Sunrise Rotary Honors Two

Two women of great distinction were honored by the Sunrise Rotary Club at its June 29 meeting at the Sandbar Restaurant. The club holds its meetings weekly on Tuesdays, beginning sharply at 7:30 am. Members have a choice of eating breakfast or just sharing coffee together while discussing club business and hearing from different speakers each week regarding a number of different subjects.

Allyson Richards, founder of Al’s Pals and the Mobile Food Pantry on Marco Island, presented the club with an overview of the work that her two organizations carry out. The Mobile Food Pantry is an offshoot of the popular Our Daily Bread Food Pantry, which operates out of a building at the Family Church at 1450 Winterberry Drive.

The two organizations collaborate with each other to serve the Greater Marco Community. “Not more than a 10-to-15-mile drive from here, we have folks in serious need of assistance. Yes, you drive by some wonderful homes to get there, but there they are, sadly in need of assistance,” said Richards.

Many of the folks working in restaurants, in landscaping, cleaning homes and in various other jobs may be working several jobs, trying to make ends meet each week, and they often are forgotten within the community, according to Richards.

Al’s Pals and the Mobile Food Pantry operate by going to those in need or, at least, going a little closer to where they live.

Each week, they alternate between St. Mark’s Episcopal Church at the intersection of North Collier Boulevard and Elkcam Circle, and St. Finbarr Catholic Church at 13520 East Tamiami Trail in Naples. 

They also are out at other locations and for special events to serve groups such as Lipman Farms and others.  During the school year, they also are making donations of backpacks to children at Manatee Middle School and Marco Island Charter Middle School.

Check the Our Daily Bread Food Pantry web site at www.ourdailybreadfoodpantry.com for information about the Mobile Food Pantry and other services being offered, and for volunteer opportunities or to make a donation.

The second woman honored that day was Natalia E. Armstrong, who joined the Sunrise Rotary Club in 2015 and quickly became a very active member in many ways, including her rise to the post of President. She spearheaded the club’s involvement in overseeing one of the 12 Baby Basics sites in Collier County to provide important supplies for infants of mothers in need in East Naples, Marco Island, Goodland and Everglades City, and chaired the club’s involvement with the Collier County Board of Elections by having the Sunrise Rotary help to staff polling places.

It was a bittersweet celebration of Armstrong’s membership in the club, as it also was her last meeting as a member. It was not, however, her last meeting as a Rotarian. She and her husband Steven are moving soon to Fort Myers from their home in Treviso Bay, where she has been a very active member of that community. She was a founder of the annual golf tournament at Treviso Bay to benefit the Strides Against Breast Cancer Walk, which raises important funds for cancer research. 

It was an emotional moment for club members as they said thank you for all her hard work on behalf of the club and the citizens who benefited over these last six years. Armstrong is looking to become engaged with another club in her new home city, commenting about her love for Rotary and what it has meant to her.