Rotary Club of Star Valley is hosting their annual fundraiser as a Fall Festival. Formerly called Oktoberfest, this event offers a traditional bratwurst meal on Thursday, September 3 in the Community Barn of the Star Valley Ranch R.V. Resort. Doors open at 5 p.m. with dinner served at 5:30.

Rotary Club is an international organization with a long-standing tradition to support local and global efforts in sustaining good and worthy causes through the dedication of local chapters. Hope Bell, representing The Rotary Club of Star Valley, shared details about the club, their work and this fundraiser.

Tomorrow’s event will feature a meal of bratwurst, sauerkraut, potato salad and a dessert. Tickets are $15. Drinks will be available for purchase in beer and wine gardens. An evening where folks can enjoy socializing and supporting the club’s work, guests will find a variety of desirable items to purchase through silent auction, which will close at 7 p.m.

Proceeds from the evening go to several projects that  The Rotary Club of Star Valley has organized and chosen to support. “We do things in our community and internationally,” said Bell. “We do roadside cleanup and we just recently started an eye care fund partnering with Voss Vision and Lower Valley Vision in Thayne. We have provided funds to give people the opportunity to go in and get eye care who can’t afford it.”

Rotary has a Breast Care Fund in which they partner with Star Valley Health to support women and men who are unable to afford needed mammograms. The club provides a dictionary to every third-grade student in the community, and they select the Rotary Student of the Month, which puts those students in a position to receive scholarship funds from Rotary.

“I love seeing those applications come in,” said Bell. “Seniors can submit that [application] through the counseling office. You do not need a 4.0 to get that. We provide scholarships at the end of the year to those students of the month.” All the money raised from the Fall Festival goes directly into these programs.

“I love Rotary,” said Bell. “It’s just a way to give back to the community. You do not have to be at every meeting and it’s such a fabulous way to be involved. I thought it was just for businesses but it’s on a larger scale. You meet people that you didn’t know and can [network with]. I went to Casper last year and met some extraordinary people. [The whole program] puts you in places that you didn’t know were possible.”

Bell encourages anyone to attend the festival if they are interested in becoming involved in helping the Star Valley community with the kinds of projects that Rotary of Star Valley supports.

“Come and put some money down,” said Bell. “It is helping our community and helping where it is needed. We are always looking to expand and help more where we can.”