“The Rotary Club of Dodge City would like to thank the following sponsors for their donation to the Dictionary Project of 2009”

 

 

Allen Heating & Air

Bell-Government Credit Union

Black Hills Energy

Boothill Bed & Breakfast

Brak-Hard Concrete Construction Co., LLC

BTI of Bucklin, Ks

Cargill Meat Solutions

Coldwell Banker Hancocks of Dodge City, Inc.

Coronado Crossing RC&D Inc.

Cox Communications, Inc

Cowtown Club

CrustBuster SpeedKing, Inc.

Dean Young

Diamond Roofing, Inc.

Dodge City Community College-DC3 Tec

Dodge City Daily Globe

Dodge City Medical Center

Dr. Richard Stein DDS

Dr. Richard J. Ackerman, Jr. D.D.S, M.S

Dr. Kelly S. Henrichs DDS

Farmers State Bank of Bucklin

Gibson Pharmacy

Good Samaritan Society-Dodge City

Johnny Maupin-CPA.

John's Body Shop, Inc.

K & M Rental, Inc.

Kansas Feeds, Inc.

Key Office Equipment

Kustom Auto Repair

KSSA-FM La Nueva 105.9

Luminous Neon, Inc.

Magouirk Chevrolet & Cadillac Inc

Parker-Haskins Insurance

Pella Windows and Doors

Quivira Insurance Agency

Southwest Towing

Sunflower Bank

The Insurance Center

Victory Electric

Waters True Value

Wheatland’s Mortgage Corporation

Williams, Malone & Ralph, P.A.

United Wireless Communications, Inc.

Unruh-Foster, Inc

 

2009 Dodge City Rotary Club Dictionary Project:

To the Editor

Earlier this year, the Rotary Club of Dodge City passed out over 600 large, hardcover Scholastic dictionaries to every 3rd grader in Dodge City, Spearville and Bucklin. This is a dictionary that is child-friendly, with 35,000 entries, photos, illustrations, and reference section containing information about the solar system, international flags, and U.S. presidents.

Our members actually trekked into the classrooms, handed out each dictionary, and helped each child write their first and last name in the cover of it. To date, the Rotary Club of Dodge City has passed out over 2,400 of these dictionaries in the past four years.  

Why did the Rotary Club of Dodge City do this?

A dictionary is perhaps the first and most powerful reference tool that a child should own. Its usefulness goes beyond the spellings, pronunciations, and definitions it lists. It is also a companion for solving problems that arise as a child develops his or her reading, writing, and creative thinking abilities. Students benefit from an increased self-reliance and resourcefulness inspired by the maxim, “look it up.” The importance of using a dictionary to make sure all words are spelled correctly is emphasized. This is an opportunity for children to expand their vocabulary.

The goal of this program is to assist all students to complete the school year as good writers, active readers, and creative thinkers by providing the students with their own personal dictionaries. The dictionaries are a gift to each student to use at school and at home for years to come.

The success of this dictionary project has been through the tireless efforts of the people who have made a personal commitment to improving literacy and the quality of life in our community. A dictionary is an essential tool for a quality education. A child cannot do his or her best work without one. Together we can make sure that every child benefits from the power of words; because that is the only way they can become self-reliant. Reading is the most important skill of all. It is the starting point for all the economic and social opportunities our world has to offer.

Our Rotary members are the breath of life of this dictionary project. All of our members made a special effort to take part in this program. A very Special thanks to the businesses that also helped the Rotary Club support the cost of this project. The gift of these dictionaries would not have been possible without the help of our local business sponsors of which there was 38. Their names are listed on the inside cover of each dictionary. Thank-you all.

Some comments from parents and students: “My daughter brought home her Rotary dictionary today--WOW!!! I am thrilled! What nice dictionaries! When I heard of this project, I pictured some paperback, boring dictionaries, but these are terrific! The kids ought to be delighted! I encouraged my daughter to write you all a thank you note, because I don't want her to take this gift for granted. Thanks, Rotary Club members, for investing in this project filled with such promise and hope.”

 

“Thank you so-so-so Much for the Dictionary. I looked in the book and I loved it! And so did my parents. You guys Rock!!”

 

Inside each dictionary is a sticker with the Rotary four-prong test: "Is it the truth? Is it fair? Will it build goodwill? Is it good for all?” This is what Rotary stands for. If you would like to share in this program, talk to a Rotarian. We would be happy to have you join us and work with us in helping make our community a great place to live. Rotarians meet every Monday at the Cowtown Club for lunch. You are welcome.   

On behalf of the Rotary Club of Dodge City,

Kurt Scadden-President 2008-2009

 

 

The  following are pictures of individual classes that received the dictionaries.  

Bucklin 3rd Graders getting their new dictionaries from Dodge City Rotary Members Fred Casterline and Kirk Scadden

 

 

Past President Lowell Brakey giving instructions to the Spearville 3rd graders.

2009 Sacred Heart