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Avenues of Service and Object of Rotary

While the original basis of Rotary was fellowship, service to others soon became its hallmark. Each club determines its own service activities, which it channels through four “Avenues of Service” — Club Service, Vocational Service, Community Service, and International Service.  

Each avenue has an overall committee. Most of these committees have subcommittees that focus on specific areas of that avenue. These avenues are explained in detail in the Rotary Basic Library. You will have the opportunity to serve in one or more of these committees. You need not wait to be asked – you may volunteer at any time. If you are shy, don’t worry, we will assign you somewhere. Every member of the club serves on at least one committee.

The avenues are based on the four-part Object of Rotary.  The object of Rotary is to encourage and foster the ideal of service as a basis of worthy enterprise and in particular, to encourage and foster:

1. the development of acquaintance as an opportunity for service,
2. the high ethical standards in business and professions, the worthiness of all useful occupations and the dignifying of each Rotarian’s occupation as an opportunity to serve society,
3. the application of the ideal of service in each Rotarian’s personal, business and community life, and
4. the advancement of international understanding, goodwill and peace through a world fellowship of business and professional persons united in the ideal of service.

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The Four Way Test

The second avenue of service is vocational. Its purpose is the application of the service ideal to business life and to the instilling of high ethical standards in business. The Four Way Test was developed by Herbert Taylor in 1932 as an operating tool in his company to inspire honesty and integrity. Rotary adopted the test as a hallmark of its vocational emphasis. It is a test of the things we think, say or do:

1. Is it the truth?
2. Is it fair to all concerned?
3. Will it build goodwill and better friendships?
4. Will it be beneficial to all concerned?

If we abide by this test in whatever we do in our personal lives and in our chosen vocations, we will be well on the way to leading productive lives that are sensitive to the needs and feelings of others. You are now a member of an organization that is attempting every day to raise the standard of conduct between human beings. We are very serious about this code of conduct and enlist your support in this endeavour.

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Types of Membership

There are only two types of membership in Rotary – active and honourary.

An active member is one who is active in his/her work life or retired from being engaged as a proprietor, partner, corporate officer, manager or an executive position with discretionary authority in his or her business of profession. Active membership is limited to 5 members (or 10% of our total membership) from each classification of business or profession except in three unlimited areas: media, religion and diplomatic service.

An honorary member is a person who has been elected to membership on an annual basis due to distinquished service in the furtherance of Rotary ideals.

Classifications
A member holds a classification which is the word or phrase that describes the principal and recognized activity of the firm, company, or institution with which he or she is connected, or that describes his or her principal and recognized business or professional activity.
Your classification is considered on loan to you for as long as you are a member of the club. Represent it well. Should your business change, your classification will also change.
The purpose of the classification system is to create a membership that is diverse and representative of the community from which the membership is drawn.
A classification guide is in use at Rotary, click here to know more- .

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Rotary Programs

Rotary International encourages clubs to focus their Community Service activities in certain areas. Areas of emphasis include combating hunger and violence, promoting literacy, preventing drug abuse and AIDS, meeting the needs of children, helping the elderly, and protecting the environment (a program known as Preserve Planet Earth — PPE).

INTERACT	ROTARACT	RYLA	RLI

PPE	RCC	RV	RYE	WCS	RFE	RRVF

Rotary International programs such as World Community Service (WCS), Rotary Community Corps (RCC) and Rotary Volunteers (RV) link communities needing help with Rotary clubs and individuals willing to provide assistance. Popular RI programs for youth and young adults include Interact and Rotaract service clubs, Rotary Youth Exchange (RYE), and Rotary Youth Leadership Awards (RYLA). Friendship Exchange(RFE) and Rotary Recreational and Vocational Fellowships are still other ways Rotarians nurture global fellowship.

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The Rotary Foundation is one of the largest public charity in the world. It was established in 1917 and is managed by Rotary International at Evanston, IL.

The purpose of the Foundation is to further the fourth object of Rotary – to advance international understanding, goodwill, and peace.  Rotarians and Rotary clubs provide the bulk of the financial support for the Foundation.  

The Rotary Foundation provides humanitarian grants worldwide through innovative programs. The best-known program is PolioPlus, Rotary’s ambitious program to help achieve the global eradication of polio. Other major initiatives include 3-H (Health, Hunger and Humanity) Grants, Matching Grants, and Peace programs.

The Rotary Foundation’s oldest educational program is Rotary Ambassadorial Scholarships, the world’s largest privately funded scholarship program. The Foundation also awards Grants for University Teachers to teach in less-developed nations and enables international exchanges of business and professional people through Group Study Exchange

Contributions to the Foundation are recognized on several levels.

