Dear ROTI friends,

As I sit down to write to you this final monthly letter as International Chair of ROTI, a kaleidoscope of memories flash through my mind.

When you elected me as Chair of ROTI, two years ago, little did I know that such a wonderful journey of adventure, fellowship and service awaited me.

I owe a huge debt of gratitude to our immediate past Chair Steve Sokol to have persuaded me to take up this assignment. On my own, I certainly would not have considered to serve during this term as I was indeed going through a rather busy phase at work and Rotary. I am glad I did accept his suggestion and my life was greatly enriched by this unique opportunity.

Past Presidents of ROTI gave me and our Board unstinted support. I acknowledge special support from Philip Merrit, Doug Vincent, Ron Nethercutt and of course Steve Sokol.

Permit me to thank the Board of 2013-15. No words are sufficient to thank Chris Sweeney who managed our website and TK Balakrishnan who gave a transformation to Breadbasket.

John Glassford and Lawrence Tristram, who were truly my partners in leadership made my job as Chair enjoyable and memorable.

As the first ROTI Chair from India, Rotarians from India gave me great encouragement and support. The large presence of Indian Rotarians at the ROTI get-togethers at Lisbon and Sydney was a reflection of this. ROTI Breadbasket has a huge fan following in India.

I am indebted to RI President Elect KR Ravindran for being such a great friend and supporter of ROTI.

ROTI will scale new heights under incoming Chair Gloria Nethercutt, who is versatile, talented and experienced. I wish her and her Board greater success.

Due to a family commitment, I cannot be at the ROTI get together at Sao Paulo. I carry fond memories of having presided three of our annual get-togethers starting with Bangkok in 2012.

ROTI has the potential to be the most popular, effective and admired fellowship of Rotary. I join the outgoing Board in wishing that ROTI will scale new frontiers.

Best wishes,

Sunil K Zachariah International Chair (2013-15)

ROTI

Chair

Message

June

2015

ROTIR ROTI 2015 Rendezvous

ROTIans, Let us meet at São Paulo

Dear all, and attendees to San Paulo Rotary Convention, The annual meeting and get together of Rotarians On The Internet (ROTI) is confirmed to take place, as follows: DATE: 5 JUNE 2015 TIME: 1 to 2 PM PLACE: HOLIDAY INN (ANHENBI), a 10-15 minute walk from the House of Friendship. ROTIans-in-charge: Marilyn Axler, incoming board secretary, as chair and moderator of the meeting. Madhu and Deborah Perrone, in charge for on-site registration. My colleague Chuck Gueco from our district will assist in whatever capacity is needed, such as distribution of ROTI brochure/card. The meeting will be opened to the general public so that we can generate interest to ROTI membership. A brief program starts at 1pm - Call to order by Chair or Vice Chair - A Prayer - Acknowledgment of attendees - Welcome remarks - Message from the Chair, followed by this turnover of proceeding to incoming chair - Response and presentation of leadership award by incoming chair - Open forum, resolutions - Adjournment by incoming chair Unfortunately, I and Sunil will not be able to attend. Sunil will be represented by vice chair John Glassford, and I will be represented by our Zone 7 coordinator PDG Oyan Villanueva. Your presence is very much requested and required. Let us show the internationality of ROTI. Let us make this an unforgettable get together! Gloria Nethercutt ROTI Chair 2015-2017

How can we transform education in Latin America? - John Hewko, RI General Secretary

Children walk past a mural at Morro Santa Marta, the first ‘pacified’ favela in Rio de

Janeiro. REUTERS/Ueslei Marcelino.

Will more computers in classrooms determine the future of successful education systems, or more facilities for clean water and sanitation?

This was one of the questions faced by the leaders gathered at Riviera Maya, Mexico, for the World Economic Forum on Latin America, and there is no easy answer when it comes to addressing the challenge of education quality and access across the region.

Despite this, the benefits of taking on this challenge are transformative.

If all students in low-income countries left school with basic reading skills, 171 million people could be lifted out of poverty, which would be equivalent to a 12% cut in world poverty.

Our ability to quantify the importance of education with ever greater precision over the last two decades has revealed the crucial role of schooling in

social and economic development.

Knowledge and technical competence—the products of good education– leading to higher incomes and greater productivity, are vital to a nation’s growth.

Schooling also significantly reduces criminal activity, fosters more informed civic participation, and paves the way for a myriad of non-monetary societal benefits.

Perhaps most importantly, recent studies in the U.S. have shown that inequalities in social and economic outcomes, including unemployment, are greatly reduced when one accounts for educational achievement.

With this insight, it is imperative that Latin America leaves no stone unturned in pursuing ‘inclusive and equitable quality education’ and skills development for all its citizens; a keystone of the UN’s proposed Sustainable Development Goals, and a major challenge, along with reversing the trend of increasing inequality, as identified by the World Economic Forum this year.

While 60 million people in Latin America moved out of poverty between 2002 and 2013, the statistics on education are worrying.

The number of out-of-school children increased slightly between 2000 and 2012 in Latin America and the Caribbean, from 3.6 million to 3.8 million children.

According to the Inter-American Development Bank, barely 40 percent of students graduate from the secondary level across the region, and even those that graduate lag behind their counterparts across the world in primary and secondary stage performance. The OECD’s Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) rankings, which assess reading, mathematical and scientific literacy, placed the eight Latin American countries participating at the bottom of the tables for middle-income countries.

