The Rotary Club of West Chester

2009 4-Way Essay Contest Winners

January 14 Two East High School students, Lauren Callahan and Danielle DeFelippe (not pictured), wrote winning essays about Rotary’s 4-Way Test and were recognized by the club at a recent meeting.

2009 Scholarship Winners

Rotary Club of West Chester President Steve Karp (left) and Scholarship Chair Linda Hicks (right) congratulate Megan Sanders of Henderson High School and Robert Joseph (Bobby) Briglia of Bishop Shanahan High School on each winning $2,500 college scholarships for Excellence in Community Service.

Tony Stancato awarded the Distinguished Vocational Service Award

A lifelong resident of West Chester and son of the late Rotarian, Anthony L. Stancato, Tony started and established five new companies in the West Chester area, helped build the economy and revitalize downtown West Chester, provided employment for the unemployed, and used innovative skills to provide opportunities for young buyers to experience home ownership. He has also had an impact on the social and political environment of the community, by serving on and providing leadership on the local Republican committee, establishing a mentoring program for middle and high school students, leads a men’s ministry, and worked on mission programs in Guatemala and areas destroyed by Katrina. Rotary is an organization of business and professional leaders united worldwide who provide humanitarian service and help build goodwill and peace in the world. There are approximately 1.2 million members in 32,000 Rotary Clubs in more than 200 countries and geographical areas.

2008 Rotary Club of West Chester Scholarships

East High School student, Yuonne de Furia, and Henderson High School student, Ellen Brown, were each awarded $2500 West Chester Rotary Club Scholarships for demonstrating the characteristics of the Rotary 4 Way Test in their school and personal life.

2008 Rotary Youth Leadership Awards

Rotary Youth Leadership Awards (RYLA) is a leadership training program. Officially adopted by Rotary International in 1971, RYLA is one of the most significant and fastests-growing programs of Rotary service. Each year, thousands of young people take part in the program worldwide. Each year Rotary District 7450 holds a RYLA conference. Our club sponsored Raj Motwani of Henderson High School. Rotarians, Linda Hicks and John Messersmith, are also shown in the photo.

2007 Rotary Club of West Chester Scholarship

Each year a West Chester Area School District student is selected to receive a $1,000 scholarship. The 2007 winner is Henderson High School student Justin McClure, a student at Henderson High School. Justin was presented with his scholarship at the July 12th lunch meeting. Justin has clearly demonstrated the characteristics of the Rotary 4 Way Test in his school and personal life. Shown with Justin in the photograph are his parents Terri and Dale McClure. Click on image for larger photo.

2007 Rotary Youth Leadership Awards

Rotary Youth Leadership Awards (RYLA) is a leadership training program. Officially adopted by Rotary International in 1971, RYLA is one of the most significant and fastests-growing programs of Rotary service. Each year, thousands of young people take part in the program worldwide. Each year Rotary District 7450 holds a RYLA conference. In February 2007 our club sponsored two participants Megan Falcone and Sara Palmer. Also shown in the photo are East HS Principal Rick Dunlap and Rotary Vocational Service Committee Chair John Messersmith. We were pleased to recognize these two future leaders.

2006 Winner - 4 Way Test Essay Contest

The Vocational Service Avenue presented the winner of this year's 4 Way Test Essay Contest at the regular lunch meeting held on 8/03/06. All sophomores at East High School participated with teachers selecting the final 12. Our Avenue then picked the winner. This year's winners is Christian Mayer. CLICK HERE to read the winning essay.

2006 Rotary Scholarship

Kavik Frol was awarded the 2006 Rotary Scholarship award of $1000 for his exception involvement in his community and international projects. This scholarship is awarded annually to a deserving Henderson High School student in the West Chestesr Area School District. Click on photo for a larger image.

2006 Rotary Youth Leadership Awards

Rotary Youth Leadership Awards (RYLA) is a leadership training program. Officially adopted by Rotary International in 1971, RYLA is one of the most significant and fastests-growing programs of Rotary service. Each year, thousands of young people take part in the program worldwide. Each year Rotary District 7450 holds a RYLA conference. In February of this year (2006) our club sponsored two participants, Amanda Messersmith and Tom Steinberger. We were pleased to recognized these two future leaders.

Distinguished Vocational Service Award of a Non-Rotarian

The recipient of this year's Distinguished Vocational Service Award of a Non-Rotarian is: Marvin (Marv) Porter, President of the East End Neighborhood Association. Marvin Porter was nominated by Charles Streitwieser and selected for his commitment and work in the West Chester community.

Their Mission Statement of the Association reads: "Our mission is to strengthen our neighborhood through positive activities that will promote education, community involvement, pride in ownership and civic pride. Our goals are to promote the success, well-being and future economic growth of our community and to leave a worthy inheritance to our posterity. Individually and collectively we intend to promote the well-being of our community and the general well-being of West Chester's communities at large."

Also shown in the picture is Marvin's wife Shirley Porter.

2005 Rotary Scholarship Winner

Each year a West Chester Area School District student is selected to receive a $1,000 scholarship. This years winner is Brian Newbury, a student at Henderson High School. Brian was presented with his scholarship at the July 7th lunch meeting.

Lynn Bibbo, a Counselor at his high school, wrote this about him -- "Although his diligence is evident by his cumulative GPA of 3.91 what is not so obvious is Brian's pride in consistently turning in quality work. Brian possesses the work ethic and intelligence to be a success in a demanding college environment. Brian has selected Penn State University at University Park and will be majoring in Chemical Engineering." Click on image for larger photo.

2005 Rotary Youth Leadership Awards

Rotary Youth Leadership Awards (RYLA) is a leadership training program. Officially adopted by Rotary International in 1971, RYLA is one of the most significant and fastest-growing programs of Rotary service. Each year, thousands of young people take part in the program worldwide. Each year Rotary District 7450 holds a RYLA conference. On February 25,26 & 27 of this year (2005) our club sponsored two participants, Markita Cummins from Henderson High School and Brian Castiglioni from East High School. We were pleased to recognized these two future leaders.