Over 44 thousand Canadian Dollars was recently presented to North York General Foundation for The Phillips House and Maddie's Healing Garden. This facility is the home of North York General Hospital's child and adolescent outpatient mental health program. Our beloved Immediate Past President Janis D. Siegel started this project in 2019. Jan passed away in July of 2020 after a courageous fight with cancer. The Phillips House project and the cheque ceremony was dedicated to Janis, honouring her great work and dedication to this project and many others.
In 2019 the Rotary Club of Willowdale, together with Rotary Club of North York and Rotary Club of York, presented this beautiful fundraising project to the Rotary District 7070, and many clubs joined to make this project a reality.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the planned Celebrity Dinner event could not take place on November 6th, 2020. A heartfelt and touching virtual cheque ceremony took place with just a few people outside of The Phillips House and many others from District 7070 joined via Zoom.
Thank you everybody for helping us with our wonderful new project called The Gratitude Gardens.
This project is dedicated to all the frontline workers during this COVID-19 pandemic.
We had a great start planting outside at the North York General Hospital and at Maddie's Healing Garden located at NYGH's Phillips House. You can still donate to this project by going to our donation page.
Successful Start Of Our New Project The Gratitude Gardens
We could all use another tree in our yard, and the Bayview Village Association, along with The Rotary Club of Willowdale and The City of Toronto, is here to help.
A Freeman Maple in all its glory (photo courtesy of Connon Nurseries)
The Neighborhood Tree Giveaway Program, formally known as “Tree for Me,” supports the City of Toronto’s goal of reaching a 40% tree canopy cover by 2050. This year’s event will be held on Saturday, October 17, 2020, from 10 a.m.-12:30 p.m. at Forest Grove United Church, located at 43 Forest Grove Drive.
The “Neighborhood Tree Giveaway Program” program offers residents a free native tree that is best suited for their planting space and provides reference materials as well as a workshop on proper planting and care. To register go on EventBrite, at the following link.
A few facts about your free tree: • The City of Toronto and Connon Nurseries provide all trees, which are native to Toronto’s seed zone and suited for our urban environment. • Trees come in 1-2 gallon buckets and are small enough to carry on the TTC or sit in the back of a car. • Residents will be limited to two trees (total) per address. • Species of the trees/shrubs are subject to availability: Large Trees: Freeman Maple, Ironwood, Hackberry Medium Trees: Eastern Redbud Shrubs: Purple Flowering Raspberry, Nannyberry, Service Berry, and Bush Honeysuckle. Any questions about the program? Contact Sharon Johnson, BVA Environment Committee at environment@bayviewvillage.org.
Rotary members have played an invaluable role in the effort to rid the African region of wild polio. We should be proud of all the hard work that we’ve done to eliminate the wild poliovirus throughout Africa and in nearly every country in the world.
This progress is the result of a decades-long effort across the 47 countries of the African region. It has involved millions of health workers traveling by foot, boat, bike and bus, innovative strategies to vaccinate children amid conflict and insecurity, and a huge disease surveillance network to test cases of paralysis and check sewage for the virus.
Over the last two decades, countless Rotary members in countries across the African region and around the world have worked together to raise funds, immunize children, advocate with local and national leaders, and raise awareness about the importance of vaccination, enabling the Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI) to effectively respond to and stop polio outbreaks.
This milestone is an incredible public health achievement for Rotary members, the African region, and our GPEI partners, and a huge step forward on the road to global polio eradication. But we still have important work to do in order to eradicate wild polio in the last two endemic countries.
We have faced many challenges in our journey to eradicate polio. But we’ve made remarkable progress, and the polio infrastructure that Rotarians helped build will serve as a lasting legacy that will continue to help protect vulnerable children against other diseases for decades to come.
We are calling on you today to recommit yourselves to ending polio. We need each and every one of you to help finish this fight and continue raising $50 million each year for PolioPlus. The eradication of wild polio in the African region shows us that polio eradication is achievable, and shows how our hard work, partnerships and financial commitment continue to propel us forward, even during a global pandemic.
Thank you for your continued efforts, for achieving a wild polio-free African region, and for remaining committed to fulfilling our promise of a polio-free world.
Sincerely,
Holger Knaack, President, Rotary International and
K.R. Ravindran, Chair, The Rotary Foundation
Rotary International President Holger Knaack and Nigeria National PolioPlus Chair Dr. Tunji Funsho congratulate Rotarians on eradicating wild polio in the African Region. Watch here.
