2016-01 January

Unfortunately, unlike Patrice and As- off. When dawn arrived, it helped us get since we had surfaced. We all were se- math, I had not worn a wetsuit. My swim our bearings. I suggested again that we try verely dehydrated. Later we learned, to shirt and shorts were fine for the moment, to swim toward shore and, this time, Pa- our great relief, that Oli, our dive master, but after nightfall, I began to shiver, then trice and Asmath agreed. We gave it our had also been spotted and pulled from dry heave. Our skin began to itch and all toward the brightening horizon for a the water. pucker as swarms of jellyfish swiped up couple of hours, but saw no signs of shore. against us, and there was little to do but Another boat. Another false hope. As we approached the beach, we no- hope we didn’t have to face the razor- ticed what appeared to be colorful balls sharp teeth of a barracuda. And yet, I can’t explain why, exactly, bouncing up and down. It turned out to particularly given the dire reality we faced, be a group of people – about 200 – who The full reality of our situation dawned but something – a voice in my head – in- had gathered to wait as a rescue effort was on us at nightfall. This was not fun. This sisted we would be saved. I began to pray. mounted. We later learned that all kinds was not an adventure we would laugh of boats – fishing vessels, navy boats, even about later. We were in a fight for our lives. Not long after, a small fishing vessel Jet Skis, had been searching. We were all appeared. As before, we waved our Slim treated at a hospital. Only Asmath and I Then, a boat! We waved and screamed, Jims and screamed. This time, the pilot had to stay overnight. but it didn’t see us. This became a ritual. waved back. Again and again during the night, we I’m often asked if I still scuba dive. My would see a boat, sometimes achingly The pilot of the fishing boat helped answer is always, of course. Now, how- close. Again and again, it would vanish us aboard and gave us food and water. ever, I carry a whistle and make sure I’m and our despair would deepen. My mind Then another boat appeared. Then aware of where the boat is at all times. drifted to my family. They always insisted I another. Suddenly, after so many close My first dive after the ordeal, in fact, a check in the minute I arrived back at shore. calls, we felt like we were in the middle very special guest came along – my wife. I wondered what they must be thinking. of a flotilla. It had been nearly 24 hours She wasn’t going to let me out of her sight again. – As told to Bryan Smith The three of us didn’t talk much after a while. At some point we must have dozed J A N U A RY 2 0 1 6 | THE ROTARIAN 49 jan16-WhatItsLike22.indd 49 11/20/15 1:03 PM

learn to walk three times PETER KAVANAGH Rotary Club of Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ont. TRUST ME ON THIS: WALKING IS COMPLICATED. The thing about walking is that we do yielding, malleable, slippery – sends a it without thinking. And that is a good signal through your feet into your nerves, I should know; I’ve learned to do it three thing, because if you think about walking your muscles, and the entirety of a very times. And I’ve thought a lot about what is too much, it becomes awkward and frank- complicated system. These signals move easy and what is hard about walking. ly embarrassing. Nerves send signals to through your body and pulse through muscles to lift one leg, swing it through, your musculoskeletal system, and are Like most people, I learned to walk the and bring it down, and then another signal processed very, very rapidly by your brain. first time as a young child. But I had polio gets sent to another muscle so the other It is that remarkably complex system that when I was two months old, so it was much leg lifts off the ground and swings through, we simply call our sense of balance. Mon- more difficult for me than for most chil- and then you repeat and repeat, fast itoring the surface I am on, the shoes I dren. The second time was when I was 12, enough that you get a good pace going. am wearing, and my shifting sense of after I had a hip operation and had to spend But that’s just the process; walking takes whether my weight and center of gravity the next year flat on my back in a body cast. place in the world, among people, and has are correctly aligned so that I am rela- The third, and let’s all hope last, time was to happen while you are doing other tively balanced is just part of what I had a consequence of another hip operation at things like planning dinner or getting to learn yet again. age 59. My surgeon also lengthened my left psyched for the meeting or worrying about leg by about 3 inches, so for the first time what the doctor is going to tell you. Learning to walk teaches you how de- since I was two months old, my legs were pendent you are on others – the others the same length – which meant having to What you might not pay attention to who will take you through the mechanics learn how to walk all over again. is how many different surfaces there are of walking, who will cheer you on as you in the world and how each surface slight- take “baby steps” (and taking baby steps ly changes walking. For most of us, that at 60 is both invigorating and humbling), change is imperceptible; for me, it is like who bring you the coffee when you are a siren blasting out a warning. Concrete exhausted, who love you enough to make is not tile, which is different from asphalt learning this all again possible. You realize and way different from grass. And grass that when you were a toddler – just think is nothing like sand, and both grass and about how the word“toddler” captures so sand are not ice or snow. Every quality of clearly how difficult learning to walk is – a surface – smooth, rough, continuous, you mastered walking because everyone around you helped out. Learning to walk the first time is an adventure. Having to learn how to walk again taught me about how the brain works, how the body works with the brain, and what perseverance, dedication, and commitment all really mean. You could say that learning how to walk taught me who I am. 50 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 50 11/20/15 1:03 PM

