Our Club Report 2025-26 for the Annual General Meeting

Rotary Club of Bury St Edmunds Annual Report,  July 2025 - June 2026

This has been a successful year for our Club in the areas which really matter to Rotary – fellowship, fundraising and giving support to local and international communities.

Fellowship. Despite the closure of the Bury St Edmunds and Farmers’ Club and the consequent loss of our lovely meeting venue, club members have continued to attend  our weekly meetings faithfully, even though it has not always been ‘plain sailing’. This is testimony to the high value we, as Rotarians, place on ‘fellowship’.

Fundraising.The Fundraising Committee, supported by all the Club members, has done a marvellous job in raising funds, which have been distributed far and wide during the year, touching the lives of many individuals and communities, locally and worldwide.

A Wine Tasting evening at the Guildhall proved both popular and successful, a lovely social event, as well as a good fundraiser. We held an Aquabox Fundraising and Awareness day on the Market, and although the funds raised were not large, it was a great opportunity to demonstrate the importance of the work of Aquabox.

Our Christmas Collections at the supermarkets were much appreciated and brought in generous contributions from Christmas shoppers, who are always pleased to see us and to support Rotary.

The final big event of the Fundraising Calendar was the Swimarathon '26, now in its 11^th year! There were 14 teams, swimming for 11 different charities. The Club’s own team, the Rotary Splashers, raised £400 for the Jess Grant Celebration charity, which supports the work of music therapists in local hospitals and hospices. The Club also participated in the Bury Abbey Rotary Club’s Spring On-line Auction.

Support for local and international communities.The Club has continued its support for young people by the distribution of Dictionaries for Life in two Primary Schools, the Public Speaking Competitions for Senior School Yr9 and Yr12 students – we were delighted to see 2 new schools participating this year - and the Rotary ‘Service Above Self’ Awards for deserving young people in our local Sixth Forms.

Financial and material support has been given to local ‘good causes’, such as the ‘Restore’ community, Bury Drop-In, the Millenium Farm Trust, Still Good Food, Home Start Suffolk and two individuals – one suffering from Retts Syndrome and the other looking for sponsorship to attend the Scout World Jamboree. We have also contributed to the Planters in Brentgovel Street in association with ‘Bury in Bloom’ and we have supported the Mid Suffolk Rotary Club with a donation to their Smoke Alarm project.

Internationally, the Club has continued its very active work for Lendwithcare, helping small entrepreneurs across the world to build their businesses and look after their families. Aquabox and Shelterbox benefit from our contributions, as does End Polio Now. We are also keen to develop our support for the Purple Community Fund in the Philippines.