In Gear | Rotary in Southern New Zealand Issue 2 | Page 32
OUR CLUB IN
I
get a tad tetchy at stereotyping at the best of times, and
never more so than when I hear our young people herded
into an homogenous group, and then slapped with a series of
judgmental labels: layabouts ... self-centred ... selfie-obsessed
... work shy ...
No doubt, there are a few under-40s around who are all of those things – and
more. I’ve met plenty of over-40s who haven’t exactly set the world on fire
in terms of motivation or contribution, either. But, for some reason, it’s our
more youthful generations that cop it most.
When it comes to our organisation, I can’t speak highly enough of the younger
members of our Rotary family who I’ve had the pleasure of meeting and
seeing in action, from our Rotakids in Waimate (see page 6) and Interactors,
to our Rotaractors – check out the story (page 12) about a group of these
wonderful young adults who have dedicated themselves to Project Starfish,
an amazing cause overseen by Dunedin Central Rotarian David Black. At the
time I’m writing, they’re returning from the outer reaches of Thailand, having
done Rotary extremely proud. Lazy? Self-absorbed? I don’t think so.
And, there’s another youthful revolution gaining momentum in District 9980
– our three awesome Next Rotary Generation (NRG) groups. True to their
acronym, yes, they have energy – in spades. They’re agile, responsive, kind,
generous, innovative and passionate about doing good for their communities,
too. They also happen to be Rotary’s future.
It’s no secret Rotary needs fresh blood to secure our organisation’s survival.
As we look at new ways to invigorate and future-proof for the modern world,