2016-01 January

rthe otarian www.rotary.org January 2016 jan16-coverVer3.indd 1 Ordinary Rotarians, extraordinary tales 11/20/15 1:32 PM

WHERE WILL ROTARY GLOBAL REWARDS TAKE YOU? jan16 - Rotarian Main Conformer_v1.indd 2 THE MEMBER BENEFIT PROGRAM THAT OPENS UP A WORLD OF OPPORTUNITIES. SEE MORE AT ROTARY.ORG/GLOBALREWARDS 11/24/15 3:38 PM CST

DEAR FELLOW ROTARIANS, ON THE WEB There is a story told in my Hindu tradition of two sages, Shaunaka and Abhipratari. They Speeches and news were worshippers of Prana, the wind god. One day, the two men were about to sit down to from RI President lunch when a poor student knocked on their door, asking for food. K.R.Ravindran at “No, boy, do not bother us at this hour,” was the reply. The student was surprised but very www.rotary.org hungry, so he persisted. /office-president “Tell me, honored sirs, which deity do you worship?” “Prana, the wind god,” they answered impatiently. “Do you not know that the world begins and ends with wind, and that wind pervades the entire universe?” The two sages were by now very irritated by their impertinent guest. “Of course we know it!” they replied. “Well, then,” continued the student, “if Prana pervades the universe, then he pervades me also, since I am but part of the universe. He is also in this hungry body, which stands before you begging for a bite to eat! And so in denying food to me, you deny it to the very deity whom you say you serve.” The sages realized the student spoke the truth and invited him to enter and share their meal. For they understood, at that moment, that by opening the door to one who sought their help, they were not only serving that individual – but reaching toward a larger goal. Our experience of Rotary is, for the most part, based in our own communities. We meet every week in our clubs, in the same places, with the same familiar friends. While almost all of us are involved in some way or other in international service, the Rotary we see and share from day to day feels very local. It can be easy to lose sight of the larger picture – of what our service truly means. Every impact you have as a Rotarian, individually and through your club, is multiplied by the power of our numbers. When you feed one person who is hungry, when you educate one person who is illiterate, when you protect one child from disease, the impact may seem small. It is anything but. For it is only through the power of numbers, through the power of our individual actions and gifts, that we can have the impact we seek: to truly Be a Gift to the World. K . R . R AV I N DR A N 11/5/15 1:13 PM President, Rotary International jan16-Presmessage_v2.indd 1

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january contents Vol.194 No.7 FEATURES 34 What it’s like to... Rotarians have amazing stories. We’re kicking off 2016 with first-person accounts of your most harrowing and heartfelt personal experiences. Illustrations by Gwen Keraval DEPARTMENTS COLUMNS 6 Letters 1 President’s message 11 Up front Multiply your impact • Kenton Lee’s health 4 Contributors project starts off on 25 Culture the right foot Catch my meaning? • Michael Scannell on wheelchairs 30 Sports and word choice A winning goal • New York club camps it up for kids 59 Trustee’s message with disabilities 60 Crossword 64 The Rotarian online 22 Calendar 57 Insider • Nigeria no longer polio-endemic • Rotary supports new UN goals • Rotary in the media jan16_contents-v4.indd 3 ON THE COVER Who you calling ordinary? (Illustration by Gwen Keraval) LEFT Nick Hall, a member of the Rotary Club of Temple Terrace, Fla., embarked on an epic solo bike ride across the U.S. to raise money and awareness for polio eradication. Read the story, in his own words, on page 51. 11/20/15 1:51 PM

rtheotarian contributors ® WHAT IT’S LIKE TO ... Editor in chief write for The Rotarian JOHN REZEK FRANK BURES, columnist Art director JENNIFER MOODY A few years ago, while traveling across West Africa Senior editors by bus, I spotted a Rotary logo painted on the JENNY LLAKMANI DIANA SCHOBERG hood of a car in a quiet part of Bamako, Mali. A Assistant editor freelance writer interested in travel and culture, I SALLYANN PRICE took this cameo as a sign that Rotary could be a Contributing editor VANESSA GLAVINSKAS good fit for my work. I reached out to e Rotarian Production manager and got a call from an editor a few months later MARC DUKES with my first assignment: a column on language and the shortcomings of translation. Design & production assistant JOE CANE Some 30 columns later, it remains my favorite. Research editor A column typically starts with a question I want to explore or an observation of MARK DURAN some change I’ve noticed in the world. From there, I’ll work with the editor to refine Senior editorial coordinator CYNTHIA EDBROOKE the focus, research the topic, sketch relevant scenes, and consider how Rotary Circulation manager members might relate to it. Slowly, MAY LI from several thousand words, a “I count myself lucky that my Advertising representatives coherent essay begins to emerge. FOX ASSOCIATES INC. I count myself lucky that my interests often overlap with Email [email protected] Chicago 116 West Kinzie St., Chicago, IL 60654; 800-440- interests often overlap with those of those of Rotarians and that 0231, 312-644-3888; fax: 312-644-8718 Rotarians and that I’ve had the New York 347 Fifth Ave., Suite 706B, New York, NY 10016- opportunity to write about many of I’ve had the opportunity to 5010; 212-725-2106; fax: 212-779-1928 them: technology in Africa (where write about many of them.” Los Angeles 5345 Cochran St. # 203, Simi Valley, CA 93063; 805-522-0501; fax: 805-522-0504 I’ve lived and worked), the etiquette Detroit 6765 Woodbank Dr., Bloomfield Hills, MI 48301- 3040; 248-626-0511; fax: 248-626-0512 of tipping, the benefits of biculturalism, the strange power money gives us, travel Atlanta 800-440-0231 Send ad materials to: Marc Dukes, The Rotarian, One Rotary scams, hope, self-deception, and much more. Center, 1560 Sherman Ave., 14th Floor, Evanston, IL 60201; phone 847-866-3092; fax 847-866-9732; email [email protected] Every assignment brings me a little closer to answering the question at the heart Media kit: www.rotary.org/mediakit To contact us: The Rotarian, One Rotary Center, 1560 Sher- of almost everything I write: how best to spend our short time on this earth. I haven’t man Ave., Evanston, IL 60201; phone 847-866-3206; fax 847-866-9732; email [email protected] come up with a definitive reply yet, but I can think of no better place than e Website: therotarian.com To submit an article: Send stories, queries, tips, and photo- Rotarian to keep asking. graphs by mail or email (high-resolution digital images only). We assume no responsibility for unsolicited materials. WHAT IT’S LIKE TO ... edit this magazine To subscribe: Twelve issues at US$12 a year (USA, Puerto JOHN REZEK, editor in chief Rico & U.S. Virgin Islands); $16 a year (Canada); $24 a year (elsewhere). Contact the Circulation Department (phone: 847- I’ve been a writer and editor for close to four decades, and I have 424-5217 or -5216; email: [email protected]) for details and for the best job in the world. When I was in graduate school, pursuing airmail rates. Gift subscriptions available at the same rates. a fine arts degree that more or less guaranteed I would be To send an address change: Enclose old address label, unemployable, my roommate was working in journalism and got postal code, and Rotary club, and send to the Circulation me an interview for my first magazine job. My introduction to Department or email [email protected]. Postmaster: Send Rotary, in 2008, came about in a similar fashion: An editor acquaintance gave me some all address changes to Circulation Dept., The Rotarian, One assignments and alerted me to an opening for a managing editor. I knew little of Rotary at the Rotary Center, 1560 Sherman Ave., Evanston, IL 60201. Call time, but I quickly came to appreciate our audience and mission. the Contact Center: USA, Canada & Virgin Islands (toll-free) e role of a magazine in a community such as ours is to inform and delight our members by 866-976-8279. Elsewhere: 847-866-3000 ext. 8999. showcasing their activities and accomplishments. It’s a forgivable form of boasting and a way to Unless otherwise noted: All images are copyright ©2015 define ourselves to people outside the organization through the stories we tell one another. Few by Rotary International or are used with permission. magazines have been continuously published for over 100 years. Our longevity is a testament to the strength of those stories and the commitment of everyone who has had the privilege of Published monthly by Rotary International. The Rotarian® is a registered trade- working on the magazine. mark of Rotary International. Copyright ©2015 by Rotary International. All rights reserved. Periodicals postage paid at Evanston, Ill., USA, and additional mailing of- fices. Canada Publications Mail Agreement No. 1381644. Canadian return address: MSI, PO Box 2600, Mississauga ON L4T 0A8. This is the January 2016 issue, volume 194, number 7 , of The Rotarian (ISSN 0035-838X). Publication number: USPS 548-810. jan16-04-contributors-v4.indd 4 11/10/15 12:06 PM

CONNECT WITH COMMUNITY Join us in Seoul and have a positive impact on the local community. ROTARY INTERNATIONAL Participate in a hands-on project that will leave a legacy of service. Work CONVENTION side-by-side with a fellow Rotarian to make a sustainable di erence. 28 MAY-1 JUNE 2016 The convention is for all Rotarians and o ers something for everyone. CONNECT WITH KOREA – Connect with new friends, exchange ideas and discover a global perspective in Seoul. Get inspired to do more and Be a Gift to the World. TOUCH THE WORLD Register today! #Rotary16 REGISTER NOW riconvention.org Early registration savings end 31 March 12:06 PM jan16 - Rotarian Main Conformer_v1.indd 5 11/24/15 3:37 PM CST

General O cers letters of Rotary International Home runs 2015-16 I have been a Rotarian President for 25 years, I’m a K.R. RAVINDRAN past president, and I Colombo, Sri Lanka always look forward to receiving the magazine President-elect and reading the great JOHN F. GERM articles each month. Chattanooga, Tenn., USA Being a huge baseball fan and having grown Vice President up near Cooperstown, GREG E. PODD N.Y., I loved Kevin Evergreen, Colo., USA Cook’s article “Home Treasurer Game” in the October Join us New challenges PER HØYEN issue. It is indeed about Aarup, Denmark communication. Greetings from India! The letter from RI I manage the India President K.R. Ravindran Directors My most cherished PolioPlus Committee, in October was encourag- SAFAK ALPAY memories of my father and I organized Isabeli ing to all Rotarians as we Istanbul-Sisli, Turkey were running home Fontana’s polio-related seek to eliminate polio in after school in October activities during her the near future. However, MANOJ D. DESAI in time to catch the travels to India. I we must realize that Baroda Metro, India World Series games sincerely thank you wiping out the virus in the with dad. He would have for publicizing Ms. last two countries with ROBERT L. HALL the popcorn made and Fontana’s visit to endemic polio will be a Dunwoody, Ga., USA fresh apple cider ready India in the magazine difficult task, perhaps to go. My dad was an [October]. The local harder than all that has BRADFORD R. HOWARD alcoholic, and I have few Rotarians and village- been accomplished thus Oakland Sunrise, Calif., USA precious memories of level health workers far. There is deep-seated time spent together. highlighted in distrust of our program, JENNIFER E. JONES the magazine were and it is well-founded: Windsor-Roseland, Ont., Canada While my son quite happy to see The U.S. military was growing up, we the coverage. co-opted the vaccine HSIU-MING LIN always enjoyed the program’s methodology to Taipei Tungteh, Taiwan tradition of popcorn We want to extend pursue military goals, thus and apple cider while an invitation to Rotari- creating skepticism and PETER L. OFFER watching the playoffs ans to come to India increased vulnerability for Coventry Jubilee, England and World Series. Some and participate in polio health workers in these things are too precious immunization efforts countries. I truly believe JULIA D. PHELPS to change. with health workers we can, as Rotarians, Malden, Mass., USA and be a part of this overcome polio. It is Thanks for the eradication crusade. simply going to be a SAOWALAK RATTANAVICH memories! protracted war that will Bangrak, Thailand Lokesh Gupta Timothy Paul Salisbury New Delhi, India EDUARDO SAN MARTIN CARREÑO Florence, Ore., USA Majadahonda, Spain JOSÉ UBIRACY SILVA Recife, Brazil TAKANORI SUGITANI Tamana, Japan GUILLER E. TUMANGAN Makati West, Philippines GUISEPPE VIALE Genova, Italy KAREN WENTZ Maryville-Alcoa, Tenn., USA General Secretary JOHN HEWKO Kyiv, Ukraine jan16-letters-v3.indd 6 11/12/15 12:30 PM

