President Mary called the meeting to order and thanked PP Ron for facilitating the Zoom as she is still in 'moving mode'. She also told us that 50 years ago today she was busy with another project ... that of delivering her daughter. She then asked for a toast to Queen, Canada and Rotary

Mary welcomed our guest speaker Rebecca Miller

 

Peter R reported that anyone who needs their first dose of vaccine can walk up to any clinic. The clinic at the Summit Centre is also are in need of additional volunteers, which is normally a couple of 4 hour shifts a week

 

George Young reported that (due to his recent move) he has a bunch of club memorabilia that no longer fits in his downsized digs. He asked if anyone was prepared to archive the info. Club historian Hugh offered to meet with George and take the material off his hands

 

PP Ron reminded us that upcoming speakers will be required and will be the responsibility of members to make recommendations to him so he can schedule.

 

Bill Pritchard (with his granddaughter on his lap) introduced today's speaker, Rebecca Miller, who heads up the area chapter of the Dolly Parton Imagination Library (DPIL). She is a mother of two young children and during the summer works at Greenhouse and helps run the Montessori Summer Program. She was born and raised in Bracebridge but also travelled and worked across Canada. Her goal is to continue to grow the DPIL across Muskoka expanding the current 4 postal codes served. Her main motivation is to give back to the community and strengthen it by encouraging literacy from a young age.

 

The DPIL organization was started by Dolly Parton in 1995 in Tennessee, distributing books to children living in the county that Dolly grew up in. 25 years later there have been over 160 million books distributed to children, aged from birth to 5 years old. The DPIL program is the largest book distribution program in the world.

   

 

Books are forwarded, free of charge, direct to children on a monthly basis. The books are to be kept by the child and help them create their own library. The books are chosen by a panel, sensitive to issues that impact various areas and countries. Below is a sample list of books being sent to children up to age 2;

The local chapter currently covers 4 Muskoka area codes but the plan is to expand and create a larger mailing list. Books plus postage costs account for just under $5 per child cost monthly. There are currently over 600 recipients in the Muskoka area receiving books. 

The program currently requires funding of $2,300 monthly which will increase as new registrations occur. Rebecca is an unpaid volunteer, and advises that volunteers and funding is always needed. Rotary has been a supporter of the organization world wide and had Dolly make a presentation at the International Conference a few years ago. Currently they receive funding from a number of sources and individuals are encouraged to donate. Below are some details and contact info;

  

Following the presentation Mary thanked Rebecca for her dedication to this cause and announced a club donation of $2,300 to assist with operating expenses as well as committing the club to a further $2,300 donation in January of 2022.

 

 

Mary: Happy that Ron helped take the meeting

 

Ron: Happy that Mary will be taking (most) future meetings

 

Brandy:  Happy that Dave's daughter graduated after 4 years of post secondary schooling. She will take a year off before doing post graduate work

 

Len: Not so happy that he had two evictions to serve but more happy that he found 10 people accommodation. He also welcomed Mary to her new role!

 

Bill S: Sorry to be missing next week's meeting but it's for a great cause - the celebration of he and Faylenore's 59th wedding anniversary, which confirms that Faylenore's a Saint!!

 

Tim: Happy to be back in the area at his cottage for a couple of weeks and really happy that his lovely new dock is in place (thanks to the carpentry skills of Dave Van Gelder's company)

 

George Y: Happy and proud of his twin grandsons who both graduated as Ontario Scholars!

At the request of  Your TV (who hosts our Bingo) there will be a set team handling the Bingo broadcasts for the next number of weeks. This will assist them in meeting their Covid 19 protocols. Members will be advised when we return to club wide participation.'