bike across the U.S. for polio eradication NICK HALL Rotary Club of Temple Terrace, Fla. I WAS SOMEWHERE AROUND YUMA, ARIZ., training for an odyssey from San Diego It’s hour upon hour lost in thought; to St. Augustine, Fla. mile markers and state lines, monotony on the edge of the desert, when reality marked by breathtaking panic; taking bird began to take hold. I was barely into a Which brings us to what it’s like. baths (and washing out your underwear) coast-to-coast solo bike ride across Amer- Well, the answer, as you might expect, in greasy gas station bathrooms. ica and I was already wondering what I’d contains multitudes. It’s realizing that my gotten myself into. training runs in the flat, swampy roads of One of the most wonderful epiphanies Florida provided desperately poor prepa- is that you’re burning so many calories – In the brute health of my youth, I had ration for my first challenge: making a some 4,000 a day – that you can eat any- made a number of long-distance bike treks. 4,000-foot climb from San Diego (where thing you want. Let me repeat: anything. I At 17, I pedaled from Rapid City, S.D., to I dipped my tire in the water for luck) to gorged on fare that would normally have Massachusetts. Two years later, I again the high deserts of New Mexico. found me in a confessional begging for jumped on a 10-speed, this time from mercy for my gluttony. Double cheeseburg- Rapid City to Cabo San Lucas, Mexico. It’s grinding mile after flat, lonely mile ers and fries; hash browns and stacks of across the Texas panhandle, panicking as pancakes slathered in butter and syrup; I’m 67 now, however, a semiretired it slowly dawns that your day’s water sup- mountains of ice cream; and my favorites: neuropsychology professor whose closest ply, which seemed almost comically ex- Fig Newtons and those sugar-caked Host- brush with an epic journey is my morn- travagant when you started the day, has ess apple pies in the wax wrapper. ing constitutional for coffee and a bagel. dwindled to a precious few squirts. It’s rejoicing when a Texas Department of It’s adrenaline-fueled joy as you pedal Yet, there I was, lungs searing, Jackson Transportation truck, seeing your “End that final stretch and your 10-year-old Pollock sweat stain spread across my back, Polio Now” sign on the back of the bike, grandson rides up beside you, along with grinding up some godforsaken Arizona pulls over and the driver tells you to help your Rotary friends. It’s coasting toward mountain in the 100-plus-degree heat. yourself to a few frosty-cold bottles of a clump of people on the beach shaking water in the cooler. banners and cowbells. It’s knowing that The president of my Rotary club in you’re going to make it and that by doing Temple Terrace, Fla., having heard about It’s sailing along with the wind at your so you’ve proved something to yourself my nutty professor’s quest, wondered if I back and then the jolt of exhilaration at and fulfilled the mission that drew you to might use the ride to raise money and cresting a hill – followed by a different Rotary in the first place: to be of service. awareness for the End Polio Now cam- type of thrill when your bike frame throws – As told to Bryan Smith paign. I agreed without hesitation. a bolt, locking your tires, shredding your spokes, and stranding you in Texas with a Every dollar donated to End Polio Now My personal motivation was less gimpy leg and raspberried elbows from noble than nostalgic. I conceived the trip being tossed over the handlebars. is matched 2-to-1 by the as a great way to celebrate – ah, hell, to recapture – those rash days of yester- It’s beauty beyond words, vastness. It’s Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. year, when I was in thrall to the fool- the kindness, as they say, of strangers. hardy and loved it. It’s a fleabag motel in the middle of no- You can contribute where suddenly seeming like the Plaza Ready to ride, I jumped on eBay, after another scorpion-harrowed dust- to the eradication campaign at found a sturdy Raleigh 10-speed of the bowl night in a pup tent. type I used a half-century ago (I didn’t www.endpolio.org. fancy those carbon fiber bikes crumpling under my backpack weight), and began J A N U A RY 2 0 1 6 | THE ROTARIAN 51 jan16-WhatItsLike22.indd 51 11/20/15 1:03 PM

