Making Strides along the Rotary Way

Posted by Neil Berg
 

Every year the President of Rotary International lays out the criteria for the Presidential Citation. 

 
This year President John Germ’s criteria is laid out in such a way that if your Club was to continue to strive toward the Citation’s objectives we guarantee yours will be a more vibrant Club at the end of the year than it was at the beginning.  The criteria fall into six categories: Membership Attraction & Engagement, Foundation Giving, Online Tool Adoption, Humanitarian Service, Youth engagement and Public Image.  These are all aspects of what we do as Rotarians that are measures of our impact in our communities and the world.  You can see what your Club goals are by signing in to your My Rotary account on www.Rotary.org keep up to date with your Clubs goals and the progress you’re making to them.  It would be my privilege to be able to recognise your Club as having accomplished this significant achievement this Rotary year.
 
The District is proud to be supporting the 100th Anniversary of The Rotary Foundation at the District Conference (May 5-7, 2017 in Red Deer AB, Click here for info and to register) with a huge Birthday Cake and a special invitation-only Foundation Bubbly Celebration Reception.  How do you get an invitation?  Simply do your part to ensure that your Club qualifies under one of seven criteria for Foundation or Polio Plus giving.  See your Club President or your Club Foundation Chair for details.  We’ll see you there.
 
There’s a good reason that Peace and Conflict Resolution is one of The Rotary Foundation’s six Areas of Focus.   We don’t think it is overstating the point to say that almost everything we do in our Rotary walk contributes in the same way, directly or indirectly, to Peace.  All Rotarians support peace directly through the sponsorship of Peace Scholars through Global Grants that you contributed to with your Rotary Foundation giving, perhaps specifically to this Area of Focus.  Our Foundation of course also funds and maintains six Peace Centers around the world.  And we contribute to peace indirectly through our humanitarian efforts in bringing fresh water to third world populations in Africa or South America or south-east Asia or immunising 2.5 billion children against polio.  I remember clearly the Group Study Exchange member years ago, a police officer from Calgary who took part in a GSE (old term) in Bangladesh who said after: “there is no way that I could ever think poorly of those people now, never mind take up arms against them.”
 
It is said that all of The Rotary Foundation’s Areas of Focus in-the-end, support peace and conflict avoidance and resolution.  In the Rotary calendar, February is Peace & Conflict Resolution month, a time when we try to focus a bit more attention on this important aspect of our place in society.  As well we’d remind that if this is a cause that touches your heart every Rotarian has the opportunity to attend the Presidential Peace Conference in Atlanta GA in June, just before the start of the Rotary International Convention. 
 
Make sure to check it out at www.riconvention.org.
 
That’s more than enough from me for now.
As always, thank you for all you do for Rotary as we go forward in Rotary Serving Humanity.
 
Neil Berg
Rotary Club of Red Deer East
Rotary International District 5360 Governor
Red Deer, Alberta, Canada
(403) 302-1552