For three years the Kingston Rotary golf challenge participants swung to raise money to install lights on the Kingston High playing fields. With the success of this effort, the club plans to direct the 2010 tourney toward the theme “Swing for Rotary.” The club is very active in the community and money raised this year will directly help with many projects and programs.

The challenge will be June 18 at the White Horse Golf Course. Team sign up has already begun and will continue until the playing field is full. Registration forms are available at www.kingston-nkrotary.org.

In other Rotary news this month, the Kingston club has worked on two local initiatives. One is for high school students and the other for preschool students.

Club members Don Hutchins and Randy Monlux joined Poulsbo Rotarian Steve Garfein, members of the Project Management Institute, to bring formal training in project management to secondary/high schools. The institute is a 300,000-member international professional association with chapters in 185 countries. This Poulsbo Rotary Club initiative is being developed in conjunction with the institute’s Educational Foundation, the North Kitsap School District, Kingston Rotary Club and District 5020.

The 45-hour, 36-session pilot course started Feb. 9 at North Kitsap High School and is taught by senior project managers from the two Rotary Clubs to students in grades nine through 12 who are in a student leadership class. There are 32 students enrolled. Skills and knowledge include student career options, communications, creativity, presentations and conflict mediation.

Potential in the future include certification from the institute and college credit for graduates, program expansion in the United States, then internationally, and possible future Rotary Fellowship status. The club will next roll this out at Kingston High.

For the Kingston Co-op Preschool, the club plans to work with the school to construct a wheelchair/handicap accessible ramp in the back of its building as well as replacing or rebuilding an aging porch deck in both the front and the back with railings that are up to code and kid friendly. This endeavor has been identified by the club as a major local hammer swinging project. The preschool celebrated the 100th anniversary of the schoolbuilding. It’s a school that many of Kingston’s youth attend from ages 3 to 6.

Editor’s Note: Brad Camp has taken over as Kingston Rotary Club scribe as former Rotary writer Chris Case has taken a position with the Port of Bremerton. The Community News thanks Case for her contributions.