Cupertino Rotary's Helping Hands

Thank you to the Rotary Club of Cupertino for generously donating $25,000 to fund Marine Science Institute’s (MSI) Waterfront Education Center Upgrades Project. More than 30 Cupertino Rotarians gave their own sweat and muscles to complete the project in time for school arrivals for our Fall 2018 science programs. Each year, Cupertino Rotary hosts their Annual Golf Classic benefiting a local nonprofit organization. In January 2018, the Cupertino Rotary selected MSI among several applicants as the primary beneficiary.

With the leadership of Rotarian Bill Allen and MSI’s Aquarist and Facilities Engineer Jesus Jimenez, the project began with a dozen Cupertino Rotarians volunteering on-site on June 8 to install shade structures in our Welcome Zone and Activity Lawn. In early September, approximately 20 more volunteers came out to conclude the project by building and installing 12 benches and installing another shade structure to complete the upgrades to our outdoor Amphitheater. Former science teacher and Rotary Membership Committee Chair, April Bignell, chose to volunteer at the MSI project specifically. She said, "I wanted to see the facility and enjoy the hands-on volunteer activities like this."

Our Waterfront Education Center Upgrades Project was a direct response to the needs expressed by teachers and children who come to our campus for programs, and to the needs expressed by our own instructors for safer and more secure benches for the children, and augmented shade to protect everyone who enjoys our campus. We cannot thank the Cupertino Rotary enough for their generous support and physical efforts onsite to make the project a reality for the tens of thousands of children we serve each year.