ROTARY CLUB OF KENNETT SQUARE
Serving our community since 1949
Celebrating 60 Years of Service
Club Community Service


 About US  International Service  Goings On    Map to KS Rotary Meetings Photo Page     Club Board& Members Contact Us  
          Annual Events            Let's Bust a Move    Past President's Legacy Page     Congratulations to our KSRotarians!   
       4-Way Test           About Polio    More About Us     How to Become A Member        First Annual Art Gala 


 

 

All Rotary clubs share a key mission: to serve their community and those in need throughout the world. By participating in club service projects, members learn about their club’s involvement in local and international projects and can volunteer their time and talents where they are most needed.
 
  Red Clay Trail

In 2007 bilingual dictionaries were handed out to all 3rd graders by KS Rotarians Al Schmitt and Louise Bair, below.

 

Click on pictures for larger view

Boy Scouts October 2006 and below: Flag Retirement Ceremony

 2007 Kennett Square Club Brochure
 

2007 Holiday Project

Click on above link for more info on the Share Your Soles

Luis Tovar (VP) and Bronwyn Martin (Secretary) display the collection of shoes for Share Your Soles:our '07 Holiday Project

Al Schmitt, Louise Bair, Luis Tovar, Elizabeth Rhoads (taking photo) present the shoes to the local collection center in Dover, DE.

Luis Tovar donated time and effort on January 21st-Martin Luther King Day, at the Garage.

 
 
 

If you'd like a presentation at your Club on: The Permanent Fund:Ways to make The Rotary Foundation a part of your legacy planning today and to be a part of it forever please contact Bronwyn Martin to set a date. See the attached for overview of her presentation. B Martin's presentation
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 

Community Service
2011-2012

Red Clay Trail Improvement Project
28 April, 2012: Rotarians at Work Day. Created by district 5340. Our club will be repairing a part of the Red Clay trail that we built and maintain with new stone and bitumen. Several Kennett High School football team players, Interact students and club members will be utilized. The Kennett YMCA will help cover the costs.

The Kennett Family Center: 
January 24 2012:
The Kennett Square Rotary Club has been supporting the Kennett Family Center for many years and on January 24 DSG representative Carol Metzker presented a $920 cheque to the Kennett Square Rotary Club for it's second approved District Simplified Grant to support the Kennett Family Center. The Kennett Square Rotary Club Foundation matched the $920 for a total of $1,840 to fully fund the 2012 Kindergarten Transition Program (KTP) at the Family Center. The Kennett Square Family Center (part of Maternal and Child Health Consortium [MCHC] in West Chester, PA) was created to serve families of children up to age five and support parents with the skills they need to optimally prepare their children to learn and succeed.

The KTP includes an assessment of each child’s mastery of important preschool skills, identification of any skills in need of development, and regular testing to ensure that all skills are acquired by the end of the 5-week program.  Parent Educators teach families what to expect on the first day of school (including a lesson about school bus safety, conducted on a real school bus) and (in collaboration with the Kennett Consolidated School District) assist parents with completing the registration paperwork ahead of time so that each child is ready to start the first day of school fully prepared.
 
In photo from left to right: President-Elect Bronwyn L. Martin, MCHC Director of Development LeeAnn Riloff, the Family Center's ED Nelly Arevalo and District 7450 DSG Representative Carol Metzker. Photo by President Al Schmitt.
 

Our club Holiday Project was adopting 4 families through La Communidad Hispana. Thank you club members Cristina Gonzalez and Louise Richardson for making this happen.

In photo: Cristina and club President Al Schmitt.

Our Club also signed 30 cards to send to troops overseas through the Holiday Mail for Heroes Program. 
Thank you all service members for making our world a safer place, bringing peace to so many countries and protecting the freedoms so many of us take for granted. Thank you also to our Club members who have truly "served above self". 

P-E Bronwyn Martin (l) and Don Lester (r): 2 of the club Rotarians helping out for those much less fortunate. Thank you Louise Bair, President Al Schmitt also for ringing the bells!
__________________________________________
 

mm
Thank you President Al Schmitt, Louise Bair, Jerry Poe, Don Lester, and Jenny Armitage for the ongoing work for our club's literacy program. We are well over 1,000 dictionaries handed out over the past few years.

