International Service

International Service is a key component for both Rotary International and the Rotary Club of Stratford.

The Fourth Object of Rotary is "The advancement of international understanding, goodwill and peace through a world fellowship of business and professional persons united in the ideal of service". The Fourth Object was authored in 1921 by Donald MacRae of Canoe Cove, PEI.

The object is met through a number of initiatives sponsored through the Rotary Foundation:

• Rotary Studies in Peace and Conflict Resolution,
• Group Study Exchanges,
• Thousands of Project Grants, and
• Rotary International's Award for World Peace and Understanding (for non-Rotarians), presented since 1980 to notables such as Jimmy Carter, Nelson Mandela and Sadako Ogata, UN High Commissioner for Refugees.

One of Rotary International's signature initiatives is and has been Polio Plus.  When completed within the next 5 years, Polio Plus will have eradicated polio from the planet.  When complete, polio will be nothing but a memory in all parts of the Globe - an incredible achievement.

International Service is a very important component of our own club as well.  As a new club, we do not have the expertise to deliver overseas projects directly so we work to find partnering opportunities.  We currently participate in projects with other Rotary Clubs and in our own partnerships with volunteer organizations. 

One of our longer-term goals is to see our club closely linked with a community or long-term project in Africa where we can build an ongoing relationship. 

In the meantime we have supported a number of excellent development projects.  Two of our major projects:

• In 2005-06, we supplied funding to drill deep water wells in Nigeria;
• We have recently embarked on a three-year partnership with Farmers Helping Farmers where our club is supplying funds to FHF's projects in Kenya.  We are especially pleased with this partnership as FHF is a PEI organization. 

2007 will see us working to establish our own ongoing project in Southern Africa and possibly working to develop a project to distribute brick-making equipment.

Vocational Service

The Vocational Services committee is currently pursuing literacy initiatives for elementary school children and preschoolers in the Stratford area. Plans for specific projects are underway and those details will be posted in the near future.

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