DISTRICT CORNER District 7780 Corona Virus, March 14, 2020 Update Today’s news is all about… RYLA! Good morning Dennis! Currently, we are still planning on holding our 2020 Rotary Youth Leadership Awards (RYLA) program at Camp Hinds in Raymond, Maine. If we can pull this off, this will be our 30th annual RYLA program! For our campers, RYLA begins on Sunday morning June 28th and runs to Wednesday, July 1st. This will be a week later than usual; it’s about four months away. Of course, we will all be monitoring the Covid-19 Coronavirus situation. If or when holding this event appears to be untenable, we will promptly let you know. In the meantime, clubs should continue to find, interview, and select student participants. This highly lauded program is designed to enhance self confidence, communication skills, and leadership skills in the next generation of innovative leaders. It is for students who have completed their sophomore year of high school. As you interview and select your potential campers, please be aware of the current need for social distancing. Clubs may need to adjust to using methods other than face to face or group meetings - but that is a club decision. When you notify your student campers that they have been selected to attend RYLA, please advise them that they will soon receive a welcome package from RYLA via email. The welcome package will include the medical forms and other paperwork that is required to attend. Kindly note that our RYLA staff does not find, interview, and accept students; you (clubs) do that! Fyi, if you need assistance with raising the level of enthusiasm in your school(s) re RYLA, highly motivated RYLA alumni guest speakers are available. Please keep your RYLA attendee selections’ registration information readily available, in case you need to notify them re any postponement or cancellation. The RYLA team and your District Governor Team will keep you (your club) posted. Currently, Camp Hinds and our RYLA team have the infrastructure to accommodate up to 144 campers. Demand usually exceeds availability. We will keep registration open until we have a full camp, however, the sooner you are able to register your students the better chance they have of being in the 140. Please push to have your campers identified and registered by mid-April, if possible. District 7780 Corona Virus Update as of March 12, 2020 Key points: - Our New Generations (Interact) Conference is POSTPONED until fall (was scheduled for Saturday, March 21st)
- Current feedback to me is that most clubs are cancelling public events.
- Current feedback to me is that some clubs are cancelling club meetings.
Hello fellow Rotarians. If you missed my email to you titled "District 7780 Coronavirus Update as of March 11, 2020" sent to you yesterday (Wednesday) at 5:00 AM, please locate it and read it. This is an outstanding opportunity for us as Rotarians to reach out and be supportive of our neighbors and of our communities. Many of our extended community family, particularly those who are elderly and those with immunity issues or otherwise vulnerable, may find themselves isolated, alone, and perhaps frightened. Please do your best to assist as many others in need as you can. Thank you very much, for your concern, and for all you do! Andy |