Stories

Graham Bloem the founder of Shelter to Soldier will be speaking about the work of the charity.  This is a CA 501c3 nonprofit organization that rescues dogs from an otherwise uncertain future in local shelters and trains them to become psychiatric service dogs for post-9/11 combat veterans suffering from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) and/or other injuries associated with traumatic service experiences. Every day, 22 US veterans and 1 active duty service member are lost to suicide. That’s an average of one life lost every 63 minutes. The suicide rate among the nation’s military personnel has spiked this year, eclipsing the number of troops dying in battle and on pace to set a record annual high since the start of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan more than a decade ago. The links below are for an impact report, a video and the last link is to a page showing the body parts and how you can donate.

 http://www.sheltertosoldier.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/Final-Web-Optimized-Impact-Report.pdf

At the meeting Rob Ridge and Mark Matthews will be selling “ dog body parts” to create a complete dog. The objective is to raise  $12,000 to donate a dog for a veteran, for which there is a desperate need in this area that has so many returning military personnel.                 

The Bill Kalt Scholarship was started in the Mission Valley Rotary club and has carried over to La Mesa. Each fall the committee selects 2 incoming freshman at Patrick Henry High School to participate in the Bill Kalt Scholarship program.  They must sign a commitment letter about their grades and behavior for the next 4 years. They must meet with the committee four times a school year.  Upon graduation they are presented with a $2,000 scholarship.  This year Bonnie was able to award these awards to 2 very deserving seniors:  Chanti Butler & Tony Lam.  Congratulations!

La Mesa Rotary received a donation request from the La Mesa Police Department for their Youth Leadership Camp and the BOD has voted to sponsor this program with ea $1,000 donation. Same as we did in 2014. 

The Youth Leadership Camp is to provide leadership training and life enhancing skills, personal development training, academic enrichment, team building, and to teach responsibility to one's family and community. Participants will be challenged physically and mentally, as they develop the concepts of becoming a successful leader. It is hoped that the Youth Leadership Camp will have a meaningful impact on the participants' character and leadership development, as well as contribute to their success in life.

La Mesa Rotary Installation Dinner

Save the Date

Friday June 19^th  7:00pm

 

There is one event a year that every member of La Mesa Rotary should attend!  Our annual INSTALLATION DINNER!  Bring your spouse!  This is THE event of the year.

This is the annual dinner event where we can thank the out-going President and Board of Directors for all their hard work and dedication over the past year to the La Mesa Rotary! Awards and Certificates will be handed out.

This is also the night when the new club president will be introduced along with the new set of Board of Directors!

 

This is an event EVERY member of La Mesa Rotary should attend!  This year, since we are holding the event on Friday night the club will be DARK for lunch on Wednesday June 17^th.  The fees you pay for lunch will then be used to offset the cost of the dinner.  More information will come as we get closer to the date.  But mark your calendars now as this is a can’t-miss event!