Make Dreams Real.
Nice words, huh?
What do they mean to you? D. K. Lee, our Rotary International President, gives them meaning. Have you heard his startling statistic? "30,000 children worldwide under the age of five die every day from preventable childhood diseases." Is it any wonder that his theme, and that of Rotary International, is decreasing Child Mortality? It is also my theme, and that of Rotary District 6600!
President Lee was born in Seoul, South Korea during the aftermath of the Korean War. He grew up in near-poverty situations. With perseverance and determination, he became an industrialist and world leader. When he learned that 30,000 children under the age of five die every day from preventable childhood disease, he knew what Rotary's destiny had to be.
Let's think of Child Mortality as a three-legged stool. The first leg is water, the second leg is health & hunger, and the third leg is literacy.
The lack of potable, safe, and secure water sources is the cause of 6,000 children, under the age of five, dying every day. Can you imagine what it is like to have to go many miles/kilometers to get water from a source? Interestingly, it's often young girls, age 10 to 14, who have to carry out these duties. They go to the source several times a day to supply water for family needs. Do these girls have time to go to school? Obviously not!
Rotary has many projects to drill wells and create water sources in many villages in needy countries. Our District Water Chairman, Dr. Bob Vincent, is an expert in helping to find water sources using global positioning devices and thermal technology. This technology greatly increases the chances of finding water versus drilling in a haphazard fashion.
Seven out of 10 children under the age of five who die needlessly do so because of malaria, diarrhea, and other water-borne illness. After focusing efforts against water-borne disease, Rotary is working to create clinics, provide immunizations, and develop other health related services in areas of extreme need. Teaching mothers how to prevent disease transmission as well as the proper care and nurturing of their infants and children is a major step in preventing needless deaths. PDG Chuck Stocking is leading our District's efforts in the Health and Hunger and PDG Jim Hunt is Zone 28 Coordinator
for Health and Hunger.
Without a program in literacy, many of Rotary's other efforts would go unheeded or be lost in short order. Rotary needs to help people understand that open sewers cannot be placed near water supplies or that cattle cannot be placed near supplies either. Families must learn how to create and maintain sanitary conditions in their homes and living areas through reading and education. PDG Steve Day heads up literacy programs for District 6600.
What has your Rotary Club done to address these human needs around the world? Some Rotary Clubs have excellent records already; others have done nothing. Our International Service Chairman, Bob Ruehl, has a hip-pocket full of potential projects for your consideration. All it takes is a contribution of $1,000 from your club. With this, your club can get matching grants from the District's Designated Fund (DDF) and by Rotary International, which will allow your club to create a project totaling as much as $32,000 after similar matches by the receiving club and district.
Do you see it yet? Yes, you can do your part to Make Dreams Real for mankind too!
Rotarians, these are interesting times. Rotary is making significant impacts throughout the world. Aren't you proud to be a member of Rotary?
Please enjoy the rest of the July 2008 Newsletter.
Meet your Assistant Governors for 2008-2009: 
5 day 4-night Land or Sea Cruise 2008 
On February 22,, 2008 we ran a story on a Rotary Club in Timbo Brazil that was looking for an International Club to work with to supply hospital equipment to a local clinic. 
