When Portland Pearl Rotarian Jordan Weisman returned to Nepal last month on his fourth visit to the mountainous Asian country, he celebrated the culmination of a Rotary service project.

First in Nepal in 2000 on a student program from a college in Vermont, Weisman was back to observe–and champion–the $60,000 installation of solar energy at a rural hospital. Over the past two years, Weisman, as chair of Pearl Rotary’s international service committee, has spearheaded the effort to greatly expand electricity at the Bayalpata Hospital.

With the increased power, Weisman told his fellow Rotarians March 26, “They are opening up a new surgery ward. With the solar power inked to the surgical room, they will be able to perform life-saving surgeries.”

Weisman’s visits to Nepal, he said, “have changed my life.” Now with a steady and reliable power supply at the rural hospital, the lives of the 30,000 Nepalese served annually will be changed, even saved.

Under the youthful Rotarian’s leadership, the project was formed with support from three area Rotary Clubs, District 5100, and, significantly, four companies in the solar business (including Weisman’s Sunbridge Solar). Connections were made with the Dhulikhel Rotary Club in Katmandu Valley, District 3292. Nepal’s Nyaya Health NGO committed $12,300. Weisman’s club, through its non-profit Pearl Fund, donated $4,350.

Armed with this multitude of partners, Pearl Rotary successfully sought a Rotary Foundation grant, totaling $20,525.

The result: The western Nepal hospital, which had been operating daily on four to six hours of generator-produced electricity, now has a steady, reliable source of power for its patient area, operating room and administrative office.

Weisman’s five-hour visit in February came after an internal Nepal flight and an eleven-hour car ride over hilly terrain. At the hospital, he was accompanied by Ashok Shrestha, Dhulikhel’s immediate past president, and an assistant district governor. They were greeted by Stephen Peterson, a native of Upstate New York, who has served as chief administrator the past four months.

Weisman’s Powerpoint, with video clips, brought club members and guests–including two Nepalese studying at Portland State University–into the hospital. Patients with severe lung conditions who need oxygen concentrators will not have to wait for electricity. Caesarean-expected mothers will not have to make an arduous trek like Weisman experienced. Operations can be scheduled with far more assurance that power will be available.

Weisman stressed that the project is both sustainable and saves money. A Nepali has been trained to operate and maintain the panels and battery system, assuring both constant supply and longevity of the system. And costly diesel-powered generators are far less needed.

“Without solar, the only option has been generators. But diesel is really, really pricy. Only twenty hours of generator use was used in the last two months since the solar array was installed…

“The financial impact is pretty significant. It was costing about $100 a day to run generators (about ten hours average). That’s $2,500 a month, $30,000 a year. Now that can be spent to hire a doctor, increase salaries. Eventually, this will result in better patient care.”

Weisman’s visit culminated at the hospital with a formal event, with an American flag prominently hanging and Peterson, the director, making a formal dedication. Both, joined by the two Nepali Rotarians, spoke.

Weisman will long remember those momets: “We then handed over plaques. The hospital staff was all present. It was very heartfelt.”

Commentary on the Nepal solar project

“Things like this Nepal project make you proud to be a Rotarian.”
–Dave Haack, president, Portland Pearl Rotary Club

“Thanks to you ([Jordan] that you went there. Thanks for doing such a great thing for the community who are living there and for my country as a whole.”
–Lisha Shrestha, graduate student from Nepal, Portland State University

“What has this meant for us? When I first came here in November, I remember the nights just worrying about patients. We had so many people with COPD on O2 and our solar [original system referring to battery bank] was down to 20% and 15% because we just had no alternatives, otherwise we have no oxygen. I was running around shouting at people, “Turn this light off, turn off that heater.” We were trying to conserve. And now I’m sleeping a little bit better. We have other problems but at least this one’s finished. Not just for my sleep but for the ability to serve our patients, this has been a really tremendous blessing. Thank you again. Thank you very much.”
–Stephen Peterson, administrator, Bayalpata Hospital

“I’m continuously impressed with the power of Rotary’s ‘compounding effect’ when it comes to matching grants for service projects! It’s amazing how a Rotary Club in the Pacific Northwest USA can come together with another in western Nepal and literally improve and save lives for years to come. It warms my heart to serve with Portland Pearl Rotarians like Jordan and his international service committee for projects such as this one in Nepal. This is why we are Rotarians!”
–Lou Radja, immediate past president, Pearl Rotary Club

Rotaract symposium a month away: Roberts, former governor, is keynote

The first and only female governor of Oregon, Barbara Roberts, will be the keynote speaker Saturday, Feb. 23, at the Peace through Women Symposium sponsored by Portland Rotaract. Joining her on the agenda will be Grace Kuto, Kenyan native and Portland resident.