hopefully not result in companies to grow Organization, the Centers Trustees of the loss of life on either and makes employees for Disease Control, and The Rotary Foundation side of the battle. more valuable. other scientific units as leading the charge to 2015-16 Ted Moore President Ravi has eradicate the disease, while Auburn, Calif., USA found a way to incentivize Rotary International is Chair Rotary membership by often ignored. We would RAY KLINGINSMITH Rally on launching the Rotary like people to be aware of member benefits program RI’s leadership in the fight Kirksville, Mo., USA Heartiest thanks to our in July. Now our challenge along with our partners: president, K.R. Ravindran, is to deftly use this tool to WHO, the CDC, Chair-elect for another educational attract new members and UNICEF, and others, and KALYAN BANERJEE and enlightening address ensure sustainability. what their roles are in in the September issue. I Let’s all commit to the eradication drive. Our Vapi, India could really relate to his meeting this challenge by future challenges are in story of a woodcutter who adding more members. Afghanistan and Pakistan, Vice Chair was not bright enough to the last countries where the PAUL A. NETZEL understand the difference M. Saleem Chaudhry disease is endemic. Los Angeles, Calif., USA between simple hard work Lahore, Pakistan and smart work. Finally, I thought the Trustees Polio plug “Dear Polio” letter from NOEL A. BAJAT It reminded me of my the cover was excellent and Abbeville, La., USA corporate life when I I was impressed with representative of the work trained managers to make “Polio Partners” in the still needed to be done. ÖRSÇELIK BALKAN their staffs understand September issue. Istanbul-Karaköy, Turkey hard work and recognize J. Douglas Heyland smart work for optimum Reports on the effort to Metcalfe, Ont., Canada RON D. BURTON productivity that allows eliminate polio frequently Norman, Okla., USA portray the World Health MÁRIO CÉSAR MARTINS DE CAMARGO Follow us to get updates, share stories with your networks, and tell us what you think. Santo André, Brazil The Rotarian WEBSITE therotarian.com twitter.com/therotarian SUSHIL GUPTA One Rotary Center, 1560 Sherman Ave. FAX 847-866-9732 facebook.com/therotarianmagazine Delhi Midwest, India Evanston, IL 60201 USA EMAIL [email protected] MICHAEL K. MCGOVERN South Portland-Cape Elizabeth, Maine, USA SAMUEL F. OWORI Kampala, Uganda JULIO SORJÚS Barcelona Condal, Spain BRYN STYLES Barrie-Huronia, Ont., Canada SAKUJI TANAKA Yashio, Japan THOMAS M. THORFINNSON Eden Prairie Noon, Minn., USA YOUNG SUK YOON Seoul Hoehyon, Korea General Secretary JOHN HEWKO Kyiv, Ukraine jan16-letters-v3.indd 7 11/12/15 12:30 PM

letters SERVICE ABOVE SELF Horsing around Youthful bromance genuine goodwill and The Object of Rotary Since “Horse Power,” the This is a tale of friendship better friendships! article about Brook Hill THE OBJECT of Rotary is to encourage and foster Farm, ran in the March between Micah and Kyle, Stephen P. Gray the ideal of service as a basis of worthy enterprise issue, the farm has been two young men in their Broken Arrow, Okla., USA the subject of a wider and, in particular, to encourage and foster: range of interest. The early 20s thrown together Rotaract meetup FIRST The development of acquaintance most recent expression of as an opportunity for service; that interest was a visit to as chaperones and the farm by members SECOND High ethical standards in busi- of the Rotary Club of roommates at a Rotary I am a 25-year-old member ness and professions, the recognition of the Dupont Circle in Wash- worthiness of all useful occupations, and the ington, D.C. They drove Youth Leadership Awards of the Rotary Club of Lake dignifying of each Rotarian’s occupation as half a day to enjoy lunch an opportunity to serve society; and some local wines and retreat in Oklahoma Forest Park, just north of paint farm fences for the THIRD The application of the ideal of service first of what they hope last year. Seattle. I have a Rotary in each Rotarian’s personal, business, and to make an annual event. community life; After a presentation Despite their different event I would like to share by Executive Director FOURTH The advancement of international Jo Anne Miller at the personalities and back- with you. understanding, goodwill, and peace through Altavista club, past a world fellowship of business and profes- President Lenny Rogers grounds, Micah and Kyle In 2011, as a member of sional persons united in the ideal of service became a weekly volunteer and contributor. A bonded like hydrogen and the Rotaract Club of St. The Four-Way Test presentation is planned for the Lynchburg Noon oxygen creating the Martin’s University, I had OF THE THINGS we think, say or do: club, the Pennsylvania North East club has element of water, which is the best Rotary experience 1) Is it the TRUTH? contributed funds, and 2) Is it FAIR to all concerned? a Florida Rotarian has essential to life, and their of my life when I attended 3) Will it build GOODWILL and promised funding in his will. youthful energy nourished the Big West Rotaract BETTER FRIENDSHIPS? Many Bedford club the parched souls and Conference at the Univer- 4) Will it be BENEFICIAL to all concerned? members continue to support the farm’s at-risk hearts of the kids around sity of California, Davis. Rotarian Code of Conduct youth and horse rescue programs with countless them during the four-day This year, I was lucky The following code of conduct has been adopted hours of volunteer work. for the use of Rotarians: The article’s positive ripple retreat. These two were enough to co-chair the Big effect has been a boost AS A ROTARIAN, I will to staff and students alike. open, real, and vulnerable West Rotaract Conference Thank you for making 1) Act with integrity and high ethical standards this article part of the with the kids in their in Seattle. The fifth annual in my personal and professional life magazine’s editorial his- tory, and thanks for all the cabins about difficult life conference drew the largest 2) Deal fairly with others and treat them and Rotarian support that their occupations with respect the article has generated. issues, but they also knew crowd yet, with 280 3) Use my professional skills through Rotary to: Ed Wennerstrom how to be lighthearted. attendees representing over mentor young people, help those with special Montvale, Va., USA needs, and improve people’s quality of life in They created games for 120 clubs, 26 districts, my community and in the world 350 students on the low seven states, and six 4) Avoid behavior that reflects adversely on Rotary or other Rotarians ropes course and danced countries on the campus their hearts out at of Seattle University. This every opportunity! conference gives Rotaract As they played, danced, and Rotary members an sang, and talked, one important opportunity to camper asked me if these connect. I have never seen two guys had been lifelong such so much camaraderie friends because they and fellowship in one place. seemed so close. She was It made me so proud to be astounded when I told her a Rotarian. they had only met one day Becky Gorlin before! Life can sometimes Kenmore, Wash., USA throw you interesting curveballs, and these guys had hit a home run with The editors welcome comments on items published in the magazine each other as buddies. but reserve the right to edit for I never fully grasped style and length. Published letters until I met these two young do not necessarily reflect the views of the editors or Rotary International men that RYLA satisfies at leadership, nor do the editors take least one element of The responsibility for errors of fact that Four-Way Test by creating may be expressed by the writers. jan16-letters-v3.indd 8 11/12/15 12:30 PM

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CONNECT WITH TRANQUILITY PHOTO BY KOREA TOURISM ORGANIZATION In Seoul, take a relaxing stroll along Cheonggyechoen, the magical stream ROTARY INTERNATIONAL which winds through downtown. Find a peaceful oasis in the city’s secret CONVENTION gardens tucked away on the grounds of historic palaces. 28 MAY-1 JUNE 2016 The convention is for all Rotarians and o ers something for everyone. CONNECT WITH KOREA – Connect with new friends, exchange ideas and discover a global perspective in Seoul. Get inspired to do more and Be a Gift to the World. TOUCH THE WORLD Register today! #Rotary16 REGISTER NOW riconvention.org Early registration savings end 31 March jan16 - Rotarian Main Conformer_v1.indd 10 11/24/15 3:38 PM CST jan16-u

up front Iftheshoefits KENTON LEE Rotary Club of Nampa, Idaho In 2008, Kenton Lee was a new college graduate volunteering at an orphanage in Nairobi, Kenya, when he noticed how many children were barefoot or wearing shoes that were too small and had been cut open to let their toes stick out. He remembers thinking,“Wouldn’t it be great if there were a shoe that could adjust and expand so that kids always had a pair of shoes that fit?” Six years later, that idea led to “ e Shoe at Grows.” Since 2014, charity groups have distributed 8,000 pairs of the sturdy leather and rubber sandals that can be adjusted to fit five foot sizes to children across Africa, Asia, and South America.“I didn’t think shoes were that important until I saw how people live in places where there’s not adequate sanitation or hygiene,” Lee says.“Over 2 billion people have some kind of a soil- transmitted disease – hookworm is common – that enters the body through the feet. So something as simple as a pair of shoes can help kids stay healthier and stay in school.” Lee says he felt enormously supported by his fellow Rotarians early on when he was feeling discouraged. After he shared his idea at a weekly meeting,“everybody loved it, and my club president got up and said,‘We believe in you and this idea so much that we’re going to give you a donation today,’” he remembers.“If they would have responded differently, TODD MEIER I don’t know if we would be here today. I got so much confidence from that.” – HEATHER MAHER J A N U A R Y 2 0 1 6 | T H E R O T A R I A N 11 jan16-upfront-opener-v4.indd 11 11/10/15 2:28 PM

up front CONVENTION DISPATCHES Seoul natural Happier holidays in the Philippines C hristmas eve dinner (Noche Buena) in the Philippines is traditionally a time for family W ith more than 25 million and friends to gather, feast, and celebrate. For more than a decade, members of the people living in and Rotary Club of Teresa have distributed groceries to some of the poorest of the poor in around Seoul, you might their town, allowing them to celebrate the holidays as well. think it will be difficult to find green space when you’re visiting Teresa, an agricultural town of some 50,000 people, has just one Rotary club, which raises for the 2016 Rotary International the money among members to buy about 200 bags of groceries for the holiday meal. The Convention from 28 May to 1 bags are filled with spaghetti and canned meats, and coffee, milk, and sugar for the next June. But Koreans are a nature- morning. They’re distributed to indigent families who live in metal shacks and eke out a loving people and they have created numerous escapes living however they can, often scavenging, selling items on the street, working for wealthy from the pavement jungle to hike, bike, swim, and sail. families, or doing construction and hard labor. The children of those needy families happily line up to collect the bag of food for Christ- The broad Han River, which runs through Seoul, provides mas dinner. This photo was taken on 19 December 2014 by Alfredo “Boboy” Campos, a an easily accessible respite. past president (2003-04) of the club.“That particular day the kids were playing nearby, so Ride a bike along the wide I asked if I could take a picture of them. They were so eager to have their picture taken,” he trails that hug the river, or says.“They rarely see someone with a camera, and when you show them the photo they are hop on a ferry or rent a boat for a leisurely cruise. The parks very amused.” along the Han range from manicured gardens to wet- Campos and 15 other Rotarians, along with 10 spouses, distributed the food that day. lands, with spectacular views of the river and the skyline. “The town of Teresa is a place where lots of Rotary projects are needed,” Campos says. The For a piece of history visit families in this area in particular, he says, do not have adequate access to clean water and Bugaksan Mountain, which rises behind the presidential sanitation facilities. “Another concern is the health of pregnant women, who do not have residence, the Blue House. The trail was closed for 40 access to good medical care.” The club plans to tackle those issues. – ANNE STEIN years after North Korean com- mandos climbed the mountain 300 24 200 in an attempt to assassinate the South Korean president Pesos ($6.43), the cost of Members of the Families received groceries and was reopened in 2006. each bag of groceries Rotary Club of Teresa during the 2014 holiday season Seoul Olympic Park (pic- tured above) remains a popular destination. This is no small city park; it houses six stadi- ums and a huge wooded area. An outdoor art gallery holds more than 200 sculptures. If you’re traveling with kids, stop at Seoul Children’s Grand Park, which houses a zoo, a botanic garden, a water play- ground, a musical fountain, and an amusement park – every- thing to keep the little ones entertained for the day. – SUSIE MA Register for the 2016 RI Convention in Seoul at www.riconvention.org. 12 T H E R O T A R I A N | J A N U A R Y 2 0 1 6 jan16-upfront-A-v4.indd 12 11/24/15 1:59 PM CST

