Speakers
May 07, 2026 7:30 AM
Laura Slesar, Director, Kidpower Vermont
Not Just Knowing: Practicing Safety Skills that Work in the Moment
May 14, 2026 7:30 AM
Business meeting
May 21, 2026 7:30 AM
Alternative energies
May 28, 2026 7:30 AM
Vermont Stage
Upcoming Events
Williston Green Fair
May 02, 2026
9:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.
Visit us at our booth at Williston's Green Fair on Green Up Day, Saturday, May 2. We'll be giving away free plants and enjoying getting to know our neighbors.
Williston
Williston Village Green
Weekly Club Breakfast Meeting
May 07, 2026
7:15 a.m. - 8:30 a.m.
Williston
Williston Federated Church Fellowship Hall
Weekly Club Breakfast Meeting
May 14, 2026
7:15 a.m. - 8:30 a.m.
Williston
Williston Federated Church Fellowship Hall
Board meeting
May 14, 2026
8:00 a.m. - 9:40 a.m.
Weekly Club Breakfast Meeting
May 21, 2026
7:15 a.m. - 8:30 a.m.
Williston
Williston Federated Church Fellowship Hall
Memorial Day Observance
May 25, 2026
9:00 a.m. - 10:00 a.m.
The Williston/Richmond Rotary Club is hosting the 5th annual Memorial Day Observance on Monday May 25, 2026, at 9:00 AM. This event will be held in the War Memorial Park in Williston between the Town Hall and Town Hall Annex.
We welcome the community to join us as we honor veterans who sacrificed for our safety and freedom. The program will include music, inspiration from club and community members as well as verbal recognition of deceased veterans from our community and veterans who are honored with an engraved brick on the patio of War Memorial Park. Light refreshments will follow.
Community members are invited to order an inscribed brick to honor a loved one living or deceased, who has served in the military. Bricks may be inscribed with the veterans’ name, branch of service, dates of service and may include the service branch emblem. These bricks will be installed in the patio of the Williston War Memorial Park located between Town Hall and the Town Hall Annex.
Order bricks by March 26 (by contacting Phil Stevens ([email protected]) to have them installed in time for our Memorial Day observance on Monday May 25, 2026.
If you would like to be sure that the name of your beloved service member is honored with recognition during this ceremony, please email their name to: [email protected]
We look forward to sharing this important event with our community! Contact Rotary member, Lesley Murray: [email protected] for further information.
Williston
Williston War Memorial Park
Weekly Club Breakfast Meeting
May 28, 2026
7:15 a.m. - 8:30 a.m.
Williston
Williston Federated Church Fellowship Hall
Weekly Club Breakfast Meeting
Jun. 04, 2026
7:15 a.m. - 8:30 a.m.
Williston
Williston Federated Church Fellowship Hall
Stories
The Saturday before Easter brings one of our favorite annual Williston-Richmond Rotary events – the Bill Mikell Easter Parade & Egg Hunt.
This year, a break in the rainy weather kept the Easter Bunny's fur dry and made for perfect parading and egg finding.
Enjoy our photo album and the photo gallery from the Williston Observer.
Jason Adams, our club's Secretary and Board member, led the April 9th club assembly on INTERACT. INTERACT is a Rotary club made up of 12-18 year olds, and Jason's team has been working hard to create a community club with 7-8 graders that will be supported by Williston-Richmond Rotary.
We do have the support from WCS, but we also want to reach alternative schooled children (home schooled, other). As the young members progress and succeed, hopefully they can also create a club at CVU in the next few years.
Why is INTERACT important to the youngsters? Independence and leadership are two identified skills needed for 7-8 graders, and INTERACT fulfills those needs, along with teaching them service, international understanding, finance, fundraising techniques, and collaboration.
Why should our club start an INTERACT club? Beyond giving youngsters important life skills and the platform to be future Rotarians themselves, Jason provided benefits including parents becoming Rotarians, a strong branding into our community, and extra hands at service projects.
To see and hear Jason's presentation to our club, please visit: https://youtu.be/XXlYgSNcVmw
To read more about Rotary INTERACT clubs, go to: https://www.rotary.org/en/get-involved/interact-clubs
Rotary's helping hand at the Richmond Fee Library
On April 26th, Wendy de Forest, Richmond Free Library Youth Director, and her assistant Margaret, joined our club meeting to tell us what's new at the library. Wendy spoke to our club 2 years ago and her talks are always exciting.