travel on a Rotary Friendship Exchange CAROL METZKER Rotary E-Club of One World D5240 WE’D BEEN IN GHANA FOR ONLY A FEW DAYS, family to let us get a shot of them pound- with sunny beaches and a stable political ing fufu, a traditional dough of cassava environment, even the more heavily trav- but already we’d had an intimate, local’s- and plantains. eled parts of the country are a world away eye view of the country. Our new friend, from my home in West Chester, Pa. But Yaw Aboagye, led us deep into the aisles He then escorted us even farther off the my daughter, Kathryn, and I arrived in of the huge Makola Market, where ven- beaten path, through a fishing village at Ghana on a Rotary Friendship Exchange, dors beckoned us to their baskets of red the harbor. There men repaired nets and a program that enables Rotarians to stay palm nuts, green mangoes, and brown wooden fishing boats, and women carried in the homes of Rotary club members yams, and to their stacks of batik fabric babies on their backs while stirring tiny overseas. That made all the difference, al- that reached toward the tin roof. He took pots over open fires. A crude public facility lowing us to experience the most exotic us past dilapidated homes on a street in and an open sewer gutter served as toilets sites while taking comfort in the fellow- Jamestown, the old colonial section of for all the village inhabitants. ship of Rotary friends. Accra, the capital. People in this area often refuse to be photographed, or “snapped,” Most vacationers wouldn’t want to ven- We were made to feel at home the mo- but using a local dialect, Yaw persuaded a ture to this neighborhood. And though ment we arrived at the Accra airport. Ghana is a popular tourist destination 52 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 52 11/20/15 1:03 PM

Waiting for us at the doors, which were recipe. My daughter and I helped set the a dirt path down a steep hill where she and decorated with signs reading “Akwaaba” table and wash the dishes, all along talk- her friends had walked each day to gather (“Welcome ” in the local language), was ing to the Boohenes about nearly every water. It was a chore, she explained, but it Kathleen Boohene, of the Rotary Club subject under the sun. We talked about was also an opportunity to get away from of Accra-South. She greeted us with Ghana’s natural beauty, our children, her strict headmistress and have some fun. smiles and hugs, drove us to her comfort- our parents, and the importance of wa- able house, and spent several of the fol- ter – so dear to Kathleen because as a We stopped for a birthday luncheon for lowing days ferrying us around town and schoolgirl she had to walk long distances one of Kathleen’s school friends, and then teaching us about the area’s culture. to the nearest well. We talked about we all visited the Aburi Botanic Gardens, When Kathleen absolutely had to be at Ghana’s wooden coffins, many sculpted a top tourist draw with special ties for work one day, she introduced us to her and painted to resemble items that were Kathleen. Sir William Crowther, an im- close family friend Yaw, who quickly be- meaningful to the deceased: a Coca-Cola migrant from Scotland who planted many came our friend too. bottle, a Bic pen, a truck, a cow, a fish, or of the gardens’ trees, was her great-grand- a chicken with outstretched wings, sym- father. It rained on us during our short Even that initial drive from the airport bolizing protection of the family beyond hike, but the views and good company had was eye-opening – a hodgepodge of the the end of life. us all feeling quite exhilarated by the time perennial and the modern, the poor and we headed home. the rich. Women in cotton dresses weaved On our second day in Ghana, we at- through the bumper-to-bumper traffic, tended a meeting of Kathleen’s club. Toward the end of our visit, we pre- almost all of them with babies on their When you’ve just landed in a foreign sented gifts to our host family. We had backs and gigantic platters of peanuts, country, where many things are wildly dif- heard that the Boohenes enjoyed barbe- mangoes, or plastic bags of drinking wa- ferent, there’s something wonderfully fa- cues, so I gave Yaw an apron emblazoned ter balanced on their heads. In one city miliar about the structure of a Rotary club with a Rotary logo. He put it on immedi- block, a modern office building towered meeting. After some time for fellowship, ately and grinned. A large man, he couldn’t over a field of beach umbrellas, the only the meeting started with an invocation begin to wrap it around his middle or tie shelter for an outdoor market. Men with and a tune from the Rotary songbook. it at the back.“No problem. I never liked briefcases and traditional-style tunics Charles Quist, who helped arrange our to cook on a grill anyway,” he said, then walked alongside men in Western-style trip, came to greet us, and I was asked to continued to wear the apron around his business suits. The city reverberated with give a brief speech introducing myself and neck for the rest of the evening, its edges activity and life. my daughter. and strings flapping as he walked. We traveled from the busy multilane The camaraderie fortified us for the We parted not with goodbyes, but with streets to bumpy red-dirt roads to a quiet next day’s adventure to the market and “Hope to see you soon” and a plan to meet gravel lane bordered with flowering trees fishing village with Yaw, the family friend, at the RI Convention. As we drove to the and tall gates. At last we arrived at the and for our many other explorations. One airport, back along the same side streets Boohene family’s house – the place we memorable day, we ventured out of Accra, and bustling avenues that had brought us would call home for the next five days. driving with Kathleen north to the region to the Boohene home, I thought about the There we met Kathleen’s husband, also where she grew up. The hilly area, covered differences between Ghana and Pennsyl- named Yaw. (It’s traditional for male Gha- in palms, bamboo, and soaring Sky God vania, and I recalled a familiar proverb: naians born on the same day of the week trees, was misty and mysterious looking, The road to a friend’s house is never long. to share the same name; Yaw is the name with every shade of green and gray imag- given to Thursday babies.) inable. The road twisted and turned along Interested in Rotary’s Friendship sheer ridges without guardrails and even- Nearly every night, we were fed a de- tually passed the school that Kathleen Exchange program? Learn more at licious home-cooked meal, including a attended as a young girl. She pointed out ground-nut soup made from a family www.rotary.org/rfe. J A N U A RY 2 0 1 6 | THE ROTARIAN 53 jan16-WhatItsLike22.indd 53 11/20/15 1:03 PM

