That comment summed up how all the participants felt at this year’s Dragons’ Den at High Beeches Primary School. The winning team had created handmade customised jewellery which the Dragons felt would really attract buyers at the school’s Summer Fair.
‘We all absolutely loved doing it,’ said the Dragons
Three share Young Citizen awards
Yash Rampersad of Roundwood Park School, Daniel Omoregbee of Sir John Lawes School and Becky Dowse of Katherine Warington School are joint winners of this year’s Bill Hewetson Memorial Prize and Rotary Young Citizen Award.
Improving Harpenden’s living environment
Rotary in Harpenden, known in the town for staging major community events like Classics on the Common and the Harpenden Quiz of Quizzes, and for running several activities for the benefit of young people, in 2023 expanded our activities in an effort to improve the living environment for residents of Harpenden and surrounding villages.
Raffle prizes are a hit, too
Just as the Harpenden Quiz of Quizzes, organised by Rotary in Harpenden, is hugely popular among scores of quiz enthusiasts, so are the event’s raffle prizes. Pictured above are the 20 colourful gift bags, each containing a wide range of items generously donated by local businesses and Rotary in Harpenden members. Ticket sales for the raffle draw raised over £1000 for charity.
Youth Speaks attracts nine teams for debate
Four schools fielded nine teams for debate in this year’s Youth Speaks contest, held at Aldwickbury Park Golf Club. The range of topics debated could not have been wider nor the debates more spirited.
Friendship Boxes enliven Ukrainian children’s Christmas
For the second year, Rotary in Harpenden supplied Friendship Boxes to junior schools in the Harpenden, Redbourn and Wheathampstead area, to be filled by pupils and parents with educational and recreational items for sending to children in Ukraine.
Classics’ charities – in action
The contrast between the girl’s pristine school uniform and the pitiful conditions of her home is stark.
She’s a lucky one. Her secondary school education is totally free, thanks to Empowering Kids in Kenya, one of the five charities which shared the £30,000 raised by Rotary in Harpenden’s classic car show, Classics on the Common, in July.
Raising £130,000 for a Ugandan women’s hospital
How do you raise more than £130,000 to equip a Ugandan women’s medical centre with an operating theatre, transforming the centre into a fully-fledged hospital?
That was the task begun by Rotary in Harpenden under the leadership of Dr Jim McWhirter of the Reading Matins Rotary Club.
Donation for the President’s cause
Terry Heritage marks the end of her year as Rotary in Harpenden President by presenting a cheque for £5,000 to the staff of Harpenden Plus Partnership, her special cause during her presidential year.
Terry said: ’Our donation will be used to support the work of family counsellors and the purchase of training courses for families and children around behaviour and trauma. During my visit I heard the challenges that children and families are facing especially around socialisation following the Covid pandemic.’
‘The best ideas we have seen’
Pitching their business ideas to three Dragons, Year 6 at High Beeches Junior School excelled themselves.
All 60 children were invited to form teams to create businesses to be operated at an upcoming school event with parents. Rotary in Harpenden provided training together with seed corn money to get the teams started. We then arranged for the Dragons to put the children through their paces.