1. Paul Harris Sustaining Member – An individual who makes an initial contribution of a minimum of US$100.00 and intends to make similar contributions annually, is recognized as a sustaining member. 
2. Paul Harris Fellowship – An individual who contributes, or in whose name is contributed, the amount of US$1,000.00 is recognized as a Paul Harris Fellow.
3. Sapphire – After donating the initial US$1,000.00 to the Foundation, many Rotarians continue to select the Foundation as their charity of choice. The Foundation issues a pin which contains a sapphire for each additional US$1,000.00 contributed, as recognition of this effort. This pin can contain five sapphires. 
4. Ruby - Contributions beyond the US$6,000.00 level are recognized with rubies for each additional US$1,000.00. Foundation funds collected in year one are not spent until year three. This investment period pays for the complete operation of the fund as well as allows time to plan appropriate expenditures. Thus, every dollar
   donated to the Foundation is actually expended on real projects.

Rotary Foundation Permanent Fund     

A permanent fund was established in 1982. Funds contributed to the Permanent Fund are held in perpetuity and only the income is spent on projects. This allows a donation to produce income forever.  Income from the Permanent Fund helps to support the general programs of Rotary.  Contributions to the Foundation’s Permanent Fund are recognized through the Benefactor recognition program. A contribution of US$1,000.00 to this fund allows the donor or the designate to be recognized as a Benefactor. A gift may be made in cash or through one’s will, with formal notification to the Foundation.  Beginning in 2000, a person can bequest US$10,000.00 or more to become a member of the Bequest Society.

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How Rotary is Organized

Clubs 
Rotarians are members of more than 32,000 Rotary clubs, which belong to the global association of Rotary International (RI). Each club elects its own officers and enjoys considerable autonomy within the framework of Rotary’s constitution and bylaws. 

Districts 
Clubs are grouped into approximately 530 RI districts, each led by a district governor, who is an RI officer and leads about 50 clubs. The district administration, including assistant governors and various committees, guides and supports the clubs.   

Zones 
For identification purposes, Districts are grouped into zones.  There are no distinctive leadership structure in a zone.

The RI Boards 
The 19-member RI Board of Directors , which includes the RI president and president-elect, meets quarterly to establish policies. Traditionally, the RI president, who is elected annually, develops a theme and emphasis for the year. 

The Secretariat 
RI is headquartered in Evanston, Illinois, USA, with seven international offices in Argentina, Australia, Brazil, India, Japan, Korea, and Switzerland. The office of Rotary International in Great Britain and Ireland (RIBI), located in England, serves clubs and districts in that region. 

The Secretariat’s active managing officer is the general secretary, who heads a 650-member staff working to serve Rotarians worldwide. Contact the Secretariat . 

Council on Legislation 
The Council on Legislation, Rotary’s “parliament,” meets every three years to deliberate and act upon all proposed enactments and resolutions submitted by clubs, district conferences, the RIBI Conference or General Council, and the RI Board. The Council itself also makes proposals. Read more about the Council on Legislation . 

The Trustees of The Rotary Foundation 
The 15 directors of The Rotary Foundation are appointed by the RI president, with the agreement of the RI Board. The Trustees manage all business of the Foundation. The trustee chair, who serves for one year as chair, is the head of the Trustees. Each trustee is appointed to a four-year term. 

The World Headquarters of Rotary International is located in Evanston, Illinois, U.S.A., a suburb of Chicago. It has an international staff, headed by the General Secretary. Service centers also are located in Parramatta, Australia; São Paulo, Brazil; Delhi, India; Tokyo, Japan; Zürich, Switzerland; Buenos Aires, Argentina; Seoul, Korea; and Manila, Philippines.

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Rotary does not want knife and fork members or what we call RINOs (Rotarians In Name Only). We want you to participate. When you participate, our club is more effective. When you do not participate, our club is weakened.

One of the measures of participation is attendance at regular meetings. In Rotary, attendance is required.  Without regular attendance, you do not learn about your club activities and you do not come to know your fellow club members. You are important to Rotary, or we would not have elected you to membership. How important Rotary is to you will be shown by your attendance record.

The standard club consititution requires that a member must attend at least 60% of the meetings in each six month period of the Rotary year. Half of these must be at your home club.

Make-ups

Occasionally business, travel, or illness will prevent your attendance. You have the privilege to complete a make-up by attending a meeting of another Rotary club anywhere in the world. You have thirteen days prior to the regular meeting or thirteen days after the regular club meeting, in which to complete a make-up. It is your responsibility to advise the secretary of any make-ups you have. Make-up slips from the club you visited are no longer required.

