The Board of Directors voted to approve the officers for the next Rotary year, including new President Elect Jason Lang and Vice President Hannah Beth Hembree. See below for the full list of officers and Board of Directors for the next Rotary year.
This week at Rotary...
Salem Rotarian Dr. Randy Burba Shares His Work With the 1000 Smiles Dental Project
At the recent Salem Rotary Club meeting, Dr. Randall Burba, an accredited member of the American Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry, gave an inspiring presentation about his ongoing work with the 1000 Smiles Dental Project, the world’s largest humanitarian dental initiative.
Each year, Dr. Burba travels to underserved communities across Jamaica and other parts of the Caribbean—including St. Lucia, Turks and Caicos, and the Bahamas—to offer free dental care to thousands who would otherwise have little to no access. In places like Jamaica, dental care is extremely limited, with only two to three oral surgeons serving the island’s population year-round. Through the 1000 Smiles project, volunteer dentists like Dr. Burba help fill this critical gap.
This year’s mission took Dr. Burba and his team deep into the inland western region of Jamaica, where sugar cane is the dominant crop and poverty remains widespread. The need for dental care there is especially urgent, as high sugar consumption has led to widespread oral health issues. Additionally, with much of Jamaica’s economy tied to tourism, access to dental care plays an important role in employability: the best-paying jobs, particularly those in tourist-facing industries, often go to individuals with healthy smiles.
Dr. Burba spoke about the progress made at the rural clinic they worked in this year. Unlike in previous years, the facility now had flooring, walls, and electricity, making it a significant upgrade from the rudimentary conditions he had experienced before. The clinic primarily served people from a very poor community, where literacy rates at the schools and parishes they partnered with hover around 40%.
The 1000 Smiles Dental Project, founded in partnership with the nonprofit Great Shape! Inc., relies on the dedication of volunteers like Dr. Burba to not only provide emergency dental care, cleanings, and extractions but also to educate communities about long-term oral hygiene. Their mission goes beyond immediate relief; it empowers communities with the tools to maintain healthier lives.
Dr. Burba’s continued commitment to this cause is a powerful example of Rotary’s motto, “Service Above Self,” in action. His stories remind us of the lasting difference a few dedicated individuals can make around the world—one smile at a time.
2025-2026 Officers and Board of Directors
1. Ryan Guilmartin - President
2. Jason Lang – President Elect
3. Hannah Beth Hembree – Vice President
4. Carolyn Shapiro - Immediate Past President
5. Bill Henning - Treasurer
6. Secretary –
7. Robyn Burns
8. Tim Clarke
9. Leslie Levesque
10. Jane Stirgwolt
11. Dakota Russell
12. Matt Ingram
13. Marie Cardillo
14. Jason Consalvo
15. Tyler Hains
16. Claire Kallelis
CALENDAR WINNER!
Kane Thompson sold by Amanda Thompson
50:50 RAFFLE
Pot: $60
Players: Scouser Matt Calcutt and Gary Barrett
No Winners This Week!
VISITORS AND GUEST ROTARIANS
Birthday boy Tokala Close was in attendance this week. Randy brought a guest Angel from his practice.
ROTARY NEWS
RYLA Sponsorshsips
Why Your Support Matters
RYLA remains completely free for all students, ensuring that every student has equal access regardless of their financial situation. To maintain this commitment, we rely entirely on the generosity of Rotary clubs within our district and individuals like you who understand the program's value. But the cost for the staff and family advisors is an out-of-pocket expense. This is where we could use your help!
Your Donation in Action
Every contribution, no matter what size, makes a huge difference. Here's how your donation can directly support this year's program:
$25-50 Helps provide session materials like notebooks, art supplies, and team-building resources
$125 Sponsors a facilitator or volunteer for one day
$200 Funds lunch and supplies for a Family Leader training session (there are 6 of them leading up to the RYLA weekend!)
$300 Covers the cost of our camp nurse for the weekend
$375 Sponsors a family leader, advisor, or facilitator for the entire weekend
$700 Provides all session-related supplies (art products, role play props, s'mores materials, etc.)
$1,000 Funds t-shirts for all participants
The RYLA Impact
RYLA is more than just a weekend away. It's about building confidence, developing leadership skills, creating lasting friendships, and inspiring young people to become agents of positive change in their communities. I have personally witnessed breakthroughs in participants who had life transforming experiences during the weekend!
