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Service Above Self
Governor’s Newsletter
District 2452
Mr. Gary C K Huang
RI President
May 2015
Light Up Rotary
Mr. Khalil Alsharif
District Governor
May is not designated with any Rotary issues in Rotary calendar. Nevertheless, it is an important month to
prepare for the closing in order to make the Rotary year successful.
Hence, I would like to take this opportunity to humbly remind club officers to compete their pending works
and update the records for smooth transition of club responsibilities to the incoming officers.
Let the theme ‘Light Up Rotary’, constantly remind us the personal responsibility that each of us holds in
Rotary.
Wishing you all the best.
Khalil Alsharif
District Governor
“WHATEVER ROTARY MAY MEAN
TO US, TO THE WORLD IT WILL
BE KNOWN BY THE RESULTS IT
ACHIEVES.” - PAUL P. HARRIS
OUR ONGOING COMMITMENT
Our 1.2 million-member organization started with the vision of one man—Paul P. Harris. The Chicago attorney
formed one of the world’s first service organizations, the
Rotary Club of Chicago, on 23 February 1905 as a place
where professionals with diverse backgrounds could exchange ideas and form meaningful, lifelong friendships.
Rotary’s name came from the group’s early practice of rotating meetings among the offices of each member.
Rotarians have not only been present for major events in history—we’ve been a part of them. From the beginning, three
key traits have remained strong throughout Rotary:
We’re truly international. Only 16 years after being founded,
Rotary had clubs on six continents. Today we’re working together from around the globe both digitally and in-person to
solve some of our world’s most challenging problems.
We persevere in tough times. During WWII, Rotary clubs in
Germany, Austria, Italy, Spain, and Japan were forced to disband. Despite the risks, many continued to meet informally
and following the war’s end, Rotary members joined together
to rebuild their clubs and their countries.
Our commitment to service is ongoing. We began our fight
against polio in 1979 with a project to immunize 6 million
children in the Philippines. By 2012, only three countries remain polio-endemic - down from 125 in 1988.
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Governor’s Newsletter
District 2452
May 2015
PRESIDENTIAL MESSAGE
GARY C.K. HUANG
PRESIDENT 2014-15
MAY 2014
One of my favorite parts of a Rotary convention is the House of Friendship. In Chinese, we say:
有朋自遠方來，不亦樂乎. "To have friends come together from faraway places is a wonderful
thing."
At the 106th annual Rotary International Convention, 6-9 June, the House of Friendship will
reflect the excitement and the diverse blend of cultures of São Paulo, the host city.
In between general sessions, you can relax and enjoy all that Brazil has to offer – sample the cuisine, browse locally
made gifts, and take in top-quality entertainment. You also can get ideas for service and find partners at booths showcasing Rotary projects and Rotarian Action Groups.
And best of all, you'll have the opportunity to spend time with old friends and make many new ones.
The House of Friendship is a wonderful place to bring your convention guests – your family and your friends from home.
By attending conventions with me, my family experienced the true internationality of Rotary. Eventually my wife, Corinna, and all three of my children joined Rotary clubs.
You and your guests will want to be sure to come early for World Water Summit 7, on 4 June, sponsored by the Water
and Sanitation Rotarian Action Group, or for the Rotary Peace Symposium, 4-5 June.
This year we are honored that Dr. Oscar Arias, former president of Costa Rica, will be the keynote speaker at the Rotary
Peace Symposium. Arias received the Nobel Peace Prize for brokering a peace agreement that ended the brutal civil wars
in Central America.
Other events 4-5 June include the Rotaract Preconvention Meeting, the International Institute, and the Youth Exchange Officers Preconvention Meeting.
When the convention is over, spend time exploring all that Brazil has to offer – pristine
beaches just a few hours away, the excitement and glamour of Rio de Janeiro, and the wonders of the Amazon rain forest.
Every year, I return from the Rotary convention inspired to do more, to give more in Rotary service throughout the year. Register today at www.riconvention.org. I look forward to
seeing you in São Paulo!
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Governor’s Newsletter
District 2452
May 2015
TRUSTEE CHAIR’S MESSAGE
JOHN KENNY
TRUSTEE CHAIR 2014-15
MAY 2014
As we enter into May, we have two months left to ensure that you have made your contribution to Rotary's charity, our Rotary Foundation.
There is still time to ensure that it is greater than it was last year – our goal for the Annual Fund is
US$123 million, the highest it's ever been. There's still time to ensure that we achieve our goal. And
there's still time to ensure that your contribution enables our Foundation to continue to do good in the
world – and that you can have the personal satisfaction of contributing to this in a meaningful way.
Remember that the good we can do is limited only by the contributions we receive.
May means that there's also just over one month until the Rotary International Convention in São Paulo, Brazil. Convention
delegates like to know who will be speaking.
This year we have outstanding speakers on Foundation-related topics, both at the convention and at the Rotary Peace Symposium held immediately prior to the convention. They include Nobel Peace Prize winner Dr. Oscar Arias, Australian entrepreneur
Steve Killelea, Rotary Peace Fellow Katia de Mello Dantas, and Global Alumni Service to Humanity Award winner Geetha
Jayaram.
Arias was president of Costa Rica from 1986 to 1990 and 2006 to 2010, and received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1987 for his
role as architect and peace-broker in ending multiple conflicts in Central America. Arias continues to be an international force
for peace-building through his personal activities and the Arias Foundation for Peace and Human Progress.
