Rochelle Rotary Candle

The Story Behind
The Rochelle Rotary Club
Lighted Candle

 

The 1954 Rochelle Rotary year brought Karin Linder, a Swedish young girl to Rochelle, to be the club's first of over thirty annual summer guests. Karin immediately captivated the club by her humility, charm and her desire to know America, Rochelle, and the club as people to people. Because of the good feelings of her first visit, Karin was invited twelve years later to be our keynote speaker at Rochelle Rotary's 25th Anniversary in 1966. She accepted the invitation and came to us filled with enthusiasm, excitement and love to deliver her keynote speech. Karin expressed her gratitude for having been chosen the first of our many summer guests. She learned about us and understood us not only as a group in the town of Rochelle, but as individuals (person to person) willing to express mutual love for each other. She then proceeded to cutely recall many incidents of that first visit, to the amusement of everyone. Karin applauded our summer guest program of developing understanding among the nations. Her punch line was that world peace depends on understanding between nations and love for each other. Thus, Karin concluded a most meaningful address for the Rochelle Rotary Club. In follow - up discussions of Karin's speech, the candle idea came about when Rotarian Leroy Peterson recalled his recent visit to Karin's home in Uppsula, Sweden. After the day had been spent visiting, evening had come and it was bedtime for Karin's two boys. The day closed in a candle lit bedroom recalling good thoughts about the day; singing a hymn, prayers, a lot of hugs and kisses, and the boys alternately blowing out the candle to finish the family day. In reviewing Karin's keynote speech and Leroy's visit to Karin's home, it became clear that Karin's theme for peace among nations and togetherness for families is one and the same as "understanding an love". Also, it was recognized that this same theme is the essential ingredient of the fourth objective of Rotary International. 

The club's reaction to this whole memorable event was: 

1) Institute the "Lighted Candle" at the club's head table at each Rotary meeting to visually enhance the club's promotion of the fourth objective of Rotary International. 

2) Change our club's banner to reflect in the soft glow of the candle, our commitment to the fourth objective of Rotary, "international understanding, goodwill and world peace".