Just one reason why we love our town. Every Wednesday, a group of veterans gather to lower and fold the American flag. This week, the ceremony fell on Veterans Day and the Marine Corp 240th birthday. Orange Plaza Rotary joined the community observance.
Orange Plaza Rotary is pleased to announce that it will continue the Mentor Meals Plus program at El Modena High School during the 2015-2016 academic year. The program, now in its third year, partners business and community mentors with students in the Collaborative Technology Program (CTP) at El Modena High School (Orange, CA).
Four meetings (from October, 2015 through March, 2016) will be held at the high school where adult mentors will dine and interact with a group of at-risk high school juniors.
Each evening will have a focus topic (for example, career decisions, service to others, overcoming obstacles, and ethical decision-making) and include a brief guest speaker presentation. Table assignments match a Rotarian mentor, a second volunteer mentor, and six CTP students. Table discussions are encouraged through ice-breakers and talking points.
The first meal of the new year will be held in October. Business and community leaders in the City of Orange are encouraged to attend the orientation and mentor training on September 23rd at 5:30 p.m. at Marie Callender’s, 307 E. Katella Avenue, Orange, CA.
Mentor Meals are held in the library at El Modena High School at 3920 Spring Street from 5:30 to 7:00.
For more information, please contact Rotarian Teri Snyder.
Orange Plaza Rotary celebrated another year of service over dinner with family and friends at Orange Hill Restaurant on June 24th. The club, which marked its 30th anniversary in March, completed numerous youth and community service projects during the the 2014-2015 Rotary year.
These projects and more will continue, under the leadership of President Tracey L. Curtis:
These and other service projects are funded by the Annual Orange Plaza Car Show, a premier Southern California event. The 22nd Orange Plaza Car Show is scheduled for April 17, 2016.
At the club’s June event, Rotary District 5320 Governor Jim Paddock presented member Jack Sappington with a bejeweled pin in honor of Jack’s $5,000 donation to The Rotary Foundation. The Foundation manages donor funds, directing them into projects around the world to improve water and sanitation, basic education and literacy, and economic and community development in third world countries.
Orange Plaza Rotary is a network of neighbors, friends, and community leaders who come together to create positive, lasting change in our communities and around the world. The club meets Wednesdays at 5:30 p.m. at Marie Callender’s, 307 E. Katella Avenue, Orange. For more information, visit the club website: http://OrangePlazaRotary.org.
Orange Plaza Rotary and the Rotary Club of Orange North came together on May 6th to present $5,500 in scholarships to students involved in Orange Police Explorer Post 266. The event was attended by family and friends of the students as well as by supporters and advisors from the Orange Police Department.
In the scholarship application, students were asked to highlight their service to the community. Most had performed more than 150 hours of service in the last year. Each applicant also explained what they had learned from their service with the Explorer program. Their answers revealed that Exploring had increased their confidence, compassion and commitment to serving others in the future.
Receiving the awards:
Caleb Hensley – $500 – who is now using his Explorer experience as a stuent at the California Sheriff Assistant Academy
Brian Solis-Olivares – $500 – a senior at Orange High School preparing to attend Santiago Canyon College in the fall
Alan Uribe – $500 – graduating from Foothill High School before attending Santa Ana College
Daniela Garcia – $1000 – of Orange High School, with plans to attend Santiago Canyon College
Jillian Hernandez – $1000 – a senior at Mater Dei High School, moving on to Santiago Canyon College
Ana Tinoco – $2000 – Ana completed the Explorer program and is now a Cadet at the Orange Police Department. She will use her scholarship in her studies at California State University at Fullerton, Majoring in Human Services.
In addition to the scholarships, Orange Plaza Rotary presented $500 to the Explorer program in gratitude for their work at the Orange Plaza Car Show.
Rotary is a network of community and business leaders volunteering their time and talent to do good in the world. For information about Orange Plaza Rotary (meeting Wednesday evenings) or Orange North Rotary (Tuesday noon), call Rae Shirer at 657-333-2361.
The Rotary Club of Orange Plaza received top honors in the “small club” category at the 2015 Rotary District 5320 annual conference. The club received “firsts” for club service, vocational service, youth service and public image.
