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District 7040
Rotary began in the
territorial area of what is now District 7040 in 1913 when the
Rotary Club of Montreal
was organized. Like all the other districts
in Zone 22, the District has experienced a series of boundary
changes and constant renumbering. Today the District is an
international district of 62 Rotary clubs, 20 in Upper New York
State, 16 in Western Quebec, and 26 in Eastern Ontario. The
Canadian Clubs are in Zone 22, the New York Clubs are in Zone 31.
Through the
years, the District has been represented on various international
committees. John R. Nelson of the Rotary Club of Montreal served as
President of Rotary International in 1933-34. International
President Dr. E Leslie Pidgeon (1917-18) became an honourary member
of the Rotary Club of Montreal in 1925, when he moved
to Montreal from Winnipeg.
All the clubs in
the District are strong supporters of Rotary Foundation programs. In
1981, the Montreal-Lakeshore Club presented a Paul Harris
Fellow recognition to His Excellency Edward Schreyer, Governor
General of Canada. The recognition was presented by Rotary
International President Rolf J. Klärich of Finland.
Community Service
Instead of submitting a
detailed list of specific projects for publication in this Zone 22
Centennial History, the District has sent us a story about an
experience of the Rotary Club of West Ottawa as an example of how
Rotarians respond to community needs.
In 1997, Floyd
McPhee, a member of the West Ottawa Club learned about an horrific
incident that took place in the low rental Baseline Court apartment
complex in West Ottawa. Someone had thrown a child out a window to
its death. As a result of some investigation, past president Ted
Ferrier learned that a group of social workers from Carlington
Community and Health Services was having a difficult time dealing
with social problems in the apartment complex. Ferrier proposed that
the West Ottawa Club form a partnership with the social workers.
This eventually led to the Club renting an apartment in the
building, the purpose of which was to give the social workers an
“in-house” base of operations and a place where Rotarians could
visit to establish rapport with some of the residents. A number of
Rotarians participated in painting, building shelves and cupboards
in the apartment.
Rotarians rose to the more important challenge of helping the
children, in particular, by introducing a number of programs. They
started a Beaver Colony which was formally chartered by Scouts
Canada. An after school program titled Homework Bound gave Rotarians
and other volunteers an opportunity to meet with children to help
them with their homework. A Christmas party was organized at which
Ted Ferrier played Santa Claus.
It soon became
apparent that the children did not have a decent place to play.
Typically, Ted Ferrier rose to the challenge. In 1999, he applied
for and received, on behalf of the Club, a Children’s Opportunities
Grant from the Rotary Foundation to build a playground in the unused
tennis courts of the apartment complex. Under the leadership of
Rotarian Steve Blondeau, over 30 Club members removed the old tennis
courts, installed a new surface for the playground area, and created
a basketball court. To celebrate, Ted Ferrier and the landlord, Dave
Houston, organized a barbecue that became an annual event. Ferrier
retired as chair of the Belair Committee and PDG Russ Hicks took
over.
Under Hicks’
chairmanship the previous programs were continued, while additional
ones were added. Lack of space for existing programs in the
apartment building and for a Rotary Community Corps which he hoped
to form became a problem. Taking a cue from the New Beginnings for
Youth organization that had converted a 48-foot trailer into a
modern, bright classroom, Hicks endeavoured to acquire a trailer
too.
Hicks applied
for grants to purchase a trailer from New Beginnings for Youth to be
used as the headquarters for Canada’s first Rotary Committee Corps
and other children’s programs. The trailer was financed by a $10,000
grant from the Rotary Foundation’s Community Assistance Program,
$16,800 from the Rotary Club, $5,000 from TD Canada Trust, and $
1,750 from private donations. The trailer project was completed in
the fall of 2001, the same year that the Rotary Community Corps
received its charter.
In addition to
housing former projects, the trailer made possible a host of new
programs: for the monthly and special meetings of the Rotary
Community Corps; every week day for an ESL (English as a Second
Language) course; one evening weekly for an anger management program
for adolescents; and a food distribution centre known as the Good
Food Box Program, operated by the Community Corps.
Past Peter
Gilman assumed chair of the planning committee in 2002, and while
supporting existing programs, he has been active in developing new
ones. Presently the committee is actively seeking furniture for new
residents. |
