Here is a letter directly from Rotary International President Elect Jennifer Jones talking about her July 2022 Imagine Rotary Canada Tour and a note from our District Governor Ron Dick:

 

 

 

 

See Jennifer's Itinerary in the Rotary Canada April 2022 magazine:

On 15 June, RI President-elect Jennifer Jones will begin a tour of Canada. And when Jennifer Jones tours Canada, she tours Canada. From Point Pellee on Lake Erie, the southernmost point on the Canadian mainland, to Tuktoyaktuk on the Arctic Ocean; and from St. John’s on the Atlantic, a few kilometres from the easternmost point in North America, to Vancouver Island on the Pacific, Jones will spend nearly four weeks introducing herself to members of Rotary in Canada — and to anyone else who wants to come out and say hello.

Not only will the tour be an opportunity to celebrate all the accomplishments of the country’s clubs and districts, but each stop — or “hub,” as the organizers characterize it — will provide occasions to participate in local projects. The focus is on service and many of the events will be livestreamed to ensure maximum participation.

The first leg of the tour gets underway on 15 June in Whitehorse, the capital of the Yukon. The northern part of the tour is a wonderful segment, recognizing the vastness of our country. Over the next seven days, as Jones meets with Rotary members, civic leaders, and Indigenous Elders, she will travel from Whitehorse to Dawson City, move on to Inuvik and Tuktoyaktuk in the Northwest Territories, and then return to Whitehorse — a round trip of about 3,000 kilometres.

For three days, beginning on 26 June, the president-elect visits the Windsor hub in Ontario. The celebration in Windsor, which is Jennifer’s home district, will be awesome. (A member of the Rotary Club of Windsor-Roseland, Jones was the 2007-08 governor of District 6400.) The first day will be devoted in part to working with Sleep in Heavenly Peace, an international organization that builds, assembles, and delivers beds to children in need. Plans were in the works for a youth symposium on 27 June, and 28 June has been designated District 6400’s “Day for Jen.”

Fittingly, on 1 July, Canada Day and the first day of her RI presidency, Jones will be in Ottawa, the nation’s capital. Plans were in the works for meetings with leading government officials, as well as a discussion of Indigenous issues and visits to local Rotary projects, including a respite home that, for 40 years, has provided care for people with physical disabilities.

On 2 July, Jones arrives in St. John’s, the Maritimes hub and the capital of Newfoundland and Labrador. “We will welcome Jennifer with a traditional kitchen party,” says Stella Roy. “That means music, friends, and the opportunity to be ‘screeched in’ and become an official Newfoundlander and Labradorian.” Roy, a member of the Rotary Club of Halifax Harbour, Nova Scotia — which, the day before Jones’ arrival, will have become part of Rotary’s newly created District 7815 — guarantees that there will also be plenty of “people of action activities” for the district’s Rotarians, its “huge” Rotaractor contingent, and anyone else who cares to participate.

Rotaractors will again be out in force on 4 July in Quebec City as they join other Rotary members in projects and service opportunities.

On 5 July, Jones arrives in Canada’s largest city. “Our hope is that Jennifer will experience all the people that have been touched by Rotary as we showcase the many hundreds of projects completed by all the clubs throughout the four districts in our hub,” says Michele Guy of the Rotary Club of Toronto. The day’s ambitious plans include a watershed cleanup and a stop at Kids Against Hunger, where the goal is to pack 117,000 lunches in honour of Rotary’s 117 years.

Winnipeg, the Manitoba city that made Rotary international, welcomes Jones on 6 July. “Our vision is to demonstrate — to the community, to the needy, and to the media — that we are people of action,” says Eva Vida, a member of the Rotary Club of Winnipeg, the first Rotary club established outside the United States. The plan, explains Vida, is to have clubs across District 5550, which includes Manitoba and parts of Ontario and Saskatchewan, simultaneously perform projects to honour Jones’ visit. In some cities and towns, that will mean working with Rotary’s partner ShelterBox, which will set up tents to receive donations pertinent to the needs of that area. In Winnipeg, there will be two tents, one devoted to helping Indigenous people and a second dedicated to IRCOM (the Immigrant and Refugee Community Organization of Manitoba). “We want to show that here’s what we do on a big scale — because on a small scale, we do this every day,” Vida says.

