We know the arrival of fall can mean many things for our community members: getting your kids started with school, tending the gardens in preparation for spring, anticipating the joys of winter holidays, apple picking, wine making, and trying to remember that famous pickle or jam recipe our mothers and grandmothers lovingly prepared for our winter sustenance.

It’s a busy time in our lives, and we share these joys with you.

Here are some of the highlights of this month’s activities: Acest Proiect este realizat cu sprijinul Departamentului Pentru Romanii de Pretutindeni

ROCO Chicago Excelence Center 

This project is realized with the support of the State Department of Romanians Abroad

 1,000 members campaign has started

• The 1st ROCO Chapters meeting took place
  
• ROCO Biz has prepared an inspiring Entrepreneurship Networking Workshop

Our Partners in Romania

    We disbursed $39K to 3 partner organizations for their projects:

• Asociatia Monumentum with Tigla Doneaza Istorie salveaza
  
• Noi Orizonturi with Glittery School
• Parinti Salvatori with Saving Ukrainian Refugees
  

Via Transilvanica Official Launch

Romanian Blues Gala Updates

Welcome to ROCO!

You might already know that our signature project for this year has been to build and support the launch of the Romanian Community Center (ROCO) in Chicago.

With your support and that of many other donors and members, we’ve raised $129K and spent $154K on building the space and programming for the community members.

We have reached over 400 active members and are proud of how the Chicago community has come together for this project.

The fundraising campaign opened officially again on September 1st.

The 1st ROCO Chapters meeting occurred this past month with community members representing key areas like Business, Education, Fun & Sports, Arts & Culture, and Help & Info.

This served as an opportunity to get to know each other, and generate ideas for the future of the center and the programs that will have the most impact on the Chicago Romanian-American community and beyond.

ROCO Biz has prepared an inspiring Entrepreneurship Networking Workshop with opportunities to learn from, and network with successful business owners and professionals in the Chicago area.

“How to Start and Successfully Run a Small Business” will be held in person, on September 17, from 9:30 AM - 1:30 PM. Please visit the event page to learn more and reserve your spot.

This is just a glimpse of the energy and action galvanized by the ROCO Excellence Center and it is only the beginning.

We urge you to follow the ROCO Chicago Facebook page no matter where you are in the world, celebrate this, be inspired, and dream with us of the next ROCO. Will it be in your community?

Over $39K Was Sent to our Partners in Romania

We disbursed $18,750 to Asociatia Monumentum in support of the restoration of the Vermes Church which has witnessed 700 years of history.

Over 40 volunteers, experts, and architecture students came together for this project.

With the guidance of experts in crafting handmade shingles, volunteers practiced their calligraphic skills and every roof shingle has been engraved with the names of donors and is now ready to be carefully installed and witness the next centuries of history.

We transferred $8,200 in support of the Glittery School project by Noi Orizonturi.

The project has entered its 3rd year and intends to scale specialized literacy interventions among disadvantaged communities through weekly literacy clubs and an entertaining summer camp to help increase basic literacy skills and develop a positive self-concept.

For assisting the ongoing need for humanitarian assistance for refugees, we transferred $12,696 to Parinti Salvatori, for the project Saving Ukrainian Refugees.

The fundraise opened by Vasele Vlasin, the president of the ogranization, raise money that will be used for: the transport and delivery of food and medicine, fining safe and secure transportation means for the refugees and school transportation for the Ukrainian children in the Maramures region, and more based on need.

Official Launch of Via Transilvanica

Via Transilvanica has reached the FINAL milestone, quite literally!

The last milestone on the trail was installed and Alin Useriu started his hike after four and a half years of coordinating the project and bringing it to fruition. Not long after, Tibi Useiu started running together with a group of runners. You can follow them live HERE.

Congratulations to Alin and the entire Via Transilvanica team! The official launch will take place on October 8th in Alba Iulia.

Romanian Blues Gala Update

Great results after Romanian Blues Gala, from May 21st, 2022, our fantastic fundraising event dedicated to ROCO, Romanian Community Center!

We would like to thank all our committed sponsors, participants, and generous donors for your support and dedication to helping us offer our community an excellent Community Center.

One of the most important THANK YOUs goes to our volunteers and the wonderful people that helped us make this event possible:

• The Romanian Music Chicago Choir
• Nicoleta Roman, our passionate Music Director, and
• The ROCO Choir, led by the outstanding Codrut Barsan

Active Campaigns

Amazon Smile Campaign

Select RUF as your charity of choice on Amazon today.

If you use the Amazon app on your phone, you will have to turn on "Generating Donations" on every device you use (Settings > Amazon Smile > Turn ON Amazon Smile). When you purchase from your computer, make sure you use smile.amazon.com (not simply amazon.com). Amazon doesn't make it easy on us :)

Check out and share our Amazon Smile video on YouTube (courtesy of Cody Barbu).

Follow us on Social Media.