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Events and News
Thursday, Feb. 13th – Lunch Speakers: Elizabeth Kumar and Earnst Ilang-Ilang II of ECNV
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Elizabeth Kumar and Earnst Ilang-Ilang II will speak about the ENDependence Center of Northern Virginia, a community resource and advocacy center run by and for persons with disabilities. ECNV’s mission is to END dependence by empowering people with disabilities to live independently.
Elizabeth Kumar is the Communications Manager at the ENDependence Center of Northern Virginia
 where she does website development, publications, event planning, fundraising and development. She also mentors others with disabilities. Elizabeth graduated from UMBC Baltimore County in 2000 with a bachelor’s degree in Phycology and a certificate in Elementary Education. She was a classroom teacher for Howard County Public Schools until 2004. Elizabeth started her master’s degree at Johns Hopkins University School of Business and Education and finished her degree at Walden University in 2008 after an illness that left her a paraplegic. Before joining ECNV, Elizabeth was a teacher at Kingsbury Day School for students with learning disabilities. Earnst Ilang-Ilang II is a former U.S. Navy sailor, who was honorably discharged after being diagnosed with Trigeminal Neuralgia – a painful nerve disorder. He then used his G.I. Bill to obtain a BS in Sociology at Virginia Tech, graduating with honors. Afterwards, he continued his education in Radford University, where he obtained his Masters in Social Work. He was President of his classes for both undergraduate and graduate schools. He was awarded the prestigious, “Who’s Who Among American Colleges and Universities” in 2014. After graduating, he pursued a career in Mental Health, where he practiced for five years within the field as an intern, clinician, and supervisor. He received his Social Work Licensure for the District of Columbia on January 2020. Using his knowledge of disabilities and mental health issues, Earnst aspires to provide hope and skills necessary for clients at ECNV. |
Sunday, April 5th -- Blood Drive at Rock Spring UCC Church
INOVA Bloodmobile at Rock Springs UCC co-sponsored by Rock Springs UCC and Arlington Rotary Club. 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Rotarians are asked to 1. Sign up to donate. 2. Urge friends, relatives, business associates to sign up and 3. Distribute posters when they are provided.
Thursday, April 23rd -- Scholarships Awards Banquet at Mala Tang Restaurant (Arlington)
The winners of the 2020 Arlington Rotary Scholarship and the 2020 Challenge Stipend will be announced on Thursday April 23rd at 6PM. Meet the scholars at Mala Tang Restaurant, 3434 Washington Boulevard (Virginia Square Metro). Stay tuned for more info.
Upcoming Speakers
February 13 - Elizabeth Kumar and Earnst Ilang-Ilang II of ENDependence Center of Northern Virginia
February 20 – Tina Leone, CEO, and Samantha Baker, Director of Operations, Ballston Business Improvement District
February 27 – Richard Dooley, Arlington County Energy Coordinator
March 5 – Lisa Bellamy, Classification Talk
March 12 – Nancy Silcox, The first civil rights sit-in, at the Alexandria Library in 1939.
March 19 - Odile Prevot-Mussat, Describing Serge Betsen Academy, a charitable organization based in West Africa
March 26 – David Povlitz, Arlington Fire Chief
April 2 – Bob Carolla, Classification Talk
* "Classification Talks" are an opportunity for new members to tell the club about their personal background, profession ("classification") and experience.
Service Above Self
January 20th, A Successful MLK Day of Service
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For the second year in a row, Arlington Rotary Club sponsored a no-sew fleece blanket assembly project during Volunteer Arlington's Martin Luther King Jr. Volunteer Day. Over one hundred volunteers assembled 200 fleece blankets! After Raquel Neumann described what the Rotary Club does and Chelsi Dildine described how to put the blankets together, the volunteers spent the next two hours assembling the blankets. The blankets were donated to Arlington Housing Corporation (https://www.ahcinc.org/), an affordable housing company that gave the blankets to kids in their housing developments and to A-SPAN, an NGO committed to ending homelessness in Arlington, who gave the blankets to their clients. |
Click here for more photos.
October 17th was World Polio Day (At ARC)
We celebrated the work done to rid the world of polio by (a) making donations and (b) signing a district-wide poster. To contribute to the finish, Arlington Rotary will send a check to TRF on behalf of its members.
(Poster, club members and guests pictured below.)
Packing Beans for AFAC
On September 30th, Rotarians (and three future Rotarians) were at Arlington Food Assistance Center (AFAC) packing beans for distribution. (AFAC buys in bulk; we package.)
Backpacks for Students—Delivered!
We have met our goal of 20 backpacks, filled with school supplies. Special thanks to David Sutfin who personally handled all – yes, all – the logistics. Julie Booth, APAH Volunteer Program Manager joined us at our last meeting, and departed with the well-stuffed backpacks.
