On September 10, 2026, three Guelph Rotary Clubs joined forces once again to host another successful Community Connections meeting with over 50 participants in attendance. This free event invites charities and non-profits to gather for a couple of hours to learn what other agencies are working on in the community, to share ideas and to encourage collaboration. The event is offered twice a year, in April and September. It is a great example of Rotary providing Service Above Self to our local agencies.
Three Rotarians organize and host this event:
- Anne Day from the Rotary Club of Guelph Trillium
- Terrie Jarvis from the Rotary Club of Guelph
- Ann Caine from the Rotary Club of Guelph South
This Community Connection event is held at the Salvation Army Citadel on Gordon Street in their beautiful meeting space. It's a perfect location with easy access, a kitchen for making tea/coffee, and an excellent sound system.
The meeting is intentionally “Rotary lite” because it is entirely designed for the benefit of the agencies in attendance but it is clear that Rotary is hosting the event.
Each event is in three parts. First there is “Pass the Mic” with each organization having literally one minute to introduce themselves. In the middle part of the meeting, two or three pre-arranged speakers provide short (5 minute) presentations about a valuable resource they can provide to agencies. The final part of the meeting is “Mix and Mingle”. With tea, coffee and cookies provided on the side, participants can reach out to any other participant or speaker that caught their attention in the earlier parts. The loud chatter with folks moving about the room and sharing their contact details is exactly what the Rotary hosts hope for! There is no formal closing ceremony - participants can leave or stay as they wish, and some were still engaging with each other at the 3 hour mark as the hosts were literally packing up!
Feedback from a previous event was that the 2-hour meeting should be a little longer. (Who ever asks for LONGER meetings?!) Therefore, our most recent event in September was scheduled for 2.5 hours.
All in all, the three Rotary hosts (and best of friends) are deeply gratified that these meetings are so popular and well-attended, and thrilled that it is also a demonstration of how Rotary clubs can be stronger when working together.