Our speaker for December 8 - Cheney Caldwell

Cheney Caldwell and Greg Abrams gave a very inspiring presentation about the current activities of the Ventura Rotaract Club.  The Rotaract Club is comprised of individuals between the ages of 18 and 35, mostly young professionals and students.  The club was chartered in June 2010, and has been going full steam since then, having already participated in 53 events.  Cheney is currently in her second year as President.

While in Playa Gigante, the members performed a variety of repairs.  The local school had many desks without tops and many of the chairs were in need of repair.  The members purchased wood (a five-hour process) and repaired the desks and chairs.  The school had a two-stall outhouse which did not have doors and had paint that was peeling and worn down.  The members installed doors and painted the entire structure.  Although it was not initially in their plan, after seeing the sad state of the children’s swing set, the members felt they just had to fix it.  They replaced the tree branches that were being used as swing seats with new pieces of flat wood and the entire set was painted a cheerful blue color.

Although the village has plenty of land in which fruits and vegetables could be grown, the villagers did not have seeds.  The members brought seeds with them and planted a vegetable garden with the types of plants that would likely flourish in that climate and soil.  The vegetable plants included tomatoes, zucchini, and squash.  When the members returned to the site of the garden a day or two later, they saw that the villagers has put logs around the garden to protect it.  The members took this as a sign that the villagers really appreciated the garden. 

With a donation from the Ventura Downtown Rotary Club, Rotaract was able to bring a mobile dentistry unit with them to Nicaragua.  They presented it to the health clinic in Tola, and it was immediately put to use.  The members also brought a box full of reading glasses which were donated by our very own Bob Pazen.  In addition, each person brought a 50 lb. bag of clothing with them to give to the villagers.

Rotaract is looking to continue its work in Nicaragua, particularly with long-term projects.  In order to continue on with this and other projects, the club would love to have more members who can help.  Cheney gave a very inspiring and heart felt explanation of her vision for not only the club, but also of making this world a better place.  As she aptly stated, one person cannot do it alone.  The club is having a membership social on January 16, 2012, so please spread the word and encourage others to attend.

Deborah A. Perkins