TALK
TALK
Fundraising & The Rotary Foundation
Innovative Projects During the Pandemic
Treasurers | Foundation Directors | Finance Directors
Club Service Directors Professional Development Directors International Service Directors
AKS Bing Carrion enlightened the Treasurers, Foundation and Finance Directors to successfully engrave the principles of “Fundraising and The Rotary Foundation'', thereby fully equipping the financial operations of the various clubs. Her talk aimed to inspire a sense of collaboration between Rotaractors and Rotarians. She stressed the new status of Rotaractors being formally recognized as not just a program but as a member of Rotary International. We must take initiative in coordinating with our Rotarians in joint fundraising projects. As President-Elect of my club, hearing the talk reminded me of our partnership with our sponsoring clubs which made me agree to what AKS Bing Carrion mentioned. Instead of seeking sponsorship or monetary support from our Rotary partners, why not plan a fundraiser together. That collaboration would incite the feeling of accomplishment and autonomy more for us Rotaractors as we’re the one who’s generating the funds for our projects. Partnering with our Rotary Clubs would also start a trend of apprenticeship between them and us, as this will be an avenue where they can teach us how to make our projects more sustainable. I left the room with not just a plan on my mind but with a vision of partnership.
DGN Joyce Ambray (Rotary Club of Manila Premiery) elevated the Club Service, Professional Development, and International Service Directors response to crafting “Innovative Projects During the Pandemic”, which tackles holistic and relevant initiatives for the benefit of the vulnerable sectors. Her approach was unlike other breakout rooms as she divided the attendees into two groups who came together to solve two problems she gave. The Directors then pitched their strategic plans of action on how to successfully launch a project in light of the pandemic. These participants did not disappoint DGN Joyce, as she was amazed by how each group creatively took on the problem to create innovative solutions that could not have been done outside the pandemic. She wrapped up the session with a story and cited Tom Moore. Tom is a veteran who aimed to raise 1000 euros by walking 100 lengths of his garden before his 100th birthday but ended up raising around 33 million euros for the NHS. What amazed me about this example was not how much Tom raised but how humble his goal was. He did not set a goal that was too far out of his reach. That’s something to keep in mind specially for us officers. As officers, we tend to pursue idealism because we want our projects to go beyond and succeed, but that sometimes is the reason our project becomes too complex to be executed properly. A solution doesn’t need to be overly systematic to solve a problem, sometimes a few steps is all it needs to be good.
