PAYPAL is Now Available for Breakfast Ticket Purchases

RLI Executive Director Michael Rabasca has arranged with PayPal to expedite the payment for RLI Convention Breakfast tickets (and annual dues as well). Simply follow the directions below. (Of course checks in US Dollars can be used.)

• Follow PayPal instructions to send funds to m.rabasca@comcast.net
• Include your name and district when sending funds to Pay Pal

Here are the Birmingham RLI Breakfast Facts:

Date: June 24, 2009—Place: Crowne Plaza Birmingham NEC—Time: 7:30 a.m. (doors open 7:00 a.m.)—Principal Speaker, Past R.I. President Cliff Dochterman—Speakers: R.I. Vice-President Monty Audenart and R.I. Director Michael Colasurdo, Sr.—Who may attend?: Any Rotarian interested in leadership development for Rotary CLUBS—Price: US$ 45.00 per person; how to register: Mail check or use PayPal or contact RLI Executive Director Michael Rabasca, 210 Thomas Road, Mendham, New Jersey 07945 USA, m.rabasca@comcast.net . See also flyer sent to entire RLI mailing list with all payment options.

Random Thoughts About Leadership

One of the many great speeches at the January International Assembly was presented by Past R.I. President Rajendra K. Saboo of Chandigarh, India. Many Rotarians have stated that his address on “Vocational Service: The Abandoned Avenue ”was the best speech on that topic they have ever heard. The best we can do to talk about that speech is to just present some quotes: “In dealing with Vocational Service, we seem to skirt the very first line of the second object of Rotary: ‘High ethical standards in business and professions.’ In those early years of the last century, just about the time when Rotary was born, barons of business proudly trumpeted: ‘Business is business. The public be damned.’ The society was inundated with self-seekers who were unrestrained in their practices to amass wealth or power. In such selfish and narrow business conditions, Rotary dealt with this sensitive subject of ethics with courage and conviction. In 1910, at the first Rotary convention in Chicago, Arthur Sheldon, known as the father of vocational service, said that ‘business is the science of human service ’ and that ‘he profits most who serves his fellows best.’ How true this maxim was. And it still endures”.

When RLI presents its sessions on Vocational Service, all we have to do is to look at the state of business ethics today to realize how important that subject is to Rotarians today. It is one of the most important sessions in the RLI curriculum, because good leadership needs integrity. (See the complete speech on the Rotary International Website, www.rotary.org)

Welcome New Members of Senior Leaders Advisory Board

RLI is honored to welcome three new members to its Intl. Senior Leaders Advisory Board. Immediate past R.I. President, Wilfrid Wilkinson of Trenton, Ontario, Canada is the ninth past R.I. president to join the board. Also joining the Board are Past R.I. Director (1995-97) and Trustee, Kalyan Banerjee of Mumbai, India and incoming R.I. Director Fred Hahn of Missouri, USA. We are proud to have these outstanding Rotary leaders on our Advisory Board.

Welcome New Divisions/Districts

RLI is very pleased to welcome two new divisions:

RLI welcomes the newly formed Argentina-South/Central Division as of 1 July, 2009. The initial member districts are 4920 and 4940. Chair of the Division is PDG Juan Pedro Torroba of Santa Rosa, Argentina. PDG Torroba is a member of the R.I. Membership Development and Retention Committee and is a member of the Rotary Foundation Alumni Advisory Committee. He previously was General Coordinator for a number of years of the Rotary Foundation Alumni Coordinators. District 4920 consists of parts of LaPampa and Buenos Aires. District 4940 consists of parts of Santa Fe, Entre Rios and eastern Uruguay. Governors-Elect of the two districts are Horacio R. Bustos and Adriana Martinez, respectively.  We also thank RIDE Antonio Hallage, RLI Intl. Regional Vice-Chair for Latin America for his efforts for the new division.

We also welcome the The Netherlands Division with initial District 1570. Chair of the new division is Past R.I. Director Stan Tempelaars, Chair of the R.I. Operations Review Committee, a member of the Future Vision Committee, a member of the Polio Plus National Advocacy Advisors and Chair of the Permanent Fund Committee for Europe & RIBI. The initial District Governor is Arthur F.M.M. Verdonck of Hilversum, The Netherlands. We also thank PRIVP Serge Gouteyron, RLI intl. Regional Vice-Chair for Western Europe, for his efforts for the new division.

The admission of these three districts exceeds the 2008-9 RLI expansion goals of 180 member districts by June 30, 2009.

Website Updates

The RLI Website, www.rotaryleadershipinstitute.org is updated frequently with the latest update date shown on the home page. Since the last eBulletin, the site has added the first phase of a leadership bibliography under Resources for Member Districts and the 2007-8 Annual Report has been posted under RLI Organizational Information. Other listings, of divisions and districts, senior leaders advisory board members, etc. are continually updated. Each monthly eBulletin is posted on the website.

BEGINNING SOON, The Ebulletins will also be posted on the Website in French, courtesy of PDG Jacques di Costanzo, Chair of the France Division.

Training Team Visits

PDG Dan Spencer, former RLI Regional Vice-Chair and Chair of the Northeast USA Division, conducted a faculty orientation in Peoria, Illinois USA for new faculty members in the Heart of America Division.

PDG Jim Henry, Intl. Regional Vice-Chair for Eastern USA, conducted a faculty orientation session and an organizational review meeting on March 21 and 22 in Omaha, Nebraska USA for the newly reorganized Heartland USA Division.

A report on the extensive Training Team visits to Nepal and India will appear in the April eBulletin.

Training team visits are also being planned for Brazil, Argentina, Egypt, the Balkans, Pakistan and Bangladesh and other locations.

Around the RLI World

The Japan Division continues to increase the number of their courses. Additional courses in three locations were held in Goshogawara, Japan on March 22 and are scheduled at other sites for April 20 and May 16. PRID Yoshikazu Minamisono is Chair and RIDE Masahiro Kuroda is Vice-chair of the division.

R.I. Director Tom Branum of Indiana, USA, a member of our Sr. Leaders Advisory Board has provided an interesting piece of historical information: “At one time, R.I. did not want clubs in cities with less than 35,000 population.” Think about that.

The Philippines Division has completed a series of faculty orientation sessions around that country and courses have begun in February and March of this year. PDG Sonny Coloma is Chair of the division.

The France Division continues with courses through May 23 in various sites in that country. Division Chair Jacques di Costanzo has arranged for French translations for much of the RLI materials.

RLI PHILOSOPHY

“Having leadership skills does not alone assure good Rotary leadership. An effective Rotary leader must ALSO have Rotary knowledge, perspective about where Rotary has been, where it is now going and a vision of what Rotary can be.”

Save the Dates!

All RLI divisions are invited to send representatives to the 2010 Annual International Curriculum Committee meeting that will be held on January 8, 9 & 10, 2010 at Orlando, Florida, USA. More information coming.