Category Archives: Membership

Embracing a new Rotary

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Editor’s note: The pandemic has challenged the way our clubs operate, but it has also presented some opportunities. A Rotaract club shares lessons they have learned from virtual meetings.

Kennedy Gayah

By Kennedy Gayah, Rotaract Club of Nairobi Central, Kenya

Members of Rotary and Rotaract enjoy the comfort, love, and unity they experience during a club meeting, whether it be sharing a meal, enjoying a drink, or chatting with friends who have become like family. Our in-person meetings have been a principle means of connection. But COVID-19 has changed all that. We have been forced to be innovative, creative, and flexible to recreate the camaraderie of our clubs. This is a blessing in disguise. Continue reading →

Touching lives in Lagos

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Rotary members Omolara Omotosho and Bolatito Olaboye deliver food in Lagos, Nigeria.

By Michael Effiong, Rotary Club of Ikeja South, Lagos, Nigeria

All around the world, the coronavirus pandemic is changing our lives and creating a new normal. But our members have seen the need and risen to the challenge. Now, more than ever, we need to show Rotary’s goodness as we practice Service Above Self.

Long before a nation-wide lockdown in Nigeria, Lagos had initiated its own stiff measures to stop the spread of the virus. This meant that our usually engaging meetings had to move online. The platform we decided to use was Zoom, and it has been our playground, a place where we share ideas and make plans to help our community. Continue reading →

Holding a changeover ceremony virtually

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Stephen Sennett

By Stephen Sennett, secretary-elect, Rotary E-Club of Melbourne, Australia

The end of the Rotary year is fast approaching. And with that, clubs are beginning to think about their traditional changeover ceremonies. Like many things in the world after the COVID-19 pandemic, having these in person isn’t an option. Clubs are asking, should we postpone or cancel? I want to pose another question, why not adapt and hold one virtually? Continue reading →

Finding opportunity in adversity

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The Knox Art Show went ahead as planned, only entirely online.

By Rajeev Wadhwa, President, Rotary Club of Rowville-Lysterfield, Melbourne, Australia

When social distancing rules took effect in our area, we shifted to virtual meetings without missing a single meeting. We knew we needed to keep club members engaged and happy in these uncertain times. So even though some of our planned events could not proceed, we knew one event was just too important to let go. Continue reading →

Honoring the mothers behind our Peace Fellows

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Lea Yague leads an activity with the newly formed Rotary Club of Solana Moonlight.

Erika Isabel Yague

By Erika Isabel Yague, Rotary Peace Fellow at the University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia

As Rotary Peace Fellows, we find inspiration when we take time to remember and recognize the people who support and motivate us in our work of pursuing a sustainable peace. For me, the principal person is my mom, the first woman that inspired me to live life in a way that would give back to the community. And given that May is the month of Mother’s Day, I felt it doubly fitting to talk about my mom as we honor the amazing mothers or mother figures we have in our lives. Continue reading →

Using science of resilience to strengthen Rotary clubs during COVID-19

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Jenny Stotts

By Jenny Stotts, District 6690 membership chair

Resilience is the process of adapting in the face of adversity. When we experience a traumatic or stressful event, our brains activate a number of pathways to protect us. These biological processes help keep us safe. It’s in the recovery from these events that we grow and change and become stronger.

Many of us are living this reality right now in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic. The good news is, there are ways to grow our capacity for resiliency. And we can use this time to strengthen Rotary, by working together to grow and foster resilience in our fellow members and our clubs. Here are a few tips: Continue reading →

Do more than ever through strategic planning

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Ley Waggoner and Pam Carvey present new project initiatives at a meeting in February.

By George Ritcheske, a member of the Rotary Club of Coppell, Texas, USA

The power of strategic planning was on display, and I could not have been more excited. It was a Saturday morning in February, before the pandemic forced us all into stay-at-home mode. I was facilitating the ninth-annual planning event for the Rotary Club of Park Cities, Texas, with 39 members in attendance for the half day session. They had signed up to craft strategic action plans for 2020-21, the third year of a three-year strategic plan. This was a quarter of their membership! Continue reading →

7 reasons young people should join Rotary

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Ryan Bell explains what Rotary has to offer young people, including exciting service opportunities that will connect you to others in your community.

By Ryan Bell, Iowa City District 6000 Public Image Co-Chair

I have a message for all you young people out there who may never have heard about Rotary. Or if you have, it was from a parent or grandparent who spent more time talking about the lunch menu or how great the salad bar is. If that’s all you’ve heard about Rotary, then you’re missing a lot. And let me tell you why, in the middle of this pandemic, Rotary is more relevant than ever. It’s definitely something you want to know about. Continue reading →

Let e-clubs help you get online

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Members of the the E-Club of the Caribbean explain how to get online with Zoom during a video presentation.

By Diana White, club treasurer and past governor of Rotary District 7020

During the early days of the coronavirus outbreak, club president Brent Leerdam and members of the E-Club of the Caribbean, provided immediate support to the family of Rotary clubs across our district. The club offered to setup meeting times for other clubs using the club’s Zoom account until these clubs could make online arrangements for themselves. The goal was to make sure clubs lost no time maintaining their routine of weekly fellowship meeting. A second goal was to empower clubs to immediately create action plans to support their community, all within a safe online environment. Continue reading →

How to engage members during the coronavirus pandemic

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Keep members engaged through virtual meeting platforms.

By George Robertson-Burnett, Zone 34 Rotary Coordinator and past governor of Rotary District 6890

These are certainly interesting times we live in. None of us could have foreseen these extraordinary circumstances brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic, caused by the novel coronavirus. Rotary clubs everywhere are wrestling with the question, How do we maintain membership engagement during the pandemic?

Well, this is Rotary and I am sure that these challenges will bring out our considerable strengths – ingenuity, decisiveness, flexibility, and integrity. Continue reading →