District Governor Mark Chipman's May 2021 Newsletter

Hello District 7070 Rotarians and the whole Rotary family:

Youth Services is Rotary International’s focus for the month of May.  While COVID threw our District Youth Services program an unexpected curveball, Youth Services is alive and kicking in District 7070!

Here are some of the Youth Services programs in our District:

• Rotary Youth Exchange provides young people with the opportunity to travel to other countries and experience different cultures.  Click here for more information on Youth Exchange or visit the District 7070 Youth Exchange website by clicking here.

• Honouring Indigenous People Youth-to-Youth Engagement. An exciting new program connecting and uniting Indigenous and Non-Indigenous youth (all genders between Grades 9-11).  The program has evolved from pilot engagements and draws from the success of Rotary’s Youth Exchange Program and Rotary Youth Leadership Awards (RYLA) with input from Indigenous Elders, Knowledge Keepers and Leaders.

• Rotaract (Rotary in Action) is a Rotary Club for people 18+ years and focuses on personal and professional growth and community service.  Clubs are either community, college or university based.  Our District currently has 9 active Rotaract Clubs.  A new community-based club is targeted for the Durham Region in the coming months!  The D7070 Rotaract Conference is May 8.  For more information and to register click here!

• EarlyAct is a school club for elementary students in Grades 5-8.  The program focuses on preparing students to take on leadership roles in their school and community.

• Interact (International Action) is a club for young people between the ages of 14 and 18. All Interact Clubs are part of the Rotary International organization and every club must be sponsored by a Rotary Club. Our District has 217 Interactors.

• RYLA (Rotary Youth Leadership Awards) is a leadership experience organized for youth ranging from 19-25 years.  RYLA participants are sponsored by a Rotary Club to attend an intensive program focused on diversity, leadership and action while making connections and having fun. 

• ROTEX (ROTary EXchange) is a group of Rotary Youth Exchange alumni.  An organized and engaged group of ROTEX students from our District play an active role in the promotion and development of youth programs, specifically Rotary Youth Exchange. 

Due to COVID our Youth Exchange Program was cancelled for this year and next.  RYLA was also cancelled this year. However, as the light at the end of this COVID tunnel starts to slowly appear, we now focus on revitalizing our Youth Services programs to make them even stronger and more modern/relevant!

I was inspired by our Tuesday Talks session in March with a Youth Services theme.  Rotaractors, Interactors, EarlyActors, RYLA and ROTEX members came together to share their stories with over 125+ attendees and described how the Rotary experience changed their lives!  On March 30, about 50 District members joined in a virtual info session on Youth Exchange and learned how their clubs can participate in the next Youth Exchange Program in 2022-23.  These events reinforced that youth services are important to our members and a significant part of the Rotary District 7070 cultural fabric.

We are also embarking now on a Youth Exchange Strategic Plan with 2WA Consulting to help us define Youth Exchange in a post-COVID world and ensure it remains healthy and viable in District 7070.

If you have any questions related to Youth Services in District 7070, please contact our District Youth Services Committee Chair Patti Wright (patti.rotary@gmail.com).