Project Amigo workweek: an opportunity to serve, learn and bond for past and future District Governors

After spending a week volunteering at Project Amigo with several Past District Governors and their spouses, Jim Ferguson (Rotary E-club of Canada One) feels he knows these former District 5370 leaders much better than before.

Jim Ferguson with kindergarten-aged soccer players

“I hadn’t had much interaction with Past District Governors. I had seen them at District events but only knew them to say hi,” says Jim, who will serve as District 5370 governor in 2020-2021. “I thought of them as Rotary royalty for what they have accomplished in our District.”

“When you get together and actually have a chance to get to know them personally, it was a fantastic experience,” Jim says. “The PDGs are a great group of people.”

The idea of a workweek for District Governors has been percolating for several years, according to PDG Elly Contreras (Rotary E-club of Canada One), who now serves as Canadian Intermediary for the Project Amigo Canada Society (PACS). 

“My wish was to have more Rotarians, particularly my fellow governors, participate,” she says. “Several expressed interest, but it just didn’t happen.”

Plans made at District Conference in Fort McMurray

That is, nothing happened until the 2017 District Conference in Fort McMurray. 

“At the conference, there was discussion about why more clubs didn’t participate in Project Amigo,” says Frank Reitz (RC of Fort McMurray), who was District Governor at the time. “We talked about it, which led to us deciding to schedule a workweek for past District Governors.”

In addition to Jim and his wife Jocelyn, the team that went to Cofradia, Mexico, in mid-February, included  DGE Tracey Vavrek and her husband Vince, and seven PDGs and their spouses—Judy Brown (Ron), Elly Contreras (Ramiro), Terry Drader (Mary), Ross Tyson (Brenda), Jackie Hobal (Wayne), Betty Screpnek (George), and Frank Reitz (Barbara).

Elly, who has been visiting Project Amigo since 2008 organized the visit by the past and future District  Governors.

“I found right from the very moment we arrived that the week was very well-organized and action-packed. Elly had us on the move from morning to night,” Jim says.

“They were surprised by the wonderful accommodation with private bathrooms, the wonderful meals every day, the various activities planned for them, and most of all by the amazing structures Project Amigo has developed over the last 35 years,” Elly says.

PDG Judy Brown (Rotary E-club of Canada One) has an even longer history with Project Amigo than Elly as a longtime volunteer and as a member of the PACS board.

“I first heard about Project Amigo when Ted Rose and Susan Hill came to Edmonton and did a presentation for our Rotary club (Edmonton Riverview),” Judy says. “My late husband, Peter, and I spent our winter vacations in Manzanillo, which is only about one and half hours away from where Project Amigo is headquartered.”

“The next year, we visited with Ted and Susan at Project Amigo. Ted took us around the area to show us what they were doing. Peter and I went back pretty well every year from 2002 to 2010.”

“My husband, Ron Brown, and I have attended three workweeks since 2012,” Judy says. “We keep coming back because we are hooked on this great initiative—seeing first-hand what a difference we are making by enabling children to go to school.”

“For nearly 20 years, Rotarians from our District have participated in workweeks at Project Amigo during the winter months,” Elly says. 

Click here to learn how you can be part of a future Project Amigo workweek.

Each of the governors had his or her own reason for volunteering for this workweek. For Jim, it was an opportunity to be part of a service project in another country. 

“I haven’t been on an overseas service project before and this was a chance to participate in one,” Jim says, who also had a more personal connection to Project Amigo.

“Our E-club has a student we are supporting through Project Amigo, so I knew I would have a chance to meet her.”

Clubs and individuals can sponsor Project Amigo students: $135 a year for an elementary student, $795 for a secondary student and $5,280 for a post-secondary student (including accommodation at Casa Amigo). In addition, there are other non-sponsorship ways to support Project Amigo.

PDG Ross Tyson (RC of Edmonton Northeast) felt that volunteering with other past governors would be something special.

“We had talked about it for a long time and planned for the workweek for about a year,” he says. “The fellowship you gain from going with people you know is second to none because you spend 16 hours a day together.”

“I was pleasantly surprised by what the people with Project Amigo do,” Ross says. “I only thought about sponsoring students. I had not expected to see children mentoring each other in the homework club. After school, the older sponsored kids nurture and coach younger sponsored kids.”

Ross notes that to remain in the Project Amigo program the students must keep up with their studies. 

