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On a pleasant afternoon in early December, Chestnut Hill Rotary members joined a few dozen other volunteers from the Friends of Wissahickon to remove invasive plants from the Cresheim Valley trail in Northwest Philadelphia.
This was the first of seven-service projects in a span of 10 days involving two dozen Rotary volunteers and yielding more than 100 volunteer hours. The projects covered the environment, education, food insecurity and community wellbeing.
“This is the most fun I’ve had raking leaves and cutting vines off trees,” said Leslie Shur, Service Project Chair, and one of the organizers of Rotary’s service. “Standing out in our Rotary attire sparked conversations with other volunteers and community members, reinforcing how visible service helps spread awareness of Rotary's mission while strengthening our connection to the community.”
Chestnut Hill Rotary—an all-volunteer organization—donates annually over 1,000 volunteer hours, more than $30k in charitable contributions, and $7k in food, clothing donations to Northwest Philadelphia organizations and beyond.
For example, in early December, members and friends donated two carloads of groceries, supplies, and then sorted and packed bags for the 60 families in Kensington and North Philadelphia that Papermill Food Hub serves.
“Rotary is a group that is filled with doers. A lot of people like to sit around the table and talk about what to do, which is sometimes the easy part,” according to club President, Cathy Brzozowski. “What I find in Rotary is that people are action-oriented and making the steps necessary to get the work done that needs doing in our community.”
The Dictionary Project
For more than a decade, Rotary volunteers raised funds, purchased dictionaries—totaling now more than 3,600—and donated to third grade students in public schools in Northwest Philadelphia. This year the program included donating them to Eleanor C. Emlen, Henry H. Houston, J. S. Jenks Academy for the Arts & Sciences, and Anna L. Lingelbach Elementary School.
However, the books are not merely just dropped off. Rotary volunteers coordinate the distribution with school teachers and principals in advance and then spend time interacting with the students to get them excited about using the books and learning new facts. And, for many of the students, it is the first book that they can call their own.
This video highlights the project and interactions between volunteers and students.
Nina Edelman, a retired Temple University math professor, reviewed the maps in the book and spoke about Poland and taught the students at Emlen Elementary a Polish dance. Dietrich Bilger, who immigrated from Germany, spoke about experiences growing up in his home town.
“Having Chestnut Hill Rotary spend time with our students and us being able to tell kids that it’s not just the people inside the school that have a love for you... ”
”In a time when our world's macro challenges seem overwhelming, Rotary affords a chance to make life a bit better at the micro level,” said member David Hawkings. Hawkings moved to Chestnut Hill a years ago from Washington D.C. where he was journalist covering Congress for more than 30 years. “Providing third graders a fresh way to fill their wide eyes and slake their thirst for knowledge was clearly such a moment.”
“I absolutely loved my time with the third-grade students at Houston, Lingelbach, and Emlen schools,” said member Christopher Ridenhour. “Their eagerness and joy throughout the activity made the impact clear! Being able to show up, actively offer my hands and heart, and see the difference in real time, are exactly why Rotary means so much to me.”
But, the real value of the project may be showing the students that there are other people beyond their parents, teachers and principals who care about their future.
Leroy Hall, Principal of Houston Elementary explains the value saying, “Having Chestnut Hill Rotary spend time with our students and us being able to tell kids that it’s not just the people inside the school that have a love for you and are working hard to see that you have a good education. It’s people outside of here that are also investing in your future.”
“Receiving the books from adults matters,” said Corinne Scioli, Principal at J.S. Jenks Academy for the Arts and Sciences. “It’s so different when there’s community outreach that then shares the mindset that this is really important and relevant, and this gift is to ensure your lifelong learning and pursuit of excellence.”
“I think it builds a sense of community, said Heidi Fabian, third grade teacher at Eleanor C. Emlen elementary school. “Mt. Airy, Chestnut Hill is one of the strongest communities in the country. Oprah said it decades ago. This project is just evidence of that. No matter where you are, this community is going to support you.”
Tackling Food Insecurity
On a recent Saturday morning, Rotary volunteers joined dozens of other groups to pack food boxes for seniors in need at Share Food Program in West Kensington. Several teams of volunteers from different organizations worked seamlessly and cheerfully to pack more than 840 boxes of shelf-stable, nutritious food for senior citizens.
Share Food Program’s mission is to ensure that people in the Philadelphia area don’t go hungry. The organization delivers over 2,500 boxes of food for seniors each week in addition to their national school lunch program and working with 367 partner pantries.
Rotary volunteers pack food boxes for seniors and hear from Share’s Coordinator on the importance of community partners.
“We really depend upon a lot of community organizations like our own,” said Owen Pazderak, Volunteer Coordinator for Share.“ But even more this year since we lost a lot of our Federal funding, we’ve had to tap back into our local [volunteer] networks more.”
“The efficiency was impressive, but even more meaningful were the conversations along the line--connecting with fellow volunteers and answering questions about Rotary,” said Shur.
“I know I am grateful for all that Rotary has done. But mostly, I know that the people who rely upon these shipments really appreciate it,” said Pazderak.
Holiday House Tours
Later that same day, volunteers served as docents at one of the homes open for the annual Holiday House Tours presented by the Chestnut Hill Community Association (CHCA). The tour, which features area’s loveliest historic homes decorated inside and out for the holidays, benefits the CHCA.
Rotary volunteers at Holiday House Tours
“Volunteering for the Holiday House Tour resulted in developing deeper relationships with fellow Rotarians and getting to know them better on a more personal level, as well as the opportunity to promote Rotary in the Chestnut Hill community, said member Jason Jones.
At the recent Breakfast Program meeting, President Brzozowski thanked all the volunteers for their work and reminded everyone of the impact they made in the community.
Chestnut Hill Rotary members share their volunteer experiences
Seeing third-graders taking delight in dictionaries refreshes my confidence in -education for our society! - Larry Schofer
When I’m feeling tapped out, nothing recharges me like having fun on a Rotary service project. - Jon Farquharson
I took part in the dictionary project at Emlen. The participation by our club was wonderful. Dietrich Bilger spoke about being from Germany, Nina Edelman spoke about Poland. We showed them maps so they knew where we were talking about. I spoke at the end about how important their education was. I discussed going to Central High school and how they should all strive to go there. Their teacher emphasized how their education would affect their lives. - Eliot Schwartz
I feel compelled to say how much I enjoy volunteering with the group and how I appreciate that the Rotary makes these opportunities available to me. I never did get to my feet in the meeting to speak my mind but here it is. Thanks to Rotary for making these opportunities to volunteer available to all of us. - Barbary Wybar
I have been distributing dictionaries for as long as the club has been doing this. Last Friday’s distribution at Emlen School was the best one yet in my experience. Christopher Ridenhour was a great emcee, Nina Edelman taught the students a Polish Dance, Detrich Bilger spoke about Germany, Larry Schofer and Elliot Schwartz spoke about growing up near the school, Veronica Barbour spoke about having gone to Emlen herself many years ago. So we tried to reach across the generations. - Phil Tankel
It is fun to do one's part to contribute to a community being a community. - Dietrich Bilger
It was incredibly rewarding to see 9- and 10-year-olds light up when presented with a dictionary--just. for. them. But it's so much more than a dictionary. It's part encyclopedia, packed with fascinating facts and discoveries. My group at Jenks got especially excited about page 572 on American Sign Language, and before long the students were finger-spelling their first names!
Moments like these show how Rotary's commitment to education creates meaningful, hand-on interactions that can spark curiosity and confidence in young learners. - Leslie Shur
