ROTARY GIVES GIFT OF KNOWLEDGE

October 2005 

 The Rotary Club of Mt. Olive started distributing dictionaries to every third grade student in our Township four years ago.  When we began this project, little did we realize how excited the students would be during our visits to their classrooms.  The students showed their appreciation with big smiles and many questions. 

According to school administrators and Rotary International, third grade is when students begin to work independently, start to read, write and think creatively    This is an ideal time for each student to get their own dictionary and support education and literacy Rotary gives dictionaries to third graders across the country.   1,128,579 dictionaries were given to students in the 2004-2005 school years as a gift. 

This year the Mt. Olive Rotary Club handed out over 400 dictionaries to local Mt. Olive Township students.  These dictionaries become the personal property of each child so that they will have it no matter where they go after leaving the third grade.  All the dictionaries were paid for by the Mt. Olive Rotary Club with money from fund raisers that they do throughout the year.  

The students and the Rotarians all had a great time with the dictionary project.  The students loved the presentations that the club did when handing out the dictionaries.   It was a short and simple “What is Rotary” presentation explaining that Rotary Clubs are local professionals who help people via local and international activities. 

Other recent projects that the Mt. Olive Rotary Club has done in the area include scholarships to local high school seniors and recognition of students in the elementary schools.  For senior citizens, Mt. Olive Rotary gives a “birthday” party at the Mt. Olive Manor in Flanders.  Mt. Olive Rotary donated benches to be used at Turkey Brook and Flanders Park and sponsors Troop  312.                                                                                                                                                International projects include providing clean water via wells and pumping systems for villages so residents can have ready access to clean water instead of contaminated local ponds and water holes or distant wells requiring miles of walking to carry water back to the homes.  Another ongoing project of Rotary International, and the Mt. Olive Rotary, is to eradicate polio by providing vaccine around the world.   To learn about the dictionary’s they just received, the third graders looked up the word “eradicate”.    

For information on how you can help your neighbors or become a member of the Mt. Olive Rotary, please call  Jo Lynn Townsend at 973-584-0299