19 Feb The Rotary Club Bali Canggu – who we are and why you care!
The Rotary Club of Bali Canggu is one independent club in the largest service organization in the world. Rotary International is in over 260 countries, with 33,000 clubs and over 1,200,000 members. We are very clear on our objectives but each club is allowed to pursue them in their own special way. So we are both independent and inter-dependent of each other. The goal of Rotary is to foster fellowship among members that will lead to service for the community and the world. Basically when you put a bunch of good people together and have fun then good things happen. Another great principle of Rotary is that it is free of politics, religion, and business. We truly foster the ideal that service is a necessary part of everyone’s lives and we cannot harm that goal by letting politics, religion, or money get in the way. What makes a Rotarian? A Rotarian is anyone that has appreciation for what they have, and the desire to give back to others who are less fortunate. They want to, in small as well as large ways, contribute to the common good of all people. A lot of us think and feel this way but by joining together in a group, our efforts and accomplishments can skyrocket.
Rotary Club of Bali Canggu is made up of 32 members from all walks of life. We have made our theme this year: “Have Fun and Get Things Done.” So this is an open invitation to come to a meeting and find out more about us and see how you may want to help out. You will definitely meet some nice people and have some fun. Our club is only 3 years old and is one of 16 Clubs in Bali. We meet every Tuesday at 6 pm at the Tugu Hotel on Jln. Batubolong. We enjoy the friendship and work so much that we always continue the fellowship down at the beach at a local warung and get more good things done. It is important to understand that we value the friendship and the fellowship so much because we know that is what leads to great things getting done.
So what do we do besides eat, drink and be merry? We do projects, we raise money, we educate, we interact with the community, and we create relationships with other clubs that lead to even bigger and better things. We also keep it simple and we keep it real.
You will see us on the Batubolong Beach on Sunday mornings at 7 am teaching the local children how to enjoy the beach safely and learn how to swim. This is our Nippers Program, which is modeled after a similar program in Australia. This is working with the community and being partly funded from a Rotary Club in England. How cool is that? The joy we get from doing this is only matched by that of the children. It is open to all kids in Bali and is free of charge. Tell anyone you know with children between the ages of 5-15 to come down and have a lot of fun. The program will resume in early April when the rains stop.
We are working in 3 local schools to teach waste management along with Eco-Bali. This will be expanded to reach more schools. We know these things are based on education and changing habits so it is ongoing work that is so important. We are also trying to do this with helmets and have found an organization that makes helmets for 3-6 year olds for IDR 50,000 a piece. We will develop sponsorship by putting company logos on each helmet and then donate them to local pre-schools and Kindergartens. This coupled with a media and print campaign all done by children will be incredible.
We have a new project we are funding called Waterways to create water storage tanks in east Bali, where for half the year they have no water. Can you imagine a life without access to clean water? These tanks will provide the water needed for a family of 5 to survive through the dry season. All we need is the passionate caring members to carry this out. Please come and find out more, it seems that Rotarians and Yogis feel very similar about the world and our place in it!
– By Chris Sperduto