Empowering Enrichment for Arlington Schools
Arlington Rotary Club provided $5,000 in scholarships for Key Elementary School students
and Oakridge Elementary school students for the 2018-2019 school year. The scholarships were used to pay students' tuition for Empowering Enrichment, an after-school program that provides students with learning opportunities on a wide range of subjects, including math, science, dance, slight of hand, and more. The goal: Assist students who otherwise would not have been financially able to participate in these enriching programs to share these opportunities with their fellow students. Validated comments below:
and Oakridge Elementary school students for the 2018-2019 school year. The scholarships were used to pay students' tuition for Empowering Enrichment, an after-school program that provides students with learning opportunities on a wide range of subjects, including math, science, dance, slight of hand, and more. The goal: Assist students who otherwise would not have been financially able to participate in these enriching programs to share these opportunities with their fellow students. Validated comments below:Dear Rotary,
Many of our students have benefitted from the Rotary scholarships your group has generously provided over the years. The little girl in kindergarten, who was so obsessed with ballet that she wore skirts everyday and called them tutus, is the 4th grader who still loves dance classes. The shy, new student who came last year is an outgoing artist in the sketching class. The student who told me that she loves sewing and weaving because she learned it from her grandmother, is continuing to grow her skills in the sewing class. Thanks so much for all you do,
-- Key Elementary Teacher
I cannot express how grateful I feel as a teacher that I’m able to offer scholarship enrichment opportunities to our students. You have been such an integral part of their development and growth outside of the normal school day. The recipients are those who don’t have access to Legos or technology at home, so now they’re able to utilize these resources to build their creative and analytical minds. On a personal level, they are so excited to take these classes. Second graders often need reminders to be responsible for their actions, but my students are fully aware of their schedules. They actually remind me and say, “Today I’m going to take the Minecraft class!” sharing their enthusiasm for all who are willing to listen. So, it is with extreme humility and gratitude that I say, “THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU!”
-- Key Elementary Teacher
-- Key Elementary Teacher
Many of our students have benefitted from the Rotary scholarships your group has generously provided over the years. The little girl in kindergarten, who was so obsessed with ballet that she wore skirts everyday and called them tutus, is the 4th grader who still loves dance classes. The shy, new student who came last year is an outgoing artist in the sketching class. The student who told me that she loves sewing and weaving because she learned it from her grandmother, is continuing to grow her skills in the sewing class. Thanks so much for all you do,
-- Key Elementary Teacher
“It is very fun to learn new things that you don’t know. We learned about codes that will control computers and tell them what to do.”
-- Key Elementary Student and Scholarship recipient
-- Key Elementary Student and Scholarship recipient
“I love dancing with Ms. Shona!! Even if you get the steps mixed up, she will always help you get it right. She really makes sure everyone is comfortable and confident!!”
-- Oakridge Elementary Student and Scholarship recipientWhen Rotary Club donates to enrichment programs members are funding independence, joy, mentoring, friendships and learning. These scholarships make it possible for a kid to pick her own class, explore what she wants to explore. The support the 2nd grade boy in his magic class receives is invisible to him and to others. They just get a chance to be regular kids instead of recipients of aid, and experience what it’s like to have their own agency and choices. This is a basic human need as children become the adults they are destined to be. Experiences like Enrichment may seem small but they set these young people up for success in life and help them with confidence. And, exploring cooking, yoga, dancing or chess or magic is fun and also a way to learn and interact with interesting adults who can mentor and engage with them in smaller groups.
-- Jenny Sammis, Oakridge Elementary School PTA President, 2018
-- Jenny Sammis, Oakridge Elementary School PTA President, 2018
I have had the pleasure of teaching dance to Empowering Enrichment Rotary Club Scholarship students at both Key and Oakridge Elementary. The Oakridge scholarship student had already been given a PTA scholarship in years past, which meant she was not eligible to take my class through this means again. The Rotary scholarship allowed the student to do her favorite thing - dance! She served as a leader in the class by helping to lead warm ups and by taking a front row spot in the performance dance. I know that her participation in the class boosted her confidence and gave her a real sense of pride in her hard work. At Key, I had multiple scholarship recipients in my dance class. Without the Rotary scholarships I believe we would have been under enrolled, which would have led to the class being cancelled. So, from that perspective the Rotary scholarships, directly and indirectly, helped all 13 students participate in an active, creative arts activity. We had a great group of students who really bonded. They learned a dance using flags as props. We decorated these flags to represent our own personalities and then waved them proudly as we danced. The dancers showed so much enthusiasm and pride for their final performance dance.
-- Shona Colglazier, Urban Kangaroo Owner
