By Rotary International From the October 2015 issue of The Rotarian
In 30 years of covering baseball, I’ve seen my share of runs, hits, and errors. Back in 1985, players went on strike in hopes of boosting their pay past a minimum of $40,000. Fans watched highlights on a six-year-old cable network called ESPN. The Red Sox and Cubs always lost. Sportswriters roamed locker rooms at will, interviewing players and managers, sometimes making friends with them.
Then salaries boomed, on their way to today’s big-league average of $4 million a year. Iron-pumping, drug-abusing players ballooned until they looked like parade… …read more

Source:: Rotary.org

By Rotary International From the October 2015 issue of The Rotarian
From the runways of Paris to the catwalks of Milan, from the pages of Sports Illustrated to the cover of Vogue, Brazil’s Isabeli Fontana is one of the most recognizable figures in the world of high fashion. Two years ago, the supermodel became a super role model for the eradication of polio when she accepted Rotary’s invitation to become a polio ambassador. Since then, two other Brazilian celebrities – soccer player Alexandre Pato and singer Ivete Sangalo – have joined Rotary’s roster of ambassadors.
Fontana, a mother of two, began to take a special… …read more

Source:: Rotary.org

By Rotary International From the October 2015 issue of The Rotarian
When you travel to Seoul for the 2016 Rotary International Convention, 28 May to 1 June, few experiences will bring you closer to the local culture than a visit to a Korean spa, called a jjimjilbang. But don’t expect plush bathrobes and dim rooms filled with candles. This is an entirely different kind of relaxation.
You will be required to undress completely and shower before you enter the gender-segregated baths, where you’ll find a number of pools for taking calming dips. You can get a massage, which here means an intense scrubbing over every inch… …read more

Source:: Rotary.org

By Rotary International From the October 2015 issue of The Rotarian
As the world hurtles down the path of modernization, many cultures resist the speed of change. Korea embraces it, yet retains a balance many of us worry we’re losing. In Seoul, business-suited fathers patiently escort their children to school. Multigenerational families pause by ponds and brilliant bursts of wild azalea. Each day before dawn, Buddhist monks throughout the land sound fish- and cloud-shaped drums to wake all creatures, from sea to sky. It is a ritual thousands of years old, and in Korea, this rhythm of tradition infuses everything…. …read more

Source:: Rotary.org

By Rotary International From the October 2015 issue of The Rotarian
In 1938, British travel writer Freya Stark observed: “To awaken quite alone in a strange town is one of the pleasantest sensations in the world. You are surrounded by adventure.” In many ways, travel is even more pleasant today than when Stark trekked across the Middle East almost a century ago. And when we plan a trip, we often focus solely on the most enchanting aspects – where we’ll go, what we’ll see. The person planning a safari to Africa or an elephant ride in Asia might stop to consider health precautions only a few weeks before departure,… …read more

Source:: Rotary.org

By Rotary International From the October 2015 issue of The Rotarian
India reported its last case of polio in 2011. Since then, the toddler behind that statistic has grown into a child who laughs, plays, and runs, albeit with a limp. Past RI President Rajendra K. Saboo is gratified that no other children will be afflicted with the disease in his native country. “But you still see a few, above ages 12 and 13, and one starts feeling, ‘We came too late for them,’” he says. This inspires everyone to remain committed to keeping the poliovirus at bay, Saboo notes, especially with the risk of the disease’s return just a… …read more

Source:: Rotary.org

By Rotary International From the October 2015 issue of The Rotarian
Eleven years ago, Jim and Roberta Graham developed a personal connection to Afghanistan after their son Rick, who was stationed there with the Indiana National Guard, learned of an infant in a refugee camp who needed heart surgery. In a story that tugged at the heartstrings of Hoosiers and was recounted in The Rotarian (January 2011), the Grahams worked with Rotary clubs in District 6560 (Indiana) and others to bring the infant, Qudrat, to Indianapolis for surgery. Tragically, Qudrat died shortly after returning to Afghanistan, but in his memory,… …read more

Source:: Rotary.org

By Rotary International From the October 2015 issue of The Rotarian
Kristine Howell admits there was wine involved the night she decided to hold her wedding at the annual Spring Zing fundraiser for the Rotary Club of Mt. Clemens. But in vino veritas – so she must have meant it when she threw her hands up in frustration during a meeting to pick the fundraiser’s theme and said, “You guys could always throw me a wedding!”
“I was kidding, but they ran with it,” laughs Kristine, who took office as president of the Mt. Clemens club in July. “They knew we’d been trying to get married, so they were thrilled.” Personal… …read more

Source:: Rotary.org

By Rotary International From the September 2015 issue of The Rotarian
One Friday evening four years ago, Elizabeth Solomonson was at home. Her husband, John, was away on a fishing trip. An ice storm had swept through her small Michigan, USA, town, and the phones and power were out. It was about 6 p.m., and she wasn’t expecting a knock on the door. She opened up to find a police officer, who asked if she had a daughter named Raven.
“I was always worried I’d get that knock on my door,” Solomonson says. “But you’re never prepared for it. Raven battled heroin for three years until I lost her.”
Raven’s overdose in 2011,… …read more

Source:: Rotary.org