MESSAGE FROM THE DISTRICT GOVERNOR
What an amazing year of Rotary, and what an amazing personal year this past Rotary year has been. Our District has proven that in Rotary we truly live the motto of Service Above Self. Through your efforts this year we have had over one hundred new members join, and we’ve raised approximately $850,000 dollars towards the final stages of polio eradication and other charity projects.
If you can take a moment to imagine that Rotary is an upside down pyramid, the District Governor, then, is at the bottom. It is your work that makes me shine and fills me with pride. It is you, the members of District 5450, that deserve the credit for this monumental year. Thank you.
I want to end this month’s newsletter, my last as District Governor, with a story of what Rotary has meant to me and my family, especially in this year, but also in the last 29 years. I believe my Rotary story is everyone’s Rotary story. Rotary has given me a community, inspired me, given me so much as I am honored to give to the world alongside all of you.
When I was 14 years old, in my hometown of Hamadan, Iran, I had to help my brother take my nephew to the hospital because of an epidemic of cholera. We arrived at the hospital full of concern for our own family, only to find that all the rooms, hallways and every inch of the hospital was overwhelmed with sick children, much worse off than my nephew. During that time, I watched many children die of diseases that can be prevented. Fortunately, today the water and sanitation situation in my hometown has improved; however, that is not the case in many parts of the world. Rotary has been amazing in providing for and helping communities around the world with water and sanitation – this touches my heart like no other Rotary project, even though my passion is peace and conflict resolution.
Given the current state of the world, most central in my mind and heart, and what was most important in our recent District Celebration was peace and conflict resolution. Because of this focus, our theme for the celebration was how to bring consensus to a divided community. As Rumi the thirteen-century Persian poet says, “Out beyond ideas of wrong-doing and right-doing, there is a field. I will meet you there.”
Rotary is that field, where we all rise above current affairs and follow Rotary’s moniker of Service Above Self in serving humanity. As Rotarians, we are a link in a long chain, over 113 years in the making, to make the world a better place for all people.
Peace is bigger than just the conflicts in the news. Your passion, as Rotarians, comes through when you pay attention to peace, you promote education, prevent disease, look after maternal health and when you are a leader in gender equality. There are so many avenues in which Rotarians improve the status of the world.
Thank you for sharing the honor of serving our world and our community with me. Most of all I want to honor the people who help make this process work, so many of you are fervent, hard workers who do more for Rotary than I can ever properly thank you for. Thank you for what you have done for me.
At this year’s District Celebration we celebrated the honor it is to be in Rotary, the pride of being a part of a global collective of service minded individuals – the joy of giving. The conference was new this year. We had a shorter gathering, a celebration not a conference. We also had a business expo, so we were able to connect on new levels and share our professional passions. We celebrated with fellowship and by producing knowledge and learning from each other. We celebrated our new, rising generations and we celebrated our achievements! Click this link to read the Villager's report on the Celebration: https://villagerpublishing.com/rotary-district-5450-celebrates-and-inspires/
I am so honored to be a part of Rotary, and especially District 5450. Though we have made many strides, we still have a long way to go in achieving diversity in our clubs and our District. Under the direction of our incoming District Governor Sandy Mortensen, I will do my best to help her in making a better world and reach a higher plateau in Rotary.
I also want to thank my wife Sami, though she spent much of this this year with serious health challenges, and two weddings of our children to attend to, and the joyful birth of a new granddaughter, she still worked hard to make Rotary possible for me. We are one amazing family and one amazing Rotary.
Also a nod to our youngest favorite daughter Samira for editing this newsletter each month. She was always the best and no one will ever be better than her ever, never, ever.
Yours in Rotary,
Abbas Rajabi, District Governor
TRAINING & EVENTS