“They are required to maintain a certain average to stay in the program,” he says. “This is a sustainable aspect of Project Amigo, because it helps ensure that the sponsors’ money is well spent.”

The team spent its days visiting schools, meeting students and their parents, and becoming involved in activities with the children. 

“We were able to feel the positive impact of Project Amigo when we met the kids and their parents. These kids are having a positive experience—the opportunity for a better life,” says Frank

DGE Tracey Vavrek reads with a Project Amigo student

“We met children who only experienced going to school (with) books and crayons because of the direct participant of Project Amigo and their supporters,” says DGE Tracey (RC of Grande Prairie After Five).

“We met teenagers who are advancing and actively participating in their schooling due to the financial support and gifts of tools like computers and books. We met young people who were on the road to becoming lawyers, nurses, hairstylists and more, because someone invested time and resources in them, believing in them,” she says.

Each team member brought an extra suitcase filled with colouring books, crayons, toothbrushes, clothing and other supplies, which they distributed to students at Project Amigo and to the children at a nearby camp for migrant workers.

The migrant workers bring their families with them when they come from other parts of

Ramiro Contreras delivers a bag of food to a family in the migrant camp 

Mexico to work in sugar cane fields. At the camp, the team “witnessed poverty at a level I could only imagine,” says Tracey. “We saw homes that were small concrete facilities with dirt floors, with access to water in a common area outside of the homes. This area was used for dishwashing and washing clothes.”

 “This was an opportunity to experience a lifestyle that was so different than ours,” Frank says. “Inmates at the Edmonton Remand Centre have it better than these families.”

Beside working with the children, the workweek was an opportunity to experience the culture of Mexico. 

They learned to make salsa and guacamole, joined a meeting of the Rotary Club of Coquimatlan, visited the La Campana archeological site, and toured a mescal distillery. 

The team even helped Frank and Barbara celebrate their 51st wedding anniversary.

For all the District Governors, past and future, the Project Amigo was a special experience. 

“It did bring us together in a way we weren’t before. We are a family of past governors, but thought the workweek, we came together in our understanding of the values of Rotary and the potential of Rotary,” Frank says. 

“The level of interaction was different than in the past. We all experienced something that was really amazing and that only comes from participation in a common experience,” he says.

“It was so great to share Project Amigo with our Rotary colleagues, to see the emotion they felt when interacting with the beautiful children that we are helping,” says Judy. “We experienced wonderful Rotary fellowship and got to know everyone better than before. It was truly an amazing week, never to be forgotten.”

During week-long Guatemala Eye Project Rotarians from Edmonton West saw 841 patients

During their Guatemala Eye Project in early January, members of the Rotary Club of Edmonton West experienced a mix of emotions.

“During any international projects, there are those moments when you see instantly the difference you are making to the lives of the people you are helping,” says club president Annie Mueller. “There are also the heartbreaking moments when you realize there is nothing you can do.” 

A high point of the mission for Annie was the reaction of a patient after receiving reading glasses. “He was so happy and grateful that he went around to all of the volunteers to thank them personally. These glasses will change his life.”

For others who came to clinics seeking help, there was disappointment.

“A mother brought in her son, who had very poor sight. She was full of hope that we could help. Unfortunately, (ophthalmologist Carlos Solórzano) had to tell her that nothing could be done and her son would lose his sight completely,” Annie says. “He will not be able to finish school, work or lead a productive life.”

Dr. Solórzano is a member of the Rotary Club of Huehuetenango, which runs the project annually. The Guatemalan team included optometrists, two ophthalmology residents, a dentist, a pediatrician several Rotary volunteers.

“They pick the clinic locations, ensuring that they are the most needy and have the facilities we need,” says Edmonton optometrist and Rotarian Benjamin Doz, who led the team from Edmonton West. “They handle the advertising, translators, volunteers and transportation. In addition, they arrange billets and ensure the visiting teams are kept healthy and safe.”

“They are some of the warmest, most hospitable Rotarians you will ever run into,” Benjamin says. “Their skills and abilities married up with efficiency are what have made this project so successful over 22 years.”

Benjamin and his wife Marley have been involved in this project for all those years. Other Rotarians from Edmonton West who were part of the Edmonton contingent are Al and Karen Sanderson, Duane and Cathy Evans, Fred Kraft and Lorne Proctor. The Rotarians were trained to support the work of the optometrist and ophthalmologists. 

