Local Projects
The heart and soul of the Rotary Club of Fairhope is raising funds to help our community.
From scholarships for students to building play yards for the kids, and supporting our local library,
our fundraisers and projects bring in thousands of much-needed dollars that often change the lives of our recipients.
The Fairhope Rotary Club Turns 85
January 27, 2023, marked the 85th birthday of the Fairhope Rotary Club. Founded on that day in 1938, the celebration was held at the Easter Shore Arts Center.
Disaster Response Team Dispatched to Selma Following January Tornados
On the weekend of January 14 – 15, 2023, our Disaster Relief trailer was once again dispatched – this time to help those people in Selma, AL, who had their homes destroyed by a fierce tornado just a day or two before. Over the course of the weekend, our team was able to help five families, cleaning their yards and giving them some relief from the devastation.
Disaster Response Team Tornado Assistance
On October 29, 2022, a tornado tore through Bon Secour (near Gulf Shores and south of Fairhope, AL) destroying Joanne Valinski’s mobile home. She and those inside were able to escape with minor injuries, but her home was a total loss. The Fairhope Rotary Disaster Response Team, led by Andy Tubertini, mobilized and, on October 31, arrived to help clean up what the tornado left behind. They spent the entire day tearing down what was left of the mobile home, salvaging personal belongings, and helping clear the way for Joanne to begin rebuilding.
Grants to Local Schools
Fairhope East Elementary (from left): Edward Schnell, president of the Rotary Club of Fairhope; Carol Broughton, FEE principal; Christina Stacey, FEE assistant principal; Poenta Luckie, 2019–2020 president, Rotary Club of Fairhope
Fairhope West Elementary (from left): Edward Schnell, president of the Rotary Club of Fairhope; Caroline Hollowell, FWE assistant principal; Poenta Luckie, 2019–2020 president, Rotary Club of Fairhope
In early 2020, Poenta Luckie, then-president of the Rotary Club of Fairhope, solicited grant requests from local schools. Fairhope Elementary School and Fairhope Intermediate School, anticipating their needs as they reorganized into two K–6 schools, requested Leveled Literacy Intervention (LLI) materials for the grades they were not currently serving. These LLI kits are crucial in remedial reading instruction and are used to help improve students’ grades – many times from a D to an A. However, these materials are also very expensive. With Covid rapidly evolving, our annual fundraiser had to be canceled and we had to be conservative in our donations. We were still able to allocate $10,500 for each school. While the funds were disbursed before the beginning of the 2020–21 school year, we only recently were able to make a formal check presentation to school officials.
We also donated $10,500 to Fairhope Middle School to be used for Promethean ActivPanel boards (interactive whiteboards) for science classrooms. The same equipment was already available in math and language arts classrooms, and allowed the science department to provide the same quality of instruction as the other two areas of education.
Covid Testing Equipment for Thomas Hospital
From left: Bob Callahan, Foundation chair, Rotary Club of Fairhope; Jerry Blacklaw, 2020–2021 Governor, Rotary International District 6880; Kathy Baugh, Vice President, Infirmary Health; Mechell Ollinger, Director of Surgical Services, Thomas Hospital; Lee Turner, President, Fairhope Rotary Foundation; Poenta Luckie, 2019–2020 President, Rotary Club of Fairhope; and Ormand P. Thompson III, President, Thomas Hospital (Infirmary Health)
In partnership with The Rotary Foundation of Rotary International, which provided a global grant (GG2015357) for $24,000, and Rotary District 6880, which contributed $14,894 of its District Designated Fund (money that clubs in the district have sent to The Rotary Foundation that is returned to the district after three years), the Rotary Club of Fairhope (through our foundation) provided a $57,984 grant to Infirmary Health’s Thomas Hospital for the purpose of purchasing a GXIV-4-D testing system, a highly sensitive and accurate molecular instrument that tests for the COVID-19 virus and gives results in an hour. Without this system, hospital staff had to capture test samples of patients visiting in the emergency room and send them via courier to a hospital more than 30 miles away. Results were not available for 24–48 hours – a process which exposed staff to the disease, presented serious bed management problems and caused treatment delays since patients had to be treated as positive until proven otherwise. In addition, personal protective equipment (PPEs) was often used unnecessarily.
