How do you celebrate the holidays during a pandemic when everyone is advised to social distance?
It’s a question we asked in the CONNECTIONS newsletter during the two weeks leading up to Christmas.
In return, we heard stories of the creativity and adaptability of Rotarians when required to celebrate differently.
In the Yukon, the Rotary Club of Whitehorse moved its celebration outdoors.
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“This is totally different than what I expected,” says Jim Ferguson, reflecting on the first half of his year as District governor.
“This is the most different year that I’m sure for all of the DGs,” he says “The standard joke amongst our class is that we’re PDGs at the very beginning of July—pandemic district governors.”
In a typical year, Jim wouldn’t have adopted the title PDG—Past District Governor—until June 30, when he will pass the reins to PDE Donna Barrett (RC of Edmonton Sunrise).
“Traditionally, District governors put the theme on their vehicle and they drive 40,000 kilometres, driving to the different towns and cities, visiting all the clubs in our District, which is the third-largest,” Jim says. “We might even be the second-largest because we had the addition of the Yukon territory.”
Of course, traditional in-person club visits didn’t happen due to COVID-19. All of Jim’s club visits, which began in early July and didn’t end until early December, were done virtually.
Having been a member of the Rotary E-Club of Canada One may have meant that Jim was better suited than others to be an “E-DG.”
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In November, ShelterBox awarded Rotary International with its first Global Humanitarian Service Award in recognition of Rotary’s outstanding partnership throughout the years.
Founded in 2000 by Rotary members in the United Kingdom, ShelterBox provides emergency shelter and essential supplies to help communities through their toughest times. ShelterBox and Rotary officially became project partners in disaster relief in 2012.
Rotary has been instrumental in ShelterBox’s growth, helping to transform ShelterBox into an internationally recognized disaster relief charity. The mutual benefits are enormous. ShelterBox receives networking, logistical and financial support from Rotary and, equally, acts as a catalyst in encouraging people all over the world to become involved with their local Rotary club.
ShelterBox CEO Sanj Srikanthan presented the award to Rotary International General Secretary and CEO John Hewko.
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Be persistent
At times, it will take more than one or two requests to get someone to attend a meeting. Keep asking. “It took my workout partner two years to convince me to come to a meeting,” says Rotarian Tom Gump.
Adapted from: Step right up: in Rotary’s membership game, everyone’s a winner by Geoffrey Johnson(originally published in The Rotarian, August 2018)
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