Environmental laws have done an effective job of cleaning up our environment.
The United States' environmental laws began with two events: the Cuyahoga River catching on fire in 1969 and an oil cargo ship losing its load off the coast of California, according to Russ Decker, who gave an interesting overview of environmental law, which he teaches at Ohio Northern University. As a result, Congress established the Clean Water Act in 1972 which began routine analysis of waterways and watershed systems, established “point” and “non-point” sources of discharges and created a system for issuing permits. In 1973, the Clean Air Act was passed in response to thick smog in major cities. "Those are really the two biggest pieces of environmental legislation we have." Russ says they have been successful. "Since we passed the Clean Water Act in 1970, we have seen a 50% decrease in criteria pollutants, air toxics from industry have been reduced by 70%, and new cars are more than 90% cleaner burning." Other environmental laws Russ says have been successful are the Endangered Species Act and the Community Right to Know Act which requires companies with large quantities of chemicals to report what they have at their facilities. What can we do as individuals to help the environment? Reduce your own waste and runoff by washing your car in the grass, applying fertilizer according to directions, recycle, and reduce your water and energy consumption. Russ says further environmental improvements are up to the next generation. "If they can do the same thing we did for the next forty years, imagine how clean the air and the water are going to be."
Bath High School Interact Club participates in 2021 Ottawa River Cleanup.
On Sunday, 4/25/21, the Bath High School Interact club members spent a few hours cleaning up a section of the Ottawa River watershed in Bath Township. We worked in the
area of Sugar Street between Robb Avenue and State Route 81. It didn’t take long for us to quickly fill up our bags with trash and debris we found along the roadway and the drainage ditch. Several of our members commented that they will never throw trash out of their cars and couldn’t believe how much we got done. Picking up trash isn’t a “fun” job, but they all felt good about what they accomplished!
We are excited to host the Allen Lima Leadership Youth Class's graduation ceremony on Monday!
32 local high school students participated in the Allen Lima Leadership Youth Leadership Program in 2021 from 10 local high schools. The class started its journey in October of 2020 for orientation, foundations of leadership and annual class projects.
“Monday is the culmination of a year of learning and leadership for these very talented high school students. This year’s class devoted themselves to leadership, public speaking, and 3 class projects to impact their peers in secondary education,” stated Matthew Childers, Executive Director of Allen Lima Leadership. “Our great thanks to our Prime Sponsors: The Lima Rotary Foundation and Lima Memorial Health System. These two tremendous sponsors enable the Allen Lima Leadership Youth Program to continue to be an avenue for high school students to grow and become future leaders.“
Because of the extra guests, Rotary will be meeting in the Center Hall of the Civic Center on Monday. Please plan to attend and wish the students well.
Register now for the Rex Perry Memorial Golf Outing on July 21 and support our scholarship fund!
This year marks the 21st anniversary of the annual Rex Perry Memorial Golf Outing. It will be held on Wednesday, July 21st at Hidden Creek Golf Course with a rain date of Wednesday, August 25th. The Golf Committee is working closely with Hidden Creek Golf Course to again ensure our participants' safety against COVID.
Last year we had 27 teams competing and raised over $40,000, all of which went to benefit the Rotary Foundation Scholarship Fund. The Rotary Memorial Scholarship Fund selects persons who live or work in Allen County who are in pursuit of a degree or certification and will attend a school or college in Allen County. The intent of the scholarship is to encourage Allen County employees and residents to work and plan for their futures within our county. As of March 2021, over 1,089 adults wishing to continue their education have received scholarships from the Lima Rotary Club. These scholarships total over $817,250. Degrees or certifications can be achieved at the Apollo Career Center (Adult Education), Bluffton University, Rhodes State College, The Ohio State University at Lima and the University of Northwestern Ohio. All residents who live in and employees who work in Allen County are eligible.
The golf outing is open to the public so please invite your friends to join us. Contact Andy Wannemacher today to register or click here to register online.
Get your nominations in for the Lima Rotary Club's Avenues of Service Awards.
Every year since 2009 - 2010, the Club has acknowledged individual club members each year for outstanding Club, Community, International, and Vocational Service. In 2015 – 2016, Youth Services was added. These awards were named for past presidents who represented those avenues of service in their daily lives. Those include:
the Rex Perry Club Service Award,
the Rudolph Community Service Award,
the Goodnight International Service Award,
the Wemmer Vocational Service Award and,
the Hulsken Youth Service Award.