quit I LANDED IN BALI, INDONESIA, IN 2014. I had your been in pharmaceutical sales and, just for job fun, did social media consulting on the side. As a member of my Rotary club’s public and go to Bali relations committee, I volunteered to take over the Facebook page and added Twitter AMANDA BOND to our club’s social media channels. When Rotary Club of Whitby, Ont. I quit my job to start an agency that special- izes in online and event marketing, I de- 54 T H E R O T A R I A N | J A N U A R Y 2 0 1 6 cided to go on my own business retreat – in jan16-WhatItsLike22.indd 54 a beautiful tropical paradise. I’m going to be honest: I did very little research before I bought the ticket to Bali. I sold my car and most of my possessions, and said,“It’ll unveil itself as I go.” I had traveled before – to France on a Rotary Youth Exchange; to Argentina, where I lived for a few months; and to the Do- minican Republic on a Rotary service trip. All those experiences gave me the confi- dence to say,“I don’t know what’s going to happen, but I’ll figure it out.” Each day I woke up, ate something for breakfast that literally just fell off a tree, and ran a few errands. Midmorning, I headed to my co-working space, which was this beautiful, open workspace with great Wi-Fi. The energy there was won- derful; everyone was a digital nomad do- ing their own thing. I worked on my business, learned more technical skills, and networked with a vast number of people online. My visa allowed me to stay two months, and then I came back to my hometown of Brantford, Ont., to figure out my next move. Now I’ll be staying six months of the year in San Jose, Calif., with my part- ner, who works there, and the remaining six months I’ll split between Brantford and Playa del Carmen, Mexico. If I hate it, I’ll just change course and see what’s next. – As told to Anne Ford 11/20/15 1:03 PM

be hooked on Rotary MARIA MORELL Rotary Club of Jardín Córdoba, Argentina SHARE YOUR STORY IN HIGH SCHOOL, I LIVED IN THE NORTH of and alternative conflict resolution. Everyone has a story. When we talk Argentina, in a place called Orán. It’s a huge I cannot imagine my life without the about our experiences, it helps us city but it has the feeling of a small town, connect with one another. That’s how and everyone knows what everyone else is direction that Rotary gave to it. Eighty people become interested in Rotary – doing. I heard there was a group of young percent of my life is related to Rotary. by learning about who we are as people meeting once a week called Interact, You can name almost anything about individuals and as an organization. and I joined it. We organized parties for me. Like my job – I got in contact with a Next time you talk with a potential children and created programs to help the friend from Rotaract who introduced me member, think about who in your club environment. It was great to belong to that to someone. Or my apartment – I have a might have a shared connection with club. We were so active; everyone knew us. Rotaract friend who has a friend who lives that person. Rotary’s greatest recruit- in the same building. ment tool is you: Your stories. Your When I moved to Córdoba to go to law experiences. Your passion for Rotary. school, I saw a little sign at my university I’ve always felt that Rotary is a huge that said something like, “Do you know family. You say,“I’m from this club,” or “I Share your own story with us at what Rotaract is?” I went to a meeting and am related to Rotary in this way,” and [email protected] was a Rotaractor for about 12 years. In people will open their hearts. I love trav- 2006, I went on a Rotary Group Study eling, and whenever I go someplace, I find (include “What it’s like” in the subject Exchange to France, where I worked in a Rotarian and email them to ask them line of your email), at a children’s law court. In 2011, I was ac- to go for coffee. If you’re in Rotary, you’re cepted as a Rotary Peace Fellow and got friends, even when you don’t know much Facebook.com/therotarian magazine, my master’s degree in international peace about the other person. It means you share or at twitter.com/therotarian. and conflict resolution from International the same values. – As told to Anne Ford Christian University in Tokyo. These ex- periences led me where I am now – I’m a Help young people get involved in lawyer and a thesis counselor at our local university. I am assigned theses related to Rotary through Interact and Rotaract. my expertise, which is violence prevention and treatment, crimes against humanity, Learn more at www.rotary.org/rotaract-interact-and-ryla. THE ROTARIAN 55 jan16-WhatItsLike22.indd 55 11/20/15 1:03 PM

