ROTARY E-CLUB CANADA ONE FOUNDATION NEWSLETTER AUGUST 2024
Rotary International President for 2024-25, Stephanie Urchick, highlights her initiatives in 2024-25, including championing the Action Plan and promoting Rotary’s peacebuilding initiatives.
RI President Stephanie urges all members to “grow the Magic of Rotary by adding new members to our Rotary family and providing wonderful experiences to those already involved.”
“Unlock the Magic of Rotary by unlocking the power of women and girls. Advance the Magic of Rotary by fundraising to help change the world.”
“Together, we can make every club and every district ‘simply irresistible. ’”
Click this link to view several videos from the 2024 Singapore Convention including RI President Stephanie and RI President-elect Mário César Martins de Camargo
Rotary International President 2024-25, Stephanie Urchick, (Pennsylvania, USA) Club President, Vicki Horsfield
TRF Newsletter Editor – Kitty Bucsko (RC of D6330 Passport)
RI PRESIDENT Stephanie Urchick
1 Editor Kitty Bucsko
ROTARY INTERNATIONAL PRESIDENT AUGUST 2024 MESSAGE
From challenge to opportunity
If we are to truly change the world with The Magic of Rotary, it’s up to all of us to foster a sense of belonging in our clubs. But every club should take its own path to get there, and the Action Plan can help you find your way. What does that look like?
Take for instance the Rotary Club of Beveren-Waas in Belgium. It was chartered in 1974 but has evolved with the times, developing both a strategic plan and a membership plan. To find new members, the club analyzes the city’s professions to help focus on its search, and all new members are quickly assigned tasks and roles.
The club also mixes up meeting times, alternating between evening and afternoon sessions, making them accessible for all members.
Sometimes, circumstances force clubs to make changes. But as people of action, we know that behind every obstacle is an opportunity.
The Rotary Club of Holyoke in Massachusetts was forced from its meeting place because of rising costs after the COVID19 pandemic, but members took this setback and turned it into a strength. The club started meeting in a library community room that was available for no charge and catering lunch from a nearby deli. Lunch costs $10 per person but it’s optional, so no one has to spend money to attend a meeting. What a great way to work toward being “fair to all concerned.”
Since making this change, the Holyoke club has gained 13 members. I suspect part of its membership growth is due to the club’s sense of inclusivity – the first step toward belonging.
If you ask members what they expect from the club experience, you might find that your club doesn’t meet expectations. Think of this as an opportunity to reshape your club in exciting ways, as alternative club models are making a positive impact.
For example, a Rotary Fellowship called Beers Rotarians Enjoy Worldwide, or BREW, has worked closely with the Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene Rotary Action Group for the past eight years to assist with clean water projects. In that time, BREW has funneled 25 percent of its dues to those initiatives.
BREW is one of the many examples of members pursuing belonging to improve the world.
I can’t stress enough the importance of belonging. Clubs become simply irresistible when all members feel that they are exactly where they need to be. To me, belonging is the spark that ignites The Magic of Rotary.
As you receive feedback from club members and the community you serve, I urge you to pursue that spark. The Action Plan can help you find the path to success, and if you light your way with the spirit of belonging, that path will lead to a bright future for your club, your community, and the world.
STEPHANIE A. URCHICK PRESIDENT, ROTARY INTERNATIONAL
THE ROTARY FOUNDATION TRUSTEE CHAIR
AUGUST 2024 - MESSAGE
Members are the magic
I love our many Rotary traditions, especially our emblem: the wheel. Whenever I put on my Rotary pin, admire a new club’s logo, or spot the emblem on a volunteer’s T-shirt, I am inspired by the possibilities that wheel represents.
Early in Rotary, our predecessors envisioned it as a gear, part of a sturdy machine making great things happen. It remains that, and much more. To me, it also symbolizes cycles and movement on our journey of doing good in the world.