Headphones for Students at J. Larry Newton School
Members of the Rotary Club of Fairhope present a check for $1,750 to Lynn Smith, Assistant Principal, and Patrice Wolfe, Principal, of J. Larry Newton School for the purchase of 730 pairs of stereo headphones (one for each K–6 student) for use with computers.
Earplugs for the Fairhope High School Band
Band musicians can be subject to a wall of sound that, over time, can damage their hearing. Etymōtic Research in Elk Grove Village, IL, developed earplugs that allow band members to tame the music, suppressing excess sound in order to reduce hearing loss. Through Etymōtic’s Adopt-A-Band program, we were able to purchase 200 pairs of ER•20XS earplugs, one for every band member, along with educational materials and superior-quality earphones for the band director at a cost of about $1,450.
Walking School Bus Kiosk
After a six-year tradition of monthly themed “Smart Walks,” the Baldwin County Trailblazers partnered with Fairhope Elementary School (grades K–3) in 2013 to launch the first daily Walking School Bus (WSB) program in the state of Alabama. Through this program, parents are able to avoid car lines at the school by dropping their kids at the WSB drop off point or walking with the group about half a mile to the school. Students are escorted by parents, teachers, and volunteers. The popular program is now entering its seventh year of operation, with some 150 students registered. On the first day of school this year, 138 students and 144 parents and siblings joined the walk.
Many FES parents wanted their graduating third graders to be able to continue with a WSB when they attended Fairhope Intermediate School (grades 4–6) this year. For this reason, and also because both schools split to become K–6 schools in 2020, the Baldwin County Trailblazers decided to implement a “Pilot WSB” to FIS for the 2019–2020 school year. Since the school was not able to provide teacher support for 2019–2020, the pilot program was opened only to students who had previously participated in the WSB at FES.
Since the WSB started from a different dropoff point, a new registration “kiosk” was required, and the Rotary Club of Fairhope offered to provide it. After commissioning an architect member to draw up plans to be built by members, the plans were rejected as too complex. We decided to purchase a prefabricated gazebo for about $5,000 instead. Although some modifications were made to adapt the structure to the requirements of the WSB, the Walking School Bus program kicked off with 32 students.
Batting Cage for Girls’ Softball
When the Lady Pirates softball team won the state 7A tournament in 2018, the state of that team’s facilities compared very unfavorably to what was provided for the boys’ baseball teams. Accordingly, the Rotary Club of Fairhope committed $23,000 to build a batting cage for girls’ softball at Founders Park. Eventually the facility will have Rotary signage; for now, there is a thank-you banner in the outfield right next to the scoreboard.
Another Playground!
In late 2018, we sponsored equipment for a small playground at the Manley Road Soccer Complex at a cost of $11,816.
Playground for Fairhope Intermediate School
When the Rotary Club of Fairhope learned that Special Education students at Fairhope Intermediate School were spending their recess in front of the school playing with leaves and acorns because they did not have a handicap-accessible playground, we donated $30,500 toward playground equipment, becoming the principal sponsor of the playground. This amount included proceeds from the club’s annual fundraiser, supplemented by a $9,500 grant from Rotary District 6880.
Handheld Radios for Fairhope Middle School
Staff and teachers at Fairhope Middle School were experiencing communication difficulties because the walkie-talkies they were using were not powerful enough to reach from one end of the building to the other – or even between floors. Cell phones were not the answer because cell signal was usually not available inside the building. Summoning assistance or coordinating fire drills was a nightmare. We partnered with the Point Clear Rotary Club and Fairhope Sunset Rotary, donating $1,500 for purchase of new, more powerful radios.
Vehicles for myTeam Triumph
By combining a $4,700 grant from District 6880 with $5,300 in club funds, we were able to make a $10,000 donation to myTeam Triumph / Southern Alabama for the purchase of two triathlon conversion racing chairs and one racing hand cycle. MyTeam Triumph is an athletic ride-along program for individuals with disabilities or special needs who would normally not be able to experience endurance events such as road races or triathlons. Individuals with muscular dystrophy, spina bifida, cerebral palsy, and other conditions are side by side with other athletes competing. The MyTeam Triumph / Southern Alabama Chapter includes the counties from Montgomery south to Mobile. Among others, the Southern Alabama Chapter of MyTeam Triumph participates in the Grandman Triathlon, Run Forrest Run 5K, Senior Bowl 10K, First Light Marathon, Joe Cain 5K, and the Spring Fever Chase.
