Give To Change Lives

Happy New Month Family of Rotary!

November is Rotary Foundation Month, the season that we are reminded of the importance of why we joined Rotary; To Serve to Change Lives.

Growing up, I always looked forward to visiting my family upcountry. Whenever it was time to return, my grandmother would insist on sending me back with a sack of treats; a live chicken, sweet potatoes, sugarcane- anything she had at the time. She didn’t offer this because she had so much; in fact as a peasant farmer, it was almost all she had- a reflection of selfless giving. Most of you have probably had the same experience with your own kin. As Africans, we are natural givers- it forms the unembellished foundation of our culture. To quote an African proverb, “You don’t give someone a goat for a gift and still hold on to the rope.”

The underlying principle of our culture is that that a giver, does not grow poorer by giving and ultimately will certainly not lack. This lesson on giving has been passed over from generation to generation and it is now our turn to pass on the baton. As Rotarians, we are fortunate to have a seamless way to give and touch the lives of many through The Rotary Foundation (TRF).

The Rotary Foundation is our source to receive more than we give. Currently, our District is handling a total of 125 approved grants worth $11,952,232 funded by TRF for our service projects in the Rotary focus areas. The largest grant recipient in our District is a $370,263 Disease Prevention and Treatment project that is purchasing oxygen generators for six hospitals in Oromia Region, Ethiopia. The project is run by the Rotary Club of Finot, in partnership with the Rotary Club of Castro Valley, D5170.

Close on its heels is a $323,091 WASH project to access clean water and improve on hygiene practices by providing 700 water tanks for storage of 10,000 liters to reach 700 families in Nakuru and Laikipia Counties, Kenya. This project is run by the Rotary Club of Nakuru in partnership with the Rotary Clubs of Lünen-Werne, D1900 and Hoorn of D1560.

In Sudan, the Rotary Club of Juba in partnership with District 6220 are implementing a Water and Sanitation grant project to drill bore wells and provide water tanks in South Sudan. The value of this grant is $165,925. There are many more grants that we receive that are making a huge impact across our district; indicative of the blessings we receive when we give.

This 2021/22 Rotary year, we have managed to donate $83,645 to the foundation against our $500,000 goal. While this is a generous contribution sacrificially given by our Rotarians, we can still DO MORE.

One of the ways of achieving this is by ensuring that every club in our district becomes Every Rotarian Every Year (EREY) certified. This simply means that every member of the club gives $100 to the Foundation within the year. Ensure that you are an All Giving Club by having every member donate only $26.50 each. Secondly, let’s keep it simple by embracing the haba na haba initiative by donating small amounts regularly to TRF.

Thirdly, let every club aim to donate at least $1,500 to the end polio fund. Since its inception 35 years ago, The End Polio campaign remains the biggest TRF initiative that has seen the eradication of polio cases around the world, remaining endemic in only 2 countries; Afghanistan and Pakistan. We are very close to eliminating this disease, let’s cross the finishing line!

Finally, take advantage of my PHF matching campaign. We urge first-time Paul Harris Fellows to contribute $500 to TRF and have it matched with another $500 and qualify for PHF status. This matching campaign closes on 15th November 2021. I would like to take this opportunity to thank all Paul Harris Society members for their generosity and appeal to each one of you to keep giving. I also extend my gratitude to all Major donors for their commitment to helping make the world a better place and ask that we continue making our donations to the foundation as we have always done.

In order to DO MORE in terms of bigger and more impactful community projects, we need to give more. The pandemic period has drastically affected the local economy making it difficult to find local partners to fund our projects. We cannot work in isolation and need to partner with others to make a bigger impact- hence the magic of Rotary in the TRF. A global grant allows clubs to collaborate with many partners in order to maximize impact in our communities. In order to get started on a grant for your club, please find resources here: https://my.rotary.org/en/take-action/apply-grants/global-grants

In conclusion, I am excited to announce that this month we will host our Foundation dinner to recognize the efforts of Rotarians and clubs that give to the Rotary Foundation. The Oscar awards style dinner will be held on the 27^th of November- save the date and look out for details coming soon.

One Love,

District Governor 2021/22

Alex Nyaga