WE ARE THIS CLOSE TO ENDING POLIO Now is our chance to change the world. To make sure no child is disabled by polio ever again. Join in. Speak out. Donate. Be a part of history. endpolio.org ThisClose jan16 - Rotarian Main Conformer_v1.indd 56 John Germ 11/24/15 3:38 PM CST jan16-i

insider Polio-freeNigeria removed from endemic list TADEJ ZNIDARCIC THE WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZA- TION (WHO) announced on 25 Sep- tember that Nigeria is polio-free and has been officially removed from the list of countries where polio is en- demic. At the time of the announce- ment, it had been 14 months since any cases of polio caused by the wild virus were detected there. With Nigeria’s historic achieve- ment, polio remains endemic in only two countries: Afghanistan and Paki- stan. That means transmission of the virus has never been stopped there. Nigeria was the last country in Af- rica where polio was endemic. The continent marked one full year with- out the disease on 11 August. Once three years have passed without a case in the African region, as defined by the WHO, officials will certify polio eradicated there. “Rotary congratulates Nigeria on its tremendous accomplishment in stopping polio,” says RI President K.R. Ravindran.“On behalf of the en- tire Global Polio Eradication Initia- tive, we thank volunteers, health workers, and parents in communities across Nigeria for their tireless com- mitment to ensuring every last child is protected against this devastating disease. In the months ahead, their dedication will remain as important as ever, as we work to keep Nigeria polio-free and to eliminate polio from its final strongholds in Pakistan and Afghanistan.” Nigeria’s success is the result of sev- eral sustained efforts, including do- mestic and international financing, the J A N U A RY 2 0 1 6 | THE ROTARIAN 57 jan16-insider-v8.indd 57 11/16/15 9:18 AM

FROM THE ARCHIVES OF THE ROTARIAN commitment of thousands of health workers, and new strategies that reached January 1990 In his cover story, managing editor children who had not previously been im- munized because of a lack of security in Charles W. Pratt described the scene at the 1985 Summer Consumer the country’s northern states. Electronics Show in Chicago, where visitors caught an early glimpse of high-definition television technology. “Four years after the Chicago exhi- TYPE 2 POLIOVIRUS GONE FOR GOOD bition,” he wrote, “it’s poised to leave the research lab and go to work, In other encouraging news, an indepen- promising to bring clear, sharp, movie-screen images to the living rooms of tomorrow” – though not cheaply. Experts predicted at the time that dent global health commission officially “HDTV sets in large-screen sizes will first be sold at an average price of verified on 20 September that wild polio- US $2,500.” Today you can buy a 40-inch HDTV, similar to the sort virus type 2, one of three strains of the found in living rooms around the world, for about $350, and most smart- wild virus, has been eradicated worldwide. phones have high-definition capability. Although the last type 2 case was detected in 1999, the confirmation is an important ROTARY ROTARY ROTARACT INTERACT RCCS milestone, as Rotary and its partners in the TADEJ ZNIDARCIC AT A Global Polio Eradication Initiative prepare Members:* Members: Members: Members: to switch from a form of the vaccine that GLANCE targets all polio types to one that does not As of 30 September 1,228,076 194,028 429,203 197,869 protect against type 2. *As of 31 October Clubs:* Clubs: Clubs: Corps: The announcement by the Global 35,221 8,436 18,661 8,603 Commission for the Certification of Po- liomyelitis Eradication confirms that only 58 T H E R O T A R I A N | J A N U A R Y 2 0 1 6 two strains of the wild poliovirus remain. Of those, type 3 wild poliovirus hasn’t jan16-insider-v9.indd 58 been detected in almost three years, and wild poliovirus type 1 is endemic only in Afghanistan and Pakistan. 11/24/15 2:30 PM CST

As recently as 2012, Nigeria accounted for more MESSAGE FROM THE FOUNDATION CHAIR than half of all polio cases worldwide. More than 200,000 volunteers across the country helped Cowboy Logic – and the Code of the West turn the tide, immunizing 45 million children. “Cowboy Logic,” as sung by Michael Martin FUNDING INCREASE NEEDED Murphey, has been one of my favorite songs for many years because of its happy music and On 25 September, the Polio Oversight thoughtful lyrics. It has relevance to Rotary because of its emphasis on honesty and hard Board met to determine the next steps work, but I did not fully appreciate its appli- cation to our organization until I read Cowboy needed to eradicate polio. The group con- Ethics by Jim Owen. Jim was aware that the unwritten Code of the West was a power- cluded that $1.5 billion in new funding is ful and positive force shaping the ethical behavior of cowboys in the Western states of the USA, and he distilled the code into 10 guiding needed to help Rotary and its partners end principles. They are succinctly and aptly stated, and they align closely with The Four-Way Test, one of the hallmarks of Rotary. polio in the next few years. With Nigeria Three of the principles are particularly applicable to the PolioPlus program. In the 30 years since the program was launched, Rotarians now polio-free, spending will focus on the have remained steadfastly committed to the goal of polio eradication, even though it has taken much longer and been more expensive most vulnerable children in Afghanistan and than anyone originally imagined. But we stuck with it, and now the goal of ending polio is clearly in sight. Along the way, we have fulfilled Pakistan, while continuing to shield millions three of the principles of the Code of the West: “Do what has to be done,”“When you make a promise, keep it,” and “Always finish what of children in polio-free countries. you start.” Two other principles have special relevance for The Rotary Foun- “With a fully funded program and global dation as a whole:“Take pride in your work” and “Ride for the brand.” Through their support of Foundation programs, from the first commitment to ending this disease, we have ambassadorial scholarships in 1948 to newer initiatives such as the Rotary Peace Centers and the Future Vision plan, Rotarians have truly the opportunity to interrupt transmission made the world a better place. And because Rotarians have “ridden for the brand” through their creative work and generous contributions, of the wild poliovirus in Pakistan and Af- these programs have been highly successful, enhancing members’ abil- ity to take pride in their work. Therefore, I do not need to ask Rotarians ghanistan in 2016, opening the door for for their loyalty to the Foundation. Instead, I want to thank them for their amazing loyalty! certification of a global eradication in 2019,” Ray Klinginsmith says Michael K. McGovern, chair of Ro- FOUNDATION TRUSTEE CHAIR tary’s International PolioPlus Committee. “With [Rotary members’] continued sup- port, we will soon see our dream of a polio- free world realized.” – RYAN HYLAND jan16-insider-v8.indd 59 11/16/15 9:18 AM

