Lima Rotarians are encouraged to participate in international service projects.
Jesus and Mary Garcia have made more than two dozen international mission trips on behalf of Rotary. Jesus told us that while it is very important for Rotarians to donate money to international projects, it's just as important to have people on location doing the work. "A lot of times we take it for granted what it is for us to have just a cup of water. We went to a community in Guatemala that the only source they have for water is the water they are able to accumulate during the rainy season. Think about it." On their most recent trip to Guatemala, Jesus says that his group of Rotarians installed a water system and a high efficiency wood stove, assembled and distributed wheel chairs to those who needed them, passed out school supplies to children and volunteered in a medical clinic. His group always partners with a Rotary Club in the county to which the trip is planned to do the preliminary work and help them while they are working. He and his wife have worked on projects in Guatemala, Ecuador, Cuba and Chile since they began international mission trips in 2005. He encourages everyone to join an international mission trip and assist people who truly need the help.
Also at Monday's meeting, we got an amphitheater update from Tracie Sanchez, Carmen Cecala-Wells from the Civic Center, and Charlie Couch and Melissa Amstutz from General Dynamics. Tracie told us that the park is now open daily from dawn to dusk for the general public to enjoy and the big video screen will be installed over the stage in July or August. Carmen told us that the Civic Center has booked a number of acts for the summer including a number of local bands, 1964 The Tribute to the Beatles, the Juneteenth Celebration, the Love Conquers All music festival, the Lima Symphony Orchestra, the Taylor Swift Laser Spectacular, a Family Fun weekend, and much more. Details can be found at LimaCivicCenter.com. Also, General Dynamics has scheduled its annual Operation Half Pint 5k on July 27.