The Rotary Club of North Atlanta

Chamblee High School 2026 graduates receiving their scholarships from North Atlanta Rotary Club Treasurer Barbara Bush. Congratulations Graduates!
Three of our four recipients are members of the Chamblee High School Interact Club, a service club sponsored by the North Atlanta Rotary Club.
We have given scholarships to CHS graduates each year over the last 12 years for a total of $75,500.

Today we celebrated being recognized at the District 6900 Conference in Catagory I Clubs. President Catherine shared the awards for highest per capita giving to the Rotary Foundation, Public Image award, her Sheffield Leadership award, PP Dr. Ralph Peeler’s Service Hero award, and several other club awards recognizing our contributions toward bettering this world, locally and globally through Rotary.

We also recognized several Paul Harris fellows today. Catherine Bernard and Pat Thomas received their first Paul Harris fellow pins, and PP Ralph Sims and PP Ralph Peeler received their new multiple Paul Harris fellow pins.

We have lost a good man, fellow long time Rotarian, Major Donor, husband, father, and friend with the passing of Dr Tom Friedrichs. Rest in Peace Tom. May your memory be a blessing 🙏🏻

We lost a true giant, who was also an honorary member of the Rotary Club of North Atlanta.

Dr. William [Bill] Foege was a genuine hero, credited with saving millions of lives from smallpox. His smallpox campaign is a landmark success story in global public health and disease eradication, documented in his book, "House on Fire."

He co-founded the Task Force for Global Health in Decatur -- the largest non-profit in the USA. The Task Force maintains a very low profile, in keeping with Forge's humility – and that is why they are not more widely recognized for their worldwide public health initiatives.

When Dr. Foege spoke to our club, he had a commanding, peaceful and humble presence, reminding me of Abraham Lincoln. It's not hyperbole – and I don't think it's a delusion – to claim that his righteous energy would fill any room he inhabited with a gentle aura of power and goodwill. Others felt it too.

The contrast between what motivated him and what seems to motivate our current healthcare "leaders" couldn't be starker. But he leaves an example and legacy of what can be accomplished through goodwill, collaboration, intelligence & innovation.

Our world is less bright with his passing and the loss is keen.

He will be sorely missed.

This past week with the help of District Governor Steve Ivory and PDG and District Foundation Chair Bob Hagen, we celebrated some of our very own exceptional club members for their dedication and commitment to the practice of Service Above Self.

We recognized three new Rotary Foundation Major Donors: Tom and Kathy Friedrichs, Mike and Kay Emanuel, and Christopher and Stacy Drew, and one new Major Donor II: Don and Starr Millen.

Club Rotary Foundation Chair Dr Ralph Peeler was also recognized by DG Ivory for his outstanding commitment to service, in particular for his leadership in the Prevention of Spina Bifida Global Grant project now in its third year.

R.I. President Arezzo to visit North Atlanta’s Global Grant Project in Ethiopia

“When spiders unite, they can tie up a lion” – Ethiopian Proverb

When Rotary International President Francesco Arezzo and wife Anna Maria visit Rotary Ethiopia this month, they will see the Rotary Club of North Atlanta’s (RCNA) global grant project first-hand – the sole project chosen for their visit.

Joined by two Rotary clubs in the United States and two in Addis Ababa, the RCNA is beginning the third year of a five-year initiative to prevent serious birth defects such as spina bifida, which are associated with a lack of an inexpensive vitamin (B9, or folic acid) in maternal diets.

Spina bifida occurs when part of the spinal cord lies outside of the vertebrae. It belongs to a group of related conditions called neural tube defects or NTDs. Children born with an NTD often die at birth. Even if initially saved by prompt and essential neurosurgery, they may still face a difficult, shortened life with disability.

To prevent this problem, women need sufficient folic acid in their diets before they become pregnant and during the first trimester. Those who have already given birth to a child with an NTD face a 10X risk of having another child with these disabilities, and Ethiopia has one of the highest NTD rates in the world. The tragedy is that some 75% of these birth defects can be prevented by preconception consumption of the vitamin.

