AWESOME! That was the word heard most often on the night of March 2 at Stourbridge Primary School, where some 150 youngsters, grades K through 5th, enjoyed  a circus night put on by Honesdale High School's Interact club. 

The Interact members, about 30 on site, plus adult Rotary volunteers and parents, dressed in circus costumes-- clowns, trapeze artists, ringleaders, lions, bears, big dogs-- and manned close to 20 stations, such as bouncy houses, face painting, cupcake decorating, "Knockout," circus yoga, stacker tables, sno-cone and cotton candy stations, "parachutes" and more.  

Parents dropped off their youngsters at 6pm and picked them up at 9pm. Co-organizer Kay Reynolds, Honesdale Rotary secretary and Interact advisor, said the "preliminary tally is about $2,000, but we have a few outstanding donations and costs."  Monies raised go towards the club's "Little Buddy" program (mentoring younger students) and End Polio Now, a Rotary International project to eradicate polio from the globe, among other projects. To see more photos, especially from the dress-up and take-home a print station, visit Honesdale Rotary on Facebook. 

 (Honesdale, January 3, 2012)…Ho ho ho—the new year is starting off a bit brighter for Friendship House in Honesdale. Members of the Honesdale Rotary dropped off a $500 check plus close to a dozen boxes of non-perishable foods such as boxes of cereal and the ever-popular “mac’n’ cheese,” toys and magazines from Highlights. Friendship House, a non-profit statewide organization, provides an all-day program for at-risk children ages two-and-a-half to school-age. Services include breakfast, lunch, snacks and educational, solution-based interventions, individual/group therapy and recreational play. The Honesdale group serves about 30 children on a daily basis. “We need so much, and the Honesdale Rotary saw that and responded,” said Lori Burian, “we can’t thank them enough. It is encouraging to know that members of our community recognize and support our efforts.”  The Honesdale Rotary club presented another $500 check in June to help fund breakfast at the Early Childhood Program on Delaware Street. Pictured left to right: Rotarians Al Kobe and Maureen Beilman; Lori Burian, Friendship House; Rotarians Kay Reynolds and Sylvia Kingston. The Honesdale Rotary welcomes new members. The club meets at Cordaro’s Restaurant, Honesdale, every Tuesday at 12noon.