Peter Kessler on why local Rotary clubs arranged a day trip for Enfield pupils to visit a wildlife park

A red panda at Paradise Wildlife Park — Red pandas at Paradise Wildlife Park

The second Wednesday in June is a red-letter day in the Rotary calendar. On or around that day, an event takes place called ‘Kids Out’ when Rotary clubs up and down the country organise day trips for local disadvantaged children, usually to the seaside, a theme park, or to some local attraction.

The Rotary Club of Edmonton is no exception, and on 13^th June this year we descended on Paradise Wildlife Park in Broxbourne, along with over 280 children from Durants, Russet House and West Lea schools in Enfield, accompanied by teachers and carers. Also at the park were our friends from the Rotary clubs of Enfield Chase and Bush Hill Park, who were hosting children from Waverley and Oaktree schools respectively.

The day was a great success in spite of delayed arrivals caused by traffic problems. The weather was perfect, and judging by the excited chatter and the happy smiling faces, the kids were clearly having a whale of a time. For us in Rotary, seeing the children enjoying themselves makes the effort involved in making it all happen totally worthwhile. After a packed lunch in a shady picnic area, it was back to the coaches for the return to school in time for the end of the school day.

Our annual Kids Out trip to Paradise Wildlife Park is a great example of how Rotary operates, providing funding or manpower for projects to assist other charities and good causes. Apart from the packed lunches, all the costs are borne by Rotary, financed out of our fundraising activities throughout the year, with additional funds from the Kids Out charity, with which Rotary has strong connections.

The Kids Out charity runs another project at Christmas, to deliver a box of brand new toys and games to children who have been rehoused due to domestic violence. All the toys are donated, and much of the work involved in sorting out the toys, packing them, and loading them onto a lorry for distribution is carried out by volunteers. This is an activity that members of Edmonton Rotary Club regularly take part in.

Our club welcomes volunteers too. You don’t need to be a Rotary member to get involved, have fun and make a difference. Do contact us if you can spare a couple of hours of your time to help us with one of our projects or fundraising events.

For more information about Edmonton Rotary Club and to get involved:
Email [email protected]
Facebook facebook.com/TheRotaryClubOfEdmontonUk
Visit edmontonrotary.org.uk

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