Vocational Service Awards

The vocational awards given to two people on the 21st March 2014 .Although the attendance was a little poor at the start,it got slightly better by the end of the programme.
One of the awardee was none other than Arumugam,the boatman by profession in Irukkam village,who has been a great help in locating the beneficiaries in and around Gumnipoondi area and linking RCCK to do our helping hand projects. last 6 years he has been involved with our club and helping hands.
The second awardee was  the head constable-traffic ,Adyar  ,who has been in police service for 22 years and  doing service in Adyar area for the last 9 years. Shivaraman ,who is also known as the Dancing constable in this area, for his untiring effort to regulate the traffic in thirvanmiyur area with fluid movements and a smile on his face in-spite of the scorching heat .
Both the awardees were thrilled with the recognition given to them and spoke very well ,about their experiences to  all of us present there.

Vasanthi Ananth

Hearing Aids - ROTI project with RC of Galesburg, Illinois supported by TRF.

This project which is supported by ROTI and is a MG with RC of Galesburg, Illinois has seen many people hearing for the first time. Giving great relief to elders and parents and children.

A camp was conducted in a village close to Chennai to identify those with hearing impairment, hearing aids were distributed by DG AP Kanna on March 7th.

It was heartening to note that this project has been instrumental in changing the lives of so many and in so many different ways. One would think how an hearing aid would benefit the elderly BUT it does. An elderly lady said that she would now be able to walk on the roads peacefully as she could hear the traffic and more over she would be able to enter into conversations with her friends as she could hear and then respond. She would no more be set apart because of hearing difficulties.

Should the hearing aids go to those who are young? to those who will benefit the most? Should we disregard the elderly who are nearing their end? or those who are too ill to move around? At this distribution function an elderly man was given a hearing aid and he later told me that he would no longer have to avoid his friends, neighbours and nor would they avoid him and he would now be able to converse with them. I doubt if we will ever realise the pain of the hearing impaired at whatever age.

So much more needs to be done...

Uttarakhand Shelters

In November Rtn. Hari Ratan made a trip to the village of Khumera Mala to hand over the shelters that were built for those affected by the floods.

He went with Rtn. Dr Nischal Pandey who had made all arrangements for the trip and who was instrumental in the conception and success of the project.

The shelters are located on the top of a hill and overlooking the Kedarnath mountain range in the Himalayas.

Rtn. Dr. Nischal Pandey with beneficiary Nanda Devi.

Rtn. Hari Ratan with the beneficiary Nanda Devi. In may of 2013 she lost her husband in a landslide and in June her house was swept away in the floods.

Relief to residents of the Village of Irukkum in Pulicat Lake.

The Club was approached by the residents of the island seeking help in the form of food. The lack of opportunities due to unseasonal rains resulting in their crops being damaged left many residents of the island in difficulties.

The RC Chennai Kilpauk put together Rice, Dhal and Oil for 400 families on the island and distributed them.

This was a joint project of the RC of Madas, RYA Metro and RC Chennai Kilpauk.

The island is about 60 Kms from the city of Chennai and as a reason of it being inside the Bird Sanctuary and also due to its not so easy accessability the island has seen little development in terms of infra structure, there is no school, medical support on the island.