With her devoted husband of 42 years at her side, Deborah Harriet Chute passed away on 1st September, 2020, in her 73rd year, at Mackenzie Health hospital in Richmond Hill, Ontario. Deborah was born in Bridgewater, Nova Scotia in 1947 to Ronald and Brenda Chute. She is the beloved wife of Chungsen Leung, dear mother of Elysia and partner Jason Dahl. She is remembered by her brother John. Deborah will be deeply missed by many relatives, friends, members of the Cummer Avenue United Church, North American Native Plants Society and the Richmond Hill Garden and Horticultural Society. Deborah is an Earth Enthusiast constantly striving to protect, preserve and promote: native plants, wild bees and butterflies.
The visitation will be at Chapel Ridge Funeral Home & Cremation Centre, 8911 Woodbine Avenue, Markham, Ontario on Thursday, September 10, 2020 from 2:00pm to 4:00pm and again from 7:00pm to 9:00pm. We request all attendees to wear a mask at the visitation. The ushers will ensure adequate physical distancing for the safety of all. A Celebration of Life will be held at a future date when it is safe for all of us to meet in person.
In lieu of flowers, please make memorial donations to the following organizations and causes that are dear to Deborah.
Cummer Avenue United Church (www.cummeravenueuc.ca), Online donation is available through www.canadahelps.ca.
North American Native Plant Society (www.nanps.org), Online donation is available through www.canadahelps.ca.
Mackenzie Health Hospital (www.mackenziehealth.ca), Online donation is available at their website.
Richmond Hill Garden and Horticultural Society (www.richmondhillgardensociety.org). Online donation is not available. Please mail your cheque to: David Biench, c/o Treasurer for Richmond Hill Garden & Horticulture Society, 14 Westpoint Crt. Richmond Hill, Ontario. L4B 2V6
Bring a smile to all Frontline Workers during the Pandemic of 2020. The Rotary and Rotaract Clubs of Willowdale will be planting bulbs in the Fall of 2020 to create Gratitude Gardens in the area of Leslie and Sheppard Avenues. Our wish is to bring cheer in the Spring of 2021 and remind us of the dedication of all Frontline workers in our community. We need your donations now. Please go on our Donation page and contribute by clicking on General Option and after filling in your details write in the comment box For The Gratitude Garden.https://willowdalerotary.org/page/donate/
Gratitude Gardens: A unique project for Frontline Workers
I am so honored to serve as your president this year. We have important work ahead of us at Rotary, and we are going to have a lot of fun as we do it.
Last year, we launched our five-year Action Plan to build a stronger future for Rotary. We are working to increase our impact, expand our reach, enhance participant engagement, and increase our ability to adapt. The last several months have shown that we — as Rotarians and Rotaractors — can realize these goals as we forge a new path for the future.
Without question, COVID-19 has posed new and previously unimaginable challenges for Rotary. But within every challenge is perhaps an even greater opportunity. And while I could not have known what lay ahead when I selected my theme for the year, Rotary Opens Opportunities has even greater relevance as we begin our new Rotary year.
I am incredibly inspired by how our members have adapted and responded to COVID-19. This global pandemic has made it difficult for many of our clubs to operate as usual, but we persevered, and over the past few months, I’ve enjoyed connecting with my fellow Rotarians and Rotaractors in a new way: by visiting hundreds of clubs from my home. It’s been fun to attend so many meetings virtually. If you haven’t already, I encourage your club to try an online meeting or add an online component, like hosting a guest speaker from a Rotary or Rotaract club located in a different part of the world.
As we build a stronger future for our organization, it’s good that we are reaching out to new people and introducing them to Rotary. It’s important that our clubs reflect the communities we serve. More diverse voices in our clubs and in our leadership will help Rotary stay in touch with a changing world.
So let’s find every opportunity to show we value each and every member. Let’s seize this moment to build on what we’ve learned, to embrace our new reality, to welcome new faces, and to find additional ways to shine. This is how we will have a continuing impact on the world. And if you need assistance along the way, Rotary offers many resources that can help you reach your goals.
Rotary means different things in different parts of the world, but we are all united by our core values and by The Four-Way Test. Rotary may change, but our values remain constant.
I look forward to hearing about how you’re finding new opportunities to engage and make an impact in your club and community. Rotary Opens Opportunities, both for the people we serve and for ourselves.
