Tuesday May 12th I crossed district lines and visited the Rotary Club de Lanus district 4910. Fellow Ambassadorial Scholar Adam Boscoe, and his counselor invited Willie and me to their Tuesday night meeting. After an always-exciting drive through the city we arrived at Lanus, a province to the capital of Buenos Aires. This particular club is the largest of its district with 33 members, and its main social focus is education. Their yearly project consists of sponsoring local high school students, in which they provide the aid necessary for materials, transportation, tuition, and clothing. As well, a support group known as La Rueda Feminina (The Female Wheel) provides support to their local club. The women that participate in this group are typically the wives of the Rotarians, but are not official members. I was told that they really are the go-getters of the club; however, they have separate meetings from the gentleman.
I don't mean separate like on a different day, I mean, same day, same place but on the other side of the curtain (literally). One of the members from Lanus was quite confused that I was on his side of the curtain, and even offered to walk me over to the other side. What a gentleman! Fortunately the president stopped him and informed me that I would be speaking to their club tonight. However, I did go over and meet the ladies and made plans to dine with them the next time. Dinner was great as usual and afterwards came the club updates. More than once the upsetting loss that the soccer team of Lanus faced the night before was mentioned as it was quite the game. The night was dedicated to initiating a new member and working out the fine details of the "district switch". In June, along with the changing of the club president, Lanus will be changing districts. Being that is currently the biggest club in their small district, hopefully the change will bring them more project opportunities.
Willie and I both spoke about the role of the counselor and the role of Rotary in the scholar’s experience. Willie explained that it's the counselor's responsibility to help integrate the scholar into their family, their club, and their country. For me I mentioned the role of family that Rotary has assumed in my life since I've gotten here, and how with all of the love and support I've received from my club and especially my counselor, it's aided in my transition and has enhanced my experience. I would also like to thank great Rotary clubs like Lanus for inviting me to dine with them, and great Rotary scholars like Adam for sharing his experience with me.
Enjoy the pictures…and yes the women were invited over to watch our presentations. Notice the grand entrance through the curtains.
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