10 | <strong>01940</strong> Good deeds going round BY HANNAH CHADWICK If town residents are looking for a group to join that helps not only the community but places around the world, Lynnfield Rotary Club is open to all. Rotary meets almost every Thursday to put “Service Above Self ” and to put to work another club motto — "One profits most who serves best" — by creating a neutral environment allowing the non-political and non-religious group to perform charitable work. Past president and current Rotary Assistant District Governor Ronald Block joined the Rotary Club when he moved to Lynnfield from out of state. “I actually did this to meet people, I moved from out of state and didn't know a soul,” said Block. He said Rotary works to raise money and put it towards people in need. “We’re a massive foundation that has done charitable work all over the world," said Block. The club's projects include Lynnfield-focused efforts and collaborations with other clubs. The senior volunteer group established in 2014 is sponsored by Swampscott Rotary Club and the Rotary Club of Marblehead Harbor. The purpose is to serve children, families, seniors, and the U.S. military by giving back and impacting lives. The project Block was most excited about was the finding of a lockbox project. Rotary teamed up with the Senior Center, Lynnfield Council on Aging, A Healthy Lynnfield, and the Lynnfield Fire Department to devise the residential Lock Box program, which is aimed at keeping local seniors safe. The program focuses on home lockboxes, a home-safety survey, File of Life, medication-disposal bags, and medication-storage boxes. Residents can utilize any individual component, or all five. “You put a box on your house, lock your keys in it, and if you call 911 and they can't open the door, the Emergency Medical Technicians (EMTs) have access to boxes,” said Block. Dave Drislane, Rotary sergeant-at-arms, said Rotary has seen women join the club, with three women serving consecutive terms as district governor. "At the beginning, it was all men — until 1987," Drislane said. "It was the best thing to Front left to right: Peggy Pratt-Calle, Janice Casoli, and Jamie Booth. Back left to right: Nick Secatore, Bob MacKendrick, Dick Dalton, Glen Davis, Ron Block, Hilda Moynihan, David Drislane, Rob Dolan, and Margaret Sallade. PHOTOS: HANNAH CHADWICK ever happen.” Drislane is a Rotary history buff. With more than 1.2 million members and more than 35,000 clubs worldwide, Rotary was the inspiration of Paul Harris, who grew up in Vermont. Harris moved to Des Moines, Iowa where he apprenticed at a local law firm before relocating to Chicago, where Harris put his vision of a congregating place where professionals of all different backgrounds could gather into practice. On Feb. 23, 1905, Harris assembled three associates, Gustavus Loehr, Silvester Schiele, and Hiram Shorey, in Loehrs' office, initiating the first-ever Rotary Club meeting. For the next meetings, they rotated between each other's offices, giving rise to Rotary's name. Flush with initial success, Harris began to reach out to local businesses asking what they felt the city needed. The answer: Public toilets. The Rotary campaign to help install them led to other projects spanning decades, including a 1970s initiative to eradicate polio. The Rotary website chronicles how volunteers gave out shots of oral polio vaccine to children at a health center in Guadalupe Viejo, Makati, Philippines. This led to the beginning of Rotary's first Health, Hunger, and Humanitarian grants, also known as 3-H Grant Project. “The project’s success led Rotary to make polio eradication a top priority. Rotary launched PolioPlus in 1985 and was a founding member of the Global Polio Eradication Initiative in 1988. Through decades of commitment and work by Rotary and our partners, more than 2.5 billion children have received the oral polio vaccine," stated the website. President Jack Moynihan shared his excitement with an affiliated group called the Interact Club. “Being president, you can look at what your club is doing. Rotary does a lot of stuff for a lot of people, but I haven't seen us touch upon the veterans and troops yet,” he said. Lynnfield Interact Club is an active program at Lynnfield Middle School and Lynnfield High School. The club operates in partnership with the Lynnfield Rotary Club to bring youth ages 12- 18 together, helping them to develop leadership skills as well as opening doors and creating opportunities through community service. The Interact Club organizes at least two projects every year that will help either its school or the community — sometimes both. Rotary sponsors, mentors, and guides Interactors as they carry out projects and develop leadership skills. Fifteen local students are involved with the club, which was organized in 2010. The club's leadership team includes President Sophia Calle, Vice President Isabella George, Secretary Abigail Travers, and Treasurer Harrison Grasso. Interact Club is currently collaborating with Operation Troop Support to collect donations for active-duty soldiers.
LIKE A ROCK — Lynnfield Rotary Club has launched a succession of projects since its founding, the most recent of which include helping to safeguard seniors and working with local middle and high school students. WINTER <strong>2021</strong> | 11
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