A Message from the Club President

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It is my distinct pleasure to serve as the 91st President of the Lawrence Rotary Club and I welcome you to learn more about our fine club.

We meet for lunch every Thursday at 12:00 noon at the Greater Lawrence Vocational School on River Road in Andover. The next time you’re near the school, please stop in and join us for lunch.

The Rotary message of “Service Before Self” has inspired hundreds of thousands of Rotarians to help make the world a better place. Since 1920, the Lawrence Rotary has been making a difference in the lives of people throughout the Merrimack Valley.

Among our achievements over the past 10 years:

1.   We have donated over $150,000 to local charities through our Community Service Committee – with donations to organizations like the Lawrence Boys and Girls Club, Lazarus House, Adelante, The Essex Art Center, the YMCA, Fidelity House and over 30 other local non-profits.

2.   Our Christmas “bell ringers” raised over $60,000 for the Salvation Army

3.   We sponsor the Guilmette School in Lawrence, where over 20 Rotarians adopt a 1st through 4th grade homeroom and read to the students on a regular basis

4.   Our International projects have helped leverage over $25,000 in aid to remote villages in the Dominican Republic and delivered fresh drinking water and better sanitation

5.   Our annual Scholarship Committee has donated over $100,000 in scholarships to deserving youth.

Beyond the dollars – our impact can be felt in other tangible ways. Our District has run a Rotary Softball League since 1955 – and our Lawrence team is the defending District-wide Champion, surviving  challenges from our fellow clubs in Danvers, Salem-Marblehead, Woburn, Saugus, Wenham-Hamilton-Ipswich and Peabody.

This year we also sponsored the 2nd Annual “Heroes of Lawrence” Chili Cookoff and Music Festival adding another $10,000 for our fundraising efforts, and the 11th annual Lawrence Teacher of the Year banquet to honor every teacher in the City of Lawrence.

Many Rotarians cite fellowship as a reason they enjoy being Rotarians, and I think there is a lot of truth to that. It’s an old-fashioned word that aptly describes the atmosphere when we meet on Thursdays for lunch. Our club is a great mix of young and young-at-heart people who share their time and ideas each week.

I invite you to join us for lunch and fellowship.

Warm regards,

Mark E. Engelberg

President, 2009-2010