On June 7, the Rotary Club of Paramaribo Quota marked a major milestone: its five-year anniversary as a service organization dedicated to improving community welfare across Suriname. To coincide with this celebration, the club held a symbolic handover ceremony Friday at the historic Waaggebouw, where representatives from 26 local social institutions received confirmation of grant funding sourced from the organization’s flagship annual fundraiser, the Quota Men Cook Out.
Hosted last November at the Live Entertainment Center on Lalla Rookhweg, the 2025 edition of the cook-out brought in a total of nearly US$ 150,000, making it one of the event’s most successful iterations to date. Of the total proceeds, more than 1.9 million Surinamese dollars has been allocated to the club’s Small Projects program, which delivers targeted funding to grassroots social organizations working across the country.
Unlike large-scale institutional grants that often favor major, long-term initiatives, the Small Projects program is designed to support concrete, community-led efforts that address immediate local needs. According to Cindy Uden, president of the Rotary Club of Paramaribo Quota, all funding requests go through a rigorous review process led by a special independent committee. Applicants outline their exact budget needs and project goals, and awards are granted based on strict criteria including long-term sustainability, functional impact for the community, and the scope of benefit to the target vulnerable population.
The 2026 round of grants will support a remarkably diverse range of initiatives tailored to the specific needs of each organization. Beneficiary projects range from constructing a new covered outdoor space at a girls’ boarding school and launching an adaptive swimming program for people living with disabilities, to purchasing new accessible kitchen and laundry equipment, procuring therapeutic supplies for pediatric physical therapy and speech-language pathology services, renovating outdated community kitchens and reading rooms, installing new roof gutters at the national Center for the Blind, and acquiring a television and sound system for detained youth to support their recreational and rehabilitation programs.
Beyond the Small Projects program, cook-out proceeds also fund several other high-impact community initiatives run by the club. These include Stuka Prisiri, a program focused on mentorship and talent development for underserved children; Heart for Women, a public awareness campaign addressing cardiovascular disease prevalence among women; and ongoing operational support for the Suriname Shelter for Women in Crisis, which provides housing and support services to survivors of domestic violence.
Among the 26 organizations receiving funding this year are the Nickerie Welfare Institute (WiN), Mr. Huber Foundation, the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) of Paramaribo Academic Hospital, Kennedy Foundation, Stichting Samaria Tour, Huize Majella, Mytylschool Suriname Foundation, Prison Fellowship Suriname, Maria Internaat, Dja Dja Uma Tide Foundation, Paramaribo Rehabilitation Center, Ramoth Children’s Home, Huize Prinses Margriet, Huize Betheljada Foundation, Fatima Oord Nursing Home, Kennedy School for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing, Asi-Zebra Foundation, and the Marowijne Education Coordination Center.
For many beneficiary representatives, the funding fills critical gaps that larger government and philanthropic programs often overlook. Mardjerin Petrusi, who accepted the grant on behalf of Stichting Samaria Tour — an organization that supports unhoused and homeless people across Suriname — spoke emotionally about the impact of the donation. “What a blessing, amen. The Lord has remembered us, and he used the cooks to make this possible. They are blessed, and so are all the organizers of this event,” Petrusi said.
Five years after its founding, the Rotary Club of Paramaribo Quota continues to deliver tangible, community-focused change through events like the Quota Men Cook Out. This year’s funding round marks yet another milestone in the organization’s work to advance access to care, education, social support and emergency services for vulnerable communities across Suriname.