Rotarians prepare for annual fund raiser

The Rotary Auction is one of those Prince Rupert institutions that has given back to the community for many years. Put on each year by the Rotary Club of Prince Rupert it is called their marquis fundraiser for the year.

The Rotary Clubs of Prince Rupert, the Prince Rupert Rotary Club and Hecate Strait Rotary Club are dedicated to providing service to Prince Rupert, using money that they have been raised over the years by putting it into a number of local projects to benefit citizen and visitor alike.

This years event once again will take place from November 19-21 at the the Lester Centre for the Arts, the new home symbolic as to how the project has grown from its humble roots to become one of the largest productions to be organized on an annual basis.

Friday's Daily News featured a front page story with a bit of history on the past projects developed by the Rotarians, projects that have been able to be launched thanks to the generosity of the people of Prince Rupert.

ROTARY'S BIG ANNUAL FUN-RAISER ADDS SPLASH OF GREEN

By Kris Schumacher
The Daily News
Friday, November 09, 2007

Pages one and three

Since it's inception, the annual Prince Rupert Rotary Auction has generated funds to beautify the city, particularly in the instances of the Waterfront and Centennial parks.

Five years ago, the waterfront got a substantial makeover when the Prince Rupert Rotary partnered with the city to create greenspace where everyone could enjoy the harbour view. The area has since become a destination for tourists and locals alike.

"The Rotary has always been involved in Seafest, and whenever we held it down by the water, there was never really a proper location," said Praveen Vohora, a Rotarian who led the project that saw $150,000 in Rotary funds. "Everybody always talked about our fantastic coastline, but there was never somewhere to really sit and view the water."

The City of Prince Rupert is now responsible for the maintenance and upkeep of the waterfront, but without the funds raised by the Rotary in large part through the auction, the waterfront wouldn't be as it is today.

The year 2004 saw the centennial celebration of Rotary clubs worldwide, and each club was asked to think of something fitting for their community to recognize the 100-year milestone.

"We looked up at McClymont Park where the city had put the B.C. logo, but nothing else was happening," said Rotarian Nancy Wilson. "So, some of us thought it would be really neat if we could make it into our centennial project, which is what we did, and that's why we called it the Rotary Centennial Flag Project."

What the Rotary Auction does is enable the club to put in approximately $950 every year for the upkeep of the park, the replacement of the flags, and general upkeep and maintenance of the project.

"If we didn't have those funds, it would be another one of the those projects that's really neat at the start, and suddenly it's not because it is isn't kept up," she said. "This is why it's really important to us. For example, we have to replace the flags three times a year, which is a bit of an investment."

With the $950 in funds from the auction that went toward the Centennial, the Rotary Club was able to match the district grant they received for $1,000, giving them enough money to buy picnic tables, a matching garbage receptacle, and some additional flowers to be planted.

"The picnic tables are here, but we haven't been able to get them in place yet," said Wilson.

"But it's all paid for, and with money from the previous year's district grant, we're also in the process of putting lights in at the flag project. All the base parts are in, all we need now is for electrical people to put the lights in."

The Rotary depends on volunteer members to install things such as the picnic tables and the lights because they only have funding to put toward the materials for such projects.
Wilson says that once the additional elements are in place, the project will look even better than it already does.

"Maybe, in the future, we'll get even more flowers up there, and we've talked about putting steps in all the way to the top, so people can walk comfortably up to the Rotary signs," said Wilson.

"So that might be the next thing we do up there. I think it's really neat when people tell me that they really like what Rotary did for the park, so it's great that the public enjoys it."

The Prince Rupert Rotary Club Auction will be held next weekend at the Lester Centre for the Performing Arts, and this year it will break a new record. Both Wilson and Vohora are excited about the progress made by the Rotary and the projects they've been able to spearhead, but also the extent the rest of the community embraces the projects and fundraising events.

"I understand the gross amount is up about $18,000 more this year," said Wilson.

"It's quite amazing when Prince Rupert is having an economic challenge and they can come up with this type of value in the donations. It's really exciting for us."