Wow, the year is one week from finished. The time certainly flew and I’m not prepared for it to finish! I’ve spent time with established friends and met many new ones. Many miles on the car, beautiful sunrises and pretty drives, many meals shared, and tons of discussions about the future of Rotary.
The first part of the year was spent visiting our clubs. I shared my personal story of how people helped me get an education that then helped me move from survival to thriving. I told the story of how Rotary is soooo close to wiping out polio (please continue to support this effort). I talked about how we need to share our stories – what the club is doing to impact its community or help a community across the world. It’s the stories that will draw people to us.
Rotary is more than a club, it is a movement as Jennifer Jones once said. That became even more clear to me as I visited the clubs. Everyone I met wants to make the world a better place. They look at an issue and say we can do something about that – and then they figure out how to make that change happen. Not everything is lifesaving, however, it is lifechanging. For the recipients and the providers. I am proud to be part of an organization that helps children to improve their reading skills by providing books and people to go into classrooms to read with them. An organization that plants trees that they will never sit under to help with air quality and provide shade. An organization that decided that a disease that paralyzed and killed people should be eradicated and has spent the last 40+ years working to make that happen. More than 200 million children have been saved from paralysis by those efforts. That means 200 million children that have the chance to grow up to be productive members of their society without challenges that can stop or reduce their abilities.
Your commitment and donations have helped make all these things happen and more.
There are 1700 of us in seven PA counties that have taken on the title Rotarian. At one point there were 2400 of us in those same counties. Have people lost the heart for service? I don’t think so. There are people out there who need to hear our stories, to realize that Rotary is a means to creating a better place. Tell them your story, tell your club’s story –
And thank you for the many gifts this year – club mugs, pins, paperweights and flowers. The kindness and hospitality still stay with me today. Stay tuned for next week’s Part 2.
