image

It's a line from old Saturday Night Live skits, but it's also what a St. Paul Rotary International matching grant will bring to thirteen primary and secondary schools in Corriverton, Guyana. Guyana, formerly called British Guyana, is on the northeast coastline of South America.

In 2007, the Rotary Clubs of Saint Paul, Minnesota and Corriverton, Guyana received the welcome news that a project to provide new photocopiers to the schools has been approved. The nearly $50,000 project will be funded with a $13,710 donation from the Saint Paul Rotary Foundation, a contribution from the Corriverton Rotary Club and matching contributions from District 5960 and the Rotary International Foundation.

In past Rotary trips to Guyana, we learned that the schools do not have copiers, and this severely hampers teachers' ability to provide handouts for lessons and testing. Government funding is not adequate to provide the equipment. Now Corriverton schools will have brand new copiers which will be purchased and serviced in Guyana, putting needed materials into teachers' hands and providing equipment that schools will be able to maintain locally. This will increase capacity, lower costs and free up resources to apply to other needs within the schools. The project supports a key Rotary International objective of providing educational opportunities for the children of the world.

The Rotary Clubs of Saint Paul and Corriverton have had a strong relationship that has lasted over ten years now. Other projects in Guyana have included providing villages with clean water, school supplies, medical supplies and equipment. Through personal visits to Guyana, the Rotary Club of Saint Paul also provided dental services to remote jungle villages where the residents had no access to dental care. Through this partnership, men and women in Saint Paul, Minnesota and Corriverton, Guyana are proving that Rotarians do indeed make a difference!

Click below to view the two videos showing a presentation to the schools.

» Part 1
» Part 2