An update from the District Foundation Chair, John Rickard.

I thought it would be timely to attempt to bring Rotarians up to date with what is happening about next year’s District Grants round, given the very changed world we are all facing at the moment and for the foreseeable future.

I am aware that clubs are no longer meeting, and may not do so for a number of weeks. It is pleasing to see many clubs adapting to new ways of connecting by Zoom, WhatsApp etc, but you are probably limited in your ability to get out and scope the needs of your community (especially COVID 19 related ones) and then plan the projects in detail.

How will that impact on this year’s district grants? Some clubs have already finished their projects and will not be affected by the global pandemic. Others may be part way through their project or yet to start. We will be contacting each club directly to get an update and to set out how these projects can be completed within the grant guidelines

As for next year’s district grants – I believe that at this stage we need to wait and see how long the current situation will impact our clubs and what our Foundation advises us.

Information is coming in from the Rotary Foundation daily, as they try to adapt to the world as we now know it.

The best information that I can give you at this time is that the coming round of District Grants will be changed from previous years. For a start, we are unlikely to be able to train clubs face to face and it seems likely that a form of online training for the MOU will happen.

However, more importantly it appears likely that both District Grant funds and Global Grant funds may be used both within our districts and further afield to assist with the work going on to help fight and respond to the impacts of Covid-19.

My comment to you all is that clubs should begin to think about how they could use District Grant money during the next several years, with thought being given particularly to assisting in the aftermath of the Pandemic.

You may be interested to know that the Foundation has been made the call to divert all Polio personnel, vehicles and laboratories to the Covid-19 needs, while there is such a world wide need for these. These resources will revert back to Polio activities when the prevailing conditions allow in each country. This shows that the Foundation is reacting quickly to the changing world scene, and I am sure more information will be coming through in the next few days and weeks, regarding our district funds.

I will update you when we have a clearer idea of the way ahead! In the meantime, look after yourselves, your families and neighbours and STAY SAFE.

Margaret and I are spending time daily on Facetime with our grandchildren on the farm and also our grandchildren in London. Technology is wonderful when used correctly!

Cheers
John Rickard