Even prior to COVID19 shutdowns, select members of the Plano East Rotary club have been leading the effort towards a 100% virtual Rotary experience. This effort is referred to an “eClub,” in anticipation of its spinning off, once the required numbers are reached.
Rotary eClub | WOKE has partnered with the Rotary Club of Denton and RETUS Tours, which when translated stands for the Network of Women Entrepreneurs in Sustainable Tourism in Turrialba, Costa Rica. Turrialba was once a flourishing town and a direct stop on the train that ran between the capital, San Jose, and a southern Caribbean tourist town, Puerto Viejo. In the 1990s, a terrible earthquake destroyed Costa Rica's rail system, and Turrialba residents lost much of their income. Residents have taken action with the help of Rotary to rebuild the economic stability with an emerging, community-based ecotourism industry. Since mid 2019, Liza Larson and Lynne McNamee of Rotary eClub | WOKE have supported the efforts with one-on-one English mentoring, website and brochure strategy and copywriting, and general organizational support. After a year of support, RETUS Tours is proud to have launched their redesigned website (www.retustours.com) and was featured as the cover story in the May issue of The Rotarian magazine.