The Rotary Club of Port Harcourt's (District 9141) Basic Education/Literacy Project in partnership with the Rotary Club of Roscommon, Michigan, District 6290, USA donated 1000 note books and dictionaries to Oginigba Community Secondary School, Oginigba, Port Harcourt, Nigeria on Wednesday, 13th February, 2019. Indeed, Rotary is good.
The Rotary Club of Port Harcourt's (District 9141) Basic Education/Literacy Project in partnership with the Rotary Club of Roscommon, Michigan, District 6290, USA donated 1000 note books and dictionaries to Oginigba Community Secondary School, Oginigba, Port Harcourt, Nigeria on Wednesday, 13th February, 2019. Indeed, Rotary is good.
It is tradition in the Roscommon Rotary Club to have two projects funded each year by what we call “Happy Dollars”. At each meeting, a club member can tell a story or announce an event of something that they would like to share with the club that touched their heart that week or maybe something they were proud of. In addition, the “Happy Bucket” is passed around during the meeting to collect spare change that a member would like to donate.
Usually, the club members or board will pick one of the two projects during the year with the President using their discretion for the second project. Our first project during the 2018/19 year was for the purchase of coats for Roscommon school children that were in need of one. The second project was made at the President’s discretion after being approached by Barb Costello. Barb and Bryan Costello had visited a school in Nigeria while on a Rotary Polio Vaccination Trip. Hearing of the school and the need, it was an easy decision.
The following are Barb’s comments regarding the request:
The background is that when we were in Port Harcourt Nigeria for the Polio Vaccination trip, we met many amazing Rotarians, but one, named Georgiana Ngeri-Nwagha, was an instant best friend for life.
We spoke many times of projects Rotary has done around the world through the West African Project Fair, which we attended that Fair while in Nigeria.
When our club was looking for an international project for our happy dollars, I immediately thought of my friends in Nigeria, because I saw many needs first hand.
I emailed Georgiana and she had a project in mind right away, she discussed it with her club and that is how the school project came about.
Their current club president, Rtn Lucky Akhiwu and their club made arrangements to purchase the materials and distribute them.
Below was the title of their FaceBook post and the faces of those hundreds of students was priceless, "The Power of One" meaning from One Rotarian to another!
In the photos, the lady in the blue and black flowered shirt with tan hat is Georgiana and their club president is next to her with other members of their Rotary Club of Port Harcourt.
When we came back from Nigeria, I said a part of my heart will always remain there and that feeling just gets stronger each and every year, I had an instant bond with many people there because of their giving spirit in which they instilled in me deeply!
What I find profound and a little humbling, we funded this project with spare change from our pockets and had a huge impact in school on the other side of the world. When you consider what Rotary does at a larger scale across the planet, it is just plain amazing!
Jim Anderson
Roscommon Rotary Club President