Projects

The following projects represent a small fraction of the efforts the Rotary Club of Woodinville are passionate about.

Community

Peace Projects

 
Woodinville Rotary has declared to be a Rotary Peace Builder Club dedicated to taking action to relieve the underlying causes of conflict. Through our service projects, peace fellowships, and scholarships, Woodinville Rotary is taking action to address the underlying causes of conflict, including poverty, inequality, ethnic tension, lack of access to education, and unequal distribution of resources.

Dolan Family Peace Project in Haiti

The Dolan Family Project’s goal is to help raise the children of Plaisance to show respect and love for each other with the hope that their teaching and training will make a positive difference in their future.

The project is committed to making the community be as healthy as possible with the little resources that are available. They seek clean water, ample food, correct diagnosis with proper medications and an end to the preventable diseases.

 
 
Woodinville Peace Poles

In 1921 peacemaking was incorporated into Rotary’s constitution and bylaws. In 2018, the City of Woodinville and Woodinville Rotary joined to support the Rotary International Global Peace Initiative by bringing Peace Poles to the Woodinville community which symbolically declare ‘May Peace Prevail on Earth.’ The first peace poles are at DeYoung Park in downtown Woodinville and now can be found around Woodinville and surrounding communities. The latest peace pole is being installed in recognition of Police and First Responders.

 
 
Bethyna India Project

Woodinville Rotarians led by Tana Baumler are working to eliminate barriers to education and deliver generational change in India for the lowest caste youth and families in one of the most poverty affected areas in our planet.

     

Earth First and Climate Smart Farming

Woodinville Rotarians are taking steps to affect climate change through soil regeneration and by supporting small local farmers in the Sammamish River Valley. Through supporting regenerative agriculture and organic farming Rotarians understand that the whole world is our backyard. We see the effects of climate change are are taking action by coming up with projects, using our connections to change policy – and planning for the future.

Fellow Woodinville Rotarian Erv DeSmet is leading the way by providing funds for a walk behind tractor to increase productivity, rejuvenate soil health and eliminate noxious weeds on the farmland further enabling sustainable crop growing for local markets.

     

 
 

Parks

In the spirit of public-private partnerships, Woodinville Rotary has played a key role in the development and ongoing maintenance of three Woodinville community parks.

Wilmot Gateway Park

Upon incorporation in the late 1990s, the City of Woodinville had limited resources when it began to search for a signature, multi-use park in the heart of the city. Rotary stepped up to lead the campaign to raise
 $1 million from private funding sources. Rotary helped make a profound statement about a quality community residents envisioned. Rotary contributed $127,000 to the Wilmot campaign and enticed its members, businesses and friends to add $700,000.

The Rotary Club of Woodinville also funded and installed playground equipment. Today the park is highly used by users of the Burke-Gillman Trail and many community events are held here.

Rotary Community Park

Rotary pledged $90,000 over a three-year period and gave a promise of ongoing stewardship. The park features a skateboard facility, climbing rock, picnic shelter and playground. A boardwalk trail system, built by Rotarians, meanders through an 18-acre idyllic natural habitat setting. Without Rotary’s show of community support, the property likely would have been lost to development. The park is always in use by a multitude of people. The annual skateboard challenge is held here every August.

Little League Diamonds in 1987

Brand new Woodinville Rotary raised enough money its charter year of 1987 to partner with King County, enabling Northshore Little League to enter into a long-term lease and build sorely needed baseball diamonds in the city of Woodinville.

Families and Children

Operation Warm Coats

For more than 15 years, the Rotary Club of Woodinville has been
 providing brand new warm
coats to less fortunate Northshore school children to provide warmth in the winter but also to provide a measure of self esteem which researchers have determined will lead to improved academic success. Imagine standing outside in the morning cold waiting for the school bus without a good coat. One of our members discovered Operation Warm Coats back in the Philadelphia area and was determined that we, too, could provide brand new coats for our kids in need. Over the 15 plus years, Woodinville Rotary has distributed more than 7,500 Operation Warm coats at the Rotary-sponsored Santa breakfast held in early December each year.

          

Essentials First

Connecting with our community through support, volunteering and nurturing is a goal of the club. Essentials First is an organization that empowers dignity daily and strengthens community-wide wellness by providing equitable access to vital personal and household hygiene products as well as food assistance. Woodinville Rotary actively supports this important organization through both monetary donations and active volunteering. Learn more about Essentials First.

Hunger Relief

The Rotary Club of Woodinville in conjunction with our Northshore Rotaractors and Northshore Interactors regularly hold food drives to support those in need in our local communities. The club has adopted 70 wage earning families who have experienced job loss and have children with real hunger needs.

