Hayley McNamara is doing it all: juggling her personal life, her business program, and being president of the Durham College-UOIT Rotaract club.
She came to the club three years ago at the invitation of past-president and high school friend Christine Dabrowski.
From attending events, she found the club a place where she belonged.
“I really enjoyed it,” she said. “The whole atmosphere and how positive everyone was. From there I just kept volunteering.”
The club’s purpose is to raise awareness about humanitarian issues. Each semester has a specific focus and this semester’s is human trafficking.
Human trafficking is a crime that involves exploitation. McNamara said that there are about 10,000 child prostitutes in Canada.
The event on March 26 encouraged students to write on a white paper bag and set them in a luminary. The drama club performed monologues of victims suffering from enslavement.
It also hosted an event called “Slice of Life” at E.P. Taylor’s on March 19.. Five spokespersons educated tables of students about their personal experiences or involvement with the HIV/AIDS.
As well, Rotaract has helped at Rib Fest with Oshawa Parkwood Rotary as part of its volunteering efforts in the community.
Last year, the club also posted a peace photo contest on its Facebook page. It encouraged people internationally to post a picture of their form of peace. It received 180 submissions, according to McNamara.
“The club has served as an active volunteering component to Durham Region,” she said.
Last year, Rotaract also helped Ajax Rotary with Kids Against Hunger and packed more than 40,000 packages with more than a hundred volunteers in assembly lines.
The club also participates in Oshawa Skate-a-thon helping the Uxbridge Secondary School with its Interact club.