August is Rotary’s Membership and New Club Development Month, and I encourage you to think about the cyclical connection between membership and The Rotary Foundation.
When we have engaged members in dynamic clubs, The Magic of Rotary happens. Members – both new and experienced – deeped their commitment to each other and their communities. And that local engagement attracts attention and more members.
Gradually, the new members realize their club is part of a powerful organization that is making lasting change in the world. They learn about the Foundation, support it, and perhaps apply for a grant. They see themselves as part of the movement that will eradicate polio.
As our members’ experience deepens, so does their commitment to Rotary at all levels. The public sees our impact, making Rotary irresistible. New members join, new clubs are formed, and the cycle continues. With each turn of the wheel, we grow Rotary and our Foundation.
There are countless ways this magical connection between clubs and our Foundation can unfold. For instance, 100% Paul Harris Fellow Clubs, where every member is a Paul Harris Fellow, showcase how engaged clubs are directly connected to the Foundation. Some clubs even up the ante, like the Rotary Club of Crescent (Greensboro), North Carolina, whose 125 members are all Paul Harris Fellows, Benefactors, and Sustaining Members simultaneously.
But you do not need to be in such a “triple crown” club to make a difference.
I am asking all Rotary members to remember this month’s goal for what I’m alling Mark’s Magical Markers: Please make the personal commitment to contribute what you can to the Annual Fund by 31 August. Do it right now, before you forget, at rotary.org/give. While you are there, set up a recurring direct donation.
With your help, we can keep that great wheel of Rotary and its Foundation rolling in the right direction, moving toward something greater tomorrow than we can even imagine today.
MARK DANIEL MALONEY Foundation Trustee Chair,
2024-25
Thanks to donors like you, Rotary members around the world are:
• Uniting a divided nation around a water project in Lebanon
• Recognizing a woman’s worth and needs in Nigeria
• Giving the gift of reading to students in Guatemala
• Raising awareness about the environment in the United States
• Fighting for a community cure for malaria in Zambia
• Supporting female vaccinators who are doing more than helping end polio in Pakistan
To review your giving history, sign in to My Rotary, click on My Account in the upper right corner, and choose My Donations. We’re grateful for donors like you, who are dedicated to Doing Good in the World.
Sincerely,
Rotary Foundation
The
ROTARY’S FOCUS - MONTH OF AUGUST MEMBERSHIP AND NEW CLUBS
Read why you need Rotary AND why Rotary needs you. Then consider joining us
You need Rotary because
• You care about your community and want to be involved with people who share your commitment.
• You like to be associated with people and ideas that really make a difference in your world.
• You believe in service. You know that our world is enriched by women and men like yourself, and you want to do your part.
• You have talents that you are willing to share.
• You like to have fun. You like to be around people who enjoy what they are doing, whether working, or volunteering, or just socializing.
Rotary needs you because
• Rotary needs need talented people like you to be an effective organization serving their community.
• You are a leader in your community. Whether you are outgoing or reserved, Rotary needs leaders like you.
• Rotary needs people with new energy and new ideas.
• Rotary is a highly regarded international organization that makes things happen – locally, nationally, and internationally. But nothing happens without the efforts of people like you.
There is a Rotary club near you. In some communities there will be several clubs, each with its own character, projects, and focus.
There are several ways to engage your local Rotary club. You are welcome at Rotary clubs’ regular meetings.
Participating in a club project or event is a good way to experience your local Rotary club, first-hand.
You may personally know a member of Rotary. Talk to her/him and don't be reluctant to ask straightforward questions about their club and what being in Rotary means to them.
Rotarians, reach out to your friends, colleagues, family, acquaintances.
Rotarians are learning to have a good elevator speech at the ready.
Click here to view a very short and clever video by Rotarian Michael Angelo Caruso. Michael shares versions of his elevator speech and how he explains Rotary International in this video.
