D-2482 DG's Newsletter July 2016-EN

„... Individual efforts can address Individual needs, But united efforts must be committed To serve humanity...“ Paul Harris Dear friends, I have always admired those persons who find the time to do something for someone else despite their tasks or abilities. I am happy that in Rotary, I found people sharing my views. People who want to make something sensible for their communities, no matter how big or small it is. Rotary is 111 years now, but Rotary is a dynamic, working organization that changes every year. Rotary thinks about its future, establishing its fifth avenue of its activity. After club and vocational service, after community service and international service, we adopt as priority our work for future generations. In 2016-17, we shall celebrate 100 years of the Rotary Foundation and 25 years since the restoring of Rotary in Bulgaria. The strategic plan of Rotary International has new, simplified approach for preserving the strength and vitality of the organization in the future. This plan fosters three clear and definite priorities that we accept: 1. Support for achieving strong clubs and membership development. 2. Focus on sustainable humanitarian service projects. 3. Effective public relations, awareness and positive public image of Rotary. The priorities in the Strategic plan show us that Rotary’s success is certain when there are strong clubs, significant service projects and community that knows us. The greatest challenge for us is our members – to identify them, to attract them, to keep them. To look for them where we know they are: among people in the communities we live in, among our Rotaractors. To identify the leaders, to compare their philosophy with ours, to finds the ones that the community recognizes as leading and sincere persons, with high community and personal moral and make them our fellows. Let’s say more positive wards than criticize. Let’s try to accept more than deny. Let’s see completion in a contradiction, not division. Let’s look at people around us and within ourselves in a new way and see if our community represents exactly the society we live in. The positive image we build is related to the community ideas and needs that we implement. Every day in Rotary service, we have the opportunity to change lives. This opportunity may look small, and sometimes we may doubt whether it has sense — the answer is simple: IT HAS. Everything done has sense for the people we help, for the people we love, for the nowadays generation, for the one after it and the next one, and… because every little thing done today – makes the world better for us tomorrow. My friends, a year is such a short time for the beginning of a part of something big. A year is also enough time for us to feel that we want more and more. A year is long enough with the variety it provides when we are ready to take is as a year of service. Believe me that I and my team shall be part of your service. I am grateful to all of you who have committed yourselves to make this world a better place and to the ones with whom we all shall serve the humanity. Yours in Rotary, July 2016 Dimitar Dimitrov District Governor D-2482