A check presentation was held November 12, 2016, at the conclusion of the Pirate Dash 5K race. As shown, the Rotary logo is displayed on the team’s trailer and the wheels of the vehicles. This branding was effective for three years and was seen by an estimated 100,000 people at race events each year.
For this project we received a Rotary Foundation Centennial Certificate of Recognition for “sponsoring outstanding district grant–funded activities completed in 2015–16.”
Furnishings for Fairhope Middle School “Outdoor Classroom”
President Tom Gulledge and other Fairhope Rotarians were present for the ribbon cutting.
Because the cost of the playground equipment described below came in at just over $21,000 (not counting the cost of the sign), the club was able to respond to a request from Fairhope Middle School for help in furnishing its “outdoor classroom” (the Discovery Exploration Center). The project was funded jointly by the City of Fairhope, the Fairhope Educational Enrichment Foundation (FEEF), Fairhope Sunset Rotary Club, and the Fairhope Middle School PTC. To complete it, FMS needed to purchase commercial-grade, maintenance-free, ADA-approved tables with benches and freestanding benches. Our club donated $2,700 to this effort, covering the purchase of three picnic tables with benches.
Volanta Park Playground Equipment
As noted below, the proceeds from our annual Steak Cook-off fundraiser fund our service projects for the next year. The more money we make, the more we have to spend. But one expenditure is not discretionary: our Thomas S. Scoggins Memorial Scholarships are a $10,000 annual commitment no matter how the cook-off fares. So, in 2011, we added $25 a year to member dues to create a “club reserve” that would fund the scholarships if the cook-off was rained out.
In 2015, after eleven years without a cancellation and five years of increased dues, the “rainy-day fund” had reached a point where it seemed prudent to use some of it for a service project. The project we identified was new playground equipment for a small playground at the entrance to three of the ball fields at Volanta Park. We committed $25,000 to this project and on April 5, 2016, were able to officially open the playground.
“Pirate Galley” Concession Stand
Rotarians and Rotaractors surround those holding the check: PP (2014–2015) Geoff Kennedy, PP Howard Eddy, also president elect of the Fairhope Pirate Booster Club, and Erik Cortinas, City of Fairhope Building Official and president of the Fairhope Pirate Booster Club.
In our club, the president elect is the chairman of our annual Steak Cook-off fundraiser. The following club year, as president, he guides the board in deciding how to allocate the proceeds of the cook-off. In 2013–2014, President Howard Eddy recommended that we take on the project of working together with the Fairhope Pirate Booster Club and the City of Fairhope to build a new concession stand for W. C. Majors Field, where the Fairhope High School football team plays its games.
The board agreed and ultimately donated $41,000 to this project. The City and other contractors provided labor, vendors provided materials, and the Booster Club raised additional funds for a new concession stand that was about triple the size of the old one.
The original concession stand had three sales windows; the new one has four. In addition, “spirit” merchandise (caps, T-shirts, and the like), once relegated to a tent outside, now has its own storage room (the Pirate Closet) with a sales window. There is also an express window for sales to band members, cheerleaders, and police, fire, and ambulance personnel.
Among the enhancements of the new concession stand, called “Pirate Galley,” are a walk-in freezer and a cold room. And in general there is just a lot more storage space and more room for volunteers to operate.
At the last home game of the 2015 football season, the Booster Club held a Sponsor Appreciation Night, and members of the Rotary Club of Fairhope and Rotaract Club of the Eastern Shore were invited to attend and be recognized. We presented our “big check” and saw the plaque that will be mounted on the concession stand building.
Stimpson Field Fitness Trail
With a great deal of help from the City of Fairhope (which installed the equipment) and a grant from District 6880, we and the Fairhope Sunset Rotary Club provided a 10-station Fit-Trail parcourse fitness trail at Stimpson Field in Fairhope. Pictured here are the overall trail inside the walking/running track and the text of the informational signs at the beginning of the trail. A description of each fitness station and instructions for its use can be seen at the Fit-Trail website.