Make-ups are one of the fun privileges in Rotary. You are warmly welcomed by a group that knows nothing about you except you are a Rotarian like them. The friendship they extend to you will explain again what we mean by fellowship. In Rotary, a stranger is a friend you have not met before. Make-ups can be done at clubs in neighbouring areas or anywhere in the world. Foreign make-ups can be a highlight of your Rotary life. Our secretary has a directory which indicates when and where every club in the world meets.

Attendance credit is also earned for attending district conferences, assemblies, conventions, special meetings by the District Governor, Board meetings, and work projects. We also greet Rotarians from around the world at our club meetings. Be friendly, invite visitors to join your table, involve them in your conversations and make them want to come visit us again.

Conferences, Assemblies and Conventions

One of the duties of the District Governor is to organize the district conference. This is a three day event held in late spring or early summer and usually convened in the District Governor’s home town. Its purpose is information, inspiration and fellowship. All members of the district are urged to attend and to bring their spouses.

The district also sponsors an assembly each spring. Its purpose differs from that of the conference in that the purpose of the assembly is to provide practical, how-to information on various Rotary subjects; as well as training incoming officers of the clubs. The program lasts from four to six hours and is free. All members who wish to improve their knowledge of Rotary should attend.

RI annually holds the International Convention for Rotarians from all over the world. Attendance at these conventions leaves every Rotarian with the certain knowledge that internationality of Rotary is very real. Every Rotarian should attend at least one international convention is his or her Rotary career.

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Four areas of participation are mandatory.

1. Attend club meetings, as discussed above.
2. Serve on at least one committee.
3. We are a service club and we need more members to serve. OBTAINING NEW MEMBERS IS EVERYONE’S JOB IN ROTARY.
4. Fund raising. Every member is obligated to do his or her share to raise funds, no matter what the project is.

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Admission Fees, Dues & Other Costs

Admission (one time) 
Annual Dues 
Meal Dues during Meetings 

In addition to admission fees, dues, and meal costs, there are other costs to your membership. You will be expected to participate fully in fund-raising activities. Usually they are structured so that we obtain funding from sources outside the club by soliciting or selling. Also, from time to time, we may ask your company to support our activities by donating some product or service.  Occasionally, there will be club social functions which may require extra expenditure. Finally, we expect your time. That is probably your most precious possession. We promise to use it well.

The treasurer maintains a ledger for each member, and you are expected to pay your ledger account on a monthly basis.  A portion of your annual dues goes to District and International to pay for their respective administrative overhead.  The balance pays for all club overhead.

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You should always wear your Rotary lapel pin. You will be surprised at the number of people who will greet you upon recognizing the pin. At our club meetings you are expected to wear your badge, so that visitors to the club will know who you are.

Business Relationships

Rotarians are banded together for the purpose of doing service. We are not banded together as a business network. It is understood that Rotarians do business with each other, presumably because it is natural to do business with those you know and trust and who adhere to the business ethics espoused by Rotary.

Biography

Members’ biographies are a frequent program at club meetings. As a new member, you will be asked to address the club for five to fifteen minutes to describe your classification and to tell us something of your personal background, so we can get to know you.

Programs

Each week we strive to present a program on an interesting topic. We like to learn more about new business ventures and what is going on in our community and region. Seek out good speakers that may be of interest to your fellow Rotarians.

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Because Rotary often involves private family time, as well as time away from business, it is important for family members to know about Rotary. Sharing this brochure with them may be the first step. The ways that family members can be involved in Rotary work vary from club to club and country to country. The way they choose to be involved also varies. For example, in some communities Rotary spouses associate together to support the service activities of the local club; their associations are independent of Rotary International. A number of exciting RI programs are open to either spouses or children of Rotarians, including Youth Exchange, Rotary Recreational and Vocational Fellowships, Rotary Friendship Exchange, and Pre- and Post-Convention Homestay. However, family members are ineligible to participate in some programs, for example, Foundation scholarships.

Here are some suggestions for including your family members in the world of Rotary:

• Introduce family members to Rotarians as you meet them in any circumstance.
• Invite family members to a Rotary club meeting.
• Tell your family about various projects and activities of your club.
• Invite to your home or to a social activity Rotary Youth Exchange students or Rotary Ambassadorial Scholars sponsored or hosted by your club or district.
• Include your family members in all appropriate activities, such as social events and various service activities.
• Encourage your spouse — and children, when permitted and appropriate — to attend the district conference, regional conferences, and the Rotary International Convention.
• Encourage your sons or daughters of the appropriate age to consider joining Interact (for ages 14-18) or Rotaract (for ages 18-30).