John Farrow introduced today's speaker Jacquie Rushlow, co-owner of the Keep Refillery in Kingston. Jacquie and her husband opened their first store in Creemore in March 2020, then another location in Meaford, and then a location in Kingston December 2021. The concept is using your containers to refill your shampoo, hand soap, dish soap, laundry soap etc. from bulk containers and reducing plastic waste.
Police Chief Antje McNeely was introduced by John Farrow. John and President Ana mentioned how pleased they are to have Chief McNeely speaking at this time of International Woman’s Day with this year's theme being “Break the Bias”.
Antje McNeely was appointed Chief of our Police Force in late 2018. Her appointment as the 17th chief and the first female police chief of the 181 year old force continued her groundbreaking career within our police force. She has led in the first of many firsts within the police force.
Chief McNeely joined the police force in 1985 following completion of a Bachelor of Science degree. In 1961, the first woman was hired by the police force,staying for 3 years. In 1966 Linda Paul was an early hire. She emphasised to Chief McNeely “Do not change who you are”.
During her career, Antje McNeely established many firsts within the police force. In 1989, she was the first officer to go on maternity leave. With a young family, she faced many challenges with evening/weekend shifts. In 1992, Antje McNeely was promoted to Sergeant in charge of the sexual assault unit for 10 years. During this time she developed protocols for the working relationship between the police force and community providers.
Robert Reid introduced today’s speaker, Alana Hirtle from the Truro Nova Scotia Rotary Club. After hearing the Club’s story on the news, Alana was asked to speak to the National Committee, then to the whole club. She was here to tell us about the Portapique Buildup Project. This project is to revitalize the Riverside Community Hall, in response to the shooting tragedy that occurred in Portapique almost two years ago.
My parents immigrated to Canada in 1953, and I was born in Toronto 6 months later. Hard work and saving every penny made them successful with a restaurant. Even if business was slow sometimes, they could at least feed the family. We moved to Kingston when I was a year old. I still remember the signs we had in the restaurant window. Fish & chips 85 cents, hamburgers were 25 cents.
I attended KCVI and LCVI, I was not academic, I found I was more creative/artistic. I graduated Sheridan College in fashion design, pattern drafting, couture sewing.
In the late 70's, I moved to Edmonton. Knowing it would take time to find work in my field, I immediately found work as a cocktail waitress in a Disco and Cowboy Cabaret bar. Everything was booming in Alberta, so four months later became Head of Wardrobe of the Alberta Ballet Company. That was a huge learning experience. I went on to costuming for the Citadel theater, Banff school of fine arts and numerous costuming and touring contracts for years. Even, unexpectedly, I held musical theater in prison, in Lethbridge Alberta and one in the Yellowknife prison. My parents were aging and getting ill, so I moved back to Ontario in 1989. Unfortunately there was not a lot of work in my field during the Conservative government.
Tom Zsolnay, a Rotarian since 2004, a member of our club for a year, and President and CEO of University Hospitals of Kingston Foundation, offered an overview of The Rotary Foundation. In his talk you will find answers to these questions:
John introduced our guest speaker Joyce Hostyn to speak about Little Forests Kingston. Joyce presented a very informative graphic presentation.
Joyce wants to restore relationships with the land. There is a biodiversity crisis.
Joyce plans to build as many little forests around Kingston as possible.
Only 25% of forests remain around Kingston, and Queens is starting a project about measuring climate resilience. We have lost 2.9 billion birds since 1970. 900 saplings have been planted on Highway 15 as part of the program. This program also ultimately helps with climate change.
This is worldwide, there are over 100 little forests planted in the Netherlands. Each one is adopted by a school.
The Little Forest movement is not just about planting trees; it is about planting forest ecosystems. A little forest can be planted in the area of 6 parking spaces.
Joyce has started a Go Fund Me page for donations.
Martin mentioned an interesting book called The Hidden Life of Trees that he recommends.
Heather thanked Joyce and wished we would all be part of this. Joyce mentioned they have a newsletter you can sign up for.
Heather was introduced this morning by Michelle Chatten Fiedorec. Michelle prefaced her introduction of Heather with a history of Rotary Fireside Chats/Classification talks. This “Getting to know You” event was conducted by Michelle and Heather in an interview format.
