Dear The Rotary Club Of Fergus-Elora
Shelter is the foundation for life, for families, and for communities; this past year has made that abundantly clear. 2020 brought the world unprecedented changes, but as always, Rotarians and Rotary clubs refused to back down, putting service above self to face new challenges in their communities.
Without Rotary Clubs across the country, ShelterBox would not have been able to reach 200,000 families in need of shelter in 2020. Thanks to our life-changing project partnership with Rotary International, we have supported more than 1.6 million people in 97 countries since 2000.
 | These are families who may not have received support to rebuild after disaster without the generous foresight of our ShelterBox Canada Heroes. In 2020, one of these families was Shelley and her son Locklin from Pentecost Island, Vanuatu. Category 5 Tropical Cyclone Harold made landfall in April 2020, decimating homes, gardens, and everything else in its path as it tore across the South Pacific island nation. "In the morning, when we opened the door, it was devastating." Starts Shelley, shaking her head, "we came outside but you couldn't see any houses." |
Shelley explains how her community is working together to rebuild their homes. |
Shelley sings praise for the tarpaulins in her ShelterKit that now afford her family a dry night's sleep free from trickles of water leaking through the gaps in the broken roof.
With your support, Shelley was able to rebuild her own home. Now that she has a safe home for herself and her son, she can get back to leading her community through recovery, beginning with their gardens. Approximately 70% of Vanuatu's population depends on their garden, making regrowth a priority for the community.
Being an active member of her community, Shelley knows all about looking out for the needs of others...
"Because you gave the spades, shovels, all those things it means we were able to rebuild our houses, and now the houses are finished we can go and work in our gardens," said Shelley. "Thank you to those that have saved us, for using your time to look out for us."
ShelterBox Canada Hero Rotary Clubs know that natural disasters are inevitable, helping us to reach more families year after year. Heroes know that ensuring our warehouses are stocked means that we can respond quickly when disaster strikes. The stand-by stock in these warehouses supported Shelley and 2,000 other families in Vanuatu with the tools they needed to rebuild.
We know many clubs have needed to make tough decisions this Rotary year. Any donation supports us on our mission of ensuring no family is left without shelter after a disaster, but with a Hero donation, we know that we can support at least one more family in their self- recovery.
Last year, 130 Rotary Clubs stayed committed to helping us complete our mission. This Rotary year will you join us again and become a ShelterBox Canada Hero?
Your Bronze Hero Club's donation of $2,400.00 CAD is already making an impact by supporting one family rebuild. By increasing this donation to $3,600 we can ensure 3 families are on their journey of self-recovery and your club will reach Silver Hero status for this Rotary Year.
If you are inspired, but experiencing tight budgets, your club's community fundraising efforts in support of ShelterBox also contribute to your Hero status.
Thank you for your club's continued support of ShelterBox Canada. Your contribution has allowed us to improve the lives of hundreds of thousands of families affected by disaster and conflict. Thank you for sharing your kindness and passion for action.
Yours in Service,
Tess Widdifield
Acting Executive Director, ShelterBox Canada Rotarian, Rotary Club of Toronto Twilight
P.S. To learn more about how your support impacts families around the world, read our 2020 Rotary Partnership Report at www.ShelterBoxCanada.org/Rotary/Report