an on- going community service activity that both raises money for the needy and gives visibility to Rotary. Lee Helms and Dick Herberg have been involved.
  7. Service Awards for Juniors: Larry Lee has had discussions with high school principals about developing this award for Juniors. It would help some of them to build a better resume for their college applications and give community recognition to their service.
  8. Meals-on-Wheels: Each of the past 2-3 years, our membership has had a meeting at the meals-on-wheels center and helped distribute meals to the community. This is a worthy cause to support people in need.
  9. Loaves and Fishes: Last year some of our members served the meals and provided cleanup at Creekside Center for one of the nightly dinners. This is also a worthy cause to support people in need and should be expanded.
  10. VEAP: VEAP, the neighbors helping neighbors organization, serves low- income, elderly, and disabled residents in the Bloomington, Edina, and Richfield area. Their four main programs, Social Services, Food Services, Transportation Services and Seasonal Services, respond to the needs of hunger, poverty, disability, isolation, and the ongoing effects of these conditions. Susan Freeman directs this program and Rotary should support worthy cause for people in need.