Service Project Ideas

– Loaves and Fishes: Cook and serve food to those hungry in our area.

– Plant trees on behalf of Rotary International

– Citywide clean-up days

– Bell Ringing for Salvation Army

– Volunteer for the local schools when they have community events (free haircuts for kids, activities, meet the teacher, etc.)

– Catfish Fry Dinner

– Rotary Kids Week at Wonderland Camp (perhaps Youth Service)

– Create a postcard where a person would purchase 6 doses of the polio vaccine in the recipient’s name and give that as a holiday gift.

– Host a 5K or Fun Run

– Cook a dinner at your local Ronald McDonald House

– Collect items on a charity wish list

– Ameren Shoreline Clea-up – Lake Ozark Daybreak – Contact Chad Hines

– Table Rock Lake Shoreline Clean-up (spring and fall)

– Character Education at local elementary school.  We work with the school counselor who provides the lesson plans for club volunteers to lead discussions with 5th and 6th graders. It takes about 20-30 minutes total and affords the opportunity to talk to intermediate students about Rotary, our mission and our personal professions. Contact Staci Jensen, Sunrise Rotary, for more information. Email  [email protected]

– Reading with Rotary- Adopt a local school and have volunteers sign up for reading times.  The Hollister Rotary Club reads the Josh the Otter books to kindergarten and 1st graders. They also make sure every student has a book.  Contact Devra Leach for more information at [email protected]

– Coordinate with a local school to paint the classrooms, teachers’ work room, etc., with the school providing the paint. The Rotary Club of Springfield partners with a local school to freshen the walls in the school before classes begin in the fall. It saves the school district tons of money, and the club partnered with the local Rotaract Club to provide the painters. Contact Kathleen O’Dell for details at [email protected]

– Candyland Project: Identify about 300 children in need for Christmas presents through local schools or local charities. We open a donated storefront and set up for the public to come “check out” candy canes. Each cane is tied to a child with their age, gender, and items they would like for Christmas. The public is asked to spend $75-$100 on the child. They return the presents to the Candyland storefront and Rotarians wrap the presents and then deliver to the schools. Rotarians will do the shopping for persons wanting to sponsor a child but not wanting to shop. This initiative has been going on for over 30 years. Lake Ozark – Contact Richard Ross at [email protected]

– Pulled Pork Roast Sale each October (aka Pork Butt): We sell the 4.5- 5-pound roasts freshly smoked, chilled or frozen through our local meat processor Alewel’s Meats.  They provides  the roasts at their cost and we sell them for $25 each.  We always have good return customers, so it’s not re-inventing the customer list each year.  We net $5,000-$6,000 for special projects in the community.

– The Warrensburg Early-Birds has the KING fundraiser – The Taste of Johnson County – in which area restaurants showcase their cuisine.  Tickets are $12 or $15 and the restaurants take on the food costs.  They usually bring in $10,00o to $13,000.

– Field of Honor  and Patriots Ball. This is an annual tribute to veterans and first responders and is a tremendous effort. Purchase a flag in honor of a veteran, active military or first responder. Georgetown Rotary Club  (https://www.georgetowntxfieldofhonor.org/about/)