2010-2011
June 23 2011
President Al and VP Bronwyn attended the Glen Mills Schools graduation. Kadeem Coates is the recipient of our club's $1,000 annual scholarship. Kadeem will start at Neumann Univeristy Sept. 2011 majoring in general education and will play on the basketball team. Congratulations to Kadeem! We look forward to hearing great things being accomplished by this young man.
mCClick to enlarge text

April 19 2011
Trooper James Ciliberto (l) receives the Kennett Square Rotary Club's annual Trooper of the year award from member Bernie Encarnacion. Stacy Brown, far right is the Avondale Barracks leader.
mm
April 2 2011
President Al and VP Bronwyn ran to support CVIM. A representative from WCU came to our club to tell us of the race.
mmm
                      Thank you to Fancia and the girls for coming out to support us!  The Revolutionary Runners team is running around to create awareness of the KS Rotary Club! Next-the Kennett Run May 14 2011

January 2011: Our club was awarded a $1,000 District Simplified Grant. This will complement $1,000 from our club's Rotary Foundation to purchase a $2,000 freezer needed at the Kennett Area Senior Center (KASC). • The KASC began due to the efforts of a Kennett Square Rotarian.
mm
                             (L) VP Bronwyn Martin, Kitchen Supervisor Ann Radcliffe, and 
                 Executive Director Anita O'Connor in front of the new freezer

Nov. 9 2010: Our Rotary Club supported the 4-H Creating Community Networks Be A Sweeheart Event: The Be a Sweetheart Event features an adoption fair with items supporting Chester County 4-H programs for underserved youth Event Flyer attached here

October 2010
Kennett Square Rotary club handed out almost 300 dictionaries to 3rd Grades at the Mary D. Lang and Greenwood Elementary Schools for the 4th year in a row. Thank you President Al for spearheading this every year.

mm
mm
                                                                                            Thank  you Al, Don, Louise, and Bronwyn (not in picture)
Thank you Louise Bair and Bronwyn Martin for the photos.

Sept 2010: Rebecca Zerr accepts a cheque for $679 and $112 in school supplies for children of the Kennett Family Center.Presented by President Al.

2009-2010
Leeann Riloff accepts a cheque for $800 for winter coats for infants and babies of the Kennett Family Center.

Our 3rd year of handing out dictionaries to 3rd Graders in Kennett Square. Photos are taken at Mary D Lang Elementary School.
mm
mmClick here to see a Thank You!
2008-2009
LeeAnn Riloff accepts, on behalf of the Kennett Square Foundation, a $1,000 award as part of the Kennett Square's Club matching grant. The money benefits the Maternal Child Heatlh Consortium's Kennett Family Center. A total of $3,000 cash has been given to the Kennett Family Center in the 2008-2009 year due to efforts of the Kennett Square Rotary Club.

A $1,000 cheque from the Kennett Square Rotary Foundation was also given to the Kennett Area Senior Center. Bronwyn Martin, VP of the senior center accepted on behalf of Anita O'Connor, executive director.

2008-2009 Trooper of the Year (posthumously given) to Trooper Kenton Iwaniec
bbbbbbb
b
Rotarian Steve Pember (far right) has spearheaded the Kennett Club's Trooper of the Year Award for several years. This year Trooper Kenton (Kent) Iwaniec received the award posthumously. Trooper Iwankeic was tragically killed in 2008 due to a drunk driver. Please visit www.trooperiwaniec.org for more information.
l>r Michael Houck, Acacia Houck, Ken Iwaniec, Debra Iwaniec, Ashley Iwaniec, Lt. Shelton Sneed, Steve Pember.
www.trooperiwaniec.org
 


April 21 2009: President Eleanor Sylver kicks off the Kennett Rotary's first Literacy Symposium. DG Joel Chesney, AG Bonnie Korengel and Longwood Rotary President David Harandon are in the front row. Panelists Susan McCardle, Janine Pressloid, Kathleen McLaughlin and Joan Holliday discussed literacy issues in so. Chester County based on their expertise and backgrounds.

______________________________________________________________

2008-2009 
Our club sponsored 2 young citizens to Rotary Youth Leadership Awards (RYLA) and Don Lester was our club's liaison for this important component of Rotary International. RYLA is Rotary's leadership training program for young people. RYLA emphasizes leadership, citizenship, and personal growth, and aims to:
 

  • Demonstrate Rotary's respect and concern for youth 
  • Provide an effective training experience for selected youth and potential leaders 
  • Encourage leadership of youth by youth 
  • Recognize publicly young people who are rendering service to their communities 
Dear Rotary Club of Kennett Square: thank you so much for sponsoring my trip to the Freedoms Foundation Leadership Conference. I had so much fun and it was definitely one of the best experiences of my life. Not only did I learn so much about my leadership style and personality, I also loved all of the speakers. They were so enlightening and inspiring. Most of all thank you for the opportunity to meet so many new people. I never thought it was possible for a group of people to bond so much in such a short time. Thank you again for your sponsorhip, it was completely phenomenal and something I'll never forget. Sincerely, Emily.
_____________________________________________________________

Community service continued with our annual shoe collection drive this year for Sole 4 Souls headquartered in Nashville TN. Louise Bair has been instrumental for the last several years in the annual club shoe drive. Over 150 pairs of shoes were collected through Jan. 24 2009, more than triple the number of shoes colleceted in 2008. Since its inception after the Hurricane Katrina disaster, Soles4Souls has distributed more than 3.3 million pairs (one pair every 23 seconds) to people in more than 60 countries, including Honduras, Romania, Thailand and the Sudan. The Central Chester County Rotary Club learned of our clubs efforts and were able to collect another 100 pairs of shoes from their club.