August is Membership and Club Development Month, a time to focus on and appreciate your members, and celebrate their contributions. Go ahead – thank someone in your club for making a difference! The reason why Rotary is such a successful organization is because it is full of members that have one trait in common - the passion to make a difference in the world.
their Number One Community Service Project in 2020-21
This article was published in the August 2020 Rotary District 7070 Newsletter
The Rotaract Club of Willowdale decided to make the "Smiles In Action" program their number one Community Services project for 2020/2021 and beyond, as both groups have forged a meaningful partnership for fostering goodwill, making an impact is our communities and opening doors for opportunities.The Smiles Foundation is a non-profit institution with its seat in Canada, based in the United States and in the Dominican Republic. Their goal is to provide life-enhancing activities, dental care and primary health care education to children in the Dominican Republic, free of charge, as well as to offer underprivileged communities tools to develop and improve their health, environment, and safety through our educational and social enterprise programs. Here area a few images of the new Mobile Clinic in the Dominican Republic. The clinic was used only a few times before we had to close it due to COVID - 19. 668 children got treated in it and a few thousand family members received primary health care and dental education.
For more on this organization, please get in touch with Courtney Doldron at the Rotary Club of Willowdale (at csdoldron@rogers.com)
Jack Marshall, age 96, died peacefully on July 23, 2020 at Sunnybrooke Veterans Centre, Toronto, his home for the past 4 1/2 years. He was the adoring husband of Audrey for 69 years until her death in 2012, and the surviving older brother to Keith, Joan and Ted (2019). Survived by sisters in law Loreen Scales and Anita Marshall. Jack was father to Patricia Bangay (Garth), Janice Henty and Lesley Willox (Rob); grandfather to Alyson (Gilles), Meghan (Chris), Meredith, Jessica (Chris), Jeremy (Sarah), Liam and Sarah; great grandfather to Isabelle, Olan, Oliver, Carys, Peter, Matthew, Julianna, Ben and Walter
Jack served as a navigator in a Halifax Bomber during WWII, returning to Canada and to his wife Audrey in 1945. He opened his own chartered accountancy business in Willowdale which later merged with Thorne Riddell, then KPMG. Jack became a well known member of the community and a committed member of the Willowdale Rotary Club, serving as their treasurer for many years. The club awarded him Rotarian of the Year 1989-1990 and he was a Paul Harris fellow. Jack was a man of strong ethics who worked tirelessly until his retirement in 1986. In retirement, he donated his expertise as church treasurer to St Patrick’s Anglican Church, played bridge, golf, and enjoyed social events with Audrey and friends in both Canada and Florida.
We would like to thank all the people over the years who have shown such kindness to Jack, including niece Catherine, and companion Dawn. There are too many to mention, but all of the staff at Sunnybrooke Veterans’ Centre are to be gratefully thanked for their exceptional care of Jack. Their commitment to excellence is beyond measure.
A private graveside service will held on July 26th, you are welcome to join the family remotely by following the link below:
IPP Jan Siegel of the Rotary Club of Willowdale Funeral Services will take place at 11:00am on Monday the 27th of July, 2020 from the graveside of Pardes Chaim. Due to social distancing and Covid-19 restrictions, only immediate family members are permitted to enter the grounds for the funeral services. The services will be live streamed, and you may google Benjamin Park Memorial, then go to Jan Siegel's name, and you will be instructed how to get to the live stream.
Details of the services are listed in the newspaper and on Benjamin's website. You can view the funeral by going to benjaminsparkmemorialchapel.ca and scroll down to Current Listings, click on Siegel Janis, then on the YouTube link provided on her page.
Rotary Club of Willowdale is in mourning for one of the founders of our club, Jack Marshall age 96, who passed away peacefully in his sleep on July 23rd, 2020.
Jack was a kind hearted person always ready to serve the community. Jack was at Sunnybrook in the Veterans Wing when he passed away. Jack was an honorary member and joined Rotary in 1958. He was a professional Accountant and among other, served often as a treasurer in the Board of Directors.
In the name of all our members and our President Stephen Phillips, we extend our deepest condolences to Jack's family.
Jack was a remarkable Rotarian. Fellow Rotarian Jack, you will be missed. We love you Jack. Rest in Peace.
Our Fellow Rotarian Howard Back wrote the following letter in honour of FR Jack Marshall: Jack Marshall passed away on Thursday, July 23, 2020. Jack joined the Rotary Club of Willowdale on August 1, 1958 and was elected an Honorary Member of the Club. He was a Chartered Professional Accountant and served as Club Treasurer for many years.
Jack was extremely proud to be a Rotarian. His personal and professional life exemplified the ideals of Rotary. He was always an active participant in Club projects and social activities. He and his wife, Audrey, regularly played bridge with their Rotarian friends, the Dobsons, the Johnstons, the Ellises, the Griffiths and others.
He operated an accounting practice in village of Willowdale and eventually became a partner of KPMG. He was proud of his profession. He was equally proud of his service with the RCAF in Europe during World War II. He has lived in the Veterans Centre of the Sunnybrook Hospital for the past several years.