Further disparities must be addressed–namely the gap between the current capacity of educational systems and the skillsets required by the 21st century marketplace. Also, there is a pronounced productivity mismatch between South

American workers and the developed world.

It seems clear that far-reaching changes are required to lower dropout rates, ensure universal educational access, and improve the quality of education, but finding the means to support necessary reforms is less certain. While the ‘percentage of people living in poverty on the continent fell from 42% to 26%’ during a decade of high growth, the IMF has placed Latin America at the bottom of the global economic growth forecast, jeopardizing the great strides made for social progress.

To enhance education systems at a time of slow economic growth, Latin America’s leaders must adopt two principles for reform.

First, in a climate of tight budgets, a new nexus between the public sector, the private sector and NGOS is required. Innovative partnerships that engage local communities in educational projects, and facilitate local ownership of sustainable projects, have a better chance of success.

Second, educational reforms must look to

address underlying social and infrastructural barriers to literacy and educational achievement, such as poverty, gender equality, lack of security, access to water and sanitation. If attempts to reform curricula do not pay equal attention to public health best practices, the impacts will be limited.

For example, purely technological approaches have met with limited success.

Experts judged the One Laptop Per Child project for schoolchildren in Peru to have no effect on ‘test scores in reading and math, no improvements in enrollment or attendance, no change in time spent on homework or motivation.’

Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCS) are one tool that provides open access to educational content from some of the world’s leading universities, and have gained support for their potential to broaden access to education.

Though designed mainly in the U.S., two-thirds of users are from abroad, and Brazil and Mexico are in the top-ten list MOOC users.

However, recent research from El Colegio de Mexico shows that MOOCs are not yet coordinated with national curricula, are mainly in English, are of variable quality, and are consumed mainly by those who already have a college education.

Despite this, leading Latin American educational institutions such as São Paulo University (USP), Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México and Tecnológico de Monterrey are seizing on the opportunity to expand the range of online courses for Spanish-speaking students.

Rotary’s Water, Sanitation and Hygiene projects in Guatemala offer one model that recognizes the crucial connection between poverty, community and economic development, and education and literacy.

Rotary clubs have supported nine public elementary schools outside Guatemala City by laying new pipes for fresh water, improving quality of drinking water, and installing flush toilets and hand-washing stations for improved sanitation. This is combined with extensive hygiene and sanitation training for students, teachers, and

school management, along with basic education and literacy components to change behaviors. This has proven an effective way to improve school attendance, as well as children’s health and school performance. A new pilot program will expand this method to Belize, Honduras, Kenya and India in January 2016.

Another initiative in Guatemala integrates the emphasis on public health with the educational potential of technology. In partnership with the Cooperative for Education, the program brings textbooks into classrooms in Guatemala through a sustainable rental program, builds new computer labs with high-quality curriculum in middle and secondary schools, and trains teachers on reading and writing pedagogy.

To reap the benefits of modern education, with widespread equity, good quality and universal participation, Latin America must adopt a holistic and strategic approach for the good of its future generations, the prosperity of its people, and the dynamism of its economy.

Source: World Economic Forum

In May 2014, Kimberly Koss made a decision that she hopes will help thousands of other women. It is also a decision that she would never recommend to anyone else. For her, it was made possible by a singular alignment of stars in an otherwise foreboding sky.

Diagnosed with an aggressive form of breast cancer, Ohio Rotarian and medical researcher Kimberly

Koss decided to make a costly personal contribution to the field.

The Fighter

Only a month before, Koss’ life in Mason, Ohio, had been a bustle of family, friends, work, and volunteering with the Rotary Club of Blue Ash-Montgomery. She founded a tutoring company called Excel Academic Services in 2008, after leaving her postdoctoral research position in the cardiovascular biology division at the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine. And at age 58, Koss and her husband of 27 years, attorney William Ehrstine, spent as much time as possible with their two children and six grandchildren.

“The phrase ‘Renaissance woman’ is overused, but not in this case,” says Joseph Mathews, a close friend and a member of Koss’ club. Mathews, who is also a past governor of District 7870 (parts of New Hampshire and Vermont), adds that Koss is equally passionate about playing Chopin, serving her community, and coaching budding chemists – in fact, she’s won accolades for all three.

On 28 April 2014, Koss learned she had breast cancer. Working in the health sciences tends to instill a hyper-awareness that illness can strike at any moment, but it still didn’t prepare her for the diagnosis. “In those early days, like many women, I was immobilized by grief and shock,” Koss recalls. Two weeks later, she received an even more menacing forecast: Her tumor had tested positive for an especially aggressive type called triple negative breast cancer (TNBC), so named for the absence of three types of receptors: estrogen, progesterone, and human epidermal growth factor 2 (HER2). From a treatment standpoint, these receptors serve as chinks in the cancer’s armor. Without them, tumors do not respond to traditional systemic chemotherapies that target those receptors. As a result, there is no targeted or standardized therapy for TNBC.

