Facts of the Matter – Fellowship
The First Rotary Fellowship started informally in 1928, when a group of Rotarians got together to champion Esperanto, the language created by Ludwig Zamenhof.
In 1947, Rotarians interested in boating began flying the Rotary flag from their vessels, and took to calling themselves the International Yachting Fellowship of Rotarians. That group is now the longest continuously operating Rotary Fellowship.
Although FELLOWSHIPS conduct their activities independently from Rotary International, they must follow certain procedures to be officially recognized by the RI Board of Directors. Each fellowship has its own rules, dues requirements, and administrative structure. But membership in all of them is limited to Rotarians, their spouses, and Rotaractors and members must come from at least three countries.
In July 2005, in an effort to differentiate between two types of groups, the Board established Global Networking Groups. Under this umbrella, Rotarian groups with a recreational focus continue to be called Rotary Fellowships, while those organized with a specific service focus are designated Rotarian Action Groups.
Today, 58 Rotary Fellowships encompass over 31,000 Rotarians worldwide. The largest fellowship is Rotarians for the Advancement of Latin Culture, with 4,680 members. The one with the widest geographic distribution is Rotarians on the Internet, with members in 104 countries.
The Roster of Rotarians Action Groups currently stands at 15. The largest by far is the Rotarian Action Group for Population Growth and Sustainable Development, with a membership of nearly 21,000. The total membership in Rotarian Action Groups is about 27,000, spanning more than 100 countries.
The RI Website includes a “posting board” for suggested fellowships. The list of proposals has included accounting, Hawaiian and Polynesian culture, holiday properties, international trekking, mountain gorilla tracking, puzzles and ice hockey. The suggested fellowship for ice hockey enthusiasts proposes to expand an already successful Rotary club fundraising event that benefits the polio eradication campaign: Put Polio on Ice, which is held at hockey arenas.
The latest Fellowship to gain Board recognition is the Rotarians’ International Fellowship of Authors and Writers, which became official in January.
Rotary Fellowships cover a broad spectrum of interests – from motorcycling to dolls, marathon running to chess, bird watching to flying, fishing to fine arts, scuba diving to skiing, curling to cricket, wine appreciation to bridge. A complete list is available at www.rotary.org.
- Paul Engleman
the rotarian, Rotary’s Magazine
October 2011
Photo credit:
2005 Oxford Regatta
By Richard “Noodles” Nolker