Jones will make two stops in Alberta: On 7-8 July, she will be in Calgary, the site of the 2025 Rotary International Convention, where she will meet with Indigenous leaders, visit a Rotary-sponsored residential safe house, and walk with Rotaractors in the annual Calgary Stampede parade, which signals the opening of the large multiday rodeo.

After participating in a variety of events in Edmonton on 9 July, it’s on to British Columbia, where Jones will visit Vancouver on the 10th. “I’m excited as a Canadian Rotarian that Jennifer, the first woman to be president of Rotary, is visiting Canadians to kick off her year of Imagine Rotary,” says Chris Offer of the Rotary Club of Ladner and a former governor of District 5040, one of British Columbia’s five districts. The day starts with a pancake breakfast in Peace Arch Park, which straddles the border with the United States, followed by hands-on activities that could include an Indigenous literacy project, a beach cleanup, and a kit-packing project for the nonprofit Days for Girls, which, among other services, distributes sustainable menstrual health products.

The tour concludes on 11 July in Victoria, the province’s capital, on Vancouver Island. The stop will include a visit to the Food Rescue Distribution Centre, which is sponsored in part by the Greater Victoria Rotary Clubs. And organizers hope there will be time for a photograph at Mile 0, the western terminus of the Trans-Canada Highway. “But these events are not just for Rotarians or just for the people of Vancouver and Victoria,” insists Offer. “As at each of the stops along the tour, they are for anyone who can get to these hub areas.” “All of the hubs are going to be exciting in their own right,” adds Tichelman avec beaucoup d’enthousiasme. “There is so much about Jennifer’s tour that promises to be wonderful.”

 

 

To learn more about her cross Canada Imagine Rotary Tour, click here. Check back often as we will update events as they begin to evolve. 

 

See Jennifer's Itinerary in the Hub City of Toronto right here:

Click here  and often, for important updates,  to see what is happening in one of the Hub Cities - Toronto  - on July 5, 2022

 

For mor info, and to sign up for events in Toronto, see the story on our District website, right here

 

 

 

 

To order your tour gear, click here

 

From District Governor Ron Dick:

Jennifer Jones- Imagine Canada Tour- As I've communicated in the past weeks, we have soon to be RI President, Jennifer Jones coming to the Toronto area on Tuesday, July 5th, 2022.  The Multi District Planning team have decided to coordinate a 3 part day: Starting with a Watershed clean up in the morning, Kids against Hunger food packing in the afternoon with a Fab Rotary Foundation BBQ Fundraiser in the evening. 

So to make this happen we need committee members and chairs for each of the events.  We also need committee members to manage the day: Transportation,  Marketing & Promotion, Budget, Finance & Legal, Technology, Outreach Broadcasting and Sponsorships. 

If you would like to work on or co-chair these committees please contact Michele Guy, mguy@couttscrane.com or DG Ron Dick, ron@rrdfsi.ca

This event will showcased in the April edition of the Canada Rotary magazine.  Let's do District 7070 proud!

 

IF YOU CANNOT BE WITH US ON JULY, YOU CAN STILL SEE ROTARY INTERNATIONAL PRESIDENT LIVE AT SPECIFIC TIMES ON FACEBOOK,

HERE ARE THE LINKS:

July 5th is right around the corner. Organizers of the Toronto and satellite events are gearing-up for an amazing day of ACTION with Jennifer Jones and her team.

Can’t make it in person? Not to worry! Catch Jennifer on Zoom as she addresses volunteers and guests throughout the day:

Toronto Watershed Clean-up at 12:00 (10 minutes). Register: https://rotary7080.zoom.us/.../WN_ewB3lzbnQ2eEmdpHtvPq-A

Toronto Food-Pack Event at 1:45 (15 minutes). Register: https://rotary7080.zoom.us/.../WN_ROA3p94IR9CP8eV8ouNPPg

Imagine Rotary BBQ in Toronto at 7:30 (15 minutes). Register: https://rotary7080.zoom.us/.../WN_LA7Da-23TseXf4w_E0g5fg

Each session will also be broadcast ‘live’ on the Tour's Facebook page, as well as the Facebook Pages of Districts 7010, 7070, 7080 and 7090!

Click for more information about the day’s events: https://rotary7080.org/page/july-5th-imagine-tour/