President Jaymee attended the Area D Christmas Breakfast December 5th at the Vancouver Golf Club in Coquitlam and got the opportunity to speak on behalf of the club and tell all the rotarians what we’ve been up to!
What a great morning filled with yummy food and great conversation, so many of the rotarians were happy to have a rotaractor attend!
To end off the month right before Christmas, President Jaymee & Vice President Kendra got the opportunity to deliver the food and gifts on behalf of the club. Each year we try to sponsor a family through Share Food Bank, this year we were fortunate enough to take on two families and we were beyond excited to be able to give back to these families in our communities! Big thanks to Eric, Kimberley, Sarah, Carter & Evan for contributing to this years hampers! Way to go Rotaractors!
In November our Club held our fifth pub night at Townhall Coquitlam to raise funds for the Polio Foundation, the whole event was a great success.
We ended up raising $905.50 which when matched by rotary international and The Bill and Melinda gates Foundation it ends up making out to be $2716! What an amazing achievement for our club! Thank you to everyone who came out and to all the rotaractors the donated their time to make the event a success!
We had our first ever Pumpkin Carving Social on October 25th at the Port Moody Recreation Centre. We voted for the “best” pumpkin at the end of carving, whomever carved the “best” pumpkin got awarded with a donation in their name to the SHARE food banks for our version of Halloween for Hunger this year!
Austin Taylor, President from the Whidbey Island Rotaract Club won our Pumpkin Carving Social!
We had an amazing turnout with rotaractors from all over the district coming out to have some halloween fun with us!
We’ve been keeping busy these past few years with so many exciting fundraisers and events! Here is a quick recap on what we’ve been up to recently:
RYIA’s Facilitator team
A few of our rotaractors got the be apart of the first ever RYIA (Rotary Youth In Action Summit) held at Loon Lake Lodge and retreat centre in March 2017 put on by the Port Moody Rotary Club. It was a leadership summit for youth ages 14-17 where they got to listen to speakers and participate in activities to strengthen their leadership skills and potential.
Rotaractor Mike at the first interact meeting!
RYIA was a such a great success, so much so that the first interact club was created in the Tri-Cities consisting of youth that attended RYIA!
Jaymee, Kendra, Rad and Mike road tripping for RYLAKelly, Darpan, Jaymee, Kendra and Mike out front of RYLA
In May of 2017 four of our Rotaractors (Jaymee, Kendra, Darpan and Mike) got to attend RYLA (Rotary Youth Leadership Awards) in Mount Baker, Washington. Very similar to RYIA but for an age group of 18-30 where they got to further develop their leadership skills!
In July we had our first ever Installation night shared between the rotaract clubs in district 5050, it was a wonderful evening where district Governor Lindagene came and inducted the new executive for each of the clubs! Definitely a night to remember!
Facilitator training for RMYIS
In November Jaymee and Mike got the chance to facilitate at RMYIS (Ridge Meadows Youth Impact Summit) at Loon Lake Lodge and Retreat Centre. They had a wonderful time connecting and working with some really passionate young people!
In December we collected food donations and non-perisables in Port Coquitlam and delivered them to the CP Holiday Train for The Share Society it was a great success in one neighbourhood we were able to fill a mid-sized SUV with the amount of donations collected!
Ian, John, Jaymee, Kendra, Michelle, Jessica and Mike getting ready to hand out candy canesSelfie with Santa!
We kept busy as elves in December as we also volunteered at Port Coquitlam’s Winter in the City event at Leigh Square where we got the chance to be Santa’s helpers and promote rotaract all at the same time!
YAIL 2018
Jaymee and Carter got the chance to facilitate at YAIL (Youth Adventures in Leadership) in February another youth leadership retreat for youth from both sides of the border within district 5050!
Raf, Ian, Jaymee & Kendra ready to sell some hot dogs!
In the Spring we got the chance to promote rotaract and sell some hot dogs at the SPCA’s Paws for a Cause walk at Town Centre Park in Coquitlam, it was a great success we raised lots of money for animals in need in the Tri-Cities!
