At our meeting on December 10 the Grant Committee and the HBASF gave away over $50K to various non-profit organizations in Bluffton. This is where all the club’s hard work goes: back into the community. Ten organizations applied for a received grants from the BRC. During the meeting, the recipients provided insight into their organizations and how the funds will be used. The Grants Committee is comprised of Mary O’Neill, Mike Tripka, Jim Evans and Louisa Harrison. In addition, Historic Bluffton Foundation, Meals on Wheels, Bluffton/Hilton Head Symphony, Waddell Mariculture Center and the Bluffton Rotary Club received funds generated from the Historic Arts & Seafood Festival, held annually in October. It was a great day for these happy recipients and Rotarians too!
Our club has donated the following goods this year:
• We donated to the local Food Pantry: (AME Church): 25 Turkeys, 20 Hams, 35 Bags of Fresh Produce and 5 bags of cranberries (Thanksgiving)
• We donated over 275 shoes to families from Pre-K through 8th grade supporting 4 area schools, MC Riley, Red Cedar, Bluffton Elementary and Okatie Elementary through our Happy Feet Program. In addition we partnered with the Lions Club to provide 7 pairs of socks for each child.
• Ronald McDonald House in Savannah: We provide 1 Meal a quarter, bought, cooked, and served for 30 patients’ families and we have already done a Sunday in September and a Sunday in November.
• We have filled the Bluffton Self Hep Van once with food donations and once with toy donations
Our club has donated monetarily to the following as part of our charitable giving program:
We were able to gather a significant number of toys from our members at our meeting on the 10th, and we helped shuttle more toys from Hampton Hall on Saturday. Julia at Self Help has informed us that they have over 1300 children signed up to get gifts this year. We transported two large loads of toys from Hampton Hall to BSH.. Our satellite club also collected toys at their meeting on the 10th.
Regardless of issue, please let us know if something is going on to prevent you from attending our meetings. We have many members who can help, pray, or just call to lift your spirits.
Club Dues Invoices - please submit payment at your earliest convenience. Several Rotarians have outstanding balances from prior invoices - if you are unsure of who you are, please reach out to Don Kensey, Rotary Club of Bluffton Treasurer.
Do you worry about Alzheimer’s? We do not have a cure for Alzheimer’s disease, but we must find one. Finding a cure starts with you. Every year the CART (Coins for Alzheimer’s Research Trust) Fund gives research grants focused on finding a cure for Alzheimer’s disease.
Have you given to the CART Fund this year? The CART Fund is dedicated to raising funds to provide “seed” money for cutting edge, high impact research in hopes of finding a cure/prevention for Alzheimer’s disease. The goal of the CART Fund is to encourage exploratory and developmental Alzheimer’s disease research projects within the United States. This is accomplished by providing financial support for the early and conceptual plans of those projects that may not yet be supported by extensive preliminary data but have the potential to substantially advance biomedical research. These projects should be distinct from those designed to increase knowledge in a well-established area unless they intend to extend previous discoveries toward new directions or applications.
If you would you like to donate to the C.A.R.T. fund, please scan the code below:
The Bluffton Rotary Club has a YouTube Channel! You will find previous guest speakers and other fun videos, so be on the lookout for more content in the future. All you have to do is create a YouTube account and subscribe...with 80+ current members, we can do better than eight subscriber's!! Link:https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC8TYzr9_xUE8Jfy-lniTt1A
Did you know ClubRunner is now available on your mobile device app store for FREE?!? Once downloaded, use your ClubRunner log-in. This will give you instant access to our member directory, events, news and other important information. Here is a video that highlights some of the features: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PFLu08meAHI&t=12s
