AREA WIDE MEETINGS
District Governery Shawn Asmuth has completed all Area Wide
Meetings for 2005!
Carl-Wilhelm Stenhammar of the Rotary Club of Goteborg, Sweden became RI president-elect
following the election at the 2004 RI Convention in Osaka, Japan.
With Service Above Self as theme, President-elect Stenhammar
signals continuity
Rotary International President-elect Carl-Wilhelm Stenhammar
made a grand bow to continuity and the successes of the past
century when he unveiled the 2005-06 theme, Service Above Self,
at the International Assembly in Anaheim, California, USA, on
19 February.
"I would like to be modern. I would like to recycle and
I also want to promote continuity," he declared in the
theme address at the opening plenary session. "Therefore,
I have chosen the best motto ever created for Rotary International,
yet one that you will not find on the walls of this room: Service
Above Self."
The RI president-elect explained that his theme selection was
also guided by Rotarians' need for landmarks while entering
into a second century of service.
"In our efforts to work for a better world, we need a
leading star to follow, a theme that we can all fix upon," he
said. "Over the years we have had many different themes,
and you can see several of them displayed on the walls of this
room: Enjoy Rotary! Be a Friend, Lend a Hand, Celebrate Rotary,
just to mention a few of them. Each and every one of these themes
was, or is, perfect for its time."
For the 2005-06 logo, Stenhammar again reached out for something
both simple and familiar in the Rotary world: "I am recycling
again, and I have chosen the best logo ever created for Rotary
International: our trademark, the Rotary wheel."
Calling continuity a new wind blowing in Rotary, Stenhammar
announced that in the new year Rotary clubs and districts will
carry on with the presidential emphases already in place: literacy
and water management. Those emphases will include an additional
focus of "alleviating hunger and improving the health and
well-being of all who are deprived of these essential resources," he
said.
Stenhammar explained that there was no need to change course
from the areas of concern that both Past President Jonathan
Majiyagbe and President Glenn Estess Sr. wisely identified and
successfully encouraged Rotary clubs and districts to address
locally and internationally.
"Gone are the days when our organization went north one
year, to the west the next, followed by east and, then, maybe
north again," he said. "Our main direction must be
the same for many years to come."
The president-elect said that Rotary International will continue
to seek and embrace opportunities to cooperate with other organizations
in areas of mutual interest.
Rotary can reap a lot of goodwill from the public exposure
received during the yearlong activities marking its centennial. "Therefore,
I am planning for a Public Image Resource Group to capture this
opportunity and help clubs use it as a platform in our continued
efforts to enhance our public image," said Stenhammar.
The 2005-06 president said it was time to expand the role of
women in Rotary. He pointed to the appointments of three past
district governors — Carolyn E. Jones, of District 5010,
as a trustee of The Rotary Foundation, the first woman appointed
to the Trustees; Mary Margaret Fleming, of District 5230, as
the new Public Image Resource Group chair; and Eileen M. Gentilcore,
of District 7250, as Literacy Resource Group chair — as
a good start.
"Please remember very well that it is through their talent,
not their gender, that these women have earned their appointments," he
said. "I agree that there might be a disproportionate number
of assignments to women during my year, compared to the mix
of Rotarians, but by doing this I am sending a message to the
women in Rotary as well as those who are not yet Rotarians:
There is a leading role for you in our organization."
The Rotary Youth Exchange program will be another key area
for the incoming district governors to promote in their clubs,
Stenhammar announced.
To address the issue of membership, the president-elect said
that he will ask every Rotary club to recruit just one new member
in 2005-06 to reach a modest goal of a total membership increase
of 31,000.
This article is © 2005 Rotary International and is provided
for the non-profit use of Rotarians worldwide; commercial use
is prohibited. The article may be quoted, excerpted or used
in its entirety, but the information should not be changed or
modified in any way.
Newsletters
Starting in August, each of our Assistant Governors will assume responsibility
for the District Newsletter for one month. The purpose of this is to share
throughout the District the key happenings and innovating ideas to common
challenges within our clubs. Our clubs have great approaches to increasing
membership, giving to the Foundation, local community support, and fund raising,
to name a few. The District Newsletter will be our vehicle to share this
information. Newsletter inputs to the DG are required no later than the next
to last Friday of each month.
Area Newsletter Assignments
Coming soon!
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