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Welcome to Rotary Club of Bastrop County

Are you a person who wants to make positive changes in your community and the world? Our club members are dedicated people who share a passion for community service and friendship. Our Club goals include being relevant, supportive members of our community. We meet Tuesdays from noon to 1PM at the The 602 Brewing Company, 919 Main Street, Bastrop,TX, 78602 . Come Join Us!

Bastrop Rotary & Paul Harris

Our Rotary Foundation is the fuel that helps Rotarians continue to do good works. Founded in 1917 when RI President Arch Klumph proposed an endowment “for the purpose of doing good in the world.” From an initial donation of $26.50 from the Kansas City Club, Rotary International’s charitable foundation has spent more than $4 billion on “doing good” in the 100 years since. The Foundation has a Platinum ranking with GuideStar.

Contributions to the Foundation support activities around the world through the World Fund (47.5%), and provide support for Districts and local Clubs through the District Designated Fund (47.5%). Only 5% of donations are designated for Foundation operations.

RI developed a recognition award structure to honor Rotarians and Rotary Clubs contributing to the Annual Fund of the Foundation, which includes becoming a Paul Harris Fellow (named after Rotary’s founder), and several other levels of recognition. Our Club recently recognized members who have achieved a new level in the giving structure:

Steve Schroeder and Les deGraffenried became Paul Harris Fellows. Joe Grady Tuck and Adam Straznicky were honored for attaining the Paul Harris Fellow + One level. Michal Hubbard has attained the PHF + Six level. Karen Trevino was congratulated for becoming a Bequest Society Level 1 member.

Our Club can currently boast six Paul Harris Fellows, four PHF + One, one each of PHF + Four & PHF + Five, two PHF +Six, two PHF + Eight, three Benefactors, one Major Donor, and two Bequest Society members.

Through the lifetime of our Club, our members have donated more than $200,000 to the Foundation.

Creating Lasting Impact Through Clean Water

PROJECT TUMAINI – PROJECT HOPE

Creating Lasting Impact through Clean Water

Every morning before school begins, an eight-year-old girl walks to a muddy pond carrying a bucket.

The same water she collects is shared with livestock. It is the only water she has available for drinking.

Tomorrow morning, she’ll make the same walk.

Unless we change her story.

That is why DG Jeff selected Project Tumaini to unite District 5870 in Creating Lasting Impact through clean water.

Tumaini (Too-my-ee-nee) is the Swahili word for Hope. Through the installation of WaterPoint Systems, Project Tumaini aims to bring hope and clean water to up to 20 schools in Tanzania’s Mkalama District.

Your Foundation Giving Made This Possible – Project Tumaini is proof that The Rotary Foundation changes lives.

Three years ago, District 5870 Rotarians invested in The Rotary Foundation’s Annual Fund. This year, a portion of those gifts returned as District Designated Funds (DDF), allowing District 5870 to commit $25,000 to Project Tumaini.

If you supported The Rotary Foundation three years ago, you already have a personal part in bringing clean water to children in Tanzania. The foundation gifts we made yesterday are changing lives today. The Foundation gift we make today will change lives tomorrow.

Your Club can become a Project Tumaini Partner

The District’s $25,000 commitment provides the foundation, but the opportunity is much bigger. We are inviting District 5870 clubs to become Project Tumaini partners and help to write the next chapter of this story.

Clubs may participate at one of four partnership levels:

$5,000 – Partnership Champion (Purchases a complete WaterPoint System)
$2,500 – Impact Leader
$1,000 – Impact Partner
$500 – Impact Sponsor

Experience the Impact

DG Jeff and PDG Shannon plan on leading a District 5870 service trip to Tanzania when Rotarians will install WaterPoint Systems, meet the students whose lives are being changed, and witness Rotary’s impact firsthand.

Learn More (Scan the QR code)

Watch the Project Tumaini video to learn more about the project and discover how your club can become a Project Tumaini partner.

Together, we are creating lasting impact through clean water, one school at a time.

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Recognizing exemplary Rotary service

Rotary’s Service Above Self Award honors Rotary and Rotaract members who make a significant impact through volunteering their time and talents. Ask your district governor to nominate someone who has demonstrated exemplary service with this online nomination form.

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SEPTEMBER 30 DEADLINE !!

Fellow Rotarians:

The Honor Choir happily accepted an invitation to be among the dozen or so North American choirs who will participate in Jubilate Mozart, a major choral festival in Salzburg, Austria, happening June 22-27, 2027.

An adjunct event will be the Choir’s undertaking of a child welfare service project, facilitated by one of the three Rotary clubs in Salzburg.

For the first time in the Choir’s 17-year history, they are inviting friends of the Choir to go along for the fun, enrichment, and significance of a collaboration with a European Rotary club!

The all-inclusive fee per person (including air fare, lodging, two meals each day, entry fees, ground transportation, etc.) is $4700.

For more information, contact Rotarian Bill Owens and Honor Choir Director

https://www.thehonorchoir.org/

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Remembering Dolly Parton

Entertainer and philanthropist Dolly Parton, a speaker at the 2010 Rotary Convention in Montreal, Canada, died 25 August. Parton discusses the power of reading in this Q&A from the March 2010 issue of Rotary magazine.

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Clean Water for La & Her Children

La is a mother of three living in Nasano Village in Savannakhet Province, Laos.

For years, La’s family drank untreated water from a well. The water sometimes had an unpleasant smell, but they had little choice but to drink it. Stomach aches, diarrhea, and other stomach problems were so common that the family thought they were simply a normal part of life.

Today, that has changed. La collects water and puts it through her family’s TerraClear filter. The water comes out beautifully clear, and her family now has clean drinking water right in their own home.

La and her family have been surprised and deeply grateful that since they began using the filter, their stomach problems have greatly decreased.

For a mother of three, clean water means more than convenience. It means better health and peace of mind knowing that the water her children drink each day is clean and safe.

$75 provides a filter to a rural family,

transforming their lives

Visit the website anytime to give:

Click to DONATE on the TerraClear website.

A Colorado Expedition

After witnessing a granddaughter's beautiful wedding in Denver at the end of July, Rotarian Michal spent the next 10 days exploring Colorado without snow. Except for some wa-a-ay high white stuff in Rocky Mountain National Park, there was no snow. Weather was generally as hot as an un-greased griddle, and there was no rain. A lot of haze from wildfire smoke…

Despite the lack of cool mountain air, Michal was undaunted. She managed to enjoy the following locations: Rocky Mountain NP, Black Canyon of the Gunnison NP (both rims), Colorado National Monument, a train ride from Durango to Silverton, and a couple of days at Mesa Verde.

There were many "signs" of local Rotary Clubs, but none were on the itinerary. Lots of memories, photos & videos, just three of which are attached:

Project Fairs Build Relationships

Project fairs have long been part of Rotary’s international service ecosystem, helping members build friendships, establish trust, and explore service opportunities across borders. These regional events, organized by Rotary districts, help members explore opportunities to collaborate on service projects, often through presentations by local clubs sharing community‑identified priorities and project ideas. Read more about project fairs on the Rotary Service in Action blog.

Boating in Europe!

Peace Fellows build bridges

In a rural community in Bolivia, conversations about water are also conversations about peace. Rotary Peace Fellow Maria Antonia Perez traveled to Bolivia in April as part of a delegation from United4Change Center, a nonprofit focused on empowering women and communities. Perez and other Peace Fellows worked with local Rotary clubs to promote peace-building, leadership, and community empowerment. Perez saw firsthand how collaboration and shared purpose come to life through the global Rotary Peace Fellowship network.