Each year in the United States, more than 220,000 people – 1 percent of whom are men – receive a diagnosis of invasive breast cancer. In 2014, about 40,000 people died from the disease. Worldwide, TNBC accounts for 10 to 20 percent of breast cancers. TNBC most commonly afflicts African American women younger than 40; as a Caucasian woman in her late 50s, Koss doesn’t match that profile. But as a researcher, she is well aware that in the United States, a black woman with any breast cancer is 40 percent more likely to die than her white counterpart, for reasons that include the aggressive nature of the cancers, socioeconomic factors, and limited access to services. “It isn’t just a matter of the treatment,” Koss says. “It’s also access to the resources that sustain us through cancer: support groups, economic assistance, wigs, breast prostheses, and bras. All of this affects outcomes.”

Immediately after receiving her diagnosis, Koss was told she would need surgery; the question was when to begin chemotherapy. In certain cases, preoperative chemo, called neoadjuvant therapy, is administered with the goal of shrinking larger tumors or even eliminating all detectable disease prior to surgery. Depending on the patient’s situation, some experts believe this preoperative treatment can lead to better outcomes, in part because a person’s response to neoadjuvant therapy may predict overall response and guide postoperative treatment. Other experts believe that surgery should come first. Given the nature of Koss’ cancer, both her surgeon and her oncologist strongly recommended preoperative chemotherapy. Without it, they told her, she would have to wait at least six weeks after her surgery before starting chemo.

When it comes to treatment for TNBC, one fact is indisputable: Much about this defiant disease is not understood. As a scientist,

Koss comprehended the elusive and complex nature of her cancer, making for some bleak moments. But she also felt inspired. “I’ve always believed knowledge is power,” she says. “In the initial days, I could not have foreseen how incredibly difficult my journey would become. But I’m grateful that I had the training to be an informed partner in my own care, and I encourage other cancer patients to learn as much as they can. When fighting an aggressive cancer, ignorance is not bliss. It can limit your options.”

The tumor in Koss’ breast proved to be extraordinarily invasive, even for TNBC. She knew the potentially metastatic cells needed to be not only removed but decoded. Until the unique mutation and replication mechanisms of TNBC can be better understood, however, physicians and patients are fighting blindfolded.

Koss then realized she had the power to make the best from the worst. While hospitalized for diagnostic tests in May 2014, she proposed an idea to her longtime friend and former colleague W. Keith Jones, with whom she’d conducted research on molecular cardiology in the mid-1990s. He was preparing to take over as chair of molecular pharmacology and therapeutics at the Loyola University Chicago Stritch School of Medicine, and had traveled to Ohio to visit Koss. She told him that she had come to a decision. She wanted to make a contribution to cancer research: her tumor, in its purest state.

Among the reasons cancer can be deadly is that the cells are chaotic and do not respect neighbor cells. The most destructive cancers can proliferate indefinitely and deprive healthy cells of needed blood supply. In a human, this mayhem is catastrophic. In a research setting, it can prove extremely useful, yielding multiple, and in rare cases unlimited, samples for

analysis. (Such perpetual cell lines, which are indispensible to research, were the subject of the 2010 best-seller The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks.) But it’s uncommon for researchers to gain access to cancer cells that haven’t been exposed to preoperative chemotherapy, which decreases their chance of replicating into “immortal” lines.

Koss decided to prioritize the need for exactly this type of specimen above her own need for urgent medical intervention. “I would never recommend that anyone delay or forego treatment,” she stresses, “but my case was not the norm.” When she considered her years in biomedical research, the experts and lab facilities to which she and her colleagues had access, and the scarcity of clinical data about TNBC, Koss knew she had an opportunity that would be impossible to reproduce.

Jones describes the moment Koss explained her plan to him. “I was honored to have this trust from my friend; this is the core of the relationship,” he says. “She knew that she could trust me to carry out what she wished. Kim and I had been postdocs together in collaborating labs. We were close professionally and good friends. Over the years, we’d always stayed in touch, going to dinner together with our spouses.

“Of course, from a scientific stance, I hated that she would forego the chemotherapy recommended by her physicians,” he continues. “She would be giving up potential benefits of neoadjuvant therapy, as well as opportunities to enroll in clinical trials that included such therapies. But she said the decision was made, and asked that I respect it. And so I did. She was very clear, and I think we both cried at the time.”

In her role as a mother, grandmother, and mentor, Koss stresses the capacity of each

individual to do something good. “I emphasize to students that they have the power to change the world, and I teach them how to develop and tap into that,” she says. “I am teaching my grandchildren that they have the power to withstand adversity, and even ridicule. I remind my five-year-old granddaughter that she has ‘Lillian-power,’ and she claims this with a raised fist. She already believes she has the power to develop cancer treatments for cats – the animals she loves. I am constantly instilling in the girls, especially, that they have the faith and the intellectual, spiritual, and moral power to overcome and succeed. It is my belief that they will each make that difference.”

This spirit – combined with a network of scientists – yielded an ambitious plan. By the time Koss went for her radical mastectomy in June, five research facilities were prepared to receive specimens harvested during surgery. Moments before rolling into the operating room, Koss was orchestrating details as a plane waited on a nearby tarmac. The transported tumor cells were slated for culture in mice at one facility, and genetic analysis at others. “The fact that her primary, secondary, and metastatic TNBC tumors were unaffected by chemotherapy and all harvested at the same time renders them extraordinarily useful for studying the ways in which TNBC cells replicate and metastasize,” Jones explains.

Understanding this cancer could contribute to improved treatment – but not for Koss.