Killelea is an Australian entrepreneur and philanthropist, known internationally as the developer of the Global Peace Index. In
2007, he established the Institute for Economics and Peace as a vehicle to build a greater understanding of the interconnection
between business, peace, and economics.
Dantas received her master's degree in international development policy from Duke University in 2009. She works tirelessly
on behalf of vulnerable children as the Latin America and Caribbean policy director for the International Centre for Missing
and Exploited Children.
I look forward to seeing you in São Paulo.
POLIO VACCINE CELEBRATES
60TH ANNIVERSARY
Sunday, 12 April, marks 60 years since the Salk polio vaccine
was declared safe, effective, and potent. In that time, the number of polio cases has dropped by 99 percent worldwide. With
just three countries remaining polio-endemic, we are closer
than ever to eradicating this crippling disease.
Jonas Salk’s inactivated polio vaccine (IPV) has been crucial
in helping us reach our goal of a polio-free world. Before the
vaccine was widely available, in the United States alone, polio
crippled more than 35,000 people each year. By 1957 -- two
years after the introduction of Salk’s vaccine -- cases in the
U.S. had fallen by almost 90 percent, and by 1979, polio had
been eradicated there.
free Africa a real possibility.
Salk’s vaccine will play an important role in the end-game
strategy against polio when 120 countries introduce IPV into
their routine polio immunization systems this year. Leading
that effort are the GPEI partners and Gavi, a global vaccine
alliance, along with Sanofi Pasteur, the largest manufacturer
of polio vaccine.
“As more than 120 countries in the world are introducing IPV,
we are beginning the last chapter on polio eradication,” said
Olivier Charmeil, Sanofi Pasteur’s chief executive officer. “At
Sanofi Pasteur, we have had a long-term vision of IPV as the
ultimate public health tool able to finish the job started with
Oral Polio Vaccine (OPV).”
By Maureen Vaught
The impact on the rest of the world has taken longer. In 1988, Rotary News
when Rotary International launched the Global Polio Eradica- 10-Apr-2015
tion Initiative (GPEI) with its partners at the World
Health Organization, UNICEF, and the U.S. Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention, polio continued
to cripple children in 125 countries. Today, polio
remains endemic in only three: Afghanistan, Nigeria, and Pakistan. And it has been more than eight
months since Nigeria’s last case, making a polio3
District 2452
Governor’s Newsletter
May 2015
PETS Bahrain, 18th March 2015
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District 2452
Governor’s Newsletter
May 2015
END POLIO ROTARY FLAME
The Torch passed through Bahrain
PP Susanne Rea, Project Partner/Global
Team Coordinator, The World's Greatest Meal To Help End Polio
travels globally, speaking at Clubs, District
Conferences, Institutes Special Events,
PETS etc. on the need to support Total Polio Eradication, Successful Social Media,
Public Image and Membership.
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District 2452
Governor’s Newsletter
May 2015
Lebanon Clubs Celebrated World Rotaract Week:
A historical meeting was held in March between Rotary Presidents
and Rotaract Presidents to commemorate and celebrate the World
Rotaract Week, 9th to 15th March 2015. Rotar act Chair per son
Ralph Sayyah organized the meeting. - DDG May Monla Chmaytelly
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Rotary Club of Manama, Bahrain
Football tournament to help children in need.
DHL is the main sponsor, and corporate team sponsorships and in
-kind donations have already generated more than BD 20,000
from a number of companies: Al Hilal Group, Alkomed, APM
Terminals, Al Rashid Group, Al Sharif Water Plant, Al Zayani
Investments, Ashgharali, Bader Trading, BBK, Bin Hindi Group,
BMMI, BNH, BNP Paribas, BRFC, Budget Rent-A-Car, Chevron, Citi, Coca-Cola, Domain Hotel, Gulf Hotel, Intercol, International Investment Bank (IIB), Mesk Holdings, Motor City, Palace
Enterprises, RCSI Bahrain, SICO, TRA, Trowers & Hamlin, Upstairs-Downstairs Restaurant and Yateem Air Conditioning.
Soccer returns to the Bahrain Rugby Football Club in
Saar on Friday, 13th of March, when the 17th annual 6A-Side Football Tournament, organised by the Rotary Club of
Manama and Rotaract Club of Bahrain, kicks off to raise money
to help support children in need. This year the organisers are creating a carnival atmosphere around and after the football, with
special attractions for children during the day and live music in
the afternoon and evening. In fact, a full day out for all the family!
School and club
teams will also
All funds raised at this exciting event will go to screening and compete: Al Noor
helping children with diabetes; financial support for the campaign International
to curb and eventually eliminate the scourge of sickle cell and School, Arsenal,
other genetic blood diseases; and organising events and days out British
Army,
for orphans and children with disabilities (blindness, Down’s Dhahran Exiles
syndrome and autism).
(KSA), Eastern
Flames (KSA),
Thirty men’s teams and seven women’s teams will be taking part, Sibleys, Soccer
and over 400 people are expected to gather to watch the annual Stars, University
competition entitled ‘Kick for a Cause.’ The football starts at College Bahrain
9am and will finish by 3pm. There are all-day activities for chil- and Venus.
dren and, from 3pm to late there will be two bands and a DJ for
those who enjoy great music and lively dancing.
(Source: RCM Facebook)
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District 2452
Governor’s Newsletter
May 2015
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