Thirty Rotarians and guests caravaned the hour long journey from Chapala to Jocotepec - 1st stop Bio Tu. This is an ecological center that teaches sustainable practices such as composting, use of solar stoves, and using organic materials. They also have a butterfly reserve where they are "raising" several different species.  Club members went on to the Jocotepec Cultural Center where a local muralist, Chili, explained the elements of several murals in the town center.  From there the Group gathered for a delicious lunch at Restaurante Frida.

Two members of the Chapala Sunrise Rotary Club have resumed the classes of health (physical and mental) information to community members joining our Diabetes Club.  Dr.  Oscar Ibarra Jr., M.D. and Erika Alamos ( nutritionist) are joined by another volunteer doctor, and psychologist to offer information about diabetes,  and strategies for managing the disease. Patients log their daily glucose levels and bring to the clinic for the analysis and support.  Tepehua Centro de Communitario has offered teaching space and most of the patients are from that needy neighborhood.  We plan to link our services with their Maternal and Child Health program.  Attendance at the monthly meetings has grown from November with 8 attendees to this weeks meeting of 29 villagers.  Attendees range in age form age 8-85!

Our classes have begun at Ojo de Agua, teaching villagers about the water contamination and sanitation. This is preparing them for understanding the system and the long term maintenance needs. A visiting Rotarian from South San Francisco and another from Richmond Sunrise, B.C., joined us at the new site for our wetlands sanitation project and to see one of the classes.  The municipality of Poncitlán has laid about 200 feet of pipe to carry the flow of effluent to the new system.

Chapala Sunrise hosted a Mexican party at Letra Ch restaurant for 80 people.  We played Mexican games ( Loteria, cubileto and balero), listened to Mariachis and watched folkloric dancer.  Entertainment and dinner were all incredible!

Our club has become much more involved in the pueblo of San Pedro Itzicán which has per capita, the highest rate of kidney disease in the Western Hemisphere.  We are beginning our work with getting to know the community and their desires, and working on nutrition, dental education and joining with others on early identification of kidney disease.  Hat's off to local leader, Anita Torres, who is championing the cause of this very needy and isolated community.  We distributed toothbrushes at the Kid's Kitchen feeding program, for 700 children that she oversees 5 days per week.

Today Club members visited Bambú Warrior; a vivero dedicated to promoting bamboo as a sustainable plant.  The uses are varied from hedges to walking sticks; flooring to bedsheets to articles for the home.  We even drank bamboo tea!  The small company has recently been awarded a government grant to apprentice and pay five young people to learn about growing the plants and making products that can be produced without very little equipment.

We partnered with the SAFE Scholarship program to raise funds for local scholarships and other projects.  The Mardi Gras party sold out four weeks ahead of time and was a major fun and funding success!

COVID as brought challenges to Rotary Clubs worldwide.  Last week, we swore in our 43rd member, Peter Harrell, by  Zoom!

Christmas with CSRC members.. having fun and sharing the season by donating wrapped toys for children in a local barrio. ​​​​​​​

Girls in rural areas of Mexico often stay home from school during menstruation due to embarrassment, and lack of appropriate hygiene products.  Chapala Sunrise Rotarian and nurse Becca Pohl is chairing a project that combines two service areas of Rotary; maternal and child health with economic development..  She, along with Spanish speaking colleagues, teach young teen girls in schools about female development, health and menstrual cycles.  She distributes reusable washable pads and products in bright colors and patterns.  She teaches women in the villages how to sew the products, paying them for their work. In these photos, Becca is joined by bilingual Rotarian Susie Lindeman in packaging the products.  She, along with Spanish speaking colleagues, teach young teen girls in schools about female development, health and menstrual cycles.  She distributes reusable washable pads and products in bright colors and patterns.  She teaches women in the villages how to sew the products, paying them for their work. In these photos, Becca is joined by bilingual Rotarian Susie Lindeman in packaging the products. 

Thanks to a generous donation from the Rotary Club of Fountain Hills,  Carlos Cerda, a dentist who is a member of our club is providing needed dental care to people who cannot afford it.  His first two patients are a double amputee and his 13 year old niece. Both have been trying to save for dental care from their jobs working at Walmart and making sandwiches but have not been able to put away the kind of money that is required for the extensive dental needs.  

 

Dr. Carlos also visited the village of Ojo de Agua and has registered 30 people who have significant needs; multiple missing teeth, rotting teeth and gum disease and other issues.  Dr. Carlos is donating his time and is negotiating with others to provide materials at a lowered costs, to stretch the donation dollars.  

 

Thank you to Fountain Hills for once again supporting the work of our club!