     

Harvest Against Hunger-A Rotary District 5030 Program

Harvest Against Hunger connects local farmers, truckers, food banks and volunteers for hunger relief. Rotarians regularly spend time at a local food bank distribution warehouse helping to repack some of the healthy fruits and vegetables. The Rotary Club of Woodinville along our new UW Bothell Rotaract Club provides ongoing support to the valuable effort to bring food to those in need. Additionally, the club provides regular donations in terms of servings of food in the name of our guest speakers.

Learn more about Harvest Against Hunger.

 

Education

Scholarships

As a co-manager of the Scholarship Foundation of Northshore, Woodinville Rotary has been a party to awarding over 2,200 scholarships, providing over $3 million to graduates of our local schools. Directly and through the Foundation, Woodinville Rotary is financially helping the several dozen scholarship recipients with tuition costs. Woodinville Rotary alone has paid directly more than 350 of the 2,100 grants – presently featuring our renewable “Make a Difference” grants in the amount of $7,500 at a four-year college and $3,500 at a two-year technical or community college. The club invested $192,350+ in six endowment-style accounts in the Scholarship Foundation in memory of Woodinville Rotarians Jerry Wilmot and Marv Workman, for actor and honorary Rotarian Peg Phillips, math teacher Marv Cook at Woodinville High School, for sustainability education at 21 Acres and for the daughter of one of our charter members in support of summer camps. The club has sponsored “camperships” for students of all ages to take part in summer programs sponsored by the local YMCA, 21 Acres, the Boy Scouts, and to attend Friends of the Hidden River Environmental Educationn and a Campfire bereavement camp. Learn more about these scholarships.

“I don’t know where I would be today if it weren’t for support from Rotary.”

     

 

Josh The Otter

The Rotary Club of Woodinville introduced a new water safety education program to the Pacific Northwest in 2011. It is the storybook adventure of Josh the Baby Otter. Encouraged by a costumed Josh the Otter, kindergarten and first grade age children learn not to go near any form of water unless an adult is present. In song, Josh implores his new friends to learn to float and asks them to pledge they’ll be safe around water. More than 1,000 kids have participated in the program to date. Josh’s Woodinville Rotary team presents the story of Josh visually and in song at group assemblies and provides each child a coloring book, a picture storybook and DVD to take home to share with siblings and parents.

Just Right Reading

A new teacher embarking upon a teaching career, fresh out of college and already with substantial student loan debt, is faced with finding as much as $2,000 to set up his or her room with 1,500 classroom library “readers” and then be prepared to spend $800 or more each year thereafter to re-stock that library!

Unfortunately, it has also become commonplace that even our veteran elementary school teachers must spend that $800 each year as well. The Rotary Club of Woodinville has adopted Woodmoor, Woodin and Kokanee elementary schools and commits to help re-stock classroom library books. This year the club raised nearly $32,000 for these three elementary schools.

The Just Right Reading project means having reading books that are grade and skill-level appropriate and is making a big difference in making kids be successful readers. These are the primary keys to our children attaining adequate reading and comprehension ability by the time they are ready to advance past the sixth grade.

“The gains Woodmoor Elementary has made as a direct result of the Just Right Books purchased by Woodinville Rotary is evident in our reading scores, thank you for seeing a need and stepping in to do the right thing for these kids!”

     

International

Health and Mobile In Mexico

Woodinville Rotarians have led multiple medical missions to provide on-site clinical treatment in remote areas of Peru and Pakistan. The Rotary Club of Woodinville also provides support to Rotary’s End Polio Now program.

Working with other Rotary clubs in Mexico and in the Puget Sound area, Woodinville Rotarians have partnered with PUSH International to bring critical help to families in need. More than 300 people with mobility issues in Mexico have been personally fitted with devices to make life more tolerable. Woodinville Rotarians travel to Puerto Vallarta to be engaged in the distribution and are also partnering with local physical therapy students who also participate and help fit and provide physical therapy as needed.

Water

Woodinville Rotary financed a manufacturing plant in rural, isolated Kiminini, Kenya for plant construction and to annually produce 10,000 safe, water filters for the village. The club’s investment was $25,000 and was inspired by students at University of Washington Bothell. Over 96,000 people have benefited from safe water in 2018 alone.

“We constantly have good drinking water. When we used to boil it it was never enough.” MCA Lwarance, Director, Kilimani Primary School

“Ever since we had the water filter, our children do not have waterborne diseases anymore and typhoid went. It is saving us money because we do not have to boil water.” Mwalimu Pepela, Nyamira Secondary School

Miscellaneous

Adopt A Highway Route 202

Additionally, the Club has been a steward of highway 202 between the Woodinville Wine District and 124th for several decades. Club members regularly maintain this important entrance to the community.