Rotary Pago Pago Applauded at District Conference

April 10, 2024 - The Rotary Club of Pago Pago attended the annual District 9920 conference this past weekend and brought back awards and accolades.

9920 DG Vineeta Nand, ASCC Rotaract Pres. Vanessa Covarrubias & RCPP Pres. Cherith Soliai

This year’s conference was held in Denarau, Fiji and was attended by Rotarians from 7 countries including Samoa, American Samoa, New Zealand, Cook Islands, Tahiti and Fiji.

A contingent of 18 Rotarians travelled from American Samoa including members of the Rotary Club of Pago Pago, Rotaract Club of Pago Pago and Rotaract Club of American Samoa Community College.

Attendees were treated to a weekend of presentations addressing a variety of community needs and issues including Rheumatic Heart Disease, drinking water for remote villages, mental health and environmental stewardship.

The newly commissioned Rotaract Club of American Samoa Community College was honored at the conference. Rotary District Governor Vineeta Nand presented the club’s charter to President Vanessa Covarrubias who was in attendance along with Vice President Athena Polu.

The Rotary Club of Pago Pago was twice honored. The club was presented with the Colty Cup; which is awarded annually to the club with most attendees at the conference. This is the fifth year the Pago Pago Rotarians have held the cup including 1973, 1979, 1980 and 1988. Rotary Club of Pago Pago was honored for its donations to the International End Polio Now Fund.

RCPP President Cherith Soliai gives her thoughts:

The District Conference was a first time attendance for most of our Pago Rotarians and it was a wonderful experience to engage with People of Action in our Oceania region. Most of us have only met on Zoom conferences. We witnessed some amazing projects in Fiji especially the Koropita Homes, where Rotary and the Fiji Government have built over 1000 homes for the low income families. Other Clubs got to see the vibrant energy that our Pago Pago Rotarians brought to the Conference and it was a bonus to walk away with the Colty Attendance Cup as well as being acknowledged for our financial contributions to Ending Polio and the Rotary Foundation. It was a win for our American Samoa Community who constantly support our efforts to create Hope and make life better for everyone. Fa'afetai Amerika Samoa!