Chapala Sunrise supports an international project in Rwanda.  The Dream Beauty Academy trains women with few resources as beauticians, a high paying and well regarded vocation in Kigali.  Two of our members visited the Academy and were impressed by the rigorous 3 semester curriculum and the supportive staff.  When asked if there was anything that was needed, the Director suggested graduation kits of beauty supplies. Scissors, hairdryers, rollers, etc. are tools of the trade.  Upon receiving these kits graduates have the opportunity to set up a business at home, or work at a local salon.  The Club provides money annually, so that these women have the opportunity to work, as soon as they have earned the skills to do so.

This week Chapala Sunrise engaged in two active service activities.  The first was a return trip to the Huichol community to educate and distribute water filters and to provide more dentistry by Rotarian Carlos Cerda.  Closer to home, 8 Chapala Sunrise Rotarians assembled and distributed 23 wheelchairs to deserving adults at Lakeside, provided by Chairs of Love and Lake Mary Rotary, Florida.  Thank you, to Rotarian Susie Lindeman, for interviewing and identifying some of those most in need in Chapala. 

With the generous help of individual and sister Rotary Club donations, our Club has expanded its emergency food relief program in several ways.  In the last month we have increased our direct food purchase/packing/ and distribution of despensas( weekly bundles of food) from 48 to 125 families around Lake Chapala. We are now supporting the food needs of two local orphanages ( Hope House and Love in Action), serving 43 kids. And we are partnering with several like minded charities such as the Tepehua Centro Communitario, Poco a Poco and Lakeside Presbyterian to provide additional food to the communities that they serve.

 

We're closed but we are busy.  There is a rapidly emerging crisis of hunger in our greater community as factories, restaurants, fields and stores closed under government mandates.  Our Club is partnering with generous individuals and Clubs in Canada and the U.S. to raise funds to pay for weekly food bundles (despensas) with basic supplies and soap.  Club members are buying and distributing dispensas to villages in which we already have connections so that we can assure that the MOST needy are receiving the goods.  We are also working with other Lakeside philanthropic organizations who are doing the same kind of work and are serving different populations to help them fund their expanded efforts in this time of great need.

 

The 3 day Chili Cookoff is Lakeside's biggest annual charity event. Last year nearly 500,000 pesos was raised to be split by 9 local charities.  In order to contribute to the success of the Cookoff, we run the Mexican food booth and also work behind the scenes in the supply distribution for all of the vendors and operations of the three day event.  We are proud to be one of the cookoff's beneficiaries as our "split" goes directly to support other community groups in our area.

The Chapala Sunrise Rotary Club has been working for three years to bring clean water, on a consistent basis, to the village of Ojo de Agua on Lake Chapala. This tiny village of 300 people has only had access to water during the rainy season, from streams off of the hillside.  Nevertheless, when we tested the stream water it was rated as one of the purest sources around the Lakeside.  Working in partnership with the local municipal government of Poncitlán, drilling began early this month and a clean, water was found at 200 feet.  The source appears to be sufficient to supply the village.  Further testing of the water must be done by the State Water authorities.  

Our Club has applied for a Global Grant, with international partner clubs of South San Francisco, Lincoln, CA, Fountain Hills, AZ and Winnipeg West, Manitoba to fund the holding tank, and distribution system and home water filters, throughout the village. In the meantime, club members are teaching water and sanitation classes in the village, using United Nations approved Project Wet materials.

The Rotary Club of Winnipeg West, as part of their international outreach, has joined with our Club to raise money for water projects in Ojo De Agua.  Recently they sent a check for $1500 CDN which equals over 27,000 pesos.  Rotary Clubs around the world work together to help the less fortunate have better health, education and economic opportunities.  This is another example of the power of the 1.2 million members of Rotary.

 

 

 

Nine Rotarians pitched in with a lot of physical labor to help take down the booths, tables and chairs at the annual Feria de Los Maestros.  The coordinator of the Feria was very appreciative of our willingness to do the unglamorous job of "clean up", especially when the other volunteers were exhausted after three days of work.

 

Other Rotarians also pitched in over the three days weekend by hosting artists for 3 days at their homes, announcing ( bilingually) stage events, and helping with admissions.  Truly a weekend of "Service above Self".

On September 27th, our Club donated 20,000 pesos to Escuela Foraneh #1 Jose Vasconcelos in Chapala for a permanent playground roof that protects from the rain and sun as students play and assemble outside.  This secondaria (middle) school is inner city with little space for students to congregate outside the classroom.  The parent club has been working for three years to raise the funds for this project and our donation gets them nearly to the top.  We hope that other like minded people and clubs will donate to help finish off this project.