Due to his health, we have missed Jack’s attendance at the Club’s meetings with his friendly smile and a word of encouragement to new and long-time members. Above all, Jack was a true gentleman. We will never forget his service to our country and to Rotary.
Howard
Rotary Club of Willowdale is mourning the loss of one of the club founders, Jack Marshall.
Today, July 25th, 2020, at 7:26 AM, our Immediate Passed President Jan Siegel passed away after a long and courageous battle with cancer. Her husband, Courtney Doldron Assistant Governor Rotary District 7070, was with her at the moment of her passing. Our Rotary Club of Willowdale is heartbroken for this loss of an exceptional human being!
Jan, age 71, was a warm, loving and kind hearted person, always ready to help by showing true action and literally serving the community above herself until the very end. Our club members extend our deepest condolences to her husband Fellow Rotarian Courtney Doldron, their children, grand children and family: Ashley and Kevin Todoroff with their children Harper and Pyton, Tiffany and Justin McMillan, Whitney and Martin Dowers with their children Aaron and Jacob. Jan was a devoted mother and grandmother. She was the loving step-mother of Melissa, dear sister and sister-in-law of Pam and Guy, devoted step-grandmother of Azhar, loving aunt of Brendan and Pam, and Morgan and Trudy.
We love you Jan! We will miss you tremendously. It was a privilege to know you and serve the community with you. Rest in Peace.
Our President Stephen Phillips presents the following letter in honour of Jan Siegel at this heartbroken moment in our club:
It was with untold sadness that I learned from Courtney of Past President Jan’s death. Jan passed away at 7.26 am this morning, 25th July 2020.
Jan was one of the bravest and most capable persons that I have had the privilege to know and count amongst my friends. She had an outstanding mind. She was brave in every sense and in every action that she took. She was a brilliant President of the Rotary Club of Willowdale. Jan and Courtney together, as a fantastically capable team brought an untold energy to our Club and set the achievement bar so high that future Presidents will live in their shadow for many years to come.
Jan brought up three wonderful and capable girls and was able to briefly enjoy the adoration of her grandchildren, all of whom will miss her tremendously for the rest of their lives.
I am truly thankful that I was privileged to share Jan as a part of my life and my love and best wishes go to Courtney and all the family in the hope that they can now start to rebuild their lives.
I am sure that Jan would not want us to mourn, so it is now incumbent on all of us to step up and give to the Rotary Club of Willowdale, in every sense, as Jan would have expected us to do.
Take a look at all the accomplishments of the Rotary Club of Willowdale for the year 2019-2020 under the leadership of President Jan Siegel. Great work team! Service Above Self with People of Action! Thank you Jan, you are an extraordinary human being! We love you.
Rotary Club of Willowdale is organizing their annual Community Building Fundraising Event, and this year the Phillips House and Maddie's Healing Garden at North York General Hospital will be the recipients of the funds raised during the Celebrity Dinner on November 6th, 2020.
The theme of the project is Community Building, with a concentration on Youth Mental Health and specifically Eating Disorder. The fundraising event will be a special Celebrity Dinner and Silent Auction. This year the dinner will be held at the Grand Luxe Event Boutique on Bayview Avenue in North York, and you can also become a sponsor.
Posted by Rotary Club of Willowdale on Nov 14, 2019
Rotary Club of Willowdale will be meeting from Nov. 21 onward at the Grand Luxe Event Boutique, 3125 Bayview Ave. ( Between Finch Avenue E and Sheppard Avenue E) for our future meetings.
The Rotary Club of Willowdale was chartered on May 1st, 1952, with the approval of Rotary International and became part of District 7070. Rotary is an organization that represents about 1.2 million Rotarians in 30,000 clubs in 162 countries around the world.
Our club has over 50 members from many different walks of life. We represent many of the professions and businesses in Willowdale. Women have been encouraged to join our club for a dozen years.
Some of our traditions in the Rotary Club of Willowdale include: - Regular attendance at the weekly Thursday lunch meetings is encouraged in order to keep in touch with Rotary friends and Rotary projects.
If a member is travelling, he/she can attend any other Rotary club and receive credit for make-up attendance. Many Rotarians take pride in regular attendance. One member of our club has more than fifty-four years of perfect attendance.
Over the years the Club has started, sponsored or started many projects both local and international. Some the project descriptions can be found in the "Our Club at Work" article.
At nearly every meeting we have a guest speaker that present events happening at their particular organization or on current affairs. A few months after a new member joins our club, he or she is asked to give a classification talk at a lunch meeting, with a brief summary of his/her life history, vocation and connection to Rotary. It also gives the new member an opportunity to promote and advertise the particular business or industry they are in.
