Dear Editor,
Our local Rotary Club continues to be a great partner for our school district and for our communities. Our students, staff, and community members have benefited greatly from the relationship and support with our Rotary Club.
One of my key interactions with the Rotary Club comes from my involvement with the student Rotary organization called Interact. We complete at least one community-service project every month, and our students meet monthly with Rotarians to share what we are doing. This ongoing relationship teaches students that projects continue from month to month, and we continue to provide support for our communities. Many of our Interact students continue their service at the collegiate level or in their adulthood once they graduate from GCHS. The strong connection between Rotary, their Interact liaison, and our club members teaches our students leadership skills and the value of service.
Rotary sends two of our Interact members to the Rotary Youth Leadership Awards (RYLA) every summer. This conference teaches leadership skills that our students bring back to our Interact Club. Every single student who is selected to attend this conference believes it is a life-changing experience.
Our Interact Club and Greene County High School teamed up with the Rotary Club in our community-service leaf raking project that was started in 1997 by Teresa Lawler and Jim Copeland. Rotary provides financial support for this great project and more importantly, they provide volunteers, drivers, and pickups to help make this project run smoothly. This project grew from around 15 yards in 1997 to well over 100 yards in recent years.
Rotary is very generous with donations for the after-prom party which continues to be a big hit with our student body. The goal has always been to provide a fun and safe environment for our students, and we are thankful for everything Rotary continues to do to support our students.
We have a Friendship Fund through our Interact Club and Rotary which we can use to support students who may be in need of basic items such as shoes, books, coats, and much more to help them be successful in school and in their lives. This is one of my favorite ways to help students anonymously. We appreciate the generosity of the good people of Greene County and Rotary for their contributions to this fund through memorials or through financial donations.
Teaching in the Jefferson, Jefferson-Scranton, and Greene County School Districts allowed me to be a part of the ongoing support that Rotary has provided for our students. Rotary has helped both teachers and students over the years with the purchase of technology materials, speakers and books just to name a few. This support continues to make Greene County a great place to teach and to live.
I have always thought we should adopt the name “Helping Hands” or something like that tied to our Rotary Club because they continue to provide support and resources for our schools and our communities.
Thank you to our Rotary Club for your continued support and the positive impact you make on all of us.
Teresa Green