“I was never pinning my hopes on a last-minute cure for myself,” she says. “I always understood that this research had little to zero promise for my own clinical treatment. But I began this for future generations. I am responsible for the decision. No doctor ever told me it was a good or ‘right’ decision,

and certainly no one tried to persuade me to forego preoperative chemotherapy.”

As the work in the labs began, Koss struggled through a brutal six months of postoperative treatment. The rigor of the chemotherapy regimen was designed to match that of her cancer, and it took a devastating toll. Koss suffered from chemo-toxicity and developed multiple medical complications. “It’s unusual for someone to undergo the number of hospitalizations, operations, and hypersensitivity reactions that I experienced,” she says. “In November, my medical team discontinued the chemo, determining that I could physically handle no more.” But on 23 December, she received a Christmas present that helped counterbalance the months of misery: Researchers had cultivated an aggressive TNBC tumor – genetically identical to Koss’ – in mice. “This is a success that we hope will lead to the next steps of in vitro cultivation,” Koss says.

Jones acknowledges the unique position of caring for the tissues and working to advance research on tumors from a person you love. “However,” he says, “I also considered it a privilege. I agreed to do it for her, and for medical science.”

Koss and Jones are establishing the Koss National TNBC Research Foundation to support the work; Mathews will serve as CEO. “My hope,” Koss explains, “is that eventually individualized vaccines for various breast cancers can be developed and that immunotherapy – a treatment approach in which the patient’s own immune system fights the cancer – will be a viable form of treatment for TNBC. I also hope the research from my tumors will lead to therapies specific to TNBC cancers. I want this research to open new avenues of treatment that are safe, standardized, and have greater efficacy. Now there is no

standardized treatment for TNBC cancers, and women are dying. The current approaches are expensive and highly toxic. There has to be a better way.”

Early detection is a key element in the fight against TNBC, and researchers hope the study of proteins on Koss’ tumors may also enable the development of a reliable blood test for TNBC, and possibly other forms of breast cancer.

Those who know her describe Koss as a hero – self-sacrificing, indefatigable, vibrant. While she acknowledges her strength, she credits her faith, her loved ones, and the team directing her therapy. “I have an incredible medical team, and I’m so appreciative of their care,” she says. “There are so many kindnesses. I’ve been blessed with dozens of wonderful friends during my treatment.” Koss recalls one “incident of joy” in which two friends from high school visited her during an eight-day hospitalization. Using ribbons from packages and the scarves Koss uses to wrap her now bald head, they decorated her IV pole and began a healing dance around the medical-device-turned-maypole. “It was wonderfully hilarious. Right in the hospital room. Our amazing nurses and aides brought refreshments, and we all shared an uplifting laugh. What a blessing to have these friends offering joy and hope in the midst of fear and pain.”

Neither radiation nor additional surgery is a current option for Koss, and she’s facing new diagnoses that arose during the postoperative chemotherapy. She is unsure what will come next but knows it will include more time in the hospital. Yet she doesn’t dwell on dread. She insists that others should not suffer like this, either from cancer or the attempted treatments. She focuses on that day when her friends danced around her in the oncology unit. What started out as misfortune is now

inspiring others to find the “better way” in which Koss fervently believes. — Shirley Stephenson. Reprinted from The Rotarian

How to support

research

Loyola has established the Dr. Kimberly Koss Breast Cancer Research Initiative Fund to support such research. To donate, please make checks payable to Loyola University Medical Center (On the Memo line of the check, write: Dr. Kimberly Koss Breast Cancer Research Initiative Fund.)

Please send to:

Shawn M. Vogen SSOM Office of Advancement 2160 S. First Ave Maywood, IL 60153

Koss also is raising money for research at the crowd-sourcing website GiveForward.com https://www.giveforward.com/fundraiser/9lt4/kimberly-s-cause-beating-a-rare-triple-negative-tumor

My Mother’s Fight against Polio, and her Passion for Preventing Disease - Katie Waller

It was over fifty years ago now, but my mother Susan can still recall that dark, concrete hospital ward at what was then known as the Cincinnati General Hospital. At just six years old, she found herself in a white bed partitioned off from her neighbors by glass. On her left, a young man in an iron lung; on her right, a baby who wouldn’t stop screaming. She remembers falling dangerously ill in the summer of 1960 during a road trip to Williamsburg, Virginia with her family, and remembers the

ensuing days of indescribable pain.

My mother had been in the hospital for two or three days before a short man with white hair came to visit her. That man, Dr. Albert B. Sabin, was on his way overseas when he heard word of my mother’s suspected case of polio. He immediately cancelled his flight and rushed to see my mother at what is now known as the University of Cincinnati’s College of Medicine – the very place where he developed the

oral polio vaccine several years earlier.

My mother recognized Dr. Sabin right away from seeing him on television. That was when she learned that she had polio.

At this point in 1960, Dr. Sabin’s oral polio vaccine had been so effective in Cincinnati that new cases had all but halted. Dr. Sabin was meticulous about tracking down every last case of polio in the city – therefore, my mother’s case was of

heightened interest to him.

Dr. Sabin diagnosed my mother with polio on the spot. She was one of the last children in Cincinnati to be diagnosed – and to suffer the devastating consequences of the disease. At the time, my mother was in the middle of a vaccine regimen but was exposed to the disease before the immunizations were able to fully protect her.

