Some people call Rotary a club, a organization, a bunch of old men having lunch while writing a check to a good cause every so often to make themselves feel good.  Wrong, Rotary is a way of life, a way to look at the world, a way to realize no matter how bad things get in your own life, there are people who have got it worse, and you have the power to help.

 

A bunch of old men? No, not that either, the Brighton Rotary has an even split of men and women.  Our oldest members have been in Rotary for half a century, our youngest have not made it to the age of 30.  For every age and gender the mission of service above remains the same.

Our club's job is to find things in the world, things that we think we can change, improve and/or just help with and pull together money, talent, and a bit of sweat to make the world a better place.

Want some examples?  Glad you asked! Thanks to some of those in the club who know how to swing a hammer, we seek out individuals in the community that are disabled, need a wheel chair ramp, and do not have the means to pay for it themselves.  We then design, gather materials, and build the ramp.

Or try this, a few years ago we realized that the Boy Scouts had a piece of land donated to them (over a decade earlier) for a club house. For several reasons they could never get anything built. The Rotary worked with the Boy Scouts, plus the City of Brighton and built the Brighton Community Center.  The Rotary built and paid for the building, the City of Brighton maintains it from the proceeds when they rent it out, so that everyone in town has a low cost place to meet. So, now the Boy Scouts have a great place to meet and store their equipment for free.
 
Want to make more of a global impact?  Great! In 1988 Rotary International committed to wiping Polio from the face of the earth. Now we are down from thousands of cases in dozens of countries to dozens of cases in a handful of counties.  Some of our Brighton Rotarians have spent time in counties like India giving out the Polio vaccine. Now that is making a difference.

Finally, if you are not sure of the mission of our club, it is pretty simple.  It is the strength of each member, the flexibility of our club, and cohesiveness of our organization that allow those with a burning desire to make a difference to make our club their own.