story by: rasheeda bhagat (rotary india)

At a hall filled with enthusiastic Rotaractors and Interactors in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Rotary International President, Gordon McInally, and RI Director Raju Subramanian interacted with the youngsters, answering their questions, clearing their doubts, recognising the projects they do and encouraging them to grow the organisation.

“What is widely known is that I joined Rotary through the Rotary Club of South Queensferry in Scotland in 1984, but I was also a Rotaractor and my personal Rotaract journey began three years earlier in a Rotaract club, and being a Rotaractor gave me the opportunity to join Rotary.

“And today, I stand before you as the president of RI. Someone once asked me that when I was inducted as a member of my club was it your ambition to become RI president? And I had to confess that I didn’t even know at that time that there was a president of RI!”

But, he added: “There might well be an RI president in this very room and I’d like to think one day one of you will become the leader of our organisation. This is indeed an opportunity in this amazing Rotary family with 1.4 million people in over 200 countries, all with a similar mindset to do good in the world and make it a better place.”

His own personal goal, the RI president added, was to make the world a better place for his own grandchildren and all the children of the world, through the wonderful opportunity Rotary had given him.

A big fan of rugby, which he used to play as a young man, he always made a comparison between rugby and Rotary.

Various players in a strong rugby team brought very different skills to the table — some could run fast, some were strong and had the ability to hold on to the ball, others could kick the ball long distances very accurately. “But only when these different talents in the team were combined, the team could go on to do great things.”

The same holds good in Rotary; when Rotarians from different countries brought their unique and individual abilities to any work or goal, “together they can do great things. That is why we need not only senior Rotarians but also young people like Rotaractors and Interactors because you bring so much ability and energy into the organisation.”

McInally said that as he went across the world — he had already travelled to over

30 countries in 18 months — “many people ask me that you fly from country to country, continent to continent, how come you don’t get tired? And I simply tell them that when I arrive anywhere and meet members of the Rotary family like yourselves, and see the energy of the audience, I get energy from them.”

During his travel, the Scottish-born RI President revealed he had met so many people who had been given hope by Rotary in different ways.

In Ahmedabad in India, he had met Satish, who was confined to his wheelchair for most of his adult life; “I met him at a limb-fitting camp organised by Rotary.

He came to the camp in his wheelchair, had his limb fitted and could return to his

wife and family and provide for them, because of the hope Rotary was able to give him.”

In Pakistan, on World Polio Day he had met Ahmed, a child, and administered to him two drops of polio vaccine. “When I close my eyes, I see those two drops of polio vaccine falling into Ahmed’s mouth, but more important than that, the look of gratitude on his mother’s face.

“She knew that, thanks to Rotary, Rotaract and Interact, Ahmed would not suffer from a crippling disease such as polio. I know you are also creating hope for the people of your country, and I thank you for that.”

A keen gardener, McInally gave the example of the plants in his garden back home. “When I plant something, I want to make sure that plant develops strong roots and becomes established. And that’s what we need to do with our new members.

“We need to make sure they develop strong roots and get well established in Rotary. That is what somebody did for me 40 years ago when I joined my club. People took care of me, helped and engaged me.”

This is an edited article first published in Rotary India News in March 2024.