District Governor's Message - November 2011

This month I would like to share some information on what and where funds given to the Rotary Foundation are spent.  These funds come from donations from Clubs to the Polio Plus Program and the Foundation and personal donations by Rotarians which can include the Centurion program, Every Rotarian Every Year and the Paul Harris Society.  Last year approximately 90 Rotarians in our District were recognised with PHF or multiple PHF’s by a donation or recognised by their Club for service to the Community and or Rotary.   

Polio Plus

To eradicate polio, Rotarians have mobilized by the hundreds of thousands. They‘re working to ensure that children are immunized against this crippling disease and that surveillance is strong despite the poor infrastructure, extreme poverty, and civil strife of many countries. Since the PolioPlus program‘s inception in 1985, more than two billion children have received the oral polio vaccine.

PolioPlus Grants – Primarily applied for by National PolioPlus Committee chairs or a major partner agency, such as the World Health Organization or UNICEF. Support is available for eradication efforts in polio-endemic, recently endemic, and high-risk countries, including National Immunization Days and poliovirus transmission monitoring.

District Simplified Grants – Support the service activities of districts locally and abroad.

Matching Grants – Provide matching funds for the international service projects of Rotary clubs and districts.

Educational Programs

Ambassadorial Scholarships – The Foundation sponsors one of the largest international scholarship programs in the world. Scholars study in a different country, where they serve as unofficial ambassadors of goodwill. Since 1947, more than 47,000 scholars from 110 countries have received scholarships of more than $476 million through The Rotary Foundation.

Group Study Exchange (GSE) – Annual awards are made to paired Rotary districts to cover travel expenses for a team of non-Rotarians from a variety of professions. Rotarian hosts organize a four- to six-week itinerary of vocational, educational, and cultural points of interest. Since 1965, more than 57,000 individuals (almost 12,000 teams) from 100 countries have participated at a cost of more than $92 million.

Rotary Peace Fellowships – Each year, up to 100 fellows are sponsored to study at one of the six Rotary Peace Centres for a master‘s level degree or professional development certificate.

The District Conference

There is a full report in the November District Chronicle on the Conference, we had a great time and thank you to everyone who attended and made the Conference a success.

I wish to acknowledge the work of the Conference Committee headed by Milen White, Milen lead a great team and ensured that everything was organised and happened when it should.  The advertorial in the Canberra Times was great publicity for Rotary and its programs, thanks to Heather and Anne.  The RIPPR Allan Jagger was excellent while educating and entertaining us.  MC Bruce Calder ran a tight program ensuring everything happened on time in a friendly and entertaining manner.  Anne Jenkin for coordinating the speakers for the conference program.  Phil and Nerrie Lacey provided and managed the audio visual which was first class and ran perfectly for the Conference.  Thank you to everyone in the RC Canberra City for your wonderful support.