Lawrence Central Rotary

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  • Ever Consider Designing a Bike Rack? Extended & Updated

    Lawrence Central Rotary Bike Rack Project
     
    Lawrence Central Rotary invites local and regional artists to submit new creative designs for its community bike rack initiative. Lawrence Central Rotary’s community bike rack initiative has resulted in the construction and placement of four bike racks in the Lawrence area. The fifth bike rack will be placed in front of Van Go Inc., 715 New Jersey, Lawrence, KS. LiveWell Lawrence, a Douglas County Community Foundation initiative that is focused on improving everyday environments to make it easier for people to get more physically active, has joined Lawrence Central Rotary in funding this bike rack. The selected bike rack will become the property of Van Go Inc. We encourage anyone to submit a proposal. BE CREATIVE!
     
    Deadline: May 15, 2012
    Eligibility: Open
    Budget: $2,000 (All-inclusive bike rack budget including design and fabrication.)
    Installation to be completed by Van Go Inc.
     
    Specifications for Design:
    • The bike rack must be able to withstand severe outdoor weather in cold and hot temperatures and should be low maintenance with excellent sustainability. It should also be made of nonabrasive materials that can be easily maintained and does not scratch or damage bicycle frames with a durable finish that does not sustain damage from bicycles or locks.
    • The bicycle rack must accommodate at least 8 bicycles.
    • Artists/designers should approach the project as a permanent installation to be installed into a concrete surface, with a minimum 10 year life expectancy.
    • The selected entry will be exclusive to the Lawrence Central Rotary’s Bike Rack Project.
    • All work must be safe for pedestrians and bicyclists of all ages with no pinch points, sharp edges, or corners.
    • The work should be of an appropriate height and design so that it will not create a hazard for visually impaired or physically challenged pedestrians. A bicycle should not have to be lifted off the ground to access and be secured to the rack. The artwork must allow for part of the bicycle frame as well as at least one wheel to be secured to the rack.
    • Refer to the attached photo for bike rack location.
    • The design must be compatible with commonly used U-locks.
    • Artists/designers are encouraged to review the bicycle parking guidelines created by the Association of Pedestrian and Bicycle Professionals. More information can be found at http://www.apbp.org/resource/resmgr/publications/bicycle_parking_guidelines.pdf

    Review Criteria:

    • Creativity of design – visually noticeable, artistically designed, and unique.
    • Durability of design
    • Environmentally friendly design
    • Easy maintenance

    How to Apply:

    • Only electronic submissions accepted.
    • A one-page statement with your name, contact information, and a brief written description of your project which includes:
    • a description of your concept
    • the materials to be used and assembly
    • the capacity of the bike rack
    • a brief statement of your experience in creating a work of art or fabricating materials
    • Sketch of proposed bicycle rack, in color, and with explanatory notes and dimensions
    • Budget
    • Resume with current contact information
    • 3 to 5 clearly labeled digital images of previous work relevant to this project with corresponding, numbered list of same works with title, media, dimensions, project.
    • budget, and brief description of the work.
    • Three professional references with contact information, including email and telephone number(s).
    Project timeline:
    • Proposal submission deadline: May 15, 2012
    • Notification of selection: May 23, 2012
    • Bike rack delivery to site: August 27, 2012
    • Proposed installation timeframe: August 28-31, 2012
    • Bike rack unveiling: early September, 2012

    Project contact:
    Jane Huesemann
    Lawrence Central Rotary
    www.lawrencecentralrotary.org
    huesemann3369@gmail.com
    785-691-5547

     

  • Rotary International Signs Project Partner Agreement with ShelterBox

    Lawrence Central has been working to raise $1000 to endow a ShelterBox, currently we're 3/4 the way there!  There's been some new great developments we'd like to share. 

    There was an interesting story on the national Rotary site.

    By Ryan Hyland  Rotary International News – 30 March 2012  

     

     

     
    Top: Tom Henderson, CEO of ShelterBox, and John Hewko, RI general secretary, during the signing of a project partner agreement this month. Bottom: ShelterBox teams distributed more than 550 tents to Madagascar for families left homeless by a powerful cyclone. Photo by Angela Spencer-Smith/ShelterBox

    Rotary International and ShelterBox, a grassroots disaster relief organization, signed a project partner agreement this month, allowing the two organizations to collaborate more closely to provide relief and temporary shelter to survivors of natural disasters.

    “Project partner” is a special status RI gives to groups started or managed by Rotary clubs. The agreement will build on the strengths of both organizations in responding to disasters all over the world.

    “Our Rotary friends have always been there ready to assist – from generous donations to direct operational support on the ground Rotary has always been part of our DNA,” said Tom Henderson, ShelterBox CEO. “I feel like we have 34,000 ShelterBox offices around the world working together to help those who have lost everything when they need us the most.”

    Saving lives

    RI General Secretary John Hewko said the agreement will enable Rotary club members to have an immediate, lifesaving impact in communities hit by natural disasters. “ShelterBox will be able to ensure that local Rotarians are provided an opportunity to participate in the distribution of ShelterBox containers,” he said.  