“They performed triage, pre-testing, pharmaceutical dispensing, glasses dispensing and physician assistance,” Benjamin says. “Everyone worked in organization, basic labour and patient care.”

A total of 841 patients were seen in clinics held in three communities during the week-long mission.

“We dispensed medication, gave out reading glasses, ordered prescription glasses to be sent from Canada and booked 44 cataract surgeries,” Annie says.

The mission wasn’t without challenges, beginning as soon as the Canadians landed in Guatemala City. 

“Upon arriving in Guatemala City, we learned that our medical equipment hadn’t arrived. It was still in Mexico,” Annie says.

“The next morning, Ben and Lorne stayed behind to sort out the lost luggage and the rest of the team proceed to Antigua (a town about 45 minutes from Guatemala City),” she says. “We set up a clinic in a school for orphans and children of single mothers, which the Rotary Club of Canmore helps to fund.”

During this clinic, the team saw 67 children and adults who suffered from various conditions. “We dispensed medication, handed out reading glasses and took orders for prescription glasses,” Annie says.

The next morning, the team traveled to La Libertad, where they held clinics for three days.

“This village is very isolated and situated on the side of a mountain at an elevation of 5,643 feet,” Annie says. “The roads were incredibly steep. It took a lot of skill to get the van and truck to the clinic, which of course, was at the highest point in the village.”

At the end of the first day of this clinic, the team headed to its hotel, which Annie describes as “unfinished—some rooms had no running water, no bedding or working toilets.”

“In each room, a two-foot metal cage was fixed some six feet up on a wall opposite the bed. Likely it was to lock a TV into, but it was empty,” Benjamin says.

With several roosters crowing outside their rooms, “we decided that [these cages] would be a great place to keep your rooster,” Annie says.

After three days in La Liberta, the team returned to Huehuetenago, where they attended
a Rotary meeting and spent the night, before heading to the small town of Casa Grande for the final two days of clinics.

“It was a miserable four-plus hour drive from Huehuetenago, across a 10,000-foot plateau,” Benjamin says. The clinic was set up in the community centre.

During this clinic, the team was joined by a pediatrician, who is a member of the Huehuetenago Rotary Club.

“The pediatrician was quite a guy,” Benjamin says. “He motorcycled into Casa Grande through the rain. He worked a very long day and then went home in the rain in the dark that night.

“He asked what he could do at the start of the day. Being short of translators who could do an apt job, I thought [of] counselling noncompliant diabetic patients and doing informed consents for surgery would help with a small backlog of patients we had at the time. 

“I thought it was a small, short task. Little did I know how much diabetic retinopathy would be seen and how much surgery was required. He was surrounded with a lineup of patients for the rest of the day—likely far more than anyone would want to do looking forward to that drive home.”

Summing up her experience as part of the Guatemala Eye Project, Annie says:

“Guatemala is bright, energetic and colourful. We saw mountains, isolated plateaus and powerful volcanoes. But the people are what make Guatemala such a special place. They are friendly, helpful and they welcomed us with open arms. Many of the patients we saw were quick to smile and laugh. It was a pleasure to spend time with them.”

She has particular praise for the two young men who served as translators and provided an example of how they made the team’s jobs so much easier. 

“Fred was fitting glasses for a lady. He had given her the prescription indicated by Ben on her card, and was asking her, through the interpreter, if she could read what was on the card. She said ‘No.’ He double-checked the prescription, gave her a different pair of glasses and tried again. She said ‘No.’ Fred went back to ask Ben if he was misreading the prescription. No, Ben assured him that it was correct. Fred then went back to the lady and tried again. No luck. It was then that Fred realized, through the interpreter that the glasses were perfect. She just couldn’t read!”

Recruiting new members and creating new clubs are key to meeting our 2018-2019 membership goal

When asked about District 5370 membership numbers, the District membership committee chair responds with just two words: “Extremely volatile!”

“These numbers have gone up and down, from up 20 to down 20, in a period of six weeks,” says Jeff Reynolds (RC of Edmonton Glenora).

“In terms of the long-term trend we are declining, but we have some opportunities to grow,” he says.

District Governor Ingrid Neitsch has set a membership target of 2,080 by the end of her term on June 30—an increase of 60 members from where we were on July 1, 2018.

As of March 20, there were 2,016 Rotarians in the District.