THE TALENT AROUND THE TABLE up front The power of words to hurt or heal the time the renovations were made, I was a sophomore in Michael Scannell, a small-business consultant and past president of the Rotary Club of college, so it wasn’t for me; it North Reading, Mass., is a lifelong wheelchair user, and he’s tired of hearing well-meaning was for the next person com- people describe someone with a disability as “crippled,” “deformed,” or worse. A proud ing down the line. supporter of Rotary’s fight to end polio, Scannell, who has cerebral palsy, works to raise aware- TR: What do you want people ness around language that hurts instead of heals. to realize about the language that’s used to describe some- MONICA GARWOOD THE ROTARIAN: What was it like chair you were automatically no law yet that said it had to one with a disability? growing up using a wheelchair be. Instead, every day, a local MS: I honestly don’t think any- in the ’60s and ’70s? supposed to pity them. Wheel- teacher drove to my house and body, especially Rotarians, is MICHAEL SCANNELL: The word chair equaled nursing home taught me. By second grade, trying to be hurtful in any way. “cripple” came into my world as equaled dead. my parents convinced the But they should know that a derogatory slur very early. school that I belonged with there’s a possibility they’re Kids can be so unfair. But they Instead, my parents had the other kids. hurting someone with their don’t pick up language out of language. You’re a woman. the air. They had to have heard exactly the same expectations My high school was not What if people routinely someone else describe me that accessible in any way, either. A referred to you as being “a vic- way, probably their parents: for me that they had for my teacher had to carry me up two tim of womanhood”? Or “suf- “Oh, it’s that crippled kid from flights of stairs every day. So fering from womanhood”? Or down the street.” Back then, if siblings. If you see a curb cut my family sued the school, and “confined to womanhood”? you saw someone in a wheel- it had to make thousands of or an elevator in a school, it’s dollars’ worth of changes. By That kind of attitude is called able-ism, like sexism or because of my parents and racism. I run into it all the time. Listen, I’m not“afflicted.” people like them. For example, I’m not a “victim” of anything. “Wheelchair-bound”? No, I’m I was not allowed to go to first a wheelchair user. It’s a tool. Do you wear glasses or con- grade because the school was tacts? Then you use a tool. That’s what a wheelchair is. I not accessible, and there was want people to think of me as a person first. TR: How does this pertain to Rotary’s fight against polio? MS: The way to talk about people with polio is to human- ize them more, not less. You don’t make them pitiable. You want your listeners to think of these people as like us, rather than as alien to us. It’s a much more powerful message. Peo- ple don’t want to be described as “twisted bodies.” They’re people who have thoughts and feelings, and you need to respect them. Sympathy is always condescending; empa- thy is always good. –ANNE FORD J A N U A RY 2 0 1 6 | THE ROTARIAN 13 jan16-upfront-A-v3.indd 13 11/10/15 12:49 PM

up front World Roundup Rotary news in brief from around the globe 1 ] UNITED KINGDOM After noticing a display of 5-foot-tall With 100,000 cardboard giraffes in a Scottish shop, muscles, an John Le Rossignol of the Rotary Club elephant’s trunk of Horsham, England, learned that the can lift up to creatures could be purchased for about 770 pounds. $150 each. Inspired by concrete and resin menageries in larger British cities that cost far more, Le Rossignol and his club launched a two-week event using the giraffes in 2013. Sponsors purchased 51 animals and enlisted schoolchildren and other volunteers to embellish them, which raised more than $30,000 for about 40 local charities. Leaders of the town of 50,000 2 urged the Horsham club to reprise the Potter” film franchise, signed others. effort. The herd this time: 187 papier- For five weeks in late July and August, mâché elephants, most just under 2 the “ellies” were divided along three feet tall, on an “Elephantastic Trail.” “safari trails” within businesses in and Celebrities, such as wildlife artist around Horsham. Sales of the unadorned Pollyanna Pickering and comedian Vic elephants and merchandise, including Reeves, decorated elephants to assist stuffed animals and trail maps, netted locally based wildlife charity Born Free more than $30,000. Le Rossignol Foundation (Elephantastic’s primary expects the tally to grow through auction beneficiary), while athletes and actors, proceeds later in the year, helping 65 including Julie Walters of the “Harry charities and involving a total of 135 organizations. Born Free’s portion will help fund the construction of an elephant sanctuary in Tuscany, Italy. by BRAD WEBBER 14 T H E R O T A R I A N | J A N U A R Y 2 0 1 6 jan16-map-v4.indd 14 11/10/15 2:21 PM

up front 2 ] HONDURAS 3 ] PAKISTAN With doors and window frames riddled with woodworm and a porous roof, the Escuela Rural Rotarians in Pakistan put a little muscle Mixta Ramón Rosa, a three-classroom school in Coa Abajo, frequently sent its 32 pupils and into polio eradication efforts by recruiting 20 eight preschoolers to neighboring structures during heavy rains. With $1,000 of its own funds bodybuilders for a friendly competition. The and a $5,000 grant from District 4250 (Belize, Guatemala, Honduras), the Rotary Club of Villa free event in June in Rahim Yar Khan attracted Real de Tegucigalpa oversaw the refurbishment of the school and the replacement of 40 desks an audience of more than 200, who learned in 2014. About half of the members of the club, then numbering 17, visited the worksite regularly, about Rotary’s efforts to eradicate polio and engaging many of the area’s 70 households to assist in the construction. The club, which has received shirts, caps, and other materials. continued its support of the school, followed up by inviting the school’s director/teacher to a The contest was held in collaboration with the two-day seminar on innovative teaching techniques and by donating classroom supplies. District Bar Association Rahim Yar Khan and Ironman Gym-2. The Rotary Club of Rahim Pakistan Yar Khan Rohi frequently undertakes sports- ranked ninth in related initiatives to promote vigilance against obesity out of polio, notes club member Muhammad Mumtaz 188 countries Baig, a member of the Pakistan National 1 in 2014. PolioPlus Committee and an organizer of the bodybuilding contest. 3 4 4 ] UGANDA Uganda and California Rotarians, helmed by the Rotary Clubs of Kampala-North and Torrey Pines (La Jolla), adopted the community of Nkondo through a $114,500 global grant encompassing four of Rotary’s five areas of focus. Vocational training teams focused on microcredit and farming as Rotarians set up and stocked a library and computer room at a rural school and reopened a long- shuttered health clinic, among the array of projects within the comprehensive project, says Francis Tusubira of the Rotary Club of Kampala-North. “It’s clear that when you talk about poverty there has to be a total package,” Tusubira says. “Start doing simple things, and as they realize their ability to meet challenges, they start becoming more ambitious about meeting their own needs.” J A N U A RY 2 0 1 6 | THE ROTARIAN 15 jan16-map-v4.indd 15 11/10/15 2:21 PM

up front A dream takes root to bring treehouse to New York camp Peter Sarratori couldn’t sleep. Campus has served children camp lives up to its motto: for the $250,000 project, the COURTESY OF THE ROTARY CLUB OF ROCHESTER He had treehouses on his with disabilities for 93 years. In “Where kids have no barriers Treehouse Guys signed on, mind. After watching a partnership with 17 other to fun.” offering to keep costs down in television documentary about Rotary clubs in District 7120 every way possible, including Paul Newman that featured the (New York) and seven other But a house, a fort up in the forgoing the comforts of a late actor-entrepreneur’s Hole agencies, the camp is a place trees? The next day Sarratori hotel and staying instead at in the Wall Gang Camp for where kids get to be kids, free spoke with the club’s executive the camp through the months children with cancer and other of charge. With no disability director, Tracey Dreisbach, of construction. serious illnesses, he spent an too formidable, it’s staffed by who fully supported the idea. entire night in August 2012 nurses who deal with all kinds “When I was a child, I’d spend The builders also agreed to thinking about the camp’s of medical requirements. Facil- hours up in a tree fort and use local talent for the architec- 30-foot-high hideaway amid ities specially adapted for those were some of the best tural drawings, engineering, the branches. Sarratori pon- swimming, miniature golf, days of my life,” says Sarratori. carpentry, and equipment rent- dered the thought of 2,500 boating, and fishing comple- “I wanted to give our kids a als, and supported the club’s children with special needs ment amenities du jour like a ‘best day of their life’ experi- sourcing as many of the mate- served by his Rotary club ex- zip line and a splash pad with ence up in the trees.” rials as possible. periencing the feeling of being tipping buckets and gushing “up in the trees.” fountains that drench and thrill An Internet search brought A project of this scope children in wheelchairs on the him to the Treehouse Guys, a required not only funds, but For two decades, Sarratori hottest days. A sensory build- two-man, Vermont-based firm also the commitment and has been deeply involved in a ing for children with autism that has designed and built energy of the entire club. How- camp owned and operated by highlights the Sunshine Cam- dozens of these structures, ever, Dreisbach says the com- the Rotary Club of Rochester, pus’ desire to keep current. The many of them with ramps for mittee did not go to members N.Y. The 157-acre Sunshine disabled access. Understand- first, but instead to the com- ing the fundraising challenges munity – to foundations and 16 T H E R O T A R I A N | J A N U A R Y 2 0 1 6 jan16-upfront-b-v3.indd 16 11/10/15 1:28 PM

up front business leaders.“We got them OPPOSITE: A ramp makes the treehouse accessible to campers who use wheelchairs. CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT: on board for products and ser- Rotarians worked with the DIY Network’s Treehouse Guys; James “B’fer” Roth (left) of the Treehouse Guys, camper vices as well as money, while Brendan Nelson, and Rochester Rotary Club President Peter Sarratori; hockey players from the Rochester Americans educating them about Rotary helped with the build for a day; construction lasted more than two months. and the camp,” she says. COURTESY OF THE ROTARY CLUB OF ROCHESTER mony, “I was completely con- riers and give them an experi- the camp.“In Brendan’s words, But it was the club’s dedi- vinced about what a great ence in the woods, it’s soulfully ‘It’s phenomenal.’ ” cated members who turned organization Rotary is.” very satisfying.” As for the the mission into a reality by Rotarians and their wood- Dreisbach sees the tree- taking matters into their own An even bigger payoff was hewing skills: “You go into a house project as evidence of hands. Wolfgang Pfizenmaier the reaction of the campers working scene as building pro- what the camp means to fami- made the first donation, then when the treehouse opened in fessionals and you get to go out lies and as a way for the club to spent hours preparing the site late June. “We can create a being friends.” promote “the camp with the and working on every aspect space where they can wheel up treehouse” along with Rotary of the building. Chuck Wol- on their own power,” Roth says Campers and their parents International and its long his- cott contributed tools and of the“rustic and funky” struc- played an instrumental part in tory of service. employees, and even built a ture, which has a wheelchair the treehouse project as well. higher and drier access road. ramp with four platforms with Several parents volunteered at Sarratori, now president of Dozens of other members activities and a“crow’s nest” out- the site, and campers and staff the Rotary Club of Rochester, donated time, talent, and trea- look.“The walls are out of level, raised money and had their sleeps pretty well these days. sure. Sarratori, president of a the roofs are warped. It has that names carved in the treehouse. Working outdoors during a busy automotive paint sup- out-of-kilter look so it looks One family donated $50,000 Rochester winter will do that, plier, removed bark from trees; like a kid did it.” in memory of a former camper, but he rests easy, with visions coordinated materials, people, their son, Howie Cassady. of campers 22 feet in the air col- and food; cleaned and cooked; And with Dr. Seuss’ imagi- oring his dreams. “Seeing the repaired and replaced broken nation as the treehouse’s muse, “It’s tough to keep a dry eye project finished and turning out tools and equipment; and “You see them smiling from ear when you see the smiles on the so much better than I dreamed secured donations. He hunted to ear, ” Roth says. “Where campers,” says Kenneth Nel- is second only to watching our down a portable sawmill, lent there’s been a barrier before, if son, whose son Brendan, who campers enjoy what we have by Rotarian Bob Jones, who we can break down those bar- has cerebral palsy, attends built,” he says. – ELLEN WAGNER proceeded to mill almost every piece of lumber for the proj- ect, many from pines felled at the camp. The Rotarians’ hands-on embrace of the project impressed James“B’fer” Roth, a partner with the Treehouse Guys, who featured the project on their reality TV series on the DIY Network in August. “There was just an incredible outpouring of volunteers,” Roth says. Jones, for example, “thought he would be milling for a few hours, but it ended up being days and days. We did what we could to save Rotary money,” by allowing club mem- bers to participate in the con- struction. Long before the treehouse ribbon-cutting cere- J A N U A RY 2 0 1 6 | THE ROTARIAN 17 jan16-upfront-b-v3.indd 17 11/10/15 1:28 PM