,,,,,,,
                                        l>rEleanor Sylver, Steve Cho, Elizabeth             Elizabeth Sylver, Bronwyn Martin, Elizabeth 
                                             Rhoads, Jenny Armitage, Don Lester                                      Rhoads, Jenny Armitage
________________________________________________________________________

Our Holiday Spirit was shown with our Kennett Rotary Foundation donating $2,000 to the Mary D Lang School to help in Hunger Prevention: many children and their families cannot afford to eat enough each day. The $2,000 came from matching contributions from all Kennett Club members and the Foundation.
bbbb
The principal and guidance counselor passionately shared with the KSClub what they have witnessed of their students going hungry and the impact on ability to be focussed on their school work. A Thank You card from the 3rd graders.

Our annual Dictionary Project continues with dictionaries handed out November 19 and Dec 3 2008 to 3rd Graders.
.........
Rotarians (l>r) John Gebhard, Steve Cho, Al SchmittnnnnnnnnnnnnSteve Cho, Al Schmitt, Eleanor Sylver

________________________________________________________

September is Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month. Bronwyn Martin was asked by the founders of the Sandy Rollman Ovarian Cancer Foundation (foundation website) to wrap ribbons around trees. Bronwyn knew she could count on the support of the Rotary and with President Eleanor's approval, Eleanor Sylver, Elizabeth Rhoads and Don Lester wrapped trees on State Street with teal coloured ovarian cancer awareness ribbons September 2 2008. 1 in 53 women are diagnosed with ovarian cancer. Many do not survive because of the inability to detect ovarian cancer at an early enough stage of malignancy. Ovarian cancer has been found linked to breast cancer in women carrying a particular gene for breast cancer.

 ........



Early literacy training is critical to the success of a child's later education. Rotarians work with children, parents,
and educators to encourage and build reading skills at an early age. August 5 2008:Presentation by the Kennett Square Rotary to the Kennett Maternal Child Health Consortium 75 bags for 75 preschoolers in our community who do not have such staples as paper to draw on after attending an MCHC preschooler program. Right Photo: March 24 2009 Executive Director Pam Bryer (r) accepts a cheque for $1,500 for the purchase of school supplies and reading books for the children at the Kennett Family Center.
www.ccmchc.org
 

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,
President Eleanor Sylver (l) and Bronwyn Martin (r) 
present the gift bags to Maria and Nelly (inside l, r) 
of the Maternal Child Health Consortium 




In 2006-2008 we included above our continuing service the following:
 
  • Provided bilingual dictionaries to all 3rd graders in the Kennett Consolidated School District
  • Support to Las Hermanitas
  • Made a contribution to the Kennett YMCA
  • Provided diapers and other baby products to the Kennett Maternal & Child Health Consortium
  • Completed our Centennial project-The Greenway Trail


Kennett Run
Under the leadership of Kennett Rotarian Mike Perna our Club started what has become a popular community event now sponsored not only by two Rotary clubs, but also the Exchange Club, the Lions Club and the YMCA. Funds raised by this event are directed back into the community through the sponsoring organizations and the Kennett Run Charities. For more information visit www.kennettrun.net. We continue to plan, organize, and direct the Kennett Run.

Kennett Area Senior Center
Our Rotary Club, under the leadership of Dr. Leonard Kanofsky, was instrumental in starting what has now become the Kennett Area Senior Center. We still support KASC financially. Visit www.kennettseniorcenter.org
 

Adopt-A-Road
Four times a year we pick up trash on State and Cypress streets, between Scarlett and Mill, keeping our steets litter free.

Financial Grants
This past year we helped and sustained 2 students from the Ivory Coast at Lincoln University.

Student of the Month
Each month in the school year, we recognize a student who demonstrates strong academic achievement and service to their school or community. Students are selected by school staff from Kennett High School, Unionville High School, and Glen Mills School.

Trooper of the Year
Each year we recognize and present an award to a Pennsylvania State Trooper. In 2007 we recognised 3 Trooper of the Year awards.

Interact Club at Kennett High School
We sponsor the Interact Club, a Rotary-related service club for high school aged students. We work together each Christmas to provide a party and gifts for disadvantaged children in our community. 

Rotary Youth Leadership Awards
In 2006 we sent one student from a local high school to attend the Rotary Youth Leadership Award two-day seminar.

Scholarships
We provide a scholarship to a graduating senior from each of the following: Kennett High School, Unionville High School and Glen Mills School. We also act as sponsors for students applying for Rotary District 7450 Gundaker Undergraduate Scholarships and Rotary International Ambassadorial Scholarships. 

Boy Scout Troop 53
We have sponsored Boy Scout Troup 53 since 1949. Troup 53 Scouts work with us on various projects such as our Pancake Breakfast and Senior Center cleanup.


For more information, contact:
President Al Schmitt
610-864-3239
Rotary Club of Kennett Square, PO Box 291, Kennett Square, PA 19348