Page 4 - English Edition 2002

IMAGINE ROTARY

A few years earlier, Pat Merryweather, one of our Rotary International directors, introduced
me to a peace fellow who held the kind of position that could perhaps influence this type of
situation. Now it was my long shot. I reached out, and that certain Rotary magic that we all
know so well took over.
It’s the Rotary Peace Fellow who’s the hero of this story. I don’t know everything that
happened, but in less than 24 hours, the young woman was on an evacuation list. Two
days later, we learned she was safely en route to Europe for further processing. Imagine
her thoughts that day as the plane launched into the sky. This, my friends, is the power of
Rotary. When the right connections are made, the world aligns and our stories merge. Our
differences dissolve, and the only limit to our impact is the barrier of our imagination.
Only when we live in shared experience like this can we create world peace through
understanding. And that world can only manifest when we commit ourselves to equity,
Jennifer E. Jones human rights, and fairly allocating community resources. Or perhaps, as we all best know
RI President 2022-23 it, being fair to all concerned.
As we strive to weave diversity, equity, and inclusion into Rotary, removing the barriers is
the key to inclusion. And inclusion is the key to membership. While this may seem like a
new call to action, it is not new thinking. I want you to listen to the actual recording of our
founder, Paul Harris, in 1933 at our 24th annual convention:
Rotary is thrown open to representatives of all walks of life, to representatives of all
countries and all forms of religion. ... Herein lies the genius and the glory of Rotary. ...
While Rotarians differ in many respects, in two respects they are in perfect accord. We are
all in perfect accord.
President Shekhar [Mehta] launched our Empowering Girls initiative last year, and it has
resonated around the world. We will continue this bold effort, recognizing that empowered
girls become empowered women.
We have less than a year and a half to achieve the board-set target of 30% women in Rotary.
We’ve come a long way, and already more than 110 countries have achieved this goal. That
said, we have a long way to go — and 30% is the next stop on the way to 50%. And you
know, our members in Rotaract have already achieved this distinction.
Speaking of embracing the different and unique, new clubs — and especially new club
models — are vital to growing Rotary. I need your help with this, and I am asking each
of you to help form at least two new innovative or cause-based clubs during your term as
governor. Then, and perhaps most importantly, instill in them, and your existing clubs too,
our comfort-and-care philosophy. Let’s make sure we engage our members so they love
their clubs and their Rotary experience.
While we work to innovate Rotary from within, we’re going to also place a special
emphasis on raising Rotary’s profile in the world, holding a global impact tour that
celebrates our achievements.
We’re going to actively connect with thought leaders and world leaders in dialogue about
how we can work together to address the world’s most pressing challenges.
Rotary opens these doors, and we need to harness our connections to deepen these
relationships and create new partnerships. And the best part is, this can happen at every
level of leadership.
We all feel the impact that Rotary service and Rotary values have on us. Now it’s our
opportunity to share that feeling with others.

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