These past few years, club members have nominated fellow club members for the awards and the Board of Directors has selected the winner in each category. Please send your nominations to Club Secretary Rita Brown at limarotary@gmail.com by Wednesday May 5, 2021. The Board will vote on your nominations and select a winner in each category at the board meeting on Tuesday May 11, 2021. Those selected as winners will be recognized at our Annual Changing of the Guard Party. This year it will be held during the Club meeting on Monday June 28, 2021.
Here is the criterion for each category of award and the list of past winners.
During the pandemic, it is no secret that parents have faced a uniquely difficult situation – running households, coordinating at-home childcare while working or leaving the workforce, becoming teachers, and the like. Further complicating a difficult situation, most of these roles have moved to the home and are frequently undertaken by women and mothers. These particular challenges were discussed in a recent Habitat for Humanity +You event, a panel discussion hosted by Habitat for Humanity that is part of year-long thought leadership series about the impact and intersections of housing on society.
Held during International Women Build week in March and hosted by Adrienne Goolsby, senior vice president, US and Canada, at Habitat for Humanity International, the conversation featured individuals who brought their personal and professional experiences to the table. Alexis, a certified nurse and Habitat homeowner, Preeti Das, additional director at Kamavati University in Gujarat, India, Jenna Elfman, actress and Habitat supporter, and Katherine O’Regan, professor of public policy and planning at New York University, participated in the call.
Each panelist talked about how the pandemic affected their lives, and their families lives. Jenna became a teacher overnight. Preeti found herself constantly multitasking. And Alexis discovered that she preferred working from home. Katherine described how these experiences are represented in research and polling, which drives key policy decisions during the pandemic. For example, an increase in unemployment applications by women influenced the timing and amount of stimulus checks issued in the United States.
The full conversation is available on YouTube and is particularly relevant at this time of year. April is maternal and child health month in Rotary. You can watch this discussion and learn about how the pandemic has affected mothers and demanded more from women than ever before. As these conversations bring awareness to inequalities, there is hope that new economic and housing policies can be made to support women. We hope that Habitat’s +You thought leadership series inspires you to take action in support of women and maternal and child health, such as organizing projects through Rotary district and global grants. Join Habitat and Rotary in learning more about issues affecting women and mothers as well as how to make a difference in your community and beyond.
Rotary International’s partnership with Habitat for Humanity International helps clubs and districts empower local communities through access to safe and affordable housing, water and sanitation facilities and hygienic practices and skills training to improve employment opportunities. Contact your local Habitat to jointly design and implement local service projects.
Join the Rotary Action Group for Clubfoot to support the Ponseti Method, which is an effective, nonsurgical treatment for children born with clubfoot.
Look on Rotary Showcase to find out how Rotary and Rotaract clubs are bringing health care to mothers and children. You can post your club’s success story or find international projects that your club can support.
The 2021 Virtual Convention: Rotary Opens Opportunities is being held 12-16 June and will feature general sessions with inspiring speakers, a virtual House of Friendship, and practical breakout sessions.
Two-day preconventions will take place 10-11 June and will focus on Rotary Youth Exchange Officers, Rotaract, and intercountry committees. The theme of this year’s intercountry committees preconvention is how to open opportunities for peace.
You can protect the environment
The environment will be Rotary’s newest area of focus. You can get involved in these ways:
Supporting high-impact service through Programs of Scale
The Rotary Foundation’s first annual $2 million Programs of Scale award supports a Rotarian-led effort to dramatically curtail malaria in Zambia. Learn more about this high-impact program and this year’s finalists. Watch for upcoming webinars about how to expand, or “scale up,” your club or district service projects, including tips on how to create a shared vision of success and impact with your partners.
Contact the Programs of Scale staff for more information. The next Programs of Scale grant application cycle will open in June.
Service in Action blog highlights
During March, the Service in Action blog featured stories for International Women’s Day and for Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene month. Here are some highlights:
Our 22 April, 2021 event aimed to foster conversations around impact and forge new directions in the way we think about social investment locally and globally. The program included conversations with thought leaders from the nonprofit sector and will deepen our understanding of how we work to drive meaningful change and how we deploy resources to realize a shared vision of a better world. Panelists: * John Palfrey President, the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation * Dean Karlan, Expert advisor, Charity Navigator and co-founder of Moderator: * Lourdes Duarte, WGN News, anchor