up front Register. IN BRIEF News, studies, and recent research YT⅓DoruortvoaBntwnFr-loioyeni.teworch.eroxagpwne/rmnaieyen\"yccer×toretdae.firnye\"d. RSotearoianus.lSep13 web teaser 1-3v.indd 1 8/28/13 3:52 PM to attend the Rotary International 2016 Convention Pre and Post Convention Sweden may become the first cashless society in the world, thanks to a Tours of... mobile payment system called Swish, according to a study from Stockholm’s KTH Vietnam, Japan, China, Royal Institute of Technology. Users can make electronic transactions in real time Hong Kong, Singapore, after downloading the Swish app, which is backed by Sweden’s largest banks, onto their phones. Cash is used increasingly less in Sweden – in part to combat money Bangkok and beyond laundering and organized crime – and some banks don’t even accept it. Less than 80 billion Swedish crowns are in circulation, down from 106 billion six years ago. Seoul Hotels Roundtrip Airfare Indigenous people in Australia, New Zealand, Canada, and the U.S. Rotarian owned and operated with have higher rates of preventable cancers than nonindigenous populations. According over of experience taking to a study from the International Agency for Research on Cancer, part of the World Rotarians to Rotary Conventions Health Organization, those high incidence rates show an urgent need to improve cancer surveillance, prevention, detection, and vaccination programs. Cancers related HOWARD TOURS to smoking (lung, head/neck) and infections (stomach, liver, and cervical) dispropor- tionately affect indigenous communities. - - CA Seller of Travel: 101526-10 Measles is a threat to nearly 9 million children in the U.S. who either haven’t $5 7 % / 2* 7 +$ 7 , 6 received the measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccine or have gotten only one of the two recommended doses. According to Emory University researchers, the po- 0 ( 5 7 $ & 2 , 2: $ 1 6 tential for large outbreaks exists because there are clusters of unvaccinated children in some communities, and the immunity rate is at the threshold of 92 to 94 percent. 2 ) $ :+ $ 7 , 7 6 / , . ( Measles is highly contagious and can lead to pneumonia, encephalitis, and death; maintaining the highest levels of immunity is necessary to prevent transmission. (5 , & / $' / (6 %( /267$76($ % , % Experts used incorrectly can lead to less accurate information and policy $668&+ 0$ 7 ( +$ / 52$&+ 6(16( failures, according to a study published in the journal Nature. While governments / ( $ 5 1 7 2: $ / . 352(0 , 17 (5 , 06 and businesses often use expert opinion for policy decisions, these opinions are 7$16 / $1$ 7 ( influenced by factors such as experts’ values, moods, and what they may gain or lose $1* * , 9($. , '1(< from a decision. Researchers also found that highly credible experts may be unaware ZULEMA WILLIAMS % (ro. t0a, r'$y.1;or$,g03/m63 y(ro' t$ar*$y5, ( of their biases and vastly overestimate their objectivity. To improve experts’ advice, / $ Y*ou(r o1n'lin$e exp7eri(enc5e 0redefi(ne/d. , use groups rather than individuals, avoid homogeneity, don’t be star-struck by 021' $ < < 1 ( = 5 ( ' credentials, and give experts immediate feedback on mistakes. –ANNE STEIN 18 T H E R O T A R I A N | J A N U A R Y 2 0 1 6 Sep13 web teaser 1-3v.indd 1 8/28/13 3:52 PM jan16--upRforotanrti-aCn-vM4a.iinndCdon1f8ormer_v1.indd 18 11/241/11/511/31:5382P:5M1CPSMT jan16-u

up front RECOMMENDED READING The wisdom in a wandering life South of the Sahara, in the ney she chronicles in Walking They walked together, slept path the Fulani have taken for dry scrubland known as with Abel: Journeys with the on the ground together, ate thousands of years. The wars, the Sahel, lives one of the Nomads of the African Savan- together. The book gives us a too, and the influx of weapons world’s last great nomadic peo- nah. Starting in the ancient window to a world we never see, have made things more precar- ples. For thousands of years, the Malian city of Djenné, Bad- one with hard choices and ious for the herders. Fulani have traveled through harsh conditions, yet with deep, the dry and wet seasons with khen traveled with the family of intangible rewards never put Despite her search for a their cattle, following the rain, explicitly into words, but which grand meaning to it all, by the led by their 26 constellations 70-something Oumarou suffuse the story. end Badkhen’s concerns are in the night sky. Even today, more elemental: pounding with the wars in Libya and Diakayaté, his wife, Fanta, and Badkhen’s writing is lovely chili flakes for meals, heating Mali, with the march of tech- and immersive, perfect for such rice porridge for breakfast, nology and global culture, they their sons and their families. a peregrination. Along the way, washing clothes in the river, follow the old paths, which we see not only the unbroken building huts that will be left they and their cows remember line of nomadic existence, but behind. What really gives the in their bones. also the changes that are fol- journey meaning, and the book lowing close behind the Fulani: its life, is just this:“Simply,” she A few years ago, writer Anna the erratic weather of the past writes late in the story, “it was Badkhen set out with a family two decades, the sparse rainfall, morning, I was with friends, of Fulani in hopes of finding the growing pressures of the and it was good.” some ancient wisdom, a jour- farmer planting crops in the –FRANK BURES TDiBscovDer the Attention Readers! Standard world’s best walk-in bathtub from American ½ h - \" × .\" Bene ts of our Walk-In Bath • 44 Hydrotherapy jets for an invigorating massage • Ultra low entry for easy entering and exiting • Lifetime Warranty on the bath AND the installation • Patented Quick Drain® fast water removal system Backed by 140 years of experience by the LIMITED TIME name and heritage of American Standard ONLY • Handcrafted in the USA FREE American • Professional installation - includes removal of old tub Standard Toilet ll out, clip and return this coupon LIMITED-TIME OFFER… CALL 1.855.854.6872 1,000For your no-risk, FREE Info Kit $RedeemYourFreeSavingsCardToday! Commended by the Arthritis Name____________________________________________S__avings Card Address____________________________________________ Foundation Phone______________________________________________ CALL NOW! City________________________________________________ FREE 855.854.6872 State_________________ Zip___________________________ INFO KIT! or visit us at: www.AmericasBestTub.com Mail to: Operators Are Standing By! American Standard ZULEMA WILLIAMS 902 W. Carrier Pkwy, Grand Prairie, TX 75050 TM Handcrafted in USA Discount applied by team member at time of purchase contract execution. O er expires 6/30/16, one discount per household, rst time purchaser only. Free American Standard toilet with the purchase and installation of bath or shower. Liberation by American StandardTM is a licensed brand and product of Safety Tubs Company, LLC. Safety Tubs Company, LLC is an a liated company of American Standard Brands. O er only eligible on a fully installed Liberation Walk-In Bath. Please see www.AmericasBestTub.com for additional license information. 982796 J A N U A RY 2 0 1 6 | THE ROTARIAN 19 2:51 PM jan16--upRforotanrti-aCn-vM4a.iinndCdon1f9ormer_v1.indd 19 11/241/11/511/31:5382P:5M1CPSMT

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WHERE IN THE WORLD Ifaty, Madagascar When NAND FIEMS saw this child collecting firewood in the fishing village of Ifaty, he was immediate- ly struck by the moment. “The eyes with a lot of questions (that man with his big camera), even the composition was beautiful,” says Fiems, a professional photographer and a member of the Rotary Club of Gistel, Belgium. “Everything I needed was put in the scene in one-thousandth of a second.” Fiems’ Rotary club is selling a limited-edition book of his photos from Madagascar, where he was traveling as a photo tour guide, to raise money to provide housing for cancer patients. Our 2016 photo contest is open through 29 February; enter at www.rotary.org/photocontest. J U N E 2 0 1 3 | THE ROTARIAN 21 jan16-Upfront-panoramic-V5.indd 21 11/24/15 2:01 PM CST

up front January 1st 18th RESOLVE TO RUN HIT THE SLOPES THE EVENT: Resolution Race THE EVENT: Ski Night HOST: Rotary Club of Leesburg, Va. HOST: Rotary Club of Hood River, Ore. WHAT IT BENEFITS: Local charities, including the Rotary Club of WHAT IT BENEFITS: College scholarships Leesburg Perry Winston Scholarship Fund WHAT IT IS: Whether your preferred trail is a bunny hill or a black WHAT IT IS: The 19th annual race is the perfect kickoff to a diamond, you can spend your evening schussing down healthy new year, whether you’re looking for a the slopes of Mount Hood Meadows during the Hood River personal-best 10K time or wanting a brisk walk with Rotary Club’s annual Ski Night. Hope for fresh powder for junior in the stroller on the fun walk/run. Toast the this exclusive event, when the runs are open only to people new year at the finish line with sparkling cider in who buy the club’s $20 ($15 in advance) lift tickets. flutes provided by tuxedoed servers. 4 HAVE A HEART 28 EAT AND COMPETETHE EVENT: Valentine Hearts Program WHERE: Loveland, Colo. HOST: Rotary Club of Loveland Thompson Valley WHAT IT BENEFITS: Local and international children’s and environmental charities WHAT IT IS: Broadcast your love for your sweetheart to the world (or at least the population of Loveland). Sales begin th th THE EVENT: Chili Cook-off HOST: Rotary Club of Bay St. Louis, Miss. WHAT IT BENEFITS: Literacy projects and international projects WHAT IT IS: Your resolutions will be tossed out the window as soon as you sample all the chilis in this delectable competition (last year, there were 29!). Each entrant is required to make 4 to 5 gallons of chili, so bring your appetite. this week for the ultimate valentine, a wooden heart stenciled with your personal message with the 30th help of local students to be displayed on streets SIP AND SWIRL across town. This year’s 360 hearts each cost $50. THE EVENT: Wine Around the World HOST: Rotary Club of Fond du Lac-Morning, Wis. WHAT IT BENEFITS: College scholarships and the club’s Birthday Book Program, which gives local children a new book on their birthday WHAT IT IS: For the 23rd year, guests at this popular event can sample from more than 100 wines from around the world, as well as hors d’oeuvres, beers, and cheeses (it is Wisconsin, after all). Those who appreciate an even more gourmet touch will enjoy the Reserve Room, where specialized pairings of food and wine will be served. Raise your glass! Tell us about your club’s event. RACHEL WALLIS Write to [email protected] with “calendar” in the subject line. 22 T H E R O T A R I A N | J A N U A R Y 2 0 1 6 jan16_calendar-v3.indd 22 11/10/15 1:44 PM

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DOUBLE THE GOOD YOU DO! More than 15,000 companies match gifts to The Rotary Foundation. Find out if your employer does at www.rotary.org/matchinggifts and double the good you do to make the world a better place. DAVE CUTLER TAKE ACTION: www.rotary.org/matchinggifts jan16 - Rotarian Main Conformer_v1.indd 24 11/24/15 3:38 PM CST jan16-C

column C U L T U R E Frankenwords Jargon is rampaging through your office, terrorizing meaning by FRANK BURES DAVE CUTLER Idon’t remember exactly when the make a cup any bigger. And calling an- understand what they were saying menu at Starbucks started both- other one a “venti ” doesn’t make it any- (or didn’t themselves know what ering me, but it must have been thing but the largest of the three drinks they meant). Their words hid their almost the first time I stepped into on the menu. By historical standards, they meaning instead of clarifying it. one. It wasn’t the range of products all contain large amounts of coffee. But or the drinks themselves – which we are not ordering historically. We are “When there is a gap between I enjoyed. It was the names of three ordering comparatively. one’s real and one’s declared coffee sizes: tall, grande, and venti, aims, one turns as it were instinc- otherwise known as “small, me- These may seem like small concerns. tively to long words and exhausted dium, and large.” But I can’t help feeling they are a bell- idioms, like a cuttlefish squirting wether of some broader change. In his out ink,” Orwell wrote. He was For years I engaged in a kind of essay“Politics and the English Language,” worried that people might dismiss guerrilla campaign of not using George Orwell lamented the creep of cli- his concerns as sentimental, and I them. chés and jargon into politicians’ speeches share his fear. Who cares about whenever they didn’t want people to the Starbucks menu? Big deal. Yet “I’ll take a large, please.” there is reason for concern. We are “ Venti? ” so inundated with meaningless “Yes, large, thank you.” words that we have grown numb This was petty and annoying, to them. I know, but I couldn’t help myself. I Recently, I sat down in a coffee shop wasn’t even sure why it irked me, until and overheard a young woman tell a I realized it was something quite simple: a friend that she needed to do some “con- flagrant disregard for meaning, the notion cepting.” (Meaning, I assumed, coming that you can take a word and bend it to up with some ideas.) In some work envi- your own purposes. To make a small into ronments, entire meetings are conducted a tall felt like a glimpse of a world where in this innovative language, which often people could buy a word, gut it, then fill it contains three or four times the volume with whatever they wanted. Language is of words necessary. In which“I’m noticing an agreement, a social contract. This felt you have a gap with your arrival time ” like a violation. means “You’re late.” Or “Why don’t you Changing the word doesn’t change the frame up this project for me ” means thing it describes. It only creates a wider “Explain this project.” Other Orwellian gulf between rhetoric and reality. Using examples include things like “deep dive,” the Italian word for large (grande) doesn’t J A N U A RY 2 0 1 6 | THE ROTARIAN 25 jan16-Column-rhetoric-v7.indd 25 11/12/15 11:48 AM

