Media Contact: Barbara Fornasiero, EAFocus Communications, 248.260.8466, barbara@eafocus.com; Sara Przybylski, EAFocus Communications, 248.877.9200, sara@eafocus.com
Rochester, Mich.—Aug. 15, 2014 —Rochester Rotary, a member club of Rotary International, a worldwide organization of business and professional leaders that provides humanitarian service and encourages high ethical standards in all vocations, is continuing to update and enhance Rotary Gateway Park in downtown Rochester. The park was initially developed in 1997 by the Rochester Rotary Club and continues to be upgraded through the volunteer efforts of club members and funding from the purchase of memorial bricks.
“Rochester Rotary is honored to provide the community a beautiful garden gateway to and from downtown Rochester,” Rhonda Panczyk, Rochester Rotary Club president said. “Purchasing engraved bricks is a unique way for community members to support Rotary Gateway Park while honoring or memorializing a friend or family member with ties to the Rochester community.”
The monies raised through the bricks provide sustainable funding for the maintenance of the park. Bricks are available in 8”x8” for $325, 4”x8” (two lines of lettering) for $100 or 4”x8” (three lines of lettering) for $150. There is a limit of 13 letters per line and multiple orders can be grouped together and will be installed according to the purchaser’s instructions as space permits. Orders received between now and September will be installed in the fall; orders received from October through March will be installed in late spring 2015.
Other recent enhancements made to Rotary Gateway Park include the donation of statues from Rotarians and local community members. Rotarian Marty McClure and his brother Mike McClure donated a statue of Sandhill cranes to Rotary Park in 2013 in honor of their parents, who lived in Rochester. The statue is located in the waterfall/pond within the park.
The Sandhill crane is the third statue donated to the park. It joins the statue of a small boy situated at the top of the waterfall, donated by the Richard Moore family in memory of their son Andy; it is the first bronze statue to be added to the park. In 2009, Bill Fox donated the bronze fox statue in the Hosta garden in memory of his son, Mike.
To purchase a brick, send checks payable to Gateway Walkway Fund to P.O. Box 80431, Rochester 48308. For questions, please contact Rochester Rotarian Bill Ebinger at 248.628.3620.
About Rochester Rotary
Celebrating 60 years as a club in 2014, Rochester Rotary is one of 34,000 member clubs of Rotary International, which has more than 1.2 million members and raises and disburses funds for charitable, educational and scientific purposes. Monies are raised through social events and service projects organized by the club, ‘fines’ collected at Rochester Rotary meetings and gifts offered to the club through members and supporters.
The club welcomes new members who live or work in Rochester, Rochester Hills or Oakland Township. For membership information, contact Jeff Whitbey at Jeff@whitbey.net. Rochester Rotary meets each Tuesday at noon at the River Crest Banquet Hall on Avon Road and Livernois in Rochester Hills. Learn more at http://www.rochesterrotaryclub.org/.
About Rotary International
Rotary’s main objective is service — in the community, in the workplace, and around the globe. The 1.2 million Rotarians who hail from Rotary clubs in nearly every country in the world share a dedication to the ideal of Service Above Self. Rotary clubs are open to people of all cultures and ethnicities and are not affiliated with any political or religious organizations. Learn more at http://www.rotary.org/en/Pages/ridefault.aspx.