[Note from Michael: I'm no longer single, thanks to the lovely Rene Pothetes, President-Elect of the Rotary Club of Troy Michigan. I'm keeping this video public until I can record a new version.]
A MESSAGE ABOUT MEMBERSHIP FROM RI PRESIDENT STEPHANIE URCHICK
“How will you make your club “irresistible” to your members, and foster a “sense of belonging” in them? This is my challenge to you,” said incoming RI President Stephanie Urchick, while addressing a general session at the RI Convention in Singapore.
Dear Rotary member,
For most of us in Rotary, what matters most is our personal club experience.
When I joined Rotary, my club made me feel like I belonged. I couldn’t wait for the next meeting, and I found a new purpose in the service projects we completed together. To me, this sense of meaning and belonging defines Rotary.
As president, I feel a special commitment to help every member in every Rotary and Rotaract club feel like an essential part of our family.
I’m writing today to thank you for being a member and making Rotary part of your life. And I want to share a tool that can further enhance your experience with Rotary our Action Plan.
The Action Plan challenges us to find ways to increase the impact of Rotary service, expand our reach by bringing more people together to share our vision, adapt to a rapidly changing world, and enhance the experience that you and your fellow club members have in tangible, meaningful ways.
MAKE ROTARY SIMPLY IRRESISTIBLE
Keeping members engaged and connected is essential for Rotary’s future and it begins with our clubs.
But great clubs don’t happen by chance. I encourage each of you to talk with your club leaders about what you want from your experience and then collaborate to create a welcoming, engaging environment for everyone. I also invite your club to conduct a member satisfaction survey By understanding more about your fellow club members, you can discover new opportunities to help your club grow.
As members of Rotary, we also receive many benefits that enhance our experience beyond our club. From tools that strengthen service projects to professional development courses and mentorship opportunities, there are a lot of reasons to be a member.
How can you take action?
Click here to learn about the benefits of membership
HOW ROTARY MAKES HELP HAPPEN
AUGUST IS MEMBERSHIP AND NEW CLUB DEVELOPMENT MONTH
There are two ways to add to the number of hands we have joining us in Rotary service.2
• One way is to bring in new members, either in existing clubs or by forming new ones.
• The other is engaging existing members to retain them.
This month is a great time to evaluate existing clubs and make any needed adjustments. As Paul Harris said,
“This is a changing world; we must be prepared to change with it. The story of Rotary will have to be written again and again.”
We’ve recently seen changes in the qualifications for Rotary membership, the meeting attendance requirements, etc. These have helped our membership challenge, but more change may be needed to assure existing members find their club membership valuable and engaging.
Rotary.org has a large assortment of membership resources to help you assess and reinforce that value.
Action steps you can take today:
• Download and distribute a survey to find out how your club’s members are interested in serving or what projects they’d like to undertake.
• Create an online survey to assess club members’ satisfaction with how the club is meeting their needs.
• Have your board or club members take a club “health check” to identify any gaps in its offerings to keep members engaged and satisfied.
• Have board members take the 15 minute “Creating an Inclusive Club” course in the Rotary Learning Center
2 https://www.rizones30-31.org/august-is-membership-and-new-club-development-month/
D5370 is part of Zone 28.
Two videos below
Right-click the graphics below to open and view each of the two videos below.
Click here to join the webinars. Make a note of the link below for future webinars.
https://us06web.zoom.us/j/86755780910?pwd=pOP9Y2J6g78EkCgPLFnDT4kH5OOgfc.1#success
PAUL HARRIS SOCIETY
THE ROTARY FOUNDATION CANADA
����������������������������
Raise for Rotary is a platform that allows individuals, clubs, and districts to create online fundraisers that benefit The Rotary Foundation. It is a great way to celebrate personal events and special occasions. Organizers can share their fundraisers through social media, email, and text, so family, friends, colleagues, and supporters can donate online.
