The West Hartford Rotary Club purchased roughly $10,000 of supplies to support the West Hartford Town That Cares Fund and Food Pantry, with the assistance of the Conard Interact Rotary Club.

By Kayleigh Martin

On Wednesday April 23, members of the Conard Interact Rotary club took part in donating nearly $10,000 worth of goods to the West Hartford Food Pantry and delivering them to Town Hall.

The Conard Interact Rotary Club, led by club President Bella Egress, left Conard High School promptly at 10 a.m. to make their way to Costco. The Club was assisting members of the West Hartford and Hartford Rotary Clubs, alongside the West Hartford Police Department, in loading packaged goods such as toilet paper, cereal, among other essential products.

Club members eagerly assisted with this task, and created an assembly line to efficiently distribute the products to the vehicles. Once all of the products were loaded onto the vehicles, the Rotary Club members and Conard students received a police escort to the West Hartford Town Hall. At Town Hall, members of the Rotary Club and Conard students began transporting the products by cart into the Town Hall, where they will be stored and eventually distributed to people in need who utilize the West Hartford Food Pantry.

Bella Egress, president of the Conard Interact Rotary Club, remarked that she was inspired to join the club by her dad as, “he was the president [of the Rotary Club of West Hartford] for many years, and I just find it so interesting that their motto of ‘service above self’ is carried through the town of West Hartford.” Bella then went on to state that she “wanted to bring [the rotary club] to Conard to make sure that students were putting others above themselves,” in the same manner as the Rotary Club.

Jayme Kline, Conard junior and member of the Conard Interact Rotary Club, stated that she joined the group as she “wanted to give back to Conard” and thought that, “it would be really important to have community service that is accessible for all students, where you don’t have to go out of the school to find it.” This highlights the importance of this club as students can participate in fun activities with their peers, with the goal of benefitting their community.

Conard Principal Jocelyn Tamborello-Noble expressed her gratitude for the work of the Rotary Club. “A heartfelt thank you to Bella Egress (event organizer), Mr. Steve Bassi, Kyle Egress, Diane Barber, Eileen Rau, Coach Rob Cersosimo, members of the Conard Interact Rotary Club, the West Hartford Rotary, and all the students who assisted in transporting food and working alongside the Rotary Club,” she said. “Together, they contributed to one of the largest donations to the Town That Cares. Thank you to the West Hartford Police Department, especially our School Resource Officers for their support. We are incredibly proud of our Conard students for their dedication and community spirit. Their efforts are a powerful reflection of our Vision of the Graduate – demonstrating care for self and others and a deep commitment to serving the community.”

 

The Conard Interact Rotary Club provides a valuable opportunity for students that supports the greater West Hartford community.

 

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