Adios! Arrivederci! Auf Wiedersehen! La revedere! Rotaractors and Rotarians of District 5040 recently bid “farewell” to its most recent international visitors (Mirela Buculeu from Romania; Frederico Purini Nardi from Brazil; Stefania Piccoli from Italy;  Juliane Steinmann and Laura Tillmann from Germany). They were all participants of Rotaract District 5040’s second annual Pacific Canada Experience (PACE) roundtrip, a program which fosters global Rotaract ties and provides an authentic experience of Canada’s multiculturalism, while facilitating international friendships.
 

ImageImageSpearheaded by Rotaract 5040, and sponsored by Rotaract 5020 and 5060, the five international Rotaractors participated in activities which highlighted the Pacific Coast’s unique mix of nature, city, and eco-friendly living. Favorites of the trip included: picking blueberries at a Richmond farm, touring Victoria, exploring Whistler, hiking the Grouse Grind (or should we say conquering? All the participants finished the hike in less than 1hr and 45 minutes!), dragon boating in False Creek, biking the Stanley Park Seawall, kayaking Deep Cove, discovering the mysterious Othello Tunnels, and wine tasting in the Okanagan Valley. However, this program was not all about play; the Rotaractors participated in 2 service projects and visited with 3 Rotary Clubs…all in one day!  They spent the morning with Rotarians from the Burnaby Deer Lake Club constructing a channel from a fish rearing pond to Eagle Creek.  Afterwards, the PACE participants presented at the Rotary Club of Burnaby Metrotown and joined them in their Graffiti Paint Out, helping beautiful a wall outside of a local elementary school. The day did not end there… the Rotaractors then got in the car and drove up to beautiful Whistler to meet with Rotarians from the Whistler Rotary Club and Whistler Millennium Rotary Club – an evening full of homemade pizzas and organic burgers!

All in all, the 10-day PACE program can be summed up using Rotaract’s own slogan “Fellowship through Service.”

A big thank you to the following clubs who accepted the challenge in supporting PACE:

  • Burnaby Deer Lake Rotary Club
  • Burnaby Metrotown Rotary Club
  • Burnaby Rotary Club
  • Lions Gate Rotary Club
  • Quesnel Rotary Club
  • Smithers Rotary Club
  • Whistler Rotary Club
  • Whistler Millennium Rotary Club
  • Kelowna Sunrise Rotary Club
  • West Shore (Victoria) Rotary Club
  • Janice Froese, Rotaract District Chair, Burnaby Deer Lake Rotary