The Raise for Rotary site will notify you immediately when a donation is made. You can send a note of thanks to the individual. The Foundation sends the official thank you donation notification and tax receipt.
The site can easily be updated with thank you notes, flyers, photos and videos, or just about any information you’d like to include. It’s so easy to keep the site updated with new information. Adding major gifts is a breeze.
External non-Rotary fundraising platforms charge fees and donors do not receive Paul Harris recognition points. By using our own platform, the funds you raise go directly toward Doing Good in the World.
For further information visit https://raise.rotary.org/ FAQs https://raise.rotary.org/faq #trfCanada #rotary #raiseforrotary
Summary of new polioviruses this week, cases and positive environmental isolates:
• Afghanistan: 11 WPV1-positive environmental samples
• Pakistan: three WPV1-positive environmental samples
• Liberia: two cVDPV2-positive environmental samples
• Nigeria: one cVDPV2 case
• Sierra Leone: one cVDPV2-positive environmental sample
For more information, click here - http://polioeradication.org/polio-today/polio-now/this-week/
Click here to learn the difference between Wild Polio Virus (WPV) and Vaccine-derived Polio Virus. (VDPV)
CLOSING THE GAP: THE AFGHAN WOMEN GAINING GROUND AGAINST VACCINE REFUSALS AND ZERO DOSE CHILDREN
Across Afghanistan, community advocacy to increase vaccine uptake for polio and other deadly diseases has some unsung champions: the local women
Female mobilizer vaccinators (FMVs) hosting a health education session in a village in Southeastern Afghanistan. The work of FMVs are pivotal in the country’s polio eradication efforts – they share important information on health, immunization, nutrition and hygiene, listen and alleviate the concerns of mothers and caregivers about vaccination, build trust, and vaccinate children against polio. © UNICEF
Spera clinic clings to a shaly mountainside in Khost province, in Afghanistan’s remote Southeast. In the shade of a walnut tree in the clinic’s leafy courtyard, Rezia clears her throat, and holds up a booklet of flip cards. Fifty women sit cross-legged at her feet, listening. The silence is broken only by children murmuring, and birds chirruping in the Spring morning.
Every day, Rezia delivers education sessions on a meticulous rota of topics relevant to the needs of the local women – nutrition, breastfeeding, general health and hygiene, and vaccination. This morning’s session is on the vaccine-preventable diseases that plague remote parts of the country – polio, measles and tetanus. Her rapt audience has walked miles to the clinic, some for two hours or more, carrying the smallest of their children. When Rezia pauses for breath, they waste no time in asking questions.
50 kilometres northeast, the town of Maidan sits in a lush valley where green ears of wheat bob in every spare patch of ground, a stone’s throw from the Pakistan border. In the district clinic, Spozmai is recording the day’s health education sessions in her register. Just today, she spoke to over a hundred women of all ages from the local community.
Rezia and Spozmai are part of the female mobilizer vaccinator (FMV) network – 656 women across Afghanistan whose daily work is to vaccinate children against polio and run health education sessions for women from the local community. In Khost, one FMV has been permanently assigned to every clinic for the last year. Each one is a member of the community she serves. Because of this, she has their ear. This is the FMVs’ superpower.
Maidan and Spera are in the so-called former “white areas”: parts of Afghanistan that, before August 2021, were inaccessible to outsiders, including other Afghans. The communities here are tight knit, self-sustaining and culturally conservative. After decades in isolation, trust is slow to build. This also extends to health care: turning these communities on to vaccination is painstaking work that is best done by an insider.
A girl in Khost Province, Southeastern Afghanistan, shows her marked finger after receiving the polio vaccination. The work of Female Mobiliser Vaccinators has bene crucial in reducing the number of children missing vaccination in the province. © UNICEF
As well as being one of the last two polio-endemic countries, Afghanistan is among the top twenty countries for ‘zero dose’ children globally. The Southeast has the highest number of children missed in the regular polio vaccination campaigns, especially in Khost and neighbouring Paktika. Paktika also has one of the lowest rates of routine immunization countrywide.[1] It’s a universal human truth that we are less likely to listen to outside voices than we are to trusted members of our own communities. This is especially true for those who live in historically isolated areas. This includes attitudes toward vaccination – for measles and tetanus, but most of all for polio.
