District 5330 Avenue of Service
Community Service
Addressing the needs of our local communities across Riverside and San Bernardino counties — together with the partners, neighbors, and youth who know those needs best.
Community Service is the avenue through which Rotarians improve the quality of life in the communities where they live and work. From food security and literacy to housing, health, and the environment, District 5330 clubs lead projects that respond to needs identified by their neighbors — partnering with schools, nonprofits, and local agencies to deliver lasting impact. The District supports clubs with a slate of signature focus areas, district-level grants, and an annual day of hands-on service.
District Community Service Committee
Beyond our six focus areas, these District chairs lead the programs that bring Community Service to life across Riverside and San Bernardino counties.
“Whatever Rotary may mean to us, to the world it will be known by the results it achieves.”
— Paul Harris, Rotary founderThrough community service, Rotary clubs in District 5330 turn compassion into action and create lasting change in the communities we call home.
What moves people to show up
Motivation for service is personal, but a few principles run through every project that lasts — worth keeping in mind as your club plans the year.
Passion & Values
Projects rooted in what your members already care about — seniors, youth, military families, food security — sustain the most energy over time.
Connection
People serve to feel connected. The strongest projects bring members shoulder-to-shoulder with their neighbors — and with each other.
Being Active
Build one or two hands-on, in-the-community events into your club calendar each year — not just fundraising, but rolling up your sleeves and showing up.
Where District 5330 clubs lead
Six signature areas where the District concentrates its time, grant funding, and partnerships. Click any card to learn more.
Disaster Preparedness
Helping clubs, families, and neighborhoods get ready for the wildfires, earthquakes, and storms that come with life in Southern California.
Rotarian at Work Day
One Saturday each year, every club in the District rolls up its sleeves on a hands-on project — gloves on, tools out, community first.
Rotary Friends / Wallis Jones Grant
District grants that pair Rotary clubs with high-school youth groups to serve senior citizens and people with disabilities.
Empowering Girls
A Rotary International presidential initiative carried forward locally — club projects that expand opportunity, safety, education, and leadership for girls.
Mental Health
Breaking stigma and connecting people to care — from suicide prevention and youth wellness programs to first-responder support.
Veterans
Honoring service and meeting real needs — housing, jobs, recognition, and connection for the veterans and military families who live in our District.
Disaster Preparedness
Wildfires in the Inland Empire, earthquakes along the San Jacinto and San Andreas faults, atmospheric-river flooding, and prolonged power outages — our District lives with real disaster risk. Rotary clubs across District 5330 partner with local fire, emergency management, and CERT teams to make preparedness practical at the household and neighborhood level: go-bag drives, smoke-detector installs, “map your neighborhood” workshops, and ShakeOut participation.
The District encourages every club to identify one preparedness activity each year — whether that is sponsoring a CERT class, hosting a community fair with the local fire district, or assembling preparedness kits for vulnerable neighbors. Interested? Contact the Community Service Chair above to be connected with clubs already running these programs.
Rotarian at Work Day
One Saturday each spring, clubs across District 5330 step away from the meeting room and into the community for Rotarian at Work Day — a coordinated day of hands-on service. Projects look different from city to city: trail restoration in the San Bernardino National Forest, painting a senior center in Riverside, packing food boxes in the High Desert, building beds for kids in the foster system, beach cleanups in Temecula Valley.
What unites them is the spirit: gloves on, tools out, neighbors served. Clubs are encouraged to invite family, Interactors, and Rotaractors — and to share photos with the District for the year-end recap. Watch the District & Club News page each spring for the next date.
Rotary Friends — the Wallis Jones Grant
The Rotary Friends program is made possible by a gift from Rotarian Wallis C. Jones, a charter member of the Rotary Club of San Bernardino East (now Highland), and the Wallis C. and Mildred S. Jones Trust. The grant has funded District 5330 service projects every year since 1998.
The model is deliberately intergenerational: to receive a Wallis Jones grant, a Rotary club must partner with an organized high-school-age youth group — Interact, Scouts, Explorers, ASB, JROTC, or a religious youth group — on a project that visits, assists, or interacts with senior citizens or people with disabilities. Past projects include Interact-led senior proms, holiday celebrations at skilled nursing facilities, smoke-detector installs in retirement villages, wheelchair refurbishment days, and ongoing blanket drives.
How it works
- Your club and the youth group plan and execute the project together — both Rotarians and youth must be present during the activity.
- Grant funds must be used to benefit seniors or people with disabilities.
- The project should conclude with some form of recognition — a commemorative plaque, a local press release, photos to share with the District.
- A closing summary report is due 45 days after the project completes.
Application window
Applications are typically accepted September 15 – October 31 each Rotary year, and reviewed after the closing date. Projects must take place during the Rotary year in which they are funded. See full details and apply on the Wallis Jones Grant page.
Empowering Girls
Empowering Girls began as a Rotary International presidential initiative and has become a sustained area of focus across District 5330. The premise is simple: when girls have access to education, mentorship, health care, and safety, entire communities grow stronger.
Local club projects have included girls-in-STEM workshops, period-poverty supply drives for Title I schools, scholarships for first-generation college students, self-defense and confidence-building seminars, and partnerships with shelters serving survivors of trafficking and domestic violence. Clubs interested in launching a project can contact the Community Service Chair for connections and project templates.
Mental Health
Mental health is a District-wide priority. Rotary clubs in 5330 partner with NAMI affiliates, school districts, county behavioral-health departments, faith communities, and first-responder agencies to break stigma and connect neighbors to care.
Recent project themes include youth wellness and suicide prevention in middle and high schools, QPR (Question, Persuade, Refer) gatekeeper training for club members and teachers, peer-support and resilience programs for first responders, and community forums that bring providers and families into the same room. If your club is exploring a mental-health initiative, the Community Service Chair can help you find local partners.
Veterans
Riverside and San Bernardino counties are home to a large and active veteran community, including the families serving at March Air Reserve Base, NAWS China Lake, and the Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center at Twentynine Palms. District 5330 clubs honor that service by meeting real, practical needs.
Club projects include support for veteran housing and transitional shelters, Stand Down events that connect veterans with services, hiring and resume programs, recognition luncheons, and care packages for deployed service members. Many clubs also partner with the VA Loma Linda Healthcare System and local VFW and American Legion posts. Contact the Community Service Chair to plug into a project near you.
Across the District
Snapshots from recent club projects across Riverside and San Bernardino counties.
Project ideas to get started
Not sure where to begin? These are proven, repeatable projects clubs across District 5330 already run — pick one that fits your members and your community.
Organize it like a program, not a one-off
Clubs that sustain service often split the work across standing committees. The Temecula Rotary Club, for example, runs Military, Senior, Youth, and Bridge (homeless outreach) committees alongside its holiday food-box, toy-drive, and community-dinner efforts — so no single project depends on one person, and members can plug into the area they care about most.
Bring a Community Service project to life.
If your club is planning a project — or you’d like to start one — reach out. We’ll help you find partners, grant funding through Rotary Friends and District grants, and recognition opportunities across District 5330.