District governor visits Elkins Rotary Club

ELKINS -- Rotary District 7535 District Governor Dan McCarthy of Fayetteville visited recently with the Rotary Club of Elkins.

McCarthy is a native of Auburn Hills, Michigan. He earned his bachelor's degree in engineering from Oakland University and an MBA from the Naval Postgraduate School. He also holds a Presidential Honorary Degree from WVU.

McCarthy completed a 38-year career as a logistician in the U.S. Navy and retired from military service as the head of logistics for the U.S. Navy in the Pentagon. McCarthy was invited to join Rotary in 1992 while working in Athens, Georgia.

A lifelong Scout leader, McCarthy came to West Virginia in 2012 when he was asked to oversee the final construction and opening of the Summit Bechtel Family National Scout Reserve.

Retiring from this position in 2017, McCarthy and his wife Carol have made West Virginia their home where they both remain involved in scouting.

McCarthy also supports economic development in the state and is a member of the West Virginia Humanities Council Board and is an advisory council member in support of the West Virginia University John Chambers College of Business and Economics.

McCarthy called attention to Rotary's Mission Statement in his remarks: "We provide service to others, promote integrity, and advance world understanding, goodwill, and peace through our fellowship of business, professionals and community leaders."

"That is the definition of Rotary, why we're here. That's what we signed on to when we became Rotarians," said McCarthy. "This mission statement is what we do."

The current year's theme for Rotary International is "Create Hope in The World." The theme changes with each international president. 2023-2024 President Gordon McInally developed this theme as a result of a visit to Thailand to review Rotary's efforts there.

In 2004, there was a 9.1 magnitude earthquake in the Indian Ocean off the coast of Sumatra. The quake created a tsunami that hit from Thailand to the west coast of Africa, killing over 230,000 people within hours. Thailand was particularly hard hit.

"Rotary responded initially through its partnership with Shelter Box to provide immediate shelter and immediate cooking capability to families that have been displaced," McCarthy said.

"As recovery efforts continued, Rotarians leveraged global grants from the Rotary Foundation to restore infrastructure in Thailand and other countries affected by the tsunami," he said.

"A year after the tsunami, McInally visited a village in Thailand where a woman presented him with a shell that had been an heirloom in her family. He didn't want to accept it because it was a family heirloom but she insisted that he take it. This woman had lost her husband, her son, her daughter, her home and her livelihood as a result of the tsunami. Yet, she wanted to express her appreciation for what Rotary had done in her village -- rebuilding a community center, a health center and helping to re-establishing the fundamental components of the village. She told McInally, 'I want you to have this because Rotary gave me hope.'"

Rotary International's number one current priority is the eradication of polio. The project started as an effort to immunize 100 children in Manila (Philippines) against polio in 1979.

By the mid-80's it had become the Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI) to eradicate polio in all countries. Rotary currently partners with The World Health Organization, U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, UNICEF and The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation which matches the funds raised by Rotary on a 2 to 1 basis.

Recently, the Rotary Club of Elkins held a "Sabotage" fundraiser for Polio Plus with the club divided into two teams. Each team was encouraged to make donations to their designated jar with all gifts (with the exception of $5 gifts) counting toward that team's overall total.

All $5 gifts were deducted from the total, thus "sabotaging" that team's total. $643 was raised by the club and, thanks to the Gates Foundation, that total raised will result in over $1,900 toward to goal of global polio eradication.

During 2023, only 10 worldwide cases of the wild polio virus have been identified so far. Pakistan and Afghanistan are the only countries reporting cases.

"The head of the military in Pakistan has committed to ensuring every child in Pakistan gets vaccinated. In Afghanistan, the Taliban is allowing vaccine-givers to reach their children in mosques," said McCarthy.

In addition to the Polio Plus program, McCarthy shared President McInally's other main goal -- making the world a better place by prioritizing mental health, building peace through virtual exchanges and continuing progress on empowering girls and diversity, equity and inclusion.

McCarthy's final comments focused on the current effort to establish a Gold Star Family Memorial Monument in Elkins. Final steps are being taken to obtain approval to construct the monument beside the Veteran's Memorial; construction is planned to begin next summer. A fundraising effort will be undertaken soon to raise the remaining $100,000 necessary for the monument.

Rotary is a global network of 1.4 million neighbors, friends, leaders and problem-solvers who see a world where people unite and take action to create lasting change -- across the globe, in their communities, and in themselves.

Visit www.Rotary.org to learn more about Rotary International, visit the club's Facebook page -- Rotary Club of Elkins -- or contact club president Kenny George at kenneth.george@blueridgeriskpartners.com for more information.