For five years, the Emmaus Rotary Club and Rotarians from District 7430 have honored women for their achievements in the field of volunteer humanitarian work. On March
10th, Emmaus Rotary celebrated International Women’s Day by recognizing two outstanding women. The Club's Rotary Woman Award was given to Gwen Carr, a long-time Rotarian and advocate for many service projects locally and internationally. The Rotary Community award was presented to Clarice James, the founder and director of the Allentown nonprofit M.I.R.A (Migrant, Immigrant, Refugee and Asylee).
In March, Rotary clubs all over the world celebrate “Women in Rotary” by honoring the history and importance of countless Rotary women, showcasing their humanitarian work and their impact in their communities, their nation, and the world. 2022 is also an important year for Women in Rotary as we prepare to welcome, on July 1, Jennifer E. Jones of the Rotary Club of Windsor Roseland, Ontario, Canada, who will become the first-ever woman President of Rotary International. Her president’s theme is “Imagine Rotary.” Her membership goals include increasing female membership to 30% of rotary members by 2023; engaging members; and embracing change. She is also fully committed to Rotary’s philosophy and policies regarding Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion.
Gwenn Carr, M.Ed., PMP, has been a member of the Allentown West Rotary for over 17 years. She has served on the Membership, Fundraising, Dictionary, Communications, Scholarship, Public Image and Purple Pinkie teams, as well as on the AWRC Board.
Leading several teams for the major club fundraising effort, Tempting Tastes became an event the club depended on for most of its annual funds for five successive years. Ms. Carr did an outstanding job as chair for this event, benefitting the club in excess of $150,000 over those years. These funds were used for local and international projects of great importance.
In response to the 2020 pandemic, Gwenn quickly organized a fundraiser to raise nearly $1,000 to benefit a local food pantry. She is a member of Engineers Without Borders and currently the Project Manager for STEM YEA and the Chair of District 7430 Learning Committee.
Clarice James is the founder and executive director of M.I.R.A. Resources, an Allentown-based nonprofit focusing on providing support for migrant, immigrant, refugee and asylee families. The goal is to equip these families of different ethnicities and cultures with
the equitable resources to succeed upon entering a new community.
Among her many projects, she helped set up a series of community gardens where migrant, immigrant and refugee families plant crops and the produce is later donated to the local homeless. She coordinated the involvement of high school students from Allentown Central Catholic High School in this project. She helps the migrant community with job placement, training and other resources. She assists with training programs, job interviews, wardrobes for interviewing and work and other needs.
M.I.R.A. provides adult English classes and citizenship courses. She works to get children provided with care, head start programs and other similar services.
The Emmaus Rotary Club International Women’s Day Celebration Committee is composed of Rotarians David Dunn, Dee Eng, Rose Galeano-Phillips, Courtney Kennedy, and Alicia Ruiz-Orbin, Chair.
Alicia noted that of the 1.3 million Rotary members worldwide, about 25 percent are women. “We Rotary clubs, and Rotarians, need to continue to celebrate International Women’s Day, to identify and recognize women for their humanitarian service, and do all we can to truly make a positive difference for women. We also need to continue to bring women into Rotary.”
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DG Bob Hobaugh, DGE Glenn Gieseler, and DGN Diane Donaher, attended the Celebration. Other distinguished guests included: Rotary Award recipient Linda Mayger (2021), Saucon, Center Valley Club Past President; Community Women Awardees Jennifer Driscoll (2018), Founder Lilly’s Hope Foundation; Jenae Holtzhafer (2019), Founder The Kindness Project; and Prabha Sinha (2021), Founder Pratyush Sinha Foundation. In addition, Gary Englehardt, Gwenn’s guest, and an Allentown West Rotarian; Liliana Arias Hallman, Clarice’s mother and guest; Gail Micca, Allentown West RC President; Kathy Frazier, Allentown RC President; and Rich Chartrand, East Penn Press photographer, were present.
Additional Information about our Winners
In addition to the Rotary Award, Gwenn Carr was presented with a Paul Harris Fellow from Emmaus Rotary President Mike Waddell in recognition for Gwenn’s Rotary service locally and internationally.
Locally, Gwenn’s impressive Rotary service with Allentown West includes serving on the Board, and the Membership, Fundraising, Dictionary, Communications, Scholarship, Public Image, and Purple Pinkie teams. She also participates in the twice-yearly park cleanups and restorations, Lowhill Food Pantry, and Non-Profit Awareness Day at the Lehigh Valley Mall, has led several teams for the club major fundraising efforts, such as Tempting Tastes, an event the club depended on for most of its annual funds for five successive years, benefitting the club in excess of $150,000 over those years. The funds were used for local and international projects of immense importance. In response to the 2020 pandemic, Gwenn quickly organized a fundraiser to raise $1,000 to benefit a local food pantry.
