Author Archives: Rotary International

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Easy, fun ways to keep a new club going

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By Tom Gump, governor of Rotary District 5950, member of the Rotary Club of Edina/Morningside, Minnesota, USA

My district has several new and vibrant clubs. They are all flourishing. Not just because they formed, but also, because they keep on growing. 

A majority of charter members, about 88%, are new to Rotary. So, we need to nurture these new clubs as they don’t all know the Rotary way. How do we do this most effectively? It’s simple, we: give them a cause, stay flexible, add diversity, and have fun!

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Sharing a powerful moment as a vaccination volunteer

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By Vicki Brentin, a member of the Rotary Club of Houston Skyline, Houston, Texas, USA

Anticipation. Excitement. Nervousness. Uncertainty. Hopefulness. Relief. Gratitude. I had all of these not-so-surprising emotions as I passed through the various stations at the mega vaccine site in Houston to receive my COVID-19 vaccination.

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7 tips to growing membership

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Members of the Rotary Club of Collierville with the Non Profit of the Year Award they received from the Chamber of Commerce for their service projects in the community.

By Dave Rhylander, president of the Rotary Club of Collierville, Tennessee, USA

Is it possible to grow your club in the midst of a pandemic? We have found the answer to be a resounding yes. Despite all the challenges that COVID-19 has presented to Rotary clubs and the entire world, really, there are ways to excite members, engage in service, and through creativity attract people who are interested in joining us as people of action.

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A day in the life of a vaccination volunteer

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By Jill Johnson, member communications team lead, Corporate Communications, Rotary International

My cheeks hurt from smiling, which was weird because I wore a mask all day. It’s not as if anyone saw my smile, but I couldn’t help it. It was a great day.

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4 ways to celebrate Youth Service Month virtually

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Youth Service Month is a special time in Rotary. Throughout the month of May, members of Rotary clubs, Rotaract, Interact, and those involved in Rotary Youth Leadership Awards (RYLA) and Rotary Youth Exchange celebrate the opportunities Rotary provides to connect, grow through service, develop leadership skills, mentor or be mentored, and have fun.

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What would you do? Serve now or later

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By Rotary magazine staff

Every month in Rotary magazine, we showcase answers to ethical questions that members might face in their Rotary clubs, to help members share best practices with each other as they make their clubs stronger. Below is the ethical challenge we will tackle in the August issue of the magazine.

Your club has been flexible in finding ways to meet and participate in service virtually. Your club president wishes to continue to innovate and has tasked a committee that you chair with creating a new service opportunity each month for club members to take part in, either virtually or in person if it is safe. However, there is reluctance among your fellow committee members, who wish to wait until after the pandemic has ended to work on creating new opportunities for engagement and volunteering. What would you do?

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Pandemic has silver lining for Canadian Rotary clubs

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Paul Elsley, in red coat, packs food boxes to deliver to families in the Kingston area.

By Paul Elsley, Rotary Club of Kingston, Ontario, Canada

A little over a year ago, my club could not have foreseen that we would add 18 new members during 2020 and do so in the midst of a global pandemic. There are silver linings in just about everything.

At the beginning of that year, we were planning to celebrate a century of Rotary in Kingston with other Rotary clubs in the city when COVID-19 struck in March. We watched as service organizations and agencies began to shut down or go into emergency mode and knew a celebration was out of the question. But it also became clear that there was a huge service gap and that Kingston was in great need.

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3 things you should know about advancing youth service-learning

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By Caitlin Cangialosi, Rotary International Programs and Engagement Specialist

Every year, over 350,000 youth participate in Rotary’s youth programs. Yet, until recently, Rotary didn’t have resources that directly engaged them in service, a fact that surprised me when I first began working for Rotary International’s Programs for Young Leaders team in the spring of 2019.

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Going upstream to reverse the effects of river pollution

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Joe Otin

By Joe Otin, past district governor of Rotary District 9212 (Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, South Sudan)

It’s no wonder that rivers have a special place in art, music, and legend. The founders of mighty cities secured foundations mostly where the life blood of mother nature offered a continuous supply of refreshment. Primitive societies worshiped rivers for the same reason –  they brought a pure supply of the mountain’s offering and booked unwanted waste on a free ride out of town.

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Saving lives in the Pacific

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Senerita Pouvi, 9, receives a measles vaccination in December 2019 as part of a UNICEF-supported National Vaccination Campaign in response to a measles outbreak in the Pacific region. Photo Courtesy UNICEF.

By James Allen, Project Director and member of Rotary Club of Sydney, Australia

I am part of a team of Rotarians that came together nearly four years ago to initiate a project to recognize and celebrate the Centenary in Australia and New Zealand in 2021. It started as a group from the original four clubs in this part of the world – Melbourne, Sydney, Auckland, and Wellington. Since then, many other clubs and districts have participated and are providing support. We called the project Give Every Child A Future because importantly, it will reduce child mortality and ease the burden of cervical cancer, thus giving every child a better future.

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