São Paulo welcomes Rotary

South America’s largest city, São Paulo, Brazil, is playing host to Rotary’s largest event of the year, the annual convention. More than 14,000 Rotary members from over 100 countries have come together to celebrate service, exchange ideas, and relax among friends at unforgettable concerts and social events.

• See coverage from the convention
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• Learn more about the convention
• It’s not too early to register for Seoul in 2016

   The six dentists all practice in Richardson, and according to clinic founders Doug Crosby and Mark Denny, they are always among the first to volunteer for shifts at the clinic. Denny also said that occasionally there are procedures that can't be handled in the clinic, so the doctors take the patients back to their offices for treatment. 

   Richardson East Rotary recognized the dentists with the Paul Harris Award, one of Rotary International's highest recognitions. 

   Crosby told the gathering that in its 5.5 year existence, the clinic has had more than 40 dentists do volunteer work. The clinic is housed at the NETWORK of Community Ministries in Richardson and serves students in the Richardson ISD who are uninsured and not eligible for government-sponsored free dental treatment.

   A few statistics from the clinic: 573 patients have been treated, 379 teeth pulled, 470 teeth filled, 97 root canals have been performed, 16 orthodontic procedures have been handled and 45 crowns have been placed.

U.S. Rotary members in Maine wanted to improve schools in Bikaner, India. At first, they simply donated school desks. But working with local Rotary members, they created a global grant project to meet the community’s most urgent needs: better training for teachers and giving unschooled children a chance at education.

• Read how they did it
• Find out how to apply for a global grant
• Browse more education projects on Rotary Showcase
• Support a classroom project in Nigeria

Richardson East Rotary Club provides funding for Girls Toilet Construction in India. The pictures show the construction in progress at Tiruvarur, one of the 12 toilet blocks.