Many people know vaguely that most of the money raised goes back into the town in the form of grants, as there are three large posters in the shop saying so. 

They also know that we are all volunteers, with no-one being paid. But what really happens?

Did you know, for example, that during 2023 so far we have given grants to 23 clubs and societies, totalling more than £14,000? And that we hold back another £5,000 to be used as donations for disasters, with a limit of £2,000 at any one time?

All this is done on behalf of the people of Launceston. We would like to be more open and accountable to our customers and to the town, and so Launceston Rotary would like to ask whether it would be possible to put an article in the Cornish and Devon newspaper in the next few weeks to sum up the year’s activities, and then to follow it up with occasional shorter summaries of grants made, with names of the recipients and the amounts given. It would depend on how frequently we made grants, but possibly every two or three months.

Our shop is almost unique in its purpose; there is more to tell you than this brief summary allows, and we hope it will be possible to reach a wider audience.

Sandra Maizels

Rotarian shop manager

Launceston