Remembering Bernie Dugan The Rotary Club of the West Shore is sad to announce the loss of long time club member, Bernie Dugan.Bernie is remembered for his constant kindness, friendliness, and support. He modeled "Service Above Self" as so many of our club members have done throughout their lives. Well done, Bernie. We will miss you. |
Save 20% at Boscov's! The RCWS invites you to Boscov’s Friends Helping Friends event! Shoppers receive a 20% discount for the two days of the sale, and the Rotary Club of the West Shore receives 5% of the total purchase of all of those who mention Rotary Club of West Shore at check-out. What an easy way to raise money for our club which is then poured back into the local community! There are no coupons or coupon books, but SHOPPERS MUST MENTION RCWS AT CHECK-OUT. The event is October 14-15, 2020, from 9:00 am to 9:00 pm at the Camp Hill, PA location only. |
Flags for Heroes is a go for 2020 The Rotary Club of the West Shore is excited to kick-off its premier Fundraiser, Flags for Heroes! In this time of uncertainty, how wonderful it is to focus on something positive and celebrate our heroes! For more information about the program, how you can participate, and who benefits from this event, click here. |
Remembering PDG David Witmer PDG David P. Witmer, Jr. 1995-96David Paul Witmer, Jr., 86, of Camp Hill, passed away on May 6, 2020; born in Hershey on June 27, 1933, the son of the late D. Paul Witmer and Catherine (Baney) Witmer; after graduating Hershey High School in 1951, he joined the Air Force after graduating ROTC from Franklin & Marshall College in 1955. He is survived by his wife Caroline (Manbeck) Witmer of 62 years; two sons, David P. Witmer, III and William C. Witmer and their families. David served the RCWS as President and will be remembered for his tenacity to preserve and save the club from closing during difficult times. He and Caroline hosted many exchange students. Additionally, they were always with the children during our dictionary project distribution and at all District functions involving children. His stories of aviation, Milton Hershey, travel, skiing, swimming and his love for Caroline will live on. God Bless his Soul. Please click here to view the full obituary. |
Passing the Gavel The RCWS met on Thursday, June 25, 2020, to pass the gavel virtually from two-term Past President, Kirk Brechbiel to President-Elect Rod Hite. Even DGE John Anthony and AAG Fred Gellert were on hand to share a word on how Rotary Opens Opportunities!PP Kirk highlighted some of the Club's accomplishments in the past two years including continued involvement with New Hope Ministries, Vickie's Angel Walk, RYLA, and the Dictionary Project. Additionally, the Club was able to help with the purchase of a commercial oven for the Mechanicsburg Area Meals on Wheels. The Club not only increased membership, but increased diversity with the addition of four new female members. Special thanks was extended to Zacc Rahn for serving as Treasurer, Tom Oliver for serving as Secretary, Joe McNally for his service on the Foundation Board, and PDG Chuck Cenkner for his work with Polio Plus. Additional thanks was extended to member Jessica D'Agostino for agreeing to serve as treasurer in the upcoming year. Incoming President Rod Hite has an ambitious agenda for the upcoming year which includes a major fundraiser, growing membership with a focus on outreach to younger members, and launching an Interact Club at one of our area schools. It's going to be a great year because Rotary Opens Opportunities! |
Vickie's Angel Walk 2019 Members of the RCWS were on site to hand out water to walkers at the 2019 Vickie's Angel Walk. The event, held on October 12, 2019, at the New Cumberland Borough Park, marks the 17th consecutive year that Vickie's Angel Foundation has held this event.Vickie's Angel Foundation is a local non-profit with a mission of helping families fighting cancer who have difficulties paying their bills during the challenging times of undergoing cancer treatments. The organization eases the financial worry from families, providing a temporary bridge that allows them to focus entirely on beating their disease. The organization helps families in Adams, Cumberland, Dauphin, Franklin, Lancaster, Lebanon, Perry, Schuylkill, and York Counties. |
Giving Back to the Community Since COVID-19 is preventing the Rotary Club of the West Shore from meeting in person, club members opted to donate their normal meal expenses to the Earl Besch Project.Earl Besch was a long time resident of Camp Hill Borough who was known for his generosity to others. Earl would regularly reach out to local schools to see if there were families in need. Following his passing in 2015, his family established a memorial fund in his name to continue his legacy of caring. The Earl Besch Fund at The Lion Foundation provides others an opportunity to help those less fortunate in our community through donations to this fund. The RCWS donations were directed to the Project's BackPack Program. Normally, the BackPack Program is a summer activity, however the closure of public schools created a more urgent need this year. By teaming up with local churches, the project prepares and delivers boxes filled with nutritious healthy foods as well as household necessities to help the families in the BackPack Program. The RCWS is proud to support such a worthy cause. |
Literacy: The Dictionary Project Winter 2020 marked the 10th consecutive year that the RCWS donated dictionaries to third grade students in public and private schools in our local area. Additionally, the RCWS again partnered with the Harrisburg Keystone Rotary Club to donate dictionaries to all third grade students in the Steelton-Highspire School on the East Shore. Since the RCWS started participating in The Dictionary Project in 2010, the Club has distributed nearly 10,000 books at nine public schools and four private schools in the local area. At its nationwide peak in 2017, The Dictionary Project (based in Charleston, SC) distributed nearly 1.4 million books, mainly through Rotary Clubs.With the increase in technology in the classroom, The Dictionary Project has lost some of its steam, however schools which lack funding to provide electronic devices to their students remain grateful and appreciative of this ongoing initiative. Click here to find out more about The Dictionary Project. |