Joseph Berninger is a member of Ohio Pathways Rotary Club, as well as founder and Executive Director of Cooperative for Education, Rotary's partner in the Guatemala Literacy Project (GLP).  Celebrating 25 years of service, the GLP is dedicated to "Breaking the cycle of poverty in Guatemala through education."

 

As Executive Director, Joe is responsible for overall management and oversight of U.S. and Guatemalan operations.  He is also responsible for program design, implementation, effectiveness, strategic planning, business plans, and measurable results.  Joe is a former marketing representative for IBM.  Graduate of the University of Colorado, an MA in Religious Studies.  Graduate of Xavier University with a BA in History.  Joe has implemented development projects in Guatemala since 1997.

 

The Guatemala Literacy Project (GLP) is one of the largest, grass-roots, multi-club, multi-district, projects in the Rotary World. There are over 700 Clubs from 90 districts involved and the program currently serves over 55,000 impoverished children by providing textbooks, computers, teacher training, and scholarships.

Our Rotary District 6360 is seeking five students to be Rotary Youth Exchange students for the school year 2023-2024! These students will represent Rotary and the USA as they further their education, learn leadership, and personal skills in a foreign country. The rewards last a lifetime! If you know of a student who will be between the ages of 15 ½ and 18 ½ next school year and is interested in studying and living abroad (for free!), please share this opportunity with them. Interested students and their parents must complete the Club pre-application form by the end of October. See President Courtney for more information.

In the first of our new monthly Thursday Social Gatherings, we all met at Lansing Brewing Company. We had a good turnout of members and guests. Everyone enjoyed the opportunity to have casual conversations. The only program was the presentation of September birthdays. As of the event, we had achieved 90% participation in giving to the foundation and had raised over $1,700!

 

If you missed the event, I encourage you to mark your calendar for the next one.

 

Posted by Chris Swope, chris.swope@lansingmi.gov