MEMBERSHIP OF ROTARY AND
THE ROTARY CLUB OF CHESTER-LE-STREET
by our Club President, Jim Lawrence

The Rotary Club of Chester-le-Street was founded in 1927. It is part of a world-wide organisation of business and professional people and community leaders. We are pledged to serve our communities, locally, nationally and internationally. We promote the highest ethical standards in all areas of working life and work for peace and goodwill worldwide.

I invite you to help us in these activities by joining The Rotary Club of Chester-le-Street.

We meet locally and comprise of 34 members, some of whom are active in business, local community leaders and executives, or retired from their profession or vocation. We believe that commerce and community are inter-dependant and, through the membership of Rotary Clubs world-wide, we work to serve our communities. We enjoy good fellowship and fun, and together work on local and international charitable projects.

I hope to meet you at one of our meetings.

Jim Lawrence
President 2009 - 2010

To find out more about us or to arrange to come to one of our meetings:-

• Telephone Club Secretary: Bill Holden on (0191) 584 4038, or

  email: billbholden@aol.com

The entry age to Rotary is 21 years of age and open to business and professional people, local community leaders and executives.

Because our membership covers a wide range of ages from many different occupations, the resulting fellowship is always interesting and lively. Our aim as a Rotary Club, is to help others while enjoying ourselves in the process.

Rotary is a truly international organisation, over 100 years old. Today 1.2 million Rotarians belong to some 31,000 Rotary Clubs in 166 countries.

We meet many of these members when they join our meetings or when we, as group or individually, visit other Rotary Clubs, or Rotary Conferences abroad.

From this interaction we get a real feeling of community which helps promote one of Rotary's main objectives - international understanding.

Membership of Rotary provides a number of benefits including:-

• Effecting change within the community.
• Developing leadership skills.
• Gaining understanding of, and having an impact on, international humanitarian issues.
• Developing relationships with community and business leaders.

 

1. Service to Others. 2. High Ethical Standards. 3. International Understanding. 4. Charitable Support.

 

Rotary's Own Charities
(Some examples):

International Charities. Sight-savers (Northeast). Rotary Aqua Filter Project. Eye Camps. Polio Eradication. Childrens' Hospices. Eliminating Malaria. Overseas Projects by Young People. International Projects. Mercy Ships. Hermann Gmeiner Sheikh Secondary School, Somaliland.

 

International Scholarships

Ambassadorial Scholarships. Group Study Exchanges.

Meetings

We are a Rotary Club that meets for lunch at the Chilton Lodge Country Hotel, Blackboy Road, Fencehouses, Co Durham DH4 6PY, at 12.00 (noon) for 12.30 pm, each Friday. Lunch is usually followed by a Guest Speaker.

Social Calendar

Day trips away. Weekends away. Dinner dances. Golf. Bowling. Garden parties. Safari suppers. Theatre trips. Rambling. Sponsored Walks. Visits to other Rotary Clubs. International Friendship Exchanges to Rotary Clubs abroad.

Local Community Charitable Projects
(recent examples)

Annual Academic & Community Achievement Awards to local Students. Sponsorship - James Etherington Music Trust Awards for local young musicians. Support to Leukaemia Research. Annual Music Awards to local Musicians. Arthritis Assistance. Diabetes Assistance. Sight-savers. Childrens' Charities, ie Bubble Foundation. Sea Cadet Corps. Grace House Childrens' Hospice Appeal, Sunderland. Parkinson's Disease Society. North East Kidney Foundation. Green issues - annual local collection & recycling of Christmas trees. The Cystic Fibrosis Trust. Great North Air Ambulance.