John Farrow introduced our speaker, Pat Armstrong, who has been a Rotarian for 15 years. She is also a member of the Environmental Sustainability Rotary Action Group. (ESRAG). Pat works as an educator for sustainability. She has a BSci (Hons.), DipEd. and is currently completing a doctorate on adolescent leadership for sustainability at RMIT University. Pat has worked in a number of roles (mostly in the areas of waste and resource recovery, climate change and biodiversity), including management, strategic planning, grant writing, training, evaluation and publication.
This morning we had a joint meeting between our club and the Morningside Rotary Club of Johannesburg, South Africa.
John Farrow introduced Michelle this morning. She has lived all across Canada, worked in hospitals and with the RCMP, now runs her own business “Ace Nutrition”.
Sutherland introduced our speaker Mara Shaw, who is the Executive Director of the National Farmers Union of Canada. Before her presentation Mara gave us an update on her daughter Karena whom we all know. She is attending Carleton University now, and is Co-President of their Rotaract Club.
John Farrow introduced Shawn Seargeant, Director of Operations for Lionhearts, an organization that has been on front lines and front pages for feeding people during COVID-19, including recently established warming hub at Stages, now operating 7 days a week.
John Farrow introduced our speaker Sean Goodall who gave his classification talk . . .
John Farrow introduced Greg Podmore. Greg is a member of the Rotary Club of Grand Prairie Alberta, and his club has been involved in a large Guatemala literacy project since 2004. https://www.guatemalaliteracy.org/
Greg told us about the high need for their program among indigenous children in Guatemala. Four out of five are illiterate. Parents cannot afford to send them to school. This is a large grass roots project that receives $200,000 annually from the Rotary Foundation. There are also large donations from around the world. Rotary works with an organization in Guatemala called Cooperative for Education. It all started in Cincinnati by two young men who were teachers in Guatemala who thought that text books could be provided to students there. 600 Rotary Clubs around the world are now involved. It started with text books, and then expanded to computers. Children find the books to be exciting. One third of indigenous people cannot read or write. Teachers receive two years of training. First, a story is read to the children. Then when they understand it, they take the story back and put on puppet shows or act out the stories. Later they learn to write their own stories.
At first, the adults didn’t understand why their children needed this. The books include learning about math, social studies, science and Spanish. 60% of mid level jobs require a knowledge of computers. 95% of the individuals who go through the program are able to get employment.
There is a sustainability plan, and the schools also put in money.
RISE is a youth development program that starts in grade 7. Students often leave school after grade 6. Students are chosen in grades 5 or 6 for RISE. They look for tough and determined kids, and not necessarily the brightest ones. They are also children whose parents cannot afford their education. Without this program, 95% will never finish high school. They will go to work farming like their parents did.
The Rise program is much more than books. They gather monthly for training in things like interviewing for jobs. They also tour places where employment may be located. They come together to see different ways to improve their communities. Each student has a counsellor. They learn about good citizenship, and volunteering in their communities to help needy people. It’s all about breaking the cycle of poverty.
How can you get involved? Rotary Clubs can sponsor a class or a student in the Rise program. Canada has also matched the TRF grants.
The next trip to Guatemala is planned for February 2021.
Greta spoke about attending a Friendship Exchange in Guatemala. John Gale spoke about a local group of Rotarians that attends the Uniendo Conference in Central America, and asked whether this project is linked to the Guatemalan stove project. (They are not.)
The question was asked whether they are mostly dealing with just rural populations or also cities. They are involved in both, but mainly in the western highlands.
Heather Nogrady offered our thanks with a virtual loaf of bread. It was interesting to hear about how this project evolved, and to see photos of children who were so obviously happy and proud, and that said a lot.
There are some 4,000 students who participate in the Food Sharing program in schools. Many of these children receive breakfast, lunch and a snack every school day between September and June. My program, Isthmus, bridges the gap between Friday and Monday for these children giving them a hamper of food for the weekend. With COVID-19, numbers are growing and will continue to do so.
