Children spend the day at the the Helmut Seidel Children’s Library in Nueva Esperanza, a Rotary built community an hour outside of Tegucigalpa, Honduras. Honduras is one of the poorest nations in the world. Rotary Images/Monika Lozinska Lee

For new(ish) club members, understanding how Rotary functions is an important part of understanding how, as members we can contribute and help the organization (at the local and international level) to thrive. This is the first in a multi-part series on Rotary Basics. Rotary is essentially a grassroots organization, with most of its service efforts being carried out at the club level. The district and international structure is designed to support the clubs and help them provide more service in their local communities and abroad. Clubs Rotarians are members of Rotary clubs, which belong to the...

The Function 4 Junction Cruise-In will be held May 31, 2008 in beautiful Junction City, Oregon. See more than 300 of the coolest cars around at the car cruise. Eugene Airport Rotary supports the Function 4 Junction, which raises money for Junction City Schools by advertising in the official program. Come out and support your local community! Photo by Josh Gagner

Rotarians heading to the 2008 RI Convention in Los Angeles next month are urged to bring one or several books in the language of their choice for Rotary’s Wide World of Books, a commemorative project of the LA2008 Convention Host Organization aimed at boosting literacy among local schoolchildren. Those who want to be a part of this global literacy initiative but aren’t able to attend the convention, can still help by making a virtual donation. The Eugene Airport Rotary contributes significantly to the SMART program each year. Our club is committed to improving literacy among children. Scholastic,...

Lane County has 16 wineries, all within about a 20 minute drive from Eugene. In Oregon, Memorial Day weekend is the kickoff for wine tasting season. Many wineries have special events – live music, new vintages to try and more. Here’s a sampling of what our local wineries have scheduled for that weekend. Sweet Cheeks Winery: Memorial Day Weekend Open House Music by Paul Biondi and art from local artists. May 24th , 25th and 26th from 12-6pm LaVelle Vineyards Hosts a Great American Picnic BBQ, Dixieland Jazz and games and fun for the family. Sunday and Monday from 12 – 5pm King...

The Archaeology Channel’s International Film and Video Festival comes to Eugene May 20 – 24. The festival has many unique features, including sessions on Native American storytelling, a guided tour to the Cascadia Caves.  Saturday afternoon’s keynote speaker is Donny George, a former director-general of the Iraqi Museum. To view the schedule and learn more visit the festival’s Web site.

The Willamette Valley has so many terrific events all through the year, but summers in the valley are pretty terrific. We’ll be featuring events in our community that might be worth attending. If you have an event you’d like to include, let us know!

This year, the our club will award scholarships to students in the eight high schools in the club’s service area: Crow, Elmira, Harrisburg, Willamette, Triangle Lake, Junction City and North Eugene High School. The awards ceremony takes place at the May 22, 2008 meeting of the club. When: Thursday, May 22, 2008; 7:30 am Where: Wings Restaurant, Mahlon Sweet (Eugene) Airport Fourteen high school seniors from the eight area schools will each receive $1500. In addition to the high school awards, we also give past awardees the opportunity to renew their scholarship. Eleven students will be awarded...

May 29 – 31, Eugene will host the annual district conference. With some terrific speakers lined up, it’s a must see for all local Rotarians. Highlights: Our own Pam Perkins has been selected to play “Deal or No Deal” Become the 2008 Rotary Idol (you need to send your audition tape ahead of time!) Two past Rotary International presidents, two ambassadorial scholars, a peace fellow and other terrific speakers are scheduled. See the speakers here. The Rotary Foundation silent auction (starts the 30th) Seminars on district grants, Rotary First Harvest, recruiting younger Rotarians, Free...

We missed Teacher Appreciation Day (sorry, Glen!) but you can still show your appreciation for teachers who have made a difference in your life. Sign the National Teacher Thank You card and, of course, tell that special teacher what impact they’ve had on you. In a National Education Association poll, nearly half of all respondents said a simple thank you was all they needed.