LAMORINDA WEEKLY | Moraga Rotary named the "Outstanding Club of the Year"


Moraga Rotary Directors for 2021-22,?front row:? Evie Michon, Debbie Roessler, John Erickson, Mary Sue Erickson, Linda May, Frank May, Debbie Koo;?back row: Lad Lynch, Tony Schoemehl, Dianne Wilson, Gary Irwin. Photos provided

Moraga Rotary Club was recently named "Outstanding Club of the Year" for the 2020-21 year by District 5160 Governor Mark Roberts, echoing Moraga Rotary's winning the same designation in 2017-18 after the opening of the All-Access Playground at the Moraga Commons. This was a recognition of Moraga Rotary's outstanding achievements in service on both the local and international levels. This District is composed of 72 Rotary Clubs from Berkeley and San Ramon in the south to Weed, near the Oregon border.

Moraga Rotary was also named Moraga's Non-Profit organization of the Year by the Moraga Chamber of Commerce.

Moraga Rotary launched a series of "Dinners with Rotary" during the pandemic that not only raised funds for its own service projects but also supported local restaurants that were struggling during the COVID-19 pandemic. This spring, after learning firsthand about the devastation that the Delta variant was causing among the people of India from one of its own members who was visiting there, Club President Brian South and his fellow club members took the lead in launching a fundraising effort to help Rotary districts and clubs in India to purchase lifesaving equipment and supplies. In just three weeks, with contributions from other clubs and individual Rotarians throughout the District, the Moraga Rotary Foundation was able to send almost $35,000 to their partners in India.

In addition, Moraga Rotary was able to install security cameras accessible to first responders in Joaquin Moraga Intermediate School, conduct e-waste collections, award a "Teacher of the Month" prize, fill hygiene kits for a local church project, supply medical kits for every classroom in Moraga, complete the education project in Sierra Leone (the "Makambo-Moraga campus"), and fund the library project in Goma, Congo, while making its usual donations to scholarships and local charity relief programs.

Roberts said, "I am deeply grateful to the members of the Moraga club for exemplifying Rotary's commitment to Service Above Self through their projects and achievements during the challenging 2020-2021 Rotary year. . All Moraga club members can be very proud of what they have accomplished together."

At a recent year-end dinner, South was elected Rotarian of the Year by his fellow Club members.

This award is named in honor of Cliff Dochterman who, during his 60-plus year career as a Rotarian, served as District 5160 Governor in 1968-69 and Rotary International President in 1992-93. As a Past RI President, Dochterman was in great demand as a speaker about Rotary activities all over the world. While he is revered by Rotarians worldwide, he is a living legend in District 5160. He was a member of the Berkeley club for many years and is currently a member of the Moraga club. Dochterman was named "Moraga's Citizen of the Year" several years ago.

Moraga Rotary is a 54-year-old service club within Rotary International, one of the four Clubs in Lamorinda, and one of about 33,000 Rotary Clubs in about 200 countries. Regular meetings are held at noon on most Tuesdays at La Finestra restaurant. If you are interested in information about Rotary, or would like to donate to their worthy causes, please visit the website at moragarotary.org, or call Brian South, president, at (925) 888-7052.