insider T½SbhB-eeDs\"n×tds.uhso\" ytour Enter The Rotarian’s annual photo contest for the chance to win prizes and have your photo featured in the magazine. The contest is open 1 December 2015 through 29 February 2016. For details, go to www.rotary.org/photocontest. Pictured: 2015 annual photo contest entry / MICHEL FAIZANDIER rthe otarian V O I C E S O F E X P E R I E N C EPhotoContest_PrintAd_Jan.indd 1 BY VICTOR FLEMING, ROTARY CLUB OF LITTLE ROC1K1/,23A/1R5 K4:.2,3 PUMSA Across 46 Essay title phrase 9 Follower of Daniel         1 ___ festival (annual on page 36 10 Punch tools event for many a 11 Mai ___    Rotary Club) 51 Proverbs 12 Pen filler 4 Rotary Voices, e.g. 52 Alpine river 13 Charlotte-to-    8 What “id est” 53 Essay title phrase means Charleston dir.    on page 44 19 What bouncers 14 Debussy’s sea 58 Gerard of Buck Rogers       15 Shell or Bell leader? 59 Schedule for a club check 16 Davenport denizens 21 Gulches for which a   17 “Birds ___ feather ...” meeting, say 18 Phrase 60 Semester noted dam is named      61 Manning 24 “Get out of here!” on page 35 25 Mythical thunderbolt   20 Mystery writer of the Giants 62 18 January thrower     Ambler 26 Boss in a place 22 Soup dippers 2016, for one    23 Essay title phrase 63 Santa ___ full of bread 27 Part of TGIF       on page 48 Valley, Calif. 28 Don : Barney :: 26 Baby-food catcher 64 Mars hue   29 Per se Down Frances : ___ 30 Last word in chess 30 Bill & ___ Gates       31 Our Gang 1 Simple creature 2 Internet Foundation    producer 32 Folk rock’s 35 Common stuff? browser button    36 Essay title phrase 3 Follows in a way DiFranco 4 “Incidentally,” 33 UPS shipment unit 46 1968 hit 49 Startling gauge read 55 Follett of fiction on page 50 34 On a roll “In-A-___-Da-Vida” 50 Skiing site 56 Before, to an odist 38 Foreword kin to a texter 35 Wife of Abram 51 Follow orders 57 Where troops are 40 Hiatuses 5 “___-di-dah!” 37 Big name in 47 “Negatory!” in 53 Crashing sound 42 Summer colors 6 Florida pig Latin 54 Kind of trip verboten (abbr.) 43 Woolly champagne music Solution on page 18 horse-breeding city 38 Frequent 48 Itinerary preposition in appearance 7 Tried to make clear 45 Film director Lee 8 Word in four fundraiser 39 Sought office Across clues 41 Free of germs 44 Blinker? 60 T H E R O T A R I A N | J A N U A R Y 2 0 1 6 jan16--inRsoidtear-iav8n.iMndadin C6o0nformer_v1.indd 60 11/241/11/516/31:5389P:1M8CASMT jan16-i

