ROTARY ROUND-UP: Successful year for Interact club

Durrington High School students demonstrated their commitment to the community and Rotarian values through their Rotary Interact Club.

Interact is for young people aged 12 to 18 who want to connect with others in their community or school.

Club members have fun while carrying out service projects and learning about the world.

Interact clubs organize service projects that benefits their community and other projects to encourage international understanding.

While Interact clubs receive support from teachers and guidance from individual Rotary clubs, they govern and support themselves.

Three students from the high school provided a presentation on the work they have done over the past year as members of the school’s very active Rotary Interact Club.

Zoe Topping, Carolyn Acevedo and Evie Redfern outlined the successful activities the club has undertaken to an audience of Rotarians and school staff.

The Interact club participated in the Durrington Festival, setting up a stalls for activities such as sponge throw, tombola, and guess the weight of the cake game, raising £150 for the Children of Sumatra charity to help change children’s lives for the better.

A Christmas disco organised by the Interact club for years 7 and 8 was a fantastic success.

As well as giving students a great evening, it raised at total of £782.50 for school funds.

The Interact club also initiated charity boxes to raise money for a variety of charities.

Another successful event was the organisation of an indoor car boot sale where club members worked hard to make a variety of items such as notebooks, pin cushions, bookmarks and cakes to sell at the event.

The club also participated in the seafront planting event, taking two beds with a seahorse motif in one and a sunflower motif in the other.

Future plans include a book sale, a further disco for years 7 and 8 and a recruitment drive to fill the places of students who have now moved on to further education.

Karen Jefford, community manager at the school, said: “Rotary involvement has made a tremendous difference to the school community as well as helping the students in their personal growth and development.”

Zoe, Carolyn and Edie all commented on how participation in the Rotary Interact Club had give them great satisfaction in being involved in the community as well as providing new experiences, new friends and helping to build their self confidence.

Sue Virgo, immediate past president of West Worthing Rotary Club, said: “There is little doubt that the students have worked really hard and have a programme of achievements of which they should be really proud.

“We certainly admire and congratulate them on their achievements and congratulate them on their professional presentation of their work.”

Details of Worthing’s three Rotary clubs are:

• Worthing Rotary Club meets Monday, 12.55pm, at the Chatsworth Hotel, in The Steyne, Worthing, 01903 209564.

• West Worthing Rotary Club meets Tuesday evening at Tudor Close, Ferring, 01903 501961.

• Worthing Steyne Rotary Club meets Monday evening at The Ardington Hotel, in Steyne Gardens, Worthing, 01903 234957.

---

Don’t miss out on all the latest breaking news where you live.

Here are four ways you can be sure you’ll be amongst the first to know what’s going on.

1) Make our website your homepage at www.worthingherald.co.uk/

2) Like our Facebook page at www.facebook.com/Worthing.news

3) Follow us on Twitter @Worthing_Herald

4) Register with us by clicking on ‘sign in’ (top right corner). You can then receive our daily newsletter AND add your point of view to stories that you read here.

And do share with your family and friends - so they don’t miss out!

The Worthing Herald - always the first with your local news.

Be part of it.