    Each ShelterBox typically provides a bespoke tent designed to withstand extreme weather conditions, stove, water purification kit, blankets, tools, and other necessities to help a family survive for six months or more after a disaster.

    Henderson, a civil engineer and former search-and-rescue diver for the British Royal Naval, founded ShelterBox in 2000. Its response teams of trained volunteers have brought lifesaving supplies to victims of more than 175 disasters in nearly 80 countries.

    Mutual goals

    “For more than 10 years, ShelterBox has given light to over one hundred thousand families worldwide in their darkest hour,” said Hewko. “This project partner agreement represents our mutual goal of helping those in need. It gives RI a forward-facing approach to immediate disaster relief.”

    Noted Henderson: “This partnership with Rotary International is a formal recognition of our good work over the past 12 years. It will help Rotarians get a better understanding of what we do. I hope Rotarians worldwide will see us as a coherent and able disaster relief organization.”

    Earlier this month, a ShelterBox team distributed more than 550 tents to communities in Madagascar where powerful cyclones left more than 250,000 people homeless.

    For more information:

  • Peddling Against Polio

     

    After 25 years of hard work, Rotary and its partners are on the brink of eradicating this tenacious disease, but a strong push is needed now to root it out once and for all. It is a window of opportunity of historic proportions.

    Reaching the ultimate goal of a polio-free world presents ongoing challenges, not the least of which is a US$535 million funding gap through 2012. Of course, Rotary alone can’t fill this gap, but continued Rotarian advocacy for government support can help enormously.

    As long as polio threatens even one child anywhere in the world, children everywhere remain at risk. The stakes are that high.

     

    In an effort to raise funds for Polio Plus and the non-profit foundations of The Rotary Club of Lee’s Summit, the Blue Springs Rotary Club and the Raytown Rotary Club, the three clubs have combined to create Rotary Ride: Pedaling Against Polio. We look forward to your involvement and support in helping raise money and raise awareness.

    For more info check out http://kcrotaryride.com/

  • Lawrence Central Inducts Four New Members

    On February 15th Lawrence Central Rotary welcomed four new members to our family.   
     
    From left to right: Fred Atchison, Kate Campbell, Roberta Suenram, Paula Gilchtrist

  • Lawrence Central Rotary’s Humble Beginnings 9 Years Ago

    At the February 15th meeting club member Lynn O'Neal had a copy of a story from February of 2003 announcing his intention to create a new Rotary Club in Lawrence. A link to the original story by Chad Lawhorn is here, but we've also re-posted it below.

    CornerBank leader forming new Rotary club
    February 4, 2003

    Area business professionals interested in joining a Rotary club should have a third choice by May, according to the leader of a group interested in starting a new Lawrence chapter of the international organization.

    Ed Samp, president of Lawrence's CornerBank, is leading a group of area residents who hope to form the Lawrence Central Rotary Club.

    It would be Lawrence's third chapter of Rotary International, which is a service organization comprised primarily of business owners, managers and professionals who meet weekly to support charitable causes.

    Samp and several other area residents began talking in November about the idea of forming another chapter. They had heard of several people who were interested in joining a Rotary club but the meeting time, location or size of the existing two chapters wasn't appealing to them.

    Both clubs meet each week at the Hereford House at Sixth Street and Wakarusa Drive. The Lawrence Rotary Club meets at noon Mondays. The Jayhawk Breakfast Rotary Club meets at 7 a.m. Thursdays.

    "I had talked to several people who were a little reluctant to come all the way out to the west side of Lawrence for lunch," Samp said. "That's why we thought a club that met somewhere more centrally located might be popular, hence our name."

    Samp said the group, which has grown to 17 people, meets at noon each Wednesday. The group hasn't selected a permanent meeting place, but it is considering the Lawrence Holidome, 200 McDonald Drive; the Eldridge Hotel, 701 Mass.; and the Lawrence Arts Center, 940 N.H., Samp said.

    According to Rotary International rules, the new group needs at least 20 charter members before it can become an official chapter. Samp said he expected the group to get its 20th member within the next week, allowing it to file the formal paperwork this spring.

    He said the chapter hoped to be officially chartered by Rotary International in May.

    The presidents of Lawrence's two existing Rotary clubs said they didn't have any objections to the new chapter.

    "Rotary is always interested in increasing its membership, so my thinking is the more the merrier," said Vickie Randel, president of the Lawrence Rotary Club. "We understand that a lot of why a person decides to join Rotary has to do with the when and the where of the meetings."

    Ron Hurst, president of the Jayhawk Breakfast Rotary Club, said he also understood that some people were interested in belonging to a smaller club. The Jayhawk Club has about 90 members and the Lawrence Rotary Club has slightly more than 200 members.

    "When we started our club about nine years ago, the thinking was that the original club had grown pretty large and it was difficult to get to know everyone," Hurst said.

    Samp said the new group hadn't decided what membership fee to charge, but he said it likely would be $100 a year or less, in addition to a weekly meal fee of about $10.

    Originally published at: http://www2.ljworld.com/news/2003/feb/04/cornerbank_leader_forming/

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