At the District level, Gwenn serves as the Chair of the District Learning Committee that provides the monthly communication and education editions of Project Showcase, “Welcome Aboard” and Showcase Tuesday. She is the Project Manager for District STEM YEA (STEM Youth Explorer Academy) has contributed significantly to building the structure of the team and advising the sub teams on how to manage their tasks. She also serves on the Communication, Finance, and Curriculum Development Teams, and worked with the SETI development team in Mountain View, California, to develop the curriculum Astrobiology: The Search for Life on Mars and to infuse the various STEM modules with the Rotary Areas of Focus.
Gwenn also served as the Program Director for PDG Bill Weber’s District Conference (2009), focusing on high-quality programs that would provide the District with International opportunities, such as a close humanitarian service relationship with Engineers Without Borders LVP (EWB-LVP).
Internationally, Gwenn was a participant in the first Allentown West RC Friendship Exchange to Morelia, Mexico, in 2007. In 2009, as a result of having the President of EWB-LVP at the District Conference and building a relationship with EWB-LVP, Rotary clubs gained new members, and relationships were established with other humanitarian groups such as Healy International Relief Foundation. Gwenn joined and has served EWB-LVP as their Communications Director and as a volunteer for their fund-raising activities. To date, Rotary Foundation grants have provided $82,000 to EWB-LVP for their projects in Sierra Leone where the Centennial school in Mattru Jong, was completely refurbished, and the hospital close to the school has undergone significant modernization. In addition, a Rotarian sits on the Board of EWB at the national level. Also, Rotary Clubs in Sierra Leone and the Dominican Republic now work with EWB-LVP to sponsor various projects. Gwenn is currently an advisor to the Standing Committee for Project Management at the national level. She also provides project management training to student EWB chapters throughout the United States.
Clarice James
The Community Woman Award and a $500 donation check was presented by Club President Mike Waddell to Clarice James.
Clarice has committed her life to helping people from all occupations break through barriers and achieve their goals by helping them gain access to equal opportunities. Clarice’s entire family is originally from Medellin, Colombia, South America. She is the first to be born in the United States. Clarice began volunteering since she was eight years old helping the less fortunate in the Lehigh Valley. After obtaining her Associates Degree in Social Work she served as a mentor for the Mandela Washington Fellows as part of the Young African Leaders Initiative, and advocating for Migratory families through the Pennsylvania Migrant Education Program. It was during this time that she learned that Migrant, Immigrant, Refugee and Asylee families were in need of services that were not available through established local and state programs. She decided to start M.I.R.A. Resources to meet their needs, becoming its Founder and Executive Director.
Clarice’s organization helps those in need from the migrant community with job placement, training, job interviews, wardrobe for interviewing and going to work, and other job-related needs. Through her leadership, M.I.R.A. provides adult English classes and citizenship courses, as well as linking families to child care and head start programs. She facilitates migrant families access to medical insurance and health care. In addition, she also assists with referrals to attorneys and other legal aid for matters such as deportation, child custody, and disability.
Clarice’s additional projects include helping set up a series of Community Gardens wherein migrant, immigrant, and refugee families plant crops and the produce are later donated to the local homeless. She also coordinated the involvement of high school students from Central Catholic in this endeavor. An upcoming project of hers is a job fair to assist migrant workers in finding employment. It will also be a health fair to ensure that everyone in need is addressed.
Both Gwenn and Clarice also received official Citations from the Pennsylvania Senate Senators and from State Representatives Gary Dale, Kutztown, and Michael Schlossberg, Allentown.
Women's Day
111 years ago, on March 19, 1911, the almighty and tenacious suffragettes forged an action with purpose for equality, and started international women's day, which was supported by over a million people in Austria, Denmark, Germany, and Switzerland. International Women’s Day is celebrated worldwide yearly on March 8th, and we are encouraged to reflect upon the important roles women have in society, how far equal rights have come, and to celebrate the social, economic, cultural, and political achievements of women all around the world.
March is also women’s history month, here in the United States. In 1987, US Congress passed The Joint Resolution Public Law 100-9. Since 1988, U.S. presidents have issued the annual proclamation to observe it with appropriate ceremonies and activities.