Polio has caused my mother significant physical suffering- the muscles in her left leg are underdeveloped, and she must walk with a brace. Yet, she has stood strong in the face of adversity, and her hard work and passion for preventing disease is unwavering. She has worked for more than 30 years as a nurse in a hospital recovery room, where she strives to provide her patients with the care and dignity they deserve. As a polio patient, my mother was isolated and stigmatized – an experience she would never wish on anyone else.

As you can imagine, in addition to working in the healthcare field, my mother is also a vaccine advocate. Having suffered from a disease that is now

vaccine-preventable, she truly understands the value of vaccines and the power they have to save lives.

Just the other day she told me:

“I had polio and could have died. Just a few years earlier, my brother had mumps- and he could have died too. People forget how scary vaccine-preventable diseases were before vaccines were available. And if people don’t get vaccinated, those diseases will come back, and they will take lives. The fight against these diseases is never over- we must continue to vaccinate to ensure that no one dies from a something terrible that could have been prevented.”

My mother’s story has inspired me to pursue a career in public health. Over the past 10 years, I have managed and implemented a number of infectious disease prevention programs. I currently work for the Sabin Vaccine Institute (Sabin), which was founded on the legacy and global vision of Dr. Albert B. Sabin. As a Senior Program Officer for the International Association for Immunization Managers

(IAIM), I support an international network of immunization managers– the public health professionals in each country who are responsible for ensuring that vaccines reach their population. These dedicated public health professionals work day in and day out to ensure that no child suffers from a vaccine-preventable disease like polio.

Immunization is widely recognized as one of the most successful and cost-effective health interventions, and it prevents between 2 and 3 million deaths every year. This World Immunization Week, my mother and I are proud to join partners around the world in signaling a renewed global, regional and national effort to accelerate action to increase awareness and demand for immunization by communities, and improve vaccination delivery services.

Source: Sabin Vaccine Institute

Rotary exchange inspires children’s books about animals

Rachel Shaw (middle, first row) with Rotary members at a book launch in Manila.

Six years ago, I visited the Philippines as part of a Group Study Exchange team from Rotary District 1270 (Lincolnshire, England).The opportunity to visit one of the world’s biodiversity hotspots as a professional wildlife conservationist became for me the start of a new writing and illustrating adventure.

Glimpsing just a little of the amazing diversity of animals sparked my imagination.The animals became characters in my mind and I started to write their stories. Three of those stories have just been published in the Philippines.

The animals featured in ‘Danao the Parrot,’ ‘Mayumi the Forest Pig,’ and ‘Pipisin the Pangolin’ are all endemic to the Philippines; they are found nowhere else in the world.

The books are a celebration of the rich diversity of wildlife in the country with a strong educational element and conservation messages about the endangered animals. Two of the picture books were illustrated by Filipino artists Jonathan Ranola and Ingrid Tan, while the third I illustrated myself.

Witnessing the work of Rotary in the Philippines, particularly after Typhoon Ketsana hit just months after my exchange visit, left a deep impression on me. Since the exchange I have raised funds for Rotary projects and disaster relief including for ShelterBox. In writing the books, I discovered that I have something more that I can give: stories about the unique and special animals, and, my enthusiasm and passion for wildlife. I hope the children’s books will prove to be a lasting and tangible contribution to a country that has given me so much.

I have strong memories from my exchange visit of going to schools adopted by their local Rotary clubs. These are the children I thought about while writing the stories. I would love to work with Rotary clubs to give the picture books to schools and children who can’t afford the luxury of buying books.

- Rachel Shaw, honorary member of the Rotary Club of

West Bay, Laguna, Philippines in Rotary voices

The Best Shot: The Rotarian 2015 Photo Contest Winners Courtesy: The Rotarian

Entries to The Rotarian 2015 photo contest came from around the world, from many branches of the Rotary family tree. The winning images, shown with the judge’s commentary, are vivid glimpses into the Rotary experience.

Kathy Ryan is an expert at narrowing down hundreds of photos to just a few of the best – that’s what she does every week as photography director for the New York Times Magazine. The Rotarian asked her to

turn her critical eye to the entries we received in this year’s photo contest, and you’ll find her choices below. You can see more shots from the photo contest in the magazine throughout the year.

FIRST PLACE Photographer: Tom Thomson, Rotary Club of Franklin, Tenn.

Location: near Copán Ruinas, Honduras

Ryan: The soft light coming through the ecclesiastical windows gives this picture a timeless, spiritual feeling. There is just enough light to let us see the roughhewn quality of the wooden loom and the outline of the weaver’s face. By standing behind his

subject to make the picture, Thomson allows us to be part of the scene, as if we were in the room. The illumination of the tension in the weaver’s shoulders and the

blur of the spinning loom allow us to viscerally feel the physical action of her work.

SECOND PLACE

Photographer: Christopher Carruth, Rotary Club of Boulder, Colo.

Location: Coya, Peru

Ryan: These hands are covered in a mixture of mud and yucca sap known as “barro,” which is used as a fixative in the

construction of cookstoves. Carruth, recognizing the beauty of these muddy hands, turns them into an elegant framing device for his portrait of Elva Luz Ore Estrada.

THIRD PLACE

Photographer: Elissa Ebersold, New Generations Service Exchange participant through the Rotary Club of Delmar, N.Y.