First a few interesting facts
Vermont has more public libraries per capita than any other state at 3500 with 185 libraries. Vermont also has the highest public access computers per capita at 9 per 5000 people - almost double the 2nd highest state of Minnesota.
What's New at the Richmond Free Library and where our donations were spent over the years
1- Playaways are preloaded audio books. RFL has 174 playaways, 25 that were gifted from our club
2- Vox books are chidren hardcover books with built-in players for read-alongs. RFL has 62 Vox books, 17 gifted from our club.
3 - Launch Pads are educational game tablets for early literacy focused on social and emotional skills.
4 - Graphic Novels are book long narratives told through sequential art.
5 - Early Chapter Books are bridge books for readers 5-9 (grade 1-3) transitioning from picture books to longer novels
6 - Library of Things is a collection of non-traditional items available for loan, allowing users to borrow instead of buying. At RFL, you can get so many items from pickle ball paddles for outdoor activity to a briefcase and tie for an interview.
7 - STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics) kits at the RFL are themed tote bags. “Bugs-themed” was brought in and contained books, a collection receptacle to watch catured specimens, and much more.
To read more about the Richmond Free Library, go to: https://www.richmondfreelibraryvt.org/
Food Insecurity in Champlain Valley
Rob Meehan, Director of Feeding Champlain Valley (FCV) gave us on overview of his organization on April 23rd - 4 pantries (Burlington, Middlebury, St Albans and Richford) that serves 12-15,000 people each year and moved 2.25 million pounds of food in 2025. That's 1125 tons of FOOD. Whoa!!
FCV has come up with some innovative ideas to reach more clients, especially those who stay hidden due to the stigma of needing food, including food trucks, food lockers, an online market for Head Start patrons, and access to those who checked yes that they had food security while visiting doctors offices. Unofficial food insecurity levels in Vermont, including those who don't report, was estimated by Rob to be 40% (2 of every 5 people), with the highest levels seen in rural areas. 10% is the official level of those in poverty in VT with many, many working families facing food insecurity - much more than years in the past, with the underlying issue being lack of money and growing unemployment for a 2 person working household.
Last, Rob mention the Vermont's 2035 Food Security Road Map.It's an interesting read.
To see and hear Rob's presentation to our club, visit: https://youtu.be/MqRYvFHygO0
To get more information about or donate to Feeding Champlain Valley, go to: https://www.feedingchamplainvalley.org/
To read about the 2035 Food Security Road Map, the link is: https://www.vtfarmtoplate.com/resources/vermont-food-security-roadmap-2035
Cresting Everest w Ang Dawa Sherpa
On April 23rd, our guest speaker was Ang Dawa Sherpa, a fellow Rotarian from Nepal, and one of the Himalayas' most accomplished mountaineers. Ang is an internationally certified mountain guide with more than 21 years of high altitude expedition experience. A ten time summiteer of Mount Everest, he and his wife, Pasang Phuti Sherpa, hold the Guinness Book Record as the fastest couple to summit Everest at 2 days, 7 hours and 36 minutes on May 14th, 2019. Everest is the worlds highest mountain above sea level at 29,032 feet, which is 6.6x Vermont's highest peak Mt Mansfield at 4,395 feet.
Ang started hiking in 2005 and made his first summit of Everest in 2007. Ang also runs ANH Sherpa Treks and Expeditions, and gave us a few pointers on how to make climbs at high altitudes. While most understand that physical fitness is needed, mental fitness is required to overcome fear from storms and the unknown, and technical ability is needed in cases of emergency such as if your guide gets sick or injured on the trail.
Other interesting facts were that Sherpa is not a job title, but one of the many Tibetan-speaking ethic groups who are globally renowned as expert mountain guides and high-altitude porters, carrying 66-220 lbs up the mountain, sometimes exceeding 100-175% of their own body weight. High altitude porters have to carry food, tents and oxygen for their clients. Absolutely amazing, and so was Ang's talk.
To see and hear Ang's presentation to our club, visit: https://youtu.be/NsjeRL_OMNU
To read more on ANH Sherpa Treks and Expeditions, go to: https://anhsherpaexped.com/
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