Fort Scott Rotary Club service projects

What do the words, "Service Above Self mean to you?" Well, to the Fort Scott Rotary Club and Rotary International, the words explain are objective to serve our community and the world by volunteering our time, energy, and money. Rotary's official Web page. Rotary .org, describes Rotary as a "worldwide organization of more than 1.2 million business, professional, and community leaders. Members of Rotary clubs, known as Rotarians, provide humanitarian service, encourage high ethical standards in all vocations, and help build goodwill and peace in the world."

Rotary was first formed in late February in 1905, by Paul P. Harris in Chicago, Illinois. Word caught on, and this service organization quickly became a way for professionals to fellowship with one another while still spreading hope for those in need.

Clubs began to pop-up all over the nation from the East Coast to the West Coast and everywhere in between, including the plains of Kansas. The Fort Scott Rotary Club was established in 1918. Since our charter, the club has served the individuals in our local community, nation, and abroad, from the fight with Polio to serving Spaghetti at the Scottish Rite Temple.

As Rotarians, we are proud to serve the community of Fort Scott and the surrounding area by funding and implementing service projects across Bourbon County.

Last week, nearly all 68 members took part in serving spaghetti at our annual Spaghetti Feed in Downtown Fort Scott. While many of us usually conduct business from behind our desks at work, we gladly seized the opportunity to bus tables, brew coffee, sell placemat ads and tickets, cut the famous rum cake dessert, clean dishes, and of course, serve spaghetti, because we know that the money we raise will go to sponsor local charities, groups, and projects. A few of the projects that your Fort Scott Rotary

Club sponsors includes the following:

* Rotary Dictionary Project, 5th year of presenting dictionaries to 193 third graders in six schools in two districts and an additional 21 dictionaries were given to teachers and school libraries to promote literacy and education.

* Rotary Eyeglass Project, donations of old eyeglasses to be refurbished and provided to those in need.

* Rotary Soccer Field at Ellis Park, we recently purchased new bleachers for both fans and players, and funded the construction of a new score house, and even more recently we purchased an electronic Scoreboard for the soccer field.

* Project Art, our contribution allows the students at the Fort Scott Middle School three opportunities to attend theatrical performances in the Kansas City Area.

* Boys & Girls State, a camp that teaches the importance of being a citizen and how the governmental body works.

* Fort Scott High School Band, will be representing the High School and the community in Chicago, IL at a band tour.

* Winfield Scott Elementary and Eugene Ware Elementary Reading Program

* Danny and Willa Ellis Fine Arts Center Wall Fame

* Airport Days

* Crop Walk

* District Flood Fund

* CHOICES Program

* Bikes for Tykes

* Relay for Life

* Children's Miracle Network

* CASA

We work hard to fund these projects and many others; because we feel that they are very important to the community as a whole. If you have a project that needs funding and you think that we may be interested in helping, please email us at:

webmaster@fortscottrotary.com or contact one of our Rotarians.

If you would like to know more about Rotary, or how to join our club, visit our website at fortscottrotary.com.

Submitted by-- Jared Leek

Fort Scott Rotary Club

Public Relations