When the schools closed, these programs had to rethink how to get food to these children (and their families). The FSP and Isthmus partnered sharing resources and ideas and, with the help of the Limestone District and Algonquin and Lakeshore Catholic District school boards, and with other partners like Lionhearts and Stock Transportation, we developed a new model. The education boards sought permission from families to share their addresses, phone numbers and number of children in each family. They have subsequently, through their Principals, identified families in need and received the necessary permissions. As of 3:00 pm today, almost 400 families in 31 schools have asked to participate in our food distribution program. Again, this number is sure to grow as situations become more precarious.
We held our first distribution on Friday handing out 226 hampers to 167 families. This test involved the 5 schools that my program serves. Those schools are Rideau Heights PS, JG Simcoe PS, Molly Brant PS, Centennial PS and St. Francis of Assisi CS. Food was purchased or donated on Tuesday and Wednesday. Hampers were packed on Thursday and Friday. The food was delivered between 2:30 pm and 5:30 pm on Friday. Families receiving the food were so thankful!
For this delivery, the hampers included the following items: one block of cheese, one litre of milk, broccoli, a small bag of carrots, 4 apples, 4 bananas, 4 oranges, 2 boxes of mac and cheese, a can of pasta sauce, a package of spaghetti, 2 cups of apple sauce, 2 juice boxes, a loaf of bread and 2 packages of oatmeal. Not enough food to get the family through a whole week but we assume they have other sources of food.
The bread is donated by Cobbs bakery through Lionhearts. The rest of the food is purchased at wholesale prices from Deodatos, Grants No Frills and the Wholesale Club.
Going forward, the plan is to run the Isthmus program (5 schools) one week and the Food Sharing Project the next (26 schools) alternating between the two.
Paul Elsley, Rotary Club of Kingston
P.S. Since I first wrote this note, the number of schools and families has gone up.
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| Elizabeth Cohoe, Sandi Dodds | Elizabeth Cohoe, Sandi Dodds, Martin Thomas |
The Mess Studio offers provides opportunity for people to come, connect, and create art in a non-threatening atmosphere of love and acceptance. Bringing a diverse community together, The Mess aims to build relationships through art. Through community building, it strives to empower others to make healthier life choices. The Mess welcomes anyone who is interested in creating art and connecting with others. It operates in the lower hall of St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
The Mess began in 2009 and now includes a pottery studio. The Rotary Club of Cataraqui-Kingston has been a supporter for eight years.
All people who participate in The Mess activities are members. In addition to creating art, they help with running the program including refreshments and meals. The Mess provides opportunities to learn new skills, which contributes to healing lives that have been broken down. "Getting Messy" at The Mess restores dignity, self-reliance, confidence, and self-worth.
The grant will help to continue to strengthen the pottery program, including cost of firing, which is done off-site. New to the program will be a series of three two-hour instructional classes for up to six of the community members, provided by Amaranth Stoneware. The sessions will provide much-needed knowledge that will ensure the continued success of the pottery studio. Amaranth has recently asked to display in one of their stores the work of one of The Mess members.
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Elizabeth Cohoe, Angela Stewart, Holly Gwynne-Timothy | Elizabeth Cohoe, Angela Stewart, Holly Gwynne-Timothy, Martin Thomas |
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| Elizabeth Cohoe, Amanda Dyson, Gary Cassel | Elizabeth Cohoe, Amanda Dyson, Gary Cassel, Martin Thomas |
Pathways to Education empowers high-school-aged youth who live in Rideau Heights and Inner Harbour Neighbourhoods. Youth in their program are working towards graduating from high school with the goal of attending post-secondary education, securing meaningful employment, or entering a skilled trade. Pathways currently serves 350 students and supports close to 300 program alumni.
Drawing on a 2018 program evaluation, Pathways will expand its catchment area to work with students In Grade 7 & 8 from feeder schools. A Facilitator of Group Mentoring will work at Molly Brant and St. Francis schools twice a week, teaching an experiential learning curriculum and building strong relationships. The grant will provide food, transportation, and materials for the program. Forty students will benefit from this program expansion.
The second use of the grant will be a program called Pathways Academy, for students to develop hard and soft skills to make their way in the world. The program includes field trips and exploration of employment. The funding will be used for an outdoors club, where students will learn how to be active in nature and to care for themselves.
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