IUNIE – ROTARY FELLOWSHIPS
Friendship requires sincerity, integrity, honor, respect, trust, and is based on actions.
Only by forming lasting friendships, with authentic, sincere connections will we be able to create TOGETHER the change we want to see in the world.
Dear Rotary friends,
I want to thank those of you who have welcomed me with open arms in your clubs and listened to and understood my vision. You, who have understood that only TOGETHER we can really make a difference, that we are CONNECTED in a great nation of good, and you, who have chosen to support my projects in your communities and in Rotary.
The big project remains the reason we are in ROTARY and its development in our minds and lives. For me, the reason I’ve been in Rotary for almost 20 years is FRIENDSHIP, fellowship with those who have the same values as me, who are motivated to make a difference by deeds, not words.
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Without realizing it, Rotary has given me, in time, a second family: new friends I can count on, with whom I can do great things, with whom we transform lives and truly make a difference in the community, in the district from which we are part of, and more recently, at an international level. The things we have done together did not only transform lives, but they have a huge impact, which we still cannot really measure. The fact that we save lives, plant trees, educate new generations in the spirit of peace and understanding, cooperation and economic development, cannot be quantified in numbers. At least, not now.
Therefore, I want to thank all those who have planted trees, saved lives, educated, organized events to raise funds for those who had no other chance, all those of you who have given us your time, the most precious resource you have. I wish you get back a thousandfold! Now, at the end of my term, with the results in mind, I want to thank you for everything! We have had results and we managed, TOGETHER, to really make a difference! Alone, I (we) would never have succeeded.
Now, after all the results we have seen from our projects, I invite you to relax. Let’s rest and regain our strength. Let’s do what our souls enjoy, let’s give ourselves more time, let’s follow our passions and hobbies with the same determination. Let’s focus on self-service this month, get around more people who are passionate about the same things as us. Let us feel that we live this life full of joy, doing what delights us. In Rotary we have common interest groups, in which Rotary members and their families, program participants, and graduates, gather from around the world for a common interest, vocation, or recreational activity, with a primary goal of connecting and making friends. Rotary fellowships are international groups that share a common passion. Participating in the activities of such a group is a wonderful and fun way to make friends around the world, explore a hobby or profession, and enhance your Rotary experience. So, in June we celebrate the Rotary Fellowship and we will learn together about the different types of Fellowships available in Rotary!
Historical background:
Rotary common interest groups began informally in 1928, when Rotary members with a common interest in the Esperanto language came together in a group. In 1947, a group of boating enthusiasts began hoisting the Rotary flag, called the International Yachting of Rotarians Fellowship; this fellowship now boasts the longest continuous existence. The scope of Rotary common interest groups has changed greatly over the years, but today their goal is to unite the Rotary family in friendship and provide locations to enjoy your favorite recreational or professional activities.
Fellowships, today
Between 2018-2019, 73 common interest groups reported a number of 61,241 people in over 150 countries around the world. The average size of such a group is 838 members. More than 80 Rotary interest groups are now officially registered with Rotary International: from yoga (65 members), yachting (3608), publishers (18400), golf (1070), European philosophy (232), jazz (176), groups for doctors (405), lawyers (205), managers, LGBT (212), motorcycling enthusiasts (2636), wine (4500), rare books (630) or surfing (642). I’m sure you’ll find new friends all over the globe, who share the same passion or interest as you. Being part of such a group is a fun way to make friends around the world, explore a hobby or profession, and enhance your Rotary experience.
Are you passionate about a certain subject? Visit the group’s website to find out more: https://www.rotary.org/en/our-programs/more-fellowships
How to promote an interest group?
- promote events and activities organized by the interest group on the club or district website
- invite local members of that group to speak at a club meeting or district conference about their activities and related service
- organize video conferencing on social media with members from all over the world and invite them to talk about their passion
- look for members who excel in their professions or are passionate about a hobby and encourage them to join interest groups or develop new ones.
I would like to end with the main idea of this letter, the value that has guided my Rotary work for 20 years: FRIENDSHIP. We learn it as a child and, if we are wise, we develop and refine it until old age. Rotary is a school where we learn all our lives and where the main lesson is FRIENDSHIP. Every day we give unannounced tests, and in more complicated situations, unannounced exams. We are a network of friends, because being a Rotary member means nothing more than having the same values. Friendship requires sincerity, integrity, honor, respect, trust, and is based on actions.
We face great challenges not only in our communities, but around the globe. Our actions today determine our future. We build the future with every action we take. It all starts with you and with the choice you make for yourself. Change begins from within. The decision to live in integrity, to do what is right and good for everyone, to think and act in the long run is everyone’s responsibility. When we understand that 1.2 million members, who think and act in the same direction, move the mountains together, we will understand that only through cooperation are we capable of greater things than we have ever imagined. Only then will we be unstoppable.
That is why, at the end of my term, I hope you will build friendships and have solidarity. Make new friends in your clubs, in the district and especially internationally. Be solidary with those whose districts are facing adversity. Open your mind and heart and connect authentically with each other. Realize that we are part of a whole, we act like a wheel that sets things in motion, that we are part of something more than we think, we are a common force of good, a united nation of people of action that does not want power, but they have understood that only through cooperation and friendship will they be able to create the much desired change. Thank you for all the support! I want you to connect truly, authentically, with each other, soul to soul, ideas with ideas, with your friends and with people from all over the globe, who share your values and projects.
Only by forming lasting friendships, with authentic, sincere connections will we be able to create TOGETHER the change we want to see in the world.
Rotary Connects The World!
Sincerely,
Marian Neagoe.