The theme for the coming year is Be A Gift To The World.  Every Rotarian will seek to find their own special way to do that.  Some of us will lead events to earn funding for projects that will change the lives of others.  Some of us will work quietly but hard behind the scenes making the projects and events we take on successful.  All of us will be reaching out to our communities and the world offering hope and support for a better life for everyone we can touch.  And together we will have fun doing every bit of it.

 

In our club we have long time Rotarians who have seen Rotary through thick and thin for more than three decades.  They have witnessed dramatic changes in Rotary without losing their Rotarian spirit.  We can look to them for the wisdom and guidance wrought of experience.  We have new Rotarians with less than a year under their belts.  We welcome their fresh ideas, embrace their enthusiasm, and we will mentor them and help them learn the Rotary ropes.  Together we will stand side by side, old and new, kindred spirits offering ourselves up as a gift to our world. 

 

How will we do this?  There will be a lot of opportunities for service as the year deepens.  We will engage in projects and support local and international activities.  We will give generously to The Rotary Foundation that provides project funding throughout the world, support the Polio Plus Campaign, and donate time, expertise, and money to local community organizations that need our help.  But there is one thing we can all do from day one and on each and every day of the Rotary year thereafter.  There is no doubt that our most valuable resource is a healthy and growing membership.  Rotary is voluntary....that means we are all in Rotary because we chose to be, and we wouldn't have done so unless we saw value in the experience.  Why not share that value with our friends, neighbors, and colleagues?  If we think highly enough of the organization to be a member, why wouldn't we want to share that with other people we like? 

 

In May of this year, Rotarians around the world were invited to submit short videos to share their story; then the videos were voted upon by Rotary's social media community.  Click on the two pictures below to watch two of the top five Share Your Story membership videos  (they are less than two minutes each so just do it!).  Chances are, something in them will strike a chord in you that says:  "Yes!  That is why I joined Rotary and that is why I am still here."  Then share them with others who aren't yet members of Rotary and ask them to come to a meeting. 

 

As Rotarians we change the lives of people we don't know and will never meet everyday, building wells and latrines, fighting disease and illiteracy.  But we also change the lives of those we do know when we invite them to join us and give them the opportunity to know a lifetime of fellowship and the joy of Service Above Self.  Not sure about that?  Ask any Rotarian anywhere in the world who their Rotary sponsor was....to a person they will be able to tell you because that Rotarian who sponsored them changed their life forever.  How can we Be A Gift To The World?  We are all about to spend a year finding ways to do just that, but we can all start by Giving The Gift To A Friend - Share Rotary.