Presidential conferences begin ● Economic development, insider Beginning this month, RI 27 February in Cape Town, President K.R. Ravindran March, will highlight Rotary’s South Africa; rotarycapetown WIn memoriam and Foundation Trustee areas of focus. 2016.com ith deep regret, we report the deaths of the follow- ● Peace and conflict resolu- ● Literacy and WASH ing Rotarians who served in Schools, 11-13 March in RI as district governors: James Chair Ray Klinginsmith will tion, 15-16 January in On- Kolkata, India; rotaryteach C. Haugh, San Diego, Calif., .org/presidentialconference/ 1977-78; Paul W. Jury Sr., host five presidential confer- tario, Calif.; peaceconference index.shtml Harrisburg (Houston), Texas, 1980-81; Masao Horiba, ences, each offering a venue to 2016.org ● WASH in Schools, 18-19 Kyoto, Japan, 1982-83; Soon- March in Pasay City, Metro Hyun Kang, Hadong, Korea, explore new and innovative ways ● Disease prevention and Manila, Philippines; 2016 1992-93; Anthony L. Brock- rotarypresidentialconference ington, Yuma North End,Ariz., to improve communities. The treatment, 19-20 February manila.org 1996-97; Denis Lumbila Kasongo, Kinshasa, Demo- conferences, to be held around in Cannes, France; rotary- All five conferences will be cratic Republic of Congo, 1998- led by local Rotary districts and 99; William J. Sturgeon III, the world between January and conference-cannes2016.org are open to nonmembers as well Coronado, Calif., 2001-02; as Rotary members.Conferences Seppo Aho, Rovaniemi, Fin- will feature engaging speakers, land, 2005-06; Pekka Juntunen, informative general sessions, and Oulu, Finland, 2007-08; Albert hands-on workshops.Attendees J. Bergsma, Rocky Mountain will have the opportunity to House, Alta., 2010-11; network with fellow leaders and Philippe Grosskopf, Lons- take away new ideas and strate- le-Saunier, France, 2014-15. gies to put into action. Rotary supports lights, transforming the plaza planned in the United States them include Sydney, New ALYCE HENSON / ROTARY INTERNATIONAL UN goals where they were gathered into and more than 150 around the Delhi, Johannesburg, São Paulo, a field of fireflies to #Light- world. Other cities that hosted and New York. R otary and ONE, an inter- TheWay to a more just world. national advocacy organiza- Local high school students participated in the Under One Sky event tion, joined other event “This is a great opportunity by announcing each of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals before partners in downtown Chicago for people to network and join the crowd at downtown Chicago's Daley Plaza. on 24 September to demonstrate an event where we are all fo- a commitment to ending extreme cused on creating a better poverty and inequality and to world,” said Cheryl McIntyre, promoting action on climate president of the Rotary Club change on the eve of the United of Chicago. Nations’ launch of its Sustain- able Development Goals. Julie Bordo, a district repre- sentative for ONE.org, noted The 17 ambitious goals con- that Rotary and ONE are more stitute a road map for finding effective when they work solutions to the world’s most together. pressing problems and dovetail with Rotary members’ work to “We have very similar goals, create positive change in their and when we put our collective communities and around the efforts together, it allows us to world. As dusk fell over Chi- reach more people in addressing cago, participants in the Under these incredibly important One Sky event held up blue issues,” she said. Under One Sky Chicago was one of more than 40 such events J A N U A RY 2 0 1 6 | THE ROTARIAN 61 jan16-insider-v8.indd 61 11/16/15 9:18 AM

insider Rotary in the media 24 July ASSOCIATED PRESS “Nigeria Celebrates 1 Year With No New Polio Cases” The first wide coverage of Nigeria’s polio milestone was published more than 130 times by national and local North American newspapers. The article, which quoted Rotary’s Nigeria PolioPlus Committee chair, appeared in the New York Times, the Washington Post, the Globe and Mail, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, the Boston Globe, and the Seattle Times. 8 July 15 July 24 July KHON 2 KA LEO TIMES OF MALTA “Rotary’s 100th anniversary in Hawaii” “Polio Virus Could Be Eradicated “Polio-Free World Forever” Soon, Rotary President Says” This op-ed, written by RI President K.R. RI President K.R. Ravindran flew to Hawaii to While visiting Oahu, K.R. Ravindran discussed Ravindran, outlines the status of polio help the Rotary Club of Honolulu celebrate its his goals as 2015-16 president of Rotary eradication efforts in anticipation of the centennial. There, he visited the studios of the International and Rotary’s efforts to end polio. Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting Hawaii News Now morning show to discuss in Malta in November. At a 2011 meeting, the anniversary. 17July the group had pledged to accelerate action and TAKE PART rally financial support to eradicate polio. 13 July SALT LAKE TRIBUNE “Why a Victoria’s Secret 26 July “Rotary Club Is Out to Eradicate Supermodel Is Fighting for a HOUSTON CHRONICLE Polio Throughout the World” Polio-Free World” “Rotary’s E orts Target Polio” An interview with fashion figure and Rotary This article highlights an interview with polio ambassador Isabeli Fontana, who talks The largest daily newspaper in Texas applauded RI General Secretary John Hewko, who about what she has learned about Rotary, Rotary’s 30-year commitment to polio eradication addresses Rotary’s journey to eradicate polio, and their impact on the world. She online and in a front-page feature in the polio, pitfalls overcome, and the inclusion also describes a visit to India to assist with City-State section. of women in Rotary. immunization activities. 62 T H E R O T A R I A N | J A N U A R Y 2 0 1 6 11/16/15 9:18 AM jan16-insider-v8.indd 62

