Ayuda International · Honors
Communities and Rotary clubs around the world have thanked Ayuda International and Steve Bender for the care our volunteers bring. These are a few of the moments we treasure most.
Rosarito, Baja California · September 13, 2015
On Sunday, September 13, 2015, the Rotary clubs of Rosarito invited Steve Bender to ride in their annual horseback parade through the hills and streets of Rosarito. He did not know he was the guest of honor until he saw his own face on the banners along the route.
The clubs were honoring Steve and Ayuda International for years of free dental clinics in Rosarito, first with Doc in a Box and then with Ayuda, for the Oral Hygiene Initiative, and above all for The Cleft Project. The banners showed Steve holding baby Christopher before his cleft lip surgery, under the words “Labio Leporino.” Rotarian Rolando Quintero, who managed The Cleft Project in Mexico, saddled the horses.
“I had no idea I was the guest of honor when they invited me to ride a horse.”Steve Bender
What grew from that day
The friendships made with the Rotary clubs of Rosarito did not end with the parade. Clinics, The Cleft Project, water bottles, a tire house in La Mision and years of shared service turned into something bigger: Building Bridges Through Rotary, a partnership that links Rotary clubs in Mexico and the United States to serve the families on both sides of the border together.
Bangkok, Thailand · July 3, 2019
The Rotary Club of Bangkok DACH, the first German language Rotary club in Bangkok, invited Steve Bender to be its guest speaker at the InterContinental Bangkok on Wednesday, July 3, 2019. The invitation came through club member Dr. Gunter Denk, and club president Georg M. Wolff hosted the evening.
Steve spoke about Doc in a Box and how Rotary volunteers bring dental care to children, about Ayuda’s dental care and prosthetic hands for landmine survivors in Cambodia, the dental programs in Phuket, and the medical building in Bocas del Toro, Panama. Ashley Affholter, a USC dental hygiene graduate and Ayuda advisory board member, presented Ayuda’s Oral Health Initiative. The club thanked Steve with a Certificate of Appreciation.
Nine days later, Steve spoke again at the installation night of the Rotary Club of Patong in Phuket.
Awards and honors
Ayuda’s programs and volunteers have been honored by a state senator, the Kansas City Kansas School Foundation for Excellence, a member of Congress, the Mayor of Newport Beach, Rotary International and the people of Rosarito. Steve’s records also include thanks from health ministries and Rotary clubs in Guatemala, Peru, Fiji, Thailand, Cambodia, Africa and Mexico, and a flag flown over the White House.
| Date | Honor | For |
|---|---|---|
| January 2014 | Club of the Month, Rotary District 5320 | Western High School Interact club |
| June 2014 | Daily Pilot Community Hall of Fame, nominated by Newport Beach Sunrise Rotary | Steve Bender |
| July 2014 | Outstanding STEM Service and Program awards, Orange County Engineering Council | Jerry Cates |
| September 13, 2015 | Parade in his honor, Rotary clubs of Rosarito | Steve Bender, for the clinics, The Cleft Project and the Oral Hygiene Initiative |
| November 24, 2015 | California State Senate Certificate of Recognition, Senator John Moorlach | Jerry Cates, for Doc in a Box |
| 2015 to 2016 | Rotary International Presidential Citation | Rotary Club of Newport Beach Sunrise |
| 2016 | Rotary International Presidential Citation | Rotaract Club of Newport Beach Sunrise |
| May 2016 | Best Club, Rotary District 5320 | Rotary Club of Newport Beach Sunrise |
| November 17, 2016 | Reasons to Believe award, Kansas City Kansas School Foundation for Excellence, Alumni Honor Roll of Kansas City, Kansas Public Schools, for his philanthropic projects | Steve Bender, Washington High School Class of 1979 |
| 2016 to 2017 | Rotary International Presidential Citation | Rotary Club of Newport Beach Sunrise |
| January 26, 2018 | Washington High School Hall of Fame, Kansas City, Kansas | Steve Bender, Class of 1979 |
| January 28, 2019 | Proclamations, Newport Beach Mayor Duffy Duffield | Help in a Box veterans programs |
| May 2019 | Best International Project nomination, Rotary District 5320 | The Panama and Bocas del Toro clinics |
| June 5, 2019 | Certificate of Congressional Recognition, U.S. House of Representatives | Orange County veterans program |
| July 3, 2019 | Certificate of Appreciation, Rotary Club of Bangkok DACH | Steve Bender |
| July 2019 | People of Action nominee, Rotary District 5320 | Steve Bender |
| June 2020 | Rotary International Presidential Citation | Rotary Club of Newport Beach |
| June 17, 2021 | Second place, ESRAG #IFixThePlanet | The Rotary Reefs video |
Dentists, hygienists, dental students and helpers of every kind are welcome. Tell us where you would like to serve and we will send you the clinic calendar.