TBD column C U L T U R E ⅔ v - .\" × .\" “low-hanging fruit,” and “continuous im- Seoul, South Korea WHAT ARE YOU provement,” which is neither continuous WAITING FOR? nor an improvement. Pre- & Post-Tours to Asia BE A VIBRANT Perhaps the most egregious offenders CLUB are in the field of marketing, and one of the most shameless practitioners is David Rotary Convention Shing, a self-styled “digital prophet ” (an abuse of both words) who calls himself May 28 - Jun 1, 2016 “Shingy ” and who strikes me with a nameless terror. With astonishing ease, LAX/SFO-Seoul China Primary Be a Vibrant Club guide he separates words from their meaning, includes: coining terms and phrases as he breathes. R/T Airfare 8 Days/7 Nights • A club success story from “I grew up in the age of information,” he From $1595 From $1775 says in one video. “We are now currently your region in the middle of the age of social. As you Japan Express Thailand Delights • Ideas for your club to try know, fundamentally it’s changed, but • Resources for your club on where it’s headed is the world of context 7 Days/6 Nights 9 Days/8 Nights or interest. …” The head spins as it grasps From $1930 From $1395 My Rotary for meaning. He’s like a living Starbucks menu. (Translation:“He’s not showing up Bangkok, Singapore & Hong Kong – 9 Days From $1845 Get your free copy at in the sense-making space.”) shop.rotary.org Vietnam & Cambodia – 9 Days From $2155 This is the vein that satirists Henry Beard and Christopher Cerf mine in their Yangtze River Cruise, Tibet, India, Indonesia, and more recent book, Spinglish: The Definitive Dictionary of Deliberately Deceptive Book by Dec 1, 2015 to receive $100 Language, a long list of words that have been intentionally drained of meaning in discount on land & air packages. order to obfuscate the things they purport to describe. Airfare Only includes government taxes and Sept. 11th Security fee. Prices are per person double, including Three decades ago, the Soviet Union tours, transfers, hotels, internal air and meals. sent “bio-robots ” (humans) to clean up Chernobyl. More recently, surveillance has become “data collection.” People who are drunk are “overrefreshed.” Shredding sensitive papers is “document manage- ment.” Failure is “deferred success.” A dishwasher is a“utensil maintenance pro- fessional.” A butcher is a “meat technolo- gist.” (Either can be“dehired,”“decruited,” or “deinstalled” at any time.) A profit is a “negative deficit ” and a revenue decline is“negative growth,” while losses are“defi- cit enhancement.” (That is, assuming no “data massage” has taken place.) Death is“failure to fulfill one’s wellness potential.” A small is a “tall.” Beard and Cerf try to distinguish ev- eryday jargon from deliberately deceptive words. But Orwell made no such distinc- tion. To him they sprang from the same 26 T H E R O T A R I A N | J A N U A R Y 2 0 1 6 4/9/14 2:40 PM Be a Vibrant Club Ad_EN14.indd 2 jan16--CRoloutmarnia-rnhMetaoirnicC-vo7n.ifnodrmd er2_6v1.indd 26 11/2141//1152/135:3811P:4M8CASMT

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TBD coluCmUnLTUCRUEL T U R E ⅔Wv -H.ERE\" ×W.I\"LL ROTARY StoTroiedsa“yh, wavoerdtos be GLOBAL REWARDS shapedfbloywtrfiraelealnyd error. TAKE YOU? Yaocurodsosno’tukrnsocwrewenhsa,t THE MEMBER BENEFIT the avuiadioeunrcbeliosggsoing PROGRAM THAT to respaonnddtwtoeeutnstil you telalnthdepsotsotrsya.”nd– lJiEkZReAsK.AYE OPENS UP A WORLD OF OPPORTUNITIES. wareelle:xapceacrteldestsonueses pabuboulict,sopreeavkeingashkiolsls- taitliwtyotrok,. Athnedmmeanyinpgeofplweoardesn.ow aware SEE MORE AT ROTARY.ORG/GLOBALREWARDS of “aApsucbrulipcuslpoeuaskwinrgitcear,r”eOer,rwbeecllauwsreotoef, “tihninegvserlyikseeTntEenDceTtahlkats.h”e writes, will ask 2 86 T H E R O T A R I A N | JD AE NC UE AM RB YE R2 02 10 61 5 himTsEeDlf aTtalekass, twfhoiuchr qmuiexstsitoonrys,tetlhliunsg: jdaenc1165--CCRooloulutmamrnina--rn2hM5e-tao3ir0nic-vC-v3o7.in.nifndodrmd e2r26_8v1.indd 28 WanhdatsaomciaIltrsyciniegntcoes,ayh?aWvehbateswtoorwdsedwiall esxtrparnegsseint?ewWchealetbimritaygeonorpiedoiopmle wihllomparke-e ivtiocluesalryerw? oIsutlhdishiamveagkeefpretshtheeniroungohsetos hinavbeoaonkse.fTfehcte?y”rack up millions of views onTlinhe.aTltherenyaltaivuenicsh“sicmaprelyertsh.rTowhienyghyaovuer mbeicnodmoepesno asundccleeststfiunlg, tshuechreaadcyu-lmtuardael pfohrrcaes,etshcaot mtheeycrhoawvdeienvgenini.nTsphieryedwailbl caockn- slatrsuhc:tCyroituircssecnaltletnhceems foargylooruif–iedevseenlft-hienlpk yforuurmthooru“gmhitdsdfolerbyrouw, mtoeagaccehrtuarincheixntefon-t –taainmd aetnnt.e”eEditthheeyrwwilalyp, eTrfEoDrmTthalekismhpaovre- tmanadtesepruvbicliec sopfepaakrintigalsleyxcy.oBnucetalsinfugnyaonudr minefaonrmingateivenafsrotmheyocuarnseblfe.”, it’s best to waTtchetsheecmonwcietrhnasnmimaypnaorttiableenye.w. But tod“aWy,hwatoIrwdsoufldowlovferfeoerlypeaocprloestso ouun-r sdcerresetnasn, dvi,a”osuayrsblKogasyaen, “distwtheeatsiatnddopeosnst’ts amnadkleiksees.nTsehattoinccormeapseadrespyeoeudrsmealfy tboe whyattyhoeudsiesetawnhcenwyeohua’rveewtaratcvheliendg asinace- OtiornwaelllT’sEtiDmeTsaelkem. Ws shoengryeoatu,’raenldoowkhiyngI faitnTdEitDs.ocoamla,rimt’sinimg.pWoretahnatvteo aurnrdiveerdstant da pyolauc’erewlhoeorkeiinmgaagtetshheaveendunrreisvualtedofpohwuner-, wdrheedres soufrfhaoceusrsobosfcugrueideveedryptrheipnagruantidoenr-. nYeoaut’hre, wlohoekrienwg eatvalvuiedeboratnhdaitnwgafsaredmitoerde tfhroamn aunfoduerr-sctaamnedriansgh.oAost. wYoruit’reer lDooakniniegl Patinsokmheabsoodbys’esrjvoebdf,owr ethaereyeaallribnesfaolreest.hWeye agriveeatlhlastmtaalkll.,”trying to tell the world weWarehitlaelli.nspiring, TED Talks shouldn’t be Tthheisyaferdelsstiecxkhbayuswtihnigch. Iwt’seamlweayssurbeeottuer toowsneespteheicnhgess.cBleuatrloyn. Ae tnhdintghwe esoslhuotuioldn htaaksenf’trocmhatnhgeemdis itnhceereOalriwzaetlilo:n“ Wthahtast oi-s arbytoevlelinalgl,niefeddoende,”rhigehwt,rocaten, “misatkoeletvethrye mspeeaencihnbgecthteoro. se the word, not the other way“Satrooruiensdn.”eed a lot of work,” says Kaye. “They have to be shaped, and they have to FbreasnhkapBeudrebsyitsraiaflraenqudeenrtrocor.nYtoriubudtoonr’ttoknTohwe Rwohtaatrtiahne.aRuedaidenmceoriesagbooiuntghtiomreosnppoangde t4o. 11/2141/1/11052/5/1/315:538121P:4M58CPASMT Rotaria

121:458 PAM jRaont1a6ria- nRMotairniaCn oMnafoinrmCeorn-foDrEmCe1r_5v-1v2.in.inddd 2297 101/224/15 32:0386 PM CSDT

column S P O R T S A winning goal Peace gains a foothold through soccer by PAUL ENGLEMAN DAVE CUTLER A nyone who spends a week- toward a full ride to college on an athletic people. Well, like any game, while end morning or weekday scholarship. Hanlon believes that the the teams were warming up, we evening as a casual observer game most people call football can play a shook hands. And then we had a of a youth sporting event is likely big role in achieving a big goal: building great game – we lost 3-1. The to come away thinking that too a more peaceful world. thing that had a huge impact on many adults take kids’ sports far me was after the game. The coaches too seriously. Whether it’s parents As a teenager in the 1980s, Hanlon had arranged for us to all have who harbor illusions that their played on a soccer team that participated lunch together. Some of the kids children are destined to make the in several international youth tourna- spoke English, and there were pros or coaches who entertain de- ments in Europe. At the Dana Cup in translators. We had the unique op- lusions of Vince Lombardi gran- Denmark, Hanlon’s squad played a team portunity to learn for ourselves deur, there always seems to be from the Soviet Union. that these were good people, someone on the sidelines or in the friendly people. They wanted to bleachers with no apparent misgiv- “At that time, our biggest enemy was have a fun life just as I did at that ings about barking dubious advice Russia,” he says.“It was embedded in my age. It really opened my eyes.” at a player or beefing at a referee. mind as a child that Russians were bad Two decades later, in 2006, In my experience as a baseball Hanlon began putting up posters coach in a local league whose motto in Chicago’s South Loop neighbor- was “Fun, friendship, and fundamentals,” hood, where he and his wife lived, with the each season brought new occasions to pull goal of starting a recreational youth soccer aside an overeager dad or uncle and suggest league. About 50 kids signed up the first that he take a timeout. One of my pet peeves year, and with the help of other volunteers, was stubborn adults who griped about hav- the fledgling league began to grow. ing to stop play at the sound of thunder In 2010, Hanlon made the acquaintance unless it was raining, evidently believing that of Matt Miller, a 23-year-old soccer player getting wet posed a bigger danger than be- from the United Kingdom who had come ing struck by lightning. to Chicago in hopes of playing profession- ally for a Major League Soccer team. Injury Scott Hanlon, a family practice physi- forced him to scrap that plan, but Miller, cian in Chicago, is one parent who takes who had experience teaching youth soccer youth sports – in particular, soccer – very camps, proved to be just what the doctor seriously. But he does so with a higher in- ordered. Under his stewardship, the league, tention than pushing his three sons 30 T H E R O T A R I A N | J A N U A R Y 2 0 1 6 jan16-Column-30-32-v7.indd 30 11/12/15 11:44 AM

column S P O R T S TBD Chicago KICS Community Academy, ex- FIND A CLUB⅔ v - .\" × .\" panded to attract more than 1,000 boys and girls. ANYWHERE IN THE WORLD! “I’m the guy who planted the seed, and Get Rotary’s free Club Locator app Matt is the one who cultivated it,” Hanlon and find a meeting wherever you go! says. In 2014, they organized the Chicago www.rotary.org/clublocator KICS International Youth Soccer Cup, a weeklong tournament that attracted WHAT WILL YOU teams from the United States and five WATCH TODAY? other countries. There are bigger and older international youth soccer tourna- www.wyo.yuotutbueb.ce.ocmom/ro/rtoatrayrinyitnetrenrantaiotinoanlal ments – including one in Minnesota watch. learn. connect. started in 1985 by a group called the Sons of Norway and another in Florida hosted J A N U A RY 2 0 1 6 | THE ROTARIAN by Disney/ESPN – but Hanlon thinks Chicago is an especially good setting:“We have so many different nationalities rep- resented in our neighborhoods.” In its second incarnation last summer, the Chicago KICS tournament drew teams from Costa Rica, Ethiopia, Guatemala, Israel, Pakistan, Palestine, Puerto Rico, and Ukraine. Hanlon hopes the tournament is providing kids with a similar experience to the one he had as a teenager. Scout Murray, an 11-year-old mid- fielder who plays on KICS United of Chi- cago, says that playing soccer against kids from other countries“is really special, really cool. The coolest part is realizing that these people are just like me. They speak a dif- ferent language, but they’re playing soccer, just like me.” Scout says that to get in a competitive spirit before a game, it usually helps if she can find someone to dislike on the oppos- ing team – for instance, a player who looks to be showing off during warm-ups. But when she played against a team from Gua- temala, she had a much different frame of mind. “I wondered if they were scared or nervous,” she says.“I wondered how they feel to be so far away from their home. I think I would be scared if I were in another country. I would like to do what they’re doing, but I would be nervous.” For a group of teenagers from Pakistan, the Chicago KICS tournament was the midpoint on a world tour that also in- cluded matches in Brazil and Norway. “Our goal is for our kids to learn about 31 11:44 AM jan16--CRoolutmarnia-3n0M-3a2in-vC7.oinndfodrm3e1r_v1.indd 31 11/2141//1152/145:1411P:4M4CASMT

