World Community Service
 
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World Community Service is the Rotary program by which a club or district in one country provides humanitarian assistance to a club in another country. Typically the aid goes to a developing community where the Rotary project will help raise the standard of living and the quality of life. The ultimate object of WCS is to build goodwill and understanding among the peoples of the world. 
 
Whenever possible we have tried to maximize our contributions through matching grants at the District, Rotary International, and CRCID. (Canadian Rotary Committee for International Development (CRCID) is a committee that directs money from CIDA for Rotary projects in the developing world.)

JAKARTA PROJECT: Our club has contributed $3,000 toward the literacy program there. The money (jointly matched by the District, Rotary International, the Jakarta Club and CRCID) is going toward school furniture, a blackboard, and books to equip 11 schools. We hope this project is completed by the end of January.

GUATEMALA - ADOPT A VILLAGE: We have been working on this project for a couple of years and have contributed $1000. The thrust of this initiative is to bring medical aid and literacy to the Maya population in the mountains of Guatemala. Our contribution is specifically targeted to equip a small community library. The coordinator of this project, to which many Rotary clubs in the US and Canada contribute, is Frances Dixon, a Canadian Rotarian who now spends her life traveling between Guatemala and Florida, raising money and overseeing the many projects in Guatemala. She will be our guest speaker on October 27th.

KENYA - MATANGWE: Matangwe Community Health and Development - Kenya. In July, a team consisting of Stan West and his son, Sylvia and Stephen Scott and two medical students travelled to Kenya to supervise the installation of a generator, electrical system, an autoclave and incinerator for the Matangwe clinic. Medications and supplies were also included in the $60,000 budget.

Of the total, Conestoga Club contributed $30,000, our Club contributed $4500 (including a personal donation of $1000), and the Grand River Club and other fundraising completed the budget. Stan and Sylvia will provide us with an illustrated report of their trip and their work at the clinic.

Many of us attended the presentation by Dr. James Orbinski at the District Conference in September. In the world-wide fight against HIV/AIDS, he told us that there were three facets in this attack, all equally important: Education, Drugs and Medical support at the local level. The primary focus at the Matangwe Clinic is medical support for mothers and children afflicted or threatened with HIV/AIDS. We look forward to their presentation at our Nov 24th Rotary meeting.