The Summit County Rotary Charitable Fund

Transforming Lives Through Service Above Self

For decades, the Summit County Rotary Charitable Fund has been a cornerstone of community support in Colorado's high country, embodying Rotary's motto of "Service Above Self" through tangible action and meaningful impact. As the 501(c)(3) nonprofit arm of the Summit County Rotary Club, we operate as a volunteer-led organization that bridges local community needs with global humanitarian efforts.

From providing winter coats to 700 local children and serving over 200,000 free community dinners since 2009, to awarding over $50,000 annually in educational scholarships and hosting international exchange students from around the world, our work touches every corner of Summit County while extending our reach to communities across the globe. Through comprehensive literacy programs, youth leadership development, emergency disaster relief, and our contribution to the near-eradication of polio worldwide, we demonstrate that small mountain communities can create extraordinary change when united by a shared commitment to service.

Every donation to the Summit County Rotary Charitable Fund directly supports programs that strengthen our local community while addressing critical humanitarian needs worldwide—proving that the spirit of service knows no boundaries.

Educational Excellence & Youth Development

Scholarship Program

Education serves as the great engine of personal development, and we believe every local student should be equipped to give back to their community. In 2025, we awarded $55,000 in scholarships to 22 local students pursuing higher education at colleges of their choosing, plus 12 additional scholarships to students at Colorado Mountain College's Breckenridge and Dillon campuses.

Working in partnership with The Summit Foundation and Colorado Mountain College Charitable Fund, we support students who demonstrate service and leadership qualities. Our scholarships particularly focus on first-generation college students, those pursuing technical fields, and students involved in Rotary activities. We're proud to offer the Meg Boyer Memorial Scholarship in partnership with The Summit Daily News, honoring a former publisher and Rotarian while supporting female students pursuing journalism or business degrees.

Youth Exchange Program

Our comprehensive Youth Exchange program creates global citizens and lasting international friendships. Each year, we sponsor one or two international high school students who attend school in Summit County while living with three carefully selected host families throughout the academic year. We've welcomed remarkable young ambassadors from Spain, Brazil, Austria, Japan, Turkey, Switzerland, Romania, and many other countries.

Summit County students also have transformative opportunities to spend a year abroad through our outbound exchange program, with past participants experiencing life-changing adventures in the Czech Republic, Denmark, Argentina, New Zealand, Taiwan, and other fascinating destinations worldwide.

Youth Leadership Development

Through our Rotary Youth Leadership Awards (RYLA) program, we sponsor high school sophomores and juniors for intensive leadership training at the beautiful YMCA of the Rockies in Estes Park. Our Young RYLA program serves 288 seventh-grade participants across two summer sessions, helping young people develop essential skills in an atmosphere of trust and respect while addressing real community issues.

Literacy & Learning Initiatives

Comprehensive Literacy Programs

Our commitment to literacy spans all ages and learning stages throughout Summit County. Through our "Reading Buddy" program, volunteers are paired with students at all six elementary schools to support developing reading skills with encouragement and personalized attention.

The Rotary Summer Reads program provides third-grade students with personally selected books reflecting Rotary values for summer reading. Since 2012, we've provided literacy grants to Summit School District classrooms, libraries, and home providers, plus funding for The Peak School and Summit County Preschools to build learning centers, purchase books, and create bilingual libraries.

Our Family Literacy Fairs, held twice yearly in partnership with Early Childhood Options, Family Intercultural Resource Center, Colorado Mountain College, and Head Start, provide free books to young children and families. We also donate children's books to schools and libraries throughout the county in honor of our weekly speakers—over 540 books donated since 2008.

Creative Expression & Global Literacy

Each spring, we sponsor short story and poetry contests for high school students in partnership with The Summit Daily News, awarding $5,800 in prizes to winners who share their creative works at our meetings. Our innovative Intergenerational Story Telling Project pairs adults at Timberline Adult Care Center with students from The Peak School, creating meaningful connections across generations.

Internationally, we support the Belize Education Fund and Guatemala Literacy Project, providing textbooks, reading materials, and computers to impoverished schools through partnerships with North American and Guatemalan Rotary clubs.

Community Care & Support Programs

Adopt-An-Angel Program

Every child deserves to stay warm during Colorado's harsh winters. Through our Adopt-An-Angel program, we provide essential winter coats to children in Summit County who would otherwise go without. This heartwarming initiative serves approximately 400 families with 700 children each year during our Holiday campaign. While Summit Rotary purchases the coats, our community partners with us through the Angel Ornament program at participating local retailers, where generous individuals donate toys. Families gather at the Silverthorne Pavilion to collect these gifts and wrap them for Christmas, creating magical holiday moments for children throughout our mountain community.

Local Grants Program

We support dozens of local organizations through our quarterly grants process, funding projects that demonstrate clear community benefit, long-term impact, and service to Summit County residents. Recent grantees include Summit Community Care Clinic, Keystone Science School, Summit County Senior Center, Tree Top Child Advocacy, Breckenridge Outdoor Education Center, and many other vital community organizations working to strengthen our mountain communities.

Community Dinner

Since 2009, we've proudly nourished our community, serving over 200,000 FREE community dinners to residents and visitors alike. Every Tuesday evening from 5:00 to 7:00 PM at the Elks Lodge in Silverthorne, we open our doors to all community members—no questions asked, no requirements needed. This vital service ensures that no one in our community goes hungry while fostering connections and strengthening the bonds that make Summit County special. Your donation directly supports this ongoing commitment to community care and hospitality.

Global Humanitarian Impact

Polio Eradication

We are proud partners in one of the most successful public health campaigns in history. For more than 35 years, Rotary has led the charge to eliminate polio worldwide, and we are closer than ever to achieving this monumental goal. As a founding partner of the Global Polio Eradication Initiative, Rotary International has helped reduce polio cases by an astounding 99.9 percent since the first vaccination project in the Philippines in 1979.

Rotary members globally have contributed more than $2.1 billion and countless volunteer hours to protect nearly 3 billion children across 122 countries from this paralyzing disease. Our advocacy efforts have influenced governments to contribute over $10 billion to this critical mission. Today, polio remains endemic only in Afghanistan and Pakistan, but continued vigilance is essential. Without ongoing eradication efforts, polio could paralyze as many as 200,000 children annually within just a decade.

ShelterBox Emergency Relief

When natural disasters strike, families often find themselves without adequate shelter for weeks or months. Through our partnership with ShelterBox, your donation helps us deploy emergency shelter solutions to disaster-affected areas worldwide. Each ShelterBox contains essential survival tools, blankets, cooking equipment, dishes, water purification systems, and other critical supplies designed to keep a family of 10 protected from the elements while they work to rebuild their lives and communities.

Join Our Mission

The Summit County Rotary Charitable Fund represents the collective compassion and generosity of our mountain community. Whether supporting local families through Adopt-An-Angel, nourishing neighbors at our Community Dinners, contributing to global polio eradication, or providing emergency shelter relief worldwide, every donation makes a tangible difference in the lives of those we serve.

Together, we embody Rotary's motto of "Service Above Self," creating positive change that extends from our beautiful Summit County mountains to communities around the globe.