Your contribution, no matter the size, helps continue this legacy of leadership development for the next generation.
How to Donate
Scan the Venmo QR Code
Send a check to
Kathy Morris
Rockport Rotary Club
2A Jerden’s Lane
Rockport, MA 01966
Can't donate right now? You still have time.
Annual Fund Dollars Saving Ipswich River Watershed
We closed out the grant and wanted to give an update. Over two years, this grant reached over 7500 people via stakeholder trainings, outreach and social media and educated all regarding the need for water conservation as well as providing strategies for individuals and communities to reduce water use. We also developed the water conservation toolkit including creating a website to serve as a landing page for water conservation tools specific to the Ipswich River Watershed in Northeastern Massachusetts. In addition to compiling the material on one webpage, we also developed:
• The Recipe for Resiliency, a ten-step guide to enhanced water conservation for municipal water
• tabling materials to help people engage with the water conservation message at in-person events
• water use stats in each community that uses the Ipswich River Water that can be updated annually
• creation of social media posts highlighting the need for water conservation. These social media
posts were shared with towns to be posted on their social media accounts increasing viewership
• an ArcGIS survey to measure water usage and a dashboard to share the results of household water
use patterns
• personalized flyers for their top 100 water users in Wenham to educate them about their above-
average water usage and strategies to reduce water use in the summer
• And we tracked water use patterns via survey and local water supplier data to understand long-term
trends in community water use patterns.
Our reach was far beyond local, however. For a global grant through The Rotary Foundation, we needed an international sponsor. That sponsor was Ipswich East Rotary in Ipswich England. They visited us in the Fall of 2022 and had their own training session on water conservation. They have brought this message back to their own club and this grant will be featured across England and Ireland in a Rotary Foundation publication to emphasize the need for water conservation in those countries.
Thank you again for all of your support!!! We know a clean, safe and abundant water supply is society's most important resource. We still have a way to go but through our continued collaboration we can make the Ipswich River strong and viable for generations to come!
Jason Consalvo channeled his inner Tim Clark and encouraged us all to wear our Rotary pins to Rotary. He also asked us all to offer Kerri condolences for 14 years of marriage. The romantic in Jason will be treating his wife to a Little League practice for the anniversary.
Bruce Whear was exited to announce that his oldest son Ian oldest got married. Unfortunately or fortunately, he had to change a flight so he could attend
Bill Henning went to Peru with Thomas and encourages everyone to go. It's a beautiful place to visit
Tyler Hains went to Utah to visit family which was fun as always. His oldest son was in a play the week before as well. Tyler is grateful that his mother is fine after a fall where she suffered a concussion.
Gerrit Bradley did not have bird report. He did travel to Skidmore to see Willa over the weekend for senior day for the rowing team. It was a nice celebration for the senior class and Willa thanked her father for being the one to bring her to sporting events since childhood.
Club Announcements
Service Opportunities
"Get the Plants Out of My Yard"
4/30 1-4 pm prep work at the flower beds
5/1 1-4 pm moving the plants
Rinus wants our plants out of his yard ASAP. Vegetable planting season is coming up soon. The plan to prepare the new beds on Wednesday 4/30 then remove the plants from the Oosthoek household and replant them in the new beds on Thursday 5/1. Please let Bill Henning know ASAP if you can help out. A sign up sheet was passed around at Rotary.
LifeBridge
56 Margin Street
May 14 3:30 pm
Our next LifeBridge Dinner is May 14. More details to follow but there might not be as many volunteer spots as usual.
Fun and Fellowship
Dutch Drinks
Hotel Salem (The Roof or the Counter)
May 2 at 5 pm
The actual location of this Fun and Fellowship event will be determined by the weather. Hopefully it's nice and we can meet up at the Roof!
Installation Dinner
June 24
Location and Time To Be Announced
Boys and Girls Club
Joanne Scott announced that she will be retiring in the near future. Congratulations! There are a few events that she wanted to update the club on:
June 30th- Annual Golf Classic at the Ferncroft
September 10th- Champion for Kids Celebration at the Ledger
18 Washington Square
Salem, MA 01970 United States of America
NOTE: The fourth Tuesday of the month is an evening meeting, beginning at 5:15 p.m.
If you are interested in learning more about Salem Rotary, please email president@salemrotary.com.
"Get the Plants Out of My Yard"
LifeBridge
Dutch Drinks
Installation Dinner
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