TBD column S P O R T S ⅔ vR-OT.ARY\" ×CL.U\" B CENTRAL different cultures,” says Asim Azfar, a U.S.-based representative of the Azad PLAN TOGETHER Foundation, an organization headquar- TRACK PROGRESS tered in Karachi that provides shelter and ACHIEVE GOALS education and health services for some 2,000 homeless children – including the Why should clubs use 16 members of the Pakistan Street Chil- Rotary Club Central? dren Football Team. “We want to make them feel important, to understand that It’s a one-stop shop. they have value.” It eliminates paper. It fosters continuity in Luis Carlos Lobo, 15, is a member of leadership. the champion team from Costa Rica. The It enables clubs to track tournament marked his first time out of their progress. his country.“It is a really great experience,” It creates transparency. he says.“We learn much about the culture It showcases the important of people all around the world.” work that Rotary clubs do worldwide. Luis and his teammates stayed in a dormitory at the Illinois Institute of Tech- Get started! nology – temporarily renamed the “Inter- national Village” for the tournament.There Go to www.rotary.org/clubcentral they ate meals and played pingpong with players from other teams. While competing 32 T H E R O T A R I A N | J A N U A R Y 2 0 1 6 in the championship game, Luis was aware of his new friends from Pakistan cheering jan16--CRoloutmarnia-3n0M-3a2in-vC7.oinndfodrm3e2r_v1.indd 32 on his team.“All I can say – they are amaz- ing,” he says.“They are good people.” The Israeli and Palestinian teams sat to- gether during an outing to a Chicago White Sox baseball game.“I did occasionally sense some tension from some of the visiting par- ents,” Hanlon says.“But the children didn’t seem to have that. Which to me is one of the keys – getting these kids together at a young age. I think all of us need to have a better focus on our common humanity and not on our differences. Something like the KICS Cup, which gives peace a louder voice, can have an impact.” At the tournament’s closing ceremony, on a warm summer evening on a Lake Michigan beach, hundreds of kids from different countries marveled at a fireworks display, danced to a DJ, and took photos of each other with the Chicago skyline as a backdrop. Surveying the scene, Luis said soccer “can absolutely bring people together. I have made new friends here.” Paul Engleman is a Chicago-based freelancer and a frequent contributor to The Rotarian. 11/2141//1152/135:3811P:4M4CASMT

ROTARY AND THE GIFT OF A POLIO-FREE WORLD Making the Promise is the first of a three-volume history of PolioPlus and global polio eradication. Carrying the story into the early 1990s, it explores the roots of the largest internationally coordinated public health e ort in history, a gift to the children of the 21st century. Volume 1: Making the Promise is available in the Rotary Shop for $15. ORDER YOUR COPY TODAY! shop.rotary.org 11:44 AM jan16 - Rotarian Main Conformer_v1.indd 33 11/24/15 3:38 PM CST

34 T H E R O T A R I A N | J A N U A R Y 2 0 1 6 11/20/15 1:02 PM jan16-WhatItsLike22.indd 34

Ordinary Rotarians can find themselves in extraordinary circumstances. In their own words, they tell us what it’s like to... illustrations by GWEN KERAVAL J A N U A RY 2 0 1 6 | THE ROTARIAN 35 jan16-WhatItsLike22.indd 35 11/20/15 1:02 PM

give a kidney to a stranger SCOTT DUDLEY Rotary Club of North Whidbey Island Sunrise, Wash. WHEN YOU JOIN A ROTARY CLUB, you be- felt like it was meant to be. At the hospi- come a member. But there’s another time tal, they keep asking me, “Are you sure when you actually become a Rotarian. you want to do this? You’re about to al- For me, it was on a trip to deliver a con- ter your body for the rest of your life.” tainer of wheelchairs to people in Mexi- But I felt very calm. co. I came back from that trip changed. I came back a true Rotarian. The next morning we got to the hos- pital around 6 a.m. We met the anesthe- After that, whenever I saw a need, siologist. Then they wheeled me in. I I couldn’t help asking, “How can we was on the table by 8:30 or 9, and the fix this? ” Even when someone stood up next thing I knew I was waking up in a at a meeting of the Rotary Club of recovery ward. Haney, B.C., which I attended as a guest, and said, “My 37-year-old husband is After dinner, I was up and walking dying of polycystic kidney disease and around. I felt surprisingly good. I just badly needs a kidney,” I thought, “Well, wanted to find Phil’s room. It turned out I’ve got two kidneys. ” And I knew I it was just a couple of doors down. was at that meeting for a reason. I went up to her afterward and said, “I’ve got In his room, I found him and his your kidney.” wife, Keesha, along with his mother, who didn’t speak any English. She was She looked at me like I needed an- from Portugal, and to see her thanking other glass of wine. But she gave me a me, saying something that I didn’t un- card for their hospital. It wasn’t until al- derstand, with tears in her eyes for sav- most a year later that I finally met her ing her son’s life, I thought, wow, you husband, Phil. We met four days before can help one person, but you don’t al- the surgery. They told us that, based on ways see how it affects their family. You blood typing, we would have to have don’t always get to see how far it goes. been twins to be a better match. – As told to Frank Bures My wife and I stayed in a hotel the EDS. NOTE: Scott and Phil have enjoyed night before the surgery. I felt at peace. I good health since their 2012 surgery. 36 T H E R O T A R I A N | J A N U A R Y 2 0 1 6 11/20/15 1:02 PM jan16-WhatItsLike22.indd 36

survive a hijacking MUHAMMAD FAIZ KIDWAI Rotary Club of Karachi Karsaz, Pakistan EARLY ON THE MORNING of 5 September to get dark; then, about 10:30, the lights the front, where I went down an emer- 1986, I boarded Pan American Flight 73 turned off and the hijackers panicked. gency slide. in Karachi. I was traveling with several They thought it was an attack by the secu- colleagues to Canada on a Rotary Group rity forces on the ground. That was when As I was running for the terminal, Study Exchange trip. I put my bag in the they gathered all 400 passengers and crew running for my life, I heard a voice in the overhead storage, took off my coat, and in the middle of the plane. The four of darkness saying, “Help me! Help me!” I settled into my seat. That was when I them stood, one on each side, and they all could not see, but I went toward the heard someone shout to close the door to started firing their weapons indiscrimi- voice. It was a tall gentleman in white. the airplane. Then I heard a gunshot. An nately. I knew it was the end. My team “I’ve broken my neck,” he said. I lifted announcement came on that the plane leader received two bullets in his chest. him on my shoulders and was carry- has been hijacked. The man in the seat behind me was blown ing him to the airport. Later, before they up by a grenade. I don’t know how I es- took him to the hospital, this gentleman One good thing that happened was caped unhurt. said to me, “I don’t know if we’ll meet that this kind of jumbo jet had escape again in this life, but you saved my life.” windows in the cockpit, so the cockpit There was a young air hostess and she Those words entered my mind. How crew was able to get off the plane. For ran to open the emergency exit. All the simple it is to help someone, I thought, to this reason, we were stuck on the runway. passengers started getting out through bring change into the world. We saw the hijackers. They had large that door, and a hijacker shot her and she weapons in their arms and grenades died on the spot. Finally, the shooting After these events, I had nightmares strapped to their chests. They were Pal- stopped. They had run out of ammuni- for quite a few months. I didn’t know estinians, and they demanded that an- tion. This is when I went out onto the what to do. I have to thank my friends in other cockpit crew come on board. They wing. There were five of us. People were Rotary. Their fellowship gave me strength wanted to fly the plane to Israel and jumping down, but I saw that they were and provided me the opportunity to crash it there. They called one of the pas- getting injured. So I took the risk of go- overcome that trauma, to find that big sengers to the front of the plane and shot ing into the plane again and walking to truth, which is to do good in the world. him and threw his body on the tarmac. – As told to Steve Almond But no crew came aboard, so they started picking other passengers. That made me realize this is the final moment of my life. I was 27 years of age. I was not married. I had no children. I had just started my career. I started to think: What have I done in life? Maybe if God gives me another chance, I might be able to do something good for humanity. I was praying the whole time for this chance. In Islam, we pray for God and for the chance to do service for others. For the first six hours, everyone was si- lent. We had to put our hands behind our necks. Later people started whispering. My GSE team leader was next to me and he was writing on a pad. I said,“What are you writing?” He said he was making a report of all that was happening. It started J A N U A RY 2 0 1 6 | THE ROTARIAN 37 jan16-WhatItsLike22.indd 37 11/20/15 1:02 PM

FOR 10 YEARS, I had been solving the New Refuse to work on the weekend? P Y York Times crossword puzzle daily. I would SIT SATURDAY BIC see a byline and think:“If that person can Dine on some fish? HAVE HADDOCK T make a crossword, I should be able to.” I Burn trash? M LIGHT LITTER A started spending three to four hours a day After that, I wanted to meet other ME S puzzle constructors. Each year, many of studying, practicing, and honing the art of them gather in Stamford, Conn., for the American Crossword Puzzle Tournament. cruciverbalism. I discovered nuances, pat- The 2005 event included a Saturday night talent show, and on a whim, I decided to terns, and strategies in the field of cross- write a humorous song about crossword puzzles. The refrain came to me almost word puzzle construction that I had not immediately. I pictured a person singing to a puzzle: Your love to me is a mystery and known existed. My goal was to get one the clues are all around, If you don’t come across, I’m gonna be down. puzzle published in the New York Times. The rest of the song didn’t come so eas- In 2003, I started making puzzles and ily. I called a songwriter friend of mine, Tim Bays of Franklin, Tenn. He encour- submitting them to the Times. On my aged me to tell a story in the song and 13th rejection, Times crossword editor asked me a series of pointed questions. I Will Shortz wrote me a note, suggesting had written songs before, but I learned more in 10 minutes from Tim than I had I get a mentor. on my own in 40 years. After hanging up the phone, I wrote three stanzas. So with the help of published construc- tors Peter Abide and Nelson Hardy, I learned to develop themes. This involves reviewing hundreds of published puzzles; browsing through thesauri, noting words and phrases with crossword potential; and playing with numerous combinations of words. I learned quickly that my muse doesn’t work the same hours as my brain. Inspiration yields to perspiration. It takes time to develop a good theme. get a crossword puzzle I in the New York T VICTOR FLEMING T Rotary Club of Little Rock, Ark. E ROT My mentors also helped me in the other As fate would have it, O’Malley Cre- aspects of puzzle authorship: grid construc- adon Productions was shooting footage tion, grid-filling, and clue-writing. (Did for Wordplay, a documentary about you know that there are at least 23 specific crosswords, at the tournament that year. rules to consider when writing clues?) I was captured on film doing my song. The producer liked it enough to license In mid-2004, Shortz accepted a puzzle it for use during the credits. Wordplay I had co-written with Nelson. I had arrived! went to the Sundance Film Festival and The theme of the puzzle (which ran on became the second most successful docu- Tuesday, 29 March 2005), consisted of mentary of 2006. punnily clued phrases employing the pres- ent tense of a one-syllable verb followed by EDS. NOTE: Vic’s involvement in Wordplay a multisyllable noun, the first syllable of led to his becoming The Rotarian’s crossword which was the past tense of the first word: author in 2006. He has had 43 crosswords in the New York Times. Convince a GI? SELL SOLDIER 38 T H E R O T A R I A N | J A N U A R Y 2 0 1 6 jan16-WhatItsLike22.indd 38 11/20/15 1:02 PM

H I YALE JONES Rotary Club of Taos-Milagro, N.M. J O I N the Arch Klumph Society A WHEN I WAS IN LAW SCHOOL IN 1966, I had the than making the next generation comfort- CYC L E chance to hear the Rev. Martin Luther able.” So we set up a charitable remainder King Jr. speak. Before his talk, I was in- trust. Rotary wasn’t the only beneficiary of K vited to a small luncheon that the campus the trust,but it was the biggest.I believe quite I ministers hosted for him. There I was, a strongly that The Rotary Foundation is one N 24-year-old pipsqueak. The only thing I of the premier foundations in the world and G knew was to keep my mouth closed and is deserving of wide support.We’re happy to listen. I was very impressed by his passion know that after we pass from this earth, OTARY for things greater than himself. something we do will benefit others. Shortly after that lunch, I went by the When we went to Rotary International student union, and they had a recruiting headquarters in Evanston, Ill., for the booth for the Peace Corps. I said,“We can Arch Klumph Society induction ceremo- do this,” and I signed my then-wife and ny, we became more aware of the Rotary myself up for the test. The next thing you Peace Centers. We’re going to make an know, they offered us a place in Kenya, additional gift in our trust to specifically teaching high school. support them. Whether it’s a physician from the Democratic Republic of Congo That was the beginning of my career try- who’s working with a level of supplies that ing to do good in the world, though I think would make you cry, or somebody work- Kenya did more good for me than I did ing to resolve conflict among First Nations for Kenya. I learned about other cultures in western Canada, the peace fellows are and about what it was like to be the“other.” very pragmatic in how they make a differ- I met a lot of people who could have carried ence. Peace begins from the bottom up. everything they owned in a backpack, yet – As told to Anne Ford they experienced more joy and gratitude than many, many people in the West. It gave Rotary honors gifts of $10,000 me a different take on what’s important. or more with Major Donor recognition I’ve been lucky in this world. I was a successful attorney for 35 years and I’ve and gifts of $250,000 or more with been a successful investor. I retired in 2004. My focus now is on service to oth- Arch Klumph Society membership. ers, both in our community and in the world. I think“philanthropist” is too grand To learn more, contact a word. I’m not Bill Gates or Warren Buf- fett. I’d rather just say that my wife, Bar- [email protected] or call bara, and I choose to support good causes. the Rotary Support Center at In 2011, we looked at what we have and what we need, and we said,“There’s got to be +1-866-976-8279. something more to being a human being To support The Rotary Foundation at any level, visit www.rotary.org/give. J A N U A RY 2 0 1 6 | THE ROTARIAN 39 jan16-WhatItsLike22.indd 39 11/20/15 1:02 PM

