THE
EXTENDED FAMILY OF ROTARY
By Frank
Deaver
Rotary Club of Tuscaloosa, Alabama USA
December, “Family Month” in Rotary. But is the “Family of Rotary”
limited to Rotarians? Certainly not! Included in the spirit of
Rotary fellowship and service are Interact, Rotaract, RYLA,
Ambassadorial Scholars, and Group Study Exchange teams. They are
all members of the extended Rotary Family, sharing in the principles
and practice of Service Above Self.
A non-Rotarian who exemplifies the spirit of Rotary is a
Portuguese Catholic priest, once a GSE team member to the United
States. His parish is the small county of Alandroal, in east
central Portugal. There is little population there because of so
little economic opportunity. The soil is thin, covering worthless
rock. Olive trees find little room to sink their roots. Grain
crops are sparse. Grazing land will only sustain small herds of
goats. And there is nothing to attract industry.
Young people with employable skills leave. Those who stay
behind are the very poor, the illiterate, the dependent. They need
a shepherd. They need a friend. And in Father John they have found
both. These are his people, to him an extended family. He has been
their shepherd for many years, and they have learned that he is
truly their friend, their father and brother, their family.
Father John ministers to twelve congregations, with six
services every Sunday. His messages are rather informal, quite
personal. He has no manuscript and no notes, but his words and
manner are encouraging, optimistic. He walks among the people as he
speaks. He genuinely cares, and they know it, for it shows.
During the week he is among his people, actively demonstrating
that he cares. He sips coffee with them at sidewalk cafes. He
affectionately pats the heads of infants, playfully chats with
children, tenderly comforts the sick and handicapped, and personally
addresses the concerns of many others. He is there whenever someone
needs a friend.
Father John is not a Rotarian. There is no Rotary Club in
Alandroal County. But he was selected by District Rotary to be one
of its GSE goodwill ambassadors. And back home he is a daily
goodwill ambassador among his own people. Like a good Rotarian,
Father John is family to his people, the poor. He is family to
those who desperately need family.
Father John, not a Rotarian, is a daily example of living the
Rotary motto, “Service Above Self.” He is an example of the
extended “Family of Rotary.”
