On May 1, 2026, the guest speaker at our club was Justine Richardson, Director of the 400-acre Arboretum at the University of Guelph. Justine provided an informative update on how this Guelph Treasure continues to grow, improve and delight all who visit. Part of its rich history includes the “Rotary Grove” described below, and the invitation for Rotarians to consider helping with its restoration. Watch this short VIDEO about our amazing Arboretum, and see the WEBSITE here.  

Three Rotary Clubs in our Guelph-Wellington Cluster (Guelph Trillium, Guelph, and Guelph South) worked together to host a special meeting of non-profit agencies in Guelph, which was attended by 48 organizations, on April 23, 2026. There was a real buzz in the room as they networked and shared their main needs. The goal was to foster connection and collaboration. The meeting was a great success and a great example of  how we can Unite For Good.

Rotary loves supporting literacy, especially for children, and our club is proud to have a Reading Buddy program at a local elementary school where some of our members spend one-on-one time each week with a child to read together, chat and provide encouragement. Our volunteers love it, and so do the students. Now we are considering a new challenge: how Rotary could perhaps support the Guelph Kids' Literacy Program held at The Bookshelf each May, open to all local schools. 2026 marks the fourth year of this local festival.

This signature annual fundraiser at Sunrise farm is fabulous, and the 2026 Celebrate Sunrise! event is on Sunday, June 14^th.  This fundraiser helps support children, youth and adults with special needs in our community who benefit from Sunrise programs year-round. Tickets are available now!

With shock and tremendous sadness, we learned that our friend and longstanding Rotarian, Tom Funk, had passed away suddenly at home on March 29th, 2026. We had enjoyed his company at our weekly Rotary Club of Guelph meeting just two days earlier.  We have truly lost one of our “Greats”, and his legacy will live on. We send our heartfelt  condolences to his family. Obituary. 

On Saturday, March 28, 2026, our wonderful club member, Ruth Thatcher, received the Inspirational Philanthropist Award from the Guelph General Hospital Foundation for her 50-plus years of volunteering service at the hospital, ever since she started as a Candy Striper at age 16. The award was made at the 30th Annual Black Tie Bingo event. Read more about Ruth being a Living Legend and also watch the wonderful video about Ruth, shown at the awards event. 

On 20 March 2026, our club was updated about the work of Bracelet of Hope in Lesotho. This remarkable charity was initiated by our Rotary member and Guelph physician Dr. Anne-Marie Zadjlik some 21 years ago, using her HIV/AIDS medical expertise and her heartfelt compassion to bring relief to the people of Lesotho which had the highest global incidence of this disease. 14 years ago, our club's past president Tracey Curtis got involved alongside Anne-Marie and Tracey is currently serving her fourth term as Chair of the board of directors. Other Rotarians are also helping. These are truly ROTARY PEOPLE OF ACTION!

On Wednesday, 18 March 2026, University of Guelph student entrepreneurs struck gold and took home first place in three out of four competition challenges at the Enactus Canada Central Canada Regional  Competition in Toronto, competing against 30 universities and colleges. As part of our Vocational Service, our Rotary club is a keen supporter of the Enactus Guelph club, and very proud of their accomplishments! These three projects will now advance to the national Enactus competition in Montreal in May.