Easter Seals
Children & Youth Committee at Rotary Club of Guelph
EASTER SEALS
The Easter Seals Society began in Guelph in 1947, with the Rotary Club of Guelph as its main fundraising source and volunteer arm. All members were involved in driving children to appointments with a roster and dates assigned annually.
With respect to fundraising, for many years the Children’s budget was the club’s largest - approaching $50,000 annually. Rotarians spent hours stuffing envelopes for the community campaign, in addition to other fundraisers such as Hot Cross Bun Sales, and various Tag Days. ‘Easter in the Park’, conceived by Rotarian John Wheatly, became an early Spring tradition until it was “snowed out” one year, which spawned Reny Pietrobon’s ‘Easter in the Mall’ theme. Children looked for Easter eggs hidden “in plain sight” outside the mall stores, and also enjoyed lining up to visit the ”Easter Bunny”. Support of local children with disabilities continued under the auspices of the Children’s Committee and Easter Seals until 2007, when another transition occurred with the establishment of KidsAbility in Guelph.
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