Rotary International President-Elect Visits Effingham

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Published on March 18 2019 10:29 am
Last Updated on March 18 2019 10:29 am
Written by Greg Sapp

The incoming leader of a worldwide organization that numbers more than 1.2 million members was in Effingham over the weekend.

Mark Maloney will take over on July 1 as Rotary International President. The Decatur, Alabama resident is a native of southern Illinois, born in Eldorado and raised on a farm in Gallatin County. He went to Alabama out of law school when given a job opportunity has remained there for 38 years, remaining a member of the same Rotary club.

Maloney said someone should join Rotary to connect for their personal betterment, to connect for their professional betterment, and to connect with efforts to serve their community and the world. To underscore his beliefs, Maloney has selected "Rotary Connects the World" as the 2019-2020 international theme.

The eradication of Polio is Rotary's corporate goal. While Rotary has worked on that goal since 1979, it was a challenge in 1985 from the developer of the oral polio vaccine, Dr. Albert Sabin, that got Rotarians directly involved in the fight. Maloney said Rotary partners with the World Health Organization, UNICEF, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to eradicate polio. From 350,000 cases in 125 nations in 1985, the number of cases has dropped to 33 in two nations, Afghanistan and Pakistan.

Maloney has come up through the ranks in Rotary, serving as a club president and as a district governor, led an Exchange team to Nigeria, and has served Rotary International in various ways. As to the exchange team, one of Rotary's goals is to promote peace and understanding among nations and cultures, and the exchanges further that goal.

Maloney plans to work in his law office at least five days a month during his year as RI President. He said it's an effort to show that you can work and still be involved in Rotary leadership.

Maloney was in Effingham for the PETS Seminar. PETS is an acronym for President-Elect Training Seminar, designed to ready incoming club presidents for their year in office. Rotarians from four districts in Illinois and Indiana were in Effingham for the training.

Greg Sapp got to participate with other local media representatives in a question-and-answer session with Mark Maloney. Here's their conversation: