Rotary Serving Humanity

Rotary International President, John Germ, writes:

"Rotary has been many things, to many people, in the last 111 years. Through Rotary, we’ve found friends, community, and a sense of purpose; we’ve forged connections, advanced our careers, and had incredible experiences we couldn’t have had anywhere else.

Every week, in more than 34,000 clubs around the world, Rotarians come together to talk, laugh, and share ideas. But above all, they come together for one, overriding goal: service.

Service to humanity has been the cornerstone of Rotary since its earliest days, and has been its main purpose ever since. I believe there is no better path to meaningful service today than Rotary membership; and no organization is better placed to make a real and positive difference in our world.  No other organization so effectively brings together committed, capable professionals in a wide variety of fields, and enables them to achieve ambitious goals. Through Rotary, we have the capacity, the network, and the knowledge to change the world: the only limits are the ones we place on ourselves.

Together Rotarians have provided extraordinary service to the world; tomorrow, our world will depend on us to do even more. Now is the time to capitalize on our success: as we complete the eradication of polio, and catapult Rotary forward, with determination and enthusiasm, to be an even greater force for good in the world.

Near the end of his life, reflecting on the path that brought him to Rotary, Paul Harris wrote: “Individual effort may be turned to individual needs, but combined effort should be dedicated to the service of mankind. The power of combined effort knows no limitation.” He could hardly have imagined then that one day, more than 1.2 million Rotarians would be combining their efforts, and, through our Rotary Foundation, their resources, to serve humanity together. And we can only imagine what great deeds Paul Harris would have expected of such a Rotary! It is our responsibility to achieve those deeds; as it is our privilege to carry forth the tradition of Rotary Serving Humanity."