TORRINGTON – Make no mistake when it comes to the commitment of local Rotarians. The purpose of Torrington Rotary Club is not to merely sit down and have a nice lunch at Cottonwood Country Club every Monday. It is to constantly work in ensuring that a small community is doing their part for much larger goals both locally and internationally.
Those goals pertain to certain things every human being from all walks of life can get on board with. Peace, health, unity, education, economics, families, science and environment are all top priorities when it comes to the dedication and commitment of all Rotarians.
Although the club is a vast non-profit entity with nearly 1.4 million members worldwide, the local Torrington chapter made a strong statement Friday night where all residents are welcome and encouraged to become more involved with rotary.
The local chapter held their annual fundraising gala at the Goshen County Fairgrounds early Friday evening where strong community support once again was on display for all to see.
Hundreds of local rotarians and community members gathered within the hall of the rendezvous center for an evening of silent auctions, activities, friendly gambling, drinks and delicious food.
According to the chapter’s newly appointed president-elect, Michele Ogburn, the evening was a bright culmination to conclude six months of planning and preparation.
As Ogburn would put it further, the night was a success not only for members of rotary, but for every single community member within the area. With plenty of local projects well underway, the Torrington chapter was more than willing to do their part in order to ensure said projects are a much easier fulfilled reality for residents.
“We wanted to try and raise as much money as we could for our community service initiatives,” Ogburn said. “There are things we want to have in order to serve the community as a whole. We offer local scholarships to high school students, but we are also working on the walking paths. We also provide respite care to the elderly; we are working on a splash pad, and we have local literacy efforts by providing dictionaries to our third graders. The newest project we’re getting off the ground is a wellness center for the community. Of course, internationally we are continually working on eradicating polio, and are working on sending shelter boxes around the world.”
Although Ogburn has not officially begun her term as acting rotary president, the president-elect has made community inclusiveness and involvement a top priority headed forward.
Being a worldwide club that promotes unity, peace and understanding perhaps above anything else, Ogburn is ready and eager to take that responsibility on top of full-time counseling duties at Torrington High School upon starting her term.
“We really want to appeal for a wide variety of people,” Ogburn continued. “That’s why we tried to add things in like gaming, wine and drinks, and then book pairing. There was something a little different for everyone who wanted to come. We really want to get a wider audience here, and expose everyone to what Rotary really does for the community. I think a lot of people really don’t see that.”
Current acting president of Torrington Rotary, Goshen County and Prosecuting Attorney Eric Boyer, was in close agreement with Ogburn. Boyer added further on the enormous positive concept an inclusive and non-discriminate public service organization like rotary can really have on a small community such as Torrington.
“Rotary is about serving others over oneself,” Boyer said. “It’s for everyone in the community. Everyone is welcome and encouraged to participate. It is a service organization for community benefit. As the saying goes, ‘united we stand.’”
“I enjoyed seeing everyone there,” Ogburn added. “I would say there were people from almost every area in the community from all walks of life. That was very nice as well as the team effort it took to put it on. The biggest challenge was coronating everything. It was a big task and a large event in making sure everything was coordinated and organized. We had been working on this for six months. I was very pleased with how every Rotarian stepped up and did their part to make this happen. Next year will be our 25 event, so I imagine that will be a big one. It’s nice to have an event that draws everyone in the community together, something that comes back to them and helps.”
With some final words of reflection over the last several months as well as what the future may hold for the new president, Ogburn made sure to get the message out clearly to community members one last time before returning to her job at the high school.
“We want thank everyone for supporting Rotary,” Ogburn said. “Rotary is open to everyone. If someone is service-minded and wants to serve their community in any way, we would be excited to have them as a member. Just show up on Mondays and we will buy you lunch. We also serve internationally, and we have international projects that really focus on what’s best for all concerned.”
