Rotary wine tasting fundraiser scheduled for May 6

The annual Rotary Club of the Kootenai Valley wine tasting fundraiser has been scheduled for  6 p.m. Friday, May 6, at the Libby Memorial Events Center.

This year’s theme is Italian, “Buon Appetito!” Catering is being provided by Manon Hughes.

Tickets will be available starting next week at: The Venture Inn and Windows, Doors & More in Libby and  at Booze-n-Bait in Troy.

The events include tastings of six wines with specialty-paired foods, a live auction, a silent auction, raffles and door prizes. All of the event proceeds benefit Rotary youth programs. Rotary offers nine programs to support the young people of the community, including the Rotary Youth Leadership Award (RYLA), a five-day leadership themed summer camp experience for students going in to 10th grade.  and Interact, a school-based youth service club program associated with and supported by Rotary.  There is an active club in Libby with about 15 to 20 kids and a club starting up in Troy.

Rotary also sponsors dictionary and bookcase projects in local schools. The club, in conjunction with the Elks Club, gives every third grader in the county a dictionary of their own. Based upon recommendations from Head Start staff, the Rotary Club also provides handmade bookcases and books to Head Start students in Libby and Troy. The club provides 16 bookcases each year. Funds also help support Rotary’s annual high school scholarships. Five $500 scholarships are awarded annually to students graduating from Libby or Troy high schools.

Funds also help sponsor a number of community events, including Rotary youth basketball, open to children in seventh and eighth grades. The program was started by Rotary and has been picked up by the schools, assisted by a $500 annual contribution from Rotary. The club also sponsors Shakespeare in the Park to help encourage arts education and the Kids’ Fishing Pond in Libby.