Today, “women are making history,” proclaimed Roberts (governor from 1991-95), when speaking to Pearl Rotary last April (see photo). That situation is “oceans apart” from what she knew growing up in small-town Oregon where it took trips to the public library for her to find female heroes like Amelia Earhart and Susan B. Anthony.

Roberts was Oregon’s 34th governor and has recently published an autobiography, “Up the Capital Steps.” She is a former majority leader of the House of Representatives, served as Oregon Secretary of State, and has been active in local and county government in Portland.

Joining Roberts at the Smith Memorial Student Union Ballroom are two former and current Rotary district governors: Dean Rohrs, 2007-2008, District 5040, and Deniel Banks, District 5100. The medical and public health sectors will be represented. A panel from the Students for Change Club at West Salem High School is planned.

One additional speaker is Grace Kuto, Kenyan native and Portland resident, who created the Harambee Center in 1995 as a bridge between the Pacific Northwest and her village in Kenya. The Harambee non-profit focuses on education, cultural exchange programs, and self-sustainable projects, including micro-credit, in Africa.

Joining Gov. Roberts, the Rotary governors and Kuto on the program:

• Dr. Suzanne Feeney, a PSU professor, who has background in India, women and microcredit;
• Jennifer Gallardo and Desiree LaFave, MamaBaby Haiti, a Newberg-based non-profit whose goal is decreasing maternal and infant mortality.

Portland Rotaract President Krystle Miller quoted female American peace activist Eleanor Roosevelt “to highlight what we are trying to do with our Peace through Women event. ‘For it isn’t enough to talk about peace. One must believe in it. And it isn’t enough to believe in it. One must work at it.’

“Last year we had a wonderful turnout and we expect the same this year. In order to further peace, it is important to recognize and learn from what has already been done. Women have historically been overlooked and they are important advocates for the peace movement.”

Pearl Rotary and Portland Rotaract staged their first program, Peace through Education, in February 2012. For the second event, Rotaract has taken the lead.

Past PPRC President Lou Radja serves as Pearl Rotary’s liaison to the PSU Rotaract Club. Observed Radja: “Women hold up ‘half the sky’ and we are thrilled that the spotlight this year will be on our mothers, sisters and daughters for their incredible contribution towards peace! Let’s make this symposium the most impact full yet!”

Sessions at the Smith Memorial Student Union Ballroom will run from 10 a.m.-3 p.m. They are open to the public at a cost of $35 per person, $15 for students. Registration is available online at www.portlandrotaract.org.

A Ben & Jerry’s ice cream social will follow, sponsored by S.D. Deacon (a contractor represented in Pearl Rotary by Pat Mahoney).

Pearl Rotarians experienced the internationality of Rotary Jan. 7 when Jordan Weisman shared pictures from Nepal of the project we initiated to install solar energy at a remote hospital in the mountains of Nepal.

Bayalpata Hospital in western Nepal serves a population of 250,000, in the past with a power supply that lasted just four hours. PRRC through Jordan’s international service committee has successfully completed a $60,000 project–with significant assistance from twoDistrict 5100 Rotary Clubs (Seaside, Portland), businesses connected to solar energy, District 5100 and a major Rotary Foundation matching grant.

Our club’s total contribution through the Pearl Fund: $4,350.

(In addition to Rotary-generated dollars, four business entities contributed a total of $4,500. Joining Jordan’s Sunbridge Solar were Synchro Solar, Portland; Glode Med, Evanston, Ill.; and Organolawn, Boulder, Colo.)

“The solar installation will enable the hospital to do a whole lot more work,” Jordan (speaking, in picture) said. “I get excited when I look at these photos.”

He shared images of the actual installation of 36 panels–which will create up to two days of power supply. Among the areas expanded will be a women’s health center, ultrasound services and a new surgical theater.

“The hospital serves small villages throughout the hills,” Jordan added. “People can walk for days to visit.

“This area gets 300 days of sun, at a high elevation. Solar works ideally.”

Jordan plans a mid-February visit–which will require plane rides and a 15-hour trip “over bumpy roads.” And what will he see first-hand and then share with Pearl Rotarians? Perhaps President Dave Haack said it best (after Jordan spoke):

“We definitely will change lives and save lives.”