Location: Vejle, Denmark

Ryan: This picture is all about quiet and stillness. By composing the image with the red boat just below the horizon line, Ebersold reinforces the way the silvery lake and sky blend into each other, creating a harmonious and meditative image.

HONORABLE MENTIONS

Photographer: Gerald Montgomery, Rotary Club of Park Cities (Dallas), Texas

Location: Bissau, Guinea-Bissau

Ryan: By capturing the moment when these four women are about to pass the tree, Montgomery emphasizes the way in which the birds sitting in rows on the branches visually mimic the spacing of the women walking in single file. It lends a poetic elegance to this documentary scene.

Photographer: Klaus Kocher, Rotary Club of

Roaring Fork (Glenwood Springs), Colo.

Location: San Jose, Costa Rica

Ryan: The puzzled expression of the girl at the front of the line makes this photograph. There is a little bit of childlike wonder in her face, and a little bit of worry. The plate in her hand anchors the composition, and calls our attention to the fact that these children are waiting for food. They are about to receive their only meal of the day in the slums of San Jose.

Photographer: Chuck Conner, Rotary Club of Ripley, W.Va.

Location: Kathmandu, Nepal

Ryan: This photograph seems to be about the intersection of fantasy and reality. The romance of the lush, colorful landscape pictures stands in stark contrast to the

shop’s grittiness. We suspect, looking at this image, that the magnificent mountains shown in the paintings are visible right outside the shop. This is a clever photograph because of the juxtaposition of colorful illusion with drab reality.

Photographer: Lola Reid Allin, Rotary Club of Belleville, Ont.

Location: Hoi An, Vietnam

Ryan: This black-and-white image is an appreciation of the sculptural forms of the traditional fishing pens and boats used in the village of Hoi An. By eliminating color, the photographer focuses our attention on the graphic beauty of the delicate, spindly sticks jutting from the water.

Photographer: Helena Dahlin, Rotary E-Club of One World D5240, Calif.

Location: Pinnawala, Sri Lanka

Ryan: This exuberant picture succeeds because Dahlin has captured exactly the right moment of the water hitting the rider.

A beautiful partnership of service through Rotary

Our unique partnership with the Rotary Club of Mission Viejo in California, USA, began more than a decade ago when I was president and I was looking for a centennial project for our club. With other members of the club, I visited Nakhwa School in Thane, established in 1964 to provide education for children from low-income families, and was convinced this would be a great opportunity for us to serve.

On a visit to California, I met with the Mission Viejo club and discussed the project, and they were excited to partner with us on a Rotary Foundation grant. We were able to provide benches, electrical fans, glass boards, a water tank, science lab equipment, library books, and six computers with Internet access for the school of 600 plus students. We also purchased four tailoring machines to teach female students sewing and kits to teach electrical skills to male students. We completed the project in four months at a cost of $14,000.

Members in both clubs were very much willing to continue the partnership, and so

when a doctor from the Mission Viejo club proposed providing equipment to help a school for the deaf and mute in our area, we jumped at the chance. After a needs study, we combined to raise money and purchase audiometers and establish a sound proof room for speech therapy and audiometry so the school could monitor the progress of every child. The second project was finished in 2007.

Our Rotary district has been involved with many sustainable water projects in the last couple decades, constructing check dams in rural areas. Our district’s water management team assigned us to oversee the building of a check dam and four bore wells as part of a regional strategy. Once again, the members in Mission Viejo came to our help, and we partnered on a Foundation Grant to provide the

improvements and give 600 people clean drinking water and a means to irrigate their fields. The project was completed in four months in 2009 at a cost of $11,750. Two years later, we combined for another grant project that built three more check dams.

Last year, we combined with the Mission Viejo club on our very first global grant, constructing four check dams and digging four bore wells at a cost of $33,500. The project is providing drinking water to more than 3,000 and allowing them to have sufficient irrigation to plant two crops a year.

It has been a beautiful partnership that has allowed Rotary members in both California and Maharashtra to work together to help people and improve our community. The connection continues this year with another global grant for five more check dams and bore wells that will benefit more than 4,300 people. We are determined to carry this partnership forward as far as we can, and show the world just what Rotary members can accomplish when we work together!

- Reprinted from Rotary Voices

Do you know an outstanding Rotary alumnus that you would like to suggest for nomination for the 2015-16 Rotary Global Alumni Service to Humanity Award? Make sure you tell your district governor before 30 June 2015 or email us at alumni@rotary.org and we can help you get in touch.

The Rotary Global Alumni Service to Humanity Award was created to honor an outstanding Rotary alumnus whose career and activities illustrate the impact of Rotary’s programs on his or her service to humanity. Nominees must have • Demonstrated the social benefits of Rotary’s programs through extraordinary service activities and professional achievement • Achieved distinction in their profession or vocation • Performed sustainable service affecting the international community.

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Sydney Convention Wins Major Marketing Awards

Rotary International’s 2014 Convention ‘scooped the pool’ at the Meetings and Events Australia prestigious annual NSW Awards Night in Sydney.

Nine months on from the acclaimed staging at Sydney Olympic Park last June, the Sydney Convention Host Organising Committee joined forces with Business Events Sydney to win the major award of the night - ‘Association or Government Meeting of the Year’ – from five other highly rated nominations.

The unexpected honour is richly deserved as plaudits continue to be received from Rotary leaders in numerous countries, confirming the Sydney Convention to be one of the most successful of all time!

