by Max Marbut
Staff Writer
Despite the struggling economy, the Rotary Club of Jacksonville maintained its annual tradition of supporting local nonprofit organizations.
At its meeting Monday at the Omni Hotel, the club presented checks totaling $75,100 for nonprofit projects ranging from replacing a roof to purchasing computers for electronic medical records.
A club committee evaluated dozens of requests and visited organizations to determine which would receive awards.
“This was one of the most moving committees I’ve been involved in during my 17 years in Rotary,” said Committee Chair Sean Mulholland.
L’Arche Harbor House received $15,000 toward a new van to transport clients in wheelchairs. Development Director Nancy Smith said the organization had been raising money for two years to buy a vehicle and the Rotary grant completes the funding needed for it.
“As the population ages, the need is increasing,” she said. “This gift allows us to have a van that can transport more residents.”
USO Executive Director John Shockley accepted a check for $15,000 to create a communications media room for families of service men and women deployed overseas.
“When families are separated for over a year, the ability to communicate is invaluable. This gift will lower our costs and raise morale,” he said.
Other awards this year were $12,000 to the Sanctuary on 8th Street for a new van to transport children, $11,000 to Girls Inc. to replace a damaged roof, $10,000 to the Child Guidance Center to expand the organization’s outpatient facility, $6,500 to Volunteers in Medicine to help fund the clinic’s transition to electronic medical records, $4,500 to the Family Nurturing Center to build a privacy fence and $1,100 to the DePaul School to enhance the school’s media components.
Also at the meeting, Past District Governor and Past President Tommy Grimes gave the members a report about Rotary International’s campaign to eliminate polio worldwide. He said there have been only 129 new cases of the disease reported globally so far this year, compared to 411 cases reported in the same period in 2009. Grimes also said there have been no new cases identified in Nigeria this year and only 19 new cases in India.
“We are getting closer to eradicating polio,” said Grimes.
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