RI President-elect John Kenny announces RY 2009-10 Theme - The Future of Rotary is in Your Hands

If Rotary is to stay relevant in the 21st century, it must work to
improve access to clean water, combat hunger, and expand literacy.

RI President-elect John Kenny set that challenge in front of incoming
district governors on Monday, as he rolled out his 2009-10 presidential
emphases, noting that The Future of Rotary Is in Your Hands.

Kenny stressed that while clubs are the backbone of Rotary, emphases
help coordinate the many individual efforts, encouraging clubs to direct
their work in the areas where the organization has seen the greatest
need and where there has been the greatest benefit.

"We also strive for continuity of service, so that we many continue
to go from strength to strength," Kenny said. "In [2009-10], I
will ask Rotarians everywhere to continue to learn from our experiences
and to build upon our successes. I ask you all to continue to work for
the health and well-being of not only children but their families and
people everywhere."

Access to clean water
Kenny set water as his first emphasis because "it is the necessity
of every man, woman, and child. We could, I suppose, all live without
oil, but we can none of us live without water."

Kenny, who has worked consistently on water projects for the past two
decades, emphasized that water projects must also encompass sanitation,
"because without adequate sanitation, our good work is easily
undone."

Health and hunger
Kenny described health and hunger as the tent within which much of
Rotary's service dwells. Rotarians who work in the area of health
and hunger are also working toward peace.

"How can there be peace in the world when so many will try to sleep
tonight without having eaten today?" Kenny asked incoming governors,
assembled for the annual International Assembly in San Diego,
California, USA.

Literacy
Literacy rounds out Kenny's emphases. "In the words of Nelson
Mandela, 'no country can succeed if its future leaders are not
educated,' " he said.

"Whether Rotary will thrive or falter, whether our service will mean
much to many or little to few, whether Rotary is known with respect or
seen as a relic of days gone by -- all this is up to you," Kenny
said. "The Future of Rotary Is in Your Hands."

Timothy Buckley, governor-elect from District 5870 (Texas, USA), said
the emphases give the new class of district governors a good direction
to follow. "We need to strengthen Rotary in order to help
others," he said.