Rotary Hosts Annual Backpack Drive

The Wheaton Rotary Club is currently holding its Annual Backpack Drive. This year, the club is looking to expand its annual offering to over 1,000 backpacks to help meet the soaring demand. The Club has partnered with a backpack wholesaler, and a donation of just five dollars buys a colorful, high-quality nylon pack. Donations in any amount are welcome.  Donations may be sent to The Rotary Club of Wheaton, P.O. Box 68, Wheaton, IL 60187. Please place “backpack” in the check memo. To make a donation of backpacks or for more information, please contact Roger Tully at roger@tully-electric.com or 630-202-7070.

Collection of backpacks first began as a fellowship event, whereby admission to the dinner was a backpack.  The Club has grown their annual drive from 60 backpacks to almost 1,000.  Once collected, the backpacks are filled by The Humanitarian Service Project with donated school supplies and distributed to local DuPage children in need.

Rotary is a worldwide organization of more than 1.2 million business, professional, and community leaders. Members of Rotary clubs, known as Rotarians, provide humanitarian service, encourage high ethical standards in all vocations, and help build goodwill and peace in the world. There are 33,000 Rotary clubs in more than 200 countries and geographical areas. Clubs are nonpolitical, nonreligious, and open to all cultures, races, and creeds. As signified by the motto Service Above Self, Rotary’s main objective is service — in the community, in the workplace, and throughout the world.

The Rotary Club of Wheaton meets every Wednesday at 12:10pm at Arrowhead Golf Club on Butterfield in Wheaton. Through the club’s one yearly fundraiser, Christmas Inn, the Rotary Club of Wheaton is able to provide assistance to various local organizations and projects including: Humanitarian Service Project. S.C.A.R.C.E, Literacy Volunteers of DuPage, Wheaton Public Library, Wheaton High School’s Operation Safe Celebration, Wheaton Elementary School Student Scholarships for College, Vocational Scholarships, and more. International projects in 2010-11 have also included: providing funding to build and furnish a home for orphans in the Dominican Republic; sending a container project to send medical equipment, school supplies and clothing to Uganda; purchase computers for a woman’s shelter in Peru for vocational training.

For more information regarding the Rotary Club of Wheaton or membership, please contact Cathy Hetrick at 630-292-3650or at cathy.hetrick@comcast.net.