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| Chairman of the Rotary Club of Ashburton Development Trust, Roger West (left) and Trustee Don Williamson work on landscaping the house section. |
Rotary
Club of Ashburton, NZ members are delighted their six month house build
and landscaping project raised $70,000 for the club’s literacy
projects.
The completed house at 41 Braebrook Drive was sold to local couple James and Jo McCloy.
The
successful house build project was a first for the club, and the
proceeds will fund children’s literacy projects in Samoa and locally in
Ashburton.
The
club has led an aid project in Samoan schools with support from other
clubs in Rotary District 9970, including the neighbouring Rotary Club of
Ashburton Plains, since the devastating tsunami of 2009.
To
date hundreds of library bookcases have been built and thousands of new
and used books delivered to Samoan schools by Ashburton Rotarians with
help from the Rotary Club of Apia. Medical equipment and wheelchairs
have also been delivered.
The next step of the project is to provide thousands of early readers to schools.
Locally
the proceeds from the project will fund the club’s Books for New
Entrants programme for the next two years. The programme which has been
running for two years delivers a NZ authored book to every five year old
starting school in the Ashburton District.
Rotary
Club of Ashburton Development Trust chair Roger West said the success
of the project was very satisfying. “We are so grateful to the many
businesses and tradespeople who pitched in and helped us. Their support
was quite overwhelming.”
The
businesses who supported the build were recognised at the club’s Rotary
meeting on June 23 with certificates of appreciation.
