Rotary Club of Needham Newsletter January 21st, 2020
In the Community
Circle of Hope
Given cold weather, Circle of Hope is urgently looking for coats for all ages. There will soon be a coat sorting event (date TBD) where volunteers can help prepare the donated coats for distribution to shelters.
Needham Free Public Library and the Boston Bruins Pajama Drive to Benefit Children in the Department of Children and Families System and Cradles to Crayons
The goal is 12,000 pairs of pjs. We're helping by encouraging our members to donate new pajamas for children of all ages or to donate funds for this purpose, multiplying the impact of the Club's $500 donation, which was used to purchase 84 pairs of pajamas. Pajamas can be dropped off at our club meetings.
Meeting
Trusted Referrals
In order to foster business referrals within our membership, based on trusted relationships, our members are encouraged to present brief biographies in order to make the other members aware of their careers and expertise. This week, Dan Tibma, our President, presented his life story. He was born in Indiana, and his parents separated when he was still quite young. His father was a developer in Tampa, Florida, and his mother was in the hospitality business in Aspen, Colorado. Dan would spend the school year in Tampa and the summers exploring the West from Aspen. He has been in the construction business since the 6th grade, full time since graduating from the University of Florida. His first wife was from Boston, which brought him here, and his wife, Sharon, taught him how to catch lobsters, which helps keep him here. For the last 15 years he has focused on design-build projects with a geographic focus in and near Needham. I am one of Dan's many satisfied customers: he renovated our kitchen and expanded both cooking and dining space by knocking down a wall separating the two rooms. He also helped us expand our closet space and improve the size of our bedrooms by eliminating and redistributing a tiny bedroom. Thanks, Dan!
Speaker: Monica Kachru, Board Chair, Anaya Tipnis Foundation (see photo below)
Monica founded the Anaya Tipnis Foundation in honor of her daughter, a graduate of Needham High School, who died in 2017 as an incoming freshman to MIT. Anaya's name means "God answered", and the Foundation's mission and ethos are hers. Anaya felt that all young people deserve an opportunity to prosper through higher education and a strong support system. The foundation's mission is to help low-income, need-based students succeed in college by providing them mentorship focused financial support along with access to internship opportunities. A network of mentors (counselors, educators and industry professionals) actively work with the scholars in their journey as they transition to college. The mentors strive to understand their challenges and help them achieve their goals.
The foundation's approach has three areas of focus intended to improve the college outcomes of low-income students:
1) financial: each year, each student receives a scholarship of up to $3000.
2) mentorship: mentors provide advice on academic, financial and other college transition challenges.
3) internships: scholars have the option to participate in a six-to-eight week internship at partner organizations, including research labs, technology companies, and financial institutions.
Ideal candidates will have demonstrated authenticity in their passion for entrepreneurship, science, technology, education, social justice or the empowerment of women or minorities. Passion and authenticity should be demonstrated by community service and leadership. Candidates also need to demonstrate financial need based on total family income. The foundation currently supports five scholars, and it is in the process of securing support to expand further. Current sponsors include Roche Brothers and Volante Farms.
Potential supporters can get involved in several ways:
- help find deserving students
- help with the application process
- connect the foundation with donors and help with fund-raising
- mentor the scholars
- help with events and administrative activities (the foundation is administered entirely by volunteers), and
- donate. The foundation is a qualified 501(C)(3) charity and donations are tax deductible.
For more information, contact: www.anayafoundation.org.
