Dear Rotarian
Thank you for being in Rotary and believing in doing good in the world. I am asking you to believe, not in my ability to change, but in yours. This belief, this faith in the ability of each one of us to make a difference in our world has been the core factor for people to donate repeatedly to the causes which Rotary takes up every year. Their belief, while giving generously, begins not with the organisation we are members in or with any one leader of our movement, but with each one of us. This is the belief on which Rotary International and The Rotary Foundation is built.
Rotarians are a working and living centre for maintaining the highest ethical standards while dealing with the contributions we get from individuals and corporate houses. Rotarians are known as people who care about others. This is the public image we have built over the past one hundred years all over the world. Donors give money to clubs, districts and to The Rotary Foundation because they believe that we Rotarians have a deep love for our community and the willingness to be engaged for the greater good.
We all have one important thing in common. Philanthropists asked us to build a disease free world and we said yes. We have work to do. The result India and the rest of the world will see in eradicating such as polio, diabetes, TB and many other debilitating diseases will be the product of our ideas being put to work together. And you are a part of it. I want the world to hear only such success stories.
Today we seem to be grappling with issues concerning stewardship and managing funds which were placed in our hands with good faith by major donors in our society. None of us can rest in the accomplishments of the past, even those as momentous as polio eradication, if there is an iota of doubt raised in our midst about how someone, knowingly or unknowingly, misled the donors and the Rotarians about how the funds were utilized. The district programme of Diabetes Awareness and Detection is now poised to become a statewide programme with the help of big donors. Hence we have to demonstrate that when it comes to utilisation of funds, we maintain the highest standards of transparency and every rupee is used effectively for that purpose.
Our guiding principle has always been, “There can be no greater gift than that of giving one’s time, energy and resources to helping others without expecting anything in return.” If this is shaken at the very root, then we will not be able to live our values and empower others to join Rotary.
I am asking every Rotarian to honour our movement and the way it has changed the lives of millions over the years by making a commitment to uphold the highest standards of accountability when it comes to handling donations. Even it is small. Especially if it is small.