Local Celebration of Rotary Foundation Centennial Features President-Nominee of Rotary International
Samuel Frobisher Owori, the president-nominee of Rotary International - the global humanitarian service organization - will be the keynote speaker at the District 6440 Rotary Foundation 100th Anniversary Dinner 5:30 p.m. - 9 p.m. Sunday, November 13 at Rolling Green Country Club 2525 E. Rand Road, in Arlington Heights, IL.
Owori will help Rotary District 6440, which covers northeastern Illinois, celebrate the centennial of the Rotary Foundation, the $1 billion charitable arm of Rotary International. To mark the anniversary, Rotary aims to raise $300 million by July 2017 for its campaign to eradicate polio and for service in communities around the world.
"Today more than ever, the world needs to know and understand Rotary's impact and values of advancing international understanding, goodwill, and peace," stated Owori, who will the first Ugandan to lead Rotary International when he begin his term on July 1, 2018.
"We are all too busy and we've lost our patience. Through friendship and service, membership in Rotary offers countless ways to connect and create meaningful change in your community, as well as opportunities to see the world through a more global lens."
Rotary District 6440, which includes more 70 Rotary clubs and more than 2,300 Rotarians, has played a strong supportive role in the Rotary both through financial support of the Rotary Foundation and hands-on efforts in its initiatives to strengthen ccommunities.
Local Rotarians have contributed their time, energy and passion to carry out impactful and sustainable projects in the areas of peace and conflict resolution, disease prevention and treatment, water and sanitation, basic education and literacy, and economic and community development. Northeastern Illinois Rotarians also have joined forces with Rotary's 1.2 million members from more than 200 countries and geographical areas, in working toward the eradication of polio.
Since Rotary launched its immunization program in 1985 and began working with global health partners, the incidence of paralyzing disease has plummeted by more than 99.9 percent, from about 350,000 cases a year to 26 confirmed to date in 2016. Rotary has contributed more than US $1.6 billion and countless volunteer hours to immunize more than 2.5 billion children in 122 countries.
As president, Owori will oversee PolioPlus and work with Rotary's partners in the eradication initiative, including the World Health Organization, UNICEF, U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
Owori is chief executive officer of the Institute of Corporate Governance of Uganda. Before that, he was executive director of the African Development Bank, managing director of Uganda Commercial Bank Ltd., and director of Uganda Development Bank. He has studied law, employment relations, business management, corporate resources management, microfinance, and marketing at institutions in England, Japan, Switzerland, Tanzania, and the United States, including Harvard Business School.
About District 6440 Rotary Foundation 100th Anniversary Dinner
Registration for the dinner is on online http://rotary6440.org/event/rotary-foundation-dinner/ Tickets are $75.