In additional to the major award, Rotary and Business Events Sydney also won two Meetings and Events Australia Specialist Awards –

• Best Corporate Social Responsibility, and

• Best Educational component.

Sydney Host Committee Chairman Barry Thompson and Vice Chairman Bob Aitken accepted the awards on behalf of Rotary and Business Events Sydney.

Further acknowledgement of the excellence of the Sydney Convention came with award success for Exponet and Sydney Olympic Park. In acceptance speeches, representatives of both organisations expressed their pleasure at the opportunity to work with Rotary to present a world class event.

As winner of the major NSW Award, Rotary now has a place in the Australia wide judging scheduled to take place in May.

The Awards Night was a glittering evening magnificently staged in the Ivy Ballroom in George Street, Sydney, before some 300 representatives of the meetings and events industry. – Rotary Down Under

Talking Peace in Bangladesh

RIPE K R Ravindran, Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and DG Safina Rahman

One of the significant highlights of the Rotary Peace Conference hosted by Districts 328 and 3282 at Dhaka, Bangladesh in February was the ‘Dhaka Declaration’ signed to initiate a certificate course with the BRAC University. It spelt out that “through this effort we wish to expand the knowledge of microcredit and microfinance, and in turn, create an environment of economic empowerment of the marginalised population.” The District will co-find an institute for studies on peace and microfinance.

The Conference of which the Rotarian Action Group For Peace (RAGFP) was a strategic partner, was

organised by RC Dhaka Mahanagar, D 3281, and highlighted TRF’s significant area of focus: Peace and Conflict Resolution, and brought together political, economic and cultural leaders from various communities to share their thoughts on the subject.

The Prime Minister of Bangladesh Sheikh Hasina inaugurated the event and RIPE K R Ravindran with his powerful address, inspired Rotarians.

The Prime Minister appreciated its initiative and lauded Rotary’s role in promoting peace at national and international levels. Elaborating on -

Bangladesh’s commitment and contribution to global peace, she said, “Bangladesh contributed the highest number of women police to UN peacekeeping, commensurate with our credentials of empowerment of women.”

Ravindran in his address said, “My home country, Sri Lanka is no stranger to war, poverty and strife. Since 1929, when the first Rotary club was chartered in Sri Lanka, Rotary has brought peace, health and hope to my country. When polio raged through South Asia, Rotarians from all around the world gave their time and

resources to lead National Immunisation Days, with the result that Sri Lanka has been polio-free since 1994. When a terrible tsunami struck in 2004, Rotarians were some of the first people to respond. Today, Rotarians in my country promote education among our children and peace between groups that have been enemies.”

Sessions on ‘Peace through economic empowerment’ and ‘Conflict resolution through cultural exchange’ contributed by the local and global experts were moderated by the State Minister, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Md. Shahriar Alam and Rtn Gordon Crann, Chair-elect, RAGFP.

Distinguished speakers such as Baroness Shreela Flather, Member of House of Lords, UK; Khalida Azbane, Board Member of Middle East and North Africa Businesswomen’s -Network; Maj Gen Piyal Abeysekera, former Deputy Chief of Army, Sri Lanka and Rotary Peace Fellow from Chulalongkorn University, Thailand; RRFC Rafiq Ahmed Siddique; and others provided valuable inputs.

Sir Fazle Hasan Abed, KCMG, Founder and Chairman of BRAC, the largest NGO in Bangladesh, spoke on bringing peace through economic empowerment. Operating in 69,000 Bangladeshi villages it covers an estimated 110 million people through its development interventions ranging from primary education, healthcare, agricultural support and human rights and legal services to microfinance and enterprise development.

District Governors Safina Rahman and M A Latif provided guidance and support in making the event a huge success.

- TIM Nurul Kabir in Rotary News Online

A Rotary club meets on a train On the Deccan Queen Express, an Indian passenger train that connects Mumbai

with Pune, members of the Rotary Club of Pune Deccan Queen conduct their weekly meeting. It may very well be

the only Rotary club in the world that meets on a train.

The Deccan Queen is one of the most popular trains in the sector and a daily means

of transportation for thousands commuting between the two cities. The

idea was first proposed in 2012, but since the route crosses through two Rotary districts, it took a while to

reach agreement the club would be considered to meet in District 3131 (which includes Pune).

Every Thursday, members

get together in a special car for pass holders. There are 25 members at the moment,

and prominent citizens traveling on the train are invited as speakers. We have conducted community

service projects including health checkup camps for train porters and railway

staff, and made infrastructure improvements to the station in Pune. We are planning to begin

monthly fellowship meetings in the city so members can bring their family and they, too, can experience the joy of Rotary.

- PDG Deepak Shikarpur in Rotary Voices

The TOP 10 Rotary myths revealed

It is common for many people that don't always fully understand what we do and who we are in Rotary.

So we thought we'd share with you some answers to the TOP 10 myths we bump into out there in the community.

Myth 1 - Rotary is for men only

Rotary International began in 1905, and for the first 84 years of its existence, it is true that women were not admitted into membership. But as the prevalence of female business leaders began to grow, and in response to a ground swell of demand for female admission, Rotary changed its legislation in 1989 to admit women. Today women represent approximately 17% of Rotary membership in Australia, yet leadership positions filled by women are well above this percentage. Women are welcome in Rotary, and we are desperately keen to increase our female membership.

