Stories


Keep the Children Warm this Winter: Coats for Hugs Keep Our Children Warm this Winter! Donate to our Coat Drive! Every year, as it gets cold, we donate as many coats, hats, and scarves as possible to needy children in our community: Grenville Bakers Boys and Girls Club, Glen Cove Boys & Girls Club, Glen Cove Youth Bureau, Uniondale Elementary Schools, and others. Our volunteers shop for deals on clothes and wrap them beautifully for the children. Last year a little boy was sitting in the warm classroom and did not want to take off his new coat. He was so happy to have received such a gift and did not want to part with it! Please open your heart and help us provide coats! Coats for Hugs	Keep the Children Warm this Winter: Coats for Hugs	Lucia Coffey	2022-10-18 04:00:00Z	Coats for Hugs
Hurrah for Gloves For Hugs! Pictured are just a few of the new coats, hats, and gloves that Locust Valley Rotary Club gave to children this winter. Spearheaded by Rotarians Karen Rosolino and Ellen Hanes, Gloves for Hugs is Locust Valley Rotary Club's annual project to provide warm winter wear to children in need, which began in 2017. This winter a total of 151 children in Locust Valley, Glen Cove, Oyster Bay and Uniondale received gifts of brand new coats, hats and gloves. This was the most children, ever! Many thanks to our partner organizations - the Grenville Baker Boys & Girls Club, the Glen Cove Boys & Girls Club, the Glen Cove Youth Board, the California Avenue School (Uniondale), St. Martha's Social Ministry (Uniondale) and St. Dominic's Outreach - for helping to identify and reach out to children in need. Thanks also to club members, to Rotary District 7255, and to other donors who make Gloves for Hugs possible each year. If you want to support Gloves for Hugs, donations are gladly accepted year-round. Please click here. Read more...	Hurrah for Gloves For Hugs!	Kathy Smith	2022-01-27 05:00:00Z
Helping people with disabilities make their own music Music has been an important part of leading an ordinary life for students at the Music School for Children With Disabilities in Honor of Paul Harris in Lublin, Poland. Founded by Rotary members, the school serves 20 students with various disabilities, including Down syndrome, autism, and visual impairments. The Rotary Club of Lublin-Centrum-Maria Curie-Sklodowska has provided funding with help from Rotary Foundation Matching Grants and the Henryk Wieniawski Musical Society, which houses the school. After their son Mateusz was born with underdeveloped eyes, Mariusz and Joanna Kania looked for ways to help him be active. When he showed an aptitude for music, they looked for a teacher and were thrilled to find the Paul Harris music school. Read more...	Helping people with disabilities make their own music		2015-05-01 00:00:00Z
Finding Safe Haven For years, Angalia Bianca had slept in abandoned buildings throughout Chicago. She stole. She did drugs. She spent time in and out of jail for forgery, theft, trespassing, and possession of narcotics. But after she landed in prison for the seventh time, something changed -- Bianca knew she wanted a better life. She just didn’t know how to make it happen. After serving her time, Bianca sought help from a local homeless organization, A Safe Haven, and moved to its shelter in the Rogers Park neighborhood. Bianca followed the program closely -- she attended all the required meetings, passed drug tests, and volunteered at every opportunity. Read more...	Finding Safe Haven		2015-05-01 00:00:00Z
Saving lives in Ghana What is it like taking a large team to Africa? It has probably been one of the most rewarding experiences in my life. In mid February, I began leading Rotary members from all over the East Coast of the United States through Ghana. I’ve tried to give the team a warm Ghanaian welcome like I’ve received on my earlier trips. A large trip is a real blessing because each person sees Ghana and our work in a different way. A highlight for the team was greeting the chief of Sagadugu. The team got excited about buying goats and food for children in the villages where I support eight churches. It was good to see the pastors of most of the eight churches, and I had to explain that we were just passing through on our way to Bolgatanga. Read more...	Saving lives in Ghana		2015-05-01 00:00:00Z
India celebrates three years without polio Throughout India and around the world, Rotary clubs are celebrating a major milestone: India has gone three years without a new case of polio. The last reported case was a two-year-old girl in West Bengal on 13 January 2011. To mark this historic triumph, Rotary clubs illuminated landmarks and iconic structures throughout the country with four simple but powerful words, "India is polio free." The three-year achievement sets the stage for polio-free certification of the entire Southeast Asia region by the World Health Organization. The Indian government also plans to convene a polio summit in February to commemorate this victory in the global effort to eradicate polio. Read more...	India celebrates three years without polio		2014-02-26 00:00:00Z