“The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others.” – Mahatima Ghandi
We all join Rotary for different reasons, fellowship, networking, family, service. But whatever your reason for joining, you ARE here and you have stayed.
Our club in now in its 9th year and it’s a club that I am very proud to be a part of, especially having seen it grow and evolve since its inception.
As our club advances so does our members’ needs and interests. The question is how do we stay true to our mandate and objectives, keep our core values and yet change to satisfy the needs of our members. The answer is evolution. We cannot remain stagnant as members, as clubs. In order for our clubs to grow and move from strength to strength we must engage our members, keep them interested and fulfil their desires. Only then can we as a club serve our community effectively. District Governor Robert says it best in his 2017-2018 theme “Grow Stronger Serve Better”. And so we have chosen the theme for the year: “No Member Left Behind, Every Community Served”.
This year we focus on the member experience. We want every member to feel rewarded, so that they spread the word to their colleagues, neighbours, families and friends. Come join Rotary, I’m getting everything I wanted and more! More opportunities for fellowship, more home hospitalities, more fun Friday nights, more service. Engaged, impassioned and excited members equates to a vibrant, active and fun club.
The Sunrise club is known for their attention to the youth and literacy projects within the community. We have won Club of the Month for Basic Education and Literacy for two consecutive years!!!!! We have strived to mold and influence our youth to ensure that they can make better decisions, have brighter prospects and be empowered to reach for excellence. We commit to continue to putting our future first. To add to our signature programmes, we will be adding a focus on health. Childhood diabetes is prevalent in the Caribbean. Children need to be able to make smart choices outside the preview of their parents and get active and we so we will be pushing a healthier lifestyle education for our kids.
Another group close to my heart are women, especially disenfranchised women. We don’t like to admit that the glass ceiling exists because we have women in our community, very prominent women in high positions who have succeeded greatly. But these women are the exception not the rule. Women need to know that there is an alternative, BUILD YOUR OWN HOUSE. So we will be focusing on female entrepreneurs and their rise to success, educating women on branding, finances and business planning.
It would remiss of me not to mention what is most outstanding about the year 2017-2018. The WOMEN! The 3 incoming Presidents are women. PE Geraldine and PE Keria, I look forward to working with you and in making our mark in the territory. Our own club has had 5 female Presidents PP Monica, our charter President, PP Allison, PP Donna, PP Jean and PP Jeanette. I am pleased to be the 6th. My board is a board of women. Each one a powerhouse in their own right - educators, bankers, lawyers, business owners, and each bringing their various skills, and talents to help lead our club. It is so fitting that we the celebrated the 30th Anniversary of Women in Rotary this year. Can any of you men imagine not seeing us on weekly basis? Margaret Thatcher said “In politics, If you want anything said, ask a man. If you want anything done, ask a woman.” So keep watching this space!
Sunrise likes to get their hands dirty. We’ve brightened the corner and we’ve rebuilt classrooms from just a shell. This year we will continue to sweat with our community partners in improving the living spaces of our citizens, this time taking it the work to one of sister islands.
Sunrise is going to be busy next year, busy making a difference.
Thank you for giving me and incoming Board a chance to serve you and to lead the club to fulfil our mandate of serving the BVI, the region and global community.
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