By Rotary International

Participants in the summit draw their ideas on paper.

By Anabella Q. Bonfa, District 5320 membership chair

How do you breathe new life into your Rotary club? We held a young professional summit recently in southern California, USA, attended by 52 members of Rotary and Rotaract — some new and some with many years of experience — who came together for half a day to share their thoughts. Everyone had fun, and many creative ideas surfaced. Here are just a few:

Plan events that are family-friendly to engage members with young children.

Plan your events in locations where kids are welcome. A few examples would be a cleanup day at the beach or park. Or hold a picnic followed by dessert at a nearby restaurant
Give children of members duties to do at club events like collecting money or arranging cans at a food drive
Reward children for taking part in your community service work. A little recognition now may plant the seed for a life-long love of service

Share the value of Rotary. “What’s in it for me?”

Explain how Rotary offers a chance to make new friends
Prompt club meetings as an opportunity to spend time with nice people who share a similar mindset and a desire …read more

Source:: Rotary International Blog

By Rotary International

The author with Kenyan students and their teacher in front of the new bathrooms provided by Rotary.

By Sarah Rolfing

No matter how many times I visit the slum in Nairobi or the poverty-stricken schools in the outskirts of the city, I’m not prepared for the feeling of despair that follows. Basic human rights, such as educational opportunity and access to healthcare, are constantly upended by poverty in many regions of Kenya. Children are often the most vulnerable, and the impact on education and the advancement of society is significant.

Lack of resources should not compromise the right to education, particularly in a society that has considerable disparities in wealth. Since 2013, the Rotary Club of Sumner, Washington, USA, has partnered with low-income schools in Southern Kenya to provide bathroom facilities for students with special needs. Lack of basic sanitation at schools across the region is common, negatively impacting health, hygiene, and attendance. Poor health makes education an afterthought, and Rotary’s investment in creating healthy environments for students in Kenya is impacting thousands on a daily basis.

The author with one of the students.

In April, my husband and I visited two primary schools that received Rotary funding for new latrines. In one school, 1,800 …read more

Source:: Rotary International Blog

By Rotary International

Keyla receives her diploma through the program.

By Richard Hartwig, Rotary Club of Kingsville, Texas, USA

One day in 1964, during my junior year at Southern Illinois University, Carbondale, Illinois, USA, I was approached by Professor Frank Klingberg, who asked if I would like to be nominated for a Rotary Ambassadorial Scholarship (the predecessor of today’s global grant scholarships.) Two years later, I was off to Argentina, arriving just after a military coup, which was excellent training for a budding political scientist.

I owe much of my career as a political science professor to Rotary. The last few years, I have had a chance to give back as international services director for our Rotary Club. One of our two international projects is a scholarship program for poor students in Mexico.

A student enrolls in the program with the support check she received from the Rotary club.

Before coming to Kingsville in 1993, I taught for three years in Monterrey, Mexico, and attended an English-language Episcopal Church called The Holy Family. Once a year, Susan Moreira, Tati Duke, and other church members would organize a dinner-dance, Pub Night, to support a zero-overhead scholarship program called “Dar y Servir” (Give and Serve). About 250 poor students …read more

Source:: Rotary International Blog

By Rotary International

The leadership team of the Rotary Club of Metro Savannah with the author (seventh from left in white shirt).

By Gordon Matthews, past governor of District 6920 (Georgia, USA), Rotary Club of Savannah East

A panel of three young members spelled out for us the issues that block young people from joining Rotary during our spring assembly a few years ago — scheduling, cost of dues, and rules.

I’ve been active in developing leaders in our community and have worked with our Group Study Exchange teams in the past, so I know the energy and potential in this “under 40” generation that we need to tap for Rotary. But I’ve also seen several Rotary clubs try to do this with limited results, because they stayed too close to the traditional model and dues structure.

Breaking the mold
To break that mold, I asked the son of a fellow member to gather a group of young people in the metro area of Savannah to explore the idea of starting a new club. I told them their are really just a few rules – to meet weekly, pay dues, and train a president-elect. The rest are just a lot of traditions. They were directed to develop a …read more

Source:: Rotary International Blog

By Rotary International

Through Rotary’s data integration tools, you can add new members, report club officers, and update membership information easier than ever.

By Rotary staff

Does your club manage members and officer updates online? Do you have a website or app to keep your members connected and up-to-date? Over 10,000 clubs are already integrated directly with Rotary International’s membership database using tools provided by our licensed vendors. These tools help you keep your membership and club officer information up to date, connecting it to RI in real time.

The Community Marketplace is your one-stop-shop for digital tools that can help you streamline club administration, communication, and event management. Find tools to help you manage your club so you can spend less time on administrative tasks, and more time developing and taking part in service projects. You’ll also find our page for Marketplace apps that are helping Rotarians achieve more, from managing your club’s membership details on your smartphone with Roster on Wheels to event planning with AnyEvent.

We have upgraded our integration services to make club administration easier. No more forms to fill out or emails to send in with your club’s updates: our expanded services include adding new members, appointing club …read more

Source:: Rotary International Blog