Rotarian and Assistant District Governor Joanne Landry shared with the club some highlights of her recent 10 day trip to the Philippines. Joanne was a member of the District 7780 Outreach Team along with PDG Dick Hall (Portland RC) and PP Carol Madsen (Bridgton-Lake RC). Despite a 30+ hour travel time and 120 degree temps, Joanne's trip was full of great experiences and she presented an overview of all the good work Rotary is doing in the Philippines. She commented on how wonderful the guest Rotarians were and how welcoming the people of the Philippines were to their team. Great Job Joanne representing the Saco Bay Rotary Club!

 

More info about the trip can be found on the district website:  https://rotary7780.org/stories/district-outreach-team-travels-to-the-philippines

 

 

Special Thanks to Amy Langelo, Senior Program Manager, Alzheimer's Association - Maine Chapter for speaking to our club on Thursday and providing us a presentation on Alzheimer's and Dementia Awareness. Lots of good information shared!!! September is the Alzheimer's Walk in Portland and everyone is invited to join team "NeverForget". If interested in walking, reach out to team captain, Rotarian Carmen Gawronski.

 

   

 

Despite another rainy weekend, a team of Saco Bay Rotarians put on their gloves and raincoats to help with a community beach cleanup project at Camp Ellis. The event was kicked off by Saco Parks and Rec Department Director Ryan Sommer and Saco Mayor Jodi MacPhail and volunteers from a few groups walked along the beach from Camp Ellis to Bayview picking up debris. It was nice to see that the beach was very clean to kick off the summer season. The Camp Ellis General Store provided fresh baked cookies for the event. Special thanks to Saco Bay Rotarians Phil & Lucie Hatch, Jen Sirois, Larry Littlefield, Carmen Gawronski and husband Bob, and Chris Gordon and his two daughters for sharing their time to help support this community project.

 

           

 

 

A team of Saco Bay Rotarians joined in a night of service on Friday, April 18th at the Bon Appetite Community Meal Program in Biddeford. The team helped with serving the meal, interacting with guests, and all the kitchen dishwashing tasks.  Special thanks to Rotarian Tony DeBarros for coordinating the monthly event! And thanks to Rotarians Mike Collard, Dan Cote, Bill Doran, Carmen Gawronski, Doc Hammond, Larry Littlefield, Curt Scammon, and Todd Rodriquez for their time and service!

 

  

Despite the cold rainy weather, hundred of walkers showed up to join in the 27th year of Mary's Walk to raise funds for the Maine Cancer Foundation. Several Rotarians from the Saco Bay Rotary Club assisted the Saco Police Department by helping with traffic enforcement at the closed cross-streets along the Main Street & Elm Street walking route. A great day of service for the club!

 

 

The Saco Bay Rotary Club Auction Extravaganza wrapped up its online auction on Thursday, April 10th with over 126 items sold!! The Live and Ticket Auction event is scheduled for Saturday, April 12th beginning at 5pm at the Biddeford Saco Elk's Club located at 68 Ocean Park Road in Saco. The Live event will feature over 25 additional items, a DJ will be playing your favorite tunes, appetizers served, and cash bar available.  Please come out and have some fun and support the Saco Bay Rotary Club.  We would like to thank all of this year's Sponsors and those that donated items for the auctions.

 

 

York County Manager Greg Zinser was the guest speaker at the April 3rd weekly meeting and shared the mission of the First County Foundation (www.yorkcountryfcf.org) and the $40+ million project which includes two state of the art facilitites under construction in Alfred. We look forward to seeing these completed facilities in the future in action as they help to address the substance use disorder crisis in our state and county and the need for advanced training facilities for our first responders.

 

  

On March 27, 2025 we welcomed our newest member, Todd Rodriquez, as he was inducted into the Saco Bay Rotary Club by President Dan Lettelier and his sponsor, Rotarian Dan Cote. We look forward to Todd's contributions to our growing club. Congrats Todd!

 

 

 

It's March Madness Time!! The Saco Bay Rotary Club has started a pool on CBSSports.com. Join in the fun! This pool will be a 50/50 fundraiser and the entry fee is $20 which includes TWO brackets per person. Payout will go to the top overall point leader. Download the CBSSports.com app on your phone or access via your computer. If you are interested in joining, please email us at cgawronski@aol.com and we will send you an online invite with the pool link to get you started. The entry fee can be paid via Venmo. SELECTION SUNDAY is March 16th at 6pm when the 68-team field will be announced and brackets will be available after selections completed. First tip off is March 18th.

 

Thanks for supporting the Saco Bay Rotary Club.

 

 

Addressing food insecurity is one of the core service pillars for the Saco Bay Rotary Club and a team of Rotarians volunteer at the Bon Appetite Community Meal Program in Biddeford the 3rd Friday of each month. We were happy to be able to donate $500 this year  to Bon Appetite. On average, 75 Bon Appetite guests are served each night (Monday-Friday). The Rotarians help out by serving the guests in the dining hall, assisting in the kitchen, and handling all the dishwashing duties. #ServiceAboveSelf