Every Rotary Club is based on a foundation of service. For more than a century, the Rotary Club of Denver has made an impact in Denver by providing much needed financial and/or volunteer support to outside organizations, as well as our own club programs and projects. Through our Service Team committees, the club provides members with meaningful volunteer opportunities. Below is a list of organizations and programs we are proud to support and serve.
DENVER KIDS, INC.
Co-founded by Rotary Club of Denver in 1946, Denver Kids, Inc. (DKI) provides educational counseling and mentoring to K-12 students in Denver Public School (DPS). Each child receives support and guidance to best promote individual academic success. The program strives to help each student achieve his or her potential by offering encouragement and addressing the factors that promote healthy social, physical, and mental development.
Volunteer opportunities include DKI’s One-on-One Mentoring Program. Volunteers must make a minimum commitment of one year and two in-person visits per month with the student and have at least monthly contact with DKI’s educational counselor.
COMMUNITY RESOURCES, Inc. (Youth Mentoring)
Community Resources Inc. (CRI) serve the students, families, and staff of Denver Public Schools. They utilize the talents of community members to increase students’ knowledge, to strengthen partnerships among schools, families and businesses, and to provide opportunities for students to learn outside the school environment.
The Denver Rotary Club Foundation’s annual grant specifically funds their Academic Mentors Program, a program that matches high achieving at-risk students in grades 4 - 8 with Rotarians and other community volunteers for short-term academic/career experiences. Club 31 members engage as student mentors and may also serve in other volunteer roles within the organization, such as classroom speakers, family night readers and science fair judges.
JUNIOR ACHIEVEMENT–ROCKY MOUNTAIN (JA)
Members of Club 31 team up with students from the DCIS Interact Club to help K-12 students learn about money management and business ownership. Club 31 members choose to get involved with JA Finance Park or JA in a Day at Fairmont Elementary in Denver. JA Finance Park allows Rotarians to help DCIS students work through a hands-on financial literacy simulation. At the beginning of this experience, students receive a life situation (family, job, salary and education). They are challenged to assume adult responsibilities and create a budget that reflects their needs and wants.
For JA in a Day at Fairmont Elementary, a group of 15 Rotarians partner with DCIS Interact Club students to implement JA programs at Fairmont Elementary School. JA programs are hands-on, interactive, and teach students to be financially literate, work ready and entrepreneurial.
PROJECT C.U.R.E.
Project C.U.R.E. is the largest provider of donated medical supplies and equipment to developing countries around the world. Club 31 Rotarians, our families and friends, meet at Project C.U.R.E.’s headquarters/warehouse on the 1st Monday of each month to sort and pack donated medical supplies for shipment to developing countries around the world.
ROTARY COLLEGE COUNSELING INITIATIVE
The Rotary College Counseling Initiative supports Denver Rotary’s mission by providing counseling and identifying financial resources for students with financial need and above-average grade point averages who are pursuing college education.
Club members work to secure funding to pay professional counselors to work with students involved with Denver Kids, Inc., the Rotary High School Scholarship Program and the Denver Center for International Studies.
ROTARY HIGH SCHOOL SCHOLARSHIPS & ACHIEVEMENT AWARDS
Rotary’s High School Scholarship & Achievement Awards (HSSAA) program provides an excellent opportunity to interface with outstanding high school students. Through this initiative, the Denver Rotary Club Foundation provides grants annually to more than 30 economically disadvantaged Denver high school juniors and seniors. The objective of the grant is to provide financial assistance, as well as mentorship and emotional support to the recipients through regular contact with Rotary members.
Rotary participants meet their scholarship recipients monthly for at least one hour to provide guidance as well as to deliver the scholarship check. Often this interaction develops into a mentoring relationship that lasts for years after the student graduates from high school.
ROTARIANS FOR MENTAL HEALTH (R4MH)
R4MH is a multi-club effort serving the Colorado Front Range, with more than 30 local clubs at various stages of involvement. R4MH is also a participant in the newly formed international Rotary Action Group for Mental Health. The R4MH mission is to build stronger communities through involvement and education in order to raise awareness, foster compassion and develop broad-based support for those affected by mental health and substance use disorders.
ROTARY YOUTH LEADERSHIP AWARD (RYLA)
RYLA is a life-changing leadership training program that teaches junior and senior high school students leadership skills in an atmosphere of trust and respect. The purpose of RYLA is to encourage and assist current and potential youth leaders in methods of responsible and effective leadership.
Club 31 members help select students to attend the Young and Senior RYLA camps. Volunteers also provide transportation to and from the camps each summer.
SCHOLASTIC ART AWARDS OF COLORADO
The Colorado Art Education Association and the Rotary Club of Denver work together to present the Scholastic Art Awards Colorado, part of the National Scholastic Arts and Writing Awards Program. The program gives talented students an opportunity to exhibit their work, be judged against their Colorado peers and to compete against peers on a national level.
Club 31 members help secure funds for the project, expand participation of schools and Rotary Clubs statewide, and help hang and judge the annual exhibition.