North Cobb Rotarians spent a week serving alongside Kidz2Leaders, an Atlanta-based nonprofit whose Camp Hope summer camp serves children of incarcerated parents — one of the most difficult adverse childhood experiences a kid can face. Campers attend each summer, building lifelong friendships and trusting relationships that help break the cycle of incarceration, with some graduates even coming back years later as counselors. Club volunteers were there from start to finish: loading in supplies, handling camper check-in and check-out, joining in activities with the kids throughout the week, and loading everything out when camp wrapped up. A week well spent investing in the futures of some remarkable young people!

The club also turned out in strong numbers at the KSU Marietta campus to unload the food truck, stock shelves, and break down boxes, ensuring the KSU CARES pantry was fully restocked for Kennesaw State University students facing food insecurity. The crew was joined by visiting Rotarian Fabio Solano of the Rotary Club of Belén in Costa Rica and newly inducted member Andy Tatnall, who jumped right into service. Rotary connections at work, from Costa Rica to Kennesaw!

And, neither summer heat nor 95-degree temperatures could keep North Cobb Rotarians from gathering at the Desktop Coworking Community in Kennesaw to package and load bags of food into vehicles, helping local families offset their grocery bills. By the end of the day, 65 families drove away with full bags and friendly smiles.