Changing people’s minds is the first, and biggest step toward reversing this trend, and women are critical players. “I’m respected in the community,” says Rezia. “I’m a mother, a grandmother – women listen to me. I can persuade the older women, and they want their daughters to have services they didn’t have. It trickles down.”
Afghan community structures are the framework along which information moves, how support is given, and how pressure is gently applied. To change attitudes and behaviours, you need to know how these structures fit together, and where to push. Rezia and Spozmai know who needs to be persuaded first to pass the message forward. Pass information to the right people and, like a drop of ink in water, it spreads.
According to the FMVs, the level of awareness among local women is a critical factor in bridging the immunization gap. Not just knowing when and why to vaccinate their children, but having their questions answered straightforwardly, and by a trusted neighbour, has contributed significantly to changing attitudes toward vaccination. Before the FMV programme began, health information was given by midwives or doctors, but this didn’t always work, especially if the doctor was a man. Rezia smiles: “Men can’t talk to us about things like this. And women wouldn’t listen if they tried.”
As the FMVs know well, change is coming slowly. As Spozmai says, “you can’t bring changes overnight.”
Evidence of the impact of the FMVs’ work on vaccine acceptance in these insular parts of the country is to date mostly anecdotal, but copious, nonetheless. Certainly, the directors of clinics and hospitals in the polio high-risk regions of the South, East and Southeast attest to tangible changes in health seeking behaviours among their patient catchment populations since the programme began – especially among women.
When it comes to ending the grip polio and other vaccine-preventable diseases hold over Afghan communities and closing the gap on zero dose children, the FMVs’ role is critical. In health facilities in every corner of the country, these women are the mortar that is slowly filling the gap.
By
Kate Pond, UNICEF Afghanistan
Click here to read and learn more.
The GPEI has published a new technical brief, Building a Climate-Resilient Polio-Free World, which highlights the intersection of the climate crisis and polio eradication, offering valuable insights into how we can both deliver a polio-free world and ensure a climate-resilient future.
Click here to read more
As People of Action focused on increasing our impact, we must continue to invest in relationships, make decisions grounded in evidence, and mobilize our networks to create solutions that last. As we continue to support the incredible work that Rotary members are doing, we also want to find new ways to accomplish our mission, learn together, and demonstrate Rotary's power to create positive change.
In response, The Rotary Foundation created Programs of Scale to support Rotary member-led, evidence-based programs that have already demonstrated success. Scaling proven programs will benefit more people and foster policy development and sustainable programs.
Click here to learn more about the previous award recipients –
What are Programs of Scale? …longer-term and high-impact programs
Programs of Scale supports longer-term, high-impact programs led by Rotary members. These programs are:
• Evidence-based interventions that must have already demonstrated success in affecting change;
• Locally relevant to the needs, priorities, and institutional structures of the setting and participating communities;
• Ready to grow by having the right stakeholders and systems engaged to bring the intended benefits to new settings, such as a different community or group of people;
• Implemented according to a strong theory of change and have integrated monitoring, evaluation, and collaborative learning systems; and
• Guided by Rotary members in partnership with others, leveraging the unique strengths of Rotary
Funding
Each year, Programs of Scale supports a competitive grant process resulting in at least one award of US$2 million from The Rotary Foundation that is distributed over a three- to five-year period to a club- or districtsponsored program showing success and readiness to expand to help more people in more places.
Award qualification
While the programs must be sponsored by a qualified club or district, the programs will be implemented with experienced partners who are also committed to long-term success and sustainability. Implementing partners may include nongovernmental organizations, private institutions, government entities, or other Rotary entities, such as Rotary Action Groups. These partners should be engaged in program design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation, and sustainability.