The purpose of the global grant project is to provide women who have already had a child with an NTD with supplemental high-dose folic acid tablets initially purchased from a firm in India. The high-risk cohort was identified from the records of local hospitals in Addis Ababa. The program follows these mothers to determine the effect and impact of the intervention during the program’s five-year duration.

The Rotary Club of North Atlanta, RC Addis Ababa Central Mella, and RC Addis Ababa West are distributing over 1.8 million high-dose folic acid supplements, benefiting thousands of women and families in Ethiopia. In the third year, the program will expand to two more hospitals in the Tigray region, totaling six hospitals, with one hospital already having a waiting list of over 780 mothers. So far 2500 women have participated.

The project recently won the “Anna Award” for “Most Impressive Project” at the 2025 District 9212 Conference. Momentum is gaining towards sustainability: folic acid tablets are now being manufactured in Ethiopia, and the country has approved folic acid fortification of wheat and plans to introduce double-fortified salt with iodine and folic acid.

RCNA’s hope is that the R.I. president’s visit will highlight the need and viability of the project to the world of Rotary – and beyond.

Young and Older, we all had a festive fun time gathering for the holidaze❣️

We enjoyed our annual dictionary distribution program at Doraville United Elementary and Cary Reynolds Elementary schools! North Atlanta Rotary members purchased English and Spanish-English dictionaries for 3rd grade students to keep. Each dictionary includes a sticker with the Rotary Four-Way Test and a space for the student to write their own name.

What a treat to spend time with these great students, teachers, and librarians! We love to serve our community.

https://medium.com/.yaeger/remembering-godfrey-64846eb370f0

Remembering Godfrey His gap-toothed smile, genuine warmth, and cheerful bonhomie was disarming enough to make you forget that you were in the presence of a…

Lucky 13! The weather held, no rain, no 90+ degree heat, and a breeze!

On Saturday, August 9th our community of Rotarians, Rotaractors, Lions, family, neighbors and friends came together to participate in the 13th Annual collection of Home Medical Equipment (HME) for Friends of Disabled Adults and Children, (FODAC.org)

Some 72 volunteers and 6 FODAC staff members gathered on the back patio at the 57th Fighter Group Restaurant for fellowship, food and organizing into our groups for the day. North Atlanta Rotary's Event Volunteer and Equipment Coordinator PP Ralph Sims quickly organized us into 11 groups which he sent out to make some 46 pick ups at homes around our broader community throughout East Atlanta, DeKalb County, Stone Mountain and Decatur. We picked up a variety of home medical equipment donated by very generous donors no longer in need; everything from power chairs, motorized scooters, hospital beds, rollators, hoyer lifts, toilet chairs & seats, braces, walkers, canes, shower chairs, therapy aides, medical supplies, and much more.

Verified numbers from FODAC are in! The total estimated value of the 314 donated items we picked is $521,121! WOW!! This is what a generous community of donors and volunteers can accomplish on a Saturday, all for the benefit of others in need. Thank you! Over the previous 12 years FODAC estimated the accumulated value of the HME picked up during our annual collection events to be $1,960,000. This brings our accumulated total over 13 years to $2,481,121!

Volunteers involved were from the Rotary Clubs of Atlanta Metro, Brookhaven, Decatur, Dunwoody, Emory Druid Hills, North Atlanta, Roswell, and Stone Mountain; along with members of the Atlanta Metro Rotaract Club, North DeKalb Lions Club, North American Indian Comm. Foundation, and the Future Promise Foundation. In addition to all the human power, we are thankful for all the Trucks, SUVs, Trailers, Vans, Cars, etc.. that were on hand to help us facilitate these pickups.

Below are just a few photos of some of our volunteers and donations. Our HUGE thank you to everyone and all organizations involved, including the 57th Fighter Group Restaurant for the use of their back patio and lower parking lot. This would not be possible without ALL of YOU!

How we began the day...