District Governor Message - February 2016
Posted
on Feb 03, 2016
We head into the month of February. It is the shortest month of the year - although this year we gain another day as this is a Leap Year! February is the Month of Hearts. Many of us can remember as a child how excited we were to make Valentine hearts to give to our friends and families to show them we care. Rotarians have always been generous in their hearts by the giving of their time and their money to the causes of Rotary.
The month of February is special in the Rotary calendar since it is designated to one of the six Areas of Focus: Promoting Peace. This month gives each of us an opportunity to pause and to reflect on the ways we can promote Rotary’s quest for goodwill, peace, and understanding among people of the world. Are Rotarians up to this challenge of Promoting Peace? Definitely! Being part of the solution is how we as Rotarians build together. It takes only a small step on our part for it is “by small actions that we accomplish great things!”
We are asked to be a catalyst for change. And as RI President K.R. ‘Ravi’ Ravindran likes to say “We are in Rotary for one simple reason: to change the world”. It has been the way of Rotary to focus upon matters in which members are in agreement; rather than upon matters in which we disagree. Being open minded and forgiving is how we as Rotarians approach the problems of the world. We can and do find ways to work together and get along in our world.
We as Rotarians live by the words of this familiar song: “Let there be peace on earth and let it begin with me!” At PETS (President Elect Training Seminar) last year we closed our lunch session with the President Elects and guests singing this song. We stood together, shoulder to shoulder, hands joined, each one of us unique and different; and became one voice focused on the dream of peace.
This month also includes the anniversary of the first meeting of Rotary held on February 23rd 1905. So plan to celebrate our 111th anniversary, and the legacy of Rotary! Rotary has demonstrated the fact that friendship can easily hurdle national and religious boundaries. We do so by attempting to understand peoples’ points of view and reaching across lines of race, religion, and culture to become partners in service to all humankind; so tensions are reduced and friendships are increased.
Our District Membership numbers have declined somewhat from last year. So this month represents a good time to take stock of your actions and attitudes for this Rotary year. How are you sharing “your Gifts” to “Be a Gift to the World”? Where is your ‘heart’ in relation to Rotary? Have you made some efforts and progress this year to build up your club and your club leaders? Are you looking with a discerning eye at your Club and discovering ways to be better and more attractive to new members? Have you asked someone to join with you at your Rotary breakfast, lunch or dinner meeting?
Our Rotary clubs must deliver value that satisfies our membership and give Rotarians the opportunity to make a greater impact. Members must find value in being a Rotarian. This can only be accomplished if clubs strive to understand and deliver what their members joined Rotary for and what their future expectations are.
The first object of Rotary is ‘the development of acquaintance as an opportunity for service’. Acquaintance and friendship is often the reason people seek out joining any organization. Let us give and share the “Gift” of Rotary Membership to others. As Rotarians, we strive to build Goodwill and Better Friendships as we aspire to world understanding. These friendships endure when they are built on the foundation of Rotary’s core values: fellowship, service, diversity, integrity, and leadership.
AND LET IT BEGIN WITH ME…..… “Be a Gift to the World”
Yours in Rotary Service,
Nancy