122 # of media stories Polio milestone International media Rotary was featured 122 times in the global Top-tier media covered Nigeria’s polio news Coverage of Rotary news and events news in July, August, and September. with 86 stories and 30 interviews, and 228 appeared in 34 international outlets. websites shared the press release. 3 August 24 August EVANSTON PATCH TRIBUNE DE GENÈVE/24 HEURES “Rollin’ With Rotary Makes “Rotary Is One of the Most Evanston Stop Thursday” Important NGOs” The Rollin’ With Rotary tour, which involved General Secretary John Hewko discusses Rotary’s four young professionals traveling the Midwest place in the fight against polio. He also talks by bus on a public awareness campaign, about the World Economic Forum in Geneva and was prominently featured in local news as it the status of polio in Africa. approached Rotary International headquarters in downtown Evanston, Ill. 23 September EVANSTON ROUNDTABLE 4 August “Showing That the Community CHRISTIAN SCIENCE MONITOR Cares” “The ‘Lost Girls’ of South Sudan – and the Woman Who Found The article covered Rotary’s participation in Them” Evanston Day of Caring, sponsored by United Way, and expansion of the initiative into a weeklong This article, originally featured in The Rotarian, series of volunteer events for Rotary employees, details the work of Rotary member Cathy who contributed over 200 hours of service at Groenendijk, founder of Confident Children Out local nonprofit organizations. of Conflict. Her organization provides shelter and housing for young girls facing poverty and 24 September danger amid civil conflict in South Sudan. CBS CHICAGO “Under One Sky Chicago” 13 August KBS-TV Rotary’s joint event celebrating the launch of the “Rotary International Holds Its UN Sustainable Development Goals at Chicago’s 2016 Convention in Seoul” Daley Plaza is profiled. Moderator Jerome McDonnell, a host of Worldview on the local Korea’s national TV network covered the NPR station, mentioned the event on his press conference announcing Rotary’s 2016 show as well. International Convention in Seoul, including remarks by RI President K.R. Ravindran. Nearly two dozen other outlets picked up the news, including KTV, Bridgenews, the Asian Today, AJU Business Daily, the Korea Economic Daily, the Korea Times, and Asia Today. jan16-insider-v8.indd 63 11/16/15 9:18 AM

online Head to the Web for the latest stories, photos, and videos VIDEOROTARY INTERNATIONAL / ALYCE HENSON POLIO ROTARY INTERNATIONAL What it’s like to live your dream World Polio Day 2015 In this month’s roundup of members’ most meaningful and unusual experiences, After a year with no new cases of wild poliovirus, you read about cruciverbalist Victor Fleming, a member of the Rotary Club of Nigeria was recently removed from the list of Little Rock, Ark., and the architect of our monthly crossword puzzles. Watch an polio-endemic countries. Watch the third annual excerpt from the 2006 documentary Wordplay, which features the original song World Polio Day webcast, filmed live in New he wrote about crosswords, “If You Don’t Come Across,” performed live at the York City in October, for a global status update American Crossword Puzzle Tournament. on the fight to end polio. The event featured youtube.com/watch?v=iy9gzaZNFn0 discussions with top global health officials and celebrity appearances, and a musical performance FOUNDATION by Rotary Ambassador Angélique Kidjo. endpol.io/WPD15yt Chicagoans gather Under One Sky LIKE US: facebook.com/therotarianmagazine If you weren’t in Chicago in September, you might not have had a chance to FOLLOW US: twitter.com/therotarian celebrate the launch of the Sustainable Development Goals, which form the EMAIL US: [email protected] United Nations’ ambitious new plan to end poverty and fight climate change. Watch this video footage from the Under One Sky event, courtesy of our Broadcast Media department, which brought together Rotarians and volunteers in downtown Chicago’s Daley Plaza working to #LightTheWay to a brighter future for all. video.rotary.org/ibL/under-one -sky-chicago 64 T H E R O T A R I A N | J A N U A R Y 2 0 1 6 jan16-BackPage-v6.indd 1 11/13/15 8:49 AM

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THE GOOD YOU DO COMES BACK TO YOU SHARE YOUR #ROTARYSTORY “Through Rotary Global Rewards, we purchased a card that gave us free entry to over 25 Chicago attractions, and were able to skip the lines at most of them.” - PATRICK EAKES Assistant Rotary Coordinator, Zone 33 jan16 - Rotarian Main Conformer_v2.indd 4 SEE MORE AT ROTARY.ORG/GLOBALREWARDS 11/25/15 12:02 PM CST