Applicants are required to include cash contributions totaling a minimum of US$500,000 from one or more program partners outside of Rotary.
The application process
Programs of Scale has a two-step competitive application process that lasts 9 to 11 months. The first step is a call for concept notes and the second is an invitation to submit a full proposal to a select number of the highest scoring concepts.
All program entries will go through a rigorous review process conducted by Rotary members, Cadre, staff, and other subject matter experts.
If awarded a Programs of Scale grant, Rotary members should be prepared to engage with the Foundation for five to seven years to foster a learning partnership that explores and documents program successes and challenges to help inform both Rotary programming and the work of Rotary members around the world.
Click here to learn more –
2021 Programs of Scale award recipient
The 2021 awardee, Partners for a Malaria-Free Zambia, is a malaria elimination program that aims to reduce cases of malaria – especially severe malaria and death, particularly for pregnant women and children under 5 – in ten target districts in two provinces in Zambia. Reaching 1.2 million people, this program directly contributes to the nation-wide strategy put forth by the Zambian National Malaria Elimination Centre (NMEC).
2022 Programs of Scale award recipient
The 2022 awardee, Together for Healthy Families in Nigeria, fostering the health of mothers and newborns, is working to reduce maternal and neo-natal mortality rate by improving health seeking behavior and quality care for pregnant women, mothers, and newborns in Nigeria. The partnership between Rotary Districts 1860 (Germany) and 9110, 9125, 9141, 9142 (Nigeria), the Rotary Action Group for Maternal and Child Health (RMCH), the federal and state ministries of health, and two professional medical associations are working to provide education and training for quality care, knowledge of healthy timing and spacing of pregnancies, and full adoption of the national system for death surveillance and response.
2023 Programs of Scale award recipient
United to End Cervical Cancer in Egypt is a Rotary member- led program that aims to ultimately reduce the number of cervical cancer cases in the greater Cairo region by implementing a four-year campaign to increase awareness about cervical cancer and how to prevent it. The implementation experience and data collected through this program will inform an evidence-based national strategy by the Egyptian government toward eliminating cervical cancer, considered one of the most preventable cancers.
2024 Programs of Scale award recipient
Partners for Water Access and Better Harvests in India is a five-year evidence-based program designed to improve livelihoods of over 60,000 rural farmers across four states in India through the implementation of sustainable agriculture and water management practices. Farming communities will gain knowledge and skills in resilient agricultural practices such as drip irrigation, layered cropping, and fruit tree cultivation. The program will also use rainwater harvesting systems such as check dams and retention ponds to increase groundwater availability for farming by 40%, improving crop yield and productivity.
YOUR ROTARY LEGACY –Doing Good in the World beyond your lifetime
Click here to read the Endowment Fund Financial report for 2022-23.
FOUNDATION GRANTS – 7 AREAS OF FOCUS
Rotarians can get involved in various types of service –
Club Service, Community Service, International Service, Vocational Service, New Generations (Youth) Service
A list of Rotary's 7 areas of focus and a brief description of each:
1. Peacebuilding and conflict prevention: Rotary aims to address the root causes of conflict and promote sustainable peace through initiatives that support education and training, promote community dialogue, and build networks of peacebuilders.
2. Disease prevention and treatment: Rotary works to improve health outcomes and reduce the spread of disease through initiatives that promote immunization, provide access to clean water and sanitation, and support medical research.
3. Water and sanitation: Rotary aims to improve access to clean water and sanitation in underserved communities, through initiatives that promote infrastructure development, support education and training, and raise awareness about the importance of clean water and sanitation.
4. Maternal and child health: Rotary works to improve maternal and child health outcomes by supporting initiatives that provide access to prenatal and postnatal care, promote vaccination, and support nutrition and education programs for mothers and children.
