Top of the Week!
December 15, 2019
Wrap A Smile Is Looking for Quilts
Comfort quilts, created by quilters from all 50 states and several foreign countries, are gathered in Maine and then packaged to ship with medical missions.
Boothbay Harbor Rotarian Dr. Ann Demeranville currently manages the project from Rotary District 7780 in Maine. Wrap-A-Smile was started by Terry Hodskins of the Wells Maine Rotary Club and to date over 24,700 hand-made cotton quilts have been shared around the world.
Click the link below to see the sizes they are looking for.
Portsmouth Interact Activities Abound
Last week we told you about the Halloween canned goods drive put on by the Interact Club.
So, you may ask, what other activities does the Portsmouth Interact Club get involved in? Glad you asked…
Soup kitchens - Once a month, about four members of the Interact Club and two members of its executive board volunteer at a soup kitchen at the Salvation Army site downtown. Duties include preparing meals, serving the food, and clean-up afterwards. Each member of Interact is required to participate at a soup kitchen at least once a year.
Christmas stockings - Around Christmas time, Interact donates stockings filled with small gifts to the Chase Home for Children and the Cross Roads House. Members of the club are given a list of the ages and genders of the people they can fill a stocking for, and many members end up choosing to do multiple stockings. This is known as a fun event and about everyone in the club participates.
Christmas tree unloading - Every year, Interact Club assists Rotary with unloading the Christmas trees for the annual Christmas tree sales. Interact members are required to participate and if they are unable to attend the unloading, they must help out with the sales.
Bell ringing - Interact members participate in bell ringing for the Salvation Army for a day each year.
Quilt raffle - This year, the club raffled off a quilt at the craft fair held at Portsmouth High School in December. The quilt was made by a teacher at the school and the proceeds from the raffle were donated to hurricane relief efforts in Puerto Rico.
Haven fundraiser - Interact helped out Haven, a domestic violence service and shelter, by donating gift cards to the shelter and setting up a table during lunch where students can donate money. A woman from Haven also came to a club meeting to talk about the organization.
Friday night dances - During this winter and spring, club member attended dances that were held at the Greenleaf Center every other Friday for people with disabilities. Besides dancing, there was also board games and basketball. This was known to be a fun event.
Chess - One Saturday a month, members of Interact volunteer at the Portsmouth Public Library to play or teach chess to the people there.
Beach Cleanup - Interact hosts a beach cleanup at Wallis Sands yearly, typically in May. Rotary members also help out. Duties at the beach cleanup include removing weeds, picking up trash and driftwood, and removing sand from the walkways.
These future leaders in our communities deserve a great big Rotary THANK YOU! Keep up the good works.
Volunteer for Cross Roads
For a great fellowship experience, please consider volunteering at Cross Roads House:
Slots are generally on Wednesdays and Saturdays with Cooks working 3-5 pm and Servers 5-7 pm.
If you would like to volunteer please text or call Tiffany at 603-380-5872. That way she will know when she has enough volunteers and can coordinate other dates that need to be filled.
Or Volunteer At the Salvation Army
Another great fellowship opportunity. Upcoming dates for dinner service at the Salvation Army is November 25. Volunteers are asked to be at the kitchen at 4:15 to prepare for the dinner service. If you are interested, contact Sara Treacy.
Make Peg’s Day!
Dear Fellow Rotarians:
Our dear friend and Portsmouth Rotarian Peg Millar is looking for some Rotarian fellowship during the week. Since Peg is unable to drive it leaves her feeling a bit lonely and isolated. A half hour visit can go a long way in putting a smile on Peg’s face. We have had a small circle of our Rotarian’s visiting Peg and helping with errands but with everyone’s busy schedule it would nice to get a few more folks over to spread a little cheer Peg’s way. Please reach out to Peg for a visit at 603-501-0910.
Thank you from Rotary Connections Committee
PHA Volunteer Coordination
Mary Kelliher, Volunteer Coordinator at the Portsmouth Housing Authority forwarded the following:
“I'm reaching out regarding a recurring volunteer opportunity that has sprung at two of our resident building. We now hold a coffee hour at our Margeson building on Mondays at 10am and at Feaster on Thursdays at 10am. These are opportunities for residents to get out of their apartments and spend time in a communal space to have a treat together. We'd love to have volunteers sign up for a particular day or recurring days to bring donuts, pastries, and/or fruit (coffee is provided) if anyone would like to do so! This is an easy opportunity to also chat with our resident population, as well. Each building also has a piano, waiting for anyone with a passion for it to play during coffee hour as well!!
Let Mary know if anyone might be interested.
AmeriCorps Seeks Rotary Volunteers
Mary Kelliher is the Volunteer Coordinator for AmeriCorps working out of Portsmouth Housing's Greenleaf Recreation Center with the Resident Services team which assists low-income residents, senior residents, and residents with disabilities in finding resources for different needs, such as budgeting, financial literacy, transportation, etc. Mary and AmeriCorps is seeking volunteers who would be willing to volunteer. One example of a volunteer opportunity is assisting an older female resident who lives alone in moving heavy furniture (strong people needed!) into and from a UHaul during her planned move from her Feaster apartment to Connor's Cottage. If there are any volunteers intersted in lending a hand please contact Mary at maryk@nh-pha.com.
Sorry We Missed You
If you have a makeup for a missed meeting, please email it to the following link:
Rotary Connections is back!!!
Rotary Connections let’s our members know that their Rotary club is thinking of them. Members facing a health issue, death in the family or a life celebration, we are here!
If you know of any of our members who may need a Rotary Connections, please reach out to the Cathy Nickerson or President Ben.
