International Service

Helping hands with a global reach

T-C Rotary has always supported our home community first. As part of Rotary International, we have also supported the wider international community, with a focus on health and education. Ultimately, our community and our children will fare better if everyone in the world fares better.

Recent examples of our club’s international support are:

Ongoing financial support to help a group of street kids and orphans in Uganda achieve food security and complete school. This initiative is in conjunction with assistance from their local community.
Support for Dr. Karin Euler's projects aimed at improving maternal health on the remote Tanzanian island of Ukerewe, including the purchase of an ultrasound machine. Dr. Euler's practice is in Clarksburg.
Support for the pharmaceutical work of Rotarians David and Sonja Glass also on Ukerewe Island. David and Sonja are members of the Meaford Rotary Club.
Multi-year financial support of the Hands Up Cameroon project, a multi-club effort that installed wells for clean water in several remote villages in Cameroon.
A donation of school supplies to a remote school in Guatemala.

Many of the club’s international projects are undertaken in concert with other Rotary clubs and leverage the financial support provided by our Rotary District and Rotary International. This allows small clubs like ours to meaningfully participate internationally. We aim for activities and projects which are sustainable and fall within the key focus areas of Rotary International:

Fighting disease
Providing clean water
Saving mothers and children
Supporting education
Growing local economies
Protecting the environment
Promoting peace

Our recent efforts in Uganda take a slightly different path in that we are leading the assistance efforts. Through this process, we have forged a direct relationship with the Mbale Metropolitan Rotary club who have the needed local cultural understanding and relationships and who have also brought their technical expertise and commitment to be instrumental partners in achieving our goal of enhancing the lives of the street kids and orphans of the Elgon Ngoma Troupe. Our Uganda projects have become the focus of our international efforts the past two years and details about these effortsare provided in the section below. We also continue to support other international projects where appropriate.

International Funding Request Form

Our Uganda project is delivering great results!

T-C Rotary has recently completed the final component of its 3 year International Services’ project to help Elgon Ngoma Troupe (ENT) – a non-profit providing housing, food, mentoring and education to street kids in Mbale Uganda – to become self-sustaining. The Mbale area is one of the poorest in the country and is believed to have the highest number of street kids. The latest work consists of:

The installation of a solar system with battery storage to bring electricity to their farmhouse in nearby Mawululu village. Now there are lights inside and outside and enough power to charge small appliances and tools.
The purchase and set up of beds and bedding for 12 youth. Now the farmhouse can finally house additional Troupe members.

Having a habitable farmhouse with clean water and solar power means ENT members can now live there permanently, work the crops, learn farming skills and provide much needed security for the farm’s operation. While also relieving overcrowding at their home in Mbale, their presence on the farm makes successful crops more assured and virtually guarantees food security year-round for all Troupe members.

T-C Rotary is grateful for the opportunity to make such a difference in the lives of homeless youth in the Mbale area of Uganda and thrilled that ENT is finding ways to leverage our efforts to create even more much needed benefits in Mawululu. We are also very grateful for the support of our Blue Mountains community members who have donated to this cause and for the steadfast support and hard work of the Metropolitan Mbale Rotary (MMR) Club who has ensured the successful implementation of the project.

Education Turns Dreams into Reality

The members of the Elgon Ngoma Troupe in Uganda have dreams for a better life and are determined to obtain their secondary school degrees. Some want to go on to become professionals. Covid-19 made it extremely challenging because the pandemic closed schools, and remote learning is all but impossible for this group. When the government opened schools in October 2020, it was only for those students in their final year of elementary or secondary education. The aim was to allow those students to complete the graduating year they had barely begun when the Covid-19 lockdown started. Unfortunately, students have to pay fees to attend school in Uganda. Because of lockdown restrictions, the Troupe was unable to raise any money from performances so could not pay for school fees. With the help of some generous local donors, T-C Rotary was able to step up and fund the fees for four Troupe finalists. They graduated mid 2021 and have successfully navigated through the pandemic lockdowns and are now endeavouring to contribute to their local community and hoping to sontinue pursuing their dreams.

The lockdowns finally ended early in 2022 and schools finally opened for all students in February 2022. The economy has been devastated after 2 years of severe lockdowns and although Elgon Ngoma Troupe has been able to resume its performances, it has been a slow start and the revenue per performance is, not surprisingly, down. This has made it difficult for them to raise all the required funds for school fees for all the youth. Several club members and friends of the club have generously donated towards the education sponsorship of several youth. If you are interested in learning about the needed sponsorships, please send us an email regarding your interest by clicking HERE.