5. Basic education and literacy: Rotary aims to improve access to education and literacy for children and adults, through initiatives that support teacher training, provide educational resources and materials, and promote community-based programs that increase literacy rates.
6. Economic and community development: Rotary works to support economic and community development initiatives that promote job creation, increase access to financial services, and support small business development and entrepreneurship.
7. Supporting the environment: Rotary aims to support environmental sustainability initiatives, through programs that promote conservation, improve access to clean energy, and support the development of sustainable agriculture and other eco-friendly practices.
WHERE THE NEED IS GREATEST -
FAST FORWARD TO SEPTEMBER
BASIC EDUCATION AND LITERACY ARE THE FOCUS FOR SEPTEMBER!
Click here to read more about the Action Group for Literacy – BELRAG September 8 – International Literacy Day
Click here to listen to We are the World.
INTERNATIONAL DATES TO NOTE (plus
World Breastfeeding Week
August 1 through August 7
Friday, August 9
International Day of World’s Indigenous Peoples
Monday, August 12
International Youth Day
Monday, August 19
International Humanitarian Day
Wednesday, August 21
International Day of Remembrance and Tribute to the Victims of Terrorism
Thursday, August 22
International Day Commemorating the Victims of Acts of Violence Based on Religion or Beliefs
Friday, August 23
International Day for the Remembrance of the Slave Trade and its Abolition (UNESCO)
Saturday, August 31
International Day for People of African Descent
ROTARY’S CORE VALUES
Click the 4-way test above and open the link to hear the Four-Way Test by RC of Saskatoon Nutana.
THE ROTARY FOUNDATION EREY –
Every Rotarian Every Year
Click here for a short video
Our Every Rotarian, Every Year (EREY) initiative encourages all Rotary club members to contribute something each year to The Rotary Foundation. We hope that you can consider at least $100 USD every year to help us reach our goal to support the Rotary Foundation financially each year.
Sustaining member. One who contributes $100 USD every year is a Sustaining Member. With EREY, we encourage you to contribute an amount you can afford every year.
ROTARY BEQUEST SOCIETY
What is a Rotary Foundation Bequest Society Member?
Those who have made commitments for future gifts of $10,000 or more to The Rotary Foundation are invited to join the Bequest Society.
Donors may elect to receive various benefits and recognition pieces commemorating their commitment at each new recognition level, including pins, crystals, named funds, and special seating at the Rotary International Convention.
A bequest gift of at least $10,000 in your name to The Rotary Foundation creates a legacy of your generosity and compassion as you are helping many people live better lives around the world.
Today there are over 18,000 Bequest Society Members worldwide. Will you join them by leaving a gift to Rotary in your estate? Contact the Rotary Foundation’s Planned Giving team.
Your in-person registration includes a full day of activities:
• Admission to the convention’s opening and closing ceremonies, general sessions, breakout sessions, and the House of Friendship.
• Transportation between your hotel and the convention venue, if you booked your hotel through Rotary’s official housing partner, Maritz Events.
What’s not included:
• Preconvention events
• Rotary- and host-ticketed events
• Housing, meals, and transportation to and from the airport
• If you register as Saturday, House of Friendship only, anything other than access to the House of Friendship on Saturday, 21 June, is not included
Cancellations
and refunds
Should you need to cancel a registration, a $50 processing fee applies to each registrant (each person). Requests to cancel registrants or Rotary-ticketed events must be received in writing by 30 April 2025. Cancellations caused by visa denial must be received in writing by 25 June 2025.
We prefer you cancel online, but you can also email ri.registration@rotary.org or fax +1-847-556-2194.
RI will refund registration and ticket fees if the convention is cancelled but is not responsible for travel or other related costs incurred by Rotarians and their guests.
Registration and tickets are not transferable.
noWhen tomorrow comes, this day will be gone forever. In its place is something that you have left behind. Let it be something good.3
