Recent News and Activities

“Pooches on Parade” - Sudbury’s virtual dog show

A novel idea was tried during the dark days of ‘lock-down’ with a virtual dog show. The club is very grateful to Martin Brocklebank, creator of the Rotary e-Club, for creating a website to allow participants to enter.  Despite widespread advertising, the competition failed to generate a lot of interest and only 36 entries were submitted into the various classes.  The event has generated some much needed income in support of the President’s nominated charities.  We would like to thank all those who took part.

Click here to see a gallery of the winners.

 Support for the Christopher Centre at Christmas

Here are some of the items bought by the Sudbury Community Depot at the Christopher Centre for the disadvantaged citizens of Sudbury using money that was recently donated by members of the Sudbury Rotary Club. 

Sudbury Community Depot provides household goods and furniture for those moving from homelessness into accommodation.  It also provides for those fleeing from domestic violence and for families struggling to make ends meet.  It always adds a starter pack of cleaning materials and a basic larder to get folk started.  Rotary has supported the Depot from the beginning and it is so grateful for the generosity of Rotary's members.

Lights Out for Christmas Tree Festival

It is with great regret that we will not be able to stage the annual Rotary Christmas Tree Festival in St. Peters this year due to the limitations imposed by the coronavirus pandemic. 

Plans were under way to present the festival with a reduced number of trees while following Government restrictions and rules, but the November ‘lock-down’ and the liklihood of further restrictions in December has made this impossible.  

‘Purple-4-Polio’ to brighten Sudbury in the Spring

Members of the Club enjoyed meeting together recently for the first time in many months to plant another 1,000 purple crocus. We were joined on the grass alongside Croft Road and Gregory Street by our local MP James Cartlidge and Sudbury Town Clerk Ciaran Griffin, who helped with the planting. For a more detailed account and for more pictures, take a look at our November Newsletter.

By next Spring you will see over 5,000 purple crocus in a variety of locations, including the entrances to the town, in Siam Gardens, at the railway station and the Health Centre. They will also be coming up in the grounds of our local schools and we hope they will not only provide a colourful environment but will also raise awareness of Rotary’s on-going campaign to eradicate polio.

Rotary Clubs world-wide have joined in the Rotary ‘Purple-4-Polio’ campaign to eradicate polio with great success as there are now only two countries where polio is still evident. Use the link above to find out more about the project.

Our President, a botanical artist, is raising funds to continue the good work by offering beautifully illustrated cards for sale featuring a Crocus Ruby Giant artwork - the colour of the crocus is similar to the colour of the dye into which a child’s finger is dipped to show that they have been vaccinated. You can help defeat polio and help us to support this venture by ordering the cards. Find out more and order the cards.

One of the major features of Sudbury Rotary Club is the opportunity to meet with fellow Rotarians and enjoy a social get-together, which the Covid restrictions have stopped. With each month passing though, there is a little more light at the end of the tunnel, and the easing of restrictions in July has been welcomed with a little normality returning to our lives. 

The planned garden picnic at Phillip Richardson’s home was something we were all looking forward to as it has been so long since we were able to meet face to face. Thankfully, the weather held up and we enjoyed a delightful afternoon. Our thanks to Phillip for making this possible.