By Rotary International

Rotary Peace Fellow Sarah Sanderson (second from right) and interns at the U.S. embassy in Mozambique with Ambassador H. Dean Pittman.

By Sarah Sanderson, Rotary Peace Fellow, International Christian University, Tokyo, Japan

As a Rotary Peace Fellow, I had been looking forward to my summer applied field experience, which is self-designed by the peace fellow. So I was thrilled when I was accepted for a summer internship position at the U.S. Embassy in Maputo, Mozambique.

The goal of a Department of State internship is to expose interns to a broad picture of how a U.S. embassy works. Because of this, over a ten-week period I was able to rotate through three different departments including: financial management, consular, and public affairs.

In financial management, I learned how the embassy budgets for not only the State Department but also for the CDC, USAID and PEPFAR (President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief), all which have a huge presence in Mozambique. In the consular department, I learned how to process non-immigrant visas for Mozambicans who wished to study or travel in the U.S. And in public affairs, I saw how the embassy managed the press and media and how to host large events for the ambassador or for …read more

Source:: Rotary International Blog

By Rotary International

Carol Ferguson, right, presents the Collage of Gratitude to Carol Pandak, Director of PolioPlus for Rotary International.

By Rotary staff

On 9 September, we received a visitor at Rotary International World Headquarters in Evanston, Illinois, USA, who reminded us just how important the fight to eradicate polio is.

Every year, fewer and fewer cases of polio are reported, bringing us one-step closer to a polio-free world. Before Rotary launched the PolioPlus program in 1985, some 350,000 people a year were infected with the disease worldwide. Carol Ferguson was one of those people.

She is also the founder of the Pennsylvania Polio Survivor’s Network, an organization that provides resources for people living with post-polio syndrome, an illness that can affect polio survivors 10-20 years after being infected with the virus, and which also impacts their families.

As Ferguson built her organization, she often turned to Rotary for information about polio and ongoing eradication efforts. She soon discovered how much work Rotary, along with its partner organizations in the Global Polio Eradication Initiative, have done. Knowing firsthand the effects polio can have, Ferguson set out to create a Collage of Gratitude to show Rotary how much she and other polio survivors appreciated the work of …read more

Source:: Rotary International Blog

By Rotary International

By Courtney Drew, Rotary staff

When I first interviewed to work at Rotary International, I told my future manager I was looking for a place to dig my roots deep; to contribute to the bigger picture, and to feel like I was part of an extended family. That, so far, has exactly been my experience here at Rotary and I am incredibly grateful.

Taking part in El Tour de Tucson as a member of the Miles to End polio team will provide a new level of depth to my roots; and bolster my connection to the Rotary family.

Rest stop during a recent ride.

I have been fortunate enough to play a support role at two International Conventions (2015 and 2016), and one International Assembly (2016). I have met several hundred Rotarians and Rotaractors, all of whom are committed to doing good within their communities and throughout the world. I love listening to their stories as they tell me how and why they’ve come to be a part of the Rotary family and why it’s such a huge part of their lives. Their energy, their passion, their wisdom inspires me to do more, to work harder, to make …read more

Source:: Rotary International Blog

By Rotary International

Michael Bucca addresses a club about raising its profile in the community.

By Michael Bucca, president of The Central Ocean Rotary Club of Toms River, New Jersey, USA.

Rotary clubs are always looking for ideas on how to increase membership and develop meaningful service projects. Sometimes, the answers lie outside our own club or organization.

Partnering with other local charities, or joining a service project already in progress, are excellent ways of furthering our mission of Service Above Self. Look around for organizations that share similar goals as Rotary. Invite someone from their group to come and speak to your club. In doing so, you develop an immediate contact that can be built into a deeper relationship.

The Central Ocean Rotary Club of Toms River, New Jersey, USA has been doing this long before I was a member. Directors and board members of about two-dozen organizations are on a first name basis with at least one of our members. About half of our club members either run a local non-profit organization or serve on a charity’s board. Some of this has evolved organically over time, but this year it has been a focus of our club.

The opportunities for service this has opened up …read more

Source:: Rotary International Blog

By Rotary International

Rotary member in Virginia, USA, deliver mobility equipment for a local hospital.

By Richard Cunningham, Rotary Club of James River, Richmond, Virginia, USA

We cannot expect to grow membership without engaging our members in service. RI President John Germ has stated this unequivocally and our club is taking that to heart.

Selecting the right project, therefore, is critical to the health of your club. Here’s a few basic principles we’ve found to be true about service projects:

Sweat equity is the single most vital aspect of our mission and one of our greatest strengths.
Club leaders are responsible for both success and failure.
Engaged Rotarians take responsibility for their own learning.
Technology is important.
Members should expect to serve.
We need to recognize the volunteer resource represented by retirees, the self-employed, and non-working parents with time to spare.
One-off walk-away projects do little to cultivate longer term engagement with Rotary.
Hands-on projects provide opportunities for members to develop their leadership skills.
Fund raisers are an important part of what we do, but there is much more to being engaged in Rotary.
Rotary is more than being a member of a single club.
Our Rotary Foundation is one of the finest vehicles for giving in the world.
Club 501(C)(3)s are important to capture …read more

Source:: Rotary International Blog