Rotary Club of St. Thomas, Ontario Canada

Vocational service focuses on:

• Adherence to, and promotion of, the highest ethical standards in all occupations, including fair treatment of employers, employees, associates, competitors, and the public.
• The recognition of the worthiness of all useful occupations, not just your own or those that are pursued by Rotarians.
• The contribution of your vocational talents to the problems and needs of society.
• The values expressed in The 4-Way Test and the Declaration for Rotarians in Business and Professions, which promote high ethical standards in the workplace, a central theme of Rotary throughout its history.

Vocational Service programs in the St. Thomas Rotary Club have a strong youth focus and include the following:

Service Above Self Awards

Presented in the spring and fall terms to a student from each of the city’s four high schools who demonstrates, in the opinion of his teachers and in addition to many other fine attributes, the Rotary ideal of “service above self.”

Adventure in Citizenship

Every year a student at one of the local area high schools is sponsored by the club to attend the Adventure in Citizenship program hosted by the Rotary Club of Ottawa. There, students from across Canada meet to visit sites of interest in the nation’s capital and share their views on issues which promote a high standard of citizenship.

Seminar for Tomorrow’s Leaders

A number of students from local area high schools are sponsored by the club to attend the Seminar for Tomorrow’s Leaders program at the University of Western Ontario. As the name suggests, leadership skills are honed and students are able to interact with their counterparts on both sides of the Canada-U.S. border.

ESIS (Economics of Staying in School)

Every year, the club sponsors a St. Thomas Grade Eight class participating in the Economics of Staying in School program run by the London & District Junior Achievement. Not only is a financial contribution made, but several club members join the class to relate their personal experience of the value of staying in school.

Newspapers in Education

The club makes an annual contribution to provide copies of the St. Thomas Times Journal in school classrooms to further the values of literacy and informed citizenship.