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Service Above Self..
November, 2008
There are many good reasons to be a Rotary Club member but certainly one of the primary ones is the opportunity to be of service to the community. Rotary's motto is "Service Above Self" and each and every Rotary Club worldwide fulfills that motto in its own individual way year-round. In Bennington, Rotary members' service to improve the quality of life in our community emphasizes helping children, needy families, the aged, the handicapped, and those most in need of assistance. The holiday season brings a special note to the concept of community service. At a time when attention is focused on the family and on holiday celebrations, there are two outstanding ways for Bennington Rotarians and their friends and neighbors to be of service.
One of the most visible signs of the holiday season is the proliferation of "bell ringers" who collect donations for worthy purposes. The Bennington Rotary Club rings bells to collect funds for the Share the Heat program to help those who need fuel assistance. All donations are matched dollar for dollar by Central Vermont Public Services. 100% of the funds collected go to Share The Heat, a program of the Bennington-Rutland Opportunity Council. Volunteers are needed to help "ring the bells". If you are willing to give an hour or two of your time, please call Dave Newell at 802-442-5414. You need not be a Rotary Club member to participate. Bell ringing for Share the Heat begins in front of J.C. Penney's on the Friday after Thanksgiving.
"Spirit of Sharing" is another visible sign of the holiday season. It began on Christmas Eve in 1983. A father and his three small children found themselves without resources and came to the offices of the Economic Services Department to ask for help. They had no food and nothing with which to make even the most meager Christmas celebration. It wasn't possible to obtain the help they needed immediately through the necessary procedures so the office staff got together spontaneously as a group to help this family. Thus was born a great tradition of people reaching out directly - neighbor to neighbor - to help others in a time of need.
That initial gesture has blossomed over 25 years into "Spirit of Sharing" - a community-wide effort sponsored by the Bennington Rotary Club; the Catamount Rotary Club; the Bennington Lions Club; Nemer Chevy, Buick, Pontiac and Cadillac; Hannaford Foods; and the Economic Services Division of the State of Vermont.
As with all traditions, there have been changes over the years and 2008 is no exception. The basic program remains the same: The public is asked to contribute new, unwrapped toys and leave them in the designated collection boxes located at Wal-Mart, K-Mart, Nemer Motors and the Pennysaver offices. Gifts of money are also welcome and encouraged and may be sent to PO Box 24 Bennington, Vermont 05201. Food baskets are also delivered to the home-bound elderly as in earlier years.
But this year, for other participants, the focus has changed from the "adoption" of a family to a more direct involvement by the participants in the program. On December 22, 2008 participants will be invited to a holiday "Toy Store" at Nemer Motor Group off Kocher Drive. There they will be given vouchers to select two toys for each child in their family. They will also receive gift-wrapping materials, courtesy of Wal-Mart. This change enables parents to choose gifts for their own children and wrap them for giving at Christmas. Program participants will also receive food baskets at the toy selection site.
Toys and gifts of money are not the only needs this year; we need volunteer help as well. If you have an hour or two - or more - to donate to the Spirit of Sharing, please call Barbara Hoar at 442-6779. We need cheerful "elves" to help sort toys, organize the food baskets and help with distribution and delivery to homes. Any time you can spare will be appreciated greatly. Many hands lighten the load, as we all know.
For Bennington Rotarians, the theme for December is 'Family'. It has meaning beyond our immediate circle of parents, siblings, children, aunts, uncles and cousins. It means reaching out to our greater "family" to help ensure a happy and comfortable holiday for everyone. Winston Churchill wrote that "We make a living by what we get; we make a life by what we give." The Spirit of Sharing is more than the name of a program. It is a description of true community spirit in which we join together to give and to receive because sharing is definitely a two-way process.
We hope you will join your Rotarian friends and neighbors this year and participate in bell ringing for Share the Heat and in the Spirit of Sharing project to make the holidays a little brighter for those less fortunate. Margaret Mead once urged us to "Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has." For more than 100 years, Rotarians worldwide have proven the accuracy of that statement through their humanitarian efforts at home and abroad. In Bennington, the concept of "Service Above Self" is one that local Rotarians believe and strive to achieve.
To each and every one of you, we send you our best wishes for a happy holiday season.
By: Patricia Gordon Michael - Bennington Rotary Club Member
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