It’s that time of year again, time for a river full of rubber duckies and a chance for philanthropy, that can only mean one thing… the Great Rotary Duck Race!  The Eugene Airport Rotary has participated this event for years and 2010 is no different.  The race is this Wednesday, July 7, 2010 and during the event The Maxwell Foundation will donate $5.00, in the name of every attending Rotarian, to Polio Plus, an organization dedicated to curing Polio around the world.  Additionally, the United Rotary Clubs of Eugene, Springfield and Cottage Grove and the Duck Race committee will be...

An estimated 18,000 Rotarians from 154 countries attended the 2010 Rotary International Convention in Montréal, Québec, Canada this Wednesday, June 23. During the four-day event, participant heard from famed speakers and philanthropists such as best-selling author Greg Mortenson and singer/songwriter Dolly Parton.  Rotarians were also entertained by performing groups such as Cirque du Soleil (see picture) and the Irish singing group known as Celtic Thunder.  This picture features Rotary International President, John Kenny onstage with Cirque du Soleil performers at the Montréal convention.

The Great Rotary Duck Race was held last Saturday at Alton Baker Park.  In this photo, the ducks can be seen floating down the Willamette River on their way to the finish line.  To take a look at more photos from the 2009 Duck Race, click here.

Peter Seenan, a 2007-08 Ambassadorial Scholar in Delhi, India, says his favorite part of his experience was “giving presentations to numerous Rotary clubs and being invited to be a part of their incredible work, undertaken across the vast city of 17 million inhabitants.” The project provided packages of supplies donated by Rotarians to children at a school founded and supported by local Rotary clubs. Each child received a package that contained a sweater, packet of biscuits, and a candle. The boy in this photo is receiving one of the packages. To read more about the project and the...

Sam Clifton, a Missouri Rotarian, takes the lead on the hit reality show Extreme Makeover: Home Edition. More than 600 skilled laborers volunteered to help build a 3,300-square-foot home in just six days starting July 14. As the co-owner of Millstone Custom Homes with his wife, Michelle, Clifton believes that a project this size, which included building a barn, chicken coop, and greenhouse, would normally take a crew of 50 about six months. Chris and Niki Hampton and their six children were selected from a group of families in need.  Their 800-square-foot home in Ash Grove was replaced with a...

Rotarian Stephen Nicholas has implemented programs that aim to eliminate pediatric HIV/AIDS in La Romana, Dominican Republic, where the woman and her four-year-old daughter featured in this photo received treatment. Nicholas is a pediatric AIDS specialist who has helped to reduce infant HIV in New York City, and is now working to eliminate mother-to-child HIV transmission in the Dominican Republic. Nicholas began a family AIDS clinic in La Romana, Dominican Republic in 1999, which is run by the International Family AIDS Program.  The Yonkers club, the Rotary Club of La Romana, and District 7230...

Poverty, hunger, and disease often form a vicious cycle in the rural regions of Uganda. Rotarians from the clubs of Muyenga, Uganda, Genk-Noord, and Belgium, are addressing these problems by using a multi-faceted approach to bring long-term economic stability to a rural region in Uganda. In 2009, the Ugandan and Belgian clubs launched a project in Kasamu-Kyali parish in Uganda’s Mpigi District, to improve the lives of 4,000 villagers. The project provides treated mosquito nets, water boreholes and pumps, agricultural supplies and livestock, vocational training and equipment, and educational...

A Ssese Islander sits on a schoolroom bench in Kasekulo Village, Kalangala, Uganda, while a volunteer dentist extracts a tooth. Ugandan Rotarians have taken hourlong ferry rides from Kampala to the community of islands for more than 16 years.  The Rotarians provide dental care, general health treatment, and deworming for islanders, many of whom have never left the island or their fishing villages. Since 200l, twice each year, members of the Rotary Club of Bainbridge Island, Washington, USA, have participated in the one-day clinic. To read more about the project visit: A Program With Teeth

Bangladesh women line up for fresh water on this year’s World Water Day (March 20, 2009). AP Photo/Pavel Rahman

Dolly Parton autographs a child’s book during a ceremony  in Atlanta announcing the partnership with Rotary International and the Dollywood Foundation’s Imagination Library. Photo courtesy of the Dollywood Foundation