By Stan Martin
WARWICK – Students, senior citizens and more than 50 non-profit organizations have benefitted from $110,000 raised by the Warwick Valley Rotary Club during the past 12 months.
Under the leadership of President Neil Sinclair, the 82-member service club held a variety of fundraisers. Among them were the Warwick Citizen of the Year/Outstanding Community Service Awards Recognition Dinner, a rose sale which includes flower donation to senior women and veterans, a golf outing, Flags for Heroes, Military Tribute Banners displayed in the villages of Warwick and Florida, movie night at the drive-in, and a beefsteak dinner at Mountain Lake Park.
All money raised by the Warwick Valley Rotary Club is donated back to nonprofits.
Local Rotarians co-sponsor the August Warwick Senior Picnic at the Town Park, co-host the Christmas Party for Needy Children at the Reformed Church, reward four outstanding high school graduating seniors with $2,000 scholarships, and donate $1,500 each to Winslow Therapeutic Riding Center, Warwick Humane Society, Backpack Snack Attack, food pantries in Warwick, Greenwood Lake and Florida as well as numerous health organizations, military veterans’ projects, plus projects involving student and youth groups.
Rotary sponsors the Warwick Valley High School Interact Club, which has a membership of about 100 students. Jeanine Fogler has been the club advisor for about 17 years.
Warwick Valley Rotary is a service club of community-minded residents who assist non-profits with donations of time, talent and money to improve the quality of life in Warwick and beyond.
Rotary opened its membership to women in the 1980s and now about 40 per cent of the Warwick club is female and six of the nine officer positions are held by women.
Hudson Valley Honor Flight is one of the non-profit organizations aided by a donation from the Warwick Valley Rotary Club. Thanks to community donations, Honor Flight treats local World War II, Korean War and Vietnam veterans to a free one-day trip to Washington, D.C., to be honored at their memorials.
People interested in learning more about Rotary are invited to attend the weekly luncheon meetings held each Wednesday noon at the Landmark Inn.