Achieving this membership target can happen in three ways—by retaining current Rotarians, by attracting new members to existing clubs, and by establishing new clubs where none exist or that are structured differently than existing ones.

To assist clubs in their efforts to grow their membership, Jeff recently recorded a webinar for membership chairs, presidents and other Rotarians who understand the importance of maintaining and increasing our numbers.

Edmonton Strathcona is one of the clubs to have increased its membership in 2018-2019

During the webinar, Jeff highlights what membership chair Dr. Ellen Weber has done to attract new Rotarians to her club, Edmonton Strathcona. As of the end of January, it  had increased by six members. 

 “What (members of the Edmonton Strathcona Club) have been doing is focusing on truly authentic engagement with their members,” Jeff says. “It’s been done one-on-one, by asking:

• What things do you really value?
• What do you enjoy about the Rotary club?
• What things do you want to get praise for?
• What do you wonder about?

“There has to be a value proposition in Rotary. It has to be worth their while. There has to be an opportunity for them to contribute in a meaningful way—for them to be heard, felt and appreciated.”

Ellen regularly blogs about what’s working in Edmonton Strathcona.

Other clubs that have led the way in growing members so far in 2018-2019 are the Rotary Clubs of Dawson Creek (+9), Dawson Creek Sunrise (+4) and Edmonton West (+7).

“We are going to look closely at what these clubs are doing,” Jeff says. “What is their secret sauce?”

In addition to efforts to retain current members and grow existing clubs, initiatives are in place to charter new clubs.

Passport club will offer opportunity to serve without weekly meetings

Furthest along toward being chartered is a “passport” club in Edmonton, which is being sponsored by the Rotary Club of Edmonton Whyte Avenue.

In the February issue of INSPIRE, the District’s newsletter, DG Ingrid described a passport club as “a club offering members opportunities to make a difference locally and globally in a way that fits within their time, talents, finances and lifestyle, with fewer meetings but multiple service opportunities, social gatherings, affordable dues and access to Rotary activities and resources.”

Members of passport clubs are full Rotary members, paying membership dues to Rotary International and the District, but without weekly meeting costs, and enjoying the same privileges and rights as Rotarians in traditional clubs.

Area Governor Marilyn Mucha (RC of Edmonton Whyte Avenue), who is leading this initiative, says that nearly 35 people have expressed interest in this club structure.

“The flexible and affordable format is appealing to former Rotarians,” Marilyn says. “Almost 60 per cent (of the prospective members) are past Rotarians from clubs in the Edmonton area and another 30 per cent are non-Rotarians.” There are also a few current Rotarians who have expressed interest in the passport model.

The provisional club has had two meetings, so far. 

“We heard many positive comments from those in attendance like, ‘this is definitely easier for me to afford,” and ‘I can make this work with my busy schedule,’ as well as ‘I missed the friendships that I made in Rotary,’” Marilyn says.

“Many shared stories of their past service projects,” she says. “The buzz is spreading and we are getting past Rotarians reaching out to family and work colleagues (asking them) to consider joining them.”

It is anticipated the club will have monthly meetings, of which only four will be business meetings. Remaining meetings will be social events or for working on service projects. There will minimum expectations in terms of volunteer hours each year.

“Members will have a ‘passport’ to work on service projects and fundraisers with any club in our District, or the globe,” Marilyn says.

Once 20 or more people commit to join the new club, it will be ready to be chartered. 

“We anticipate that the club will reach charter strength before the end of this Rotary year,” Marilyn says. “A charter committee will be struck to start the process of leveraging available bylaws from other passport clubs in North America.”

They also hope to learn from the experiences of other passport clubs.

“We reached out to a number of the existing and newly chartered passport clubs in the U.S. and Canada to arrange a gathering while we are attending the Rotary International Convention in Hamburg, this June,” Marilyn says. “Both Markus Muhs and I will be there to learn how these clubs are succeeding and what challenges they overcame.”

She encourages Rotarians to spread the word about the passport clubs. “If you know of members of your club that have left for a variety of reasons, let them know about what the passport club is all about. Perhaps this club model will appeal to them and we will see them inspired to become ‘People of Action’ again.”

Information about the next passport club meeting will be posted on the District’s Facebook page.

Other potential new clubs include a passport club for the Municipal District of Greenview in northwest Alberta, which includes the communities of Valleyview, Fox Creek and Grande Cache, and more traditional clubs in St. Paul and Bonneyville, in northeast Alberta.