Rotary International and Rotary Foundation CEO (Aired on October 18, 2020)

Through the magic of Zoom. RadioRotary interviews John Hewko, the General Secretary and Chief Executive Officer of both Rotary International and The Rotary Foundation. As CEO he directs some 800 Rotary employees in the United States and around the world—Rotary has 1.2 million members worldwide, with only about 25% of them in the United States. Rotarians are committed to doing good in the world as well as making person connections with like-minded others. In addition to contributing $400 million for projects through The Rotary Foundation, Rotarians contribute about 47 million people hours to make those projects work—and these numbers do not count the gifts and projects of the 35,000 individual clubs that make up Rotary. With numbers like that, Rotary embarked on a huge project in 1985 (later joined but other international organizations) to eliminate polio. At this point they have succeeded everywhere except Pakistan and Afghanistan where there remain a few cases annually. Another emphasis of Rotary is enrolling youth in both projects to improve communities but also in supporting peace through annual youth exchanges
between countries around the world.

Learn more:
General Secretary and CEO: https://my.rotary.org/en/general-secretary-and-chief-executive-officer
Rotary International: https://www.rotary.org/en
The Rotary Foundation: https://www.rotary.org/en/about-rotary/rotary-foundation
Polio Eradication: https://polioeradication.org/
Rotary Youth Programs: https://www.rotary.org/en/our-programs/youth-programs

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Rotary Rises to the COVID-19 Challenge (Aired on June 6 and 7, 2020)

Millbrook Rotarian Cindie Kish, the current 2710 District Governor, visits RadioRotary via Zoom, to tell how the 55 Mid-Hudson Rotary Clubs are helping their communities and the world get through the pandemic. Unlike many businesses and other organizations, Rotary in the Mid-Hudson has not gone dark. Clubs have found innovative ways to meet and also members are able to join weekly District meetings online. The good work of Rotary has not stopped, even though many traditional fundraisers have had to be cancelled; Rotary clubs have found ways to support not only such organizations as food pantries, but local businesses as well—for example, some clubs that can no longer meet at their favorite restaurant have helped support it by collecting take-out meals and distributing them to club members. The high-school Interact clubs sponsored by Rotary can no longer meet with schools closed, but they can still do good, perhaps by sending thank-you notes to health workers. Listen to the show to learn about the many ways Rotary continues to do good in the world in spite of the current crisis.

Learn more:
District 7210, Rotary in the Mid-Hudson: https://portal.clubrunner.ca/50045
Rotary International: https://www.rotary.org/en
Rotary International Virtual Convention, June 10-26: https://www.riconvention.org/en/honolulu
Donate to the Rotary Foundation : https://www.rotary.org/en/donate
ShelterBox: https://www.shelterboxusa.org/

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Hamburg Rotary International Convention, Part 3 (Aired October 26 and 27, 2019)

The 2019 Rotary International Convention in Hamburg, Germany, was covered by
RadioRotary interviewers; this is the third report on some of what they found. A Rotarian
from the Netherlands told RadioRotary about efforts of her organization to reduce
human trafficking with education and empowerment of youth. Another NGO (non-
governmental organization) called Medair works to provide quick relief and shelter in
cases of disasters or civil conflict. A Rotarian physician from Johns Hopkins in Maryland
is part of the Rotary Action Group (RAG) on Mental Health Initiatives, working primarily
to reduce high suicide rates in Lithuania and India. A Rotarian from Zambia describes
efforts to provide new professions for commercial sex workers; he was promoting the
Rotarian shirts made by former sex workers who now operate sewing machines. And,
closer to home, Rotarians from Media, Pennsylvania (Jeffrey Cadorette), and Millbrook,
New York (Cindie Kish), tell about the polio eradication program known as “Drop to
Zero” and the possible drop to ground level from the skies for six Rotarians, including
Cindie and Jeffrey, if goals are met.

Learn more:
Just Ask (human trafficking prevention): http://justaskprevention.org/
Medair: https://us.medair.org/
Rotary Action Group on Mental Health Initiatives: https://ragonmentalhealth.org/
Rotary Shirts, Hats, and Aprons made by former sex workers: https://clubrunner.blob.core.windows.net/00000006774/en-ca/files/homepage/the-kwenuha-women-s-association-rotary-shirt/Rotary-Livingstone-Catalogue.pdf

Polio Drop to Zero: https://www.endpolio.org/drop-to-zero-a-major-global-polio-event-to-be-held-at-the-rotary-convention
Rotary Zones 24-32: https://portal.clubrunner.ca/50077

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Polio Survivor Swims Lake George (Aired October 19 and 20, 2019)

In 1954 when she was 6 months old, Louise Rourke contracted polio, also known as
infantile paralysis. Initially she lost the power of moving either leg or her left arm,
although her left side eventually recovered with medical help supplied in part by the
National Foundation for Infantile Paralysis (the March of Dimes). After several corrective
surgeries, she was able to walk with the aid of a brace on her right leg. By the time she
was a teenager, she could walk without the brace, but age caught up to her in 2007 and
she needed the brace once more. Like some other polio survivors, she found that
swimming was excellent exercise, although her right leg just dangled in the water. Living
on the shore of 32-mile-long Lake George in upstate New York, she learned of women
who had swum the entire length of the lake, so she conceived of a plan to earn money
for polio eradication by swimming the length of Lake George herself. This RadioRotary
program tells how she got through the task and what she accomplished for polio
eradication, which became multiplied by a factor of 3 by the Bill and Melinda Gates
Foundation.

Learn more:
Polio: https://www.cdc.gov/polio/about/index.htm
End Polio Now: https://www.endpolio.org/
Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation: https://www.gatesfoundation.org/what-we-do/global-development/polio
Lake George: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lake_George_(New_York)
Northern Lake George Rotary Club: https://northernlakegeorgerotary.wordpress.com/

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November 4, 2019 · Posted in Global Polio Initiative, PolioPlus  

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