In presenting the awards, Governor Nominee Designate Ian Hicks singled out the club’s support of Elwyn California, an organization providing vocational training and job placement for the disabled. Orange Plaza also builds vocational skills at the high school level through the signature “Mentor Meals” program at El Modena High School. For continuing to focus on youth programs during this Rotary year, the club was also recognized for its “Book Doctor” project in partnership with its sponsored Interact Club at El Mo High.
These projects and more are publicized via the club’s active and redesigned website, its club Facebook page and the Facebook page dedicated to the Orange Plaza Car Show, the club’s annual fundraiser in the City of Orange.
Rotary Governor Jim Paddock presented the awards to President Tracey Curtis at the conference luncheon on May 2nd.
For more information about Orange Plaza Rotary, visit the club website or join them for a meal on Wednesdays at 5:30 p.m. at Marie Callender’s, 307 E. Katella Avenue, Orange, CA.
The Rotary Clubs of Orange, Orange North and Orange Plaza joined together, once again, to present the 41st Annual Police and Fire Recognition Awards to outstanding members of the City of Orange departments. The lunch event was held April 30th with the Orange City Council in attendance to support the honorees.
Fire Chief Patrick Dibb presented citations and plaques to Explorer Fire Fire Fighter of the Year Nathan Ramos, Fire Reserve Inspector Mohammad Soubra, Fire Manager of the Year Doug Fackiner, Non-Sworn Employee of the Year Rosie Flores, and Firefighter of the Year Robert Lobato.
Police Chief Bob Gustafson honored Police Volunteer of the Year Will Stoddard, Police Explorer Riley Turner, Non-Sworn Employee Kelly Pagano, Reserve Officer of the Year Mike Silva, Supervisor Sgt. David Natividad and Police Officer of the Year Rene Guerrero.
The honorees are selected by their peers and supervisors in the Orange Police and Fire Departments.
In addition to co-sponsoring the luncheon (including meal costs for the attendees and coordinating the awards program), the Rotary Clubs of Orange made special presentations this year to both Chief Dibbs and Chief Gustafson. Each has served the community for 30 years or more and have trained and mentored generations of public servants.
The event was chaired this year by Orange Rotarians Jay Carr and Matt Drenner, under the tutorship of outgoing chair Bill Steiner. Additional committee members included Livia De Los Rios and Gayle Merino (Orange Rotary), Joe Colombo and Teri Snyder (Orange Plaza) and Bill Utter of the Rotary Club of Orange North.
Hawaiians use the term “Ohana” to describe an extended family and the feeling of belonging. When we bowl for the special clients of Elwyn California, we know that feeling! Since 2007, Orange Plaza Rotary has sponsored teams at the annual Elwyn California Bowl-a-Thon, which raises funds to support Elwyn’s programs providing vocational training and job placement for the disabled.
In the early days, we sometimes brought in “ringers” so we could claim bragging rights in the “Rotary Challenge” portion of the tournament. These days, we are happy to congratulate the Rotary Club of Huntington Beach or Anaheim Hills Rotary Club for their wins, as we now recruit our bowlers from some very special groups of people.
In 2015, we welcomed RYLA students Josh and Sam, along with a couple of Sam’s friends. And how terrific to welcome the Smithson family, bowling to raise autism awareness. As always, we love to see the smiling face of Aiden, a Colombo cousin, as he bowls from his wheelchair at our side.
Rotary=Ohana!
The second year of “Mentor Meals”, the signature project of Orange Plaza Rotary, wrapped up on March 17th with a discussion of goal setting and planning for success. Mentor Meals is a partnership between Orange Plaza Rotary, the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, El Modena High School and “El Mo” alumni.
Over the course of the school year, high school juniors enrolled in the Collaborative Technology Program met with adult mentors once a month for a meal, a special speaker presentation and a discussion of issues facing the students as they complete their education and enter the workforce.
Topics included the value of community service, establishing a web presence to further career goals, and personal networking skills.
In addition, seniors who attended the program last year returned for a reunion dinner with mentors to review their progress toward their educational and career goals. Orange Plaza Rotary members will return to campus in May to participate in the evaluation of senior projects, which focus on the vocational aspirations of the students in the Collaborative Technology Program.
The program is funded in part by The Rotary Foundation through the District Grant program of Rotary District 5320.
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Orange Plaza Rotary is now accepting applications for three scholarship programs open to high school seniors at El Modena High School and cadets in the Orange Police Explorer program:
Scholarships range from $500 to $2,000 per student. For more information, and to apply online, visit the Orange Plaza Rotary website.