ROTARY IN THE COMMUNITY

Together, We Build a Stronger Community.

Last year, thanks to the incredible support of our community, Cobourg Rotary proudly handed over the final $35,000 of our $50,000 commitment to Habitat for Humanity Northumberland! Seeing how these funds helped build homes and hope for local families reminds us of the power of coming together for a common cause.

This year, we’re doing it again with our Mississippi Riverboat Cruise event on February 7th, 2025! Every dollar raised from this unforgettable night will support multiple initiatives and make an impact in the lives of those who need it most.

We are so grateful to this community for always stepping up to help us make a difference. Together, we are stronger, and together, we will continue to make meaningful change right here in Northumberland.

Your participation, sponsorship, and generosity will once again help us achieve great things. Let’s continue to work together to support causes that matter most to our community!

Rotary Remembers

Friday, November 11^th 2023, was well observed by Rotarians. The service at the Cenotaph was followed by a special Rotary lunch meeting at which Past President and Past District Governor Michael Parker delivered a stirring address with the memoirs of his uncle, who was a vital member of a Halifax bomber squadron. Some highlights of the day follow.

Rotarians, Michael Parker and Tony Pitts (below) lay a wreath from Cobourg Rotary.

Mario Pereja built and displayed three exquisitely detailed maquettes, commemorating the Vietnam war, Operation Overlord (D-Day), and WWII fighter pilots.

The Rotary Club of Cobourg
working in partnership with our Community

The Great Lakes Clean-up — Cobourg Beach Clean-up

As you know, Rotary’s project —The Great Lakes Clean-Up – was in conjunction with NGOs to combat the pollution in our Great Lakes — especially plastics. The Great Lakes are incredibly important as the largest source of surface fresh water in North America but also comprises 20% of the World’s surface fresh water.

The current pollution is staggering with approx.10 million kilograms of plastics entering the Great Lakes each year — unbelievable!

As a note, Cobourg keeps their waterfront in great condition and the team was surprised as to how clean the West Beach area was. We were able to help with the clean-up and we all felt a sense of satisfaction at the end of the morning.

Rotary Club of Cobourg and the Vaccination Clinic
From a global scale to a local, Rotary is a dynamic proponent of vaccinations and a driving force.

Since 1988, it has been Rotary’s global mission to wipe out polio, and it has been successful in reducing polio cases by 99.9%, saving over 19 million children from this terrible disease through a massive international vaccination campaign.

Showing the same commitment to health locally, the Rotary Club of Cobourg has been leading the vaccination charge for Northumberland, developing the clinic at the CCC with the Haliburton, Kawartha, Pine Ridge Health Unit.

Rotarian Gord Ley took the management lead on this project, enlisting the help of several other Rotarians to serve on the development committee. In short order, the entire clinic setup was designed and built, and volunteers enlisted. In just four weeks, some 10,000 vaccinations have taken place, with the help of now over 600 volunteers.

Vaccines work and are the best investments we can make in human health and potential. World Immunization Week is a celebration of this; if we can overcome Polio on a worldwide basis, we can do the same about Covid-19.

Rotary is proud to be part of this huge human effort.

Food4All – $5,000
The Rotary Club of Cobourg in partnership with the Rotary District 7070 and the Northumberland’s Cattlemen’s Association contributed $5,000 for the purchase of ground beef that was coordinated and distributed through the Food4All Warehouse to 400 families prior to the Christmas holiday season.

Northumberland Hero Helpers – $500
Theresa Cragg and Sharon Anderson were the driving force behind Northumberland Hero Helpers. These two ladies worked around the clock tirelessly for the first six weeks of the pandemic to make sure that the volunteer sewers, cutters and drivers of not only Northumberland Hero Helpers but other local organizations, including many Rotarians were able to keep the PPE supplies flowing to our essential front line workers that staff our local nursing homes and seniors residences.

Face Shield Initiative -$1,000
This was a local initiative spearheaded by local Rotarians and community individuals who provided support in the making of the face shields, securing supplies such as 3D printers, and delivering the product throughout the Province, with no charge to the organizations. This was an excellent example of community collaboration and included 22+ local businesses and individuals.

Golden Plough Lodge – 55” TV for the Residents – $655
As family and friends have often been unable to visit their loved ones during the pandemic, entertainment and contact with the outside world is vital for residents. As funds are limited at the residence the Rotary Club of Cobourg provided a 55” TV for everyone to enjoy.

Lions Centre – $3,000
For 70 years, the Lions Club of Cobourg has provided support for individuals, organizations, and community projects, from parades to food drives, NHH to Ed’s House, the Club has always stepped up when called upon for help. But now as a result of the pandemic, the Club seeks the community’s support to help maintain the Cobourg Lions Community Centre. The Rotary Club of Cobourg contributed funds to help support the sustainability of the organization.

Local Food for Local Good – $2,000
Local Food for Local Good is a grassroots charity that is entirely volunteer-driven and works to connect real, local people with real, local food. In April 2020 the group established the COVID-19 Community Food Relief Program. As the schools were closed for a prolonged period of time and the students no longer had access to their food supports, the group collaborated with the principals and provided over 200 meals and fresh food boxes to school-aged children each week. The Rotary Club of Cobourg contributed funds to the initiative in support of no child being overlooked.

Northumberland Community Legal Centre – $2500
In order for physical distancing to be possible while supporting vulnerable individuals who are homeless and following through Greenwood Coalition and Transition House, those individuals must have access to at minimum a cell phone. In addition to this, if Public Health is needing to provide case and contact management through daily phone calls to an individual, they again must have a cell phone. The Rotary Club of Cobourg provided funds for the purchase of phone cards to support this effort.

Application for Funding

All applicants are encouraged to thoroughly read the Funding Application Form prior to completing it. In some cases, a secondary request for information may be made by the Rotary Club Committee assigned to oversee your request.

PLEASE FILL OUT THE FORM BELOW COMPLETELY:

June 28th, 1944 was Nelson Cobb’s last entry in his diary. It was to be an account of the crew’s 42nd mission. But was in fact recorded by David Cobb because Nelson’s plane was hit, destroying both engines and sending the plane into a spin. Immediately everyone was ordered to bail out. Nelson chose to stay behind in order to stop the spin, but he never made it out. The rest of the crew all landed safely where they were captured and became POWs. Nelson Cobb died that day, only three months after celebrating his 21st birthday.

PP-DG Michael Parker read excerpts from his uncle Nelson Cobb’s WWII diaries, sharing this powerful and historical account of a group of airmen flying the Halifax Bomber aircraft over Europe. Flight Commander Nelson Cobb’s diary recounts his and his crew’s many bomber missions including times when their aircraft was hit and fellow airmen were injured.

A table set for a fallen soldier.