RYLA 2018 was one for the books, Jessica, Jaymee and Carter got to facilitate at RYLA and had a wonderful time growing immensely as individuals and as a team of facilitators while being able to lead an exceptional group of young adults through one of the most life-changing weekends of their lives.
The 2017/2018 rotaract year was wonderful, we were able to make a difference in our community by getting involved as much as possible, we had socials throughout the year to continue connecting as a group, and some of our rotaractors even got to facilitate at multiple youth leadership retreats allowing them to make a lasting impact on the youth around us! we welcomed the new rotaract year with open arms!
District 5050 Rotaract Installation BBQ in the Park 2018Jaymee & Jessica representing Tri-cities Rotaract
Jaymee accepting an award on behalf of fellow rotaractor Sarah for her continued dedication the the club!
We are so grateful for the continued success of our club and can’t wait to see where this next rotaract year takes us, we have big plans ahead of us to celebrate our 5th year since chartering so keep updated with us as we continue to make lasting impacts on our community locally and globally!
On March 3, 2016 our club held our largest and most successful event to date! Our “West Coast Story” benefit concert, held at Inlet Theatre in Port Moody, was a fundraiser for Jaaja Barb’s Home of Angels Orphanage in Mpumudde, Uganda. The orphanage, started by Abbotsford native Barb Giraud, gives a home to orphans living with HIV/AIDS in acute poverty.
The night featured plenty of local talent including acoustic singers, Taiko drumming, and dance crews, and featured plenty of free food and prizes as well! In the end, we were able to raise $5188 for Barb and her Angels! Thank you to all of the performers, sponsors, and guests, you all helped make the night truly extraordinary!
Our performers:
Chibi Taiko
Hudson Station
Chase Powersmith & Olivia D’amici – Encore Dance Academy
The Echos
Elizabeth Boey
OTW (Ones to Watch) Crew
Jesse Kazemir
Where They From – choreographed by Katie Chartrand and Marcel Tremel
Our International Service Committee organized a high tea event on Sunday, June 14 complete with live entertainment and tasty treats. In total, we raised $2,000 for a medical clinic in Ndola, Zambia! Thank you to everyone who supported us – especially the Rotary Clubs of Port Coquitlam Centennial, Central City, Port Moody, and our friends from the District 5050 Rotary Youth Leadership Awards.
Pictures from our photobooth are available on our Facebook page.
Who doesn’t love a good game of dodgeball – especially when it’s to support a fantastic local cause? Our Community Service committee hosted a Dodgeball Tournament at Pitt River Middle School on Friday, May 8 to help raise money for Tri-Cities KidSport, so that all children in the Tri-Cities can enjoy the fun and benefits of organized sports.
Overall, nearly 100 participants came together to raise a grand total of $1,168.36 for the cause! Thank you to all of our players for coming out and supporting us #SoAllKidsCanPlay!
Once again this year, our club endeavored to help out a local family in need this Christmas season by putting together a hamper filled with groceries and gifts. We’d like to thank Safeway at Sunwood Square in Coquitlam, and Thrifty Foods at Suter Brook in Port Moody, for their donations as well as the many parents within our club who contributed too.
Vancouver-based band Pigeon Park were among the performers at our benefit concert to raise money for an orphanage in Uganda.
March 20, 2014 marked one of the largest events our club has held thus far! Our “A Night with the Stars” benefit concert, held at Inlet Theatre in Port Moody, was a fundraiser for Jaaja Barb’s Home of Angels Orphanage in Mpumudde, Uganda. The orphanage, started by B.C. native Barb Giraud, protects orphans living with HIV/AIDS in acute poverty.
The night featured plenty of local talent including acoustic singers, bands, and dance crews, and featured plenty of free food and prizes. In the end, we were able to raise $4,025.41 for Jaaja Barb’s Home of Angels! Thank you to all of our guests and sponsors who made the event our most successful one yet.
Kevin, Chris M., Janelle & Amber giving out free hot chocolate at the SFU Burnaby campus.
Doing good in the community doesn’t always have to take hours of planning and effort. In line with our Random Acts of Kindness, on February 18 our members took to the Simon Fraser University Burnaby campus to give out free hot chocolate in the Academic Quadrangle. We hope that we were able to warm up some students on a cold and blistery day!