Myth 2 - Rotary is for old people

Some believe that one’s age is just a number, and it is one’s attitude that is important. So I guess that depends on at which age you believe “old” cuts in, but you can join Rotary at 18 or 118!. Either way,

Rotary welcomes “younger” members with open arms. We are depending on them to keep our organisation vibrant.

Myth 3 - You have to attend every week

Most Rotary clubs meet on a weekly basis, and members are encouraged to attend whenever possible, but we understand that there are many demands on the time of today’s business professional. In addition to regular club meetings, Rotarians have other ways to become involved, such as fundraising activities, community service projects, leadership training events and social activities. Some members are able to attend every week, but some prefer to contribute in other ways. We prefer to focus on what you can give, not what you can’t.

Myth 4 - Rotary is only for Doctors, Lawyers and CEOs

Rotary’s membership base is a broad cross section of people from diverse backgrounds, cultures and professions. Our diversity is our strongest asset. Teachers, bankers, accountants, retailers, students, plumbers, electricians, health care workers, farmers… you name it, they are all represented in Rotary. Work from home?

Just starting out in business? Moving up through the ranks? Made it to the top? Retired? There is a role for you in Rotary.

Myth 5 - Membership is not by invitation

Rotary has members from all walks of life. There are no cultural or religious barriers, and no secret handshakes or “member only” rituals.

If you are interested in visiting a Rotary club, then contact one and ask to attend their meeting. If after attending a few meetings, you have shown interest in joining the club and are of good standing in the community, then the Club may invite you to join.

Myth 6 - Rotary is a religious organisation or a secret society

Rotary is non-religious and non-political. We have no secret handshake, no secret meetings and no secret rituals. It is an open organisation of men and women who simply believe in helping others.

Myth 7 - All Rotarians do is cook barbecues

Yes, we cook the world's best sausages but soon you’ll realise that’s not the only thing we do. Rotary clubs adopt many initiatives for raising funds to support their projects. Barbecues are a part of life in Australia, and it’s true that they are one of the more visible methods by which Rotary clubs raise their funds, but behind the scenes there are many less obvious ways that hard working Rotarians raise their funds and contribute to the community.

Myth 8 - You’ve seen one Rotary club, you’ve seen them all

There are over 34,000 Rotary clubs in the world (over 1,100 in Australia) and no two are the same. They are all unique, with unique members, unique projects, and unique culture. Each has its own board of directors who administer the club autonomously. One of them is just right for you!

Myth 9 - You cannot discuss your business or profession in Rotary

The first ever Rotary meeting, 110 years ago in Chicago, was initiated to serve the professional and social interests of its members. But as Rotary grew, members began pooling their resources and contributing their talents to help serve communities in need. Rotary is now the world’s premier humanitarian service organisation, but its roots are firmly embedded in business networking.

Myth 10 - Rotary is an “old fashioned” organisation, with boring and ritualistic meetings

As a century old organisation, it’s reasonable to expect that there are some long observed traditions in some clubs. But the very highest levels of Rotary leadership, both at global and local level, are encouraging clubs to innovate and become more progressive in the way they do things. Every club is different. Some are more progressive, and some have a more traditional culture. But let there be no doubt, Rotary is changing for the better. Give Rotary a go TODAY!

We think these myths have been totally busted!

- Reprinted from Rotary Down Under

The Rotary Designated Months for 2015 - 16

Rotary Year 2015-16 JULY

No special designation 1 July — Start of new Rotary officers' year of service

AUGUST Membership and Extension Month

SEPTEMBER Basic Education and Literacy Month

OCTOBER Economic and Community Development Month

NOVEMBER Rotary Foundation Month

DECEMBER Disease Prevention and Treatment Month

JANUARY Vocational Service Month 17–23 January — International Assembly, San Diego, California, USA

FEBRUARY Peace and Conflict Prevention/Resolution Month 23 February — Rotary's anniversary

MARCH Water and Sanitation Month

APRIL Maternal and Child Health Month

MAY Youth Service Month 28 May–1 June — RI Convention, Seoul, Korea

JUNE Rotary Fellowships Month

Rotarians’ mission to help discriminated albinos in

Tanzania – Rotary GB & I

Rotarians from Mirfield Rotary Club have visited Tanzania to help the plight of albinos who face serious discrimination.

John and Chris Philip of the club visited the country to spearhead a project to help those with the congenital disorder, after witnessing the poor conditions and terrible treatment they faced.

Albinos have no melanin pigment in their skin, and therefore appear ‘white’ and are sensitive to ultraviolet radiation, which can result in skin cancer. The lack of pigments in the eye causes sight problems, and magnifying glasses are the only way to help them read.

Albinos are stigmatised, excluded from education and employment, often physically assaulted and sometimes brutally murdered. They live in fear because of the myth that their body parts have magical powers, and a complete set of Albino body parts can fetch up to $75,000.

The project received support from clubs in the USA, Portugal, Geneva, Sweden, and India as well as a grant from the Rotary Foundation, all of which totaled £83,000.

John said: “The fund will help us to undertake village workshops, educate albino children, improve medical care and most importantly provide training and micro-finance help so that the albinos can improve their earning potential. Through this project we hope to help them to claim their rightful place in the society and live without fear or prejudice.”

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