survive the London Blitz LINDA LE VINE Rotary Club of Westlake Village, Calif. WHEN I WAS A CHILD, my mother and I lived arms and legs. Then the walls imploded, ease. In one particularly horrific incident, in an apartment near the center of Lon- entombing me under the mangled wreck- a two-year-old boy was bitten by a large don. This was during World War II, and age of what had been my bedroom. I was black rat. The child was taken to a hospi- our neighborhood was constantly under trapped and unable to move. tal, howling in pain. assault by the Luftwaffe. Most nights and many days, monstrous bombs, sometimes The raid seemed endless. One plane That night, we couldn’t sleep. The cries from hundreds of bombers at a time, after another dropped its sinister cargo. I of babies crammed together on dirty cots attempted to destroy our city and demor- was more scared than I’d ever been in my along the walls echoed throughout the alize or murder its citizens. This nearly young life. Between bombing runs, I could night. I huddled in a corner, fearing that unceasing attack on our civilian popula- hear the frantic cries of my neighbors. the shelter would be destroyed and that I tion completely terrorized us and left would again be buried alive. lasting scars. None of us were certain Eventually, my mother found her way we would survive. We lived in constant to my burial site. She screamed hysteri- The next morning, my mother and I fear that Germany would win this hor- cally as she tried to reach me under the joined the hordes of other dazed and in- rific war and our country would be pile of rubble. She couldn’t do it alone, and jured refugees who were suddenly brutally occupied. I was too little and too trapped to move. homeless, wandering the streets of Lon- It required the help of several neighbors don. We shouted with rage at our enemies England’s capital at the time was mainly to pull me to safety. when we saw the ugly black craters that inhabited by women, children, and elderly had once been the homes of our neighbors. men. Most of the younger men, including When I was finally free, my mother It was impossible to believe that so much my father, were in the British armed kissed me all over, wetting my face with evil existed in the world and that people of forces. One evening when I was six, after her tears. She wiped a little blood from my another country would want to slaughter we had eaten our usual rations of a sau- arms and legs but decided my wounds us like we were simply cockroaches to be sage, cabbage, and a boiled potato, my were superficial and could be attended to extinguished. Fires still smoldered from mother tucked me into bed, forgetting to later. As the bombing continued, we the previous night, and acrid smoke filled close the blackout curtains. She kissed me grabbed our gas masks and my doll and our nostrils. The dead and injured were goodnight and went to visit with neigh- raced to the bomb shelter. scattered everywhere. Rescue workers sol- bors in an upstairs apartment. emnly unearthed body parts in an attempt I hated that shelter: a small, crowded, to recover victims for proper burial. My A short time later, the piercing shriek putrid hole in the ground. Rats often bur- mother removed her apron and placed it of an air raid warning jolted me awake. rowed through the crumbling brick walls over my head so that I wouldn’t see the Within seconds, thousands of tons of ex- and hid within the flimsy bedding that charred, lifeless bodies. ploding bombs shattered almost every gave us only a little relief from the cold. window in our apartment. Because the Rodent droppings covered the filthy floor. The government arranged our evacua- curtains weren’t drawn, broken glass and Many people became ill with hepatitis A tion to a pretty town outside London. Two shrapnel flew into my room, grazing my because our food and water were often elderly sisters received money from the war contaminated, and it was not uncommon authorities to take us in. After several to see skin and eyes yellowed by the dis- 40 T H E R O T A R I A N | J A N U A R Y 2 0 1 6 jan16-WhatItsLike22.indd 40 11/20/15 1:02 PM

months, the sisters discovered that our re- looked to the skies and shouted at the of the bombings haunt my dreams. Often ligion was different from theirs and butchery and wickedness of it all. at night, when I hear friendly airplanes demanded that we leave immediately. Hav- flying over my home in California, ing no money, my mother had no choice After that, it was almost impossible to I shudder with long-ago memories of but to move us back to London to stay with keep our minds on our studies. How to other planes. relatives. Their apartment, crowded and survive the next onslaught dominated small, was several miles away from our pre- our thoughts. Violence is still a daily occurrence for vious one. It was, however, still within the many children. The wars are different, target range of the enemy’s bombs. Toward the end of the war, my kind but the cruelties that are inflicted upon and gentle grandmother Esther was cook- innocent children remain the same. I enrolled in a new school. A few ing dinner in her tiny apartment in East Hardly a day goes by without the media weeks after school began, I became best London when a buzz bomb speeding over showing us the confused and terrified friends with a lovely blond girl who 300 miles an hour incinerated her neigh- faces of children who are the victims of kindly welcomed me into her “girlfriends borhood. For a long time after she was war. These images of suffering play out group. ” Later that year, she and her killed, I would lie in bed at night and like a recording without end. When I family were killed during an aerial attack imagine the panic she must have felt when look into the eyes of these children, I au- at her home. I was devastated. At school, she heard the sickening buzzing sound of tomatically think back to the atrocities our teacher solemnly told the class to Hitler’s latest weapon. She knew, as we all that I experienced in my youth. put our heads down on our desks to pray did, that when the buzz bomb became for her. We lowered our heads, folded our silent, it was falling to earth to erase the How can we stop subjecting genera- hands, and quietly wept. lives of all of those within its path. tions of children to death and destruction, to the loss of home and family? These One morning during recess, our games I couldn’t believe Grandma Esther and experiences will haunt them forever. To were halted by the shrieking siren of an air I would no longer laugh together or share paraphrase Golda Meir, the former prime raid warning. Within seconds, we heard fish and chips (with extra vinegar) in her minister of Israel, “War will only cease the roar of massive groups of planes ap- cozy kitchen. I feared I would never again when we love our children more than we proaching. Thunderous blasts rolled smell the golden daffodils she nurtured in hate our enemies.” through the neighborhood as incendiary small window boxes around her apart- bombs exploded nearby. The air filled with ment, or hear the beautiful symphony The Rotarian Action Group for Peace the bright orange of explosives and the music she loved to listen to on her radio. choking smoke from burning buildings. I provides resources for Rotary members closed my eyes to erase the unbearable real- During the night, I slept cocooned ity of it. Most of the students cried or within my mother’s comforting arms, afraid and clubs to work together for tolerance screamed, while others held their fear that she would die as so many other moth- deep inside as the teachers led us to the ers had and that I would be alone in the and understanding. Learn more at basement shelter. My teacher, Mrs. Clark, world. I became obsessed with the thought of losing her as I’d lost my grandmother. www.rotarianactiongroupforpeace.org. Even after these many years, memories J A N U A RY 2 0 1 6 | THE ROTARIAN 41 jan16-WhatItsLike22.indd 41 11/20/15 1:02 PM

grow up Rotary AMANDA SHUFORD Daughter of Hamp Shuford, Rotary Club of Catawba Valley (Conover), N.C. FOR ME, ROTARY HAS ALWAYS BEEN THERE. House of Friendship because I could go stead of in hotels. It let us get a better around and collect brochures or pins, as sense of the culture and connect with I was born the year my dad (Wade opposed to sitting in a room listening. But people. I remember that every club we “Hamp ” Shuford III) was governor of I grew to appreciate the speakers, and I visited was really proud of its service: District 7670, and he took me with him was a sergeant-at-arms at the 2007 con- “Let us show you our water plant; let when he visited clubs. Most of those clubs vention in Utah. us show you this school we built.” My donated money so I could become a Paul dad’s club had raised money to help buy Harris Fellow when I was three months As a teenager, I didn’t rebel against Ro- the desks at one of the schools we toured, old. I even took my first steps at the 1995 tary. In fact, I co-founded an Interact club so we were able to see what the money international convention in France. in my high school. My dad was very ex- had paid for and who it was benefiting. I cited, and he helped me get it set up. His really enjoyed that. As a kid, I remember waking up really club sponsored my Interact club, and I feel early to go to Dad’s club meeting with him. proud to have had a hand in starting it. Now I’m in college, and I belong to a His club is a breakfast club, so I’d go for the coed service fraternity. A lot of the Rotary meeting and then go to school. A lot of In the spring of my sophomore year of values are apparent in my service frater- people in that club have known me since high school, my parents planned a three- nity: leadership, friendship, and service. I was born. When I was really little, the week trip to India on a Rotary Friendship Right now, I’m trying to figure out my appeal was eating breakfast with my dad. Exchange. I wasn’t going to go because of plans for after graduation. I’d like to be As I grew up, it became exciting because I school. But when my dad’s district gov- involved with Rotary again. I find a lot of could understand what was going on. ernor suggested that I should, we talked joy and happiness in serving others. – As with my school and got it worked out. In told to Anne Ford My dad and mom and I always went to India, I loved staying with Rotarians in- the conventions together. I loved the 42 T H E R O T A R I A N | J A N U A R Y 2 0 1 6 jan16-WhatItsLike22.indd 42 11/20/15 1:02 PM

ON CHRISTMAS EVE OF 1988, I picked up my through it, I said,“I’ve got to do something dents of our club. One of them was so son Steve at the airport. He always kept with this.” I decided to tell my Rotary ultra-conservative he made Attila the himself in good shape, but he was so club. I wanted to see if we could get an Hun look like a flaming liberal. skinny it was really beyond the pale. I education and awareness program going. didn’t say anything, but Christmas morn- And you know the amazing thing? ing I asked him, “Are you right?” My kids were dead set against it. They Telling that secret got rid of my depres- wanted to protect Steve. His concern sion almost immediately. What a relief He said,“No, actually, I’m not well at was the stigma associated with AIDS. it was! I don’t think I ever told that group all.” At first, he said he had Kaposi sar- But I kept going back to him. I said, “If what they did. Not only did they launch coma, which is a manifestation of AIDS. we could save a life or two, wouldn’t that the Los Altos Rotary AIDS Project. They You see, he didn’t want to say the word. make it worth it? ” I said, “Anyone who eliminated my depression. I’d gone six Finally he said, “When I was at UCLA really cares about us will support us.” He months trying to hide those feelings, I got this virus.” finally bought into the idea. six months carrying around this secret. No one should have to carry something Now I knew it was AIDS. The day I was going to tell the club, it that heavy alone – not those afflicted by We were devastated. And in my case, it felt a little lonely. I didn’t know what the AIDS or their loved ones. Steve died in was followed by months of depression. response would be. But here’s the thing: I November 1989. Oh, my God. I was so tired all the time. I didn’t care. I had to tell them about my son. was trying to hide my depression, too, and Six months after I told my story, that was killing me. And as I thought Because of my background in athlet- another member of our club, a very ics, I sort of treated it as “game day. ” I popular member, stood up at a meeting and knew what the game plan was. I didn’t announced that he had AIDS. That really want to go into some big melodramatic won over a lot of the doubting Thomases. scene. I just wanted to tell my story and tell your club your secret DUSHAN “DUDE ” ANGIUS Rotary Club of Los Altos, Calif. ask if there would be interest in setting After I told my story, a lot of people up an AIDS task force. came up to the podium and told me what a gutty call it had been. I said, “Anybody I got up and spoke, and really I’m kind with a soul would have done the same of amazed that I didn’t choke up when I thing.” They didn’t believe me. But it’s mentioned Steve’s name. No quivering true. – As told to Steve Almond chin. When I told everyone that I had a son who had AIDS, there was a collective Learn more about the gasp. Guys like me don’t have kids who Los Altos Rotary AIDS Project at get AIDS. That was the perception. So, yeah, I guess that shocked them. I could www.rotaryaidsproject.org. see it in their faces. The Rotarian Action Group for If no one had come forward to volun- Family Health & AIDS Prevention teer for the task force, I think I would have died. But thank God, people did. is also working on this issue. They came up to me in tears. We had Find out more at some very important people step for- www.rffa.org. ward, including most of the past presi- J A N U A RY 2 0 1 6 | THE ROTARIAN 43 jan16-WhatItsLike22.indd 43 11/20/15 1:02 PM

