As we enter our 89th year as a Rotary Club, we can point with pride to our past and with confidence to our future. The club is strong both financially and in terms of membership. We have worthy on-going activities and projects to benefit both the community and the world at large.
This past year, we supported a water project in Ethiopia, provided scholarships to graduating seniors at New Britain and Berlin High Schools, and contributed significant amounts to local charities and organizations. These programs will be continued and strengthened in 2009-2010.
Recent Events
New Britain-Berlin Rotary Club Holiday Wreath Sale
Members once again sold holiday wreaths to support their scholarship fund. This was the 12th year that the club has undertaken this means of raising the necessary funds to support the many scholarships which they award to high school students in the Spring. The club's goal is to raise the funds necessary to pay for the $9000 in scholarships given each year to local high school students.
This year the club sold 1100 wreaths at $20 each. Each member of the club was responsible for selling at least 6 wreaths. Several Rotary Club members visited other clubs in the area and were successful in selling additional wreaths to our fellow Rotarians in our district.
Dictionaries Program
Once again, members of the Rotary Club presented dictionaries to 10 elementary schools in New Britain. The distribution took place in November and December when a total of seven Rotarians participated in this project which saw 838 happy faces of the children as they received their own personal dictionary. Students receiving the gifts were all third graders. Click here to see the complete.
International Dinner
A dinner was held on November 18, 2009 at Memorial Hall on the campus of Central Connecticut State University. It was the 25th annual dinner sponsored by the Rotary Club for International students who are attending CCSU. The purpose of the dinner is to introduce the international students to a "US only" custom........ that of our Thanksgiving Dinner. Approximately 70 students and faculty attended the event which was chaired by Dariusz Orlowski who also served as MC for the evening. A full turkey dinner was served with all the "fixens" complete with pumpkin pie for dessert. At this event, the Robert McFarlane scholarship award was presented to a student as is done every year. CCSU contributes a matching scholarship.