TheBuzz
TheBuzz
Wheels of change
turn at RotaryToday's Honolulu Rotary Club meeting is likely to feature more yuks than usual as it will be a sort of roast of outgoing President Selby "Jake" Jacobs.
He is to turn the reins over to incoming President Ian Patrick "Paddy" Griggs.
Jacobs presided over "a pretty good year," Griggs said, of "record performance in growth and giving" and recognition as the state's "Rotary Club of the Year," in the large club category.
A priority for the incoming president will be Rotary International's participation in a global effort to eradicate polio.
Recently in New York, Griggs saw a United Nations display on the campaign which seeks to immunize all the world's children by 2005. Other participants include UNICEF, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
Local service is also a priority, Griggs said.
"Positive Choices" is a pilot project now under way in partnership with the Coalition for a Drug-Free Hawaii. It rewards youths for staying drug- and alcohol- free with a bonus card which can be used for treats at McDonald's, for example.
Linda Coble, a former Rotary Club District Governor and former president of the Honolulu club, said Griggs faces advantages and challenges.
"He's got the honor of leading the largest Rotary Club in the state," she said, "400 Rotarians strong. You have more hands, more hearts and more money for projects not only at home but around the world.
"It's an incredible opportunity to serve more people but it's also a big responsibility to coordinate 60-plus committees and to make sure that everybody feels like they're participating."
While Rotary involvement is inextricably linked to the business community there's not an automatic allegiance to Wall Street.
"If you find a Rotarian-owned business," Coble said, "those people are brought in to Rotary because they're ethical, they've proved themselves trustworthy ... and because of high ethical standards of business."
Erika Engle is a reporter with the Star-Bulletin.
Call 529-4302, fax 529-4750 or write to Erika Engle,
Honolulu Star-Bulletin, 500 Ala Moana Blvd., No. 7-210,
Honolulu, HI 96813. She can also be reached
at: eengle@starbulletin.com