be kidnapped... CHARLES ADAMS Rotary Club of Santiago Monumental, Santiago, Dominican Republic MY DRIVER AND I WERE STUCK in a traffic can go.” That’s not something you want to jam in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, not far from argue about. They put a couple of guys on the airport, when our doors were ripped me and we went down the street. I said, open by these young thugs with guns. “What about my car?” They told me they They told us to get out of the car. I was in had my car and were going to give it back the back seat working on my computer, to me. I thought, well, that’s pretty nice. and at first I didn’t realize what was going on. A guy with a shotgun aimed it under When they brought my car, I started the car and said,“Boom!” That got my at- smelling gasoline. I said,“You broke my car!” tention. I got out of the car. They told me to get in it and drive as fast and as far as I could. That’s exactly what I ...and talk your way out of it They took us to the main compound of did. I got out on the highway and into one their gang in a slum called Cité Soleil. The of those big industrial centers with guards first few hours were all about negotiation. at the front. Just after I got inside, the car They started at a half-million dollars, died. The engine froze, no gas, no nothing. and after a couple of hours they asked for $50,000. I said,“Well, I can’t pay you The story went out on the news and over $50,000 and I’m not going to pay the Rotary network. Then I got an email you $50,000. But let me ask you a question: from a young lady I had met in the Domini- How many people do you control in this can Republic who organized presentations slum, 12,000?” They said that was about for Rotarians from America and Canada. right. I said,“Do you have a lot of sickness? She said that if I needed some time to re- Kids getting diarrhea?”They said,“Oh, yes.” cuperate I could come spend a few days in I said,“Give me three phone calls, and I’ll get the mountains. I went and, long story short, $50,000 to put clean water filtration systems we fell in love and got married a year later. in the part of the slum you control.” They said,“Well, that’s interesting but that’s not About two years after this, I started a our business. Our business is kidnapping.” national campaign in Haiti to get clean wa- ter in all the schools. We put clean water When it came time to go to bed, we filters in 750 schools from border to border walked three or four blocks down the street and coast to coast, serving close to 200,000 to a nice house in the middle of the slum. students a day – including more than There was a beautiful queen bed, not a 100 in schools around Cité Soleil. One wrinkle in that sheet. They had a TV and was just down the street from the com- a couch. Then they all wanted to pile in and pound where we were held. So, in the end, talk. Most of them were carrying guns. We I got even. – As told to Frank Bures talked and talked. Finally I said,“Listen, guys, I’m really tired. I’ve got to go to bed.” EDS. NOTE: Charles Adams was kidnapped They actually apologized for keeping me up. in Haiti in 2006. His driver managed to es- cape in the early morning, but it’s still not clear In the morning, they came and said, why Adams was released without paying a “OK, Mr. Adams, you’re free to go.” I ransom. His friends say it’s just like him to talk said,“What do you mean?”They said,“You his way out of something. 44 T H E R O T A R I A N | J A N U A R Y 2 0 1 6 jan16-WhatItsLike22.indd 44 11/20/15 1:02 PM

be a pitmaster CHRIS JONES Rotary Club of Midland North, Texas I COME FROM A RANCHING FAMILY, so cooking When you go to a competition, it all was always something we did as a family, gets ramped up. You’ve got five different especially over a live fire. Barbecue is the meats on the fire at the same time and you ultimate way to do that. A lot of people need to plan it out so they’re all ready for get the terms mixed up. When you cook the judges at the right time. I’ll cook something over direct heat, that’s really for 12 to 14 hours straight, and you have just grilling. When you cook over indirect to be able to tell what each meat is doing heat – that’s barbecue. at every point. The guys who cook hot and fast get a lot of sleep. But low and slow, Back in 2008, I took a class with the that’s my way. By the end of a competition, National Barbecue Association. I’d com- it’s physically exhausting. peted locally and had some success, but I wanted to learn everything I could. See, For me, being a pitmaster means you’re when you cook in the kitchen, you set always learning more – from mentors and something at such-and-such a tempera- traveling around seeing what others do. I ture and leave it till it’s done. When you take notes to record what they do and why. cook with fire, there are so many flavors Then I go home and practice and apply you can get – from the wood, from the what I learned. You have to experiment. smoke, from the fire itself. The technique That’s the only way to develop your own of it goes deep. style of flavor. So when I put a brisket in the smoker, What happens over time, in the mind of for example, I’m thinking about all these a pitmaster, is you develop a sense of in- different factors. I want to have a good fire. stinct. You kind of become one with the I need to be able to monitor and control meat. I know just by touching the meat that heat source. I’ve got to season the where it’s at in the process and when to pull meat with the right rub and sauce, and it off the fire. I look for the right color, too. figure out the best way to impart those flavors from the smoke and wood. I’ve got The title of pitmaster isn’t some official to keep the meat moist. I wrap my briskets thing you get from making a certain in butcher paper or foil. A lot of folks will amount of money doing barbecue. It’s a baste with apple cider vinegar or apple juice recognition you earn because of how you or even butter. Then you have to make sure handle your pit, how deep your knowledge it gets tender, because brisket is a muscle. is, and, of course, how good your food is. You need to get the internal temperature to 170 degrees, because what happens at Barbecue is also something that allows that point is the collagens in the muscle me to be there for people when they need break down into gelatin. Then I wrap it in help. Our club raised money for a girl foil and take it up to 200 degrees. But who needed a new liver. We sold brisket, this process takes a long time, and most ribs, and turkeys, and raised $8,000 for guys don’t have the patience for all that. that family. They don’t know what’s happening inside the meat during the cooking process. I like to cook for my club, too. The meetings where I bring barbecue are generally the best-attended. – As told to Steve Almond J A N U A RY 2 0 1 6 | THE ROTARIAN 45 jan16-WhatItsLike22.indd 45 11/20/15 1:02 PM

IN 1988, WHEN I WAS 16, I began to protest stubborn. I knew I had to accept the real- released. I am now fulfilling my dream of with other students for democracy, hu- ity and control my mind or I would go studying overseas at Australian National man rights, and social justice in my home crazy in that place. There were others who University in Canberra. Of all the prisoners country of Burma, now called Myanmar. committed suicide. They smashed their who were arrested in the protests, I think I Four years later, I was arrested and tor- heads against the wall. I didn’t want to be am the only one who is getting a Ph.D. tured for two months in an interrogation defeated in this way. I did not want to die camp. I was shackled and beaten. I was in front of inhuman wardens. More than 3,000 people died during not allowed to sleep. They put a cloth the democracy protests of 1988. Thou- over my eyes and a hood over my head, But I had also to remember that the sands more went to prison like me. We so I could not tell the day from the night. guards were not educated people. They became known as the “88 Generation” They asked me the same questions over were part of a system. So I started to talk because we called for democracy and hu- and over. It was quite similar to George with them. I said,“Come on. We are just man rights. Orwell’s 1984. After this, I was sent to a special court. I was given no lawyer, just We cannot forget what happened in sent directly to prison. places like the dog cell. But we must for- give the guards and wardens or we cannot They did not want us to learn in move forward. You cannot make a de- prison, but I had a dream to go and study mocracy with rage in your heart. There overseas when I was released. I convinced must be forgiveness. It is important to a guard to smuggle books to me. I re- talk about justice. But revenge and justice ceived a dictionary to learn English and are not the same. books on economics and philosophy. I dug a hole in the wall of my cell and hid For me, the best revenge is to become someone who can work to change my country systematically. I want to return to go to jail ...and forgive your captors for your beliefs... the books and covered the hole with an NAING KO KO Myanmar to become a chief policy adviser. image of the Buddha. I studied English Rotary Peace Fellow I want to work on anti-corruption and at night and in the day I slept. University of Queensland, Australia, 2012-13 anti-poverty programs and social justice, and most of all the peacemaking process. But one day, I got sleepy and didn’t students. We are not murderers or crimi- I want the interrogation camp where I was hide the books, and they were discovered. nals. We only want the right to learn and tortured to become a museum so we never After that, I was moved to a cell where to make a democracy.” I tried to explain forget this part of our history and never they kept the dogs. They put me in as much as I could, from reading the Rev. repeat it. – As told to Steve Almond shackles again and made me behave as if Martin Luther King Jr. and Gandhi. I were a dog. If they called my name,“Na- Are you interested in working ing Ko Ko!” I had to respond, “Woof! Many did not respond at all. But I for peace and conflict resolution? Woof!” When the guards came, I had to kept talking. I made my voice loud. After kneel down and press my face to the floor many times talking, some prison guards Find out how to become a and not look at their face. They put the replied to me. We became familiar and Rotary Peace Fellow or support food on the ground and I had to eat just finally like close friends. with my mouth, like a dog. With water the Rotary Peace Centers at it was this way, too. After six years and eight months, I was www.rotary.org/peace-fellowships. At this time, I realized that I would die in the prison if I remained fighting and 46 T H E R O T A R I A N | J A N U A R Y 2 0 1 6 jan16-WhatItsLike22.indd 46 11/20/15 1:02 PM

travel the world in a wheelchair SUSAN SYGALL Rotary Club of Eugene, Ore. I DESCRIBE MYSELF AS A WHEELCHAIR RIDER, realize that they could have these amaz- One of the things I have to deal with ing travel experiences?” It was because of during travel is inaccessibility, whether it’s the same way you would say a bicycle rider, that that I co-founded Mobility Interna- buildings or bathrooms. Let’s just say that because my wheelchair is like a bicycle in tional USA almost 35 years ago. Mobility if there’s no accessible bathroom, I have that it’s my source of independence. It lets International is a national nonprofit, and figured out creative ways to deal with that. me travel the world. I’ve been to Asia, Af- its mission is to advance disability rights I get into more detail in my memoir, No rica, Latin America, all over the place. I and leadership globally. We do many Ordinary Days. spent a month traveling by myself in Eu- things, but one is getting people with rope. I did a 30-day camping trip in Aus- disabilities to study, work, teach, or re- You also deal with attitudinal barriers. tralia and climbed the massive rock Uluru. search abroad. We want people with Sometimes people don’t talk to you di- No one expected me to climb it, but I disabilities to act as citizen diplomats rectly, but instead talk to someone with inched up on my butt – not all the way, around the world in the same way as you who is not disabled. Some people have but as far as I could. people without disabilities. preconceived notions of what I can do, and I have to say,“Yeah, I really do want to take In the late 1970s, I got an Ambassadorial I still keep a pretty intense travel this cruise or go on this trip if that’s what Scholarship to do graduate work in Austra- schedule, mostly for work. I use a light- everybody else is doing.”You have to know lia. While I was there, I even hitchhiked weight wheelchair, so I can pop off my how to be pleasantly assertive. My basic through New Zealand for six weeks with a wheels easily. I never check any bags; I premise is: I want to have a full, fabulous friend who was also in a wheelchair. always have a backpack that fits on the life, and I don’t plan to do anything less back of my wheelchair. than that. – As told to Anne Ford After my Rotary year, I asked myself, “Why don’t more people with disabilities J A N U A RY 2 0 1 6 | THE ROTARIAN 47 jan16-WhatItsLike22.indd 47 11/20/15 1:02 PM

be lost at sea NAQEEB HUSSAIN Rotary Club of Colombo, Sri Lanka IT SOUNDS SILLY SAYING IT NOW, but what The water was so clear that day that we felt like a giant hand had us by the legs became a life-and-death ordeal was actu- had immediately spotted the shipwreck. and was pulling us away. Olivenzo “Oli” ally kind of fun at first, floating in the It shimmered in the dappled sunlight, Arnolda, our dive master, made some warm sea swells of the Indian Ocean off wreathed by silvered sheets of the most progress. Then he vanished. the coast of Colombo, Sri Lanka, our beautiful tropical fish we had ever seen. hired dive boat nowhere in sight. We were alone, riding up and down In retrospect, we should have paid the choppy seas. We had no water, no The three of us – myself, my friend more heed to a warning sign. When we hit food, no flares, no signals. We each just Asmath Iqbal (who is also a member of the water, the current was so strong that had a surface marker buoy, one of those the Colombo Rotary Club), and a French at times it seemed our descent was more long, inflatable floats that look like a gi- diver named Patrice Germaine – were all horizontal than vertical. But we quickly ant Slim Jim. experienced, physically fit pleasure divers forgot about it and for 35 glorious min- who at one time or another had surfaced utes focused on the hull of the ship and a Still, none of us panicked. We could see to find we had drifted a bit from our vessel. nearby reef pulsing with life. the shore in the distance – we even had So we weren’t terribly worried – at first. a landmark, a skyscraper on the far-off When we surfaced, we could ini- shore, to gauge the strength of the current. It helped that we were in such high tially see the boat about 75 to 100 me- It was far stronger than we thought. We spirits, even though our initial optimism ters away, but the young man piloting watched as the building slid out of sight, turned out to be ill-founded. Our esprit it wasn’t paying attention and didn’t see leaving us with no point of reference. was due largely to the wonderful dive we us wave. Then, that current we had so had just had. Plunging into the balmy wa- blithely dismissed earlier took hold. If After we lost sight of Oli, I had suggest- ter around 10 a.m. that December day in you’ve ever been caught in a rip tide, you ed we try to kick for the shore, but Patrice 2012 was the culmination of several ear- know the feeling. You can thrash like insisted we conserve our energy and wait. lier attempts to see the wreckage of a long- a demon trying to get to shore only to Asmath agreed, so we just floated. An lost ship off the point of Galle Face Green. realize that you’ve lost ground. That was hour passed. Another. Nothing. No one. us, as we tried to swim toward the boat. The current against us was so strong it 48 T H E R O T A R I A N | J A N U A R Y 2 0 1 6 jan16-WhatItsLike22.indd 48 11/20/15 1:03 PM