Rotary Club of Palmer

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Maura Guzik, current president of the Rotary Club of Palmer, writes, Literacy is what helps people improve their lives - that's important to Rotarians. We follow initiatives from Rotary International and gear them towards our community. That's why Palmer Rotary Club got involved in the Wilson Reading System partnership with Top Floor Learning and the Special Education Department of the Palmer School District: Rotary paid for the Wilson Reading Kits for the Special Education teachers. We see this as a local literacy project for Special Education students with reading disabilities. There is a huge self-esteem issue for these children who think they are stupid when they see their peers advancing in a reading level. The teachers are really getting into it and have been ordering additional materials to work with in the program.

The other major initiative Rotarians were involved in this past year was an infant mortality project. We funded fuel oil assistance for low income families in Palmer with children under age two. Without heat they could get pneumonia and die. We partnered with Chudy Oil to make deliveries under a $2,000 donation to the Valley Opportunity Council. And we received a $1,000 Simplified Grant through our District 7890 to bring the total fuel assistance project to $3,000. The literacy initiative is ongoing. When we have speakers at a club meeting, we make a donation in their name to TFL. We've had TFL come to speak at Palmer Rotary Club meetings and the members are all very happy with your work with GED, partnering with the Wilson Reading training, etc. You have great programs that are very affordable. That's very important when people don't have the financial resources. Your services are improving the lives of people in the community - giving them the opportunity to get ahead. And it's local - people don't have to travel far to use the services. The computer courses are really valuable, especially for the elderly, to bring them into a world that's so different. TFL is providing great value for the community.